love and respect they had for their coach.
Being surrounded by that kind of love and support, then and today, has shaped who I am and provided me with such comfort during the darkest of times. I feel secure knowing I might run into someone my father has influenced. A trip to the supermarket frequently turns into a catch-up session with one of his old athletes or students, now buying food for their own families.
Back when my boyfriend Brandon and I had only been dating for a month, we went to a Peruvian restaurant in Providence. Sitting at the bar, we ordered with our budget in mind. Moments later a man sat down, skimming the menu only briefly before ordering more than half the items listed. Growing up a Lyons— meaning growing up social and unafraid of rejection— I started talking with him. He ended up sharing his dishes with us and revealed that he was a food critic for a magazine. Brandon and I spent the rest of the night chatting with him, throwing an intimate date night out the window and leaning into the camaraderie.
Around closing time, the topic of hometowns came up. Come to find out, the mystery man was from East Providence and played sports in middle and high school.“ Oh,” I said.“ Did you know Bob Lyons?” The man’ s face lit up.“ He coached my siblings and I,” he said, raising his eyebrows.“ I remember you and your sister, running around the field and using the training equipment as a jungle gym.” I laughed. After snapping a quick selfie and hugging tight, we parted ways.“ Does that happen a lot?” Brandon asked.“ Yes,” I answered with a chuckle. Turns out I really was Julie Taylor all along, albeit without as much angst.
Arriving home, I told my dad about our restaurant adventure, pulling up the selfie as proof. For the rest of the night, my father told stories about the food critic as a young boy. Tales of sibling rivalry and a young man’ s state record dreams being diminished. I sat, mesmerized.
Not long after, Brandon and I were sitting in the living room alone watching TV when he said something to me I’ ve heard my whole life:“ You have a cool dad and it’ s inspiring to see the impact he’ s made.”
I smiled and responded how I always do, having had him as my old man my whole life.
“ I know.” 🆁
RHODE ISLAND MONTHLY I OCTOBER 2026 29