
Episode 52
A CONVERSATION WITH BRENT O’NEAL
ROOTS AND RESILIENCE | A JOURNEY OF FAMILY, FAITH, AND LEGACY WITH BRENT O’NEAL
How many people can call their father-in-law one of their best friends?
I’m so incredibly lucky to have Brent O’Neal as my father-in-law. Not only has he been incredibly supportive of Chelsea and I throughout our marriage, but his business stories have had a big impact on my own business journey.
Here are some of the crazy stories from Brent’s life.
Brent grew up in Houston, TX with workaholic parents who ran their own pharmacy drug store. As a young boy he would help them at the businses often until late at night. It was there he built a crazy work ethic and sense of self discipline.
He studied finance and worked as a stock broker for a little while (and was very good at it), until he eventually decided he wanted to start his own business.
Brent opened a mechanic shop, and ran it with his wife, Brenda. After a few years the shop was running smoothly, and he decided to sell and try opening a new one in a different location.
Unfortunately, the new location was a tricky spot and they started quickly losing money on the project. Trying not to go bankrupt, he and his wife put their heads down and started working hard to get sales. To make matters worse, Brent even found out a partner was embezzling money from him.
This was right around the time when I called him asking if I could marry his daughter. I had no idea how stressful work was at the time for him. The best part was right before he could respond, his phone died so I had to wait anxiously for another half hour or so before he called me back and said yes 😂
Determined to fund their daughter’s wedding, Brent and Brenda decided to sell a baseball signed by Babe Ruth, that Brenda had gotten from her grandfather. Because of their generosity, Chelsea and I actually got to have a reception in their backyard, and I will forever be grateful for that.
They ended up getting the business stabilized and Brent’s son eventually took over while he retired—and let me tell you, I’ve never met another man his age with his energy. Even while battling cancer, he still continues to find excitement for life and goes on adventures constantly.
I’m grateful that he took the time to come on my podcast, and even more grateful for him raising an amazing daughter
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