My former father-in-law Bill Raftery died today in 1986 so I always pause to think of him. Here are a couple photos of Bill presenting Buzzy with a Christmas present of snow shoes:
 |
| Ryan Wondering What Was Up as Mom and Peggy (Bill’s wife) Look On |
Today, those snow shoes are hanging up in the Buzzy’s Country Store.
Occasionally someone will ask me about them. Bill will always come to mind as I explain how he gave them to Buzzy as a Christmas gift many years ago.
Immediately after my annual reflection on Bill every 19 December, however, my next thoughts focus on the night he died and another incident. Bill’s passing coincided with the fuel barge explosion at Steuart’s Pier just up the beach from my house here in Piney Point. Bill died the night of December 19th and early the next morning at 2:30 a.m. the Steuart’s explosion occurred (click here.)
The headline about a bomb exploding is accurate as it woke me up that night and I immediately went downstairs to look out my front windows to see what was going on. Seeing nothing there I went to the river-side back of the house and saw the entire sky aglow with fire. I then knew that it was Steuart’s.
Next day I remember calling Buzzy first thing to tell him about Bill passing. Before I could say anything to him about Bill, he said “Bet you got a mess over there.” He had already heard about the explosion. Throughout the morning, as I called various folks to inform them of Bill’s passing, our conversations would ultimately land on the Steuart explosion. Someone made the comment “Well, I guess you can say Bill went out with a bang.” His obit follows:
And speaking of bombs: