Tribute

trib·ute ˈtribyo͞ot

noun.  1. An act, statement, or gift that is intended to show gratitude, respect, or admiration.

Dad's Ansul History

This past Friday we paid tribute to my father who after almost 36 years of employment retired from Ansul in Marinette, Wisconsin.  With him starting his employment there just months after I was born, it is the only thing that I have ever known.  Every day he got up well before I woke up and came home just in time for dinner driving almost an hour each way.  He has traveled to far off places and seen much of the world, and during those travels he has had some amazing experiences such as visiting iconic structures like Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower and the Taj Mahal, meeting Ronald McDonald, riding in a car in the middle of a Brazilian gun fight, eating strange foods such as snake soup, tiger and monkey, dealing with airports from around the world that apparently feel the need to give him a second check every time (now being even worse with the metal rod in his leg), journeying through mines far below earth’s surface and so much more.  While Dad was away my mom held down the fort with the help of family and we enjoyed Chicken Fest (our chance to eat meals with chicken while Dad was away) and phone conversations with my Dad when we could make it work.  We also enjoyed waiting for his return and as a kid I always looked forward to seeing what sort of prizes my dad might surprise us with upon his return (fun gifts including a Baaaaa-ing sheep from New Zealand, a collection of clipping animals from several of the places he’d visited, a rattlesnake egg envelope prank from Texas, a painted fan from Singapore, a gold and crystal dolphin necklace from Germany, a McDonald’s duffel bag completely full of EVERY SINGLE sellable toy and Happy Meal toy that McDonald’s would give away during that year, and more.  Obviously, this job that my dad held greatly blessed our family.

For almost 36 years, my dad provided for our family with his job at Ansul.  It is the result of both of my parents' handwork and commitment to our family that allowed us to enjoy the life together that we did with family vacations, a loving and warm home, food in our bellies (including ice cream in the freezer and a large supply of cheese popcorn), clothes on our backs and so much more.  The job may not have been perfect, as it was after all a job, but my dad persevered.  Shortly after he finished college my dad applied to work there through the help of my mother's boss and he ended up getting a job that he hadn't planned on, having no idea it would be the last job he would ever take.  Like any job, there were stressful days.  I can recall tense moments as a child at the dinner table while my parents discussed likely lay-offs at the company and prayed that it would not take his job.  I remember days that my dad was upset after disagreements he'd had at work that day and days that his anxiety level was through the roof.  Last but not least, for many many years I remember hearing my dad talk about retirement and how he was never sure it would happen, but here we are.  However, in addition to the negative moments that come with any job, I also remember several wonderful stories that my dad told smiling away as he recalled the endless treats to eat at his office and times from that day with his coworkers that had become his friends.  I can recall hearing the stories of the far-off places he'd visited and the adventures that he and his coworkers had embarked on together, and I am reminded of visiting him in the 'Glass Palace' to meet him with mom or surprise him with a donut after Eric and I were married.  As I said this job, this era of his life, was truly a blessing to us all...even if it wasn't always easy to see it that way.

For years I have thought of my dad's future retirement and wondered if it would ever happen.  I wondered if he would ever leave the place that although likely caused of much of the gray on his head was also a place of familiarity...a home away from home for one third of the day.  But, despite my thoughts and skepticism, the day did come and although I had 35+ years to prepare myself, I wasn't ready for the emotions that came with it. I knew that for my parents the day would bring joy, a pinch of sadness, fear of the unknown and excitement for what lies ahead, but I wasn't prepared to experience some of those emotions myself.  I probably should have been because my dad working at Ansul is all I have ever known and now that will change...and I don't deal well with change, but I wasn't.  I was surprised by the amount of uncertainty that I felt as the day approached but equally excited for my dad to enter this new phase in his life and eager for him to enjoy all of the free time that he has longed for and tremendously deserves.

And so...the day came:  June 17th, 2016.  It was his last day as an employee of Ansul and he spent the morning in meetings and packing up his office.  We, on the other hand, spent the morning driving up to Marinette to surprise him and let him know how much ALL of his family loves and appreciates him (it is an incredibly amount).  As I mentioned in my last post, the boys and I drove up and had a picnic lunch outside of Arby's.  Then we met up with Aaron and Erika's troop at the Glass Palace's parking lot at 2:00 and headed inside for my dad's retirement party at the office with all six of the boys dressed in matching "Papa's Little Buddy" shirts.  Dad (aka Papa) was happy to see us all and share the special moment with his family and we were thrilled to share it with him.

