On this the fourth day of the Midwestern trials dedicated to the memory of Jim Watson I am re-printing the eulogy given by his grandson Todd during his funeral.
By Todd Watson
Good afternoon to each of you. Thank you for being here with our family.
Two weeks ago, I had a conversation with a very wise friend who has battled cancer 3 times and has won the battle. He is a man of great Faith, and one admire tremendously. Ironically, we talked about lifes challenges, living, and dying. And he specifically commented on dying and death and said that we seem to have it all backwards here on earth. We celebrate the birth of new babies and we mourn the death of loved ones when they pass away. We should do just the opposite. We should celebrate in death when our loved ones are freed from these bodies and we go be with The Lord. Death should be and is a celebration. And although the passing of a great man and loved one this week is not easy, we are here to celebrate the life of James L. Watson. We know he has gone to be with The Lord. And although we have lost a great one on this earth, heaven has gained one very special angel this week. After all, this is a very special week. This is the week of the resurrection. And this weekend, we will celebrate Easter.
My grandfather went by many nicknames. Many called him Mr. Jim, others called him James L, his closest friends called him Jim, some relatives called him Bubba, a very loving grandson called him Pop, and to me and many, we affectionately called him Duke.
As I think back on my grand fathers life, he was so many things to so many people.
First, He was a great family man. He loved his family. There is nothing this man would not do for his family. He was willing to sacrifice for the rest of us, and he did just that. He was a great husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather and friend to many. Growing up as a kid, I fondly remember many visits over to his home to see him and my grandmother. As we grew older, our relationship and bond got even stronger. He loved being around family and loved ones. This was most important to him.
He was a great business man. As many of you know, Jim and Clyde were great partners. Clyde was the inside guy while my grandfather was the outside guy. God gifted both of these men with their unique skill sets and blessed them with amazing synergies together. Jim and Clyde built an incredible legacy and blueprinted the model for success for Armstrong today. The equity partner model they created was basically unheard of 40 plus years ago. That model is a key reason for Armstrongs great success, and as I look around the room today, that is why many of us are here. We are so blessed for the wisdom and foresight these two men had. I have heard my grandfather say Id rather have part of something than 100% of nothing. This recipe of sharing and giving that yielded such success in our businesses over they years is also the same recipe and principle he used for success in other areas of his life. Ill speak to that in a few minutes.
He was a great people person. Perhaps my grandfathers greatest gift was how he related to people. Whether it was a gentleman helping one of our drivers load a shipment, or the CEO of a Fortune 500 company, my grandfather had a gift, and that was the gift of being able to relate to whoever he was talking to at that moment. He got people, and people loved him!
He was a great Samaritan. He was always one to lend a helping hand to anyone in need. I think this is another one of his great characteristics. Anyone that went in need, he would find a way to help them. We will never know the number of lives Duke touched by helping and giving to those in need. He just loved helping people. He was remarkable.
He was a selfless giver. He gave to many Churches and led many capital campaigns. He gave with his financial resources and his time. He gave so much that one day he called my father in to his office. He said, Tom, are you listening to me, I want you to understand, that I have given you guys this opportunity, and its up to you to make it happen, but my last check is going to bounce. I need to you to know this and I need you to cover me. Do you understand? One of his goals in life was to give it all away. He got ithe knew he was not taking anything with him when he went home this week. We go to Church here at Hope. One of the things that I have heard Craig Strickland, our Sr Pastor say a hundred times is you cant out give Godyou canttry it and see what happens. God blesses you exponentiallywell that was my grandfather! I think that is one of the reasons God kept my grandfather on this earth as long as he did. God was at work thru him.
So what should we all take away from my grandfather and this great life that he lived?
First, Love your neighbor, for this is the The Greatest Commandment
In Mark 12:28-30 one of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important?" "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. 'The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these."
Second, Live by the Golden Rule
Do unto others as you would have them do unto youmy grandfather lived this principle.
And finally, Give with a cheerful heart. He was a very cheerful giver
2 Corinthians 9:7 (New International Version) Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
In closing, I would like to read a letter that I wrote him a few years ago
March 5th, 2005
Duke,
Today is Dads birthday, and I just wrote him a letter sharing with him some of my feelings about him that sometimes go unsaid. I want to do the same for you too. You, Dad, and I all share with people, and we know, that we are truly blessed beyond our abilities. God has truly blessed our family. You are another huge blessing to me Duke.
There are things that we share with each other every day, and there are some things that we feel, but we do not communicate, and some things just go unsaid. I want to spend a minute or two sharing some of those things with you that I feel, but just dont say.
I cant tell you how much of a blessing you are Duke to our family and me personally. I shared with Dad all of the great qualities that he has, and what a great father he is to me. None of that would be possible without you as his father. Without your leadership, and raising Dad the way that you have, I would not have received the blessings of having him as my father.
I want you to know how thankful I am of our relationship. I dont know anyone that has the relationship with their grandfather and their father that you, Dad, and I have. I truly treasure our relationship. It is more special to me than you can imagine.
You are such a great role model Duke. I have learned so much by the way that you live your life, the way you treat people, and the way that you give. You truly live by The Golden Rule. You know there is nothing mentioned more in The Bible than giving, nothing! It is the single most mentioned thing. You truly live it! Duke, your giving and generosity has helped and influenced more people than I can count. It is truly unbelievable. It is fun to watch God work thru you as you give.
I admire the way that you took care of my grandmother, and now the way that you are taking care of Kathy. I know it has been tough on you, but God has put you in that place for a reason. As time goes on, I think I can see what he is doing and how he is using you.
I want you to know how much you mean to me, and how much I love you. You have truly been an incredible influence in my life. I told Dad that I have a huge advantage in live having him as my father. Another huge advantage I have in life is having you as my grandfather.
I am truly thankful and blessed! I love you very much.
Todd
As you can see, he has had an incredible impact on me and my life. He has had that same impact on everyone in our family in their own unique way. And he has had an impact on many of you and his friends and loved ones.
We are gonna miss him. Heaven gained one very special angel this week.
I want to thank you on behalf of our family for being here with us. We appreciate your prayers, your love and support. And we appreciate you celebrating his very special life with us.
