Like Father, Like Son

Last year was the first Father’s Day without Pops.  At his memorial, I eulogized him by recounting some of the lessons I learned from him.  This year, I realized that I’m probably going to have more Father’s Days without him than with him. There has not been a single day where I do not think about a memory of him.  And with each passing day, I find more and more ways that we’re alike.

“If He Says He Has to Go…”

When we were growing up, Pops was always fighting to better people’s lives. Like the time when the school district wouldn’t let my sister gain high school credit for high school classes she took in junior high.   Pops was at the school board  multiple times, fighting for them to change the policy.  The school board ended up changing the entire policy.

Or the time when a teacher in elementary school wouldn’t let me go to the bathroom because the buses were there.  I wet myself as a result.  When I got home, I told Pops what happened.   We got into the car, still in my wet pants, and drove to the school.  He “kindly” informed the teacher that if I said I had to go,  I had to go. There was never an issue after that conversation.

He didn’t just limit his advocacy to his family either. He fought to improve conditions at every church he pastored at. Whether it be spearheading a move to a better location or appointing church officials that cared more about the well-being of the church than their title.

“I’m Starting a Union.”

When I was in law school,  from time to time he would mention another way he advocated.  I remember him telling me how he tried to start a union, but not much besides that. Recently,  I actually found the decision from the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB”).  In the case, he was fighting for higher wages for everyone.  He was about the same age I am now when he decided to fight for employee rights.  My favorite line is my Dad telling his supervisor that if he called him “boy” again, “it would result in Hux’s foot being placed on Challinor’s posterior.”  I don’t think it’s a coincidence that I ended up defending worker rights.

The Family Business

Sometimes I have wondered where I got the instinctual desire to fight for those who can’t speak up. Then I realized it was in my DNA the whole time.  In fact, it’s the family business. Love and miss you Pops. I know you’re watching me continue the family business from the best seats in the house.

James J. Hux is the Owner and Sole Attorney at Hux Law Firm, LLC. His practice areas include employment discrimination, personal injury, and general civil litigation throughout the State of Ohio.