For about an hour, we enjoyed the traditional Ansul retirement send off as we listened to my father's coworkers and bosses share stories about his amazing work ethic, quirky eating/restaurant habits, fortunate and unfortunate travel stories and extreme perfectionism, watched as he was presented a few gifts and then savored the delicious and adorable Cookie Monster cookies (in honor of our very own Cookie Monster) and Camping/Cooking Monster cake. 

Dad enjoying his party.

Dad's boss talking about him and his achievements.

Eric & Avery listening about Papa.

Dad's coworkers.

Dad's friend and co-worker Mark Neuman reading some kind words that other international distributors and people that worked with my Dad sent.

Another friend of my Dad's and part of my Dad's team at Ansul, Dennis Bromer saying a few words.

Video: Dad Sharing a Few Words

Dad being presented with some cooking magazines and a "Chef in Training" apron to start pulling his weight around the house!  ;)  ...hope mom learns to love PBJ toast!  :)

Mark presenting Dad with a scaled Caterpillar Mining truck (which my Dad's company provides fire systems for), including it's own mini Ansul system! 

Dad showing off his new apron.

The Cookies.  They were adorable, but the mess that they made on our little guys was not as cute.

The kids checking out the goods.

Gabriel wishing he could get a cookie!

Caleb & Micah with their delicious Cookie Monsters.

Dad's Cake.

Eric holding two small coffee cups...seems random but I included this only because Eric kept the boys entertained in the hall for much of the party so they didn't disrupt everyone else.  He commented that watching them walk down the company hallway, each with a coffee cup in hand, was pretty cute to see! :P

Cookies!!!

Mom talking to someone and holding Avery's cookie while Avery tries to lean forward to get close enough for another bite!

Yum!

Dad receiving his commemorative fire extinguisher.

Papa's Little Buddies giving Papa his retirement gift.

Papa and his Little Buddies...Asher refused to participate.

Ansul's newest executive.

When the party at Ansul was done the fun for the day was far from over.  Mom had gotten hotel rooms for us all and we headed there while we waited for the big event of the day: Ansul was throwing my Dad a surprise retirement party at the Riverside Golf Club.  We told Dad that we had gotten babysitters for the boys (thank you Aunt Bonnie & Rachel) and that we had reservations there to take him out for a nice dinner when he was done with work.  At around 6pm Dad met us at the hotel and we headed over to the club.  We checked in at the front and they led us to what Dad thought was our reserved table.  Instead, they opened the doors to the next room and Dad was greeted by around 60-70 people (coworkers, spouses and friends through work) ready to spend the evening paying tribute to the legend that is my father.  It was another fun time full of drinks (I enjoyed my kiddie cocktails, but smelled of beer the entire night since a waitress spilled a bottle on me), tasty appetizers and more stories of appreciation, respect, friendship and love for my dad.  It was a delightful and educational evening.  For almost 36 years, I knew my dad worked at Ansul and I knew bits and pieces about his job (things like he travels a lot all over the world, his company does fire systems for restaurants and McDonalds is one of those restaurants, his company does fire systems for mines, sometimes he teaches training classes, other times he has to speak at trials, and he has a team that works for him), but I could never really answer the frequently asked question, "What does your dad do?"  After this evening I still really can't answer that question, but I did learn two things: First, now when/if someone asked me that question I can say, "My dad is retired."  Second, I learned that the reason I can't easily define or describe what my dad did is because he was a man of many hats.  From the stories I heard at the party, I now know that my dad was invaluable to his company.  He was described as "a Brand Champion" and "iconic example of what we should strive to be" and I was in awe of the amount of people that had so many wonderful and kind things to say about the man he is and the loyalty and handwork that he put into everything and everyone.   As I sat there that night and listened, I can say that although I have always been proud of and grateful for my father, there was never a prouder moment than that.  My dad truly is a legend....a friend to many, a loyal employee, an amazing father and provider, a loving and and devoted husband, meticulous and a perfectionist, steadfast in his beliefs, humble, passionate and true to himself.  I couldn't have asked for anything more and I am proud to call him my dad!

Video: Walking in on a Surprise.

Dad as he realizes that he is at his own surprise party, seeing faces that he has not seen for many years. 

Dad and Andy Neuman.

The family (right before I got a beer dumped on me and my camera).  I couldn't help but think the rest of the night that all the people there that had never met me must have thought I was a total drunk as I reeked of beer!

Dad was thrilled to see his old friend Joe Knapp (a retired McDonald's employee).  He said he didn't think he'd seen him in 20 years!

Mom talking to Cindy who made this whole night happen!

Dad talking to another McDonald's employee (Jim 'Ski') that he worked with for the fire systems.

