When the nurse handed me a small handful of personal effects, she said kindly, “Your father was happy here.” It was true: He’d adjusted to life at a nearby assisted living facility, where he lived for two years. He had a pleasant demeanor, ready smile, and joked with the staff. I was told often, and by many, that he was one of their favorite residents. We’d just visited him in his usual good spirits. On Winter Solstice, as the sun cast long shadows and planets aligned into a spectacular Great Conjunction, we received the call: My father had COVID-19.
Alfred Daniel Eliason, last of his generation, youngest of three brothers, was born and raised in Bedford, New York, to an immigrant family from Sweden. He graduated from MIT, where he rowed crew and sang in the choir. He served his country in the Air Force Reserves and spent his career working in defense of his nation.
He met Bette Jean Jarrell, a model, in Dallas, Texas, when a friend invited him to visit. The story goes that she met two young men at a supper club, and one called to ask her on a date. She accepted, not certain which one would show up. Apparently, the right one did. Dan and Bette married in Palo Alto, California, in 1959, and settled in Santa Barbara in 1967.
