Life Without Justice "My Sister's Story"

Last Surviving Victim injured inThe 1955 Civil Rights Murder of John Earl Reese Dies

2013-09-01T14:07:00.000-07:00

Jocy Faye Nelson-Crockett died early Friday morning August 23, 2013. She was home with family when she passed.

My sister Jocy Faye Nelson-Crockett had a good life. She was one of three children born to my father and his first wife Ruby Reese-Nelson, two girls Johnnie Murl, Jocy Faye, and one boy Woodie Jean Nelson. They are all deceased.

When Jocy Faye and her sibling were young their mom and my father divorced. He would go on to father another daughter born to Clothia Beckworth. Later my father would marry my mom Pearlee Watt-Nelson. To their union nine children were born, four boys, and five girls.

When I was a little girl my sister Jocy Faye (now an adult) would visit us all the time. She'd be dressed up, and looking beautiful. She would say she's going out on the town. She'd be laughing and talking about where she's going, and what she going to be doing. Sometimes she would return to spend the night with us. We loved it!!

Eventually she started working at a café. Our dad would take us to visit her sometimes before they opened. We thought she had a fantastic job. She would ask us what we want to eat or drink. Then she would buy us all cokes. It was so exciting. She worked hard, knew how to have fun, and make people feel good. I really did admire my sister.

Finally, she met Johnny Crockett. He would come in the café just to see her. They were drawn to each other like flies to honey. Although I was very young I still remember how he adored her. He would cater to her, and stare at her in such a loving way. They had lots fun together. The cutest couple you could ever meet. He would bring her over to our house and they would hang out with the family. She'd sit on his lap playing with him and laughing. We'd have the best times. They dated for quite some time, fell in love, got married. They were blessed with five children, one boy, and four girls. After several years of love and irreconcilable differences, they divorced.

Before my sisters death she talked to me about her divorce. I told her how I always hated it. I wondered if she could have done something it prevent a divorce would she? She explained to me when you get to a certain point in your marriage where you don't get along because there is too many secrets, too many lies, leaving for days and think its OK, fussing and fighting all the time, you don't agree about the bills, the children, or even the food.

You get to a point in your marriage and realize you're playing with your life. She said the situation she was in divorce was the only option.

Divorce destroyed everything she ever hoped for, the brick home with cars parked in the garage, money in the bank, raising their children together, sending them to college, and some day traveling together... All her dreams were gone. They lost their dreams somewhere in the streets partying, enjoying life with their friends, and worst of all partying separately.

My sister Jocy Faye Nelson-Crockett ended her conversation by saying "Divorce is the worst thing that can happen to you". She wanted tell everybody "If you are married forget about the streets". "Stay at home and work on your marriage"... She never married again.

Joyce Nelson-Crockett was the only surviving witness to the shooting of John Reese. She spent her life working as a caregiver for Jim Kuykendall’s son, Harold Kuykendall, without knowing of his connection to the shootings and murder. She worked for him in his home until his death in 2009. Ross died in Panola County in east Texas in January 1976. Simpson died in June 1998 in Arizona. Reese’s father, John T. Reese, died June 23, 1986 in East Texas. John Earl was his only child. The elder Mr. Reese never had the satisfaction of public recognition that his son’s death was not just a personal tragedy, but a civil rights travesty.

Lost_Life_a_Miscarriage_of_Justice_The_Death_of_John_Earl_Reese by Kaylie Simon

My final blog for "Life Without Justice".

R. I. P. Dear Sister

2013-08-24T10:07:00.002-07:00

My first client, Jocy Faye Crockett Nelson, who from the start was my teacher and became my very close friend died today. She will forever make me a better person and lawyer. She was a true inspiration, a resilient woman and loved by many. I will miss her very much.

Kaylie Simon

Survivor of 1955 racially motivated shooting dies at 71 - Longview News-Journal: Local News

The final survivor of a racially motivated shooting that shook Northeast Texas in 1955 died Friday at the age of 71, her granddaughter said.

