My Hero

In part, eulogy of my father as given February 2, 2006

My dad was always a pillar of strength in my life, and still is to this day.  The last weeks of his life, I thought somehow he would share additional words of wisdom to live by, but they never came.  Instead, I got a warm smile and small glint in his eye that said, “I’m proud of you.“  As I left his side, I realized he had imparted wisdom his entire life. 

He lived his life like he spoke, like he taught.  I remember once while I was in high school, asking his advice on a speech I had to prepare.  If you knew anything about about my dad, he was always quick with advice when asked. 

The topic was “Heroes”.  I immediately thought of important characters in history, some I knew would be heroes of his also: Thomas Jefferson, Patrick Henry, and Ronald Reagan.   But when I asked my dad who his heroes were, I heard a list of names I didn’t know and then some I did.  With a puzzled look, I asked, “But aren’t those some of your friends, neighbors, and people I know?”  He replied, “Yes, the heroes you’ll remember most in life are the ones right next to you.”

He taught me even then, that real heroes are the ones that live their lives with passion, know who they are, have conviction in their beliefs and aren’t afraid to be heard.  As you can guess, my dad was my hero.  He always was and will always be.

He is my hero for the simple things that made him the individual he was.   He once told me that an individual wasn’t the person calling attention to themselves by changing a hair color or wearing something different.  It was the person that utilized their talents, that worked harder, that truly became the best they could become.  These were individuals that you could learn from, aspire to be.  Glenn Canfield was one of those individuals. 

Thank you for leaving a part of yourself with each of us; for the love you gave freely, the moments shared, the memories of your achievements, and the example of how to be - a person.  Thank you for being my hero.

A Tribute to: Glenn Canfield Jr.

September 20, 1935 - January 30, 2006

Three generations of Canfield Men, June 10, 2002:  Glenn Canfield Jr., Derek Ethan Canfield & Alec Ethan Canfield Just having fun with my friend Glenn Canfield Jr. & Derek Ethan Canfield

Timeline

A note to Nikki for her class project (1st Grade), 1998

NIKKI’S LIFE PROJECT

September 20, 1935—a very significant day but I don’t remember a thing.  My mother was a maid and my father was a gas station operator at that time.

September 4, 1940—Started kindergarten at Butler Elementary, where I would go to school until I graduated in 1949.

December 7, 1941—Pearl Harbor was bombed in a sneak attack by the Japanese.  We were having Sunday dinner when the news came over the radio.  Only my father knew where it was, and what the significance was.  He told my mother he was going to enlist, he tried on Monday, but they turned him down because of injuries he had received earlier while in the Army.

December 12, 1942—My little brother, David Paul, dies of pneumonia.  He was only three months old.  In those days they did not have the anti-biotics to fight off such diseases.

June 4, 1944—D-Day.  I was home sick with strept throat when American and the allied troops invaded Europe at Normandy.  I listened on the radio as Walter Cronkite told us what was happening.  Three of my classmates lost their fathers that day.  During the war we had rationing of just about everything; sugar, coffee, gasoline, lard, meat, lumber, paint—so we grew as many things as we could to get by.

August , 1944—The atomic bomb was dropped over Hiroshima.  It was the most awesome sight I had ever seen.  I watched the newsreel many times at the movies, we didn’t have television then so if you wanted to see pictures of what happened you went to the movies or bought a news magazine like Life or Look.

November 1945—My father takes me hunting for the first time, it was small game and it was a thrill for me.  In those days it was common for the dad to take his son or sons hunting and fishing so they could learn how to fend for themselves.

November 1948—Harry Truman beats Thomas Dewey to stay as President.  I had all the clippings of that political race and was thought to be very partisan in my politics at school.

June 1949—Graduated from elementary school at Butler School.  While in grade school (that is what we called it then) I played basketball, baseball, and soccer and served on the Butler Beacon as a sports writer.  I received six letter B’s (for Butler) with a star for each separate year.  These letters were symbols of participation in such events as sports, the student newspaper, class excellence in reading-math-history-geography and participation in all school events like the paper drives, tin can drives and lard drives that helped the war effort during the war.  We were in the early stages of the Korean War at that time and we all thought it would end very quickly.

April 1951—Played my first baseball game with the varsity at Springfield High School, didn’t make any errors and got one hit.  We were still in Korea and getting nowhere.

June 1951—Drove my first racecar.  Car broke.  The second race I took out about 200 feet of wooden fence and decided driving was not going to be my forte and became a mechanic on racecars.  Went to Indianapolis IN and worked as a pit monkey for the Stephenson Welding Special at the Indy 500.  Worked at Bates Chevrolet as an undercoater that summer and made more money than I knew what to do with.

July 1945—Took off from work for three days to go to the Republican National Convention in Chicago where Dwight Eisenhower was nominated for President by beating my man, Robert Taft.  I was a teen for Taft.

September 20, 1952—Joined the Naval Reserve.  I knew I would have to work my way through college by this time and thought the GI Bill would help me the most.  My mother and father had to sign me in since I was not 18 yet.

December 17, 1952—Decided to quit school with only one semester and one course to take, to go on active duty in the Navy.  Reported to Great Lakes in January 1953.  While in the Navy I went to Aviation School, Structural Mechanics School, Atomic-Biological-Chemical Warfare School, Special Forces School, served with Fighter Squadron 193 on the USS Oriskany and at Moffat Field CA.  Got to see Korea and didn’t like it.  The Korean War was winding down by late 1953 and it was then called a Conflict instead of a war.  While on leave in 1953 I met your father’s mother at a skating rink.  I also finished my high school credits and graduated with the class of 1954, the first Canfield to graduate from high school.

