We lost one of our own ... in memory of a home school dad

I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills,
from whence cometh my help.

The local home school community has lost one of our own. Only 55 years old, Darrell Lam passed away while at work Friday, leaving behind his wife and four children -- one son and three daughters.

Darrell and his wife, Patty, were two of the charter members of PEACH -- Parent Educators of Augusta County Homes -- the local home school support group. Begun by six or seven families in 1989, the group had two goals in mind: provide social, educational, and athletic activities for our children; and to establish a peer support system for the home schooling parents in Staunton, Waynesboro, and Augusta County (SWAC).

Patty and Darrell were pioneers in the home school educational world ... and I thank them for it. They blazed the trail that I was to follow a few years later.

I saw Patty about two weeks ago and she was her usual bubbly smiling self. Darrell was always friendly and laid back and, though I didn't see him as often, he was there at annual back-to-school picnics and other events. Their youngest child is the only one still in high school. The others have graduated from or are attending college.

A memorial service was held this evening at Community Fellowship Church in Staunton. Friends and family said a last goodbye to a husband ... father ... son ... friend. It was a reminder to live, love, and hold friends close. Life can change ... in a heartbeat.