Cal Farley Sometimes in Life, We Encounter

Cal Farley Sometimes in life, we encounter remarkable individuals who have overcome almost overwhelming odds to become extraordinary in the eyes of those they have influenced as well as in the eyes of the world. Often, these individuals do their work in such a subtle way that they become well-known only when they die and leave a very big space to be filled by a successor.

One person who has the potential to be such a person is Cal Farley, who I believe is deserving of the 20th Century Genius Award for his work to improve humanity and the world in which he lived. According to Hendrickson, Cal Farley was born on Christmas day in 1895 at Saxton, Iowa. He had a twin sister Zaida, and together they were the youngest of six children. The parents' marriage was loveless and ended in separation, leaving the children without much of the nurture that should be expected from parents.

For this reason, young Cal soon learned to find solace in other things such as sports. This was fortunate, since he discovered great athletic prowess in himself and could use this to his advantage. He was therefore already remarkable at the age of 16, when many others in his position would have crumbled, become delinquent, or succumbed to substance abuse. After enlisting and emerging from the War, Farley continued his involvement in sports and became good at professional wrestling and minor league baseball.

This was, however, not the end of the success he made of his life. In 1923, he began a tire shop business in Amarillo, Texas, where he built it up to a profitable business. Here, he also pioneered the department store type of merchandising as well as broadcasting a daily radio program. It appears that Farley made a success of everything he tried. Farley's work with children began in 1934, where he gathered a few friends and started the Maverick Club.

This was an organized athletics program to help young boys remain constructively occupied. This grew to become Kids Incorporated by 1966, which at the time was helping more than 10,000 boys between six and sixteen years of age. More than 1,500 adult volunteers were involved in the work. It was the boys that could not be helped by the Maverick Club that served as the inspiration for Farley's truly remarkable work of love: the Cal Farley's Boys Ranch, founded in 1939.

This was an establishment for boys who lacked supervision and encouragement at home, which was the situation within which Farley himself grew up. In 1947, Farley sold his business and, with his wife, devoted his life to helping boys who were homeless and delinquent. For this, he received support from persons such as Jack Dempsey, J. Edgware Hoover, and Roy Rogers. After a lifetime of nothing but remarkable work in the many areas of his involvement, Farley died in 1967 while attending chapel services.

His wife died exactly a month later and they are both buried in Amarillo. While Farley displayed genius at everything he tried, I believe he deserves most to be rewarded for his work to help young delinquent children. It is a sad fact of reality that there will always be parents who neglect or abandon their children. Establishments like the Farley Ranches will therefore always be a necessary and vital part of human society.

Indeed, they are a testament to the love that might exist in the human heart regardless of the difficulties experienced in life. Today, Cal Farley's Boys Ranch (2011) has grown to a large network of establishments and people who help young children to become more than they ever believed they could be. Indeed, many graduates from these ranches meet for reunions and to remember the chances they received in life thanks to Cal Farley.

Furthermore, the services are offered to the young and needy free of charge, making the establishment a charity in the full sense of the word. The Ranch has also extended to include a Girls town, which offers the same service to young girls without the privilege of a home or proper parental care. Collectively, these services are known as Cal Farley's Family Resource Centers. These centers now include a variety of services, free of charge to families in need.

Clearly, Cal Farley had a significant impact on the world he lived in, and continues to have an impact today. The many volunteers and professionals that continue carrying out his work with young boys, girls, and their families cannot be overemphasized for their importance. The girls and boys who are helped in this way are saved from a lifetime of potential problems such as substance abuse and unemployment. Instead, they are given the opportunity to grow into productive members of society. In this.