My uncle was an OK Highway Patrol, badge number was 78 or around there. He retired in 1970. My neighbors were all scared to death of me when I was in high school because he would come by and check the trunk of my car for my mom. Dad had about a dozen bottles of liquor under the kitchen sink.
All were courtesy of my uncle checking my trunk.
The old peckerwood is still pretty damn tough for 83. When he was younger, he worked as a body guard for Thomas Dewey when he was campaigning for President in Oklahoma. He borrowed a Terrier from someone - an old S&W in 32 S&W no longer made.
So you all have seen the pictures of the stag grips I put on my Bodyguard. My uncle and I went out breakfast this morning and I showed him "my Sunday-go-to-meeting" gun. He really liked it and I got him to talking about the many things he's done.
He pulled out his issued S&W Model 15 and showed it to me. I hadn't seen it since I was in high school. It's an old mid 50s S&W and has been reblued.
I'd love to have his gun but his son will get it and that is great by me. Terry works for the Moore PD and retired from the Houston PD several years ago.
Anyway, here's the picture of the two guns side by side. Not too great, but OK for a cell phone.



Sometimes guns have a great sentimental value because of who carried them. And when they carried them.
Pass on the heritage if you can to some young person.

WOW....  Good story.  Sweet old gun as well.  BOTH of them.  It's good to keep in touch with the old timers in our lives, mostly so we don't ever forget some of the lessons they have taught us and learned themselves along the way.  You got me feeling all warm and fuzzy right now.  

Be careful when you say stuff like that. Rat is lurking around and may be calling you......

I did not say " you got me feeling all drunk and take advantage-able"  

JK Rat.  You get enouph grief from Dan without the rest of us chiming in!!!

nice...

amen dan.  my dad bought a winchester model 61, .22 when he was 15 and gave it to me when i was about the same age.  it's a fun little plinker and i'll pass it on to my son when he masters his pellet gun.  my dad is also holding onto a colt gov't model .380 that is a hella lot of fun to shoot.  that will be mine too, eventually.  i'll never sell either gun and i'll make sure my son never sells either one when he gets them.

My son has the 22 Winchester single shot my dad bought as a teen ager. I learned to shoot with that gun. So did Matt and lots of other kids.
It's a neat thing for several generations to learn to shoot with the same rifle.

my dad was down a few months back and we did some shooting w/ the old .22.  it'd probably been close to 30 years since we'd been shooting together.  good times.

Treasure the times you have with your dad.
My dad is gone but I'll always remember him standing over a big buck I shot when I came back with the truck. He had a grin from ear to ear.
The best compliment he ever paid me was when I told him I had dropped two deer with one shot.
He simply said  "You did it one purpose!!!!!" with another big smile on his face.
Take a kid shooting as often as you can. Or hunting. Pass on the legacy.
I once gave a single shot 20 ga to a friend's kid because he borrowed it and dropped a buck with it.
The look on the kid's face when he told me about killing the buck is another precious memory.