Memorial Mass is Monday, July 21, 10:00 am, at St. Joe in Cold Spring KY.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Hospice of St. Elizabeth or The Christ Hospital.
Jack Uehlein loved his wife, Sue. He carried a picture of my mom in his wallet from their honeymoon in a black bathing suit.. he loved to whip out that photo and show it to people. He’d wink at me when I asked if he would update the photo. Just saying how can any picture get better than that one. They were married just shy of 55 years.
Dad said they never got into an argument that he can remember.. but mom was quick to point out that she could sure remember one or two.
They met on a blind date.. he told me she was a looker! He fell in love with her at first sight. Even though he still liked to hang out with the boys in Mt. Adams and, “do a bunch of stupid stuff”, he loved her with his whole heart till the day he died.
He loved to take her dancing at Moonlight Gardens and jitterbug the night away. He often talked about the vacations they would take.. like the first time they ever went to Florida and what mom looked like when she saw the ocean for the first time.. or how beautiful her eyes were in the bright Florida sunshine.
He took great pride in owning a house at a time when many newlyweds didn’t. They found a perfect spot in Newport to build a home with a view and lived there most of their lives. He helped build his house on the hill.. it never cracked or moved like so many other houses on Biehl Street did.
Dad was one of the strongest men I knew. Just look around the house and there were signs he was there. From the new carpet to fences build by his hands. He loved to work in his yard and took pride in his warm weather masterpiece in his front yard. He never said no when it came to helping someone out.
He could hit a softball a mile! Same goes for a golf ball. And when dad took you golfing, expect plenty of lessons and equally as many praises. He was a south paw in sports and a righty in many other things. One of his grandsons is following in his footsteps being left handed.. we still have the pictures of dad showing Spence how to hit a a polka dot red ball with that yellow bat in his blooming garden, when he was barely old enough to stand up.
Through the years they had four children. They lost Anna Jeanette as a baby and 39 years later, they lost their daughter Beth to cancer. Two heart breaking losses that they struggled with together and it only made them better friends and closer.
Through the heartache of losing children they also had Steve and Tricia. Dad loved his oldest son with his whole heart and told me he was going to miss him. At the end of dad’s life, Steve rarely left his side, spending countless hours just being with him, holding his hand and talking to him.
He loved to talk politics and nothing would get him fired up like discussing about the knucklehead decisions in Washington. I believe I talked to him every single night on my way home from work… every night he told me how beautiful I was on tv and how proud he was of me.
He took us on vacations at a time before gps.. so we had to rely on maps or his intuition. One time we literally could not find Gatlinburg.. never asked for directions and just went home instead. But when we did find the beach or went on a golf trip he would play sports with us from sun up till the time it got dark… and we always found a way to squeeze in about 5 restaurants a day.
His grandchildren were a huge part of his life. He talked about each and every one of them. He saw as many ballgames as any college scout and unbelievably never got thrown out of a single game! Referees knew him by name.. the names varied.. but they all knew who he was.
He was a modest man to say the least. If you watched a movie with dad and there was anything over a kiss.. forget about it. He would throw up his hands and call it smut and walk away. Needless to say, he didn’t make it through many movies.. but he could watch Fox News all day long!
He was a healthy man his entire life. Never went to the doctor.. we begged him to get hearing aids.. he never did. Maybe it was just selective hearing… he would jump right into conversations at times.. and other times, just sit back and observe. He was always positive… and funny. As mom says, “he was a good egg”.
He was diagnosed with cancer a year and four months ago. He had surgery, procedures and a lot of treatments. He fought hard.. never complained too much and just always thankful to be around the ones he loved. Even near the end, when he relied on his wife.. his partner in crime.. to be his nurse.. there weren’t complaints. He thanked her all the time for being there for him.. for taking care of him… thanked her for sharing her life with him.. and never would he go very long without saying I love you.
He said he didn’t want to leave us.. even when he could feel the pain from the top of his head to his toe nails.
There was much pain in the end.. but only one day where he couldn’t speak. We are thankful for that. We are thankful that our big man is no longer in pain. We are thankful for all the friends, prayers, support, caring doctors and hospice that took care of dad. We will miss him dearly every day of our lives.
I love you dad… you were always one of my best friends, t.
-Tricia Macke
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