Dave Stephens Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 All: It's been about two years since the death of my father. He died unexpectedly and suddenly. Him and I were working on our jointly owned boat in Cordova, Ak and he got a stomach ache. A few days later he was diagnosed with stage 4 Pancreatic Cancer. Ten days later he died. We had a few days to say goodbye. The very last beer I shared with my Dad was sitting on the flying bridge of his Boat in what was going to be his retirement home in Florida. I asked him what he wanted done at his funeral. In my Dad's characteristic humor he said he wanted me to build a Viking ship and put him on it, pushing it out to sea. i laughed and said that I'd probably go to jail for that. Then we hatched this plan. My family are commercial fishermen from Cordova, Alaska. We lived on the water. My dad always hoped he was of Viking descent. He was intensely disappointed to find out we were not when DNA tests became available. I wanted to share these pics and the video with you guys (my brothers in craftsmanship), but it was too close to the event. It was too personal. Enough time has passed, and I think it's okay to show you what we did. I say "we," because this build was like a long goodbye to my Dad. He was the woodworker. I was the metal guy. I had never built anything more complex than a small cabin out of wood. I had a lot of long conversations with him during this build. Most of them were in the form of: "I know, Dad! But we don't have time to redo that bit. Your funeral is in like seven days!" My buddy Shane Harvey designed this scale model of a Viking Longship from blueprints obtained from the Copenhagen museum in Denmark in CAD and then cut the keel and ribs on his CNC plywood cutter. He also did the dragon head and the small shields with my Dad's initials (RS) on them. The cutting of the cedar planks (each one cut on a table saw by me), the glue up, etc. took almost 20 days of intense work. I totally underestimated the amount of time it would take. All the lessons I had to learn as I went . . . Just in time I had it stained, varnished, and loaded onto my truck for the ferry ride to Cordova. We loaded the boat up with things my Dad loved. Including the very first sword I ever made when I was 12 with his help (ground from a long file), his favorite hat, a jar of peanut butter (his favorite food), and a gin and tonic in a viking horn (not traditional, but it was his drink). And then we set it on fire. It burned until it swamped, and then we sunk it in a bay that he loved. Anyway, hope you like the build. It's not a blade, but I know you guys well enough to know you'll be okay with this off topic post. Cheers, Dave PS: Drone footage by Shane Harvey. 13 -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Toneguzzo Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 (edited) Wow Dave, That brought a tear to my eye. You have done your father proud. Not only is it the most wonderful sentiment and executed in a way that shows the respect you have for your dad but also the wonderful work put in the making of that ship and the attention to detail. I lost my father when I was 3 and my mother around the same time as your dad so this really touched me. Best thread. Much respect, Rob Edited December 1, 2019 by Rob Toneguzzo "Old dogs care about you even when you make mistakes" - Tom HALL - Old Dogs, Children and Watermelon wine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allen Vann Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 I am at a loss for words at the beauty of this memorial. Seems that he was a wonderful father who raised his son to have unquestionable respect. I hope to be able to raise mine to be as respectful as you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Will Wilcox Posted November 30, 2019 Share Posted November 30, 2019 You honored him in an excellent way, Dave. A viking way, and a way that I'm sure he would have loved. Very touching video, sir. I dont imagine it's easy to share this kind of thing, but thank you for doing so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex Middleton Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 Thank you for sharing this Dave. I know it must be difficult. Such an amazing tribute to your father. I only hope that I can even come close to honoring my father in such a way when that time comes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Benson Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 Wow! A wonderful tribute to your Dad Dave. I'm sure your Dad was looking down with a large smile on his face. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Christenberry Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 Well, I don't mind sharing I've got tears in my eyes. What a beautiful send-off for a father and friend. Beautiful tribute. I'm honored you'd feel like sharing that with us here on the forum. I bet "Pop" was proud of that. WOW! Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kerri Duncan Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 A moment shared among us assures his memory grows bigger- Bravo for the strength to share- and I am honored you chose us to share it with. Be safe and as always- at peace. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
C Craft Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 Your father is proud of his son for honoring him this way! So am I Dave, so am I! C Craft Customs ~~~ With every custom knife I build I try to accomplish three things. I want that knife to look so good you just have to pick it up, feel so good in your hand you can't wait to try it, and once you use it, you never want to put it down ! If I capture those three factors in each knife I build, I am assured the knife will become a piece that is used and treasured by its owner! ~~~ C Craft Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jim Kelso Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 That's so amazing and touching Dave! What a fine tribute... Jim My website and INSTAGRAM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveShimanek Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 Great sendoff! