In the spring of 1994 my brother-in-law died. I stood with my sister as thousands of people came through the receiving line to offer their condolences to my sister. Raymond was the Superintendent of Schools for Montgomery County Ohio, which is where Dayton and Wright Patterson AFB are located. That is where Wilbur and Orville Wright were from.
Dr. Raymond Hopper was well liked by all of those who knew him. He was in many ways an inspiration to me and one of the reasons that I so keenly appreciate people who overcome obstacles to achieve great things. You see, Raymond came from an impoverished family with an alcoholic father. In addition, Raymond had had Polio which left him with a shriveled left arm. He had left home early in his teens and gone to Berea, KY where he worked his way through high school and college. By his early twenties he was teaching school in the hollows of Jackson County, Kentucky. There he met my sister who was finishing her high school years and working part time in my Grandmother's restaurant. In almost 40 years of marriage, he never mentioned his arm to my sister or anyone that I knew.
As County Commissioners, State Representatives, the Mayor and politicians from the State Capital came by, each saying what a great man Raymond was and how he would be missed; one fellow caught my attention. He was a few years younger than me and told me that he had been one of Raymond's students at Brantwood Elementary School. At that time I wondered if it could be the same fellow that Raymond had once told me about.
I did not think too much about the fellow until a few days later when Wanda and I were going through Raymond's things and we came across an old key case that was in the lap drawer of his desk. Seeing that case just after meeting the young fellow brought a tear to my eye as I thought back to the late 50's and recalled Raymond laughing and telling the story about Sarge.
Raymond's first administrative job was principal of Brantwood Elementary School in what is now Huber Heights. Raymond had taught 6th grade there for a few years so he was familiar with the school, its students and the neighborhoods in the district.
One of the neighborhoods was called Hell's Half Acre and it was a tough neighborhood. Most of the people who lived there had come from the poverty of Appalachia. Some lived in conditions worse than anything I've ever seen around here. I remember the XMAS of 1958. There was a fire that killed 13 family members who were living in a house constructed of cardboard. That night the temperature was in the single digits and when the fire started it went like a match. The neighborhood was tough and poor.
On the first day of school, Raymond was not surprised to see Sarge coming down the hall towing a little fellow by his ear. Now every school has a Sarge in it, or at least they used to. Sarge is the teacher that you didn't put anything over on; the one that carried the ruler and whacked you on the knuckles whenever you giggled or gave a smart answer. You could just tell as she marched that little fellow down the hall that the principal was going to give him a what for. She was confident that the little fellow was going to get corporal punishment for disrupting her class.
Sarge marched the little fellow into the principal's office and stood him at attention in front of Raymond. Raymond walked around to the front of his desk and knelt down to the boy's level. He could tell that Sarge had built up a head of steam and was ready to gloat as the little fellow received his punishment. Raymond asked Sarge what had happened. It seemed that she had let the little boy go to the bathroom, and when he didn't return she had to go in to get him. She found him going from toilet to toilet, flushing them and laughing.
Raymond looked at the little boy. He had a red checkered shirt on with rolled up sleeves. He had worn blue jeans with patches on the knees. They were clean and neatly pressed but obviously hand-me-downs. Raymond asked him his name and immediately recognized him as one of the kids from Hell's Half Acre.
Sarge was pretty surprised when Raymond didn't scold the boy but only asked, "Was this the first flush toilet you've seen?" The boy nodded his head and Raymond patted him on the shoulder as Sarge took him back to the classroom.
That night Raymond told my sister and they went to the department store and bought some underwear and socks. The next day Raymond called the little boy into his office and handed the bag of clothes to the boy. The little boy wouldn't take them. Raymond explained that the clothes were for him and that the people at the school were his friends and they wanted him to have them. The little boy shook his head and looked down. He shuffled his feet a little and then looked up at Raymond and smiled. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out an old key case with a single key on it. He took the key off of the clip and handed the key case to Raymond then he took the clothes.
For over 35 years Raymond kept that key case in his desk. I don't know what he thought about when he saw it. He may have been reminded of Sarge or he may have been reminded of that little boy and wondered how the little fellow turned out. If that was the same guy who paid his respects to the principal of Brantwood Elementary School 10 years ago next week, then Raymond I want you to know that he turned out OK.
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