After our first weekend without kids in more than a decade, I got all goofy inside preparing this one of a kind homage to my principesa for her surprise Valentine’s gift yesterday. For those who didn’t know, she inspired the Bruno Mars anthem, “Just the Way you Are.”

… and to all a good night!

Judah inspires me. (But you knew that already.)

Judah put his money where his mouth is and spent all he had on these lego sets for Lily of the Valley Orphanage.

Last night we were reflecting on all the encouragement Judah has received since writing his letter to the Lego Company asking them to donate Legos to the Lily of the Valley Orphanage in Tijuana.  No, we still haven’t heard anything definitive from Lego beyond their receipt of his request, but in the three weeks since we posted it online, hundreds of people have forwarded it to the company on his behalf. (If you haven’t yet, please do so here.)

Even better, some of you have propelled Judah’s cause beyond his wildest dreams.  Thanks to our friends from Seattle who gave Judah money to empower him to send Legos directly.  Thanks to his friend from church who also decided to use his birthday money to buy Legos.  And thanks to Adam McLane and Phil Cunningham who delivered a pallet of toys from the San Diego Padres to the orphanage yesterday as well.

“See what happens when a student speaks up on behalf of others? Great things can happen,” I said to him as we talked.

He thought about it for a second and replied, “Yes, just like God Belongs in My City!”

“How so, Judah?”

“God Belongs in My City started from a couple of students, and see what happened.”

“Yes, Judah, just like that.”

Thanks to all of you who have affirmed Judah’s leadership and helped his cause the last three weeks. And special thanks to my student friends at God Belongs in My City for inspiring him to step up in the first place.

Related

It’s not too late for you to e-courage Lego to send “the world’s greatest toys” to the “great kids” at LOTV.  Two minutes or less of your time can help.  Find out how here.

One year ago today, Uncle Mikey’s life ended too soon, too suddenly. Here’s how I remembered him at the Memorial Service. Visit this page for a living Tribute and a space for you to add thoughts and remembrances.

A Life Well Lived: Reflections and Media from the Memorial Service

By Jeremy | December 19, 2009

As the host for Uncle Mikey’s Memorial Service Wednesday night, my prayer was to present his life and legacy honorably, both in my remarks and in the order of service. I think we did him justice. Not only that, but as a New York actor, Uncle Mikey went out the way every performer wants: to a standing room only packed house.

To the best of my recollection, here are my remarks, along with photos from the service, and the multimedia presentations.

________________

Welcome

Welcome. My name is Jeremy Del Rio and I am Uncle Mikey’s oldest nephew. I’m humbled to be your host this evening as we celebrate a life well lived.

If you knew my uncle you know that he was the consummate showman, a pro’s pro who understood that a one note performance is no performance at all. Tonight’s service will follow that lead.

Uncle Mikey’s life embodied an ethic I heard best expressed by a college basketball coach just weeks before his own untimely passing. Coach Jim Valvano described a life worth living as being the sum total of the choices we make everyday. Good choices, he said, comprise good days; and the best days, what he called “a heck of a day,” cause us to do three things.

On our best days, Coach V said, our emotions are stirred to tears. We’ll share a few tears tonight, I promise you that. I shed enough last night for all of us.

But good days allow us to do more than cry. Great days also involve laughter. My Uncle Mikey was not afraid to laugh at his own expense. He was a master storyteller, and some of his best stories poked fun at himself. We’ll share a few stories tonight, and memories that will make us laugh with Uncle Mikey.

The best days, Coach Valvano finished, also cause us to think. Tonight we’ll cry. And we’ll laugh. But when all is said and the night is over, Uncle Mikey’s legacy will provoke us to think. Perhaps even rethink what matters most of all.

With that, Act 1 of our Tribute begins. Uncle Mikey was a New York artist, an actor, writer, producer, dancer and singer. Like the God Uncle Mikey loved, who “in the beginning created,” Uncle Mikey was most alive when he was creating. To celebrate Michael Del Rio the artist, I introduce his writing partner and collaborator of fourteen years, Nelson Vasquez.

[Read Nelson Vasquez's eulogy here, followed by a video tribute of Uncle Mikey's career, produced and edited by Nelson.]

