The eulogy that was never "aloud" to be read

Here is the Eulogy that Mark wrote for Robear....He was told by the priest that he could not read it.
so the priest gave his eulogy....he did a good job but I don't think eh ever met Robear....so here is Mark's beautiful tribute to Robear.
I hope it makes you smile:)
love,
Michele

A Eulogy for Robert Gentile

Robert Joseph Gentile presented me with a live pig on the occasion of my 30^th birthday. Yeah, he walked it into the party on a leash. It was only this big, but it grew to be a porker about this big. That little story tells you four important things about Bob Gentile. He loved to give gifts, was very creative, had a warped sense of humor and loved a party. That, in a nutshell was Bob.

I knew Robert, or Bob, or Robear, or Mr. Bob, however you may know him, for he had many incarnations – for all of his 49 years. I cannot think of another friend that I have known longer. Our families met way back in the Kosciusko Ave. apartment days, and remained close. There wasn’t a holiday, or special occasion growing up that didn’t somehow bring the Gentiles and Kuhars together, and often it was just for something as simple as one of his father’s secret-recipe spaghetti and meatball dinners. His mom worked for my dad at his dentist office, I worked together with his dad at Sobol Sales Co., and Robert and I even worked together for a bit at Gino’s Jewelers.

Robert was the brother I never had.

So . . . how do you say good-bye to someone who has been there your whole life? It’s a difficult question.

How do you say goodbye to someone who played with your toys with you?

How do you say goodbye to someone with whom you had sleepovers as a kid?

How do you say goodbye to the one who invented the game “Richies,” (and that’s a reference only a few in this room will understand.)

How do you say goodbye to someone who was there when you went on your first date with the girl who would eventually become your wife?

How do you say goodbye to the person you called to help you pick out an engagement ring? Actually he wouldn’t let me get the one I wanted. “No,” he said in true Bob Gentile style, “It’s gotta be bigger.”

How do you say goodbye to someone who showed up on the day of your wedding in a vintage candy apple red GTO convertible. “You sure you want to do this?” he said. “Absolutely,” I answered. “Well let’s go then,” he said, and off we drove in our tuxes to the best party I’ve ever been to.

How do you say goodbye to the person who gave you and your wife a pet dog named Cookie, who turned out to be the most obnoxious animal ever?

How do you say goodbye to someone who stood next to you in the cold of Cleveland Municipal Stadium at the AFC Championship game and watched the evil John Elway drive 90-some yards to beat the Browns? How do you say goodbye to someone who stood next to you at River’s Edge in the Flats and watched Ernest Byner fumble away your dreams? As Dan Buckley said at the funeral home, we never got to drink that bottle of champagne Bob had saved for the moment we went to the Super Bowl.

How do you say goodbye to someone who celebrated with you into the wee hours of the morning as the Indians went to the World Series for the first time in more than 40 years?

Once Michele and I were at Jacobs Field in 105 degree heat and we ran into Robear, who immediately found a way to take us up to the Terrace Club where we could watch the game in air-conditioned comfort. He was always coming to the aid of someone in need.

How do you say goodbye to someone who almost got arrested with you hawking anti-Art-Modell T-Shirts on the streets of Cleveland?

Bob Gentile never got to see a Cleveland sports team win a championship, and that makes me very mad.

How do you say goodbye to someone who showed up to take you to countless Bruce Springsteen concerts in a limo, and who tried to pass off his cousin, Joe Gallipoli as E-Street Band member Nils Lofgren to a bunch of gullible girls?

How do you say goodbye to someone who showed up on the day of a Jimmy Buffett concert in an RV to cart all his friends off to the show?

Let me quote from a Jimmy Buffett song lyric:

“Where no bird flies by my window
No ship is tied to my tree
Love is a wave building to a crescendo
Ride if you will, ride it with me.”

That was Robert. He wanted everybody to ride along with him and join in on the fun.

How do you say goodbye to someone who ushered in New Years with you in Las Vegas, joined you at an Indian wedding in San Jose, called you from New York to find out what your kids wanted for Christmas, called from Rodeo Drive to say he was, “just doing a little shopping.”

How do you say goodbye to someone who always remembered your wife and kids at holidays?

How do you say goodbye to someone who was there for you when your dad died, just as you were there for him when his dad – and mom – died.

Once I was at a trade show in Las Vegas, and Robert was there too with Brennan Industries, and they had a fabulous party at the top of the Las Vegas Hilton in Barry Manilow’s private suite. So we’re at the party, and he motioned for me to follow him, and he took me to Barry Manilow’s room and pointed to a coffee mug on the table. It had “Barry” written in script letters on it, and Robert was laughing like a little kid. “Is he afraid he’s going to set his cup down and confuse it with somebody’s else’s cup up here?” he said. How do you say goodbye to someone like that?

The memories are numerous and the stories and many, and they are all true. Everybody has a good Bob Gentile story, whether friend, relative, former co-worker or customer of Sensational Celebrations, where he turned his personal affinity for creative parties into an honest day’s work.

I heard someone mention that they were mourning Robert’s death, and I thought no, he wouldn’t want that. He’d want us to celebrate his life. And I think we have done that well, thanks to Linda, Jeannie and everyone else.

It wouldn’t be a eulogy without a Bible quote. So here goes. In the Book of Acts , it says, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive,' and in First Book of Timothy it says ‘be rich in good works, generous, and ready to share.’

I cannot name another person who exemplified the spirit of giving more than Robert Gentile. From the time he was a kid and got so excited about Christmas right up until the time he was an adult and, well, still got excited about Christmas, this was a person who loved to give. It was always about doing for someone else, oftentimes in private, and many times, in spectacular ways. Even in hospice, his concern was for others, and he wanted to know that people were alright.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “You shall know them by their fruits,” and the fruits that Robert Gentile brought forth were plentiful and freely given.

So how do you say goodbye to someone like Bob Gentile? Well, I’m not going to say goodbye, because as far as I’m concerned, he is still here, he’s still with us, in our hearts and minds and in the memories of the great times and good deeds associated with his life.

It is a testament to Robert that so many people shared in his illness, showed up at Western Reserve Hospice to comfort him, and came today to remember him.

At the funeral home this morning, you heard “Terry’s Song,” by Bruce Springsteen and I can think of no better way to end this eulogy than to quote from it:

Now your death is upon us
And we'll return your ashes to the Earth
And I know you'll take comfort in knowin'
You've been roundly blessed . . . and cursed
But love is a power greater than death . . .

When they built you brother, they turned this dust to gold
When they built you brother, they broke the mold