Faith of the Fathers

By Martin Ratick

All families have a history that goes back centuries. In Faith Of The Fathers a familys history is discovered very unexpectedly and what they found brings great joy.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Xlibris US
• Release date: Aug 30, 2012
• ISBN: 9781479705108

Martin Ratick

Martin Ratick was born in Massachusetts and had moved to New York City at an early age. He attended high school and college in New York City. He is a mechanical engineer and a licensed professional engineer (PE) in two states. He worked for the General Electric Company, the Apollo space program, the US Army, and the US Navy. During World War II, he was in the Seventy Seventh Infantry Division in the South Pacific. Mr. Ratick lives in Springfield, Virginia. Mr. Ratick is a prolific writer, having authored five other books: Forsaking All Others: A Love Story, Four Faces of Jezebel, Claw of the Jaguar, Faith of the Fathers and Kiss a Green Frog and Find Your Prince.

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Copyright © 2012 by Martin Ratick.

Library of Congress Control Number:       2012915632

ISBN:         Hardcover                               978-1-4797-0509-2

                   Softcover                                 978-1-4797-0508-5

                   Ebook                                      978-1-4797-0510-8

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted

in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,

without permission in writing from the copyright owner.

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the

product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance

to any actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

To order additional copies of this book, contact:

Xlibris Corporation

1-888-795-4274

www.Xlibris.com

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116817

Contents

Acknowledgments

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

In honored memory of Dorothy, my wife,

my love, the light of my life.

Acknowledgments

My heartfelt thanks to my daughter, Sheri Stroud; to my son-in-law, Kenneth Stroud; and to the staff at Emilia Assisted Living Home, particularly Lani, Jonathan, and Emma.

Special heartfelt thanks to my visiting nurse, Odno; when she walks into my room, she brings the warmth of sunshine, she makes me smile, she dresses my wounds with great care and skill, and she eases my pain. And when I am down because my wounds are not healing, she raises my spirit, and I am comforted. She is my nurse Odno, and I love her.

Chapter 1

The cafeteria at NIH (National Institutes of Health) was crowded. David looked around for a table to put his tray down; the only open space was at a table occupied by two girls in deep conversation.

Can I share your table? he asked.

Of course, one girl said as she moved her tray to make more room for his.

He sat down and said, I am David Abramson.

The first girl responded, I am Andria Kahn, and this is Kate Rogers.

They finished their meal, and after saying It was a pleasure meeting you, David, they left, David finished his meal, picked up his tray, and left the cafeteria. Back in his office, David continued working on a bionic arm he was developing for people who lost an arm; he was developing the tactile aspect of the fingers and thumb. The work was slow and the electronics daunting, but he went on. His test subjects would be soldiers returning from the war in Iraq, where many had been injured.

On Friday, July 3, the division head called an all-hands meeting in the auditorium. It was packed with people, and when the meeting was over, all went back to their offices.

"Hello,