On Monday, July 28, my Grampa, Ed Girotti, passed away after battling cancer for just a couple of months. This week we traveled up to Connecticut to be with family and attend the wake and funeral.
My Grampa was a hard-working man who loved his family! He was married to Grandma for 31 years until she died of cancer before I was born. They raised 4 children together - Dad was the oldest son.
He loved baseball and was actually offered a contract with the Boston Braves, but he turned it down because he wanted to help his father who was having health issues. Whenever we visited him, he would update us on the status of the Red Sox. :) He was also a huge music fan and played the upright bass in bands for many years.
He was a World War II veteran and fought in France and Austria as a member of the 66th Black Panther division. We never knew a whole lot about that time of his life, as he never liked to talk about it. Jonathan tried to interview him once about his service, but didn't find out very much - he saw a lot of things over there that he didn't want to remember. On the way out of the church after the funeral, the organist started playing the Army Song and there were full military honors at the burial.
Grampa was so hilarious - he loved to crack corny jokes! The last time we were able to talk to him over Facetime last week, even though he was in pretty bad shape, he was still trying to throw in some funny lines. I'm so glad we were able to see him on Father's Day weekend and then have some video chats before he passed away.
Talking to Dad, Grandpa described a time when he came to the realization that Jesus Christ loved him and gave him faith in Him. In the last couple months, he told Dad that he was trusting in the grace of God and thought that this time was God's plan to take him home. "I've had faith in Him for so long; I'm not going to stop now."
We would appreciate your prayers for our family and for the extended Connecticut relatives - we'll all miss Grampa!
Click the above picture to see a slideshow of more pictures.
Remember my affliction and roaming,
The wormwood and the gall.
My soul still remembers
And sinks within me.
This I recall to my mind,
Therefore I have hope.Through the Lord’s mercies we are not consumed,
Because His compassions fail not.
They are new every morning;
Great is Your faithfulness.
“The Lord is my portion,” says my soul,
“Therefore I hope in Him!”
The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the soul who seeks Him.
It is good that one should hope and wait quietly
For the salvation of the Lord.Lamentations 3:19-26
~Sarah
Dear Sarah and all the Girottis, especially Tom, I am so sorry to hear that Grampa has passed away, I hope your precious memories comfort you. Sending my love and thoughts.
Posted by: Rose | Saturday, August 02, 2014 at 08:00 PM
This post is really a beautiful tribute to your Grampa, Sarah. So very well done. I truly sympathize with all of you in the loss of your loved one and will pray the Lord will send comfort and peace to your family. I know it has to be such a blessing to know you'll be together again one day.
Love and prayers,
Toni
Posted by: Toni | Saturday, August 02, 2014 at 08:09 PM
Dear Girotti family,
losing someone so close is never easy, but we can all pray, rejoyce and rest assured that Grampa is with the Lord now, looking upon us all from heaven.
Lots of love and prayers coming your way at this difficult time,
Alice
Posted by: Alice | Sunday, August 03, 2014 at 06:10 AM
I am so sorry for your loss. May the Lord bring you comfort as only He can.
Posted by: Tammy | Sunday, August 03, 2014 at 10:29 AM
A beautiful tribute to your Grampa! So sorry for your loss.
Posted by: Joanna | Sunday, August 03, 2014 at 05:36 PM
I am so sorry. Lovely tribute.
Posted by: Dawn | Sunday, August 03, 2014 at 07:22 PM
Our thoughts and prayers are with you all.
Victoria
Posted by: victoria | Monday, August 04, 2014 at 02:22 AM
Maybe now I can post.Computer freaked out yesterday.
Nice tribute.Sorry for your loss.Very nice that you were able to visit over Fathers Day and talk up until the end.
Posted by: Tammy C | Monday, August 04, 2014 at 05:38 PM
What a nice tribute to your grandfather, Sarah.
No matter how old we or our parents are, it's never easy to say good-bye, to realize that this side of Heaven, we'll never see them again. But how thankful we are that we don't grieve as those who are without hope (1 Thessalonians 4:13), being assured that those who are in Christ will one day enjoy a glorious reunion as they worship Him for all eternity.
Many hugs to you all, we've been praying.
Posted by: Deb | Tuesday, August 05, 2014 at 07:21 PM
Dear Girotti Family,
I'm so sorry you had to bury your Grandpa this week but thankful you will someday see him again. What a beautiful tribute. And your lives are a tribute to him as well. Thank you for sharing this with us.
Deb, I tried emailing you twice but my email was rejected. I'm assuming you got a new email address? When you have a few moments, will you email me so I can reply? I know you are still in recovery mode, so take your time.
Praying for you all, my dear friends.
Posted by: Kathie | Wednesday, August 06, 2014 at 10:46 AM
A lovely tribute to your Grandpa, Sarah. My heart goes out to you all. Hugs.
Posted by: Nicole Silvester | Wednesday, August 13, 2014 at 02:11 AM
Hi Tom, Deb and kids,
I am just seeing this. The pictures were neat to view. So many happy memories!! Reading about his life and how he sacrificed for his family was a blessing. Sounds like Tom had a wonderful dad who gave him an excellent example to follow in being a dad and husband. Love you guys and we have been praying for you! (((HUGS)))
Posted by: Chris | Wednesday, August 13, 2014 at 08:22 PM