As I look out upon this group today, the first thing that occurs to me is that he would have loved to be here. And, if he were, it would be a great party.

When I asked Suzanne for an adjective to describe my father, without hesitation she said, "BIG". His big smile was the first thing you saw when you met him and his big appetite for fun characterized your time with him. He loved big groups of family and friends because that made the party more fun and he loved those big six passenger cars because you could take more people with you wherever you were going.

And, of course, he had a big appetite for great food - all kinds of food. I will always remember those many occasions when he and his baby brother would read an exciting menu aloud to one another across a dinner table.

"Oh, look, Vince. They have Caponata, Zuppa di Pesce, Scampi Francese…"

This is what passes for conversation in our family.

My wife would often make his favorite dishes when he came to visit. All great cooks love an appreciative audience. I will always remember one visit when my twin sons, home from college, sat on either side of him enjoying Christmas dinner. When he realized they were outpacing him, he stood up and scraped as much of the Mussels marinara as possible onto his plate. He was going to get his share no matter what.

I still have a picture of that somewhere.

The other adjective that occurs to me is "intense". But then, I am not sure intense quite covers it. Fierce might be a better word. He was fiercely passionate about everything. Growing up in the depression and starting with nothing, he worked two jobs to support a young family; started a business with virtually no money and played hard when he had the chance.

As he became more successful, he graduated from bowling to boating and brought the same fierce passion to his free time. The boating season lasted from Memorial Day to Labor Day and on his boat he would be with family in tow each and every weekend - no matter the weather. Sun, rain, fog… it didn't matter. Equipped with 18th century navigational tools, he would get wherever he was going without fail.

He brought that same fierce passion to retirement. Every day was planned - reservations at the tennis courts, advance notice for tee times and a rigorous schedule to play gin and gather his friends for cocktails.

This fierce passion defined his life including his plan for retirement. At my wedding day in 1981, with a huge grin on his face, he told my new bride not to count on any inheritance because he was going to retire and do his best to spend it all before he died. It's a story that defines his passion for life. We were on notice. He was going to stop working and have a great time.

He DID have a great time. He also made a great life for his family and had a grand party along the way.