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PERKINS FAMILY
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NATE PERKINS LIVE! ASHLEY PERKINS, my maternal grandfather, was a Sergeant in the United States Army. He served in World War II and the Korean War. At the time of his death, in 1962, the family had no money to bury him. An Army officer came to our Mother's home to tell her that they would take care of all of the burial arrangements. At the services, the casket was covered with the American Flag. It left an indelible mark on my mind, since I was only 6 or 7 years of age, at the time. I was effected by the actions of the soldiers who removed the flag from the casket, folded it precisely and presented it to my Mother, saying "On behalf of the United States of America and the President, we present this United States Flag to you, representing your father, who served this great country, honorably." Since then, it has been my goal to promote the flag and what it stands for - America, the land of the free and home of the brave. I was always eager to salute the flag and to carry it at schools, parades, sports games and during my career as a military officer. LULA MAE PERKINS (81), my mother, bore six children and mothered the seven children of her deceased Aunt Lillian. Perkins recalls that there was very little food on the table and life was not easy. Mother Lula Mae, born in 1923, in Bethel, NC, a small town outside of Greenville, still presides as the Church Mother at St. Matthews Baptist Church. A single parent, living in a 2-bedroom home, Lula Mae managed to raise 13 children as god-fearing citizens with love of their country, their community and each other.
NUTRICIA PERKINS,
one of my sisters who passed away, in June 1966, was
considered a prodigy by the State of North Carolina because she was the only
woman of color in the State to make a perfect score of 1500 on the SATs. She
was required to take the test over simply because the State officials didn't
believe that she made that high score. She made the same score the second
time she took the test. Then, Ivy League schools, such as Princeton,
Harvard, UCLA, Yale, Georgia Tech and the University of North Carolina, all
offered her full scholarships. Before she was able to graduate from high
school, she became ill with from breast cancer and passed away, which
resulted in one of the largest attended funerals in the State. Over 1,000
people were moved from a small funeral home to the high school gymnasium. On
her deathbed, I made a promise to Nutricia that I would carry on her zeal
for education. |
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