A colleague's advice: 'You should write a book'

       I have had the pleasure of crossing paths with Craig Greenlee many times. He has been a longtime contributor to the Winston-Salem Journal (NC) sports pages. I spent 20 years in the WXII-TV sports department in Winston-Salem.

       Usually, I’d see Craig at high school football or basketball games. Occasionally, I’d run into him at college games. But it wasn’t until a few years ago that I learned that Craig had been a member of Marshall University’s football team – the year before the plane crash and the year after.

       I immediately told him, “You should write a book.” He told me he was already hard at work on one.

       That book – November Ever After – is finally finished, and available.

       We often put ourselves in the position of “What if?”

       Well, Craig has lived with that “What if?” for over 40 years.

       I can’t wait to read it.

Dave Goren

Dave Goren is the executive director of the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association and Hall of Fame.

Carl Lee: 'I'm trying to fathom what it was like .....'

Editor’s Note: In a recent radio interview about the memoir November Ever After, former Marshall and pro football star Carl Lee shared his perceptions about the 1970 plane crash with book author Craig T. Greenlee. Here's an excerpt from that interview.

During his NFL career, Lee was a three-time Pro Bowl
pick at cornerback.

       "I thought the movie (We Are Marshall) was a great movie. And with me being a Marshall guy, it gave me a completely different perspective (about November 14, 1970). And a lot of the guys I played with, we all talked about this.

       We didn’t get it. We really didn’t get the gist of how big this story was when we were there (at Marshall from ’79 to ’82). We knew about it (plane crash), but we really didn’t get it.

       When I came in as a kid in ’79, there was a lot of stuff that happened that I would have liked to have known about. What about this guy? What was he like? Where did he come from? Learning about all of that would be very interesting.

       I’m trying to fathom what it was like the week, two weeks after this had happened. You’re on campus and you’re trying to go to class. You’re walking around campus, you go to the cafeteria; you go to the gym. I just can’t see what campus could look like or even feel like in those couple of weeks after the crash.
        Is there any way to articulate what that was like?

        We had an athletic dorm (when I was at Marshall) and all the athletes were all in one dorm. What I can’t imagine is empty rooms. We were in Hodges Hall and I can remember how loud Hodges Hall always was. All the time, all hours of the night, there were always people roaming around. I can’t imagine walking down the hallways of Hodges Hall and seeing empty rooms with clothes still in the closets.
       I can’t even imagine what that would have been like."

Carl Lee played cornerback for twelve NFL seasons, mostly with the Minnesota Vikings. He is now a co-host for “The Drive” a sports talk show on ESPN Radio. “The Drive” airs Monday through Friday from 4 to 6 p.m. on WVRC (104.5 FM/1490 AM) in Charleston, West Virginia. In 1995, Lee was inducted into the Marshall University Athletics Hall of Fame (football, track and field).

Anticipation: 'This is a story whose time has come'

       Ever since I first learned of your book -- November Ever After -- a few weeks ago, I've been anxiously awaiting its release. I've long suspected that the story of the Marshall University plane crash and its effect on those connected to the tragedy is far more elaborate and nuanced than the current narrative portrayed by major media and Hollywood.

       For example, I would like to learn more about the racial tension and volatility on the Marshall campus prior to the crash, and the role the disaster played in unifying the student body through the grieving and rebuilding processes. Also, given the rather cursory treatment of evangelist Ed Carter's full story in the popular media, I especially relish the opportunity to further explore the impact the incident had on both his personal life and his decision to become an evangelist. (He would later establish Death Unto Life Ministries.)

       Another interesting aspect for the book to examine is the short- and long-term effects the crash had on a community (Huntington, West Virginia) that lost so many of its prominent citizens.

       On a final note, I hope your book will provide a glimpse into the interview process you undertook in creating this work. As a reader, it would be interesting to enter—in some small measure—the cathartic experience of discussing poignant memories that have been locked away for some four decades, and to better understand the sense of release that often comes with relating some of life's most challenging ordeals with someone who can truly empathize.

       Again, I am highly excited about your project. This is a story whose time has come, and I can hardly wait for the opportunity to explore new angles of this multifaceted telling of how triumph overcame tragedy.

Scott Dennis

Stories of victory rise from ashes of plane crash

       I look forward to reading November Ever After by Craig Greenlee. I have personally enjoyed talking with him about his memoir dealing with the tragic plane crash of the Marshall University football team and the events that followed.

       My first insight into this story came through the personal testimony of evangelist Ed Carter, who was a player on Marshall’s football team in 1970. While preaching at our church in Sumter, South Carolina in the early 1980s, he explained how his mother told him the plane was going to crash. Eventually, she was successful in persuading him to not get on the plane.

       Initially, Ed was thought to be on the plane when it crashed, and his name was listed in the obituary column of a local newspaper in his home town. To this day, I can remember him showing us the newspaper clipping of the obituary column! God saved Ed after that crash and called him to preach. He has since been used to win people to Christ all across this country and the world.