Kimyonia S. Bowman

My sister Jocy Faye Crockett Nelson was a very special person. She had a conversation for everyone she met. She had an infectious personality that could always make people smile, laugh or at least chuckle.

We love you dear sister, we miss you too, but God loves you more.

R. I. P. Dear Sister.

Until we meet again.

Shirley Beckworth

Thank you to Kaylie Simon FB page...

Woodie Gene Nelson's Home Going February 19, 2011

2011-12-13T11:13:00.000-08:00

January 29, 2011 the last time I would see my oldest brother alive. I always saw him as fun to be around happy, and free spirited person. Quite the entertainer he was.

My poem:

CANCER CANCER

We heard your call.
We tried to ignore you, but you refused us all.
Why, oh why do you invade our digestion?
You shake your head and say "You left a open invitation".
Please, please will you just go away?
You say "I know that's what you want, but I can't leave until I have no reason to stay".

~ Msbeamer~

R. I. P. My dear brother... until we meet again.

Every parting is a form of death, as every reunion is a type of heaven. ~Tryon Edwards

DONATE ONLINE NOW

American Cancer Society

Terry Nelson's Home Going January 8, 2011

2011-01-11T18:48:00.000-08:00

Eulogy by (Terry's baby sister)
Pastor Essie Mapps
"The Prodigal Son" Luke 15:11-32

Terry Nelson, son of the late Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur (my oldest sister), his sisters, and brothers experienced the pain of loosing their mom at such young ages. Trying to be a man too soon. He was in charge of his little sisters, and brothers.

Pastor Mapps reminded us of his love for people, his enthusiasm, his interest in taking things apart ( televisions, telephones, radios...etc), and putting them back together. He wanted to know what made those things tick. He had a unique personality.

Leaving home too soon Terry endured a lot of trouble and strife throughout his lifetime. His family and friends begged him to come back home and get his life right. He would just grin.

Terry also had a special love for all children (especially his precious nieces, and nephews). He hated to see them punished or spanked. It was so painful for him to watch that he would shout out "Don't hurt those babies". After they got their spankings he would not leave until he could console them.

While his family and friends were begging and pleading with him to get his life right they were praying for him too.

Then one day just like the "prodigal son" Terry returned to his family. They welcomed him with open arms, and he gave his life to Christ.

John Earl Reese Memorial Service Tatum, TX

2010-11-28T11:28:00.000-08:00

John Earl Reese Family

(left) his Step Mom Alma Reese (she is the mother to his other siblings), (back left) William Reese, (front left) John Albert Reese, (front middle) niece, (back middle right) Sharon Reese Thompson, (second front right) Audrey Reese Morgan (back right) nephew

Saturday October 23, 2010 at 9:00 a.m., Services for the historical unveiling of John Earl Reese memorial service were underway. Northeastern University School of Law Civil Rights and Restorative Justice.

9:00 a.m. Graveside Ceremony at Smith Chapel Cemetery was held. Invocation & Occasion by Rev. Lewis Thompson Jr with the unveiling of a new headstone next to his old stone.
9:45 a.m.Tatum Public Library commemorating a plaque in John Earl Reese honor Remarks by Mayor Phil Corey
10:25 a.m. At former CR 2174 unveiling in John Earl Rees Road, remarks by Mike Pepper, Commissioner, Pct.2
11:00 a.m. Smith Chapel Baptist Church unveiling of the Civil Rights Marker by Clifford Harkless
11:00 a.m. Smith Chapel Baptist Church Sanctuary of The Church recognition by Margie Centers with Special remarks by Dr. M. Burnham, Northeastern Law Center and her staff
11:50 a.m. Closing Pray by Jamie Brown/ Refreshments were served afterwards.

