Monday, January 7, 2013- Happy Birthday Dad!

Sixty-five years ago on January 7, 1948 a son was born to Ivan and Lois Douglas in a small house on the Douglas property. Kelly Paris Douglas would join a family already made up of two boys. One of the brothers was only 11 months old and Kelly and Lowell have been called "the twins" sometimes. The family would later add four more boys and a baby sister to the family. The Douglas clan lived on 160 acres of land that was owned by the Douglas family. It was a small community of farmers and country folk and the Douglas brothers made quite an impact on the area around Grovesprings, MO. I love to hear the stories and wonderful memories my father has of his boyhood. My father learned to be a hard worker and became a man of prayer at an early age. I am not sure how old my dad was, but there was a time in his life that he feared the government would get rid of all the Bibles and he buried a Bible in a plastic bag and an old mason jar so he would always have access to the Word. I had the privilege of going back to the spot where my dad buried that Bible and I was there when he dug it back up. My dad had a passion to follow the will of God even when it called him away from his small community to attend Free Will Baptist Bible College in Nashville, TN. He has never been to Nashville, and it was not the norm for people in their community to leave, but he knew this is where he was supposed to be so he packed his belongings and set off for Nashville. It would be from this obedience that he would meet my mom and the rest is history:) My dad would later join the Army and would forever be changed when his younger brother, Dale, took his place to go to Vietnam because they would not take brothers. My parents were married and a week later my dad got his orders to go to South Korea for his assignment. After the Army my parents lived in near Detroit, MI where my brother was born. In 1976(?)my parents would make another big decision and move to Kankakee, IL to help John and Vickie Hollis start a home missions church. Within a few years my sister and myself would be added to his family. My dad started working for a company called Erickson Textile. Within a few years this business would be closing, so my dad did the logical thing :) and bought the business. Douglas Net Company was born and I have already shared with how this has impacted my life. When I was in 6th grade my dad would be ordained and become the pastor of the church he still pastors.

Obviously with 65 years of life I could fill pages of my dad's life, but I want to share a few memories that I have of my dad. I have always been said to be his favorite (don't worry dad I won't tell anyone it is true), but I think I have spent the most time with my dad while growing up. I was not in school yet when my dad bought the business, so I spent the most time with him at work. Every summer we would have a quarterly picnic with the other churches in our association. My dad and I would get up early in the morning to go reserve the spot for the picnic. We would go to Dunkin Doughnuts and get doughnuts and orange juice and chocolate milk. We would sit at the Kankakee State Park picnic area and we would play a game trying to guess who would get there first and at what time. When the sun came up we would walk over to the swings and we would both swing and my dad would tell me how he was reliving his childhood through his kids. One of my favorite memories is the time the circus came to town and my dad and I got up early in the morning to watch them put the tent up. He was the dad that simply got out of bed and moved to our bed in the middle of the night when we would tap him on the shoulder letting him know we needed to sleep with mom because we were sick. I remember him taking me out on the country roads of St. Anne and teaching me how to drive. I also remember him not getting too mad at me when I blew the engine on that same car because there was not any oil in the engine. He taught us how to pray and taught us that we can bring any problem before the Lord. No matter how small we thought it was, we prayed about it. He prayed with us before bed almost every night. I am not sure who it was harder on when I went off to college, me or my dad. I had the bigger room at the house so my mom moved their bedroom into my old when I got married and my dad did not like that one little bit! When the phone call came to them about my cancer my dad ran to the upper room in his factory and prayed maybe harder than he ever prayed before. My dad does not get too emotional, but I will never forget when the doctor came in after my surgery and told us that all the cancer had been contained. My dad was sitting next to my hospital bed and gave the biggest "Praise the Lord!!" I have ever heard. When I returned home from the hospital my parents were about to head home and my dad said, "Kim, I am glad I did not lose you." About 6 months after my surgery I sat with my parents at the Town and Country restaurant on Camden, TN and my dad became emotional again when I told them that if we got a son his name would be Samuel. I am convinced that beside Jeremy and myself my dad has prayed more for our children to come home more than any other person. I believe that is why my kids have such a sweet relationship with their Grandpa today. Kelly Douglas is a hard-working, prayer warrior, servant of God, mission-minded, caring, loving, Grandpa, business owner, heart of gold, and many other amazing characteristics, but I am most thankful that I can call him Dad. I love you dad and I am thankful that I get to live closer so I can see you more often. Thank you for loving us and taking care of us! Thank you for loving my kids and being a wonderful example of a loving Grandpa!









I would also like to say a HAPPY BIRTHDAY to my only niece, Isabel Jane Baker! I cannot believe she is 10 years old today! I am pretty sure you are the best birthday present Grandpa every got! I am so proud of you and I love you so much!