Charles William Hild

 

Charles William Hild.      Charles was Father, Son, Husband, Grandfather, Brother, Uncle, Father-in-Law, Deacon, and  Friend.

We knew him as Pepper.  

I stand here as a son-in-law, which is a peculiar and blessed office. You don’t choose your father-in-law. He arrives with the woman you love, and then, if you are fortunate, he becomes one of the men who quietly steadies your life.

Pepper was that kind of man.

He welcomed me not as a visitor, but as family. He never made me audition for a place at the table. He treated the marriage of his daughter as a trust, and he honored that trust by being kind. 

Today, I want to turn this around.     I want to speak to all of us on behalf of Pepper.

What would Pepper want for us?  What would he want to say today? 

In times of death words can be difficult.   I know he doesn’t want tears.

He wants warmth, and smiles, and gratitude for life well lived.  He wants the best for us.

Charles, Pepper, or POP,  none of us will ever forget you.     You were a loving husband.  You were a caring father.  You were a proud grandfather.

Your spirit will carry on,  we will always hear your voice.

Today and all the tomorrows ahead, it will be Pepper and Wanda, together again. with wide smiles, and happy times in the presence of angels and our Heavenly Father.      

Pepper had an attitude that Good always won over Bad.  He always told us to be careful in most aspects of life and things would be okay.

Losing a father is not easy.   There aren’t many people in life that stand in your corner and never quit.

Remember Pam and Adam, Your Dad will always be with you.  You will carry his energy and his spirit, in your heart, and in your mind, and you will never forget the man who gave you so much to remember. 

Now let me speak for Pepper.  Fathers are not replaced but Pepper doesn’t want us mourning his loss.   He thanks us and wants us to gather here and celebrate life, spirit, positive attitudes, and the joy that he brought in his wonderful voice and his warm smile. 

So today, we smile.  We give thanks.  We remember.  What I will remember most is not a single speech or a single day, but a pattern: a man who showed up. Who asked after his grandchildren. Who took pride in work well done. Who loved his daughter without making a performance of it. That kind of love doesn’t announce itself. It simply holds.  Over three short decades ago I talked to Pop about taking his daughters hand in marriage.  Hadn’t done it before, haven’t done it since. 

He said to me after I awkwardly got the question out of my mouth,  “ That would be fine, she’d like that”.     So from the lakes of Minnesota to the hills of Tennessee I knew it would be okay with Pepper!

To my wife: he gave you a foundation. To our sons: he gave you a grandfather’s example of what a decent man looks like when no one is watching. To me: he gave the rare gift of a father-in-law who made it easy to honor him.

We do not replace a man like that. We carry him. We tell the stories. We keep the standards he lived by—loyalty, work, family, and a handshake that meant something.

What Pepper left behind makes us appreciate life even more.   Pop, your legacy lives on.  

We have our memories and more will flood over us in the days to come.  

I only fished with Pop a couple of times, but I know he loved being on the water. He loved fishing and football.   He loved the game.

I always felt Pop would have been a great football coach.  He loved the sport, the play calling, the strategy of the grid iron!  He always watched  U of TN football games.

What I most admired about Pepper was the time, of strength, of effort, of patience and faith it took to take care of his wife, Gramma Wanda, for the last decade of her life as she suffered with dementia.   

Pepper did his best, at her side.  It wasn’t easy.  It was a courageous undertaking and he did his best.  His best was the only thing he knew how to do.

Pepper today we gather not only to mourn our loss in this world  but also to celebrate you “going on ahead” to a better place.              

For sure, Father Time always wins but he was very generous with Pepper.

We know that you were taken from us before we would have liked but the Lord had other plans.     But lucky us,  we had the distinct privilege of having you for nearly 90 years!

I would like to end by thanking God for the many mercies he has shown the Hild family over the last few years. 

In so many ways, Pepper, we were fortunate to have you in good health these past few years.    

Today, Pepper, we know you look down on us from heaven above.  We know you soar with the angels.  You will remain an enormous influence on us.  And so today, Pepper, we honor you.   

Tomorrow we will miss you. 

Forever Pop, we will love and remember you. 

We hope to join you in heaven in our own time.  We loved you dearly, Pop.

And we close today not with a goodbye,  or a farewell, but with wholesome gratitude for the life we were lucky enough to share.

May the light Pepper carried shine in each of us.

Pepper, thank you. You were a good father, a good grandfather, and a good man to have standing behind a marriage. Rest easy. We have the watch now.

May we never forget the goodness of Charles William Hild as he would want the Lord to be with every one of you.

Amen.