Today marks the 15th year anniversary of the bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. April 19, 1995 and the week following is a period in time I will personally never forget.
My aunt lost her husband, my cousins lost their father, my father and his siblings lost a brother and my siblings and I lost our “Uncle Pete”.
Uncle Pete was one of the most influential people in my life. I know for a fact that his presence on this earth and his life touched many many others as well.
When you read articles written about him and his life you learn what he did for a living, how many children and grandchildren he left behind and you learn that he loved music.
When my brother, sister and I were little we went to spend the summer at “Uncle Pete’s”. We hung out with our cousins and played baseball, did the normal “kid stuff” and had a blast. But the main thing I remember was the music.
My Uncle Pete was a very talented musician and entertainer. He had a very large, charismatic personality. A “Joe Jackson” that was also the band leader! All of his children were part of the act. That particular summer there was a performance scheduled at a VFW or Eagle’s club and “Pete and his Family Tree” were rehearsing their Hula and singing skills. My cousins are all very talented dancers!
Even tough I had been in dance and music since the age of 2 I had never performed in front of strangers and was very shy. Uncle Pete made me learn the hula and sing with them. That experience never left me. From that summer forward I had the “performer bug”.
I started my entertainment company in 1995 and don’t know that I would have had the courage to do it if he hadn’t set an indelible impression on me at such a young age. The “stage fright” has never really left me but I’m not as shy as I was as a child. I love making people smile! I think the reason I love hosting Karaoke is because I get to do what he did for me – encourage people to sing and go beyond their comfort zones and release the inhibitions and fear!
My uncle was there for me in many ways along the years. He called me, “baby girl” and I always felt part of his family.
For my wedding in 1989, Uncle Pete honored me by flying in from Hawaii to play the keyboard and sing a duet with my friend Virginia as I walked down the aisle. Luckily we had the wedding videotaped and I always encourage my bride’s to have a video at their wedding to document the special people in their lives that may not always be here. I am so grateful to have that video since some of the guests at my wedding are no longer here with us in the physical and I can hear their voices and see their smiles to this day.
I became engaged again last week and when we began discussing the details of the upcoming wedding I realized that I miss my Uncle Pete tremendously. That’s also when I realized that although 15 years have passed since he was ripped away from our lives, he will always live in my heart, mind and soul and all the people whose lives he touched will never forget! Each of those people has a story and his influence on their lives will live on.
I know that Uncle Pete will be there in spirit on Kauai when I step onto that beach to marry my best friend and soulmate Chad.
Please take a moment from your life to remember not only the 168 people that lost their lives in the Oklahoma Bombing but all the people they loved and influenced as well!
In memory of my Uncle Pete (Peter Avillanoza); Thank you for the music you left in my life and I love you! – “baby girl”
