Happy Birthday David Rebstock - RIP

 Today would have been my father-in-law's 87th birthday. He passed in his sleep on October 21, 2023 and today was his memorial. It was great to hear from people, their memories of him and to hear my husband and brother-in-laws speak about their father. I have not yet experienced losing a parent. From what I hear, it is hard and there is a hole that literally nothing can fill. I have experienced loss - grandparents, great-grandparents, great-great grandparents, people from the church, friends, children of friends, members of the community, but everyone says the loss of a parent is different. 

David believed in making the world a better place for EVERYONE. He did this not so much by talking about it, though he did, door to door to make sure people were voting. He did this by getting involved, talking to people and getting them involved, and sometimes that even included doing things himself. Whether it was climate change, assuring all people have running water, homes and electricity, voting, or challenging ideas, you would find my father-in-law in the thick of it. For me, it seemed like he was more concerned about the rest of the world than he was his family - but I think it was his concern for the rest of the world that spoke of the love he had for his family - he wanted a safe place for his sons and grandchildren to live, love and enjoy life. 

He was well read, he watched films, he learned about other cultures and races different from his own I think to find a common goal, to find the similarities rather than focus on the differences. The question he would most ask was - what did you learn? What did you take away from this?

I met him on our first date - going to a concert in Cincinnati. Over the 24 years I knew him we had so many great discussions about life and the world. He could always pick out a great bottle of wine. He loved good food. He was interested in a deeper discussion than the surface conversations of how are you and how is the weather. He hated broccoli which is what he joked was the only thing he agreed with President George H. W. Bush on. It was interesting to hear his take on life as I had grown up in a fairly conservative household both politically and religiously. 

We shared so many memories, travel, and holidays. I was forever fascinated by his involvement in the Institute of Cultural Affairs based out of Chicago.  His memorial is on their archive page. 

David was an important part of my life and will be missed.