Blog #1209

Joe Charles Whitmore, Sr. - 1/24/2025

I was there this morning in Dad's house with Leah and others as Dad passed away.  Peacefully, quietly and dignified.

A lot of my childhood memories revolve around our various family camping trips, most often at Hocking Hills and Burr Oak.  Hiking, swimming, and a campfire every night.  Back in 1975 my dad took Joey and I on our first trip to an amusement park, Kings Island.  With only three roller coasters, but we rode them all.  It was experiences like these that not only shaped my life, but the way I raised Sarah.  After my divorce I wanted to share my amusement park experiences with Sarah.  For that first Christmas after the divorce, I asked Dad to get me camping gear; maybe a tent and sleeping bags.  So the very next summer Sarah and I began our various trips to amusement parks.  Camping permitted me to make these vacations more economical which then allowed us to stay longer and travel further.  Charlotte to Toronto, Maryland to Indiana.  I believe these trips along with the numerous band trips, including Florida and France, have given Sarah her thirst for travel and adventure.  Those family camping trips beginning in the 1970's are still paying off today and into the future.

Along with Dad, Uncle Charlie gave me my love for fast cars.  But it was Dad what got me to be a race fan.  I was too young to remember the times when Mom and Dad took me and Joey to the dirt track races.  But I remember watching the old 8mm home movies filmed at the track.  I'll always remember being with Dad sharing that visceral experience of being at the track; Charlotte, North Wilkesboro and dirt tracks across eastern and southern Ohio and West Virginia too.  And then there's that time when the race at Midway Speedway was rained out and we ended up having a couple beers at a bar in New Lexington.

He also taught me to know the difference between some dumb and plum dumb.

Although no relationship is perfect, I have always known that Dad loved me.  And he made certain that I knew it.  I have never questioned his love for me.  And I have always loved him as well.

I can rest easy knowing that Dad passed away on his own terms, choosing the health care he wanted, surrounded by his family and in his own home.  The same home he grew up in and the same home that both of his parents spent the vast majority of their lives right to their final days.

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