Earlier this week an elderly woman called my office and asked me about problems she was having with some creditors. After a brief rundown of her situation I told her that because of her situation there was very little her creditors could do other than call and harass her. At the end of our conversation she told me that I was her hero of the day and she thanked me for the advice. That is what makes this work worthwhile.
As attorneys we are expected to be knowledgeable. We are expected to be confident. We are expected to be the champions for our clients. We are expected to be heroes. But what happens when a client becomes a hero to us.
Previously I wrote about compassion fatigue and how we as lawyers are not trained to deal with the considerable trauma that we confront on a daily basis. Often we are on the periphery but other times it smacks us hard.
A friend posted on Facebook not long ago, “Do you know someone who would take a bullet for you?” I have been blessed with many good friends in my life. Many of them have helped me out in many ways. But I only know of two people who I believed would “take a bullet for me.” Sadly over the past 9 months I lost both of them. The first was Luke. We had our disagreements at times but the love between us was never in doubt and he had a toughness unlike many people I have known. Despite the clashes, I knew he was there for me. He was my champion.
The second was Kenny Perkins. We had not only an attorney-client relationship for 15 years, but also a friendship and a level of trust between us that was maintained at a high level.
Interestingly, Kenny had taken a bullet before, in fact he was shot 5 or 6 times back in 2002 during a failed robbery attempt by four thugs. Even after being shot he ran them off with a tire tool and delivered some serious pain. They all wound up with long prison sentences.
I first met Kenny around 1997. I needed a jump so I called AAA and Kenny showed up to start my car. Over the next few years I ran into him on occasion but never really got to know him well until shortly after he recovered from the shooting. He came to see me a about a case in District Court. His attorney was retiring and he needed representation.
I am not sure why we hit it off and became close, but there was an openness and honesty that created a special bond. I knew he was always there for me and I was always ready to help him. I once said that if my car broke down in Arizona all I had to do was call and he would come get me. Every conversation we had ended with Kenny saying “Call me if you need me.”
After Luke died, Kenny was there for me, as he always was. When we finally were able to gather ourselves enough to clean out Luke’s apartment, Kenny showed up with a truck & trailer and his cousin to do the moving. After he moved everything to Julia’s (Luke’s mom) home, Kenny went back and cleaned up the apartment. Kenny never asked for anything in return.
We spoke several days later and Kenny told me that he knew Luke had been using Xanax bars again. There were several times when Luke had driven to Lexington and had tire issues and Kenny had to go rescue him late at night. I asked why he never told me. I already had enough guilt not being able to prevent Luke’s death and this just made me feel worse. He said that Luke was worried about me being ashamed of him. He also said that he felt the need to have Luke’s trust or Luke would not have called him in a time of need. I became angry at Kenny for the first time in my life. I had difficulty dealing with the fact that Kenny and Luke had kept this from me. After several months I told Kenny how I felt and he said he fully understood but felt it was more important not to betray Luke’s trust. It was difficult but I understood. I was disappointed at myself for having been mad at him.
In November, Kenny told me that he was having stomach problems and was going to have tests done in Lexington. This was pretty surprising because even after the shooting, he left the hospital before his doctor was ready to discharge him. A few weeks later it was confirmed that he had cancer. Over the next 4 weeks we had the most serious conversations we had ever had and while I will not tell the details suffice it to say that he considered me one of his closest friends and appreciated everything I had done for him. I told him as well how much he meant to me not only for what he had done for me but for what he had done for Luke. Kenny Perkins was probably the hardest working man I ever met. He lived hard and he loved hard. Just as with Luke his life ended way to soon with so many dreams left to be fulfilled.
I am sad but I am left with great memories of these 2 men who have reminded me that I must go on being someone’s hero.
The Trials of Luke 