my brother– rudy

i had one brother– rudy. yesterday marked the 20th anniversary of my his death

rudy was soft spoken, humble and others-centered man; he had a heart of love and care; his was like my father. rudy died of a heart attack on june 1, 2000 and it was a shocking event because we do not expect people to drop dead at 53 years of age. i miss him

growing up i didn’t know rudy well. he was 16 years older than i so while i always knew i had a brother, he was a guy that i just saw from time to time. i began to really appreciate him during my college years and especially after he married josie and had his daughters jennifer and valerie. he loved them so much; he cared for his family

the first real memories of rudy are that he taught me things. he taught me how to tie my shoes– two different ways. he taught how to play me chess. he taught me how to go to the library and check out books.

i remember him listening to records by the supremes and ray charles. that started my funky side! i remember him describing how bill russell would throw violent elbows after he got rebounds so that opposing players would come near him. that started my love for the nba! rudy was a good tennis player and would play at cal anderson park on broadway.

one of my favorite memories of rudy is one summer when i was back from wwu/belling- ham, he talked me into playing tennis with him. in the past, i had dabbled a bit and hit with him tennis balls with him but nothing serious, but that summer we played daily. i got to the point where i had a respectable street game but i struggled with hitting a decent second serve.

at the end of the summer, he talked me into entering a doubles tournament at the seattle tennis center. i had never played a tournament before but i was open to it. i knew very well that i was a liability in doubles! during the first match, one of our opponents hit me with the ball when i was up at the net. it is a good, legal shot but embarrassing. a little while later during the match, rudy hit that same guy with the ball when they were up at the net. rudy turned around to me and gave me a knowing smile— tennis revenge!!

a week ago on memorial day, i brought flowers to rudy’s grave and trimmed the grass around this marker. i miss him. may God give you continued peace my brother; pray for me