Why I changed my last name to DeNeut

This post is not really news - I'm putting it up mostly so that I can point to it later when people ask me about the whole name change thing.

I was born John Paul DeNeut on September 2, 1970. My father, Richard E. DeNeut, Jr. was a Marine fighter pilot, and was killed on active duty in December 1975.

My mother remarried a few years later, and in 1981 or 1982, my stepfather Gary B. Schrantz legally adopted me and my brother Patrick. We then also took his last name (surname) of Schrantz, and I became John Paul Schrantz.

In early 2003, I learned that I was to have a son. In honor of my father, I then changed my last name back to my original last name of DeNeut, so that my son could also be given the last name of DeNeut. He was born on October 14, 2003 and given the name John Richard DeNeut (I attempted to name him Richard E. DeNeut III, but his mom was having none of that. I do understand her reluctance to have a Richard III in the house).