People mostly responsible for making this memorial service happen are from the Northeastern University School of Law. They have dedicated years of commitment, travel, research and interviews, along with personal time and efforts to obtain accurate facts and information. (pictured below)

Nathaniel Johnson, Kaylie Simon, Dr. Margaret Burnham & (cousin) Jocy Faye Nelson Crockett

John Earl Reese (cousin) Bonnie Fletcher, (aunts) Irene & Gladye Reese

It was a very emotional service. From graveside services to the moment we approached the installation of the plaque in the public library until the very end. All speakers spoke with great sensitivity and emotion.

While watching my sister as she went to each event trying to hold back her emotions. Also, watching John Earl Reese aunts, and cousins as they looked on. I could see the sadness on their faces. It was as if we were attending an actual funeral service.

I wasn't born when John Earl Reese was alive, but my sister Jocy F. Nelson Crockett would keep his memory alive forever because she was always talking about him and reminding us of that terrible tragedy from which seemed to be not so long ago.

As we approached the road re-named in John Earl Reese honor Commissioner Mike Pepper reminded us that this is same the road that John Earl Reese walked to school on every day.Commissioner Mike Pepper spoke with so much passion. You could actually see John Earl Rees as a little boy walking down that old road. After the sign was revealed as Joyce Faye Crockett touched the sign she could no longer hold back her tears. You could see everyone in the crowd being moved with emotion.

We moved across the road to Smith Chapel Baptist Church for unveiling of the historical marker. It was a somber feeling in the air. Clifford Harkless spoke passionately about the meaning of the marker and why it is placed where it is.

The historical marker stands across the road from the old Mayflower school where John Earl Reese attended. The school is no longer a school. Northeastern University School of Law Nathaniel Johnson also spoke of the honor of the historical marker and it's significance.

Johnnie Myrle Nelson Arthur's children

Joyce Faye Nelson Crockett's children

Joyce Faye Nelson Crockett with her children, nieces, nephews, and grandchildren

Jocy Faye Nelson Crockett sisters (left end) Irvia Nelson Sammon, (center) children, nieces and nephews (right end) Shirley Nelson Beckworth

Smith Chapel Baptist Church Johnnie M. Thompson Johnson started the program with songs. Margie F. Centers was in charge of recognition and introductions. Kaylie Simon spoke about the joy of spending time with Joyce Faye Nelson Crockett and Johnnie M. Thompson Johnson. They assisted with a lot of the history, background information and detail of the shooting and murder.She also spoke of the love and compassion she has felt being among the people in the community

Guest speaker Dr. Margaret Burnham spoke with a lot of compassion as she talked about the life John Earl Reese and his possibilities. What he could should and might have been if he was alive.

Dr. Margaret Burnham reminded us that John Earl Reese would probably be around her age and probably have a family and children of his own. It was no telling what kind of contributions he could have made to society. But, we will never know because he never got the chance he deserved to have. His life was stolen from him. What a shame and a lost to his family, friends and loved ones and society. Dr. Margaret Burnham also spoke with compassion and truth in her voice.

Joyce Faye Nelson Crockett sisters (left) Irvia Sammon,(center left) Gwendolyn Deckard, historian China Galland (center right), and Evelyn Nelson (right)

(left) Gussey L. Daniel classmate of Joyce Faye Nelson Crockett (center) Kaylie Simon, (right) Dr.Margaret Burnham.

Gussey L. Daniel dedicated his personal painting of a school bus riddled with bullets being driven by Horace Thompson and a bus load of children on their way to Mayflower school back in the 1950's. The other sites are of the school they attended and a head stone in memory of John Earl Reese.

Someone cried out in the front of me. When I looked up and I saw John Earl Reese's baby sister Sharon Reese Thompson. My heart went out to her. I felt so much compassion and heart break for the Reese family I had to talk to them or try to comfort them. They began to talk about their childhood. Most of their lives was spent watching their father consumed with the lost of his son and he adamantly refused to talk about him. They were never allowed to bring up his name to their father.

