Dad- Nate was the cutest fat baby in the world. We had learned some things by the time nate came into the family and so Nate did not have nearly as many near death experiences as Aaron and that was good. He tried to be better than Aaron in all that he did as a consequence of being the second born. One day he said he did not want to play basketball because it sucked. I knew that meant he lacked confidence in that sport so I made him a deal that if he would go out for the sport I would help him and then he could tell me after wards if it still sucked. I helped coach and tried to teach him the finer points to help him succeed. I have since been able to compete with my boys against others in basketball as well as football and baseball and practically nothing thrills as much as having them by my side in competition. Nathan has a gift of being obedient. Once he came to me and said he was not going to church anymore. I said he had only two choices. Attend church happy or I could beat the crap out of him and he could attended sad and in pain. Once he said he no longer wanted to live at home and obey the rules. I said he had two choices. Live somewhere else or live at home and obey the rules. Just as in the other decisions it took some time but he made the right choice. He decided to go on a mission and was so obedient to the letter of the law that he sought to make up for all the misdeeds he was involved in to be right before the Lord. What a stud. When Nathan came off his mission we were playing WarCraft on the computers at school. He said that the computers were really slow and drove him crazy compared to the ones on his mission. I had no idea what he was talking about because we had only started playing and we knew no other speed. A few weeks later we got to see what he was talking about as far as speed of computers and have sought after the fastest and best way to compete with computers ever since.
Aaron-It was great having a brother so close in age to my own. This was very true when it came to playing sports. I had many opportunities to have Nate on my team. The times I enjoyed this most were in high school. My senior year Nate and I were able to play football, basketball, and baseball together. We got to enjoy many memories together. In football we had a game where we were playing CCHS, and Nate and I happened to be on defense at the same time. Well as the family knows Nate and I were pretty small in comparison to other kids our age, but that didn't stop us from playing the greatest sport on earth. Anyway the other team had this running back that had about 60lbs on Nate, he came pounding up the middle and all that stood in his way from scoring another TD was little 150lbs Nate. Well I was on the opposite side of the field running to help tackle that guy but Nate got lower than this kid and at the moment of impact he lunged forward right into the kid impacting his helmet with his nether regions. Needless to say the kid went down, I was so pumped that he brought that guy down all by himself that when I got to him I gave him a hug and told him how awesome it was that he took out that fat guy. I was very proud of my brother and his no fear attitude. One time on an away game, I think it was basketball, we and a couple of other guys put Nate in a shopping cart and tried to go through a drive through at the carls JR because they said we needed to be in a vehicle. I don't think it worked but it sure was fun doing it. As I write this I realize that I need to be better at journaling so I can open up my journals and read memories like this, to be able to tell my kids about how awesome there uncle Nate is and they can read our stories. Nate has been the source of a lifetime of great memories and I love him very much. Nate you are the best thanks for filling my life with so much fun and life, because of you I am a happier and more fulfilled man. Thank you for everything, I love you.
Kurt-Aside from having a special child hood bond what I love about Nate is his sense of humor. The guy has a gift. He can take pretty much anything and turn it into hilarity. On one occasion Nate and I were horsing around on the trampoline and out comes Jake to join in on the fun. I think Jake and Nate had just had a previous disagreement that still wasn't resolved. So Jake starts to take off his shoes in preparation to get on the trampoline. Well Nate didn't want him on. So Nate starts to warn Jake about the consequences of trying to get on the trampoline. Jake doesn't listen to Nate's warnings and begins to board the tramp. Jake was about half way on the tramp when Nate goes over to Jake and kicks him in the face. Jake immediately was flung backward onto the ground and ran off hysterical. My heart went out to the poor guy who'd just been booted in the dome. Baffled by what I'd just witnessed I asked Nate in a disapproving manner "Why did you just do that" His response was "Cause I'm the man heh heh" I could not help my self but laugh at his response. On another occasion we were eating at a local El Pollo Loco and we'd just received our food. As we sat down and started to eat Nate leans over the table and says to me quietly "Watch this" I paused from eating my meal to focus on what Nate was doing. All he did was get up and ask for some hot sauce from the counter. On his way back as he passed the guy eating his food at the table right behind ours he lifted one leg and ripped a huge fart practically on this guys food as he was taking a bite. The guy responded "salud" which in Spanish means Bless You. I FREAKING LOST IT. I was laughing so hard I thought I was going to die. How Nate does what he does ONLY ONLY Nate can do. When it comes to making me laugh Nate tops em all. Love you Bro
Jake-Nate ran a tight ship when we were younger. I remember Kurt got out of Gorman School like an hour after me, Nate and Luke so just the three of us would walk home from the bus together. (By the way on one of those trips home I think Nate took a dump in a glass jar and sealed it up then would check on it from time to time as we walked by the shack that used to be on the left side of the road.) Well when we got home Nate would sometimes make us all dinner. His specialty was ramen noodles and he would ask us if we wanted beef, pork or chicken. He was always really funny and entertaining and he would some times sing a song that basically went, "Beef, Pork and Chicken," he would sing that song when we wanted him to combine all three flavors. But it wasn't all fun and games when Nate was in charge, he didn't put up with any crap. One time we were on the trampoline right after school and Nate hurt me somehow and I told him I was going to tell when Mom and Dad got home. Nate proceeded to beat the tar out of me and promised to stop if I wouldn't tell Mom and Dad about when he had hurt me earlier. Well I kept crying and then he would stop and I would say I was still going to tell and the beating session would start up again. I remember the session very well, it was especially painful and it was a real wake up call to see that Nate had all the power and that I needed to appease him or else. I ended up promising not to tell and never did. Nate had a strange convincing power. Sometime after that session I remember Nate telling me that he had a girlfriend named Sheray (probably not spelled right) and that he kissed her. Then he told me he would beat the crap out of me if I told anyone. My thoughts went back to the beating session on the trampoline... I never told anyone. There were other things he told me about as the years progressed and each time he swore me to secrecy. I never told anyone any of the things Nate made me swear not to tell. As I look back I think it's interesting that through one especially memorable beating session Nate was able to convince me to obey him and as a result he was able to share some pretty cool intelligence with me over the years with absolute confidence in my discretion.
