by Jerome Pearson
August 2012
Flying into Charleston, SC is always fun. The airport is small, as are most airports in South Carolina, which makes it easy to grab luggage and car and get on the road very soon after de-barking the plane. Once exiting the airport you will probably be getting onto I- 26 and head east or west, but may first want to have lunch and do some shopping at the Tangiers Outlet Mall prior to entering the Freeway or perhaps even go into the city of Charleston to experience some historical treasures.
On Friday morning, 3 August 2012, I flew from Newark, NJ into Charleston for my High School Bi-Annual Reunion. This was my second time flying to SC in the last several months. My wife and I flew into Columbia in May for our nieces’ wedding. However, this time I was traveling alone, and chose to fly into Charleston, which is apparently the only airport that has direct flights to and from Newark.
After arriving at the airport, I picked-up my rental car which on this day would be a white 2013 Chrysler 300. Being an Executive Emeralds Club member with National Car Rental, I can reserve a lower-class car but would be given my choice up to the Luxury Class and not pay extra. I have obtained this status because I travel so often, and National Rental Car is one of my company’s preferred vendors. A Chrysler 300 is much better than a Ford Fusion or Nissan Altima certainly. When you pull off the lot you can now imagine that you are in that commercial with the 300 being accentuated by the Jay-Z remake of Bobby Blue Bland’s 70s classic “Ain’t no Love in the Heart of the City.” That just must be the hippest car commercial in the last several years. It is so soulful and so 70’s.
I decided to stop briefly at the mall but chose not to have lunch. There are nice eating places in and around the mall, including Chick-Fil-A, a place I have lunched at in the past. However, I was not going there on this day with all the controversy, and I am not sure if I will be going there again. Although not gay myself, I do support gay rights, as I do for all human beings, and I find the company’s president decision to openly demean the lives and morals of many innocent people insulting and mean spirited. I frankly don’t care what his views are, but to espouse an unsolicited negative commentary regarding lives and morality of others was certainly politically motivated, and perhaps even hateful, and he does not deserve my money. The chicken is not all that good anyway!
I did, however, go into Eddie Bauer at the Mall and pick up a couple of T-Shirts. Although there are nicer stores such as Ralph Lauren and Brooks Brothers, I was only looking for T-Shirts, so Eddie Bauer fitted the bill.
As I was leaving the Mall, I texted our classmate, Sharon Oliver, about the class meeting/brunch we were having on Saturday morning at 11. I wanted to know if any classmates were also getting together on Friday, but Sharon indicated that only Saturday was planned. She indicated that she, Bertha Mellerson, and Debra Stukes were slaving in the kitchen just as we were texting. I was looking forward to seeing Sharon as I was other classmates, many of whom I had not seen in many years.
During a birthday cruise in NYC for Leonia Gipson’s 50th birthday back in 2008 (oh I am telling her age!) there were discussions about one of our classmates being a novelist. I was not aware of this, but being a lover of books myself, I found Sharon’s email on Amazon and I reached out to her, and we have been in communication since then. She gets on me all the time about not attempting to publish my own writings, and I always come up with some creative excuse for why I have been so remiss, or lazy, perhaps. My job does require some writing as well, but it is mostly of the technical and scientific nature. However, I will say that after writing a 20 page technical report regarding my assessment of a company’s quality systems and adherence to regulatory requirements, I gain some sense of therapy when I am able to morph into a state of “stream of consciousness” and write more creatively.
After leaving the mall, I got onto I- 26 west and headed in the direction of Columbia. Suddenly it began to storm, and the rain was coming down so hard I thought for a moment I might have to pull over. I could barely see the car ahead of me. However, the rain was hard, but brief, and before long the sun had come out again. It was almost noon, so I attempted to call my cousin, Suzy (Gwendolyn James) in Davis Station to invite her to lunch. However, the call would not go through.
