“On February 12th my family was making preparations to embark on a five day cruise, a trip we had accumulated funds for and were planning on taking upon my request before I moved away for college next fall. Our suitcases were packed at the door and I also had received a letter that morning I was the recipient of a $1,000 scholarship I was capable of informing my father about the last time I was ever able to speak with him. That night my mother headed to the airport and it was waiting at home I received a phone call saying my father, David Borner, was a confirmed passenger on the flight.
I hit my knees knowing that my life had just been drastically altered in a matter of seconds, in one night, one flight and one call. My father would not be there to sit in the crowd for my valedictory address at graduation, or be there when I step on the field to play soccer for the first time in college. My visions of my wedding crumbled into a million pieces because he would not be there to escort me down the aisle. There would be no more soccer or camping trips similar to those of my childhood. I would never again be able to see my parents together, for that one last kiss, safe in each other’s arms. My children will never know the man that shaped my life, made me who I am today, my father, but also my best friend. I hope that through me they will be able to see a little of that man, who I am proud to call my father.
I cannot thank God enough for those seventeen and half unforgettable and amazing years with my father. To say he was a character would be a prodigious understatement. His jokes, personality, and laughter could illuminate a room and for this he is held in all of our hearts. However, when he was not ridiculing and making a humorous scene, he was almost always acting for others. Besides laughing at his own jokes, I have never seen him happier than when he was taking my brother hunting, watching me play soccer, or about to take my mother on an amazing date. There wasn’t a moment I couldn’t speak with my father and get the most sincere advice. He loved to cook and then jokingly boast about such and the wheels he had on the softball field; I never did beat him in a race. The morals that he has instilled within me I will forever carry through my life and dad, you have been my angel since the day I was born.
I hope as I proceed through life, I will be capable of emulating what God and my father had hoped. Dad, I will forever live for you, and in your memory. I wish I had the opportunity to express my appreciation for what you have done for me. You have been a teacher of love to me, your parents, your brothers and sisters, your son and especially your wife and my mother. We miss you and can’t wait till the day we can see you again. I am forever and always your sweet pea and little girl.”
Nicole Borner – Daughter of David Borner