First, a little back story. My grandpa, Country Buffet aficionado, WWII hero, and husband to my McDonald's loving grandma, used to be a much-beloved head mechanic at Burt Chevrolet/Burt Toyota. He retired 25+ years ago, but the fellas he worked with still stop by and chat with him almost weekly.
Flash forward to last Thursday (his 91st birthday). Grandpa was out shoveling the front walk (what else would you do on your 91st birthday???) when a car pulled up in his driveway. A tall, broad man stepped out of the car and approached Grandpa.
Tall stranger: Hi, are you Don?
Grandpa: Yes I am.
Tall stranger: Do you know who I am?
Grandpa: No, not really.
Tall stranger: You're not a football fan, are you? I'm John Elway.
John Elway had recently acquired a number of dealerships, including the former Burt Chevrolet/Toyota dealerships. He hired a number of people who used to work for Burt. On a visit, the guys at the shop told Mr. Elway how wonderful it was to work with my grandpa and how nothing ever ran as smoothly after he left. In fact, they told him, Grandpa lived just around the corner.
And so Mr. Elway took it upon himself to drive to Grandpa's house, introduce himself, and have a nice chat.
That says so much to me about the character of both of the men in this story.
How wonderful would it be to have been so nice to work with that people are still talking about you 25+ years after you retire?
I love my grandpa.
And I have a whole new respect for John Elway.
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