Unsung Heroes

ALL IN 4AHERO Unsung Heroes

By Jeremy Clarke

Remember Red Adair? The famous maverick, death-defying Texan oil-well firefighter?

There’s something about that name “Adair.” It’s Irish, but in German it literally means “wealthy spear,” and is taken to mean “fortunate, powerful, blessed and happy.” Which is kind of appropriate. Meet Kevin and Carmen Adair. Folks that are … other worldly. And yet they are very down-to-earth and open, sharing their talents wherever they are needed, whenever they can.

TAKE KEVIN, FOR INSTANCE

Modern life is too harsh, too cutthroat, too cynical, for this man who wears his heart on his sleeve to survive, let alone prosper. A man whose whole function is to serve, to spread joy. Which is something Kevin does with his whole heart and does so authentically and so without reserve, that to the jaded among us it can seem almost naive.

But if his mind and heart are strong, Kevin’s body has trouble keeping up.

Insulin, which regulates blood sugar, is measured in micro units per milliliter (mu/ml). A normal range of insulin is from 10 to 20 to keep blood-sugar levels down. If your bloodsugar levels go over 150, you’re in trouble – 300, you could be toast. In December 2021, Kevin, who is insulin resistant, was rushed to the ER for an emergency procedure. His doctors announced that they’d managed to get his levels down to 800. From up over 1,000.

They were astounded he was alive. They’d called a priest, who arrived to administer Last Rites. But Kevin, lucid enough to speak calmly, informed his doctors that God still had work for him, and that he wasn’t going anywhere. Sure enough, within hours, his levels were back down to approaching normal.

The doctors not only couldn’t take credit, they couldn’t quite believe what had just happened. But then, Kevin Adair is no stranger to miracles.

THEN THERE’S CARMEN

A huge part of the miracle of Mr. Adair still being with us is Mrs. Adair (whose name, in Latin, means song). This elegant lady juxtaposes certain human qualities that might not seem to go together: She is always impeccably dressed – artfully and stylishly so – and yet she’s utterly, selflessly dedicated to her man, his health and happiness.

An accomplished and prolific artist herself, Carmen is also possessed, like her musician husband, with irrepressible humor and a sense of mischief. She’s his greatest fan, but makes time to be a most warm, welcoming, and helpful friend to others. Also, she’s an essential part of the AHERO Veteran survival machine.

No AHERO hunting events happen without Carmen; no AHERO guest Vet gets assigned to a plane or hotel accommodations or heads off to fish during Warrior Weekends without Carmen.

She can be likened to a swan. Seemingly gliding effortlessly across the complicated waters of helping the AHERO magic happen. Feet working like crazy below, unseen.

WHAT I SAW THAT FIRST NIGHT

I met this kind couple in August 2020 at an AHERO Warrior HookUp. I’d been warned that Kevin was frail. And while we all hoped to hear him play, I wasn’t expecting him to play his heart out – and no one was expecting him to play for very long. A couple of my AHERO volunteer colleagues were concerned about the wisdom of him playing at all!

He greeted me like a long-lost friend. Open arms, open heart; big, Southern, authentic welcome. It kinda took me aback. Twenty years in New York had taught me that wasn’t the done thing. A grunt, a nod, a brisk handshake would do. No hugs. Likely no immediate friendliness. After all, the other person could be from New Jersey.

Or worse – a Red Sox fan! (No worries if you don’t get that. It’s a bit of an insider joke.)