A Father's Day Tribute - Supporting the Boys and Family that Lost their Dad in an Airplane Crash

Once when I was little, I was sitting on the carpet of our living room when I pulled one of my pink corduroy pant legs up over my calves. I don't remember why I did this - but doesn't it just sound like something a kid would do? When I tried to pull the pant leg back down, it was stuck on my calf. I remember feeling very panicked that I was "stuck," and calling to my dad as I struggled to pull down my pant leg. He came strolling into the room, bent down, and quickly and easily pulled my pant leg back down over my calf.

I share this story now because I want to honor all of the little things that define our relationships with our fathers, and how they shape us. I also want to remember the other men in my life and how they have blessed me.

I was incredibly moved as I listened to a Father's Day podcast this weekend, narrated by two brothers. (They had a third brother that was not able to join the podcast.) The two brothers shared their story about losing their dad to a small airplane crash (he was a pilot) when they were ten and eight, and their little brother was four. While the story starts with a tragedy and still it, the three brothers honored their father, and grew up to become great father figures themselves. This was in part due to the other men in their lives that stepped up to help bless their family.

Brian, K.C., and Jeff with their Father. Photo from LDSLiving.com.

Says Brian, the oldest of the three, "When my Dad died in a plane crash when my brothers and I were just 10, 8, and 4, a number of men in our church and community stepped up to help fill the void our amazing father left. Their mentoring, support, and sacrifice of time they could have spent with their own families made all the difference in our lives."

Please take a moment to listen to this beautiful podcast from LDS Living, the Hero's Journey, Episode #29, published on June 10, 2019. You can listen to it online or read it. I recommend listening, but there are also some great pics online. 

Personally, I want to share that I know this family well - I grew up with them, and I have always known that this family is a tight-knit group. Where my memory has faded and I have forgotten many of the incredible leaders in that ward, I remember their mother, who is a compassionate and strong woman, and I remember all the Blake boys. I know the youngest boy, Jeff, the best, as he was closest to my age. He is a great guy and was very patient with me when I think back about how obnoxious I could be as a teenager. I have one particularly vivid memory of one of the older Blake brothers defending his mom when another teenager in church was being very disrespectful to her. (The other boy had good redeeming qualities - this was just a moment in time of course.) It was so memorable to me because I remember thinking (and I was probably about 10 or 11 at the time) how strong they were as a family unit. The boys protected their mother in place of their father, but their mother, at the end of the day, was their mother, and was strong enough to defend herself. This podcast though, is about fathers, and fathering. 

Also, you won't hear the below comments in the podcast so I want to share some comments that Brian made on his Facebook page when he shared the link to this podcast (the quote from above was also from his Facebook page).

"Since this is a podcast aimed at members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, there is definitely a faith component to our story. If you know me well, that won't surprise you, as my faith is interwoven into who I am and everything I do."

I echo that comment in sharing that this podcast resonates with me because I know this family, because I share the same faith, and because of my experiences with being on both the receiving and giving end of the gift of service and time.

"Though our story starts out a bit depressing, I hope you ultimately take the lesson from our decades-long experience that the acts of charity and kindness we perform for those in need can have lasting effects on their lives, particularly when performed one-on-one. We live in a time when people are generous with their wallets and give to charitable causes (which is great!), but my experience, particularly from being on the receiving end, is that nothing is more valuable to those in need than giving of your time and yourself. It made all the difference in the lives of the Blake boys."