My Dad - Dave "Reelman" Valentine

[SethV]

Sad news, I need your prayers.  Yesterday early in the morning my Dad (Dave Valentine aka Reelman here at GLB) had a stroke and went home to be with his Lord and Savior 2 hours later.  He had a great day on Sunday, no pain or symptoms.  At least he did not suffer long.

He was so healthy and only 63 years old.  He had recently retired and bought his retirement dream home in Florida.  My Mom and Dad moved in to the new house in Florida a bit over 2 weeks ago.

I am in total shock.  He was my best friend and best fishing buddy.  He taught me how to do everything.  Work on cars.  Fix things around the house.  Everything.

I flew down to Florida yesterday as soon as I got the call to be with my Mom.  She only knows the people they have met in the last couple weeks, so she has a small support group here.  It has been hard, probably the hardest has been sitting in his boat trying to go through things.  My mom wants me to take care of selling his boat and any equipment I don't want.  I am just not ready yet, so I will try to get it sorted out in the coming months.

Seth

[Waterfoul]

So sorry for your loss Seth.  Prayers to you and your family.

[markgoetsch]

Sorry for your loss seth.  Just last week he was talking about letting me know when he gets settled down there so I could ship him some reels.

[Firefighter Jeff]

Wow, sorry to hear of your loss.

[mikesmiph]

Very sorry for your loss, and ours. He was a great part of this site. I know he got all my reels for the last few years. We will all miss him. Give our best to your Mom.

[dartag]

Sorry for your loss.  I never met your dad but read many great things about him.  We will be praying for you and your family.

Steve Smith
Commerce, mi

[t-bone]

I'm so sorry Seth. Dave was a really nice man and raised a great son who was just like him. Let me know if you need any help with anything while you are down in Florida.

Terry

[Redbone]

Sorry for your loss. This really hits home with me.  My father had a pretty serious stroke two weeks ago, then had another 5 days after that. He is at the recovery center now, but will never be the same. He is 58.

My condolences to you and your family.

Kris Hurley

[bigmojet]

Very sorry Seth. I as well lost my dad a week ago. It was very tough as well as we were also very close.

[FOB]

Prayers sent for you and your family Seth during this difficult time. 

[BNL]

Sorry for your loss. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family.

You dad serviced my reels the last couple of years. He was fast and fair and very good at working on reels. More than that he always took the time to answer my many PMs about reels and reel companies and servicing reels. I thought highly of how he treated me and my gear, so much so that my wife knew about the guy named Reelman because of the amount of stories about him I shared.

My sincere condolences
Nick

[Mojo]

Seth,

I just don't know what to say bud. Thank you for posting to us on GLB. It must have been hard. Anything fishing must be right now. He was a kind and gentle man.

And he was very, very proud of you. You could tell every time we talked about fishing and you came up. You are very lucky to have such a fine example of a man as he.

  In my prayers I'll think of him, and your entire family. We are sad. My condolences.

Mike Schoemann

[fiker]

Seth,

I'm sorry for your loss.  I remember meeting Dave at Wonderland at one of their Spring Flings.  We had hot dogs together in the lunch room.  Nice guy, and a knowledgeable fisherman. I've sent reels to him for service.

I will include you and your family in my prayers.

I lost my Dad and best friend a year and a half ago.  I can empathize with where you are at. 
Losing my Dad was just the hardest thing.  Ever.  Sometimes it still is. 

If you need to talk to someone feel free to contact me.  I'll send you my cell number on private messaging should you find the need. 

[Team houston]

I am very shocked and sorry Seth. my condolences.

[bassfan586]

Prayers for you and your family

[1javelin]

praying for the family

1jav

[djkimmel]

Seth, thank you for letting us know. Your Dad was always positive and enjoyable to interact with. Many of the people on this web site always had great things to say about him and I was glad to talk to him when we happened to be at the same activities.

I was hoping to keep him checking in once in a while on us up here on GLBass so we could continue to benefit from his kind and friendly spirit. This is a loss that many of us will feel on here though nothing to compare to you and your family.

My family will pray for you, your Mom and your family. If there is anything I can do to help pass information along to the members on here for you, anything to give you one or two less things to have to think about, please let me know. We all understand that your family is the priority and most important.
Dan Kimmel

[Mike S.]

Sorry to hear this Seth. I can't imagine how you must feel right now. You and your family will be in our prayers. 

[bsimpson]

Sorry for your loss.

[Dan]

I am also very sorry to hear of your loss Seth. I have had your dad work on  my reels for years, and I always enjoy corresponding with him and talking to him on the phone. He was a great guy! As DK said, he was always such a positive influence on this board and a wealth of knowledge.
I too, lost my dad very suddenly, and there are really no words that soothe that kind of loss. Time is a healer though, and the memories will always be there. Those I have of my dad are comforting. An old pic of him in his softball days is always on my computer screen as my wallpaper pic. It keeps me connected.
I will pray that you and your family find the strength to get through this difficult time.