Eugene "Curly" Dominic Reinerio

It’s so difficult to say goodbye to my dad. I miss him tremendously! My father gave me the greatest gift anyone could give another person, he loved me and I felt that love. I’d like to honor him with some of my memories. He lived a full, vibrant life, and I watched him do it…all the way to the remarkable age of 95. He was a complicated man, a Reinerio. I know the Reinerios in the room will appreciate what I’m saying. We didn’t always get along, yet he’s left me with so many lessons about living. Wise words that I’ve jotted down over the years, “Every day is a miracle.” Or “Life is what you make it…and some days I don’t make it very good.” “You can gripe if you want to, but that just puts you in a bad mood.” He shared wonderful stories of his childhood with me. When friends would pass by in the hallway, and say Hi, Gene. He told me that in high school, ‘Hi, Gene’ made him think of hygiene as in cleanliness. He was the youngest boy and looked up to his older brothers. Marion was the hard-working one while Leonard was often found hiding in the warmth behind the kitchen stove. While visiting friends in California, sitting down to a meal of polenta and sausage, he was suddenly taken over by memories of his mother’s cooking and their dinner table. He often recalled his connection to his childhood and the family of twelve kids growing up in a small town during the Depression; like when a wagon load of grapes would pull into town and they would buy grapes to make wine. My mother lived in the same town. They grew up together. My dad loved my mother so much! They used to sit in overstuffed chairs and just talk. They enjoyed each other’s company and it was always evident he had married the love of his life! When my mother began her gradual decline into Alzheimers, my father was her number one caregiver! He never left her side. From him and his selfless love for her, I have the lesson of what true love requires. My parents used to visit me in California for Christmas. We would get together with friends, share Tom and Jerry’s and make spaghetti sauce that came to be known as Reinerio Red. He made friends wherever he went. He had a joy of living and a genuine interest in people. He was a beacon, enriching others. My father was truly a lifelong learner… always looking for the next book about history or investing and then sharing it with those around him. I was lucky to have spent so much time with him in the past several years…either with me visiting him at Tudor Oaks or with his trips to California when we would spend Thanksgiving week in the wine country. We would walk frequently. There was a time when I couldn’t keep up with my dad’s pace! He was quite a walker! Even when he had to use a wheelchair, he continued to be forever on the move. One of the more memorable Thanksgivings was when my sister and her family joined us. We spent most of the week wine tasting. My dad loved every minute of it…and the wine! He valued family above all else and cherished the time he spent with them whether it was the traditional corn roast in Wisconsin or a summer in Chicken. He reveled in family! In 2007 we spent Christmas in Italy. It was a special trip. Watching my dad use his hands to talk with the old Italian men he met. He didn’t need to know the language. His hands knew! He fit right in…especially with his Italian hat. After my mother died, my dad traveled to Chicken, Alaska every summer where he did his part in the family business operated by my sister and her husband. He worked hard and at the end of the day, enjoyed a hearty meal of caribou or salmon sitting on the deck with family and friends around the table. In the past year, I cherished the times we walked and talked…about the trees, the birds we’d see around the grounds, especially the sand cranes. We always spent some time talking about investing. I asked a lot of questions and he had a lot of answers. He was a wise investor and I tried to learn everything I could from him. In the summer, we would make trips to Leon’s for ice cream. Sometimes it was so hot, the ice cream would melt faster than we could eat it. We had fun! Until the last few months, we frequently played cribbage as we listened to Pavarotti. He loved opera. He was a dramatic guy. He often beat me at cribbage! We had fun! He was so grateful for the help he got from the people around him. I listened to him thank others and I learned another lesson. When I walk, my father is walking beside me. When I’m cooking, I sometimes find myself talking to my father: I say out loud to him, “No one could cut cabbage as thin as you could” or “You’d always be the one to debone the chicken, I think it’s because then you could sneak bites as you cut.” When I pick up my phone, my dad’s smiling face looks out at me. He had an unforgettable smile that instantly brings a smile to my face. He will forever be in my heart.

I would like to express to you my sincere condolences for the loss of your dear loved one, Eugene. Losing a loved one can be very hard. Our loving heavenly father knows what it feels like to lose a loved one. That is why He has provided us with the hope of seeing our loved ones resurrected to life again on a paradise earth in peaceful conditions. (Psalms 37: 11) Wouldn't it be wonderful to see 'Curly' again, alive, healthy and in peace on earth! Please visit jw.org to find out more about God's trustworthy promise of a resurrection.