It occurred to me that my 86 year old black dad is a man of firsts – a born pioneer, boldly going where no other black had gone before. In 1946, Dad and Jackson were the only black Merchant Marines on their ship, and the first “coloreds” to land at the base in St. Petersburg, Florida.  Dad came close to being hanged by an angry mob simply for being there. Dad had a tough beginning.  The product of an extramarital affair, Dad was raised by his aunt, Aunt Nee. Aunt Nee was a pretty remarkable woman.  Though she never graduated high school, Aunt Nee (Rev. Anita Bethea) was extremely articulate, well-read, a great singer (reminiscent of Mahalia Jackson), a gifted speaker, a student of the Bible, and the pastor of her own storefront church in Baltimore, Maryland. I asked Dad what kept him, growing up as a fatherless black child, on the straight and narrow, not getting into crime or drugs.  Without hesitation, Dad replied, “Aunt...(Read Full Article)