My Father In Law Joe Still Going Strong at 96!

My Father in Law, Joe at age 96!

I am from the US, living the last ten years of my life in Canada, married and blessed. I have met many the extraordinary people in my lifetime, living from Texas to Alaska to Washington down to Louisiana, but never have I met anyone like my 96 year old Father In Law, Joe Morrison.

It is not enough to point out this man’s lifetime of devotion to family, WW2, a decorated hero, father of 7 children, loving husband to his wife Shirley Morrison of over 63 years of marriage, but one living incident, one constant factor of love and devotion by this mighty man, stands out in his every day life.

Last week Joe went down to the DMV to get his license renewed- many the person would wonder why a 96 year old man has the need to still be behind the wheel of a car, but Joe Morrison is no ordinary man of his age, or any age for that fact. Twenty one years ago, Joe’s son Danny, known to the family as Bags, was in a very serious car accident, one that he would never recover from, one that would leave Danny in a semi-coma state for the rest of his life, Danny was only 32 at the time of his accident. He was working in the gas fields of Alberta at the time of his car accident. Within days, living so many miles from his home in Nova Scotia, Joe who was 75 at the time, took a flight out to be with his son in the hospital. The news on Danny was grim; the doctors reported he would never come out of it. That he would never walk, talk, or ever understand what was going on around him. That small detail never entered Joe’s mind. No, this astonishing man sat at his son’s beside, until he was flown back to Nova Scotia, where Danny would be for the remainder of his life. Without fail, Joe has attended to the needs of his son, everyday, 7 days a week, every year, year in and year out. Winter months, with icy roads, Joe drives to be with his son, Spring rolls around, he will load Danny into the special needs van to bring Danny home for a Sunday afternoon to be with family that always seems to be either coming or going to this very tiny home in a place called Chester Basin Nova Scotia. He drives out to the Nursing home where Danny lives, he makes sure Danny is fed, that the nurses keep a eye on things and he drives home every evening to his wife of over 60s years.
The only break that Joe took during his years attending to his son Danny, was 10 days to recuperate from a open heart triple bypass he had at age 80.
Over the years, Joe will tell you, there is always hope, always a dim light at the end of the tunnel, which Danny could come out of it any day. Some would say Joe has tunnel vision; I would have to say, Joe has a heart, a heart mightier than most men receive or live within any lifetime.


I could tell you all the wonderful things about Joe Morrison, who would never complain about one day of his living. He would never tell you how at age 3, his lost his parents, how he was raised by his grandparents, how he survived alone during the Great Depression of the 1930s, or even how he joined the war in WW2 to serve his country.
No, I could go on and on, I can tell you how it is not just America who has such mighty heroes, I could point out that we are North America, one country, one mind, one need, to find the good in proud people who we should honor for living and sharing the life they have given to all of us, people like my 96 year old Father In Law, who deserves to be presented with Person of the Week, for just one moment, is his lifetime of service to everyone. Thanks for reading me.