An old family friend passed away from cancer yesterday. He and my father studied together and our family and his was very close. We used to go on vacation with them. We were accepted into their huge Irish-American family and invited to many of their family events over the years. They were like uncle/aunt/cousins to me. My father doesn't show much emotion, usually, but this seems understandably tough for him. To me it feels like losing a family member, even if I hadn't seen him for quite a while. There are a lot of memories there.