A Good Man Passed Away
Saturday, November 28, 2009 at 4:29PM (FLP Opinion) - John Ringstrom was almost 70 when he died last week. He succumbed to the ravages of cancer and a few other afflictions that would have knocked most men flat long before.
I grew up down the street from the Ringstroms in Cincinnati. They had a son named Barry who was my age and we became good friends, as did our families. We spent many holidays with their family, which included his wife Linda and daughter Julie, in late 70's and early 80's.
John was one-of-kind. He took no crap and loved a good debate. If you challenged him, you'd better be ready to defend your position. If you couldn't, you got smacked around.
I remember one Christmas we were at the Ringstroms and John and Barry started going back and forth about who was stronger. Barry was 17 and in good shape; John was in his mid-forties, probably hadn't touched a weight in 25 years and smoked like '65 Corvair. Barry went first and maxed out at 180. John added every remaining weight to the bar, laid back with lit cigarette in mouth, and benched 220... twice.
He then stood up, took a drag off his smoke and said to Barry, "any more questions, smart ass?"
John didn't mince words - he told you what he thought. If he'd been around to discuss the Ft. Hood killings, he'd have looked at the overwhelming evidence and likely offered commentary along these lines: "HANG THE TERRORIST BASTARD AT DAWN!"
He was to political correctness, as Nancy Pelosi is to intelligence - devoid of it.
Because of these traits, John was loved, respected and admired by many. He was a great husband, father, friend and counselor - a vanishing breed in today's warped culture.
Yes, a good man passed away last weekend, and we're all the worse for it.
Reader Comments (1)
I miss him already,.... and never knew him! But he was obviously made of the right stuff!