Our Father

Bruce Smith, Phil Kershaw

Description

Our Father is a compelling memoir by Bruce Smith chronicling his life as a fatherless boy growing up in segregated Texas and his rise to fame and fortune as a star professional football player and real estate mogul. As his story unfolds, ghosts from his past and the lingering effects of being raised without a stable father figure, haunt him. Throughout the book, Smith takes the reader on an emotional, sometimes funny, at times painful journey, illustrating how the power of personal redemption and salvation transforms his life. A thought provoking read, it draws attention to the problem of fatherlessness, described by social commentators as one of the most serious issues facing society today. Statistics on youth crime, addiction, drop out rates and teen pregnancy, paint a picture of the devastating effects, the lack of engaged fathers in our homes is having on children. Pastor Smith s story gives insight into the feelings of hopelessness and confusion that fatherless children, particularly boys tend to experience and the self-destructive choices they make as a result. While Our Father speaks candidly about the harmful effects of fatherlessness on youth and society, it is a story about hope that illustrates how through the saving power of Jesus Christ, we can all conquer our demons and triumph.

Informations

• Publié par: Castle Quay Books
• Date de parution: 28 mars 2013
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781927355312
• Langue: English

Extrait

Our Father: The Prodigal Son Returns
Copyright ©2013 Phil Kershaw and Bruce Smith
All rights reserved
Printed in Canada
International Standard Book Number: 978-1-927355-30-5
ISBN 978-1-927355-31-2 EPUB
Published by:
Castle Quay Books
Pickering, Ontario, L1W 1A5
Tel: [phone]
E-mail: [e-mail]
www.castlequaybooks.com
Edited by Ingrid Walter and Lori MacKay
Cover design by Burst Impressions
Printed at Essence Publishing, Belleville, Ontario
Scripture quotations marked NIV are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION ® . Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked KJV are from The Holy Bible, King James Version. Copyright © 1977, 1984, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations marked NKJV are taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1979, 1980, 1982. Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
This book or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form without prior written permission of the publishers.
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Smith, Bruce, 1949 Mar. 28-
Our father : the prodigal son returns / foreword by Michael (Pinball) Clemons ; Bruce Smith and Phil Kershaw.
Previous title: Our father, father to the fatherless, c2008. Also issued in electronic format.
ISBN 978-1-927355-30-5
1. Smith, Bruce, 1949 Mar. 28-.  2. Fatherless families.  3. Fathers and sons—Religious aspects—Christianity.  4. Congregational churches—Canada— Clergy—Biography.  5. Football players—Canada—Biography.  6. Real estate agents—Canada—Biography.  7. Toronto (Ont.)—Biography.  I. Kershaw, Phil, 1948-  II. Title.
BX7260.S554A3 2013  285.8092  C2013-901389-X
 

 
Dedication
I dedicate this book to Shirley, a loving and faithful wife and mother.
“I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” (2 Timothy 4:7, NKJV)
This book was made possible by a generous grant from Mr. Don M. Ross of Jones, Gable & Co. Ltd.
 
