This tool belt belongs to our friend Pamela Adams Cook. She graciously allowed us to photograph it. There is a story behind this photograph which I could never tell as well as Pam. What follows is her beautiful story, in her words, of a beautiful friendship and the man that once wore and used this tool belt.
Pam's Story:
Bob was a friend - an unlikely friend yet a very special friend. I miss him. I nonchalantly told him once, many, many years ago while working together on a project in our church’s parsonage, that I thought men wearing tool belts were sexy. He never let me forget it, and we laughed often through the years of our friendship about my rash statement. I smile now as I remember Bob. After his passing, his wife gave me his tool belt. And we laughed, both fondly remembering Bob. She had randomly filled the tool belt with some of his tools - a small saw, pliers, one of his hammers, a pair of his safety glasses, a little notebook with his meticulous handwriting. But it’s the tool belt that touches my heart. Bob’s tool belt hangs in a special place in my workshop. It has a thin covering of saw dust but I like having it where I can see it often and fondly remember my friend, and smile. Ted has beautifully transformed my treasured tool belt into a work of art, perpetuating Bob’s and my friendship for posterity. You’re still my sexy friend, Bob.