Wow! This man moved to the top of my "People I'd Most Like to Meet List" and I didn't actually have one .

I want to tell his story but in increments because it's pretty long.

It's 1966 and Dennis Hale worked as a watchman and I believe wheelman on a the 600 something ft. Daniel J. Morrell, a Great Lakes iron ore freighter. Dennis didn't really like the work; too much time away from his family in Ashtabula, OH, (he had four kids). Still, the boats paid much better than his previous job as a hotel cook. After what was supposed to be their last run of the shipping season, the captain got orders from the scheduler; they would have to make one more run to meet their years' tonnage quota. Everybody was disappointed. Dennis, however, while the ship was loading in a port, Dennis had time to drive the 115 miles home for a visit with his family. He dropped a shipmate off near his house, and the two agreed to meet at the same place later that day.