BLESSED

Carol and George Bauer were each born in St. Louis, Missouri. The two met through their involvement with the Baptist Student Union while in college. Their adventures and achievements are numerous. George spent thirty-one years in leadership roles at IBM, followed by thirty years as chairman of GPB Group. After years as a teacher, Carol served as Board Chair at Norwalk Hospital and continues as a chaplain. Together, they helm the Bauer Family Foundation.

There is a good old-fashioned American tradition of taking a road trip between graduating from high school and heading off to college, the military, or some other training. George’s responsibilities on the farm didn’t allow him such luxury. The most he felt he could ask for was ten days; his father readily agreed. His road trip would be a solo endeavor but George would ride America’s roads in style. He had convinced his father into buying a brand-spanking-new Chevy pickup truck. Now, he would have a real opportunity to test it out on the open road.

His itinerary was ambitious. He would drive from Missouri to neighboring Oklahoma to visit his mother’s sister. From Oklahoma, he would cross the plains of North Texas before entering Arkansas, where he would pay a surprise visit on his father’s twin, good old Uncle Alex, and Aunt Helen, both of whom hadn’t seen their nephew in a decade. Would they even recognize him?

If you remember, Grandpa Bauer had arrived in Hot Springs, Arkansas, to ply his talents by forging the gates at the national park. From there, he had established a foundry, which unfortunately had burned down. The US government provided a fresh start with the chance to homestead some nearby farmland. As they farmed, they discovered that the land held rich mineral deposits. The family entered the crystal business, with Uncle Alex becoming a full-fledged mineralogist, highly respected in the field. The family supplemented their crystal expertise by creating “The Crystal Cave,” a tourist attraction in Hot Springs, with walls and ceiling lined with crystals mined from their land.

Having arrived in Hot Springs for his surprise entrance, George played tourist. The tour was conducted by Uncle Alex. George paid his quarter and stood in line with a dozen others. They listened to Uncle Alex talk about how he began to dig on his farm and found crystals under the rich soil. During one part of the tour, Uncle Alex mentioned: “And my father built …” Then George interrupted: “Sir, you are wrong. My grandfather built this place.” Uncle Alex frowned and corrected the young upstart: “No, young man, my father built this place.” Whereupon George asserted again, “No sir, my grandfather built this place.” After a few rounds, Uncle Alex had about enough, but before he could throw the young man out of his crystal cave, he took a good look at the young man and realized at once who he was. “Are you George’s boy?”

Anger turned to joy in an instant. Uncle Alex became a gracious host as he and his nephew got reacquainted. George stayed in Hot Springs for three days while Uncle Alex showed him Cedar Glades, the farm where George’s Dad had grown up. Going through the mines, George learned even more about Uncle Alex’s great mineral collection. After seeing the place that had shaped his father, it was time to head back home. While his heart would always remain on the farm, his days of living there full-time were coming to an end.