By Luke Campbell

My father, Jeremy Campbell, reminds me of a New York City morning, the beautiful sunrise; nice orange, red and yellow. It looks amazing, but if you don’t focus on it you will hear the chatter of people talking and cars honking. He is a successful man in my eyes and I look up to what he does and how he does it. He never gives up and he wants me to have that too. He is strict when he has to be and cracks jokes when he can. This is my epic hero: my father.

I love it when he encourages me when I get discouraged. My mother and him have done a great job with me. Leading me with God’s will in mind as I go through life. My father helps me in sports and supports me in every step. He helps at my church and this sets a bar for my leadership skills and helping others as Jesus would do.

He never gave up in his career even when it all felt like it was crumbling down. He always wants the best out of me and wants my hardest work and effort. This inspires me to follow my dreams and know that he supports me and is there to help me when it gets tough because he has already been through it. He always remembers the great times and reflects on the bad and how I can improve.

My father and I have always had a strong bond that connects us. He always helps me sharpen my skills in whatever sport I am playing. Even if it requires a whole Saturday of practice. He took me hunting in the morning of many Saturdays and it wasn’t that I killed anything, it was that we had time to bond. He always coached with some of my friends’ dads. Sometimes we wouldn’t have the best season ever but yet he still thought about the positives and told me how I could improve the bad things.

My father enjoys talking to others. This really helps in his job field, which he sells commercial gas and propane. So if you run a business he probably sells gas to you. He loves the business field and he always helped me with math homework when I had trouble to his best ability. He enjoys his job but sometimes he gets worn out and tired as most employees are at the end of the day. He gets through it and this inspires me and tells me that I can get through it and that it is not impossible.     

He can also remind you of a sunset sometimes — very beautiful, some blues, purples and reds, but if you don’t pay attention and focus you hear the locusts and crickets chirping in the night. I want this article to inspire you to reflect on this and find someone that inspires you. I hope you can find someone that makes you feel good and do something kind to that person.

This story is part of a series of articles from Michael Grindstaff’s Language Arts Class at Elizabethton High School.

Students were asked to write about inspirational people in their lives. The Elizabethton Star is proud to share these with our readers.