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Generous and grand! I remember when Merrill went across the street while we we were checking-in for our paint & sip activity. Just as we settled in here came Merrill with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot Champagne to get the party started. Crackers, cheese, water, diet cokes, & Veuve…we totally painted masterpieces that night! 🙂
Loads of memories to choose from, but one of the funniest is from a time when I was living with Aunt Kim and Uncle Merrill in Sacramento. I woke up early and thought I’d make me and Unc some eggs – Aunt Kim was out of town.
The problem was, even though I’d been there for a few months, I couldn’t find the egg pan. Uncle Merrill comes downstairs and finds me rummaging through the cupboards, with breakfast plans on hold. So he, being the ever-helpful guy he was, gets down on his hands and knees and starts looking through the bottom cupboards, too. We are both shocked at how we cannot find a single pan (or pot!).
Eventually, I decide to call Aunt Kim and let her know we’d been looking for 10 minutes and do we even *have* an egg pan?! She starts cracking up and tells us to look up.
All of the pans were hanging from a rack above our heads.
A slight blow to our egos.. but the eggs were as good as ever that day and the story never gets old!
Patient and supportive. Merrill invited me to go shoot hand guns and do some target practice. Now, for a suburban dweller my whole life, this was unfamiliar territory. As a matter of fact I was a a little terrified. We packed up some snacks and supplies and off we went. Merrill taught me gun safety, and how to shoot & load. He even offered to refill the clip because it was pretty tough for ol’ suburban weak thumbs, but I managed and maybe even impressed. Ha! I had that target up behind my office door for years. It was a fond reminder of the time I out-shot some seasoned shooters (most of my shots were in the first 2 circles!) my first/only time out and of the great teacher who made it happen. Thanks for the memories (& skills), Merrill!
My condolences to the Waters family on the passing of Merrill. In 1978, I was in the OCS Battalion in Quantico and Merrill was my Platoon Commander. He provided me and the other Officer Candidates with guidance, caring and the trait of leading by example. He always took the time to speak with each Candidate personally and encouraged us when times seemed difficult. He is smiling proudly in our Platoon Photo, which I cherish and display proudly. Rest assured that Merrill has had a positive impact on many people and I, personally, am grateful. May God bless Merrill and his family.
I just found out about his passing. I’m sorry for your loss. I worked at American Providers for a couple years back in the early 90’s (I think). 🙂 May you find continued peace.