Editor’s note: the following eulogy was giving in honor of Jon Camponizzi by his high school classmate Chris Linn. Jon was the son of my wife’s cousin Ray. The 18-year old lived with his mother Vikki in Florida when he died on March 6, 2007.

I post it today, Mother’s Day, in honor of Vikki and in memory of Jon.
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Jon Camponizzi was my best friend.

But what does it mean to be a best friend?

-listening to each other’s thoughts and sharing in their feelings

-watching TV for hours and not saying a word because you know you understand each other

-it means being there for each other through good times and bad

-it means accepting each other for who they are, even when what they do can sometimes make you angry

-it means enjoying the moment and each other

Jon was an interesting person

-he was interesting, because he was interested in life

-he was interested in music, current events, culture, art and anything else most teenagers would not be interested in

-Jon was someone I enjoyed getting to know

I remember when I first met him, he was driving me home, and he was singing along with the music playing in his car

-I remember thinking how weird it was that he was singing along to an orchestral piece, but soon enough I found myself listening to the same type of music.

I think most people would agree that a little bit of Jon rubs off on everyone

-Jon once sent a question in to the O’Reilly factor and was answered on the show.

-He also participated in Florida Boy’s State, an honorary camp for high achieving high school students and he met Jeb Bush.

-When he went on Mr. Biggar’s European trip, he called my mother and I from several locations: the National Art Gallery in London, excited because he has seen the original painting of the execution of Lady Jane Grey, the Palace at Versailles, because he wanted to share that experience with us.

Jon had an enormous heart.

-in all the time that I have known him, I’ve never seen him judge anyone

-he was an easy person to talk to and to be around
Because of that, he made connections with so many people

-there is no one that I felt more comfortable talking to that Jon

To the common eye, Jon might be seen as a little unorganized, sloppy even

-it seems like every time he came over he had lost his keys, ipod or wallet

-in fact half the time we spent hanging out we were looking for his things

Underneath all that, he was a very complex person

-he was generous and kind and loving

-he wanted to make people happy, he thought about what that would take and without hesitation he would provide it.

On thing I loved about Jon was his outgoing spirit.

-I remember at my last birthday party he actually karate chopped my cake for no apparent reason

-sometimes he would just shove his face close to mine, just to make me laugh

-and sometimes his antics annoyed me

But having him around made me happy to be alive.

Jon sometimes bent the rules.

-but I think it was his personality was too big to be held back, and he didn’t let it

-he was open and honest about what he believed, what he liked and didn’t like

Good or bad, you always knew where you stood with Jon

-he refuse to be let other people determine who he was

-he listened to what others thought, but never followed the trend.

John Camponizzi was one of a kind, and I am proud to call him my best friend.

Even though my time with Jon was short, he changed my life forever.

I know we’ll see him again…beyond the gray sky.