Open Thread: RIP George Jamison

Open Thread: RIP George Jamison

My father, George Jamison, recently passed away. He had, as they say, a full life. He was a veteran of the Korean War, a sharpshooter, correctional officer, goat farmer, avid gardener, fisherman, sign painter, woodcarver and teller of terrible jokes. He was a husband, father, grandfather and even for a couple of years a great-grandfather. I will miss him.

Dad had missed a grade in school due to now-preventable childhood illnesses, so encouraged me to learn to read early on, and put up with how much my love of reading consumed my childhood. He was also very pro-vaccination. He worked hard to improve himself, and I remember the books he brought home on spelling and speed reading that I devoured as well.

Dad loved the outdoors much more than I did, but what healthy exercise I got in hunting, fishing and whitewater canoeing I owe to him.

As mentioned, he loved funny stories, like the one about the man who loved the Department of Natural Resources so much he got their logo tattooed on his chest. Which worked fine until he had a heart attack and the EMTs opened his shirt…

Dad had a sudden decline in health this last year, so it was not too much of a surprise when he took a turn for the much worse. He and Mom decided on home hospice, and Dad had a few last days together in familiar surroundings, and with family gathering around. I didn’t quite make it there, as he died while I was on the way, but the immediate family was able to gather before his body was removed to say goodbye, and the pastor of our hometown church led a brief memorial.

We’ll have a memorial service at the end of August, at the Osprey Wilds Environmental Center (the old Audubon center) near Sandstone, Minnesota.

I will miss my father very much.