Tribute to Grandpa Voke

My Grandpa Voke died 3 weeks ago. Lars, the boys and I had the privilege of being there with him when he died. It was such a peaceful experience and I am thankful that we were able to be there with him in the last minutes. He had been surrounded by family during the last few months, and my sister came up from Bloomington often to see him. They were very close.
Since it was father's day weekend and also the month of his birthday, I wanted to publish the eulogy that my dad wrote. My little sister read it at the funeral and did a beautiful job.

Eulogy for Mack Voke
By, Rick Voke

My dad was a fairly quiet man most of the time. He never said a lot, never complained much, and accepted the good and the bad that life brought him. Even when my mother died when he was in a coma, he never complained or asked why something like that should happen to him or his wife of 57 years. He had to have been devastated by it but you would have never known it.
Growing up in the Voke household in the 50’s and 60’s was a cross between Leave It To Beaver and the Three Stooges. Some days it was not safe to walk from the bedroom to the kitchen without being tackled or hit with a dirty sock. Dad was more often than not in the middle of it. It was great fun and I will always remember it. He always laughed at himself, even when he accidentally brushed his teeth with Brylcream or dropped a pie in the middle of Madison Street going to a Boy Scout banquet. He was a creature of habit and was very old fashioned. I have never met a person who ate by a clock, but he did. If it was 5 o’clock, it was time to eat supper. When he started living on his own, he soon figured out that he liked one type of TV dinner. He got the same thing for at least 5 years. He found something he liked and stayed with.
As quiet as he was, he did have things he was passionate about. One was my mother. They were an inseperable team for 57 years. They helped each other through the good times and the bad times. They were lucky to have each other. His second biggest passion was fishing. I have never seen anyone who enjoyed fishing as much as he did. He would work 10 hours a day, 5 and 1/2 days a week, 50 weeks a year. When it was vacation time, most people would relax and rest. Not him. We would vacation at the lakes where he would get up even earlier than usual and fish like crazy for 2 weeks. He was happiest when he was at the lakes. That love continued for years until one day when we were out fishing, he put his rod down and just sat and relaxed. I remember thinking that my dad is turning in to an old man. I realized that my dad was mortal just like everyone else. It was very unsettling. As time went by, I learned to accept that he was turning into an old man and I was all grown up. Where had all the time gone?
He was also passionate about Scouting and served many years as a volunteer for the Scouts. His love of the outdoors: fishing, hunting, camping have been passed on to my brothers and me. He made many friends during his years with the Scouts but one special friend remained a life long friend. Dad met Johnny Frazier and his wife Wilma through scouting and they have been the best of friends ever since. They were always there for each other and dad was a lucky man to have such a good friend.
Dad was able to live on his own until he started to slip after the first of the year. He knew that at some point he would start to go down hill and seemed to accept his fate without fear or regrets. It took us all by surprise that it happened so quickly and we soon realized that we had taken him as far as we could. We talked and cried and laughed and knew this day was coming soon. I am proud to be his son and will never forget all that he and my mother did for my brothers and me. The final days were peaceful and pain free. On the morning he died, my son-in-law Lars said a prayer over him hoping that he would find peace. I think that prayer was answered. As my daughter Katie said the day before he died, Grandpa: you’re a pretty special guy. She was right. We all love you and will miss you.
God bless you Dad


This was taken Christmas Day 2006. Luca really liked Grandpa Mack. He didn't cuddle with him, but he liked to play right in front of him and bring him toys to hold. Grandpa gave Luca lots of space and let him be comfortable in his own time. He was a very special man and we miss him. I only wish I had known him better.


This one is from March. The funny thing was Grandpa and Luca were leading the way and neither of them knew where they were going! Katie and my dad were following them, loving watching them hand in hand.

Just a funny side note--There was one of his famous TV dinners left at my dad's house. Dad took flowers to the cemetery on Father's Day and decided to eat the last TV dinner as a tribute to Grandpa Voke! Oh the things we do for love!