Davey was always figuring out how to get a bunch of his friends together and have a good time. He loved people – all kinds of people. Unlike a lot of guys, he had a lot of friends and he kept in touch with them. He was the type of guy that would start talking to people while he’s waiting in the concession line behind them, and, by the time his turn came up, they would all be following each other on social media. He was always aware of other people who didn’t seem to have friends and he would invite them to join his group. Several of you reading this probably experienced this.
David Glasser, my son, was a Phoenix Police Officer who was killed in the line of duty on May 18, 2016. His death had a big impact on our city because his life had a big impact on our city. People from all over the city had met him and knew him. Many of those were police officers and there were also large groups of people who knew him because he was a massive fan of the Cardinals and all ASU sports. There were other sports fans who got to know him on social media and then became his friend. He was born and raised in Phoenix so he had old friends all over the valley whom he kept in touch with.
I love to tell stories that give you an insight into his unique personality and personal style. As you can imagine, Davey liked to have people over and have a good time. So he needed a beer frig, right? He always said beer was supposed to be kept cold – you shouldn’t have it sitting in your pantry or garage. It just didn’t taste right unless it went from the store refrigerator to your refrigerator.
I kept hearing about his beer frig when I would visit Davey and Kristen after they were married. I assumed it was an extra refrigerator stashed somewhere – I don’t usually drink beer so I never used it.
They built a house in Goodyear and I still heard about this beer frig. I never really looked for it until one hot summer day when we were visiting Davey and Kristen, I decided I wanted a beer. And Davey said they were all in the beer frig. So I went out to the garage to look for this beer frig. I had never seen it but I had never actually looked for it.
There was no beer frig in the garage. So I came back in and asked where the beer frig was and my husband told me it was in one of the extra bedrooms. I had not had any reason to go in there so I had never seen it. I thought it was a little strange to have a refrigerator in a bedroom but, they had two extra bedrooms at that time so it made some sense.
I checked out both extra rooms and I didn’t see any refrigerator. Now I’m wondering if they had been playing a joke on me all of these years, just waiting for me to take the bait. (This was just like Davey) Maybe the ‘beer frig’ was actually the back shelf of their refrigerator or something.
I was growing a little perturbed at this point – getting a beer shouldn’t be this hard. So I walked out and said, “Where exactly is this beer frig?” My husband walked me back to one of the bedrooms and pointed to a brown box on the floor next to a pile of other stuff. He opened the door of the tiny brown refrigerator and grabbed a beer for me.
I couldn’t stop laughing!
Davey had saved his teeny refrigerator from college days and that was the famous beer frig I had been hearing about for so many years!
Davey loved a good deal. He was always using coupons and discounts and figuring out how to save a buck. He used a coupon at the restaurant he and his date went to for Senior Prom. He would buy Fry’s gift cards and then use them for his own groceries so that he’d get the double points for gas. He had a coupon on every trip he made to Home Depot.
We now have Davey’s beer frig in our basement next to our wet bar. We had friends over last weekend and they had a good laugh when they saw our ‘beer frig’. It’s over 25 years-old and its still working. Davey would smile if he saw how it is stuffed full of beer and in need of being defrosted – just like the old days. That small brown box brings back many good memories of an amazing young man who loved people – and who made good use of his tiny college refrigerator.
So, remember to raise a toast the next time you pop open a brew in memory of a great man, a loving son, a dedicated police officer and an awesome friend!
Miss you, Davey.
Love you!
My Family Bleeds Blue 