Shortly, I was exiting I-26 for I-95 and headed North in the direction of Florence. I remained on 95 for about 40 minutes or so, and then exited onto highway 301 in Manning. I decided to drive to Davis Station and perhaps surprise Suzy at her house. When I got to her house, there were no cars in the yard, which was an indication that she was not home. After ringing the doorbell and confirming that no one was home, I headed in the direction of the “Swamp” with plans of having lunch at the “Jones” restaurant, which is something I tend to do at least once when I am in the area. The owner of the restaurant is the father of my cousin James. I ordered a fried whiting fish sandwich with French fries, and sweet tea. I now find whiting better than breams because there are hardly any bones. With a little bit of hot sauce on the whiting I was soon in pig’s heaven. Even the light bread tastes good with such configuration.
After eating my lunch, I headed to the Hampton Inn, which is located off exit 119 in Manning. I think the Hampton is the best of the hotels in the area, and one of my nieces is one of the managers. After going to my room and unpacking, I decided to take a nap. I had been up since 5 AM in the morning so a nap was certainly in order.
I slept for an hour or so and decided to call my sister, Carlethia, who was in Atlanta for her husband’s family reunion.
I then called Bobby and Sherial to let them know I was in town and to see if they would be going to the “meet and greet”, which is the part of the School Reunion that would occur on that Friday evening. They were headed to Columbia on this evening, however, so we agreed to meet for Breakfast on Saturday Morning. After agreeing to meet at 8 a.m. for breakfast, Sherial later texted me and suggested 9, since they returned later than planned.
I drove over to the local Wal-Mart to get some supplies such as water, soda, snacks (peaches), and other supplies. I spend a lot time in hotels these days, but you can only bring so much on an airplane. I don’t like those little tiny bars of soap that hotels provide, so when possible, I always buy a large bar, even if I wind up leaving it at the hotel when I leave. They are only 99 cents anyway and well worth the convenience.
After returning to the hotel, I decided that perhaps I should have a little dinner prior to going to the “meet and greet” because you never know what to expect at those events. I walked over to Shoney’s because at least you could probably select the buffet which should provide more of variety of offerings. There was a seafood buffet special on this day for only $9.99.
I returned to the hotel to prepare for the “meet and greet” which was to be held at the new St. Paul Elementary school. I had assumed that the new St. Paul Elementary School would be near the old school. I called Clarence to see if he would be attending but there was no answer to his phone. I got onto 95 south and headed to exit 108, which is highway 102 leading to Summerton. I decided to go by Clarence’s home anyway, just in case if his phone number had changed. For some reason, Clarence has had many number changes over the last several years. When I got to his home, although there was a car in the yard, it appeared that no one was home. I rang the doorbell but did not hear an immediate response, so I went back to my car. As I was opening the door of my car, I heard Clarence’s voice.
Clarence was planning to attend the “meet and greet” as well, so we decided to ride together. As it turned out, it was a good thing that I did go by Clarence’s home, because my assumption about the new St. Paul Elementary school is near the old one was incorrect. As a matter of fact, the new school is no longer in St. Paul at all, but is located on the same premises as the relatively new high school which, itself, is located on the outskirts of Summerton proper.
At the “meet and greet”, you can register for Friday and/or Saturday event and pay the fee if you hadn’t already. I had already paid via pay-pal and had my little computerized receipt in hand. I tend to do almost everything I can on-line these days.
The “meet and greet” had a relatively small crowd, but it was still fun. You get to talk to more people and share more stories than you would at the banquet. Some of my relatives from the James’ side of my family were there, to include my very dear cousin, Evandy and her husband, Clarence. Evandy is from the class of 73, and is a retired Philadelphia Police Officer/Detective, but she looks as youthful as a recent college graduate.
The food at the “meet and greet” this night was very good, perhaps better than what we would later have at the banquet. I always enjoy talking to the “Ragin” family, who on this night included Darlene, Willette, and Maizie. They enjoy me telling my little stories – I have many- and Darlene becomes so gleeful when I tell her about the time I first met her when she was in the 6th and I was in the 8th grade: While in the 8th grade, one day my friends and I had walked over to Scott’s Branch from the middle school to practice band, and as we were waiting in the Gymnasium, we saw this cute little girl with a ponytail shooting basketball for Mr. Spann. She was actually pretty good. She came over and introduced herself to me, perhaps because I was the one with the biggest afro, and little girls just loved cute boys with afros back then. Well, in any case, although I thought she was so cute, I was just too shy to talk to any girl back then, so I did not pursue it. When I told Darlene this story back at the 2008 reunion, she said that it was one of the nicest things that anyone had ever said to her, especially because I remembered it in so much detail. She knew I was telling the truth because she had stopped playing basketball, and she was so pleased to know that I remembered that she was pretty good. I also tell them story of when we first saw their sister Manzie, and how we were so impressed with Melvin Carter because we saw him talking to her. We thought she was a teacher with her Angela Davis afro and sexy glasses, and we were like “only Melvin Carter could pull “that”!
