Above: My maternal grandparents (Drue and Sarah) and their four sons (Arvesta, Dalton, Dan and Drue, Jr.) in Arkansas circa 1943. My grandparents had three additional daughters before the end of the decade (the youngest, my mother). During my time working remotely in the Washington, D.C. headquarters of my organization, I entered a taxi on my way to a meeting at the State Department. What was most surprising about this particular taxi… Read More

My mom is in the early stages of planning a family reunion (or shall I say ‘WE’ are planning a family reunion) and she wanted to make a trip to Monroe County, Alabama. My maternal great grandparents migrated to Mount Vernon, Alabama in the 1920s from Monroe County. As my grandmother told the story, her father Andrew came to Mobile County looking for work. The entire family followed him a year later…. Read More