Sharon Reese Thompson- said she had just found out about the memorial services a few days earlier because of by reading a article on the Internet. After reading the article she contacted her family because they all needed to be here. She went on to say she spend quite a bit of her time researching any information she can about her brother. She went on to talk about how painful it was for her not to know about her brother. She always wondered about him and felt like a part of her had been missing all those years. Yet, no one would talk about him. "The entire memorial was wonderful. For the first time since I was a little girl I finally know the truth about what really happened to my eldest brother, who I will never ever truly know. Just knowing what I know today is a blessing. Knowing you and your family is a blessing as well. Thank God for the people who had the courage to see this investigation reopened I thank God for all the hard work and dedication the researchers put in to this project".

Audrey Reese Morgan- Thanked everyone for every thing and how she was pleased with the services. She told me that her older living brother John Albert Reese was the one in the family that most favored their oldest brother John Earl Reese.

William Reese- talked about it being painful for him. He grew up like his sisters wondering about the brother he never knew along with feeling the void in his life.

John Albert Reese- talked about the pain of being named by his aunts John Earl Reese. It was too painful for his father. His father told his sisters they had to change that name because nobody else could ever be called John Earl Reese. People would called him John Earl Reese for years. When people started calling him John Albert Reese he had a hard time getting used to it.

You could clearly see the pain on their face as they spoke about their brother and father. Their father would carry the pain of loosing his son John Earl Reese deep in his heart for the rest of his life. After the death of John Earl Reese his father married a girl named Alma. They went on to have (2) sons and (2) daughters. He was also a proud grandfather to (8) grandchildren, and (4) great-grandchildren. Beloved father John Travis Reese past away June 23,1986.

John Earl Reese sisters and brothers are leading good productive lives with families of their own. They are the sisters and brothers left behind. They now carry the pain from years of watching their father suffer from the sad and tragic death a brother they never knew. May the pain of the past be lessened and the memories for the future be sweeter.

John Earl Reese, 16, was murdered in a drive-by shooting while sitting in Hughes Cafe on Texas Highway 149 with his cousins Joyce Nelson, 13, and her sister Johnnie Myrle Nelson, 15.

He died the following morning October 23, 1955.

"Fear thou not; for I am with thee: be not dismayed; for I am thy God: I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness.. For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, saying unto thee, Fear not; I will help thee."

Isaiah 41:10, 13

Historical Marker Tatum, TX and Mayflower Community Honors One of Civil Rights Movement

2010-10-08T12:16:00.000-07:00

Image by Tony the Misfit via FlickrMarshall News Messenger September 19, 2010 Historical marker honors one of civil rights movement’s earliest martyrs

On Oct. 23 - 55 years after the night Reese lost his life - the few remaining alumni of the Mayflower School will join the entire Tatum community to dedicate a memorial in the name of John Earl Reese. Clifford Harkless, who grew up in the small community just north of Tatum, said he hopes it can help heal old wounds while also educating future generations about the mistakes of the past.

The murderers were two white men, Perry Dean Ross, 22, and Joseph Reagan Simpson, 21. Both were convicted of the crime, but never spent a day in jail. Their sentences of five years were suspended.

Related articles

Northeastern University School of Law

Thinking About My Mom...

2010-07-24T16:57:00.000-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

I sometimes wonder how my mom is feeling quite often. My mom will be 81 years old in November, and has a lot or related illnesses. Most of the time when I call to check on her I'll say "Mom how are you"? She almost always say "Ahhh, I'm doing fine". Now, since I feel in my heart she is not being totally truthful I'll sit quietly on the phone for a few minutes then she will go ahead and tell me how she really feels. When she start telling me about what's going on with her it makes me very sad. It's amazing to me that one person can have so many illnesses. My oldest sister lives with her and takes care of her. She does the cooking, cleaning, and gives her her medications. I know it's a lot of work, but since she lives with her that's the best option of care for mom. I know if one of the other siblings lived with her we would be her caretaker. That's just the way it is. But, I also worry about my sister too with all the things she has going on in her life. My other siblings live close and are in and out of her house daily. They also help take care of her bringing her food, sitting with her, running errands and taking her to her doctor appointments. I know we are very blessed to have most of the family close by for moms sake. I call her on a regular basis and go home about once every other month or so. While I lead a very busy life in another city it's hard to find as much time as I need to visit her. Mom is getting older and I do worry I don't get to spend enough quality time with her like I should. I often think to myself wow... "I would love to put everything I have on hold and go home to spend more time with my momma". Who knows maybe one day I can?

