I decided to dedicate this episode to a true friend and Christian that I have had the pleasure of knowing. His name is Jimmy Guy Prince and this world would be a better place with more people like him.
First, I am not a very religious person, as Jimmy once told me it's not that I don't believe in god, it's that some of the people in religion have given me reason to be disillusioned about it. Through Jimmy I was able to make the acquaintance of 2 pastors, both of whom deserve to be treated with respect.
Second, Jimmy rarely met anyone he didn't like or they didn't like him. He would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it worse than he did. All you had to do was ask. He donated his time to those he knew needed it and would appreciate it.
I was a contract employee with him for well over a year, and was able to learn a lot about home repair and remodeling. He informed me after I went back to cabling and wiring that I had the know how and I could build houses, they may not be square but he knew I could do it if needed. When I started working for him it was a couple months before X-mas, when December rolled around and I saw I couldn't give my daughter a good X-mas, he invested his money and tools, and we built my daughter a hope chest and a shelf for her books, my wife got a shelf for the living room and the bedroom, that experience also got me my first and last lacquer paint high and I truly don't want to experience that type of high again.
Jimmy 5'4" tall, 300+ pounds with the heart of gold, most people called him Stumpy which was fitting since he was as round as he was tall. A great sense of humor, I saw him as a loving father who would give his all to his family and friends.
I'm told everyone has an addiction, Jimmy's was food, especially spicy Mexican food and BBQ he loved hot sauce on most everything. His addiction to food also lead to him to stop in SW Little Rock at a Captain D's for dinner one night.
As he was leaving he was robbed at gunpoint by 4 suspected gang members, of course his wallet was 3" thick and only had $30.00 in it, but apparently that wasn't enough so they shot him 8-10 times, it is my opinion that they intended on killing Jimmy. To this day I'm not sure they ever caught them, and I suspect that the police may not have spent a lot of time trying to catch some one who is not afraid to take a life. Most suspected killers of that sort are caught by accident or through some other charges not related.
He didn't condemn me for my occasional use of marijuana that so many people seem to have a problem with, even though he didn't consume it. I believe he did mention once that he had tried it, and found out that marijuana was not for him, but it was probably suitable for others. In our time working together we had a lot of helpers on our jobs, we had to contend with alcoholics and drug addicts. Both didn't have enough common sense or intelligence to know when to stop or when the right time to indulge in recreational products.
Jimmy left this world at the young age of 40 on May 9 2009.
I apologize for missing both your viewing and your funeral.
Jimmy Prince, a friend, a brother not like my own, a family man, and a true Christian, May You Rest In Peace.
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