I also enjoyed talking to Norman Billie’s sister, Ruby Pinnex, who would serve as Mistress of Ceremonies, and her daughter, who was trying to tell us that she was from the class of 75 with a straight face when she is actually from the class of 85. Their family and my family have little moonshine history in common, and the stories are just wonderful. When I was a kid, I would hide from my family’s connection to Moonshine, but nowadays, I truly relish the experience.
I was also able to talk to James Conyers, who was accompanied by his mother and his wife. James and I graduated from the Morgan State University at the same time, and people always thought we were brothers. I talked briefly with Furman Georgia, who is someone I had not seen in a very long time, and his sister-in-law (my long-time neighbor) Diane Doughty Georgia, also from the class of 75. Diane’s mother, Ruth and my mother, Ethel Mae, were very good friends, so Diane will always be special to me. She is the High School Guidance Counselor and serves on the City Council, whose dimples are just as cute as they were when she was 6 years old. I was able to speak briefly with Mrs. Adgers, who was a teacher at Spring Hill Elementary while I was there, and her daughter Naomi, who apparently does not remember that we were once neighbors and that she was a friend of my older sister before I started school.
The next morning, I was at Shoney’s at 9 as I awaited Bobby and Sherial, Javon, and Audrey. However, when Bobby left the house, he said Sherial was still asleep. My wife and I are God Parents to their son, Javon, and we always want to know how he is doing in school, and his preparations for college. I asked him if he had taken the SAT, but I had forgotten that he was just a rising junior and not a senior. We wanted to ensure that he was planning to take the SAT much in advance, so that it would allow enough time for a re-take if it is ever deemed necessary. These days, kids have so many more options and luxuries than we did 35 years ago. While in High School they get to visit several colleges, which would provide a sense of what a college campus life is like. I think that I had visited only one college prior to enrolling as a freshman, and that was when I accompanied my friend Clarence to Columbia one Saturday morning in 1974 to pick-up his sister, Thomasine, from Allen University. I had not even seen the school I would be enrolling as a freshman until the day before registration, which resulted in a rather crude and rude awakening.
After breakfast, I returned to my room in order to get ready for our class meeting, which was going to be held at the Scott’s Branch Elementary cafeteria. When I got to my room, it was being cleaned by a former schoolmate, Theresa Oliver who was one grade ahead me but who I had known since I started the first grade. There were two Theresa Oliver’s in our high school; one was dark complexion and one light. This was the light complexion Theresa who went to Spring Hill Elementary while I was there. She is such a sweet person, and we recognized each other immediately and I gave her big hug. I am always a little self conscious when I see former schoolmates doing jobs that I am sure they would rather not be doing, but they do it with a great smile, nonetheless. I always want them to know that I in no way will ever think less of them, and I certainly don’t feel superior to them in anyway. I make every effort to speak to them and let them know that I am still the same Jerome they knew many years ago, and my respect for them is truly based on my understanding of their inner qualities rather than any kind of economic status.
At around 11 on this Saturday Morning, I finally left the hotel and headed towards the class meeting. When I drove up the street near Scott’s Branch Elementary, I pulled over and parked behind a Black Acura. I saw two people standing near the entrance to the cafeteria that turned out be Sharon Oliver and Ronald Nelson. I recognized Sharon immediately since she hasn’t changed much since high school; she even seems as if she is almost the same size almost 35 years later. The other person happened to be my long-time friend and neighbor Ronald Nelson. I was so surprised to see Ronald since I had not seen him since Miami hosted the event back in 1998, and I wasn’t sure if he was even aware of the School Reunion, and certainly not the class meeting. Once arriving in the cafeteria, I was so happy to see many classmates I had not seen in many years. I was so pleasantly surprised to see Arnett, although I forwarded her emails regarding the meeting as well as the reunion itself. Arnett, Bertha Mellerson, and Betty McFadden are ladies I have known since the first grade. And when I pulled in behind that black Acura a few moments earlier, I had that rather sneaky suspicion, and perhaps hope, that it would belong to Arnett; it was just my intuition that was later proven to be correct. I have emailed Arnett over the past several years, but had not heard her voice since 1996, so it was so wonderful seeing her and others in all their glorious and physical presence.