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alan Longmire Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 Darn it Dave, you made the world a bit blurry over here. Wow. Took me all day to work up the nerve to watch the video, but it was worth it. He'd be proud for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zeb Camper Posted December 1, 2019 Share Posted December 1, 2019 Yeah, I cant watch the vid. +1 on what they said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joshua States Posted December 2, 2019 Share Posted December 2, 2019 I shed a few tears myself. Bravo on you Dave and thanks for the honor of being in the circle of folks you would share that with. Though they are gone from our immediate life, every time we tell a story about them they continue to touch someone’s life. So tell his story often, and with as much detail as you can muster. He will continue to live through you. “So I'm lightin' out for the territory, ahead of the scared and the weak and the mean spirited, because Aunt Sally is fixin’ to adopt me and civilize me, and I can't stand it. I've been there before.” The only bad experience is the one from which you learn nothing. Josh http://www.dosgatosdesignsllc.com/#! https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdJMFMqnbLYqv965xd64vYg J.States Bladesmith | Facebook https://www.facebook.com/dos.gatos.71 https://www.etsy.com/shop/JStatesBladesmith Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clifford Brewer Posted December 2, 2019 Share Posted December 2, 2019 (edited) An honor to a Father that words can not give.................... Edited December 2, 2019 by Clifford Brewer If ya can't be good don't git caught !! People who say stuff can't be done need to git the hell outta the way of people who do stuff !!! Show me a man who is called an expert by his peers And I will show you a good man to listen to ...... Show me a man who calls himself an expert and I will show you an egotistical asshole...............!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michael Stuart Posted December 2, 2019 Share Posted December 2, 2019 Very nicely done. We all should be so fortunate as to have relationships of such value, in both directions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Okinaka Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 Lost my mum last year, to pancreatic cancer, I feel you. Awesome way of honoring your dad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Dougherty Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 Damn Dave, you've got me tearing up too. Very powerful tribute. I lost my dad a few years ago, and I have often thought about how much he would enjoy some of the projects I have taken on since. In a small way I understand some of the emotion you felt in doing this. -Brian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Langston Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 thankyou ,very moving. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robert D. Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 I lack the words.... My condolences for your loss but also tremendous respect for your dedication to fulfill your fathers wishes. http://robertjamescustoms.tumblr.com/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JeffM Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 Wow that is a very touching and heart felt thing you have done Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan Hertzson Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 Fantastic tale and tribute. Well done. Sorry for your loss, I just had exactly the same thing happen with my father. At 90 years old and decent health, into the hospital for stomach distress, stage 4 pancreatic cancer diagnosis, gone in under 2 weeks. That was on Halloween. My father wasn't into the viking thing, but in his youth was an avid free flight model airplane competitor. Maybe I'll build one with an extra large tank and release it to fly away over the ocean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Christenberry Posted December 3, 2019 Share Posted December 3, 2019 I hate Pancreatic Cancer. Lost my late wife to it in 2001. We didn't bother with "traditional" medicine, so she actually lived a year and 11 months after diagnosis........but the last 6 months were danged rough. I have deep empathy for any relative or caregiver who has dealt with this awful disease. I will say this, medical research has seen some great strides in finding cures............or at least lengthening the time with a good "quality of life". Back when my wife was diagnosed, we asked the Doctor what we should do first. (thinking in terms of treatments) His answer was to go see our attorney and get things in order because Judy only had about 10 days to 2 weeks to live. That's a mighty heavy answer to absorb. While she definitely proved him wrong, I still lost the love of my life. So to Dave...............and all the others of you who have dealt with this illness, my heart goes out to you. Chris www.chrischristenberry.com WHEW!!! If I could only know now what I "thought" I knew back then.................... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Stephens Posted December 4, 2019 Author Share Posted December 4, 2019 Thanks for the replies, guys. -----------------------------------------------"It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly; who errs and comes short again and again; because there is not effort without error and shortcomings; but who does actually strive to do the deed; who knows the great enthusiasm, the great devotion, who spends himself in a worthy cause, who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement and who at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly." -- Theodore Roosevelthttp://stephensforge.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles dP Posted December 6, 2019 Share Posted December 6, 2019 Not been online for a while and only just saw this. Lost my father in my twenties. I can’t add any words but just a touch in spirit. Well done Dave. "The way we win matters" (Ender Wiggins) Orson Scott Card Nos, qui libertate donati sumus, nes cimus quid constet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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