Eulogy for My Father, John LaPierre’s, Celebration of Life

My father, John Arnold LaPierre was born on September 24, 1951, and he passed away on May 2, 2021. This is the eulogy I shared at his Celebration of Life at Woodland Christian Church on May 15, 2021.

Here is the accompanying podcast episode with all the notes from my message: https://www.scottlapierre.org/eulogy-for-john-lapierre/

John LaPierre’s Obituary

John LaPierre was born in Plattsburgh, New York on September 24, 1951. He attended St. Joseph Catholic School through the 8th grade and then transferred to Dannemora High School where he graduated June 1969. John was active in sports, playing basketball, baseball, and soccer in high school. He attended Cortland State University for three years majoring in physical education. John and Donna were married on February 2, 1974 in Dannemora, New York. John started working for the Department of Corrections in Dannemora in 1973 until May 1979 when he, Donna, and Scott (born in 1978) moved to California. John continued working for the Department of Corrections until retiring in April 2007. John’s second son, Jason, was born in 1979. John enjoyed coaching and watching his sons participate in various sports. He also enjoyed hunting, fishing, and camping with his family, and then golf during retirement.

John became a Christian in 2008 and his son, Scott, baptized him soon after. When Scott took the pastorate of Woodland Christian Church in 2010, John and Donna followed him to Washington, where John also served as a deacon at his son’s church. Shortly after John was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Fortunately, it progressed slowly, so he was able to enjoy many years with family and friends. In January of 2017 John was diagnosed with throat and lymph node cancer. He went through 37 radiation treatments which successfully treated the cancer. Even when John couldn’t remember the names of his grandchildren they still brought him great joy whenever he saw them. They were certainly the light of his life. John was predeceased by his father, mother, and son, Jason.

Notes for John LaPierre’s Eulogy

I thought I would begin by sharing some of my favorite memories about my dad…

Favorite memories about John LaPierre
I spent most of my young life in MacArthur, which is in the mountains of northern California. That’s also where Katie grew up, and where her parents still live. It’s very rural. We couldn’t see any of our neighbors through all the thick trees.

One day Dad took Jason and I into the woods behind our house. He said, “This is where I want to build you a treehouse.” It was pretty neat: completely enclosed with a nice roof, a trapdoor to enter it from the bottom after climbing up a ladder, and a sliding window.

After Dad finished it he wanted all of us ,Dad, Mom, Jason and to spend the night in it. The floor of the treehouse was plywood, and we slept in sleeping bags. This made for a long, uncomfortable night. The treehouse was good size, but with the four of us rolling over and bumping each other, I don’t think we slept very much.

But it was a nice, fun time that I still remember.

I also mention this memory because it reveals something about Dad that stands out in my mind: he really wanted us to spend time together as a family. I remember growing up knowing family was important, and there was little Dad and Mom wouldn’t do for us.

Most of you have seen how that pattern continue through my adulthood with my parents following us from Northern California down to central California, which is where we were before moving here, and then up to Woodland.

Something else I remember about Dad is he was very hard-working. People can show their love for others in many ways, and Dad has never talked much, but he showed his love and concern for his family by the way he provided for us.

When I grew up the phrase, “double shift,” was common. Dad was always working double shifts: two eight hour shifts back-to-back. He would drive home, sleep a few hours, and then head back to work.

I played sports throughout school, and Dad made it a point to watch all my events. Because we lived in such a rural area that meant driving all over Northern California, two or three hours to different games and tournaments.

Dad was such a hard worker that it seemed like even when he wasn’t at work, if he was home, he was working. Because we lived in the mountains there were always things to do around our house, and Dad always expected us to be out there with him on the weekends during the school year, and then during the week throughout the summer.

My parents grew up in upstate New York. I heard stories about my dad working on his uncle’s dairy farm, and how he thought it was the greatest thing. The summer after eighth grade I flew to New York and worked on that same dairy farm. Let’s just say I didn’t think it was the greatest thing.