The 55-year-old Mayflower Murder Of John Earl Reese

2010-07-16T08:36:00.000-07:00

Image via Wikipedia

February 8, 2010 Jocy Faye Nelson Crockett talks to the Dallas Morning News about the 55-year-old Mayflower Murder of John Earl Reese.

FBI takes new look at white men's killing of East Texas black teen in 1955. No justice after 55 years in racial killing. It was just a "playful night of gunfire," a top investigator for the Texas Rangers said.

The Nine bullets fired by two white men into a rural East Texas cafe-leaving a black teenager dead-had nothing to do with race, most insisted.

History no longer agrees. On that night 55 years ago, three of those bullets struck and killed John Earl Reese, a 16-year-old high school student, as he danced in the Gregg County cafe. Two white men later said they had just been trying to "scare the Negroes" when they fired into the building.

They knew the cafe, on State Highway 149 south of Longview, was a popular hangout for blacks. Reese, hit in the head and neck, died later at a Longview hospital. His two teenage cousins were shot in the arm. Decades later, the Dallas office of the FBI has placed Reese's death on a list of 108 "unsolved or inadequately solved racially motivated homicides from the civil rights era."

What happened the night of Oct. 22, 1955, is the subject of a "cold-case initiative," launched by the federal agency in 2006 but revealed only in November. That's when the FBI appealed for help in identifying the victims' next of kin in 33 of those civil rights cases dating to between 1950 and 1970.

The Reese killing was on that list, the only case assigned to Dallas' FBI division. "We were trying to find a local relative to tell them that we were looking at the Reese case," said Mark White, a spokesman for the agency's local office. After nearly three years of digging, the FBI said it was ready to reveal the results of the initial investigations, none of which have led to a trial. "In half of the 108 cases, we know who did it and they are deceased," said Chris Allen, a national FBI spokesman. "Nothing else can be done." It is not clear exactly what the FBI has learned about the Reese case.

The men convicted in the killing – who never spent a day in jail – have died, as have many of the other people involved. Investigators located Reese's cousin, one of the three people shot that night in 1955, only two months ago. Joyce Nelson Crockett is Reese's closest surviving relative. (Her sister, Johnnie Nelson Arthur, who also was wounded that day, died in 1976.) Crockett, a 67-year-old retiree who lives in Tatum, a Rusk County community 10 miles from where the shooting occurred, has doubts that anything good can come from reopening her cousin's case. "What can they do about it if every body's dead?" she said. "Some body's going to say they're sorry?"

The FBI contacted her in early December to prepare her for a letter from the Justice Department. She was told only that it would be hand-delivered by an FBI agent. 'They got away with it' The Reese case supposedly was solved in 1956 when Joe Reagan Simpson, 22, and Perry Dean Ross, 21, admitted the shooting. Ross was found guilty of murder without malice after a jury trial in April 1957. Simpson pleaded guilty to the same charge a few months later. Both men were given five-year jail sentences that were immediately suspended. The fact that neither had a criminal record was used to justify the lightest possible sentence. May 6, 1957 Time Magazine: Bad Day In Longview

But it was a disturbing outcome for the teens family and the Rusk County community of Mayflower, where Reese lived. The area had been terrorized by several middle-of-the-night shootings during 1955. On the night of Reese's killing, Ross and Simpson also sped through the rural black community. Ross fired a rifle at two nearby houses and an empty school bus used by black children. Simpson and Ross would later acknowledge three such drive-by shootings in Mayflower, although they were never charged in the incidents. "They said they didn't mean to kill anybody," Crockett recalled. "They got away with it." The lack of punishment kept Reese's murder case alive for civil rights activists.

