I sat in awe yesterday listening to how one person changed the lives of so many. Dan Hose left an amazing legacy and impact on this world and the people he encountered in it. A true hero and role model on how to navigate life while we are here on earth. I have met very few people who seemed to know God the way he did. He made loving others and giving to others seem so effortless. He was a 'real life' hero.
We shared a love for sports, journalism, and Ohio State Football. On this past Wednesday, I covered my first ever Ohio State Football press conference - this was less than 24 hours after he passed away. I can’t help to think this was no coincidence. And I have no doubt that he was sitting somewhere in Heaven smiling down on me-- with that familiar smile he would have had if I were telling him the details of the day at our annual Thanksgiving Day dinner.
This past week I started thinking about the impact he made. Maybe it was because we shared a love for journalism, but I always wanted to interview him. I wanted to know about his life in sports, the most exciting people he interviewed, but something inside me always wanted to know more about his thoughts on life. I was always intrigued by his genuine passion for not only sports but for people as well.
During his memorial service I realized that interview never took place. But little did I know that the interview would take place, this time though without me asking any questions. You see, answers to questions I could have never thought of were shared during this day. The interview took place as people memorialized him. I saw the impact he made on his family because he was a Christian man. I heard the compassion he had for people in the stories they told about how he made on their lives better. I learned the selflessness he had by making an unfathomable (to a normal person) number of visits to the sick. I was in awe of how he would slow to anger and how a stranger never existed to him. I was excited to hear of his talents as a sports writer and the respect he had within the industry. The words people used to describe him seemed to repeat; loving, a great man, a gentleman, mentor, and a fine example of how to live. Each of these words from people of all different walks of life. However, they all had one thing in common….Dan Hose was their friend and he treated them each as if they were his best.
I was most humbled by his relationship with God. I saw the sadness in the his longtime preachers eyes, trying to make it through his memorial service. In the same way, I saw his admiration for Dan Hose’s love for God. As the preacher spoke I wondered to myself, how many people did Dan Hose bring to God? How many people because of the way Dan lived his 78 years of life, become close to God? How many total strangers did he cheer up with his uncanny ability to say the right thing at the right time? As the stories continued, the answer became clear.... MANY. Many people’s lives changed for the better because they had the great pleasure to know Dan Hose.
Uncle Danny taught many about life, love, and most important God's love. He often did this through the way he lived his life. A life we can use as an example when we want to challenge ourselves to become better. I left Uncle Danny’s memorial service the same way I did each time I got to see him…….a better person. What better example of a hero is really needed?
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