Hey Craig,
“… Finished reading your book … I have to say that it’s
incredibly enlightening and thought provoking! Needless to say that I'm still
in the overall “processing” stage. However, I no longer feel like I walked into
a movie that was halfway over. I now have insight as to what happened before I
arrived on campus (1971), and I can put together the pieces a whole lot better.
I can better
appreciate what you, Janice (Cooley), Ed (Carter), et al were dealing with amid
all of the hope and hype concerning The Young Thundering Herd! I regret that
you and I never sat and talked when we attended school together. I’m sure that
I would have been a more “aware” young man – both socially and spiritually – than
I was.”
Chuck
Jackson
Houston, Texas
Chuck Jackson’s comment to one of my blog entries confirmed
what I already knew about the value of the memoir November Ever After. This is a story that needed to be written and
it’s a story that’s worthy to be shared with the masses.
For people such as Chuck, who came to Marshall after the tragedy, the book provides a proper frame of
reference for what campus life was like before the crash. For those, like me,
who were there at the time of the disaster, the book opens the door for some
level of closure on an event that none of us will ever forget.
Keep in mind that for those of us who
were around on the night that Marshall’s plane went down, the football season
of 1971 represented a truly a mixed bag. I can’t speak for everyone who
suffered from the pain of losing their schoolmates. But I do feel safe in
saying that most of us engaged in an emotional tug-of-war when it was time for
the start of a new season with essentially a brand-new team – the “Young
Thundering Herd”.
None of would ever forget about
the ’70 Marshall team that was gone and would never return. But on the other
hand, there was cause to rejoice and cause to cling to renewed hope. In spite
of the heavy losses, Marshall opted to continue playing football.
In my mind, the fact that the school
refused to deep-six its football program, will always serve as a fitting
tribute to the seventy-five people who died in a fiery plane crash on November 14, 1970.
Tune-in tonight when author Craig
T. Greenlee talks about his book “November Ever After” with host Ella Curry on
the Black Authors Network Showcase. The one-hour show begins at 8 o’clock. Feel free to use the call-in
line (646) 200-0402 to ask questions or offer comments.
Listen to the show on-line at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/Black-Author-Network
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