Thank you to everybody here today that came to show some love and support to the family & remember Chris.& celebrate his life while we say goodbye to a loyal Brother, friend & colleague. I hope I do not fall short of capturing who the man Chris was, because falling short was never ok for Chris. I first met Chris in 2000 when he was first hired at Karmax Heavy Stamping. It was in the Karmax Logistics Dept. that I had the opportunity to work closely with Chris & really get to know him. We had a lot in common in the way we viewed the world in many areas. One being Trends.Chris knew I enjoyed Trends Magazine..Which came out 4-5 times a year.. & every so often I would walk in & in my mailbox would be a file folder with inch of pages & I would smile as I knew what it was & who it was from. Chris was often thinking of others & how he could positively impact their day. Chris made a good captain, he would never think of saving himself while leaving others behind.. He would choose death over dishonor any day. Chris character meant a great deal to him . AND when there was troubleRest assured IN CHRIS WORDS unlike some who run the other way, I RUN STRAIGHT INTO THE FIRE. Chris was a man with a University Degree as well as a College Diploma but was most comfortable working in the trenches with real people doing the real work. Chris could get Uptight but it was usually because he deeply cared & would strive for perfection . Chris also had one of the best senses of humourOne that I will now cherish.. He had some funny ideas like when he started a college fund for his dog by undercutting the vending machines and the price chocolate almonds people were selling for their kids .. If Chris thought a lot of something he referred to it as the tip of the Speer & his zingers to the truck drivers were some all time classics.. well are you picking up a load or just visiting its a Hot load, squeal the tires and NO COFFEE BREAKS or when Chris had to inform the odd irate angry swearing truck driver that the walls & sliding windows were in place to protect the truck drivers, Not him. Chris was greatly loved at Karmax as he very much had a servants heart whether it was making his crew coffee or look to help make others job easier by taking on some of their workload When the news of Chris passing surfaced, here is some of the unsolicited statements of fact about Chrischaracter as I met people through out the shop Set the standard, The Pillar in our shipping office, Competent, Man of principle, Always Thought of how his decisions impacted others, Would work hard to make everyone elses job easier, Would try to make the place work when it wasnt working, Go To Guy, Mentor, best trainer, & greatly respected, So you can see why as One supervisor told me they had to take some time at the beginning of their shift because This one hurt everyone Chris never wanted to inconvienience others & was a private person who maintained a private faith. I mentioned Chris would strive for perfection, Chris has now found perfection through God.. By following in the footsteps of his Mother Elisabeth & Father Franz, through his faith in Christ, they have been re-united in eternity If we are to ensure his end which came far too soon does not go to waste we ought to take something out of what Chris has modeled for us and apply it to our lives. Do you need to laugh a little more? Do we serve others.. first before ourselves When people observe our character, do they see any death before dishonor in us What I have taken from Chris & tried to apply is from several years ago. I was on the phone with a Warehouse Leadhand after a rough start to the shift who said you know Matt, I just got off the phone with Chris & I think Chris has it right.. You know what he said to me, He said he wasnt going to let the days circumstances steal his joy today.. He was unwilling to get sucked into that trap. I cant control my circumstances but I can control my attitude in response.. Chris responded to his time of trial with FEARLESS BRAVERY.. CHRIS YOU WERE THE TIP OF THE SPEER We love you & will miss you