Men were developing America and women were living for God.

I am the eighth child of Ray and Alta Lee’s nine children. And as mothers do on Thanksgiving and Christmas, Mom would get her family together to celebrate these holidays. Two of my older brothers were great story tellers as well as my Dad. After the great meal Mom had prepared, without fail someone would start telling stories of the past. We would be listening with all we had most of the time it would be the same ones they had told before. However with practice the stories got better and more dramatic than the previous year. Over these many years I have known if they weren’t recorded in some form, it would all be lost. The funny stories, the sad ones. My Mom’s hardship because of her stand and her work for God and His Kingdom and operating in the gifts of the Holy Spirit as outlined in 1 Cor. The 12th chapter. And my Dad’s rise from a young boy of just 10 years of age, having men much older than himself working under him to his rising to wealth, influence and control of our county and the surrounding areas as well as a large part of the state of Arkansas. He was the largest land owner in our area and one of the largest employers in Arkansas as the world’s largest producer of hardwood in the 1930’s. My older brothers told me that he worked as many as 600 men during the days of the Great Depression. In my research I was told by many that he gave jobs picking up sticks when he didn’t need anyone. But he knew many of the families were in need of food and clothing. This is a story I could not let go untold and fade away never, never to be told. I am not a writer but I have a lot of help researching over 30 plus years repeating what’s remembered and sitting around the country stores and listening to the old timers telling their stories of having worked for my Dad.

A story that has been kept a secret far too long. I have wanted to tell it every since Mom told it to me. I have worked on it for more than 35 years met with hindrance after hindrance. Now is the time to tell it in just such a time as this.