• Pops, our Father Shelby Mayer took his own life Thursday 27th, 2014. Pops had 3 kids. Me & his 2 sons. He was a great father, a wonderful friend, my hero! I remember like yesterday the first time I met him. I was 4 yrs old, swinging on the poles at the concession stand at SA Sports Park. A very handsome man with curly hair came up & bought me nachos. I said to him “wow you’re handsome." Later, my mom introduced him to me as Shelby. They got married 2yrs later (1996) and he asked me "May I have the honor of being your Father?" I cried with joy for hours in his arms. One of my favorite memories of him was the father-daughter dance at their wedding. I was wearing a white dress & satin shoes. As we danced I could feel the warmth in his hands, & every time I looked up, I saw him staring at me with the biggest smile. I knew then I would love him forever & for the first time I had a father who wanted to love/take care/raise me as his own. He was my hero/ my knight in shining armor/My Pops! Any man can be a dad; it takes a real man to be a father. Pops was the hardest working man I knew. After a long day (or all night) at work, he’d work on our home. I remember every weekend he & mom worked on our beautiful home,cooked together, & had a huge brunch every Sunday after church. 2 years later Pops & mom sat me down & told me I was going to be a big sister. I remember him in the sonogram room jumping for joy as doctor announced they were having twin boys. I have never seen him so excited. His words "whoo hoo, no more split tails in this house!" Throughout the years Pops was my go-to person. Whenever I got mad, or needed to tell a secret, no matter the case he would never judge me. Even when I moved, he would always answer my calls or call me right back to see whats up. He was such a giving man. In 2003 my parents divorced. Pops moved out to New Berlin to help run his father's land. I never knew he had a bad drinking problem until he was on his own. It got worse as the years passed. In 2012 I finally had enough, we all did. I packed up my things & drove to his land. 3 days later I signed him in to rehab. At that moment I was so weak. It took everything I had to stay strong & supportive for him. I had to sign him in because he was too weak & shaking to even sign his name. To see my Hero at such a low point was devastating. I was so proud of him for taking this leap, getting help, & being brave. He came out of rehab a new man. He was so beautiful. Reminded me of the first day I met him. Just Glowing. My daughter Railyn was born Aug15, 2012. When my family came for her birth, Pops was there for me at my beck & call. He kept making fun of me for how bloated I was, but when it came time for him to hold his granddaughter, I saw that beautiful smile. I was overwhelmed with love. When I came home for Christmas I was heart crushed when I saw him drinking a beer. He kept making excuses to why he was & “its only beer”. I knew right then, this would be a spiral. I was right. We all were worried he would get back to his old ways, & he hated every time we brought it up. His smile faded throughout the months, along with his joyous spirit. Pops always joked about leaving us when he was drunk, I realize now he drank to take away his pain/loneliness. Each time he joked chills ran down my spine. Pops died in a tragic way. He shot himself. It’s still so hard to wrap my head around all of this & I continue to keep asking myself “why, why did you do this to us?” I’ve done a lot of praying & starting to see this was not him. This man was not my Pops. The demons overtook his mind, his sprit, & his beautiful smile. I pray no one has to go through the pain we are enduring. I know I will see my Pops again & right at this moment he’s making fun of me for writing this. His witty humor always made me laugh. He always knew how to lighten anyone’s mood. He may not be here physically, but will always be in my heart. He will still be my “go-to” person. I Love You Pops