In the summer of 1961 when I was 14, our family, Dad, Mom, Julie, Peggy, Kathy, and me, piled into our station wagon and headed west for a vacation. John was not with us, due to a summer job. Leaving Oklahoma City, we passed through New Mexico. The weather in New Mexico that day was extremely hot, over 100°. The towns on this highway were far apart, and we were exactly in the middle between two towns, about 20 miles from either, plus we had not seen another car on that road since leaving the last town.
The family was, as always, singing canons in the car to stay happy…when Dad happened to glance down at the engine temperature gauge, which was dangerously high. There must have been an engine water leak, and we saw billows of steam pouring from the engine. The car completely broke down. When Dad opened the hood, part of the engine seemed to have melted. There we were, a whole family, 20 miles away from civilization with a dead car…in 100° heat. We were clearly in danger.
The family obviously could not stay in the car, so Mom faced the problem by leading the girls to the side of the road where they found a large drainage pipe under the road, providing some protection from the brutal sun. In Mom’s typical style, she kept the girls happy by leading them in jumping jacks, fun stories, and singing.
Meanwhile, Dad and I had a serious talk about what could be done to get us out of this serious concern. He decided that he would start walking along the highway towards the next town, 20 miles away, with the hope that a car would finally show up and give him a ride. He assigned me the job of protecting Mom and my sisters…but I was only 14. That serious responsibility blew my mind. I told Dad that keeping the girls safe was the most important issue and that I was too young to do that. I then suggested that I begin walking to the next town, instead of him. This was obviously a complicated and heavy decision, but Dad finally agreed. I then set out walking the highway in that 100° weather.
I walked for about 20 minutes when the first car came along. It thankfully pulled over to give me a ride. The car just happened to be from the Highway Patrol. I fervently told the uniformed driver of the serious danger my family was in back on the highway, so we quickly headed for the nearest town to get what was needed to help. While driving to that town, the officer, out of curiosity, started chatting with me. He asked where our family was from, and I told him, Oklahoma City. He casually went on to ask if at my age, I had a summer job, and I told him, yes, at a landscaping nursery.
The patrolman’s demeanor suddenly changed into more serious attention. He asked what nursery. I told him “Garlands’ Nursery”…and he almost drove off the road. He immediately asked if my boss was Lee Garland, and I responded, “Yes…do you know him? Lee sings tenor in my father’s church choir.”
He stared at me for a moment not knowing how to respond, and then said, “Lee is my brother in law. His wife, Joy, is my sister. I am also the head of the New Mexico Highway Patrol. We will immediately pick up your family, tow your car to our garage, repair it for your family at our own cost, and find a motel in which your family can stay until the car is repaired.”
Believe it or not, that really happened…an incredible miracle that saved our family.