A Little White Box
by Larry Neal

John Booth started building his Bensen gyrocopter out in California in 1971. Along with his wife Adrian they raised 3 fine sons and were also in the food business.
At the end of most days there was usually some food left over from the restaurant at closing time. John would take up to a couple of hours a day taking the left over food to the local mission so someone would have something to eat instead of going to bed hungry.
When asked why he took so much time away from his family to help strangers he replied: “How can I throw good food away when so many people out there are hungry?”
That is the kind of person John Booth was. He passed away a couple of years ago after loosing both legs below the knees to sugar diabetes. After surviving his VA hospital stay he lived more than a year at their home on beautiful Lake Granbury with his wife and family. He is missed but the warm love and kindness he shared will remain with all who knew him for the rest of our lives.
While staying in the VA Hospital in San Antonio for about nine months as he battled to keep his sanity and life on track, John and I became very close. We talked most every day on the phone and shared our up’s and down’s with each other. I gleaned a lot of wisdom and advice from John during his hospital stay. I loved him just as much as if he were my own dad and he returned a love that only a son could expect. He had returned to Texas and retired in Granbury. He had started up our beloved Texas Rotorcraft Association in 1994 of which I had joined on the first invite. Finally I could share my love of flying gyro’s with other people after flying for more than 21 years without having anyone else to fly with.
We met together once a month, ate, talked gyroplanes, and flew them for several years. Our club has grown to over 80 members and we are still having a wonderful time thanks to John.
During one of my visits to John in the VA Hospital he gave me a little white box. Inside the box was a beautiful crystal butterfly with jewels in its wings sitting on a little round mirror. What a beautiful gift. Along with the gift was a special letter he had written for me. This is what the letter said:

[Dear Larry,

This is a token of appreciation and love for all that you are.

With this symbol of beauty and peace, we wish you every success with

your butterfly enterprise which has come about through your motivation to

promote safety, recreation, and fulfillment through gyro’s to your fellow

man.

We wish you every success and thank you for being you. You give so

much to so many in everything you do. God bless you and yours. We love

you Larry Neal.

Adrian & John Booth]

[Click to Enlarge]

What a priceless gift! I will cherish this gift and kind words for the rest of my life and I cherish the time and fellowship that I was allowed to spend with one of the greatest men that has ever walked the face of this earth. My friend and mentor John Booth is still a strong influence of encouragement to me today and will be forever. That little white box and a lot of love has helped change my life and is a source of encouragement and strength to me to this day.
I have felt a need to share the story of this special gift with you and hope that you will also learn how to share a little white box and love with someone in your life.

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