By Dominic Sisler
Arthur Hunt, currently living at Brookdale Senior Living, was born in Brooklyn, New York in 1940. However, he lived there only until the age of three. Because of his mother’s fear that the Germans would bomb New York, the family then moved to Long Island, even though, as he noted, the new location ironically placed him closer to the Germans.
Whilst in elementary school, he had trouble getting to the same level as his classmates. He described his academic life from fifth to tenth grade as playing a game of catch-up. However, after tenth grade, he had a “eureka” moment when he achieved the honor roll. He continued to be an honor roll student from that point on, and he was class president in his sophomore and junior years of high school. He remembers that the Korean War created a lot of anxiety. He also remembers when Kennedy was elected as President and later assassinated.
Throughout his life he had two best friends who both sadly have passed. He met one for the first time at his first job working for UPS.
Afterwards, he went to college to be a church minister but decided to drop out and join the army once he realized that being a minister wasn’t the best thing for him. Although he wasn’t supposed to be drafted, under his parents’ noses he decided to ask to have his position in the draft pushed up. He was drafted into the army but was a “conscious objector” because of his faith. He would not take up arms, and hence he was sent to join the medical corps.
After leaving the military, he went to college to become a registered nurse (RN) on the GI Bill, which paid for veterans’ higher education. He joked that he never had anyone die while he numbed them for an operation when he was a nurse. When asked how he was able to become what he was, he remarked, “no matter what, we all have the same qualifications…. We all start the same way. You can be anything you will yourself to be, but you need to individualize yourself to do it. No matter how you’re born, it’s up to you to make it.”
Growing up, he went through the motions and phases of music for the times. Mr. Hunt didn’t particularly like hip-hop, and he also noted an original distaste for the Beatles, thinking that they were silly. However, in the end, like most people, he came to enjoy their music.
When asked what was most important to him, Mr. Hunt answered that family was the most important thing in the world. His family consisted of his brother, who unfortunately passed, and two sisters. Mr. Hunt lived with his wife and has two daughters, Beverly and Pam. Sadly, however, Pam, who had four children, died due to pneumonia at 32 years of age. When additionally questioned, he noted the importance of to “try[ing] to understand them [your children] and your siblings. You grow up with them, but in the end, really, you don’t have a lot of time with them and your parents.” He mentions Harry Chapin’s 1974 song “Cat’s in the Cradle” that details a story of a father and son. The father didn’t have time for the son in childhood, and when the son reached adulthood, he ironically didn’t have time for his father. He believes everyone can encounter situations like that in their lives.
Looking back on his life, Mr. Hunt reflects that he’s most proud that through the help of God, he got through his schooling and was led along the right pathways. He remarked that “the way [life] has turned out now, I made life more difficult for myself. With God, all things have been possible, but I’ve never made the effort to study properly. Yet, when things turned out well for me, I believe I've had God’s intervention to set me on the right track.”
Mr. Hunt doesn’t wish to redo anything, as the way he sees it, he wouldn’t change a thing. He views the times from when he was young and today's world as similar, just a bit more advanced. Looking for parallels between when he was growing up and today's world, he believes that young people should get to know God. His words of choice were “no deviation from strict integrity will meet God’s approval.” This quote is also the advice he has for those growing up now. Principle is very important in the setting of the 21st century, and all kids should follow this approach to life.
Thanks to volunteer editor Shairee Arora who assisted with this story.