Maelyn, Dusty’s 2nd grandchild, is named after him – Joanna & Paul used his middle name, Mahlon, as the inspiration for her name.

Here is a letter from Maelyn to Grampy:

My grandfather served our country, played hockey, was a Harvard grad, a brilliant business man- with a wife, 5 children, 15 grandchildren, and 2 great grandchildren. He has accomplished so much. Yet, I have to admit, the things that I will remember the most- That make me smile the most- are things that, to an outsider, wouldn’t mean much.

Like how he would say “glug glug glug” as he poured me a glass or cranberry juice.

Or how I remember walking with him from Camp down to the lake. His sandal-less feet landing down on sharp rocks- yet his face showing no sign of pain. He’d tell me how walking barefoot will make your feet strong. So I endured that pain, as he once did, in hopes to have strong feet just like Grampy.

Or when we would visit, he would give me and my brothers a box of what seemed like a million coins. Coins we would count, roll, and split evenly into thirds.

So now I quietly giggle as I pour a glass of juice, repeating “glug glug glug” under my breath. I faintly smile when I walk barefoot across the stone driveway, or down to the beach. And I am filled with joy helping my son individually place endless handfuls of coins into his piggy bank. THAT is how I will remember my Grampy.

[Maelyn is pictured here on one of her many visits to her grandfather with her son, his second great grandchild, Lucas, and with her mother, Joanna, below.]