Gentle Giant

I went to the funeral for our friend Brad Bonkowski last night and a celebration broke out. The church was full. Obviously, he had impacted a lot more people than just me!  You know the hockey expression "I went to the fights and a game broke out" (as opposed to "I went to the game and a fight broke out")...you know what I mean? Anyway, I went to a funeral and the Hallelujah chorus broke out in my heart! What a tribute to a special man. As his close friend Ross shared, "he was exactly what you saw".

Brad loved to sing and he had a wonderful deep voice. He was in the choir for as long as I can remember. He stood out in a crowd not only because of his height but for his voice as well! It was amazing to see the full choir in attendance and for them to sing some of his favourite songs as a tribute to this man. 'Amazing Grace' never sounded as sweet or more true.

Brad was a 'gentle giant' of a man. He was soft and quiet in nature but fun loving and very friendly. He loved to sing. He loved God. He shared his faith through his love for people. He didn't 'push' his faith on you but you felt it, nevertheless. You knew what he believed and he left a sprinkle on you whether you where aware of it or not! It's refreshing to know someone like that! He will be missed by all who knew him and it is a loss for those of you who did not. May his wife Joanne be comforted in part by the knowledge of how much he was loved and respected by others. Our prayers for comfort and strength go out to her.  Brad is now 'safe and secure' with his God.

"...Our life here on earth is short but our eternity is forever. I'm not in a rush to get to heaven but I'm certainly looking forward to it. I just know I'm going to be a member of God's choir and I'm going to be able to hug my grandparents and other loved ones again. What a privilege to be a child of God ..." 
Brad Bonkowski (April 18th, 2009).