Raymond Kelcy was a wonderful man. He was the Chairman of the Bible Department at OC for many years. He was also the pulpit minister at the Wilshire Church of Christ in OKC where Paula and I were members. I loved too listen to Raymond, whether in one of his classes at OC when I was a student at OC, before most of you were born (Yes, I know I look very youthful, but I am, in fact, in my 60's :), in a Bible class at Wilshire, or in the auditorium at Wilshire. I learned a lot of wonderful things about the Scriptures and about God, from Raymond Kelcy. I also learned a lot about everyday life, again, from Raymond Kelcy. Dr. Kelcy -- Raymond -- was not puffed up and full of himself. He was down to earth -- normal -- practical -- and one of my heroes. Raymond had a great sense of humor. While he was not a big 'laugher', and did not walk around with a grin on his face, he had a dry wit, and always looked for the humor in life. Without cracking a smile on HIS face, he could convulse an audience with laughter with that slow, dry wit that was his trademark.
One of the things I liked about Raymond (and there were MANY), was his willingness to admit that he had been wrong or that he had, over time, changed his mind about his understanding of this or that. He was an humble man. No 'stuffed and puffed shirt' was Raymond Kelcy. He did not worry about people thinking less of him because of a shift in position about some thought or idea in Scripture. I admired Raymond for this, and for his intelligence and his humanity. Raymond let people know that he was not perfect, and he freely admitted his shortcomings. Raymond was an intellectual giant, and a man among men.
I videotaped Raymond, as he spoke at a going-away party for Kerry and Becky Holton, who had served for years at Wilshire. Kerry had become our pulpit minister at Wilshire, after Raymond had stepped down from that position but had continued his and Hester's fellowship with the Wilshire congregation. As it turns out, I have the only video of Raymond that exists -- anywhere! I have shared that video with OC, so that a ideo record of Raymond is not lost. I also gave a copy to Lynn McMillon and to Roger Kelcy (one of Raymond's sons) and Hester, Raymond's wife. In this video, Raymond told a humorous story that is THE funniest thing I have ever heard in my entire life. Raymond had a sense of timing only matched by the great Jack Benny or Bob Hope. I have watched it maybe twenty times, and each time, I hurt from laughing.
I think of Raymond often, and my life has been forever changed by having known him and from having listened to many hundreds of hours of sermons and classes at OC and at the Wilshire congregation. They say that one never dies, as long as one is remembered. If this is indeed true, then Raymond Kelcy will live forever in the hearts of men.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
New China Restaurant, OKC, circa 1975
A long time ago, before most of you were born, I had hair, and wore leisure suits to work every day, selling insurance. I had an office in the little strip shopping center, just on the east side of OC, on Benson Road and Memorial. I officed with different people over the years...Bob Forrester and Bob Lashley, to name two. Bob was a home builder. I sold insurance, and for a brief stint, so did Lashley. Ah, those were the years. Men's ties were about a half-foot wide on the business end, and were often loud paisley things. Guys often wore (get this) WHITE belts with their leisure suits! Women's clothes were no better.
Bob Forrester and I got in the habit of going to a Chinese restaurant over in the Britton area every day for lunch. No exaggeration here. Seriously. EVERY workday for a year or more. We got acquainted with the wait-staff over time, and when we walked through the door, our little waitress motioned us to our 'usual' booth, along the west wall. Her name was Emily, but she pronounced it "Emory". She was a sweet young lady, and we tipped her well, so, unless she was off work, or ill, she was our waitress every day.
Over time, Bob and I settled in on our favorites from the limited menu. When "Emory" would seat us, we would tell her: "2 plus 2", and point to the two of us. Here's the breakdown on what "2 plus 2" meant, once deciphered: No.2 on the menu (beef chow mein), and 2 eggrolls-- each. We both got the same thing every time. The beef chow mein came with fried rice (Emily called it something that sounded much like "flied lice"...and Bob and I had to work through the mental picture THAT pronounciation brought to bear in our minds each day.
The perplexing thing about our ordering of such simple fare is that when we would look at "Emory" to place our order (to you Oklahomans, that is 'prace oul ol-del'). Emily would look at us, and wrinkle up her eyebrows at the "2 plus 2" and on the second part of that 2 plus 2 -- knowing that we were talking about the egg rolls -- she would ask: "2 pieces...or 2 ol-del?" (orders). We would tell her, very carefully---
"No, Emily, not 2 orders (4 eggrolls each), but ONE ORDER", to which she would reply:
"One piece?"....and on and on it would go, until the manager would intervene and tell Emily that we each wanted 2 eggrolls, not 2 orders each!
What is unbelievable is that this went on day after day, month after month, with no end. It was incredible!
In spite of her difficulty in understanding us, we tipped her well and she put up with our teasing and snickering. Bob and I have often wondered what became of our sweet little "Emory".
I had forgotten this story until I read my daughter's blog (Harmonious House -- check it out!), about the stuffing of her mailbox with a Chinese food menu from a local Chinese restaurant. Reading her story made me laugh -- a lot- and then the memories came flooding back. Thanks, Gena, for the memories!
Dad
Bob Forrester and I got in the habit of going to a Chinese restaurant over in the Britton area every day for lunch. No exaggeration here. Seriously. EVERY workday for a year or more. We got acquainted with the wait-staff over time, and when we walked through the door, our little waitress motioned us to our 'usual' booth, along the west wall. Her name was Emily, but she pronounced it "Emory". She was a sweet young lady, and we tipped her well, so, unless she was off work, or ill, she was our waitress every day.
Over time, Bob and I settled in on our favorites from the limited menu. When "Emory" would seat us, we would tell her: "2 plus 2", and point to the two of us. Here's the breakdown on what "2 plus 2" meant, once deciphered: No.2 on the menu (beef chow mein), and 2 eggrolls-- each. We both got the same thing every time. The beef chow mein came with fried rice (Emily called it something that sounded much like "flied lice"...and Bob and I had to work through the mental picture THAT pronounciation brought to bear in our minds each day.
The perplexing thing about our ordering of such simple fare is that when we would look at "Emory" to place our order (to you Oklahomans, that is 'prace oul ol-del'). Emily would look at us, and wrinkle up her eyebrows at the "2 plus 2" and on the second part of that 2 plus 2 -- knowing that we were talking about the egg rolls -- she would ask: "2 pieces...or 2 ol-del?" (orders). We would tell her, very carefully---
"No, Emily, not 2 orders (4 eggrolls each), but ONE ORDER", to which she would reply:
"One piece?"....and on and on it would go, until the manager would intervene and tell Emily that we each wanted 2 eggrolls, not 2 orders each!
What is unbelievable is that this went on day after day, month after month, with no end. It was incredible!
In spite of her difficulty in understanding us, we tipped her well and she put up with our teasing and snickering. Bob and I have often wondered what became of our sweet little "Emory".
I had forgotten this story until I read my daughter's blog (Harmonious House -- check it out!), about the stuffing of her mailbox with a Chinese food menu from a local Chinese restaurant. Reading her story made me laugh -- a lot- and then the memories came flooding back. Thanks, Gena, for the memories!
Dad
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