Bright Raven
Well-known member
I met James in 1975. I worked for a coal company in eastern Kentucky as a Reclamation Manager. I was 25 with little experience other than one year as a State Reclamation Specialist.
James was a dozer operator. He was assigned to my reclamation unit. The company was behind on reclamation and some of their bonded areas were up for forfeiture. So 3 dozer units were assigned to my projects.
Rarely do you encounter such a simple, uncluttered human being. He had no axes to grind, he had no chip on his shoulder, he was simple, happy, and never said a cross or sarcastic word. If I had a project, he didn't try to argue how or what should be done. He would ask "how do you want it to look." His example, was a positive influence, that was my salvation.
He told me when he was a freshman in high school, he went to a friend's house and never went back home except to get his stuff. His adopted family loved him. His father died two years later.
The last time I saw him was July 1978. On a Saturday, I drove the company vehicle out to where James was drill benching. He stopped and got down. I told him it was my last day. I lost complete contact with him after that.
I was waiting near the casket watching the pictures go across the screen. Suddenly, there he was. Standing on the tracks of a D9. He was probably in his 50s. He was looking at the photographer and I caught his eyes. He had that huge smile on his face.
I looked and saw his wife whom I had never met. Before she could ask, I said you must be Irene, I worked with James back in the 70s. I said, "He was the nicest man I ever met." She said yes he was.
I was there less than 15 minutes after driving 3 hours. I didn't know why I went but I enjoyed seeing him one last time on the tracks of a dozer.
James was a dozer operator. He was assigned to my reclamation unit. The company was behind on reclamation and some of their bonded areas were up for forfeiture. So 3 dozer units were assigned to my projects.
Rarely do you encounter such a simple, uncluttered human being. He had no axes to grind, he had no chip on his shoulder, he was simple, happy, and never said a cross or sarcastic word. If I had a project, he didn't try to argue how or what should be done. He would ask "how do you want it to look." His example, was a positive influence, that was my salvation.
He told me when he was a freshman in high school, he went to a friend's house and never went back home except to get his stuff. His adopted family loved him. His father died two years later.
The last time I saw him was July 1978. On a Saturday, I drove the company vehicle out to where James was drill benching. He stopped and got down. I told him it was my last day. I lost complete contact with him after that.
I was waiting near the casket watching the pictures go across the screen. Suddenly, there he was. Standing on the tracks of a D9. He was probably in his 50s. He was looking at the photographer and I caught his eyes. He had that huge smile on his face.
I looked and saw his wife whom I had never met. Before she could ask, I said you must be Irene, I worked with James back in the 70s. I said, "He was the nicest man I ever met." She said yes he was.
I was there less than 15 minutes after driving 3 hours. I didn't know why I went but I enjoyed seeing him one last time on the tracks of a dozer.
