ONE BABY BOOMER’S MOUNT RUSHMORE

Greats, Near Great, And Who Was That?  

Lots of room to add more to the club.
via wikipedia.org

The traditional list for Mt. Rushmore singles out the best of an era.

The baby boom era is 1946-1964. Lot’s to choose from.

Steven Spielberg makes most lists. So does Tom Hanks and Steve Jobs. Bill Gates is easy to find.

Most recently NBA basketball players came out with their own Mt. Rushmore. How hard is that?

Here’s that team by position, plus an extra, before the boomer blogger’s Mt. Rushmore:

Point guard Oscar Robinson who averaged a triple double one season; Shooting guard Michael Jordan; Small forward Clyde Drexler; Power forward Bill Russell who won eleven NBA, two NCAA titles, and two high school titles; Center Wilt Chamberlain who averaged 50 points one season titles. (The 6′ 7″ Drexler moved to small forward when he went to Houston. The 6′ 9″ Russell played center, but he’d make a great PF.)

Now the Boomerpdx Mt. Rushmore:

George Marshall: He was a logger who felled trees for fifty years. He taught the craft in college. He said the only time he felt safe on the job was during  a break when he joined up and went to WWII. He was in the woods when chain saws showed up. He said manual sawing was nice and quiet and he missed it. And he was my Grandpa.

Wayne Gillaspie: He was a country kid who joined the Marines and headed to Korea. He came back a much decorated Marine who planned on making it a career. Instead, he left, got a college degree, and raised a family. He was my Dad.

Michael Jordan: This is the guy named when I asked my young kids who they’d like as their dad if they could have someone else. No one wanted to be more like Mike then.

Elaine Gillaspie: This woman is the only one from both sides of her family born in America. She’s a ground breaking naturopathic doctor in practice over thirty continuous years who has improved every community she’s lived in and everyone she’s met. She’s my wife and she’s still working on her husband.

Why this list?

Mr. Marshall was a logger with a knack for playing brass horns and creating electrical gear. I asked him why he wasn’t one of those beer drinking, bar fighting loggers. He said he’d rather play music and build stereo systems from scratch.

Mr. Gillaspie was an insurance adjuster who kept a fishing pole in his trunk. This was an outdoorsman who hunted first and got a license later. I asked him why? “It’s a waste of money to buy a license if you don’t get a deer, now stay with this buck while I go to town for a deer tag.”

Michael Jordan was one of sports biggest winners as a player. As a team owner, not so much. He’s shown how to adjust without blowing up.

Elaine Gillaspie is the doctor you want to see first. Instead of feeling like you’re in the health check-out line at a store/clinic, you’re with a doctor who breaks down problems from the core issues. You explain the symptoms, she uncovers the cause. And she never gives up.

Your Mount Rushmore? Give it a shot.