Talking to Army Veteran David Harman, you would never guess that behind that sly grin and great sense of humor, there is, as he called it, a “soul-wound”.
Mr. Harman served as a field artilleryman from June 1976 through July 1979. He was born in Tulsa, and left school at seventeen to join the military where he completed his GED.
After leaving the Army, he began a career as a truck driver driving for the gas and oil field companies in Longview and then Houston, Texas. He moved back to Oklahoma where he continued driving trucks. “I met a woman and after we had been dating, she said we should get married or she was done. Well, we had four children and now there are grandchildren and I even have a great-grandson I haven’t met yet. We eventually moved to Clinton, Arkansas and I’ve lived there thirty-five years, When my wife passed away, I was devastated. I had gotten into a little trouble and was on probation and when she died, I gave up. I missed my probation meetings, didn’t pay my fees….They eventually revoked my probation and I went to RPF. It’s a part of the prison system, but we had all types of other programs. I discharged from there to St. Francis House.”
Mr. Harman will eventually be going to live with his daughter in Oklahoma. “It’s strange to think about because I’ve always been so self-sufficient, but I’m looking forward to it. I love my children and want to make everything right with them. After a soul-wound like I had, I didn’t think about anything else. It was like I buried myself along with my wife. But I know she wouldn’t want me to do that; I want to celebrate her life. By moving to Oklahoma, I’ll be closer to three of my children and to my grand- and great-grand children.”
“I’ve had a great life and a great marriage and it’s not done yet, but I would tell everyone to do what you need to do now, while you have the opportunity. It won’t be long before you ask yourself “where did the time go?”