In Loving Memory

Mickey was born in Butler, Alabama on October 7, 1953. He was the 7th child born out of 14 children. It is safe to say he was born into a poor, but loving family. Mickey and his family moved several times through his childhood. At the age of 13 he moved to the Pasadena area and made it his home. About the same time he quit school and went to work to support himself and help his family. He told me once he lied about his age so he could get a job. His family was very important to him. Being able to help them financially was also important to him.

At 18, Mickey went to work for a man that would influence him for the rest of his life. Now not only was this man Mickey’s father in law, Fred Fincher quickly became his mentor. He respected Fred, looked up to him, and loved him very much. Fred was Mickey’s teacher, advisor, and father figure. Mickey became a father in 1974, at the age of 20 with his first child Anthony. When he was 29, he welcomed his second son Sean into the world. The love that he had for his children was indescribable. His children were his life and he wanted so much for them. Mostly though, he never wanted them to need clothing, shelter or food the way he had experienced growing up. Growing up without the everyday necessities needed in life didn’t make Mickey bitter, instead it gave him the ambition to work harder, think smarter, and to help others.

Mickey lived by a saying that was handed down to him from Fred, “Spread it around” meaning to share your blessing with others. And that he did. Mickey was the most giving individual you would have ever met. Almost to a fault. He loved to make people happy. He gave people the best of himself as well as any financial support needed by others. There are so many people that have stories of Mickey’s generosity because he gave them a job when no one else would. He always believed in everyone he met and was constantly giving them a chance to better themselves. He gave people opportunities and as long as they were willing to learn and work, he was willing to teach and support them. Mickey had another custom that he live by: he never asked an employee to do anything that he hadn’t done himself. He was respected for this, because his employees knew he respected them as well.

Mickey was given an opportunity from Fred in 1986. Fred called him one day and told him he was going to sell him a business. Best American Iron and Metal and Best American Used Auto Parts were now in Mickey’s hands. The opportunity was given, but a lot of work had to be done. What equipment that was there was worn out, the trucks were worn out, the inventory was down, and there was no management in place. Having worked for Fred for years, Mickey had no problem with the auto parts; he knew what had to be done to turn it around and make it work. But Mickey never had any experience with the scrap yard. So, he learned and he worked hard. Sometimes he worked 7 days a week and if he had too, he would work 24 hours a day, for days in a row. He learned how to run and repair heavy equipment and diesel trucks. Over the years, through his hard work and blessings from God, Mickey built the biggest privately owned Scrap metal yard in the Houston area.

Besides being a respectable business man, Mickey was also a huge family man. After love at first sight, Mickey and the love of his life, Jackie, were married in 1984. They had a love for each other that could not be described in words or matched by another. Together, they supported each other through the hard times as well as the good. They also had another love that they shared; this love was for their children and family. They were blessed in 1997 with their first grandchild, Hannah Rose. I don’t think there could be a child loved more than this one by her grandfather. But, in 1999, Gracie Ann was born and he loved her just as much. These two girls were his pride and joy. By now, his son’s had started working for him and he had a little more time to spend with his grandchildren. He was able to do things with them that he couldn’t with his own children because he had to work. He was beginning to plan his retirement, although we all knew he would never fully retire. Mickey had dreams, places he wanted to see, and time he wanted to spend with his family.

On October 17, 2007 all of his plans were changed. Two words: “Pancreatic Cancer.” They inevitably changed everything forever. Our lives would never be the same. We sort of knew the news was going to be bad, but we never expected cancer. Mickey was in the hospital and had undergone a procedure called endoscopic surgery. This particular procedure was performed to try to find out why Mickey was in so much pain, was not able to eat, and was losing so much weight. After the surgery, all we could do was wait and see what the surgeon had found. The doctor told us it was bad, Pancreatic Cancer, there was no cure and at this stage no treatment. Mickey was so strong, he listened to the doctor, blinked back the tears, and true to form told him thank you. The Doctor has just told us the unthinkable. This doesn’t happen in our family. When the doctor left the room, Mickey and I cried and held each other. But we had to tell our children and niece that was waiting impatiently out that door. I went out and told them to come in, we told them and we all cried together. All of our dreams were gone; the only thing for us to do now was to fight this horrible disease.

December 10^th, 2007 just a short 7 weeks and 5 days from diagnoses, Mickey lost the battle to Pancreatic Cancer. In that time period he return to the hospital twice for the doctors to try to perform a procedure to help him get the nourishment he needed to survive and to continue the fight. Both times it failed. Mickey never gave up, he never gave up hope, never gave up the fight. Although, the cancer had taken such a toll on Mickey’s body, he had lost so much weight, and was in so much pain, his strength as a loving and caring man continued. Mickey never wanted to be alone, so the word was put out to everyone we knew. And they came, during the day, every evening, weekdays and weekends. Friends and family from all over, came to see him. The show of support and love was unbelievable. It was truly a testimony to the life of this wonderful man. We prayed for God to help us and he sent us an amazing army of support. Truly we can say that in that short 7 weeks and 5 days, God sent his army of Angels to give us the love, support and prayers that we so desperately needed. Angels are among us! Mickey touch so many lives in his short time here on earth. He gave to so many. It is our hope to continue his way of life and to reach out and help others.