       Even today, there are many stories of triumph that are rising from the ashes of that horrific crash in November of 1970. A recent example occurred in March 2011. Ed preached at the Faith Baptist Church in Margate, Florida and 12 souls were saved, one of whom was Johnny Lewis, his former teammate at Marshall University. Ed and Johnny had not seen one another since 1973!

       I’m excited that Ed Carter’s story is one of many that will be told. I appreciate Bro. Craig Greenlee and the hard work that has gone into producing this book. November Ever After is a must read for me.

Pastor Gregory Dennis

Gregory Dennis is the pastor of Fellowship Bible Baptist Church in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.



All the way live: it's launch day for book, website

       There’s a buzz of activity taking place this week with the memoir November Ever After. Here’s the latest update. Be sure to stay tuned for further developments.

The book is out

       November Ever After ( iUniverse Publishing) is available for purchase at several retail outlets. Written by Craig T. Greenlee, the book takes a look back at the 1970 Marshall football plane crash and its aftermath.

       Greenlee is a former defensive back for the Thundering Herd. He played two years before leaving the team at the end of his sophomore season in 1969 – a year before the crash.

       As a former teammate, he knew most of the players who were passengers on that ill-fated flight. After the crash, Greenlee returned to the team and took part in the rebuilding process in the spring of 1971, only five months after the tragedy.

       November Ever After is available at the outlets listed below. On the upper right-hand portion of this page, go to “Buy the Book” and click on the outlet of your choice to purchase:

• iUniverse
• Barnes & Noble
• Amazon.com
• Books A Million
• Powell’s Books
• Diesel eBook Store

       You can buy the book as a paperback or as an E-Book. For paperback orders, please allow one to three weeks for delivery.

Website is all set

       The new website is designed to provide additional insights into the writing of November Ever After. The author explains why this story is just as riveting today as it was over forty years ago.

       Aside from that, you’ll get a sneak preview in the form of an excerpt from one of the book’s chapters. This preview takes readers back in time to the night when a school lost most of its football team in a horrible plane crash. Not only that, you’ll learn a few things about the author that you may not have known.

       Plus, there’s a video page; audio will come later. There’s also a section that allows readers to post questions and/or comments.

       Click on this link to visit the new website: http://NovemberEverAfter.com

MU family will always remember November 1970

The book's author from back in the day.

Throughout life, many events come our way; good and bad that can reflect not only our life at the moment of occurrence; but as the years come and go. This is what the memoir November Ever After presents to its readers.

It’s not only the story of a tragic moment in the history of our country and Marshall University. It’s also a time that Craig T. Greenlee, the book’s author, will always remember.

Greenlee started several games for the Thundering Herd as a defensive back. But by the end of his sophomore season, he had lost the hunger to compete. He left the team a year before crash and as a result, his life was spared. The crash was an unforgettable event that shook a small college campus in a West Virginia city that sits next to the Ohio River and borders the states of Ohio and Kentucky.

When the 1970 college football season began, Greenlee was no longer on the roster; but his ties to the team remained through his association with the players. It’s through this bond that November Ever After presents another side of the story; one that not only fills in the missing details; but shows how the tragic event affected those who were left behind and how each person chose to deal with his or her loss.

The harsh reality of what happened on November 14, 1970 didn’t really settle in Craig’s mind until a week after the crash. It hit full force when he went to Waco, Texas to attend the funeral of Scottie Reese, who was his best friend.

This book presents a perspective of someone who lived through the horror and turmoil of that time. The author is not someone who was on the outside looking in. Rather, he was forced to look inward at himself. Collectively, he and his former schoolmates found a way to carry on with their lives.

Marshall University, its alumni and supporters will always remember those who died in that horrible plane crash nearly 41 years ago. And they will never forget—not because of a film or a book, but because they share a connection which can never be broken or destroyed.

Tex Noel

Tex Noel is the executive director of the Intercollegiate Football Researchers Association.

Visit: http://www.secsportsfan.com/college-football-association.html

Memoir gives readers an up-close look at history

        I have had the good fortune to work with an outstanding writer. Not just any writer, a sports writer. Craig Greenlee is deep, insightful and inspiring.

       This brother is a great read. He takes you there. You don’t have to wonder about what is going on – you know. Craig is quiet, soft-spoken, and reflective. If he puts “pen to paper” about something, it’s worth writing about. It’s worth knowing about.

       He takes you inside the aftermath of what was one of the most tragic events in the world of sports. The vintage photos and images in the video teasers leave you focused and seared with the weight of that time.

       What comes back to you is that the Marshall players are so full of life and expectations. For the coaches, the players, their parents, relatives, classmates, friends, and supporters, it began as a year of promise. It didn’t end that way.

       Don’t sleep on this one. A must read.

                                                                                          Rudy Anderson

Rudy Anderson, a former television news anchor and newspaper editor, is a communications project manager at Winston-Salem State University (NC).