In the 1980s, the shooting was unearthed by the Southern Poverty Law Center and claimed as one of the earliest murders in the civil rights era. In 1989, when the Civil Rights Memorial opened in Montgomery, Ala., Reese's name was on the list of "martyrs." It was the first public recognition of Reese's death as something greater than a personal loss to his family, said Crockett, who attended the monument's dedication. "You couldn't find a better person than John Earl," Crockett said. "There's no telling what he could have been." Looking for lapses The FBI isn't the only group looking into the unresolved civil rights cases. Several law schools have dispatched students to identify possible judicial and law enforcement lapses in the long-dormant cases, including Reese's.

"His case was treated very lightly by the state," said Margaret Burnham, a professor at Northeastern University School of Law in Boston. She also founded the school's Civil Rights and Restorative Justice Project. Like other cold cases from the civil rights era, Reese's illustrates "the massive breakdown in law enforcement," she said.

"There were trials that were not fair, and justice was not achieved."
Burnham based her conclusions on law enforcement documents and court records her project found in the Texas State Archives in Austin and the Gregg County courthouse in Longview, where the murder trial took place.

The political climate in rural East Texas in 1955 was a major factor in the shooting, said Kaylie Simon, a Northeastern law student responsible for delving into Reese's case. "We are trying to rebuild the facts and put the record straight about what happened, what actions were taken and what actions were not taken." The records indicate that because of jurisdiction issues, the Texas Rangers took over the case two months after Reese was killed. Media reports at the time suggested that investigators dragged their feet for weeks after the killing. The records from the case indicate that:

•A local sheriff refused to investigate Reese's death, saying he was convinced "it was Negroes who done the shooting, not white folks," stated one report.

•The Texas Rangers conducted dozens of interviews focused on a bond election to build a new "colored" school in Mayflower.

•The Rangers identified two factions in the school district that were fighting over the location of the new school. A third faction, labeled "pretty wild characters," included Ross and Simpson.

•Ross admitted to investigators that his anger over the new school had "a great deal" to do with the shooting Capt. Bob Crowder, who headed the Rangers' investigation, concluded that the new school – which he considered a political issue and not a racial one – was behind the 1955 shooting.

As part of the investigation, most of the black witnesses were asked about racial discrimination in Mayflower and Tatum. They responded that they had never experienced it. In his summary of the investigation, Crowder described all the black witnesses as "good" and "humble." Case not closed The resurfacing of Reese's case could be troublesome for residents of the East Texas communities that are involved.

Cliff Harkless, who was 7 and living in Mayflower when Reese was killed, said he was concerned that allegations might be raised about people who cannot defend themselves. "With a lot of these people dead and gone, we can't say that it was all factual," he said of the statements contained in the unearthed documents. "This was one case where justice possibly was not served, but bringing up those names is not helping."

Harkless, director of human resources for the Tatum Independent School District, said race relations have improved significantly in Rusk County. "We've come a long way in that area," he said. Nonetheless, the FBI's investigation is not yet closed, said the Dallas spokesman. Burnham and her law students in Boston are hoping to revive community interest in Reese's death if only to promote fuller understanding of what happened.

"A legal remedy would be difficult because so many of the people in this case have died," said Simon, the law student. "But it's possible there could be some kind of memorial or even an apology to Reese's family."

Crockett admitted she would like some recognition of her cousin's death. But she was equally worried that the local reaction might be negative. "Every time somebody brings this up," she said, "people start telling me to leave it in the past." Reported by Sherry Jacobson/Dallas Morning News

Gabrielle's Graduation

2010-06-27T13:33:00.000-07:00

After Graduation

2010-06-27T13:31:00.000-07:00

Fifties and Loving It!

2010-06-09T17:53:00.000-07:00

I made it! I thought I would always be in my twenties but, I'm here and it's not so bad.

