Thank you Dad for all you taught me

Normally I wouldn't post about my personal life on LinkedIn, but after my Dad suddenly passed away this week, I realized how much he taught me about living a life of service.?I hope you also have a father that has positively shaped your life. I encourage you to take some time to reflect on what you have learned from your father.?

It is with a heavy heart that I find myself having to say goodbye to you Dad.?It isn’t what I expected nor what I wanted, but yet we have parted for now.?The only solace I have is knowing without a doubt that we will be together once again in heaven.

You instilled in me a strong reverence for God and a faith rooted in Luther's Small Catechism and confirmed in the Apostles Creed.?As a child I remember sitting on your lap if I was acting up during service or your glance to listen up and learn.?Thank you for sharing your faith with me and showing your faith through your life of service.

One of my earliest memories is when you came home in Pichilingue, Ecuador with a llama in the back of your Chevy K-10?Blazer.?We drove that Blazer to work every day and you would drop me off with Don Alberto to work herding cows and riding Figurine, the horse you got me when I was just 4 years old.?Thank you for teaching me the importance of hard work and perseverance as you would often encourage me by saying, "If at First You Don't Succeed, Try, Try Again".

Not only did you work hard, but you enjoyed life. You loved to get friends and family together and throw a party at our house. We had the largest collection of records that we listened and would dance into the night, frequently calling for "late lights" in Limoncocha to extend our time together.?You encouraged me to follow my passions, whether it was water sports with my first windsurfer or mechanics by restoring our Corvette together.?Thank you for showing me how to really enjoy life.

You loved people and would make friends with anyone regardless of race, creed or color.?Given your status as "Doctor Bishop", you could have easily stood above others. Instead you would say, "Yo Soy Montubio" - a declaration that you were not a gringo, but an Ecuadorian.?Our friends became family as we shared life together growing up in Columbia and Ecuador.?Thank you for teaching me how to love others and sharing with me the love of Latin culture.

I realize now that you gave me a mission to Live, Love and Serve.?You lived a life of service dedicated to helping others, not only throughout Latin America but also in Liberia and Haiti. It wasn't about handouts, but really about helping ourselves and applying what we learned. Through your deep knowledge and wisdom, you embodied the motto: "Give a man a fish, and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish, and you feed him for a lifetime."?Thank you for teaching me how to show true charity by serving others so they can help themselves.

Thank you Dad for the 54 years we had together on this earth.?You shaped me and molded me into the man I am today.?I love you - your son, Mark.