Old751 - Sierra's Story

"He did finally stand, gave Momma J a kiss on the head and left the room. I started to follow him, but Momma J stopped me. He will be back soon she said. The family, finally digesting the situation, did what the family did - we cooked. Someone even found a huge container of Grammies beef stew in the freezer. I had stepped out on the porch to see where Papa had gone and heard the soft familiar rumble of Old751's diesel idling. I thought of walking over to join him but realized that he needed his time alone right now."

"Momma J hung on for six months with the help of a lot of pain meds towards the end. Papa never left her side, seeing to her every need, making sure she wanted for nothing. I made sure that her grandkids saw her every day. Family and friends seemed to always be in the house until she finally asked Papa to start limiting them. Toward the end her hospital bed sat right over there so she could see the Café. I had Jimmie trim up a couple of trees so she could see better."

"On the morning, she passed, Papa had called and asked that I bring Jimmie and the kids over but not to tell anyone else. It was just us and the hospice nurse when she told us goodbye, gave Papa a smile and took her last breath with Papa holding her hand."

"All the arrangements had been made so it was just a matter of a couple of text messages and the news was out. Uncle Jack, Aunt Jen, Jill, and Jan were the first to get to the house. Papa went to his big chair and sat quietly while his whole world crashed around him staring at his hands, slowly turning his ring. It seemed to take hours for things to slowly calm down and I got a real chance to sit and talk with him. It was only then that I noticed that he wasn't turning his ring, he was trying to get the swelling in his finger down, so the band didn't cut into him so much. His face was swollen and his whole body was puffy."

"I asked how long this had been going on and he told me a few weeks, which meant a few months. I looked at him knowingly and he just said that he didn't want her to worry about him. I wanted to take him to the hospital, but he refused and said that it usually went down over night, and he would be fine in the morning. I shouldn't have, but I let him get away with it. He stayed up a while longer and told us all that he loved us and was so very proud of what we had become, and he knew that everything was going to be alright. Giving us hugs and kisses, he went to bed."

"I woke that next morning with that voice I used to hear from that little toy truck telling me he was gone. When I went to his room I didn't even have to go and check him. The gentle smile on his face told me that Momma J had come to take him on his next big trip. Except for the hospice nurse, it was a repeat of yesterday's performance, although he had left me a note that He and Momma J had written years ago. They told me who my sperm donor father was and where I would most likely find him should I ever want too."

"Momma J and Papa's ashes are scattered out at the lake. Old751 never started again. Jimmie even went so far as to put a new engine in her, but she refused to carry on without Papa and Momma J. She now rests happily in front of the Lost Café and Truck Stop #1, nose to nose with the Lone Wrangler, who was my first truck."

"I will let Jan and Jill have their turns after my final thoughts. I want to be sure to leave you with this; because two people met, fell in love, and committed themselves to always doing the right thing and sharing their good fortune, the three of us have been able to continue the legacy of our parents and their parents and the generations before them. There was a time when I thought it was silly to give away so much until I realized that by giving it away you get back ten-fold. I don't need to live in a mansion when I have a beautiful roof over my head that was already built with more love than you will ever know. There are too many out there that are struggling to put food on their table let alone having a house to put a table in."

"That is why we don't live like millionaires, our millions come from the love of our families and those who we can help. We don't do it for their thanks or gratitude. We do it because it is the right thing to do."

Now to that long list of questions you wanted to ask young man.

Yes, I was born to an unwed teenager and have never known my father.

Yes, I was adopted at the age of 11 by a post-op transgender woman and the man she was married to and loved deeply after my grandmother passed away.

Yes, I never wanted for anything growing up except to be loved and to be a part of this family that took me in and accepted me as one of their own.

Yes, I was a virgin until my wedding night and if you do your math, our oldest was born nine months and one week after our wedding.

751 Trucking now owns controlling interest in twenty-five companies. Every one of those subsidiaries has a CFO employed directly by the Lost C&TS/751 Company but still have management teams from the families that founded it.

In total there is a fleet of 1575 trucks titled to those companies and 350 independently owned and operated contractors.

I will not get into the number of employees involved in this part of the operation.

I am paid a monthly salary that is more than enough to live comfortably and donate when and where I see fit.

Jimmie and I did sign a pre-nup just like Momma J and Papa did years ago.

751 Trucking profits all go to the general fund of the Lost C&TS/751 Company.

Jan, Jill, and I, along with some senior family members meet regularly to discuss company business, new areas to invest in, and donations to be made. We all have our pet projects and charities we support. For instance, I support planned parenthood, women and homeless shelters, private adoption agencies, pre- and post-natal care, children's charities children's hospitals and neo-natal clinics along with dozens of others.

Jimmie and I neither have any plans to retire yet but we are training our children to take over when we do, just like Jill and Jan have done with theirs, but that is their story.

After a break, I turned the spotlight over to Jan. Jan didn't have the controversial back story I did but she was also grown and gone out into the world when I came along as had Jill. They both knew all about Momma J and Papa and me, but I had never really heard their version of the life they had experienced. To me, it was even more fascinating than my story.

When Jan had finished her tale of the journey to bringing our company to be one of the largest real estate holding companies in the nation, we walked Joe over to treat him to the best Truck Stop Café food he would ever have in his life. Aunt Gayle gave us a big hug greeting as did Amiee. Amiee had taken over for Aunt Suzy when she and Uncle Dave gave into the wanderlust and took off to travel the world. Grannies beef stew was still the best to be had anywhere. Joe's crew and ours thought it a great idea to bring the cameras over to the Café to film this also.

Jill got to tell her story while enjoying the food, sights, smells, and sounds of the Café that helped start an empire. Now fourteen Lost Cafes and Truck stops later and that one little subway franchise barely made money but once it was turned into the Lost Deli and Soup Bowl, it was a race to see how fast they could expand, and yes, they did have the recipe for Grannies beef stew and they sold more of it than all the other soups combined not including Grannies Chicken Noodle.

Joe was so aghast by how open and honest we all were with the story and history of Lost C&TS/751 company. He was used to the corporate hide and seek that a lot of companies held so tightly too. He also was impressed with the fact that if a family member had an idea for something new, we didn't hesitate to help them succeed in their endeavor. Yes, there were some failures but never from lack of trying and hard work.

When he asked for a list of charities that we supported he was politely refused. Major charities always posted who their big donors are, and we made several of those lists but so much of our charity was quiet and behind the scenes and anonymous.

Joe had done some research, and, like all families, we had a few skeletons. We never really tried to hide them or make them just go away, but we did the right thing for those harmed and made sure that the family member guilty was given the right treatment for their actions. There were a couple of distant cousins that were doing prison time for some investment scheme they cooked up. The investors were made whole once the two were convicted.

The e-zine article came out two weeks after the edit was approved. We received a great response from it and requests for more interviews and book deal offers. The video version only took another week because it was decided to air the entire recording unedited in a split screen style. You not only saw the person talking but you got to see the reactions of all of us as they did.

Jan retired first a couple of years later. She and her husband bought a villa in Tuscany where they live with their four dogs and any family that comes to visit. Jill retired a couple of years after Jan. She and her husband opted for Aruba and have a huge villa on the beach. We all visit often.

Jimmie and I have transformed ourselves into Momma S and Papa J. Still living in the house Momma J and Papa built and caring for the ever-growing family. Life is just what I always dreamed it would be and I am blissfully happy.