Blessed by My Fathers Influence

Those of you who are able to spend time with your fathers today are blessed. The presence, or lack thereof, of a father in your life is profound. Take the time to honor your father and celebrate Fathers Day.

My father's untimely death at the age of 54 profoundly affected the course of my life. I was working at a job I hated in a place I hated. I was assistant general manager of J. M. Fields Department Store in Parsippany, NJ. My dad, after being laid off as what would now be called CFO of Industrial Machine Service, a custom machine manufacturer, had started his own bookkeeping service. After six years, he had computerized the business and grown a client list of 34 businesses. Plus, he did personal taxes for the owners and was a certified tax practicioner licensed to represent clients before the IRS. His services also included payroll service. He was quite ahead of his time for 1974.

The last time I was home, he had brought up the subject of my joining the family business. He had grown the business to the point it would support expansion. Also, since a bookkeeper / business consultant needs to know everything about a business, he thought it would be easier for me to gain their trust since I would be there for the long haul. We had pretty much decided to do this later in the year after tax season was over.

Unfortunately, he died on April 28th of that year. He had completed the quarterly reports for all his clients gone home. He suffered a massive heart attack and died before he got to the hospital.

My mother wanted me to take over the business. After a couple frank discussions, I convinced her that with only 2 years of accounting in college and not knowing his clients, I was not prepared to run this business and that the best thing was to sell the business, which we did, to a pair of CPA's who were looking to go out on their own. The money was put aside for my mother's retirement.

I went on to work for Binswanger Glass for almost 37 years. No regrets. I've had a good career with a fine company. But, at a time like this, I sometimes wonder what might have been. For one thing, I would not be here and I would not have all the great friends I have here.

But, I will always be thankful for the influence my father had on me. He has influenced my principles, my politics and my work ethic. If not for him, I would not be the person I am now.