My desire to “never forget” began in the fourth grade I had teachers that instilled into me the burden that those that came before me endured that I might have a chance to be successful.

When my wife got her first full teaching position, I asked her if I could do a display for Black History month in her hallway. I did a display on the Buffalo Soldiers; this was around 1992. She then moved to another district and in this new district the certain grade levels were responsible for the display case each month the fifth grade was responsible for February, so once again I asked her to let me do a display, and from that point on I began to do the displays every February I began to look for other individuals to display and there was so much that I started to look into more details of those that struggled before me. When the movie “The Tuskegee Airmen” came out I purchased the G.I. Joe characters the Tuskegee fighter pilot and bomber pilot along with a deep diver that I use as Carl Bershear, and a sailor I use for Doris Miller. My display has covered folks from Crispus Attucks to Guion Stewart Bluford Jr.

As I look at the people that came before me, I looked at the ones that endured despite the oppressions and I have to realize the torch is passed to each generation and the decision is to be an example – the children at her school would walk by the display and oohed and awed.