Although the crowd at our school meeting was small, I think we were genuinely like family, and it was as wonderful as a family reunion, and truly showed why our class of 1976 is one of the more memorable classes to have ever come through our high school. I think we are all so pleased at the successes of others, and we genuinely grieve the suffering and struggles of those who may not have been quite as fortunate.
Our meeting was in the Cafeteria and my first impression was just how small it seemed. I was trying to envision how it was possible for such a small facility to accommodate all the high School and Elementary school students back in the day. Our class alone was nearly 200 students, so how could that be? I would say, however, that it did not seem small to me back then, but it certainly does now! To be frank, it seems that everything seems smaller these days. Even the distance from location to location seems shorter. I used to think that it would take nearly 2 hours to drive from the airport in Charleston to my home in Davis Station, but now it is not much more than an hour, if that, especially with my “heavy foot.”
Anyways we had our meeting and began planning for own class 40th reunion which will happen in the next several years. (I just can’t believe it’s been nearly 40 years). We mixed our meeting with little fun stories from our past and present which included such things as Arnett reminiscing about the fear she had of one of our elementary classmates (I was afraid of her too,) whose name I will not mention; Debra reminiscing about once as a kid she was , inadvertently, chasing some lady with a butcher knife; and Earl Wilson talking about the challenges of coming up in the Wilson’s house-hold as a kid with brothers who could probably be used in a few of those episodes of “Scared Straight.”
After the meeting, we bided each other good-by and went our separate ways, knowing that some of us would also be getting together for the School Reunion Banquet that was scheduled for later Saturday evening. However, I do think that we have built a platform from which to launch our class website which would be used as a tool for communication, planning, enhancing camaraderie, and hopefully positively affecting the overall quality of life of fellow classmates.
The School Reunion Banquet was held in the New St. Paul School Gymnasium. Many of the tables were reserved even though there were enough seats for everyone. Reserving a table would ensure that you are able to sit at table with family and friends, if you so desired, but it did cause some bit of discomfort for those who did not reserve a table like me. Of course, I always show up early, so despite not having reserved a table I am usually able to sit almost where I want to. However, most people were amenable to allowing others to sit at their tables because very often a table that could seat 8 people was only reserved for 4. All in all, I think everyone was comfortably seated in the end and we spent much of the time walking around and taking pictures in any event.
The event was certainly enjoyable, and the food was acceptable, even if the food at the “meet and greet” was just a little bit better. I was happy to be seated with an old friend, Patricia Pringle, who is the Clarendon County Auditor. Patricia, Clarence and I worked together one summer, and she has been our dear friend ever since. We worked together at the feed-a-child program in Rimini during the summer of 1977. Clarence and I would drive together, so one day towards the end of work, I was sitting inside Patricia’s 1965 burgundy Chevy Impala talking to her and her sister, when Patricia took off with me in the back seat of the car. She drove all the way to her house, which caused Clarence to have to come to her house to pick me up. As we were driving, I kept saying to her “where are you taking me, where are you taking me”, and she was just laughing and driving with me looking out of the back window to see if Clarence was following. She is, however, such a lovely person, and a much-cherished friend.
Pictures were being taken by Sammy Levy who has turnout to be an excellent photographer. When we were kids, I never knew that Sammy had an interest in photography, but he and his family have built quite an impressive business and my guess is that he was doing well on that night. There were group pictures, class pictures, family pictures, etc! Whatever sort of picture you wanted, Sammy could provide it, and the pictures were available within a short time in the specific size requested.
There was one family picture that sparked my curiosity, however. I noticed that my former neighbors, the Nelsons, taking a family picture. In that picture I saw Ronald & wife, Ronald’s mother, Ruth, his sisters, Cassie and Iris.
