OT: Bye to Uncle Rick

Kontradiction · Jun 9, 2016

My condolences. May he watch over you and bear witness to a Patriots Super Bowl run from just inside the Pearly Gates.

Ian · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for your loss @neuronet. That's such a great picture (your daughter is adorable) and it's the way I'm sure he'd want to be remembered. Best wishes to you and your family

Ring 6 · Jun 9, 2016

neuronet said:
Since my dad passed 10 years ago, my Uncle Rick and I grew very close. He played QB in High School and college (at UNH). It was like having a living connection to my dad, because they were a lot alike, salty New Englanders that were an acquired taste to outsiders.

What bonded us more than anything was Patriots football. After every game I would call him and analyze the game. He would give his analysis of QB play, coverage schemes, etc.. I would mostly listen because he knew 10x more than I did. Sometimes I would bring up stuff I read on this forum, and that would periodically make it seem like I knew what I was talking about.

About two years ago, I met some of his friends at this bar he would go to. They were like "Wait, you are the guy? Every time the damn Pats game ends Rick leaves the freakin' room so he can go talk to his damned nephew, leaving us high and dry. So you're the one ruining the end of the games for us? Thanks a lot kid!" This was a good feeling. It wasn't really about football for us.

It is the off-season so we don't talk quite as much, but we always expect it to pick up with each season. Unfortunately, six weeks ago he broke his hip, and at that time we found out he had Stage IV pancreatic cancer that had already metastasized to his liver. This morning he passed away. ****ing cancer just tore through him. Luckily I was able to go up to Newburyport to visit him five weeks ago and he was cogent enough to ***** with me about the Tom Brady ********, the Red Sox, and a few other things.

Godspeed Uncle Rick. Thanks for all these years of leaving your friends to touch base during the season. It was always about more than football. I don't know what I'll do at the end of the first game next season. There will be a big empty space there.

In time, I'll try to come up with some kind of fitting tribute to him to make it a little less empty...for now, much love Uncle Rick.

Here is is, pictured with my daughter, he always made sure we called him by the proper Great Uncle Rick in reference to her...he never married or had kids, and he adored the heck out of her.

Sorry for your loss.

Jackson 2 · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for your loss and may he RIP.

crownontherocks · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for your loss

neuronet · Jun 9, 2016

convertedpatsfan said:
It's amazing how sports can be a medium for forging such powerful close connections. It is about more than just a ball and some lines and some guys hitting each other. It's a medium to connect and stay connected with friends and family. Sometimes it means more than just who the backup center is going to be and that 4th-round cornerback you think won't make the team. It's a chance to reach out to the people you love.

Definitely. Especially the older I get, the more I appreciate this. I used to think it was superficial to think of it that way, but now I think it is superficial to think it is superficial. Relationships aren't always forged by deep converstation. It can be by sitting there not talking, fishing. Watching a game. Simple time under the bridge, lived experience over many years. That's where depth often comes from.

DaBruinz · Jun 9, 2016

Condolences on your loss.

Buchanty · Jun 9, 2016

It is so hard when a loved one passes, even harder when the bonds are strong. My commiserations to you and your family for the loss. Your pre-tribute mirrors my conversations with my sons, who always call after every Patriots game to share thoughts and discuss. I know how meaningful those exchanges can be, because they evoke passion, understanding and an intimacy of knowledge that you can never get online. Don't get me wrong, I am a great admirer of this forum, and to a slightly lesser degree the Patriots sub/reddit, but there is no substitute for the warmth and bonhomie of an actual conversation, which is amplified a thousandfold in person.

...and if I may be so bold, pay tribute to your Uncle as often and as long as you like. By doing so you keep the memories alive and vivid, so your daughter will grow up knowing the value of that relationship.

Tony2046 · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for your loss. Awesome that you had that connection.

Had a similar connection with my grandmother with the the Red Sox. It brings a smile to my face that she got to see them win the WS prior to her passing.

One of my favorite memories is when I brought up Roger Clemens and she immediately got pissed and spit out "TRAITOR .......I'll bet he was a wife beater!" hahaha

RIP Uncle Rick.

Brady_to_Moss · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for the loss. Sounds like a great relationship and lots of good memories to go off of

AtomicDawg · Jun 9, 2016

My condolences to you and your family. It really puts it in perspective how much this sport and this team means to so many. It builds, strengthens and maintains positive relationships with the ones we love. That's why I hate it when folks are discouraged or feel threatened when I say I'm a Pats fan. I always remember my grandfather wathing them and other sports as a child, and that's how the both of us became even closer before his death. So, as others have said, keep your uncle in your memories, so that when it comes time to see him again, you'll always have those to look back upon.

Ivan · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry to hear about your loss neuronet. My younger brother lost his battle with cancer a few years ago and I brought some of his ashes with me to a SB party the night the Patriots beat the Seahawks.

neuronet · Jun 9, 2016

Ivan said:
Sorry to hear about your loss neuronet. My younger brother lost his battle with cancer a few years ago and I brought some of his ashes with me to a SB party the night the Patriots beat the Seahawks.

Wow! That is amazing. What a tribute. Lost my brother at 18 to cancer. Awful disease ...just hate it.

Ivan · Jun 9, 2016

neuronet said:
Wow! That is amazing. Lost my brother at 18 to cancer. Awful disease ...just hate it.

Really sorry to hear it, that's really tough.

Take care

IcyPatriot · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for your loss ... he lives on in you.

Fencer · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for your loss.

Aunts/uncles can be really underrated. I bonded with my aunt quite late in life (late 20s for me, old age for her; she was 46 years old when I was born). I wish it had been earlier, but my parents were feud-with-family types. Worse, she was so deaf that the telephone was a non-option, and I really could communicate with her only when I flew across the country.

I remember her with great warmth even so.

Triumph · Jun 9, 2016

Condolences

I like to believe that another devout Pats fan up in heaven can only be a good thing when fighting evil like Goodell and the Ravens.

Mike the Brit · Jun 9, 2016

I'm very sorry for your loss, but, as Ian says, it's a fabulous photo that says everything about how your uncle felt about you and your family. May his memory stay sweet with you all.

oldrover · Jun 9, 2016

My condolences for your loss... what a wonderful guy. May God rest and keep Great Uncle Rick's immortal soul, and may His angels comfort Rick's loved ones with the knowledge that Rick... now has the best seat in the house.

anditsgood · Jun 9, 2016

Sorry for your loss, sounds likethe world lost a good one
Your family will be in my prayers

OT: Bye to Uncle Rick

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