Welcome to my dad’s blog
My name is Melissa Jean, but my dad calls me “M.J.” This is his blog. I’m starting it for him because I want him to have a place to share all the wonderful stories from his extraordinary life. Anyone who’s ever been to a party with my dad knows what I’m talking about. He can tell a story like no one else. He delivers surprising, funny, punchy little anecdotes that hold your attention from beginning to end.
My dad, Richard L. “Dick” Martin, grew up as a farm boy from a hard-pressed family with a mean father. Even today, it’s probably tough for a young man in Waverly, Illinois, to imagine much for himself beyond working a blue-collar job, marrying young, and raising a couple of kids. It’s a good, honest life. My dad did all that, but he had a dream that plucked him out of Waverly and landed him in Iran, Thailand, Iceland, Israel, Italy, Germany, and many other parts of the world. His blue collar turned out to be a U.S. Air Force officer’s uniform. His marriage at age 22 has lasted 46 years so far (”44 happy years,” he likes to joke). And my brother and I–well, I can only hope my dad is as proud of us as we are of him.
My father served as a USAF pilot, both in peace time and during Viet Nam. As a member of the 89th Military Airlift Command (MAC), he flew dignitaries, such as Jimmy Carter, Gerald Ford, and Ronald and Nancy Reagan, on diplomatic missions all over the world. Later, he became an airline pilot for Pan Am and TWA. He can fix anything. He listens. And, boy, can he tell a story. Now it’s his turn. -M.J.
Me with my dad at my wedding, 7 April 2008
