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A tribute to my Uncle Gerald

We recently lost one of the greatest men I have ever had the pleasure of knowing, Gerald Thom.

As many of you probably know, he was a lot of things; a loving husband, a humanitarian, a son, and a brother, but among all of his titles a father was not one of them. He and his wife Caroline did not have any of their own children but I strongly believe he played a fatherly role in at least eight kids' lives.

We recently paid tribute to Gerald's life and the day was filled with wonderful stories and memories told by the people who loved him. Unfortunately, I felt as though one attribute about Gerald was missed and this was such a big part of who he was.

After leaving the hall I felt as though I needed to say something, and I hated that I didn't have the courage to do so at the time in front of all the people who loved him.

Among all of his titles the title that meant the most to me was uncle. I know that title also meant a lot to him and I didn't want to say goodbye to him without remembering and acknowledging this huge part of who he was. I am his niece, Leah Powell, and I think I can speak on behalf of his nephews and nieces when I say that he played an outstanding role in all of our lives.

I want Caroline and everybody who knew him to know that we all loved him so much and he was an amazing uncle that went above and beyond for all of us. We have all been through hardships in our lives and he was always there for us, without a doubt, he would call to stay in touch and he would always be at our front step for us if we wanted to hang out or if we needed help.

He was proud of us when we succeeded and gave us the nudge in the right direction when we needed it. He was a best friend and the coolest uncle we could ask for, but we all also knew he had rules and boundaries; he was the perfect mix and we couldn't have asked for anyone better to be such a big part of our lives. All of his nephews and nieces are grown up now but we still looked up to him and I think I can say we always will. We love, respect and miss you so much Uncle Gerald!