JP's service

[gjhdiver 0]

Just got back from JP's service. Man it was packed out with people. Unlike most of us here, he actually had a life. There were people from his police times, church, community, and of course skydivers. We were the ones in the back looking uncomfortable in suits. There were many dz commers there from all over, and one of the coolest things was that when Corrine got up to read her rememberances of JP, she basically read a post that he made on dropzone.com about his kids.

Personally, I am the best lapsed Catholic ever since Genghis Khan. I've been an atheist ever since I was allowed to make a choice, and I'm stiing there in a Catholic church sweating like Jessica Simpson at a spelling bee. He would have loved that. In fact, I'm pretty much sure he arranged it.

I watched the religious take some comfort in this from their faith, and I was struck by how I was able to take comfort in my absense of it. They felt he was in a better place, whilst I don't even try to make sense of it. I live in the moment because I believe truly that that is all there is. Maybe we can all live together in peace

However, one thing I am absolutely sure of. The world is not a better place without JP in it. Not for his wife, his kids, or those of us that loved him. Not for me either, as he was my best friend. However, we're in a sport that atrracts the passionate, the lost, and those at the end of their rope. Enjoy each other while you can. Who knows what tomorrow will bring.

I'll be finding out his daughters birthdays. I expect each and every one of you who knew him to make a note, and let those kids know each and every Christmas and birthday that while their dad isn't there, there's a whole host of people that remember him and will be glad to share him with them.

[VanillaSkyGirl 6]

Thank you so much for the post. I've bee thinking of JP all day.

[Cornholio 0]

You're right Gareth, it was a great service.

Here's what Corrine quoted:

Quote

Yeah, the kids are cool. Even some of the boys try to get my attention and help with stuff cause I'm the only Dad-mom in the group. That, and I'm just so cool in my "Skydive Team Wings" T-shirt.

My girls have veils too. Our little Brides of Christ. Calling them that drives the agnostics nuts, but that's what they are, and they are going to wear their little "wedding dresses" Saturday and be all beautiful and grown up. They believe in Santa Claus, the tooth fairy, the Easter Bunny, and Jesus. They believe that marriage is forever, and that God will greet us in death.

Faith is a value-added thing in life. It detracts nothing. I love my lesbian vegan buddies just as much as the folks I go to church with. I leave judgement to the thing that comes after.

Even if nothing comes after, faith has added to my life, and the lives of my family and parishioners.

I just smile when I'm mocked for it. It's something that a fictional character named Christ taught me.

Great idea about the cards.

Butthead: Whoa! Burritos for breakfast!
Beavis: Yeah! Yeah! Cool!
bellyflier on the dz.com hybrid record jump

[Elisha 1]

Thanks for the summary, Gareth. It helps since I got out of work too late to make it to the Rosary service.

[vdoflyr 0]

I haven't been through a Catholic mass in 25 years. They should have a rule book, when to stand, sit, what to say, and when. I had no clue(as per usual) as to what was going on, and what was happening next. It was something JP would have pissed himself laughing about. Me, in a church, HA!

I'm really going to miss him. I loved him, he was my friend.

I don't understand what happened, or why he did what he did. I never will. I do know that my world is missing something. I have lost friends before and I can tell you the pain never goes away. You just seem to get numb to it after a while

[RkyMtnHigh 0]

Thanks for sharing.

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[FIREFLYR 0]

I wish I could have been there with you guys, but I just started a new job and would have been fired had I not shown up today...
JP was one of my favorite people at the DZ, I think he's one of the few people (in the world) who gets me, I could just tell.
JP flew camera on my first jump, Gareth was my main side, and Hookitt was my reserve side, but JP is what i remember most about that jump, as soon as I came out of my arch-four-thousand there he was with this huge smirking grin- I immediatly forgot everything i was supposed to do. It's funny, when I watch my first jump video I see JP with this huge grin, same with my 100th vid from the balloon in eloy. And then there was my intentional cut-away in eloy the next year that ended in JP looking up to see a huge rainbow jelly fish attacking his canopy, followed by him having to cut away, and then upon landing our little chat with the DZO which I was later told was a "Burking." and then there was the time we climbed the beacon... and the bottle of crown we split with Derik the pilot..or that wingsuit flight...or that hug at Pyramid brewery...
aw, fuck.
Gareth,Connie,Vic,Q,Tim,Bonny,Craig,Jett,Clay,Iwan, everybody in Byron, and beyond...his two little girls...I feel lucky to have been able to know JP, and my heart goes out to everyone who misses him too.
~J

"One flew East,and one flew West..............one flew over the cuckoo's nest"
"There's absolutely no excuse for the way I'm about to act"

[wmw999 2,589]

Thanks for posting that.

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[guppie01 0]

Whew~ 750 miles in less than 24 hours.... it was worth every second!!!!
Those girls of his are lil carbon copies of Deuce.... yes, they look like him, but the first thing I noticed when I arrived at the church was two lovely young ladies running through the aisle's hugging and sharing the love with everyone. Those two were intent on making sure everyone was comfortable and loved yesterday. I pray for those sweet innocent souls.

It was a lovely service.... Corrine and the girls sang... they sounded like angels. Tears were shed, including the Pastor when he addressed the girls directly. Deuce's love definitely filled the room!

Remember to love those dear to you with all of you!

xoxo
g

"Let's do something romantic this Saturday... how bout we bust out the restraints?"
Raddest Ho this side of Jersey #1 - MISS YOU
OMG, is she okay?

[ACMESkydiver 0]

Thanks for sharing that with us.

