In loving memory of my Grandpa Tony LaRocco
Grandpa Tony was the proud owner of Veto’s Shoe Shop in Littleton, Colorado. Established in 1929 by my Great Grandpa Veto, my Grandpa Tony and Uncle Stephen carried on the business and partnered to serve downtown Littleton until 2001. Grandpa Tony was Italian and loved to eat and drink, but most of all he had a sense of humor that kept all of us on our toes. He had a couple of responses to your average questions that we could always count on to make us laugh.
“Tony, how do you feel?” To that he would quickly reply, “With my fingers!” Or, “Grandpa how are you?” And he would say, “If I told you, you’d know more than me!” Or, ” Tony, how are you today?” He’d say, “Sober!” My mom’s favorite: “Dad, what do you think?” To which he’d say, “I quit thinking—it gets me in trouble!”
We lost my Grandpa Tony on January 21st at 82 years old. Since Bryan and I are living abroad and were unable to attend the funeral service, I made a list of all of the life lessons that this great man taught me through his own life example. The list was read at his service, but the lessons will always remain in my heart, and they stand as a celebration of his life!
The Top 10 things my Grandpa Tony taught me:
10. There is a time to work and a time to play, but it’s even better if you can play and work at the same time.
9. Don’t whine…just Do it.
8. Always make sure you have a fresh haircut, or he’ll have scissors on hand to help you get cleaned up.
7. It’s okay to leave a can of 7UP in the fridge half full and never come back to it—then people know you were there.
6. Don’t worry; be happy (He was far ahead of the Lion King on that one).
5. A good joke always breaks the ice; a bad joke will tell you who your friends are.
4. Coconut cream pie and whisky can remedy any ailment especially a bad attitude.
3. Everyone needs a good shoe shine to start their day.
2. You don’t have to travel the world to make an impact in your community.
1. You only have one family—be good to each other.
My Grandpa taught me a lot of things about living life. I learned, from a young age, to love many of the things that my Grandpa dearly loved; people, food, laughter and dancing. He enjoyed all of these things to the fullest, and I know with each passing day, as I take part in all of those celebrations of life, I will think of my Grandpa Tony and smile.
Love,
Keela
