Hickory Algorithm Newsletter
Dads though...
With you always…. Always
by: Chris Goldby ∣ Hickory Algorithm
For me, it’s never been the big things I remember about my father.
He passed away a few months after I got married in 2005. Yeah, he never got to meet my kids, who are now almost all in high school. Yeah, he got around with a walker and didn’t always make it to my games. But what I remember most? The small things that didn’t seem to matter at that time.
Every single day when I got home from school, there was a sandwich waiting for me on the counter. Clockwork. Didn’t matter if he was in the kitchen or tinkering with model trains in his workshop. Tuna, ham and cheese, turkey—sometimes even a meatloaf sandwich—it was always there. It wasn’t fancy, but it was there.
He’d sit at the kitchen table wearing one of those magnifying visor things with the miner light attached, working on the tiniest details of his train sets. He had to take blood-thinning medication, so the doctors told him to stay away from blades. But that man used a scalpel every day—cutting tiny wires, gluing parts the size of ants—and yeah, he cut himself just about every day too. That stubborn streak? I guess I come by it honestly.
I remember what he did far more than what he said.
One of the reasons I started The Hickory Algorithm was because I once asked myself: What if my dad had been a guest on a podcast? What if he had shared his thoughts, his quirks, his life—even just once—on video? I would’ve watched that clip 100 times by now. When I feel that absence, when I’m in the middle of one of life’s messes and wonder what he’d say or how he’d react—I already know. Because he’s with me always… Always.
He was a Wonder Bread sales rep in the ‘80s. The other day I pulled over at the Walmart near the Catawba Chamber because… they had a Wonder Bread mascot outside. A walking loaf of bread. I had to stop and got a picture. It’s ridiculous, I know. But I wouldn’t have missed it.
Later that night, looking at that picture of me standing next to a loaf of bread and how ridiculous that truly is , I started thinking about how much he liked Meat Loaf—the food and the artist. I ended up putting on Bat Out of Hell I & II and played the music while cooking dinner with my family. And just like that, standing beside a loaf of bread and listening to songs from 30 years ago, he was with me again.
As I get older, and as my own kids become their own people, I start to think about what they’ll remember. I think about the possibility I may not meet my grandchildren, just like my dad never got to meet my kids. But then I remind myself: What we pass on doesn’t die with us.
The little things—a sandwich on the counter, a song playing pretty loud, a stubborn commitment to finishing the job the hard way—those live on. What he instilled in me, I carry every day. And my kids will carry it too. Even if they never met him, they know him through me.
He is with me always…. always.
Happy Father’s Day—to your father, to mine, to you, and to us.
#fortheloveofthegame
Featured Event:
📆 June 20th - Concert
Location: Charlotte @ Visulite Theater LINK HERE
I’ve seen my fair share of cover bands. You do not want to miss Trail by Fire. A great Journey cover band! Every time they come to Hickory or anywhere close, my wife and I attend. Tickets are 15 dollars, plus you can spend a night in the city with your significant other to get away from these kids (AMIRIGHT?!?). Or drive back and sleep in your own bed - either way Trail by Fire is awesome!
Never…ever…. under any circumstances…. don’t stop….. believing.
📆 June 14th - Concert
Summer Nights - Music Series - WoodMill Music Works
The event at WoodMill Winery hosted by WoodMill Music Works
Music - Food Trucks - Music Bingo - Wine Slushies
Music Series is twice a month through August!
📆 June 27th - Education
🛸 Hickory Algorithm Event 🛸
Be a Better Networker is hosting another event! No, you didn’t have to be at the last one. Coach Mike and I are tackling another networking work shop. This time we have Dustin Pitts, head of Unifour Networking Group and Agent for Farm Bureau here in Hickory.
Information: Register HERE
📆 June 28th - Food
Join us for a celebration of local food & live music here at Raising Roots Farm. Farm Feast is the last event during Catawba County's Eat, Drink, & Be Local. event which includes farm tours, workshops, and more. For more information visit https://catawba.ces.ncsu.edu/eat-drink-and-be-local/.
5 Chefs will be paired with farmers throughout Catawba and surrounding counties in Western North Carolina to showcase local food and culinary talent.
📆 August 22nd - Game Night
🛸 Hickory Algorithm Event 🛸
I’ll be hosting a FUN-draising event at Neighbors Network in Conover, where I am a board member. I was looking for a game nights around Hickory but decided the game night I wanted I would have to create myself.
Let’s hang out, play a game, and eat some great food. That sounds like a great evening out to me. We will be playing the game Werewolf.
Here is the link to how to play the game: Learn how to play Werewolf
Tickets are 35.00 dollars each and benefit Neighbors Network.
Limit to 25 participants. LINK HERE TO REGISTER <~~~~~
Food by Pegues Catering: Episode with Hickory Algorithm HERE
🛸 Marketing Unlike Any You’ve Had Before 🛸
📡 Find out your marketing algorithm with hickoryalgorithm.com<~~~~~LINK
At Hickory Algorithm, marketing isn’t just noise—it’s campaigns with purpose, content that connects, and networking that builds real, organic relationships.
🎙️ #YouTube with purpose = professional videography
📩 #Newsletter = nearly 600 local business owners
📱 #Social media campaigns = organic growth
🤝 #Networking= connections that grow your business
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🦋 Content that Connects. Connections that matter. 🦋
