Uncle Gerry, Oct. 19, 1939 - Aug. 27, 2009

My Uncle Gerry passed away last Thursday.

My mother made the journey up to see him on Monday.

He was already in the hospital, he had developed pneumonia.

On Monday evening, my mother got to visit with Uncle Gerry, reminisce, and share some laughs.

By Tuesday morning, Uncle Gerry was no longer responding to stimuli.

I'm told that on Thursday morning, before Uncle Gerry passed away, he was able to respond in small acknowledgments to Pat. That's a blessing.

I had such a short time to reconnect with my Uncle. From our brief time together, I found out that Uncle Gerry loved to joke around. I also learned that although he hadn't lived in Boston since he was a child, he was an avid Red Sox and Celtics fan.

One of his first questions for me was to find out if I also was a Red Sox fan. I told him that I was now!

I also found out that as an adult, he was inspired to change careers. After time in the Navy, he had become a truck driver. But that didn't really suit him, so he decided to become a nurse, which he did!

And he loved and admired his "sissy," my Aunt Phyllis. He said the only woman he would put on the same pedestal with Aunt Phyllis was Eleanor Roosevelt!

My Uncle Ronnie also informed me that all the Burke brothers and sisters called Uncle Gerry, "Teddy." Uncle Gerry was the last Burke sibling born, and they said he had the most beautiful red hair, and that he looked just like a wonderful little teddy bear. So, they called him "Teddy," and did so all their lives.

My Uncle Gerry went through some tumultuous years in his young and early adulthood. And like most of us, made some decision that later he would regret. He shared a couple of those regrets with me, (probably too personal to share here).

But even during that tumultuous time, he did something wonderful. He opened his home to my immigrant mother and me. And for my mother and me, it has made all the difference in our lives.

In my final visit with my Uncle Gerry, we had about a 30 minute window of time alone. During that time we talked about Heaven, Jesus, forgiveness, and faith. And then I asked if it would be ok for us to pray together, and we did. I will always treasure that time.

While there is a sense of loss, I also have this hope... a hope that we'll have more time to get caught up when I see him in Heaven. (He assured me that he'd be there).

Hello! and Good-bye...

Cyndi, Pat, Uncle Gerry, and me.

Today was a roller-coaster of emotions for me.

I had to say good-bye to my long-lost Uncle. In all likelihood, it will be the last time I see him.

I am so thankful that I had this time to be with him.

I'm also thankful for Pat! What a jewell of a lady she is!

Then I got to meet my Uncle Ronnie!

And my cousin Miriam!

If only I had scheduled us to fly home on Saturday!!!

We only got to visit for a little more than an hour, but it's an hour I'll always treasure!

Again, I want to say thank you to Life Fellowship Community Church for making this journey of gratitude possible for me! I love y'all with all my heart!

My Uncle Gerry!

Today, (Tuesday) I got to hug my Uncle Gerry!

It's been 37 years since I've seen him!

Thanks Life Fellowship!!!

We're in Oregon!

Landed in Portland, Oregon, the luggage was where it was supposed to be, and we picked up our rental car.
We decided to take the scenic route along Oregon's Pacific Coast Highway, so we headed through the mountains for Tillamook.
From Tillamook we took the 101 for a beautiful ride down the coast to Newport.

We didn't sleep much last night, and were up way too early to catch the plane, so we're pretty wiped out!

Tomorrow's the big day!

Pray for us.

A Journey of Gratitude...

In May of 2009 I made contact with my biological father for the first time since I was 3.
One of my primary motivations for making contact with my father was so I might re-connect with my Uncle Gerry.

When my mother decided she needed to leave my father, she was determined to raise me in the United States. (She was born and raised in South Korea, and I was born in Seoul.)
She didn't know anybody in the United States, nor did she speak any english, but my father would occasionally receive letters from the U.S., and once in while one would come with familiar markings, "Burke."
She reasoned that this must be one of my father's relatives, so she penned a letter in Korean, and took it to a translator.
My mother explained her situation and her desire to raise me in the U.S., and pleaded for one year of housing so she could learn the language, get a job, and find a place for us to live.

Now, stop right there.
Imagine receiving a letter in the mail. It's crudely translated into english. It says your relative's wife has left your relative, and has his son, and wants to bring him to the United States, and wants to live in YOUR HOUSE... for a year.
What would you think? What would you do?

My Uncle Gerry wrote back, and said, "Come."

I was 16 months old when we landed in Southern California. I, of course, remember nothing of that time.
My Uncle Gerry held up his end of the deal, and my mother held up hers.
She cooked and cleaned for the family, while learning english, finding work, and eventually finding a place for us to live.
After almost exactly one year, my mother moved us into a little garage apartment, and the rest is history.

In time, my Uncle Gerry ended up divorcing his wife, and moved on from that house, and we lost touch with him.

I never really thought much about my Uncle Gerry until I was a young adult.
And then when I thought about him, I realized what a huge deal it was that he had opened his home to my mother and me, allowing us to get our start in this great nation of ours.

I wanted the chance to say, "Thank you."

When my father and I made contact in May 2009, I immediately asked about my Uncle Gerry.
Fortunately, my father and Uncle Gerry had stayed in touch, and he had my Uncle Gerry's contact information!

The next day, I called my Uncle Gerry to say thank you.
We spoke for just a few minutes, because he really didn't have the strength to stay on the phone very long.
I found out that my Uncle Gerry had been very sick.

A few weeks ago, I found out that my Uncle Gerry had been diagnosed with late-term lung cancer. His doctors told him that he had only 3-6 months to live.
My heart broke. I had just found him, and now he was facing his mortality. I had hoped to get to see him in person before he died.

Last week one of our board members at Life Fellowship let me know that the church wanted to send me and Cyndi to Oregon to see my Uncle Gerry.
I was speechless. And thankful.

Tomorrow, we leave for Oregon.
We'll fly from New Orleans to Portland, and drive from Portland to New Port on Monday. On Tuesday, we'll drive from New Port to North Bend where my Uncle Gerry lives.
I haven't seen him since my mother and I moved out on our own.

I am so grateful to God for His blessings in my life.
I am so grateful for my supportive wife.
And I am so grateful for an amazing and wonderful church, making this journey of gratitude possible.

I'll keep you posted...