While today many of you are celebrating the start of the NFL football season, I hope you take the time out to remember your grandparents.

My grandparents are no longer with us, but I can recall some great stories. I didn't get to know my Grandpa Lafata much, as he passed on shortly after I was born. However, there is a great photo of him and I in the hospital as he was holding me. I can tell he was the proud grandfather.

My Grandpa Sokolowski, passed on when I was young, but I'll never forget going to my very first Detroit Tigers game with him, my dad, brother and an assortment of cousins and uncles. He was the biggest Tigers fan I knew and the proudest Polish heritage guy. He was one of the biggest reasons I fought for the preservation of Tiger Stadium.  One of my biggest memories is sitting around the house in the morning, waiting for his delicious pancakes to finish. Then there is a classic photo of him and my dad in a Hawaiin shirt waiting for the barbeque to finish.

My Grandma Sokolowski, passed on shortly before I got married, but I gave the honor of my daughter's middle name to be her name in Dolores. I loved hanging out at her house in the summers and we'd read the Detroit Free Press together and just do odds and ends. Plus endless nights of playing Skip-Bo or some sort of card game. I loved going through the family photos she kept. I miss being around the house, whenever she'd make city chicken.

My Grandma Lafata, was the last of my grandparents and she passed on recently. I loved visiting her home in the summers. Usually I'd stay one week with her and one week with my Grandma Sokolowski. My favorite things with her was waking up on a Sunday morning, smelling the aroma of breakfast, mixed with the smell of the pasta sauce that would be made for later in the day. There was no such thing as Ragu in her household, everything was made fresh. In her house, Uno was the game of choice. We'd play endless hours at that game. I remember whenever I gave her a Draw 4, I felt bad.

While none of my grandparents are alive anymore, the memory is still there. I hope you take the time to share a story or two about your grandparents with your kids, grandkids or great-grandkids. If you're grandparents are still around, I challenge you to spend time with them or give them a call.

Happy Grandparent's Day to all the Grandparents in the world. I learned that there is an official song for Grandparent's Day and it's 'A Song For Grandma and Grandpa' by Johnny Prill.

 

 

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