Much thanks guys, he was a special man. He served this country & his family well. He was a combat soldier in France, in the 40's. He never had much to say about it though. He will be missed by many.
He was a second father to me, and always there to take me camping, fishing, or extended stays at his place. And he had 7 children of his own. He escaped a couple of times from the Vet's Home, a locked unit too. He walked out with visitors and dashed to the woods at 89 years old. They found the AWOL uncle a few hours later, 5 miles away. The second escape he was almost mid 90's and didn't get too far. I'm sure German soldiers were behind him that time. He passed this week at 97, confined to bed mostly, with no recollection of any of us. But, it's important to remember the good times.
I remember one time he got in the shi* with my parents for giving me self defense lessons at 9 years old. I had gotten beat up at school and Uncle was pissed. Well, every kid in my class got a neck chop the next day, for practice. The nuns that ran the school gave me a little vacation...lol. We laughed about that for years. One in a million, has left to take on his next mission. RIP Angelo "Macy" Mascena.