All throughout my childhood and early teenage years, I was blessed enough to have Pieter in my life. Pieter Boissevain lived across the street from my family with his wife, Cheryll, and three lovely daughters, Jamie, Sharyn, and Ali. Pieter and Cheryll were like a second set of parents to me and my older sister, treating us as one of their own since the day we met. Pieter was the epitome of a genuine, down to earth, honest man. He was constantly providing words of encouragement and supporting all of us in everything that we did. His humor was perhaps his most admirable quality. Somehow Pieter was able to take the worst possible situation and point out only the humor in it, while maintaining the seriousness of the situation. The worst situation that arose was his diagnosis of multiple myeloma in 2002. Up until August 25th, 2008, the day that Pieter lost his fight against cancer, Pieter kept his humor strong and never lost his ability to crack a witty remark in the face of another devastating diagnosis. As I reflect back upon all the fun memories spent with Pieter and all of the Boissevain family, I find myself tearing up, missing him more and more, searching to feel his continuous presence in life.