My memory of Wally Zust

I hadn't been in the foster care system very long but I felt safe. I had a home. Not some place where I spent a night or two, but a real home.

It didn't take long before I was calling him Dad. I went to a nearby high school.

Although I wouldn't be in their care for long, when he heard I played varsity softball, we hit it off. We talked about where I wanted to be after college, assuming I could actually get there (which I did), and we talked about sports: baseball; the Cubs; football; the Bears. My high school marching band did the halftime show at a Bears game. He thought that was super!

Keeping my grades up was important. When I got married, he walked me down the aisle. When my sons were born, he and Mom said, "we will be their grandparents."

He inspired me to work hard to get to where I am today. As a retired lieutenant colonel from the U.S. Air Force, he inspired my youngest son to enlist in the U.S. Army. When I needed any type of advice, he was there. He gave me golf tips and showed me how to change the oil in my car.

He (and Mom) helped me to buy my first home. He always gave me confidence that I could do anything I wanted, no matter how difficult it may have seemed.

He was always there. He wasn't much good with plumbing or a drill, but for 30 years, he was there for me. I will miss him. More than most people will ever know.