Mark with a distributer of Ansul and close friend of Dad's Carrol and his wife Diane.

Mark N. taking the stage again to give us a slideshow on Dad's history at Ansul.

An example of just one of the notes my Dad received from a guy he worked with in the UK: "I think I've known Bill nearly 30 years?  A fantastic guy, and a perfect ambassador for Ansul and a bit pair of shoes to fill.  Knowledge and professionalism embodied in a single person."

The guy I remember going off to work growing up.  He HATED those ties and I remember how excited he was when company policy changed and they were no longer required.  I think I've only seen him in a handful of ties since! 

The man of the hour.

Dad, apparently part of the Fantastic Four...

....not sure how, but there is apparently five in the Fantastic Four?

Mark sharing stories on the woes of traveling with my Dad.  It was funny to hear all of the stories about his travel adventures and eating habits.  I have dealt with them my whole life, but I had no idea how far his quirks reached...apparently world wide!  Thankfully, Dad took all the teasing in stride!  :P

The real Ronald McDonald doing an Ansul simulation at the annual McDonald's convention.  As Mark told the story, I could easily picture my Dad's red face as his team tried to convince Ronald day after day to try out the simulation.  Eventually Ronald gave in, and as the story goes behind the camera taking the picture is an entire crowd of people waiting to see if Ronald would be successful and get the fire out.

So loved was my dad that when he broke his femur in 2006 and could not attend the annual McDonald's convention, the McDonald's team found out and made a little present for my dad.  It was a Ronald McDonald doll that lifted it's leg in honor of my dad when you pulled on the attached cord from an Ansul systems product.

We had so much fun during the evening that we had to take an intermission to allow everyone to use the facilities and get some treats from the dessert on the buffet.  Gabriel was pretty jealous of Aaron's milk chaser and didn't take his eyes off it.

When Mark was done with his slideshow and our intermission was over, Dad's close friend and product distributer Carrol came up to tell more about the man and friend that he is...along with a story about how my dad convinced him to drive his new truck down a horrible road (The Shirley Tote Road in Maine) that locals refuse to travel.

I know this man and I know this look.  There is nothing but love and gratitude in his eyes.

Video: Kind Words from Carrol Wollard

When Carrol was finished, he presented my dad with a few gifts that were so amazing and humbling to my father that I feared they might give him a heart attack.  It was surely evident how loved he is.

One of the gifts...a deer cam.  For him to keep an eye on his hunt or for Mom to keep an eye on him?...we will never know...

Next up were the McDonald's representatives Joe and 'Ski'.  Again, they had loving words to share including a heart-felt poem written just for Dad and another present to go with his leg-lifting Ronald McDonald...

...the gift was a "Thank You for Showering McDonald's with Your Expertise" (A shower head with Ansul's fire system nozzles for McDonald's restaurants with an Ansul "Pull in case of Fire" handle).

Video: A Poem from the McDonald's Crew

When the speakers of the night had finished, the floor was opened up for anyone to share and my dad's old friend and co-worker Andy Neuman took it.  I heard some interesting (embellished) stories that I can't un-hear :) and spent the time listening and playing a game of "True or Not True".  My dad confirmed that almost all of the stories had a bit of truth and embellishment to them.

The only other person to take the floor was another old co-worker and friend of my dad's: John Goeky.  And again, I  got to hear a few funny stories about my dad, but when the night wrapped up afterward, no one had anything but love to share.  It was fun to hear the stories of how Dad spent his time when he wasn't home with our family, and also fun to put faces to the names that I heard stories about through the years.

(2) Videos: Closing Words from the Man of the Hour

After hours of tribute and enjoyment, the evening was over and it was time for Dad to say his goodbyes/see-you-laters and entire this new phase of his life: retirement.

Our family...with an almost kid-free evening!

Dad & Mom with friends Diane and Carrol

In closing, for those handful of people that regularly read this blog, you known that it is a place for me to recognize the blessings in my life.  99.99% of the time my posts focus on the two little (yet huge) blessings in my life.  Despite that, there are endless other blessings that often go unrecognized, my father being one.  I truly am Blessed Beyond Measure and am forever grateful for the father that God gave me.  For much of my life I have been told "You are your father's daughter" and sometimes have even been called "Little Bill", and although there is often some amount of teasing in those comments, they are always taken as a compliment.  If I can be half of the parent, spouse, employee, friend and person that my father is, I will be thrilled.  I love you Dad!  Happy Retirement!

Love, Tracy (a.k.a. "Trouble")

This "framed" picture of me has been hanging in my Dad's office at Ansul for as long as I can remember.  Yes, I am Trouble...but I am his trouble!  :)