Goodbye Gino, We Will Miss You!

Gino Piccin has passed away. I got an email yesterday from his daughter Nancy, she had seen my 2005 blog post about him. When I wrote it, I thought it was the final end of a long battle.
Though he was very sick back then, he rallied, and came back and soldiered on until last month when the cancer got the best of him.

How sweet it was to have Nancy find that post on Google and reach out, and nicer that she shared her beautiful eulogy for Gino with me. Below are some passages, remembering the man who really taught me how to be a salesman and many other important things about life.

There’s a funny story that I just heard yesterday. Gino built a bench for his sister Gloria’s grandson, Mateo, several years ago. But he spelled Mateo M_A_T_T_E_O. When Mateo noticed, Gino said, “Oh, that’s the Italian way.” That one story says a lot about him – quick on his feet, quick with a joke.

During his illness, I corresponded with many people who were concerned and wanted to be kept informed about his progress. I received an incredibly perceptive comment from one person, and I didn’t tell him I was going to use it so I wont ‘quote him by name. But he said:

“No one could have made more of his life, and no one could have been more of a friend to so many. And so as I say goodbye to my dad, it is with the hope that someday my daughter can say the same of me.

When I read Nancy's email, I cried as I typed my reply to her. Gino was a remarkable man who so many people knew, and the statement above says so much. I will miss running into him in my travels and hearing that laugh and feeling that solid handshake.