ONE of the greatest ironies of life is our penchant to really recognize the greatest among us only after they’ve passed on. I want to make it a new mission of this administration – aside from the daily government struggles – to create a greater awareness of the many great Guamanians who have spent their lives promoting our culture and inspiring us to follow our dreams.

Last week, we lost a great man in Joe “Uncle Tote” Cunningham. He wasn’t Chamorro by blood, nor did his blood connect him to the region in any way. But he embraced Guam and in turn, the island made him a son – a Chamorro. It was his easy-going, passionate spirit that makes him part of this island family.

It’s people like him who remind me how great it is to live on Guam. You don’t need to be Chamorro to call Guam home. You don’t even need to have family here. All you need to do is spend a few days here to know that you’re always welcome here – to know that there will always be a barbecue you can sing a song at and a safe place to lay your head at night. Uncle Tote did that. He embraced Guam and the island became his home.

He built a great life here. He raised his children here, he made music here, he learned our language (heck, he sang in Chamorro and can speak it better than I can), loved our culture and most importantly, he never stopped giving back. Throughout the years, he not only contributed to the growth of the art and music scene, but he always made sure to encourage and inspire everyone he met along the way.

You only need to take a quick stroll through Facebook to see how many people loved Uncle Tote. He had friends from the Philippines, Palau, Thailand and all over the world. They were young. They were old. They all loved Uncle Tote and the beauty he encouraged them to see in everything.

Uncle Tote wanted us to celebrate his passing with a “graduation party.” He loved life and felt that he had more fun than most people could find in three lifetimes. I think the best way to pay respect and honor such a wonderful soul would be to take time out and appreciate how great life truly is.

It’s been a rainy week on Guam with gray skies and power outages. I think we should all show Uncle Tote how much he brought to us by taking a look outside and being grateful not just for what’s there, but for the beauty we can’t yet see.

Thanks, Uncle Tote. Thank you for making Guam your home and making us your family. Thank you for teaching our young people how to live with passion. We’ll never forget you and I promise, we’ll take more breaks from our busy schedule to enjoy life, enjoy each other, and reminisce about great Chamorros like you.