Tuesday, January 24, 2012

We lost a dear friend yesterday........our neighbor of 30 yrs.........

this magazine cover shows Earl at 85-one of the three times in the past 4 years he raced his kayak around Manhattan Island-New York City.  He was the dearest-kindest,  joyful man-with a story or two for every occasion.  He built kayaks for many years and they have been shipped all over the country.  He became ill 5 mos ago and told us he was ready to go to be with the Lord.

He laughed at me and shook his head when I explained this was the type of water I liked to kayak!!  Not him-white water all the way!!


  Because he was so healthy and in incredible shape it took him longer-he was getting impatient towards the end.  I tried to share my Tylenol with him a couple yrs ago after he and I went kayaking in Florida and he looked at me appalled- "I haven't taken a pill since they gave me an aspirin in World War II and it nearly killed me"!   And so he never did take a pill or visit a Dr.     My children grew up knowing "Mr. Baldwin" as the wonderful neighbor who could out kayak race their much younger dad-was a scary monster at Halloween, always was at church, out picked everyone at strawberry picking till last summer, always had cheerios in his pocket for their dog, and always had a story to tell about something interesting.


  He will be greatly missed by the local community and the kayaking world throughout New England and the eastern seaboard.  God Bless and Peace be with you Earl as you join your dear wife Barbara................we miss you so already.....

25 comments:

www.FarmLifeLessons.blogspot.com said...

Such a sweet tribute to a man who really lived life to the fullest! Now he's onto bigger and better things!!

Such an inspiration.

Lana

Kelly said...

From what you say he will be missed here. The impatience at the end must have meant that he was ready to go on and meet a different challenge. I respect and adore strong men. My dad was one and they always stand out in a crowd. Sorry for your pain.

Lynne said...

Beautiful message . . . tribute . . . love your photos . . . What a "life model" he must have been . . . and still . . .

TexWisGirl said...

oh, may be have all the freedom now he could ever hope for... :)

Skogkjerring said...

So sorry for your loss...what an interesting man he was- and it appears (from the magazine cover) and sounds like he lived life to the fullest...we should all follow his example!
May he rest in peace...warm hugs to you from Norway

smilla4blogs said...

My condolences, Rain. Your post is beautifully written from the heart. You were a good friend too and I know you will always cherish these memories. Thank you for sharing some of them with your readers.

Michaele said...

I think you should speak at his funeral. This was beautiful. Such a full life he had and what a neat person he was. You were blessed to know him. Sorry for your loss.

Debbie said...

What a wonderful tribute to your friend and neighbor Rain! So well written I feel like I knew him. My condolences...sounds like the kind of character I would have loved to have known....what a priveledge.

Trace4J said...

How blessed you were to know such a wonderful man. Sorry for your loss friend.
But He is HOME!
Hugs to you
Trace

www.grannytracescrapsandsquares.com

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