Contnued from page 86
PCT: What is your favorite novel?
EK: During my younger years, I
read many books and the one that
probably had the most impact in
my life was entitled “Navy, Blue &
Gold.” This book was about three
midshipmen attending the U.S. Naval
Academy. That book became the
guiding manual for me to prepare
myself to also be honored with an
appointment to the Naval Academy.
Another book that has also impacted
my life was entitled “Evidence
That Demands a Verdict,” which
was authored by Josh McDowell.
Although active in church activities
until I was about 47 years old, I
never felt secure in knowing there
was a God and, if there was a God,
who that God was, or in my personal
salvation. It took me three months
to read it; however, after reading it,
I had no doubts that there is a God
and who He is.
PCT: What do you do to decompress?
EK: This question is easy for an old
man to answer. I get on my lazy boy
chair and watch T. V.
PCT: What is something most people
don’t know about you?
EK: Most people don’t know the life
I lived during my childhood years.
I was born into a family with 11
children. My father had no formal
education and my mother had only
three years of school. Due to an
injury while he was about 2 years
old, my father became mentally
retarded and could not read, write or
operate any type of equipment.
PCT: What would you like to be
remembered for?
EK: Helping other people with their
problems, whether legal, spiritual or
otherwise.
PCT: What is your definition of the
best day ever?
EK: The day that our Lord, Jesus,
rose from the dead and proved to
the world that He was the Son of our
God, Jehovah.
PCT: What is the coolest thing you
have ever done in your life?
EK: Wow, that question is a tough
one. It probably depends on how the
word “coolest” is defined. I think it
might be best to say “marrying my
sweet wife, Barbara.”
Mary Jo MacGregor
Mary is a retired Marine
Colonel
PCT: How did you get into your
occupation?
MM: In 2011, I retired after serving
over 25 years in the Marine Corps.
My husband, Jim Clark, and I moved
from North Carolina to Weatherford
so Jim could spend more time with
his daughter, Maggie, now 13, who
lives here with her mother. Jim owns
a successful small business, and I
wanted to be a difference-maker in
my community, so I started mentor-
ing struggling young readers at Curtis
Elementary, and I also became a
Court Appointed Special Advocate
PCT: What would be the best advice
you could share with someone start-
ing out as an attorney?
EK: I am answering this question by
reciting some comments I made in
a speech to a Weatherford College
graduating class:
Get a good education. Going to
school for whatever length of time
it takes to prepare yourself to earn a
good living will never be too great
a sacrifice for you to make — the
time, money and effort to achieve the
education necessary to acquire the
skill, or in my case, a law license,
will be well worth the sacrifice to
acquire that position. That advice
was true 60 years ago when I was in
law school, it is true today, and it will
be true forever. It is not too much of
a sacrifice to spend the time, energy
and money required to prepare your-
self to be able to work in your chosen
field or to be better prepared to raise
your family. As with most things in
life worth having, education and
training doesn’t just happen — you
have to work hard to get such. There
is no free lunch!
Diligence on the job. Just as good
jobs require education and train-
ing, they also require dedication and
hard work. Contrary to what some
people appear to promote, nobody
owes any of us, that are capable of
working, anything for doing nothing!
Good luck by some successful person
after such person’s discovery of some
solution to some difficult problem or
building a successful business doesn’t
usually just happen. I urge you to
devote such time and energy to your
chosen occupation as is necessary to
become the best there is in your field.
PCT: What would be your second
choice of a professional occupation?
EK: At my age of 86, changing
professions would be difficult, but it
probably would be in some way of
helping others with whatever their
needs might be.
PCT: What would be your greatest
impact on Parker County?
EK: I think being involved in orga-
nizing and operating non-profit
organizations such as Parker County
Citizens for Public Decency,
Parker County Crime Commission,
Economic Foundation of Parker
County, Parker County Citizens for
Responsible Government, Parker
County Center of Hope and serving
on the Weatherford City Council for
six years.
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