Bob Hatfield was a part of my life since 1969. I was 8 years old when I met him, and over the years he became part of our family. We spent a lot of time on the river in the Quad Cities fishing and camping. We also spent a lot of family time on the softball field playing ball. He was quite the fisherman and ball player. He was patient with all of us kids, teaching us to bait our hooks, change the line on our fishing poles, where the next play was going to go and how to play catch. I remember once when I was about 9 or 10 I wanted to join a neighborhood pocketknife club but didn't have a pocketknife of my own. He let me borrow his so I could join the club, then taught me how to whittle a totem pole with it. He calmly smiled and said We'll just share my knife, okay For a young girl who recently lost her own Daddy, and was learning to love and trust someone new in her life in this capacity... that was a win, win situation. As a teen, he was there through the growing pains of dating and learning to drive. He took me to school when I missed the bus, and took me to work when I got my first job. He and my Mom and my Sister came to visit me when I moved to West Virginia when I decided to leave home. Through the years, good and bad he was a part of my life. When I did on air radio I was able to take him to meet Lorrie Morgan and get her autograph and photo with him. He was so happy and nervous, he said Oh Miss Morgan, you're my number one fan! We all had a good laugh and as she giggled and hugged him, we all knew, including Miss Morgan herself, just what he meant. It is these good times and happy memories of Bob that I keep close in my heart, and always will. Bib was a lover of Cardinals baseball when me and my brothers were Cubs fans, we always had a friendly rivalry during Cubs and Cardinals games or if baseball was the topic. He was also a lover of good country music. I spent many a time listening to him play guitar and sing. I love you Bob... you are and always will be missed. Blessed Be...