If you have to be a "holic": Charles Aaron Samuel Heagy

More from Grandpa Heagy's memories of his Dad today.
(Me-->Mom-->Grandpa Heagy-->Charles Aaron Samuel Heagy)

"At the age of 39 he married my mother Cleora Elizabeth Schlomer, age 26, at Fort Benton, Choteau county, Montana. He then worked for the Great Falls Brewery, two blocks from their home at 734 14th St. SW, Great Falls.
His later years with the brewery were spent at the Malt Plant. The Malt Plant was a brewery also at one time. It is now replaced with the new Federal Building in Great Falls. It is my feeling Dad took the job at the Malt Plant to get away from the temptation of the free beer at the Brewery and the opportunity to work alone. Seldom was there any one but himself working in the building. He still had an alcohol problem as did his father before him.

As he was returning home from work early one morning, he had a head on with two boys on a motorcycle. The accident occurred on the old wooden viaduct over the Great Northern Railroad. Both boys died. I never knew Dad to take a drink after. As the boys had been drinking also, an out of court settlement was reached."

I asked Mom a little bit more about this. She said that her Grandpa had pointed out to her Dad that alcoholism ran in his blood from both sides of the family and that "if he was going to be a "-holic", be a WORK-aholic". Luckily, our Grandpa has heeded this advice. It's a blessing in disguise, I think, that C.A.S.H. was in that car accident. If he hadn't been, maybe my own grandfather would have been inclined to drink, would not have been interested in joining the LDS church where you don't drink a drop, would not have married my Grandma, and we wouldn't be here today.

I also vaguely remember this story being told to me as a very young child, before Kindergarten because we were still living our first house. I think I had asked Mom why we don't drink, and one of the answers I remember was her explanation of alcoholism and the threat that if I ever took a drink, I would become addicted very easily because that runs in the family. Not that I was ever tempted to, but to remember this from that young of an age means it still made a serious impression on me.
PS. Hey Jake, now we know why you are such a workaholic. That bad gene had to find a positive outlet!!!

A lovely "rest of the story" to this post.  After writing this I talked to Grandpa a little more and asked him if he knew anything about the two teenagers that died.  I suggested that it might be nice to do his temple work.  At the time, the temple work policy included "a close, personal relationship".  (I read that to Grandpa and he quipped, "Like someone ya killed!)  Well, it touched a nerve and he and Grandma went to the courthouse to find out more about these boys.  They did do the temple work for them and I feel like it is a gift Grandpa Charlie Heagy would have wanted his victims to have, as a bit of recompense.