Nate set an incredible example for me when he left to serve a full-time mission. When he got home our relationship was different. There were no more secrets, just an open loving brotherly relationship. I was over the moon when he decided to join me at BYU and we even got to be roomates. We had so much fun together and he did an amazing job helping me prepare to serve a mission. After I found out I was going to Chile I asked Nate what I could do to prepare. He gave me his old discussions and told me to memorize them word for word. I did what he said and had such an advantage when I got to Chile as a result. While I was a missionary I met someone that served as a missionary with Nate and he worshipped Nate like some kind of a warrior poet emperor. It was so nice to hear from a reliable source that my brother was the greatest missionary ever to serve in Paraguay. I mean the guy actually said, "When Nate was leading the mission we were on fire! When Nate left we weren't as successful." When I got home from the mission Nate was well established at BYU and took such good care of me. Shortly after I got home from the mission Nate invited me to come do door-to-door sales with him. I think having a Mom that was always selling stuff to people had tainted me to the point where I never wanted to be in sales so I adamantly responded that I did not want to do sales with him. One day Nate was talking on the phone to Dad and they must have been talking about Nate's struggle to recruit salesmen. Dad must have asked why Nate had not recruited me and Nate responded that he had asked but I had said no. In that moment I felt the Spirit tell me to go sell with Nate and the Lord would bring me and Nate success if I would. I had learned to follow the Spirit so right then and there I told Nate I would go with him. We slayed at summer sales together and have some amazing stories about breaking down old ladies doors and making fun of them. Something interesting about Nate is how he always pushed hard to appear classy and rich so he could land the classy rich girls. I'm not like that but I sure as heck benefited from Nate being like that. He ended up dating a classy rich girl with an incredible roomate, and thanks to Nate's association with the upper class of BYU I ended up with Caroline who was way out of my league. Caroline and I were very poor in the initial part of our marriage because we got married mid-semester and couldn't get rid of our singles contracts. As a result we had to find a dumpy laundromat to live in so we could keep paying rent at places we weren't living in. Well I remember for my 22 birthday Nate gave me 222 dollars. We really needed the money and I was so grateful for Nate's generosity. Nate was and is an amazing older brother and I am so grateful for his example! I care very deeply for him and pray on a regular basis for him to be extremely successful in his career that he works so hard for. In conclusion I just want to remind our family of potentially the greatest philosphical truth that Nate ever came up with... Never compare yourself to others, for if you compare and think you're better than someone you will become prideful, and if you compare and think someone is better than you discouragement will find you. Satan wants you to compare yourself to others because if you're prideful or discouraged he has more power over you. Nate taught me this before I left for my mission and I have never forgotten it, Nate also told me only losers tuck their garment top into their bottoms but I ended up going to a mission where fleas would destroy you if you didn't... sorry Bro, and I love you!
