My neighbor, Jim, is a special soul.
My family and I have relocated to east Texas from central New York state and I’ve been back and forth many times over the past year, at times spending a couple of months at a time separated from my wife and children. Jim and his family have gone out of their way to drop by and inviting me to family events and their kindness helped immensely with the difficulties of separation.
Jim’s a dairy farmer and is one of the hardest working people I’ve ever known. He’s a heck of a mechanic, a fine carpenter, a magician with a stick welder and one of the best problem solvers I’ve ever met. He’s a hunter and a shooter – the hallmark of a sterling character. He’s also quick to help a neighbor in need and he’s devoted to his wife and children. Great guy in every respect.
That he is constantly using a wide variety of tools goes without saying. Since we downsized significantly in terms of house and property, I had a surplus of tools and machinery that I was more than happy to give to my neighbor, including a really nice old Stihl 076 chainsaw (a fire-breather, that one), a truck load of hand tools, a compressor, a reloading bench, a nice pile of .308 brass and some big Wilton vises. I was happy to give these to him – he will put them to work and hopefully make his life a little more manageable (more time to hunt and shoot), where the alternative would be to have a moving sale where I would have to listen to folks offer me $25 for the Stihl 076 and the like.
I was in New York just a short while ago on a clean-up trip. There was a winter’s worth of stuff that needed attention, including downed trees and brush that needed to be cleared away. I left for Texas a few days ago and I stopped by Jim’s milk barn the evening before I left to drop off a few more things and say goodbye. He called his wife as soon as I got there and told me that she wanted to say goodbye, too. Well, his wife pulled up to the barn about fifteen minutes later. Jim opened the trunk of her car and removed a rifle case. I didn’t think much of it until he walked over and handed it to me. Puzzled, I asked him if there was something wrong with whatever was in the case (I’ve worked on a number of his rifles and built him his current favorite, a .20 Practical). He said “This is for you”. I protested and told him that our friendship is more than gift enough. He insisted and I opened the case.
I must admit to tearing up. The case contained a beautiful Sako L57-actioned .257 AI hunting rifle. Built by Parker Otto Ackley himself before Ackley moved to Utah from Glens Falls, NY. I’m familiar with this rifle, having taken a young whitetail buck with it this past fall. It’s a brilliant hunting rifle and that it was built by P.O. Ackley is way more than icing on the cake. It now occupies a place of honor on "Ackley Row" in one of my safes. I hope to be worthy of such a gift someday.
Thanks Jim, from the bottom of my heart. Happy Fathers Day a bit early and God's Blessings.
My family and I have relocated to east Texas from central New York state and I’ve been back and forth many times over the past year, at times spending a couple of months at a time separated from my wife and children. Jim and his family have gone out of their way to drop by and inviting me to family events and their kindness helped immensely with the difficulties of separation.
Jim’s a dairy farmer and is one of the hardest working people I’ve ever known. He’s a heck of a mechanic, a fine carpenter, a magician with a stick welder and one of the best problem solvers I’ve ever met. He’s a hunter and a shooter – the hallmark of a sterling character. He’s also quick to help a neighbor in need and he’s devoted to his wife and children. Great guy in every respect.
That he is constantly using a wide variety of tools goes without saying. Since we downsized significantly in terms of house and property, I had a surplus of tools and machinery that I was more than happy to give to my neighbor, including a really nice old Stihl 076 chainsaw (a fire-breather, that one), a truck load of hand tools, a compressor, a reloading bench, a nice pile of .308 brass and some big Wilton vises. I was happy to give these to him – he will put them to work and hopefully make his life a little more manageable (more time to hunt and shoot), where the alternative would be to have a moving sale where I would have to listen to folks offer me $25 for the Stihl 076 and the like.
I was in New York just a short while ago on a clean-up trip. There was a winter’s worth of stuff that needed attention, including downed trees and brush that needed to be cleared away. I left for Texas a few days ago and I stopped by Jim’s milk barn the evening before I left to drop off a few more things and say goodbye. He called his wife as soon as I got there and told me that she wanted to say goodbye, too. Well, his wife pulled up to the barn about fifteen minutes later. Jim opened the trunk of her car and removed a rifle case. I didn’t think much of it until he walked over and handed it to me. Puzzled, I asked him if there was something wrong with whatever was in the case (I’ve worked on a number of his rifles and built him his current favorite, a .20 Practical). He said “This is for you”. I protested and told him that our friendship is more than gift enough. He insisted and I opened the case.
I must admit to tearing up. The case contained a beautiful Sako L57-actioned .257 AI hunting rifle. Built by Parker Otto Ackley himself before Ackley moved to Utah from Glens Falls, NY. I’m familiar with this rifle, having taken a young whitetail buck with it this past fall. It’s a brilliant hunting rifle and that it was built by P.O. Ackley is way more than icing on the cake. It now occupies a place of honor on "Ackley Row" in one of my safes. I hope to be worthy of such a gift someday.
Thanks Jim, from the bottom of my heart. Happy Fathers Day a bit early and God's Blessings.
