James Everette Staudt

United States Patent office in Washington DC as a Patent Advisor and did the work a normal Patent Attorney did, even though he didn’t have a law degree. Looking back at this career choice he made, seems so perfect to me today as Dad was absolutely an inventor at heart, and had a love of just about all gadgets! In 1963, he made another huge selfless choice. He packed the family again, at this point a family with 5 children and moved to their forever home in Hartselle Alabama. I think they purchased maybe the only house in town that would hold all of us. He continued his career as a Patent Advisor/Attorney working for the U.S Army on Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville. He was given many accommodations, and awards for his work. He was also responsible for saving the U.S. Government many millions, and possibly billions of dollars. With almost 30 years of service, he retired from the Army in 1986. He continued to practice patent advisory work privately for several more years. I think it was mostly his love of inventions, and gadgets that kept him working. Dad made many lifelong friends through his career, Keith Fowler, Cliff Wells, Harold Hilton, and John Hendrix to name just a few. These guys were such close friends that our families became like one big extended family. Dad was about the most patient man there ever was. He never got rattled, and was always so calm, even at the most difficult times. He had one main rule and that was to ALWAYS tell the truth and there was NO wiggle room on that rule! He was stern, and consistent with his discipline. He was a believer in corporal punishment. The hard disciplines didn’t happen often, but he made them count when they did, boy did he make them count. He used the “spank until you cry” method. That worked well for most of us, but not so much for Billy – imagine that. We all cried before the spanking even started, but Bill would grit his teeth, and bare it as long as he could. Dad always won those challenges from Bill. I know all our siblings remember a few of the -- Dad’s room, full sibling line up, bare bottom spanking fests…. Dad had that certain way he would look at you when you were doing something wrong. His “look” was usually all that it took, because we knew he was good for what came next. Dad was the main distribution point of Staudt family punishment, but Nanny new how to keep us in line too. When Nanny was fed up with our antics, she would say “Go to your bedroom and wait for your Dad to get home”. We all hated to hear those words! The begging would start immediately for her to “Not Tell Dad”.

Dad and Mom supported us all in anything we decided to do, Sports, Cheerleading, Band, Gymnastics. It was our choice, and they hardly ever missed a game or event. We ate family dinner at the table together pretty much every night when Dad got home from work. By the way, that was the time that Dad would make rounds to all the bedrooms, just in case Nanny had not given mercy after she said her secret phrase. Our parents taught us so many life lessons, like the importance of respect for others, and respect for our country. Dad always spent quality time with us and did his best to impart his knowledge of hunting, boating, fishing, and how to repair just about anything, but without a doubt, the most valuable lesson Dad and Mom taught was “Lead By Example”! They lived that rule. We never saw them argue so if they did argue, apparently, they did it somewhere else. Their 68-year marriage also set an example for us, and many others that were around them. They loved each other so much, and their worlds revolved around each other. I think that all our siblings did our best to emulate their principals, and parenting styles, as we each started our own families. It wasn’t enough for Dad to have a full-time job and help raise 7 children. He always strived to do more. He turned our family boating into a part-time fishing business, getting his Charter Captain’s license, and a 32 foot John Almond boat that was docked in Panama City Florida. Then he hired the best darn First Mate this side of the Mississippi! Obviously, if you are 6+ hours from your business, you need a better option than a car to get there. Dad’s solutions -- get his private pilots license and purchase a 182 Sky Lane to fly back and forth. He loved, loved, loved to fly. Again, inspiring his grandson to pursue a career flying commercial jet airplanes. Dad also had a deep love for cars. He owned so many different ones in his life, too many for me to even count. When the next kiddo got ready for a driver’s license, he would have a car on hot standby. Many times, it was the old family truckster that got passed along, and a few times the same car survived multiple drivers. That was really a rare event though, because most of the girls weren’t that great at driving – I kid… One of his most favorite cars was a bright red 1965 Pontiac Bonneville Convertible that he completely restored. He loved driving this car, especially on those crisp fall days when the leaves first started changing. We could always count on several top down, heater wide open, scenic trips through the Alabama country roads, and he never took one of these trips without Nanny, or at least one of the 7 family’s copilots. Although Dad loved so many things like hunting, fishing, flying, and working on just about anything, I really believe most of it ties back to his love of gadgets and inventing. He was more about the chase and trying to find ways to do everything a better way. He spent hours and hours designing and building a special pegboard bicycle cart to haul his gear in, and his game out for the Wheeler Wildlife hunting trips he planned to take. Maybe he used it for one hunting trip? He found a better use for the cart was giving all the grandkids rides around the block. He spent countless hours building the best equipped stripe bass fishing boat on Smith Lake, better even than most professional fishing guides had. He even designed and built a several hundred-gallon shad minor storage container, because the shad cost too much. He wanted to catch and use his own minnows. Even with all the work he put in on setting things up, he seldom would cast a line from that boat, but he always looked for willing passengers he could put on the fish. Dad was always the big thinker. He pushed each of us to be the best version of ourselves. He would ask “What do you want to be when you grow up”. If our response was “Nurse”, he would say “Why not a doctor”, and again he led by example. He pushed himself in every way starting business venture after business venture working to better his family’s quality of life. Some of the endeavors include: • Working a second job as a mechanic at Hicks Chevrolet in Decatur Alabama • Designed and implemented a mobile vehicle tune-up company called M-CAR • Started a family Skating Rink Business in Hartselle Alabama using underage child labor, but we enjoyed the work! • Started a family auto parts sales company (Parkway Auto Parts) • Part time car sales, mostly to support his girls poor driving skills There are so many more stories I wish we could share, but time does not allow. I hope these notes give you a small glimpse into the wonderful life of our father Jim Staudt.

It’s hard for us to imagine things without you Pops!! Thank you for being our Dad! We will miss you like crazy, but we have some comfort knowing you’re with your forever sweetheart and the Son you’ve missed so much! Please give them a hug from all of us! With All our Love The Lucky-7