I remember when my mom was fifty I thought she was pretty old. Now that I've made it I don't think it's that old at all. I look in the mirror and what do I see? Someone else starring back at me. An older woman...who can it be? Oh my goodness it is me!

I feel like I'm in my twenties or thirties. But, I ask the question why do we age? Why can't stay forever young? So many question I know, but in order to live... older we must grow.

My mom is a very laid back quiet and observant person. She always has something going on in her mind and heart and she say God has given her words , and when she speaks it's with such conviction. Although she love cooking and others things when we were young we spoiled her by doing those things for her. Now she doesn't have to do anything unless she feel like it. We love having her around to share her love, wisdom and knowledge with us. She turned eighty (80) in November 2009.

I turned fifty-two (52) in October 2009. I look at my mom and wonder "Is this me when I get her age"? I think I'm a lot like my mom just more modern. I often wonder about getting older and how it will affect my life.

Sometimes I get anxious thinking that I need to retire and spend more time enjoying my family. My husband and children. We will be traveling and having so much fun! My children need me around to share my amazing strength and love for them. My grandchildren need my love, strength and support. I look forward to watching them grow into adulthood.

When I think of the importance our parents are to me, my husband children and the entire family. It reminds me that I am a parent too and how our children need us too. I look forward to living a long and healthy life for my family.

Look out world I will be around for a long time because I have family that needs a wife, sister, mother, and a Mimi. What a blessing to be needed. I get an extra lift thinking about all the love I have for my family and it keeps me strong.

My Brothers & Sisters

2010-05-31T06:01:00.000-07:00

Even though my sisters and brothers are all grown we still have the love that only a sister and brother can have.

I will never forget how our father's face would light up when we came to visit. Our father passed away in 1995.

Since then our mom is the one I look to for the light and that's exactly what I get.

When I got married I was only eighteen. My father had only one thing to say about it..."If he does not treat you right you can always come back home". Very powerful words to this day.

I moved away in 2000. My sisters and brothers still miss having me around and they are constantly wanting me to come home. When I do go home before I leave they are asking me "when are you coming back"?

We all live our separate lives now raising our children and taking care of our families and our bond is immeasurable.

But, when opportunity knocks we must open the door. We close the chapter of one part of our lives to open another chapter.

The love of family is all so powerful. If we keep it in our hearts and minds and it will help us through our most darkest days.

Family Reunion 2008: My Brothers

Our Father & Mother

2010-04-25T10:34:00.000-07:00

Pearlee & Hobert

Take a pause for a few seconds and ask yourself, "Why do you work so hard?". What motivates you to do so, day after day? Most of the readers may utter a single word to answer both the question, "Family" and may lecture me on the importance of family and family relationships. But, what is a family?

All of us inherit our physical attributes from our parents. However, when you start interacting with the outside world, you realize that they are not enough to ensure your success, not even your survival. When you find yourself in such a situation, what is it that sustains and supports you?

The values which were passed to you by your family make your survival and growth possible. The values such as patience, care, understanding and commitment etc. instilled in you, differentiates you from the rest. If you are already a successful person, then it only underlies the importance of family and the values inherited by you.

Mom's Birthday

2010-04-13T00:00:00.000-07:00

Singing to our mom on her birthday...like we did when we were children for dad too.

What we learned from our family becomes the value system and forms your perceptions and basis of actions.
An individual is known by his or her actions. It is your family that gave you an identity.

Whenever you move from one place to another, you carry your family history with you.

Have you ever noticed that your opinions always confirmed to the values you acquired from your family or delved deep inside them to find the seeds of thoughts that lies at their bottom?

Who planted these thoughts? What gives you courage, when you are riding the wave of fortune at its deepest trough with its crest hanging over your head like a sword.

Every individual, barring few unfortunates, are similar to the earth enveloped by its environment, which acts as a protective layer and keeps the empty space out.

The earth is populated and fertile because of it. For an individual, the importance of family is incalculable.

Remembering Our Oldest Sister Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur

2010-03-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

Death is a poignant and significant event. It also emphatically conveys a strong message.

