Clyde Dale Chastain

My Dear Clyde, oh heck, that sounds way too formal and we got to keep it real, right?❤️So here goes…Hey Clydie Boy. I know one thing FOR SURE….that you are with my mom(your mother in-law)and THAT gives me a great deal of peace. My mom and dad loved you as if you were their very own child for many many years in fact it was my mom who started calling you “Clydie” when you would approach her on a holiday back in the day, with the big video camera on your shoulder, saying “Merry Christmas Evelyn, would you like to say something to someone for Christmas?” She would always say something nice about her family. My dad on the other hand when you would approach him with the camera saying, “Merry Christmas, Harold”, before you could say another word he’d say to you, “you can turn that thing off now”, but you never did. A couple days after each Christmas we could all sit down and watch “Clyde’s Christmas Video” and they were always so much fun to view. I was your one sister-in-law that lived with you(in Yakima)before you and Laurie got married. It was you, me and your roommate, Pat Gress. Did we have a time!! Living with you and Pat…well, because of Pat, I got a job at Bon Marche where his girlfriend worked. And living with you, oh my gosh, I was able to check off ALOT of “first time I did that” on my bucket list. Let’s see, when living with you in the apartment, I got to know what a comfortable couch you had because you had a two bedroom apartment and when I moved in, we drew straws to see which one of us would make the couch our bed each night…I drew the shortest straw but I never complained. While I was there with you, you talked me into floating the river with you in the Ellensburg
Canyon. We went to a tire lot and bought two of the biggest inner tubes
that they had. Filled them full of air and got a case of beer and two small styrofoam coolers with plenty of ice. That’s when I got REALLY sunburned and of course, you got a great tan!! We had a great time just crack’in a beer open, one after another, and just focused on staying on our inner tubes which we did. Then there was your group of REALLY GOOD FRIENDS that you introduced me to. Mark Chambers, Larry VanDike and Tom Peterson aka Pete-Eye. They treated me like they’d known me for ever and just welcomed me to the group. You guys one or all were always doing something on the weekends together and you ALWAYS included me. It might be going fishing, going bowling or just going over to Mark and PeteEye’s house and hanging out. Oh, one time the four of us went
camping, somewhere in Eastern Wa. and the race was on between you four to see who could catch the first fish and who could catch the biggest fish. YOU were the winner of BOTH categories that day and the winner got a case of beer and $20.00. We had so much fun on that trip. Then Laurie was moving over to Yakima so you went house hunting for a house big enough for the three of us. You came home so excited as you said, “I found the perfect house.”When we went out to look at it, Laurie wasn’t too impressed with it and it’s 17 doors!! yup, 17 doors in that house and lots of add ones. But we rented it, way out in the valley, and we all enjoyed it. It had lots of room and it was always great when your girls, Teri & Tina would come over for the weekend or a long weekend. You were ALWAYS SO EXCITED when they were coming over from Seattle. Then there was your life as Dr.Clyde the DJ. You were just getting that extra job off the ground and your name and your skill grew SUPER FAST!! You were such a natural at 1) choosing great music selections and 2) getting people out on the dance floor. I went to ALOT of your gigs with you and there were always empty chairs and tables because everyone was up dancing. All the time. You had really found your niche and you were just so great at it. You dj’d weddings, high school reunions, family parties and whatever the function, the people paying were always super happy with Doctor Clyde and they would promise to pass your name on to friends and family who would be having a function and needed music. Many years later, we all had moved back to Seattle, I’d gotten married as you and Laurie had as well. I didn’t see you real often but then this little boy came along. Ryan Ira
Chastain. Your son. My mom spent a lot of time over at your house babysitting Ryan while both you and Laurie worked so you and mom got even closer. She loved you SO MUCH, CLYDE!! And Ryan and mom became very close. Those were the days that you would tell me,”Aud, I’m going to come up with the perfect nickname for you. I can’t tell you what it will be because I don’t know myself. A couple months had gone by and it was summer and you & Laurie were hosting a BBQ for our family. Everyone had arrived so there was a crowd out on your patio. I hadn’t arrived yet though. When Greg and I finally arrived we were walking out to your party/patio and when you saw me you yelled out, “AUD 5000”!!! I started laughing and walked over to the bbq where you were manning the cooking that day. You asked me, “well, what do you think??” I said back to you, “of what??” And he said “your new nickname….AUD5000??
I asked him, “how did you come up with that? And he said, “you know, Audi 5000…the car…well I just shortened it for you. Well I truly loved it and I do to this day. I have a lot of nicknames and of all of them, it’s my favorite🚗 That was when Ryan was about three years old so gosh, you called me that for about 30 years. I will ALWAYS hold it near and dear to my heart Clydie Boy. Yes, we were brother and sister in-laws, but I think we both agreed that one could leave the “in law” part off. We were and always will be brother and sister. I will love you and miss you always Clyde. In my opinion you were one of the good guys. Pretty much always in a good mood. You’d lift anyones spirits that were down. And you were a dad that loved his three children to the moon and back. After all, you thought each one of them hung the 🌙. I just want to say thank you Clyde for being such a big part of our family. My parents loved you so much, my brother had fun with and my four sisters loved you too. I would like to add on a special thank you Clydie for all the years after you and Laurie parted ways that you would still be there to help her when she needed it. Trimming hedges, mowing the grass, building a lean two, planting flowers at my folks house and helping her every time she and Ryan moved. You were there and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. I’m not sure you ever heard those words from her. Maybe so maybe not. But your loyalty to her didn’t go unnoticed and all I can say is thank you Clydie Boy from your AUD 5000

🥳🥳🥳🥳🥳HAPPY 77th BIRTHDAY, TO OUR DEARLY & FOREVER LOVED, CLYDE❤️
I wish so much that you were here with us to celebrate your special day. I miss you a lot, dear brother of mine. You truly were considered one of my mom and dad’s kids, Clyde. They loved you ALOT!! I’m guessing that up in Heaven, my mom is gathering everyone from your life that are also up in heaven, and singing 🥳🥳🥳Happy Birthday to you. You had a lot of people that loved and cared about you and I hope you know that I did too. You were one of my oldest and dearest friends. THAT’S WHY, I’ve ALWAYS considered you my brother and I wil FOREVER feel that way.
I think of you often and when I do, I can hear your voice calling out to me, with the usual nickname you tagged on to me many many years ago…”Aud 5000, how’s it going??” YOU TRULY WERE THE BEST, DEAR FRIEND, and I for one, will always have a place in my heart just for you❤️❤️❤️
So I wish you the most sincere birthday wishes, Clydie Boy…DR.CLYDE, I LOVE YOU AND MISS YOU. AND YOUR LOVING HESRT & PEACEFUL SOUL,
Aud 5009🙏🙏❤️❤️Audrey