There was no guest speaker on this night but there was a guest singer, who is from the class of 75, and someone who also was in elementary school with me. I did not recognize her at first, partly because her name is now Dr. Evelyn Murray Drayton, and I was not aware of her married name. Also, I did not know that she sang, and did not know that she was a writer who has written five books, mostly with a religious theme to include her story about how she had to fight off witchcraft in church. I only recognized who she was when she came to our table. I did buy one of her books “Beyond our Scars” which she was apparently selling from her purse on this evening.
The next day according to the reunion itinerary, it indicates “Worship Services (Church of your choice)”. They always include Sunday on the itinerary, even though the events are over on Saturday.
I was debating whether I would be going to the Church of my choice or any church whatsoever. But I realize that if I wanted to see family members who I had not seen, then I needed to head over to New Light. New Light is the church I was raised in and the church that I saw every day for many years since we lived so close. Also, I was Sunday school teacher there from the time I was 12 years old and was teaching the senior class when I was only 15 until I went away to college. Each time I visit, I am always asked to introduce myself, as if everyone does not already know who I am, with the church being so small and filled with mostly family members. Also, there is always a bit of theater in the church, which inspires many of my stories.
Well I did go to New Light, and had to introduce myself as usual, which is something I have become quite good at since I have to do this all the time. In my current job, I am always visiting other companies, and one of the first things we do is introduce ourselves which requires presenting a bit of biography. Therefore, I have had to introduce myself to strangers in such places as Germany, India, Indonesia, Ecuador, Toronto, Amsterdam, and almost every state within the U.S. As a result, the art of self-introduction has become second nature.
On this Sunday one of my former classmates was delivering the sermon. Reverend Johnny Lee Lawson is the Pastor at New Light, but he was absent on this day due to his own illness and the illness of his wife, Elanora. Therefore, one of my high school classmates, Pastor Delores (Jones) Parker, was offered the privilege of delivering “God’s Word” on this day, as the other pastors who are actually my sisters (Ethel and Denise – their mother raised me) did most of the coordination.
Her sermon was based on Isaiah 38:1 “Set your house in order for you shall soon die”. She compared her own ordeal to Hezekiah who was presented with a message from God through Isaiah that he would soon die and needed to get his life in order”. She seemed to be indicating that just as Isaiah was giving Hezekiah a message from God, she too had received a message from God to return to New Light.
After church I went by my cousin Suzy’s house again to see if she wanted to go to dinner. She was not home but her older sister Glenda (Dunk), who now lives with her, was. Dunk always has lots of history about our family and various occurrences in our little town and it is always wonderful talking to her since I am such an historical buff. If you want to know anything about people who have lived in Davis Station, then Dunk is a good person to talk to. I decided to treat her to dinner at the Golden Corral in Sumter, which offers a decent buffet in the area. During the drive and during dinner it was wonderful tapping into her memories about our family’s history which also confirms some of my own memories. I remember once telling a story about a murder which occurred in Davis Station. This murder occurred before I started school, but I recall seeing the two men just hours before one of them killed the other. Not only did I see them, I recall the younger man showing a new gun to an older man who he would later kill that Friday night. Because I seem to be the only one in my family who remembers the incident, I am sure some people may have thought I was making things up. However, in 2008 I was telling Suzy about this story and the names of Individuals involved. Suzy asked her older sister whether she recalled the incident and Dunk said “yes”; Dunk even indicated that the two men had also visited their home just prior to the actual shooting. Suzy and I are the same age, but she was too young to remember this incident, but I remember it in detail.
On Monday morning, I had breakfast at the hotel, which was not bad for a hotel of this class. The breakfast was not like the buffets at Marriott’s and Hiltons, but it was at least free.
After breakfast, I returned to the airport in Charleston for my trip back to Newark. Nowadays I do spend a lot time in both large and small airports all over the world, but none of them provides that special sense of homecomings and memories as the very small ones in South Carolina.
Back in April I shared a very long story about my second trip to India. This, however, is my story about coming home, and I truly enjoy sharing my memories with family and friends. I remember all these things because I am truly an “old soul”.
As indicated in Langton Hughes’ poem “The Negro Speaks of Rivers”: I have known rivers: I have known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of blood in the human veins.
“My soul has grown deep like the rivers”.
Jerome Pearson
Wayne, New Jersey