After Hugo, my employer(ww2 vet) and neighbor, got a call from a contractor about going to Florence, SC and doing some remodeling work. Since work was slow around Atlanta, we loaded up the tools and drove to Florence.
Our contact was a lumber/ hardware in downtown. When we arrived, we met the owner. He was a black preacher and I forget his name(help from Florence FREEPERS), so I'll call him Rev.
After a very warm greeting and introduction to family, he handed us a set of keys and said, " Here's a set of keys to a little rental house of mine. It's yours till you leave. If you need money or any thing, let me know." We were kinda surprised, especially since we had already rented a room.
It was early November when we arrived, and we stayed untill the following Halloween. Every moment spent working for the Rev. was one of the most rewarding of my 16 year career. He paid good and on time. He was upfront with what he expected for the price given. Not one person whose house we spent time repairing ever seemed to be unhappy with the Rev. or bickered about the work. Many times he would give us extra pay for a job and tell us to do something extra the customer wasn't expecting to receive. On top of paying us good, he never asked for a dime of rent or utility money.
At the end of our last week, he invited us to dinner at a local prime rib restaurant. As we became seated, he ordered an expensive bottle of wine. After everyone had a glass full, the Rev. stood up and toasted me and Mr. Ezell. He thanked us for our work, and wished us well. After our Excellent prime rib with fixings, we stood up to leave. Rev. came over and handed us both envelopes with some crisp, fragrant, Franklins stashed inside.
I often think of him and his kidness, how he made two redneck, white, Georgia, country people feel like they were never strangers. If any SCFREEPERS know who I'm talking about, please freepmail me with his name. I'd like to thank him.
He is the kind of good, black people who will suffer because of the racist actions of the NAACP.(Non- profit my a@$#).