Another Contemporary Reaches Out

Yesterday I heard from yet another contemporary of Swede.  He was two years behind my father, and he was very emotional on the phone as he remembered the big guy, despite the fact they were not close friends.  He was particularly saddened by the last chapter, which describes my sadness and frustration of being 3000 miles away as Alzheimer's Disease was taking it's toll on Swede.

Coincidentally, this man related that he lived downstairs from "Iron Mike" Purzycki, South Side High's super athlete and my father's direct competitor whom I highlight in the book.  Iron Mike and Swede would become good friends later in life.

One of the things this gentleman said was that my father's "name was so famous!".  It seems every person I talk to about Swede introduces another superlative to describe him.  And nothing would make him more uncomfortable than to hear people talk about him that way!