January 1955-Got out of the Navy, went to work at Allis Chalmers as a laboratory assistant and decided that Metallurgy was going to be my major in college.  The peacetime era from 1954-1961 meant a real good economy and the ability to move ahead.

June 18, 1955-Married your Dad’s mom in a candlelight ceremony.  It was the first formal wedding in both families.

September 1955-Started college at Springfield Junior College.  My high school course were not enough for me to be an engineer so I had to take a lot of math and physics.  This was the time of Elvis, rock and roll, color television was just coming out but it was almost as much as a car.

May 1957-graduated from Springfield Jr. College in the top 20 and signed on to go to the University of Illinois.  Met Senator Barry Goldwater who was later to run for president in 1964.

May 1959-graduated from the University of Illinois ranked second in my class of metallurgical engineers in the research option.  Agreed to go to work for Allegheny Ludlum Steel Co. in Brackenridge PA.  The first computers were just being built.  I did some work on the ILLIAC, which was a monster computer at that time.  We programmed it with wires since chips and stuff like that had not been invented yet.  We did our math calculations on a slide rule.

March 1960—Was elected a precinct chairman in Plum Borough.  It was a Democrat town and I was a Republican.  That year John Kennedy beat Richard Nixon for president.

December 1960-Was let go by Allegheny Ludlum when the steel industry went into a funk and went to work for Westinghouse Electric.  We built nuclear reactors for submarines and the first aircraft carrier, and for electrical power plants.  My job was to make the fuel.  We designed a backyard reactor that could have supplied ten homes for 20 years with very cheap power but couldn’t get the uranium that was needed.  This was the beginning of the nuclear scare around America. 

December 1963-Went to work at Latrobe Steel as a metallurgist in heat treating and melting of tool steels.  By this time your grandmother and I had three children: Cheryl, Charisse and Glenn III.

1964—Was an alternate delegate to the Republican National Convention in San Francisco and voted for Barry Goldwater for President.  We lost the election big time and politics in America became more ideologically based than every before.

May 1965-I accept Jesus Christ as my savior and Lord.

April 4, 1967-Your dad was born.  He was the best-looking boy baby of the year.

History forever changed.

January 1970-Went to work at Crucible Specialty Metals in Syracuse NY making powdered high speed steels, something very new at that time and the forerunner to many alloys that are made now for intricate parts with a long life.

June 1972-I nominate Tom Anderson for Vice President on the American Party ticket along with John Schmitz for President.  This takes place in Louisville KY at the annual convention where I am a state chairman and a delegate.

January 1974-Went to work at Lone Star Steel in Lone Star Texas.  (From 1963 to 1973 we were engaged in Vietnam, which was solidifying the political divide in America.  During that time I became involved in third party movements that were not successful in getting people elected but were successful in putting forth the ideas of liberty you won’t find in your textbooks.)  From 1974 until 1981 your Dad went to a private school where he really learned most of what he knows how just like I did as a kid.  That was a special time for me because I watched him grow into a young man and always do the best he knew how to do in whatever he did.

June 28, 1982—I marry the grandmother you know, Ginger, and a whole new outlook develops.

June 1984-Your dad and I win the Pinecrest Country Club father-son golf tournament.

May 1985-Your dad graduates from high school and decides to enroll at East Texas State University.

August 1985-I win the 3^rd flight club championship at PCC.

May 1986-I quit Lone Star Steel and start my own businesses.  Your dad is an integral part of one of those and your mom helped a lot in the early days getting things rolling.  Your dad is now at Stephen F Austin University, has given up on the Communications Degree (he is a great DJ) and turns to Business Administration.

June 1988-I meet former Pres G H W Bush and now Pres G W Bush for the first time and develop a good friendship.  I can still call them if I need to but don’t since they are very busy.

May 1989-Your dad graduates from SFA, doing it in just four years and matching my record.  The world takes a  big change as your dad wears a suit without being told to do so. 

February 1989-Your mom and Dad marry at a fantastic house in San Antonio and a really fancy, big wedding.  The whole family travels from Longview for the event.

October 31, 1990-You are born in Sherman TX and we start to watch you grow in a young lady. 

December 1991-Become county Republican chairman and a whole lot of politics takes place to this day.  During that time I have come to know and meet and like every statewide elected official in the state of Texas plus a good number of the state senators, congressmen and state legislators.  Conclusion-sometimes they let their personal ambition get in the way of doing what is right.

August 1992-I am a guest at the Republican National Convention in Houston.  It is my fourth convention.  G H W Bush gives the election away to Bill Clinton but the ideology firmness is becoming more solid.

November 1994-For only the second time in my life Republicans have control of both the House of Representatives and the Senate.  The greatest single spurt in our economy begins to occur.

August 1996-I am a delegate to the National Republican Convention in San Diego CA and we nominate Bob Dole, I want to call him Bob Droll.  It is a time that Ginger and I are really worrying about the future of you grandchildren.

June 1998-Elected to the State Republican Executive Committee for the first time. 

May 1986-now:: Being a business owner and all that has given me the opportunity to do a lot of the things that I wanted to do, and to have an effect on the way America acts and believes.