I was the new Administrator at the Great Falls, Montana Air Force Hospital. Malmstrom was a small 20-bed WWII era cantonment-type hospital that was spread over six sprawling one-story wings. It offered a wide range of inpatient and outpatient services along with dental and veterinary offices.
Among 250 hospital staff, five reported directly to me. These included the resource manager (bean counter), the Squadron Commander, the Registrar, the Logistics Manager (box kicker) and the Facility Manager. I soon heard that my predecessor and the Facility Manager had a pretty bad long term relationship. I got with him pretty quick and told him I wasn't concerned about any previous issues, that we had a fresh start and would go from there.
Morris Davis turned out to be a damn good manager and we got along great. A couple years into my tour there I heard some pretty sad news. Morris's son, Morris Davis Junior had been working as a pizza delivery man in Great Falls. Someone had ordered a pizza and when Junior showed up at the address, they had shot, killed and robbed him.
Among other things, we at home decided to include Junior in our dinner prayer, adding God Bless Morris Davis Junior at the end each time. If memory serves, Junior was the first. Over the years, we have added names of those close to us and the list has grown to more than a couple dozen. Also, son Tyler and daughter Samantha have taken over recital of the "God Bless" list at the end of Grace. These days, they take turns and rattle that list off so quick you can hardly understand them. In any event, close relationships and loved ones remain part of our "bounty," the biggest part.
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