August 14, 2020 – The Ninth Blog of the RestorationAge

I’ve lost my keys. I’ve lost money. I’ve lost bets. I’ve lost bicycle races. I’ve even lost my mind. But the worst thing of all to lose is friends. I’m not talking about the occasional “friend” that takes you out of their Facebook or Instagram realm or losing contact with a friend from your historical past; I’m talking about really losing a friend. They were here one day and the next day they are not.

My friend CJ Sgro died this week. The last chapter of his life involved the struggle with colon cancer and every treatment imaginable for two and a half years. CJ fought the good fight and it reflected a part of him, but cancer was not WHO he was.

CJ was the father of Jaydn, a friend that Cate went to school with since kindergarten. When the two of them entered YMCA field hockey years, they played together all the way through Ballard High School, including Bluegrass travel hockey. During all those years, it’s inevitable you will get to know the parents behind the girls. CJ and his wife Terri were diamonds of the group. And CJ particularly always made me smile. He laughed a lot. He shared many smiles.

But the thing that made me love him so much was how much he doted on the girls in his life. The stories I heard about how he took care of Terri and Jadyn reminded me of my own Papaw who doted on his girl, my mother. As mom says, Daddy took care of everything. CJ reminded me of that exact sentiment. Total and complete unconditional love and support.

When Terri wasn’t sure if they should travel to a certain this or that for field hockey, CJ said, “Go. I’ll take care of it”. When Jadyn needed anything, he said, “I’ll go get it for you”. When I was suffering from a severe concussion and was flying solo at a field hockey tournament, he took care of giving Cate rides when I needed to rest. It didn’t take much for him to show his appreciation of your bond, your friendship.

He loved his family. He loved his friends. He loved his life. And now he’s gone. We’ve lost him. But only in physical form, because what he left was a legacy of how people should treat other people. He was a role model of a husband and father. He was a beautiful child of God and now he’s gone ahead carrying Terri’s fold out stadium bench to get it all ready for us on the other side.

I guess he’s not lost after all. I know right where he is. God Speed my very good friend. Sending love forever and always Sgro family.

LLM