How do I know I am old? My father would be 110 years old if he were living. Unfortunately, he died when he was less than half that age at 51, and I was only 11. That was way back in September, 1954. My mother outlived him by another 46 years!
What to call him? To me, he was just Dad. He grew up being called by his middle name, Elmo, and so all of the Jeffreys side of the family called him "Elmo." But to everyone else, including my mother, he was "Jeff." Since we saw my paternal relatives much less than my maternal relatives, he was Jeff; a name that all his work colleagues also called him.
My parents were married for 19 years before he died, having married in 1935 at Lady Slipper Cove on the front porch. They honeymooned at Niagara Falls.
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| Honeymoon at Niagara Falls! |
He worked for only one company his whole life -- the Life and Casualty Insurance Company of Tennessee, based in Nashville. I know that he worked there for over 25 years, because I inherited his 25 year pin with a diamond in it.
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| My father is on the right in the front row. |
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| Meeting of the L&C agents at Turnages's BBQ in Durham, NC. |
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