Farewell, Smitty

My stepdad, Jerry, passed away last week. I just found out a few days ago from my mom. He was living in Texas with his daughter; here's the obituary. Doesn't mention me, but probably not surprising since I haven't been part of his life for at least ten years. When I was growing up in the 80's with him and my mom, he was obviously a HUGE part of my life. I haven't really had a chance to absorb it.

We're going to place an obituary here in MN where he lived his whole adult life, known to many Crown Auto customers as "Smitty." In fact, pretty much the only thing he ever wore was a blue mechanics' uniform with a patch that said "Smitty."

Random memory: Once he and I were eating dinner at a Rax roastbeef near Northtown Mall. He was drunk on a couple of Manhattans (his drink) and pissed off about something.
He told me: "Everyone's wearing an invisible sign around their neck that says, I Want to Feel Important."