Transition

With all do respect to the rest of my aunts and uncles, Uncle Mikey was the cool uncle, a complete original who would give his nieces and nephews airbrushed sweatshirts with glitter on them for Christmas and actually inspire us to want to wear them. But as a young man he also wrestled with personal demons, including the disease of addiction.

I’ll never forget a Sunday when I was twelve or thirteen and we visited Uncle Mikey and Aunt Lory at their studio apartment in Greenwich Village. Two things happened that day.

First, that’s the day Uncle Mikey inspired me to want to live in Greenwich Village. So much so that I spent seven years in the neighborhood as a student at NYU.

Second, he and Aunt Lory had to speak privately with my parents. You know that studio apartments aren’t conducive to adult conversation with kids around, so a babysitter took my brothers and me outside to explore the neighborhood while the adults talked. I don’t know what exactly they talked about, but I do know that after that day we didn’t have to pray for Uncle Mikey the same way anymore. He rededicated his life to the Lord and overcame his addiction thereafter.

Act 1 tonight remembered the artist. Act 2 remembers the man of faith who loved God and others well. Michael Del Rio was a member of Living Word Church, and a lifetime honorary member of the church my parents pastor Abounding Grace. Next we will hear from the music minister at Abounding Grace, who will perform two of Uncle Mikey’s favorite songs; followed without any further introduction from me by his pastor, Benny Hurtado of Living Word Church, who will share some words about Uncle Mikey’s faith.

[Music by Rev. Louis Carlo. Message by Rev. Benny Hurtado.]

Transition

Thank you Pastor Benny. The final Act tonight remembers Michael Del Rio the family man. You’ll meet two of his other nephews, my brother Jonathan — one of my favorite preachers — and our cousin Joshua. Then you’ll meet Uncle Mikey’s siblings.

Aside from half a billion dollars, the Jackson 5 has nothing on the Del Rio 6. Uncle Mikey was one of six brothers and sisters, and though three lived here in New York and three lived in Puerto Rico, whenever they got together, all they would need is half an hour to warm up and then they’d make musical magic happen. Even though their frontman Michael is also gone, tonight you’ll experience that magic.

After they sing, Uncle David will share some remarks about his brother, followed by the family’s Multimedia Tribute.

[Family segment.]

Family Remembrances Multimedia

[View the multimedia with audio here. Note: the full video takes a few minutes to download.]

Conclusion

Now you know why I was in tears all night [referring to the multimedia slideshow].

Thank you for joining us this evening as we have celebrated a life well lived. We’ve laughed together. We’ve cried. But my prayer was that most of all, Uncle Mikey would still be provoking us to think.

The common themes from each presenter tonight has been Uncle Mikey’s passion for life and compassion for others. He treated everybody with dignity, not just those the world esteems. The least ranking crew member. His elderly neighbor. And his homeless friend Ramon.

As we leave this place, let us remember that man most of all; and be inspired to love others, especially those most vulnerable and marginalized, as well as he did.

To conclude the evening, another of Uncle Mikey’s friends, Izzy, will perform Amazing Grace as our benediction.

Memorial Service Photos

[Photos Courtesy of Francisco Villegas.]

Celebrating my 36th today, and renewing my commitment to love well, create memories, and change the world. Delighting in family who joined us for an international feast. Special thanks to my wife and mother-in-law for preparing our house and hosting the party, and thanks to our guests for enjoying my food.

Here’s the menu, courtesy of my foodie mentors on TV:

• Pork-oulet (Inspired by France)
• Jeweled Golden Rice (Inspired by Persia)
• Green Chicken Curry (Inspired by India)
• Tangerine Beef with Scallions (Inspired by China)
• Balsamic Potatoes and Onions (Inspired by USA)
• Shrimp Salad with Cucumber and Mint (Inspired by USA)
• Tomato Salad with Assorted Olives (Inspired by Italy)
• Mango Lassi (Inspired by India)

Back from blogcation, with 100s of new fotos uploaded to Flickr. Here’s a sampling.

But first, Bermuda is definitely a keeper. Have to return with Diana, sans kids, for longer fun. As for the cruise, Norwegian Dawn is a great ship. The food isn’t as good as Carnival Valor, but the kids’ pool, spa, and family activities rocked.

