Happy Fathers Day Dad
Me and my dad in 1949 or 50
My dad, mom and I in 1971 when I graduated from WSU
I was 27 when my mother passed and 32 when my father passed.
In both cases far too young to have learned much about them.
At 12 (1923) my father worked in a coal mine in Blythe,
England.
At 14 (1925) he, his 3 brothers and mother traveled from
England to the US to start a new life but were turned back because they
suspected she had TB at Ellis Island.
At 16 (1927) his father returned from the US to England to
bring him to the US again.
It was not for many years that all 4 brothers were together
again after WWII.
In 1929 he moved to Detroit in search of work like many men
did.
I joke in my presentations about me having had 49 jobs in 52
years of working. No doubt from 1927 until when he was forced to retire at 65
in 1976 he had had many more than I have so far.
Through his determination, persistence, devotion and
never-give-up attitude he went through the full apprenticeship to become a
MASTER TOOL & DIE MAKER.
That was not enough.
He went to night school at an Engineering school and
complete his degree in Mechanical Engineering and did it in 4 years not the
normal 6.
From the late 1930s he rose from draftsman to engineer in
Chief Gear Engineer eventually of North American Rockwell.
One of the few goals he did not accomplish was to pass the
Professional Engineering exam to earn the right to be able to put P.E. after
his name.
He may never have hugged us yet he provided for us and served
as a tremendous role model of dedication to your dreams and goals.
Best wishes to all fathers who spend their lives fulfilling
or chasing their dreams.
Johnny Morley
That's a fascinating story Alan; thanks for passing that on.
June 17, 2012 at 10:52am · Like
Tim Hamons
Thanks for sharing your story of your father. A different
generation whom we can learn from about perserverance, strength....
June 17, 2012 at 10:53am · Like
Gloria J. Williams
Thank you for sharing this story. What was your father's
name?
June 17, 2012 at 12:08pm · Like
Robert Alan Black
glad you liked it Gloria. His given name was James Eric
Black and was always called Eric.
June 17, 2012 at 12:10pm · Like
Gloria J. Williams
I really appreciated your comment about him not hugging the
kids much. It reminds me to have compassion for ourselves and our relatives
because each of us is on a journey and only doing the best we can do. Again,
thank you for sharing. I really appreciate your warmth and sincerity.
Robert Alan Black
My dad was a very caring and giving person. Yet I only saw
him cry twice: first at the funeral parlor after his first grandson died of lukemia
in March of 1971 and the second time when his wife of 36 years (my mother)
died.
He was one of the only totally unbiased people (along with
my mother) I ever met.
There were no real strangers to him. Everyone was a human
being. He treated everyone the same, with great respect.
One family story comes from one of my Family Summer trips.
He had stopped to fill up the gas tank in the middle of Nebraska or Iowa and
got talking with a farmer (wearing framer overalls) and they talked for nearly
3 hours while we sat in the car.
The next day we were visting one of the vice presidents he
worked under for years at his home and to me the conversations were of the same
meaning and tone.
June 17, 2012 at 2:57pm · Like
Robert Alan Black
spending a quiet day alone today has given much time to
think and remember my dad...
quiet day, resting from a busy 8 days.
reading emails, blogs, ezines, Facebook messages, Tweets
about Father's Day and reviewing my varied memories of my Dad....
He attended my HS and two of my university degrees.
He drove me to work 5 days a week two summers from our home
in northeast Detroit to River Rouge
He liked taking summer vacations allowing me to see most of
the monuments, famous landmarks, beautiful parks, a great number of cities in
48 states, parts of Canada and a little bit of Mexico before I was 17.
We did go to St. Clair Beach for Sundays at the lake often.
Remember stopping at White Castle on the way home from the
beach
He let me borrow his car whenever I asked
He let me use his drafting tools and table that led me to
become a licensed architect and a graphics designer
He taught me how to use his brand new 35mm Bell & Howell
projector when I was 11, which led to my continually growing presentation
skills.
He taught me how to solve math puzzles in my head.
He told me stories after a night bath on our front porch in
the warm months
He was there when it truly mattered.
I began to learn how little I had gotten to know about him
after he died in 1976.
It was thru and because of him that much of what makes up
me has developed.
My wish for 36 years has been I wish he had lived longer so
that I truly could have gotten to know him as the man he truly was.
A humble, quiet, dedictated, hard-working, devoted father,
husband and friend to all that ever met or knew him.
June 17, 2012 at 4:40pm · Like
Robert Alan Black
because i attended the annual CPSI conference for 30 years
from 78 to 2007 I only celebrated Father's Day with any of my children in those
years once because Jessica was at CPSI that year. Jeff & Scott I last
celebrated Father's Day with in 1976 except by phone.
Now we typically celebrate Father's Day some other time in
June that works for us.
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