Blog 191 – 12.23.15

Had he lived, two days ago my Dad would have celebrated his ninety second birthday. My dad’s youngest brother was always known by me and my brother and all our cousins on my father’s side as Uncle Joe. I would like to pay tribute to him and all the Uncle Joes out there today.

Growing up we never seemed to have a lot of the extra things that the Leave It To Beaver and Father Knows Best families seemed to have. But we had Uncle Joe and early on in our lives he seemed to make it his mission to see that his nephews and nieces got to have a taste of the finer things in life. For a short time after Joe finished his Army service he worked for Sealtest Dairy which was the dairy division of National Dairy Products Corporation the predecessor of the Kraft Foods, Inc. He drove a truck delivering milk, cheese and ice cream from the plant to all the grocery stores on his particular route. All I know is that Sealtest made great tasting ice  cream and Uncle Joe made sure all us kids got more than a taste.

One of my most memorable Christmas gifts as a young boy was a Lone Ranger two gun pistol and holster set from you guessed it Uncle Joe.

In the early sixties Joe moved from Tennessee to Houston, Texas to find better work opportunities. We only saw him seldom after that but it was always a big treat. He was always into photography and would take our pictures with his expensive camera and send us copies. Joe got a business degree at night at the University of Houston. He later got his CPA, Certified Public Accountant certificate. Till he retired he worked for Rice University many years.

When I attended Bible College in Houston, Uncle Joe pulled some strings and got me an evening security guard job at the new Dresser Tower, now the Halliburton Building, in downtown Houston. I am grateful to have had an Uncle Joe and for all the Uncle Joes out there who have added so much to all of our lives. I remember the first time I heard the expression, “He is a good Joe.” I thought how could he be anything else with a name like that. I love you Uncle Joe.

Your friend and fellow traveler,
David White