We have many Special Gifts

 

This page is dedicated to our free spirit children, one expecially that we desire never to be tamed . . . allowed to stay fresh and filled with the love of life, our Hopie, sprinkled now and then with a teaspoon of common sense from her loving parents. And there are John, Mark, and Matthew, our being proud of the achievements of these young men along with our Bill, a Trophy Winner in the 2007 National Truck Safety Rodeo.

Below you can see Hope (Hopie), who visited North Carolina in November of 2005. This section represents a few moments of time that she spent here in the state's beautiful western mountain chain.

And there are other pictures below of other visits of more of our crew, along with a dedication to someone who was very special to many of them.

 

Sunset on Wolf Ridge North Carolina, looking West toward the Smoky Mountains.
Some of the crew at home. Picture with John, now a top Red-Bull driver and excellent hard rock drummer. Former Wolf Ridge Restaurant, its internal structure including tree trunks (See picture to left.)
Inside the former Wolf Ridge Restaurant.
Hopie with a very special parrot.
Dining at the former Wolf Ridge Restaurant.
A very special lady who made this long journey possible.
A back yard we could not have dreamed of.
The view from the top of Wolf Ridge, Wolf Laurel, NC.

October 22, 2005. Sunset seen from the Lodge on Wolf Ridge, Wolf Laurel, western North Carolina.
Hopie with one who helped her find her way.

 

 

We are very proud of Bill, also a Trophy Winner in the 2007 National Truck Safety Rodeo, nearing ten years of a perfect driving record.

 

 

 

Matthew home on leave from the U.S. Marines.

 

JP - One of the top Red Bull Territory Salesmen in the Northeast.

 

John Peter discovers in WNC that PF Chang is not just a restaurant in South Park. Of course the host at P.F. Chang seemed not amused.

 

Hopie, and her very special guy who is one of the best motorcycle retail salesmen we have seen.
Erik & Hope, Rochester, NY - April 2006

 

 

And then . . .

 

And then there were three.

. . . in the fall of 2007 where there had been two,
there would soon be three in January 2008.
Welcome to our new world - January 2008. Click here to see a few in her family. Other pictures will follow.

 

"Welcome to our world, Kaydence."

 

 

Hopie with Kaydence and new - born Shaylah Madison, December 2011

 

 

A very special human being who we will never forget. Click on the Journal Link to read about his journey home.

Dedicated to Matt Delorenzo, Youth Pastor, Pompton Plains, New Jersey

Web site dedicated to his service

Matt was taken from us on August 25, 2008, after a nine-mouth struggle against Leukemia, his last breath in the presence of his loving family.

Matt's reaching out to our own four children, when they were struggling in their teenage years in the mid to late 1990's in New Jersey, was immeasurable. His guiding hand had assisted those young minds to become the adults we are proud of today.

And we give tribute to Matt's very special wife that shared her husband night after night with so many lost young souls, allowing them to become aware that there could be a more fulfilling and responsible journey for their lives. Many of those efforts by Matt changed untold minds forever. Hearing the deep sadness of his death in the voices of our own proved he had made a difference.

They say the ultimate truth in life is that you leave the world better than how you found it. And that is exactly what Matt achieved to the very end.

"We will all miss you dearly, Matt, as will hundreds, perhaps thousands, of other families whose children you never gave up on. God speed, my friend."

 

My 70th Birthday Letter to the Kids

 

The crews proud parents retired to western North Carolina.

Love to all our kids from Dad & Connie

 

 

 

 

"Freedom is Knowledge"