I have known all 4 of my grandparents. 2 of them lived in the same village, the other 2 lived only a 25-minute drive away.
Most of my family (grandparents, parents, grandchildren), live really closeby. So the bond in our families can hardly be overestimated.
I lost both my grandfathers when I was 15. My first experience with death. In the case of my paternal grandfather it was due to medical malpractice in all likelihood. I was actually named after him. Although he was a bit grumpy / jaded, his life story is fascinating. He lost his whole family in WW II. Not through death, but on the issue whether to fight or to support the Nazis. He chose to fight.
But he retained his sense of humor.
My other grandfather suffered from cancer, and died as a result of that, only 5.5 months later. He had been a farmer for all his life, although he was a real intelligent man. But in the days that he grew up, school was not a real option. I probably inherited my lefthandedness from him, not to mention a few character-traits that make it relatively easy to handle me. He was a really calm and collected man, and abhorred abuse - something which he suffered from during his youth.
My maternal grandmother died 2 months after she turned 80, also because of cancer. In that stage, she suffered quite a bit from dementia, which was of course troubling. She was a very warm woman, very affectionate, and always sympathising with the kids
. When I was about four years old I gave her a name I came up with - it ran through the family. A true artist, in the sense of dealing with people and situations.
I only have my parternal grandmother left. It is hard to characterize her, but she is a great woman. She is in her early seventies right now, so hopefully she will be around for quite some time.