My Daddy, Hersey Raymond Outlaw, was born February 19, 1913. If he was still living, he would be 98 years old. Sadly, he passed away in 1966, 5 weeks before I graduated from High School. But, there is a bright side to this – I know he’s in Heaven and I know I will see him again one day.
My Daddy’s parent were just ordinary people. They never did anything to make them famous; they weren’t wealthy-just ordinary folk. My Daddy was a humble man. He never finished high school, he never even finished grade school. His father lost both an arm and a leg and Daddy had to help out at an early large. He had three sisters, Anne, Mildred and Ruth. He never lived anywhere but Merry Hill, North Carolina. He was a farmer, a mechanic, a carpenter and was the proprietor of a little country grocery store. And I think I remember being told by my sisters, that he loved to play baseball and even traveled to other towns to play. He did not own a home until he was in his 40’s. He liked to fish and was an avid deer hunter. His male friends called him “Bear Man” – I never knew why – they just did. He and my Mama, Lida Overton got married when she was 15. Their first child, Jean, was born when Mama was only 16, three years later-my brother, Ronald, two years later-my sister, Faye and then………..ten years later……me! He called my Mama “Son” – I never knew why. He called me “Duck” and I think he called the other children by the same nickname. He was not a remarkable man; did not stand out in a crowd…..but he was very special…..because he was MY DADDY!!
The baby in this picture is my brother’s son – we called him “Little Bud”.
This picture was taken on Easter Sunday in 1966, just a few weeks before my Daddy died.
This is the last picture we had taken of the whole family – Easter Sunday, 1966. I am on the left, my sister Jean next to me (she was little angry at her husband when this picture was taken), my sister Faye next to her and my brother Ronald on the right. It’s strange to look at this picture now and remember how happy all of us were that day – not having any idea that in less than three weeks, Daddy would no longer be with us.
I miss my Daddy a lot. He missed so much of my life. He didn’t see me graduate from high school; he didn’t give me away at my wedding, never knew my children. And sometimes, that makes me particularly sad……my Daddy was a great granddaddy. The grandchildren called him Papa. I’m truly sorry my boys never knew him. He had six grandchildren when he died and then six more were born. I just tried to figure out how many great-grandchildren there are, but I kept losing count….there are a lot. There are also several great-great-grandchildren.
I know this tribute to my Daddy won’t mean anything to some of you. I just wanted to talk about him today – on his birthday. But, then again, if your Daddy is no longer with you, maybe I caused to remember him! Thanks for taking the time to share my memories.
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