True Story from Bob E. Cornett’s Life:
THANK YOU
I would like to tell you a story of my youth few know. I was very sickly when I was young and spent a lot of time in the hospital. I could not play like other kids, could not run, jump, play sports. I was fortunate in many ways and had access to a television and my mom let me watch the Saturday afternoon game of the week with Dizzy Dean and Peewee Reese. I learned to keep score and follow baseball. They were doing things I dreamed of doing but could not. For some reason I did not love football as much, but I did watch college football and the bowl games. I had a great uncle who played for the Green Bay Packers in their glory days and did follow the Packers. The one thing that hit me deep down was the East/West Shriners all star football games of old. Some of you will remember. Some may even remember the slogan they had for that game….. STRONG LEGS RUN SO WEAK LEGS CAN WALK. That may have been the one most motivating thing in my life… to give. To give your strength, the thing you do best in life, so others can do the things you take for granted. That is service.
This is something to reflect on this day… a day of honoring service to others. What can you do? What is your talent? In the safety field, can you give? In life, can you give? It is easier to sit back and enjoy the talents you have for your pleasure or gain, but have you ever thought what your giving could mean to someone who does not have your talent? Skill? How your giving could save a life, or prevent an injury?
I want to thank those with strong legs who ran for me so I could walk… and for all those who have trouble walking, use your gifts… you never know who you may be helping or how you may be able to run for someone else. You never know where your life may take you or what you may become, but it all begins with that first step. I know I got tired of all the people telling me what I could not do… those football players showed me what I could do. They gave me a dream that I wound up living.
THANK YOU