The dead leave fond memories among their near and dear ones.

Peace to each manly soul that sleepeth;rest to each faithful eye that weepeth

They may also have led a life of sacrifice and patriotism.

They need to be honored. One way of expressing our feelings is memorial death sayings.

The Death Of My Oldest Sister Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur

2010-03-22T06:30:00.000-07:00

The night she was murdered. Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur spent the whole day with her friends. It was a husband and wife couple and they were friends for a long time. They were almost always together and seemed to have so much fun. Then later that same day they went back the their home.

Around nine or ten o'clock that night my mom and dad get a call from the sheriff department telling them that they need to come and identify their daughter's body...what? The last time we saw her she was as happy as can be.

When we get to their house our sister is lying in the middle of the floor with a hole in the middle of her head. Her two friends were just sitting on the couch looking like they were in shock and kind of sad.

They kept saying "It was a accident we were just playing around with the gun and it went off".

The police investigated and determined it was an accident. They couldn't find enough evidence to take it to trial. We always felt like it was more to the story and believed it was some kind of personal disagreement or something between the three of them that caused our sister's death.

Because of friendships gone bad these kind of tragedies can happen. A husband left without a wife, children left without a mother, mother and father left without a child, sisters and brothers left without a sister. An entire family suffers because someone trusted their friend.

I will never forget seeing our sister lying there lifeless. This was so unfair, so sad, and she was so young (thirty-six years old). She had so much more to do in life...what about her children? Never to see their mom again. Sure others can love her children and take care of them, but no one can replace the mom that was taken away from them.

After all those years I still have flashbacks and if I do, I'm sure my other sisters and brothers do too, and if they do...then what about her babies left behind?

I know for one thing that through memories our sister will always be with us. We just have to keep the faith that she is definitely in heaven and happy.

My Oldest Sister "Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur"

2010-03-07T19:39:00.000-08:00

In 1955 the civil rights murder of John Earl Reese that left two teenagers shot and wounded were my oldest sisters Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur, and Jocy Faye Nelson Crockett.

My oldest sister Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur survived the shooting, got married and went on to raise her children. She was the mother of two girls and four boys.

My next to oldest injured sister Jocy Faye Nelson also survived. Jocy Faye got married and is the mother of five children four girls and one boy. I remember my sisters being outgoing and beautiful. They loved to have fun. When you were around those girls you knew you were going to have a ball.

Although they were grown and on their own , they still loved to come to over to mom and dad's to spend the night with us. When they came over Johnnie Murl would bring presents and Jocy Faye would bring fun. All the other sisters would be so excited and we would cook for them. Afterwards we would eat, laugh and talk all night. It was so much fun!!

My oldest sister liked buying me nice and pretty things. Barrettes and bows for my hair, blouses, pants, skirts shoes etc...I thought she kind of favored me. It may have been my imagination because I was the baby girl at the time but, that's what I thought.

In November 1976 she was thirty-six years old when she was shot and killed by a friend. I thought It was the saddest thing that ever happened. It was my first experience with death of another sibling.

My daughter was born in September 1976 just before my sister's untimely death. She had already started buying my daughter gifts and things. (Just like she did her mommy)

I was blessed the time I shared with my sister Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur. I only wish my daughter could have met her, because I know she would have loved her too.

My Sisters

2010-02-20T07:13:00.000-08:00

This story is real life drama my older siblings endured. It happened before I was born. Please remember tragedies like this has touched all our lives in some way.

Family Reunion 2008: My Sisters

Myra, Gala, Gwen, Evelyn, Jocy Faye, Ira, & Me

My oldest sister Johnnie Murl Nelson Arthur is deceased (not pictured). My next to oldest sister Joyce Fay Nelson Crockett (middle back) is still alive and will be celebrating her 68th birthday in March 2010.

Read the full story on the left...

Life Without Justice "My Sister's Story"

Last Surviving Victim injured inThe 1955 Civil Rights Murder of John Earl Reese Dies

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