~Jaye
Do not believe that possibly you can escape the reward of your action.

[RoysPlayThing 0]

I sit so broken hearted to the one we have lost, my pain gets greater and greater as the almost like 'Domino effect' takes over in my heart for the pain of our last three recent losses.

Some people say they become numb to the horrendous losses... not that they don't feel terrible pain too... but because that is the best way our minds know how to shield our hearts from loss, questions not answered, and pain compiled.

I grieve as everyone grieves, I'm sure in different ways then others.. mine comes in spurts... my heart filled with happiness to what these friends brought to my life, How lucky I was to know them, How lucky I was to have them be a part in my life.... and then in another spurt, I find myself weeping for the loss... My loss, The loss of a family member, one who was a great father and husband, someone's girlfriend, a boyfriend, a son or daughter... and most of all a friend. A friend I've confided in, a member of my family.

I never know when the tears will come... seems so pathetic and lightly- that an adult with enough shifts and whirlwinds would be able to control her pain... but I don't need to control it... nobody does. With my experience, if we hold it all inside, our hearts can loose feeling, and I don't want that for me at least ever again.

So for me... this doesn't get better with time... Sadly for me, it seems to get worse. Again the 'Domino Effect' takes over. Loosing a friend is horrible, it breaks us down, huge chunks of us are now missing.. but life does go on, and we do have to bring those still here that we love so much, closer.... The love we have in our hearts for the friends we have lost.. collect, and enlarges the love in our hearts for those friends who are still here, that surround us and still hold us..... and what better can our missing friends do for us now... but to help us with that.

Peace be with our lost friends... Peace be with our present friends.

I Love U.

P.S. Notice there are a lot of "I's" in this note... It's because "I" am being selfish at the moment.. and for the moment, that is okay with me.

Lany

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My mind is like a parachute...it functions only when open.

[wmw999 2,589]

Lany, you took one of the best pictures ever taken of me. You are gifted that way -- I've seen so many good pictures you've taken, that people feel good about themselves when they look at.

Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[Jetace1 0]

After the memorial service, I again found myself sitting in a dark bar with Gareth during the middle of the day drinking Scotch and beer. (This always seems normal in an odd way, but only when I'm around Gareth.) I wish we had arrived there under better circumstances, but the stories about JP had us laughing for hours. That's the way JP would want it. I thought I would share one for Corinne, Camille and Yvette:

At the first team training camp in Elsinore last year, JP and I found ourselves as the last two soldiers standing in the kitchen of the team house (Steve Miller’s place) at 11:30pm drinking the beers I had left in the fridge from the previous season. As usual, I was complaining while John lent an understanding ear. Last year, like every year, I had to lose a huge amount of weight prior to Nationals. Thirty pounds to be exact. By that camp I had lost 15 pounds but was already sick of dieting. I was mad at myself for putting on the weight and generally whining about the whole process of taking it back off. All the while, John listened intently, occasionally interjecting helpful advice. (Use large muscle groups while lifting weights, don’t eat carbs late at night, etc.) By the end of the season, I just made my goal weight, partly due to JP’s guidance.

After listening to 15 minutes of inane complaining, I finally stopped talking. This is when John said something I wasn’t expecting. He said, and I’m quoting directly here, “I’m hungry. Let’s go get some Chili Dogs.”

I was stunned for a second, then launched into another five minutes of complaining and general whining. John had again listened courteously, then offered up the following: “Seriously. I’m hungry. I’m going to get some Chili Dogs. You’re not going to lose the other 15 pounds tonight, so feel free to join me, brother.”

Well, a good teammate can’t let his buddy go get chili dogs by himself. I mean, that would be wrong. So, out of the goodness of my heart, (yeah, right) I drove him to Weinerschitzel.

So, here is where it gets worse.

The Weinerschnitzel in Lake Elsinore is also a Tastee Freeze. As we pulled up, there was a giant sign featuring ice cream sundaes slathered in chocolate sauce in a plastic baseball hat for only 99 cents. Anyone who truly knows John will already know what he said. “I want one of those baseball hats!” Now, I knew darn well he was actually thinking three things:
1. He could care less about the baseball hat.
2. He wanted the ice cream sundae.
3. If he ate one, I would eat one too.

Long story short, half an hour later JP and I are sitting on the sofa feeling like bloated versions of Barney the dinosaur because we each downed two hot dogs and a giant hot fudge sundae and it was now midnight. Six hours later I was in the wind tunnel wondering at what point I was going to pass out. John was still back home, sound asleep, snoring like a lumberjack.

Truth be told, if he were here today, I’d do the whole thing all over again. I hope you and the girls know how much I miss him….

Bobby - Onyx 4-Way Team
www.onyx4.org
"I thought you said you fall fast."

[ltdiver 3]

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Six hours later I was in the wind tunnel wondering at what point I was going to pass out. John was still back home, sound asleep, snoring like a lumberjack.

Ah, the life of a cameraflyer!

It was great to see you at the service on Thursday, Robert. Thanks for the stories, too.

I was also amazed, as Gareth wrote, how JP's girls were smiling and running around taking care of everyone else. They looked like little angels and I was impressed so much by their poise.

Amazed, also, that priests cry. (never been inside a Catholic church before)

The stories around the BBQ Thursday night ranged from the serious to insane. I'm sure JP was right there laughing with us. Even when -he- was the butt of the joke. Man, his Byron friends have a sick sense of humor sometimes, I found out. In just the few hours I got to spend with them I could tell that the "Byron Love" was real. Thanks for welcoming me into your fold.

ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon