This week I traveled to South Bend, Ind., to attend the funeral—or should I say the home-going service—of my 94-year-old grandfather. Lawrence Lowe Sr. was a spry man and as the patriarch of the Lowe clan, he possessed wisdom far beyond his years.
He stood about 5 feet 11 inches tall, but in my eyes he looked more like 6 foot 6. His ebony complexion hid the scars and hardships of growing up under the burden of racial segregation and Jim Crow laws. But he let nothing stop him from leaving his mark on the earth in his own unique way.
He spent his early years working as a farmer on his dad’s farm along with his eight brothers, and as a carpenter in his latter years. His huge fists no doubt held the key to thousands of family stories that I unfortunately never got a chance to hear.
We all regret when we peer into the casket of a loved one and realize we didn’t get a chance to say “I love you” one more time. But years before my grandfather slipped into eternity, I got the chance to tell him “thank you.” I thanked him for giving me the man in my life—my dad.
Daniel Lowe is an awsome man! His love for me is unconditional, and his guidance is too. When I became a single mom, he stepped into my daughter’s life and became a surrogate father to her. He has instilled character and integrity in me, and today I love the Lord because my earthly father made a believer out of me. It’s my definition of a living legacy.
I believe love and life are the two greatest gifts we can give to one another. The Bible says for God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, and the Son gave His life so that we might spend eternity with Him (see John 3:16).
When we accept Jesus into our lives and live for Him, we not only secure our place in heaven, we leave behind a spiritual legacy that will never die. God’s love is the gift that keeps on giving, and we must pass it on to our children’s children and for generations to come.
Michael Snyder 
Rabbi Eric Tokajer 
Bunni Pounds 