Luke-Nate is an awesome brother and he has done a lot for our family. I mentioned in a previous VIP that we should all be grateful to Nate for establishing a pattern of missionary work. If it weren't for Nate's unselfish service I am quite confident that the number of missionaries our family put out would be much smaller. I am have also noticed that Nate has a natural ability to lead. When I lived in Utah we would play Halo a lot together, and Nate was always organizing our playing together. If he didn't organize anything, I knew I wouldn't be playing at all. So some how Nate could find and unify large groups of people to play Halo but I never could. I miss vandalizing Nate's house and breaking light fixtures, we had a lot of fun together
Larkie- Nate is great he is a wonderful mate. He is always working late but makes up for it 90 times 8. That was just a special little rhyme for nate the great the amazing birthday song maker upper. I have to say I just love that about nate. I love to hear his great bday songs on my bday. You keep those coming even if u do work all the time. I love how nate can make anyone laugh. He is for sure the champ of poor pussy cat. I love that we share the love of dance. We are always ready to party. I love that. I love dancing and Nate took me to my first club. It was club Borderline. We had such an awesome time and he made sure to keep an eye on me. He is always looking out for me and taking care of me. He is so nice and cute. He would come and say hey I just wanted to swing by and say hi and give u this fiji water. I mean how cute and nice is he. I love his spirit and love of music and dancing He is such a joy to be around and makes u feel so good about yourself. Nate I love and you r an amazing brother thanks for all the fun and great advice over the years. I love how close we became after his mission. Love you xoxo
Audrey- I’m not going to lie, when thinking about my childhood memories of Nate the first ones that come to mind aren’t the most pleasant ones. I am reminded of the many times when I was sacred almost to tears or the time I got a drill in my hair and the consequences of that. But that is just because the mind works that way sometimes. After thinking about it a minute my mind is flooded with all the good memories. For example the times Nate would take me lizard hunting, specifically the time when Nate caught a leopard lizard because he up rooted a whole sage bush to catch it. I remember realizing how strong Nate was because he could rip a massive sage bush out of the ground. Another was the time that Nate showed me how to make Top Ramen by myself (I couldn’t have been more than seven). After this golden knowledge was bestowed on me I moved up in the world and ate less microwaved bologna. The last childhood memory I’d like to share involves the motorcycle wagon combo. This is how I remember it, one day Nate and I decided to go beyond our property borders but Nate insisted that I wear the whole protective get-up: pants, chest protector, gloves, helmet. So I did and we were off. I don’t remember the route we took exactly but I remember coming back towards our house. On our way we were going up the hill by the Frances’s, and it seem we were going a little fast. I don’t remember if Nate got any air when we hit the top but I remember flying through the air, no longer in my wagon. Which seemed like a 30-yard flight, but was probably only 3 ft, ended with me hitting the ground face and chest first. I remember thinking immediately “Wow this protective gear is amazing that didn’t even really hurt.” Of course I got the wind knocked out of me too but all in all I sustained little to no damage. Nate asked if I was all right and I said yeah and stood up and got back in the wagon to head home.
As an adult living in Nate’s home he shared wonderful spiritual insights with me. The time that was the most memorable for me began with me feeling sorry for myself and comparing myself to others. I don’t know how it started but I ended up sharing my feelings with Nate. As a result again Nate bestowed golden knowledge on me. He shared something that he learned on the mission. He told me that when you compare yourself to others and feel sorry for your self it’s like your telling Heavenly Father, “hey all the wonderful blessings you’ve given me and gifts, they stink.” When he said that my insides lurched with guilt and the process of being happy with my blessings began. Thank you Nate for helping to open my eyes so I could and can see the tremendous amount of blessings that have been given to me. Also I want to thank you for possibly planting the idea seed of me going on a mission. I remember talking about a mission often while living with you, and that was when I was only 17, 18. You have been one of the biggest supports of me going on a mission. Thanks again. I love you Nate very much.
Kailie- I always love a good story. One night while I was living with Nate and Ashley I got to hear his stories of when he was a little kid. It was amazing because as we shared the stories of our childhoods we realized that we had such a large gap between us that we’d grownup in two totally different families!!! As we recognized this phenomenon we speclated about the changes, and continue to tell some of our funniest stories. I really do enjoy my conversations with Nate.
Not only do Nate and I have awesome conversations we have a lot of similarities. he payed his way through college using State Farm, which is exactly what I’m doing. along this part of my life he’s been a shining ray of hope at the end of my tunnel, he advises me on how to deal with all my insurance questions and I turn to him for advice on all kinds of different things. Once not log ago I got into a bind with Les Schwab tires. Les Schwab had put on brand new equipment without me knowing it and had billed me over $600 when I’d only planned on paying $200. I called Nate in tears and he helped talk me through it. Nate helped me realize that life sometimes throws you curve balls, but crying about it will solve nothing. Thanks for being such a helpful brother.
Isaac- When I was a kid nate gave me $15 for nothing it was sweet. Thanks for the sweet manna from heaven.
Elli- A couple years ago Kailie, Isaac, and I were driving with Nate. All of a sudden Nate pulls off the road and starts kicking up some dust with doughnuts, and the usual of-road fun, he was going crazy. It Was AWESOME!!! After our little side trip Nate took us to a gas station, he went in to get something but before he went inside he turned around and said “If anyone tries to steal my car there is a gun in the door on the passenger side” I laughed until I realized he was serious! when he cae back he showed us all his sweet pistol. Thanks for being my awesome brother tht cuts loose and has fun, and thanks for always being prepared and protecting your family love you bro
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