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I thank God the Father and His son Jesus Christ above all.
This book could not have been written without the support and patience of my loving wife Shirley, who is the best example of Christ I know.
I also thank God for giving us our children, Courtne and Coby. I hope through the writing of this book they will come to understand much about my life as a boy growing up in Texas and how it was very different from theirs.
My mother Dorothy Bradley has been an incredible resource for my sometimes-fallible memory, a mother who endured tough times and made many sacrifices to feed, clothe and educate us as children. Still today, she is the force that keeps our family together although we live thousands of miles apart.
It was “Mamma’s Faith” that sustained us and I believe without her prayers I wouldn’t be the man I am today.
William Hardy and Peggy Jeanette, who suffered much in silence; my baby sister Donna Latell, who shares the same mother and my half siblings Jessie and Jennie, who share the same father, form an integral part of this book. I embrace them for sharing with me the tears and the laughter.
A great deal of my appreciation goes to Thomas L Caldwell, my first ministry partner, mentor, friend and “brother,” who along with his wife Dorothy have been supportive of my ministry and my efforts to get this story out. As well I must thank Bill and Gayle White for their tremendous encouragement and support of this project.
I thank God for the Sowell family who became like family, especially Dick. Then there are my coaches to thank; the coach who along with his family helped shape and change my destiny, Coach Morris Magee now deceased, his wife Frankie and son Mark, as well as coaches Bob Hopkins, Williams, Johnson, Skeeter, and Black.
There is no place like Boulder Colorado in the spring and I guess that’s why many of my football team mates and friends are still there. Glen Bailey, Lee Richmond, Larry and Sue Brunson, whose lives intertwined with mine, as I battled on the football field and against my demons, thank you for being a part of my life story.
“The Wild Bunch,” they too had an impact, Mark “Snakeman,” Morris, Chuck “The Black” Holmes, Ron Brinny Dotson, as well as my team mates from the underground gridiron. In addition, there would be no story to write without recollections of those heady days with John Williams and my best friends in the Canadian Football League, George Wells, Eugene Clark, Ron Foxx, Larry “Big Dog” Watkins, Emery Hicks, Larry Brame, and Ron “Swamp Dog” Estay.
Though now deceased, there is no denying Lamar Leachman, Daddy Walter, Uncle Beji, Dwight “Ushay” Smith, Ted Woods, Coach Jerry Williams and Richard Wiseman, all had some influence on my life.
My “Friends for life,” Alex and Dory Korn, Margaret Parker, Trevet Thiessen, my sister in law and unofficial family lawyer, I’m glad you are on our team!
Also, thank you to Mr. Wilfred and Mrs. Nora Somers, Shirley’s parents for trusting me with your beautiful daughter.
My friends Joe and Mary Santos, Cletus, Angela and Nicole Castelino, friends, prayer partners, vision partners and supporters, you helped motivate me to finish this book, when I might have given up.
Neleitha Hewitt, sister in the Lord, prayer warrior, ministry partner, you have been my rock.
David Rapley, and his wife Joy Rapley, Michael Labanowich and the Rock and River Congregation hold a special place in my heart and soul. Thanks for being there through the journey.
This book might have taken a completely different turn if Pastor Ali had not entered my life and encouraged me to go into ministry. Thanks also to Reverend Dr. Audley James and his wife Pastor Rosenda James, my first spiritual parents.
In addition, I am grateful to King Bay Chaplaincy, especially Pat Kimeda, Reverend Ken Coffield and Jennifer Ismail, for prayers and encouragement, John and Rebecca Hardwood, Purpose at Work partners and our Tuesday morning bible study group. Kris Hansen, Hank Reimer, David Imrie, Robert Cruickshank, Steve Dulmage, David Ekmekjian, Jeff Baldock, Michael Gundy, Paul Noh, Michael Nikiforuk and Charles Waterman.
Peter and Mary Dallas “Angels on call,” your feedback was food for writing this book. Thanks to Bob Cheatley whose enthusiasm after reading the manuscript gave me no option but to finish it.
They say imitation is one of the greatest forms of flattery. Thanks Darin Burns, you are a role model.
Janet Meredith, for her leadership and “stepping up to the plate” and the whole Sparrow way community gave me many reasons to write this book. We hope it will affect the lives of at risk youth in that tiny Toronto enclave and far beyond.
Thanks to Eric Walters who took the time to meet with us and encouraged us when this book was a mere thought, to, “write it!”
To Phil Kershaw my co-author, the thank you list is long. So many great ideas including the title came from Phil, who not only coached me and helped to shape the book’s story line, but motivated me to work hard and somehow, to keep pace with him.
My gratitude also goes to Ingrid Walter whose article on fatherthelessness in the Toronto Star , “Lost Boys,” was one of the main reasons this book was written. I thank her particularly for her candid critiques, the attention she paid to editing each and every chapter and the diligence with which she handled the publishing process.
Bruce Smith
May 2008
FOREWORD BY MICHAEL “PINBALL” CLEMONS
It is indeed a great privilege and honour to have the opportunity to write the foreword to this extremely important work, Our Father, the Prodigal Son Returns . While I’m deeply honoured, I feel profoundly inadequate to pen the prelude to what is the punctuation of the passion and purpose of the life and legacy of Pastor and Pro football All-Star, Bruce “The Bear Man” Smith. This memoir is inspired by his unbridled zeal to mentor and support fatherless boys and appropriately chronicles his own struggles growing up without a stable father figure.
I believe I was chosen because of our uncanny connection, both African Americans raised in southern cities with racial overtones to single parent mothers and both fortuitously parlayed early football success into a platform of access and progress. Ultimately arriving in the CFL where we each won championships, had celebrated careers and retired as Captains of the oldest pro sports franchise in North America, the Toronto Argonauts. However the pages of this book reveal a much more difficult, arduous path for Bruce to this strikingly similar destination. While I was on the heels of the civil rights movement, Bruce rode the crest, replete with its divisive racial tensions and venomous tirades. This coupled with the more hazardous and hurtful absence of his dad paved a tumultuous road to success, lined with an inconsolable sense of loss that often manifested itself into bitterness, anger and hostility.
Bruce’s commitment to the issue of fatherlessness is obvious, he’s a victim. The statistics that reflect the victim impact of this malignant epidemic are infinitely more staggering, yet our community and greater culture’s response to date is virtually benign. More speci