Cruising 2010: Horseshoe Bay Beach, Bermuda

Cruising 2010: Exploring Bermuda

Cruising 2010: Onboard NCL Dawn

UYWI LC ’10: Hiking Hook Mountain

July 4th Weekend 2010

Happy Birthday Justin!

Memorial Weekend 2010

Summer 2010 Misc Family Fun

Recent photo sets added to my Flickr page:

UYWI Learning Community

Journalism Stars Party

Misc Spring 2010

Update 01/11/10

Thanks for your prayers this afternoon. We lived to see another day (which is good) but the judge refused to issue a final ruling today (which is disappointing). Instead he ordered a supplemental hearing (date: TBA) for a court appointed medical expert (doctor) and “vocational expert” (uh, career counselor?) to confirm Kristi’s doctor’s opinion that she is unemployable. Stay tuned, and keep praying, mostly for endurance to finish this process that began years ago.

__________________________

Praying People Everywhere:

Please keep my cousin Kristi in your prayers on Monday afternoon. A renal disease survivor for 30 years and a four-time kidney transplant recipient, she was inexcusably denied SSI benefits in 2007 and has been fighting for a reversal ever since. Her appeal finally comes Monday at 3pm. Read her prepared statement below for context on why and how to pray. Thanks.

________________________

Kristi Brattli Remarks
SSI Hearing
January 11, 2009

Your Honor,

Thank you for your time this afternoon. I’m here today requesting you to reverse the Social Security Administration’s prior decision to deny me SSI benefits.

I stand before you one week shy of my 36th birthday. Thirty years ago I nearly died as a five year old in Kindergarten when both of the kidneys I was born with unexpectedly failed. Over the next year I survived one harrowing near death experience after another until my body was physically mature enough to endure my first of four kidney transplants. In total I spent several years of my childhood hospitalized, and renal disease has caused permanent hearing loss, visual impairments, and a lifelong seizure disorder.

My fourth and final transplant was January 2, 2003. Over the last three years, I have been hospitalized six times, from three days to three weeks each time, in order to preserve the vitality of that kidney and prevent yet another renal failure. My most recent hospitalization was just last month, December 14-16, 2009, and caused me to miss a family funeral.

My doctors tell me that if this kidney fails I will be medically ineligible for any additional transplants and will have to live with the help of dialysis for the rest of my life.

Why do I rehearse this medical history? It’s not to give another sob story, but rather to express how much I value life, and have fought to live.

Every day I wake up energized by another opportunity to breathe freely and love others well because of the scores of times over thirty years I slipped into unconsciousness or went to sleep uncertain whether I would wake up again.

Every day I am grateful to my father and the three other anonymous donors who have made it possible for me to live untethered to a dialysis machine.

Every day I cherish the family and community that surround me, without whose prayers, comfort and support I would have been unable to present myself to you today.

Every day, every week, every birthday I see has become another opportunity to demonstrate to others the grace and kindness that I have received for three decades.

I stopped asking “Why?” long ago. Why did my kidneys fail as a child? Why have I had to live with renal disease ever since? Why did my two primary caregivers die within six years of my first transplant? Instead I have learned to embrace how the pain of my disease has caused me to love and live more deeply.

My doctors tell me that my condition has made me unemployable. Odd jobs and part-time temp work don’t pay adult bills. Supplemental Security Income exists precisely so that people like me can sleep with a roof over our heads and don’t have to starve. I am not independently wealthy, nor is my family. As a result, without SSI benefits, I struggle each month to make ends meet and have no reliable income.

I’m not asking for a handout. I just need a hand-up once in a while so that these hands of mine can continue to touch others so long as I am able.

Thank you for your consideration, and happy New Year.

Nine years ago this morning Judah began transforming the world around him. Diana and I have never been the same.

Enjoy his first website, conceived nine years ago today, which includes the birth announcement and photos from his first 48 hours.

Shout-out to my tri-state area friends and family.

The Del Rios will be closing out 2009 on the Pocono ski slopes tomorrow at Camelback Mountain. Join us if you dare (directions). I’ll be dressed something like this. Find me on the mountain after 10am or message me at “jeremy dot delrio at gmail dot com” if you can join us. Hope to see you there.