The Evolution of Crimson. Jerry Aldridge
and Great Aunt Kizzie brought their baskets, filled with strawberries back to the house but they were locked out. They shouted for Winifred to open the door and let them in.
“I’m on the kitchen table and can’t get down.”
“Why on earth are you on the kitchen table?” Nana hollered.
“Because the snake chased me all the way back and I thought it might get in and bite me and I was scared.”
“What are we going to do now? We’re locked out and you’re on the table and can’t get down?” yelled Kizzie.
Winifred sat down on the table and slowly lowered her legs to the ground as she balanced her hands on the edge of the table. She ran to the door and unlocked it and the screen door.
Aunt Kizzie told Winifred, “That snake didn’t come near you. I killed that snake with a hoe back in the strawberry patch.”
“No auntie! I saw the snake. There must have been two!”
Homewood, Alabama
June 11, 1963
When Frances, Winifred, and Trisha arrived home from Winifred’s long day of registration, Odelle Baker was already inside cleaning the house. Odelle had worked for the Dodd family since Winifred was born. She came once a week, on Tuesday afternoons, to dust and mop the Dodd house and do the ironing. Odelle had her own key and let herself in if the family was not home. She worked from 1:00 to 7:00 pm every Tuesday on her day off from the Killarney family who lived just two doors down.
On the way home from Tuscaloosa, Winifred had explained that two Negro students had come to register for summer school at the University and that was what kept her so long at registration. That was, in fact, true. She didn’t mention, however, that she had already registered and stayed so she could see everything that happened. She mentioned George Wallace standing in the door of Foster Auditorium and the news crews that were outside, but didn’t tell Frances or Trisha any more. She did suggest they should watch the six o’clock news that night to see it on TV.
Odelle occasionally cooked for the Dodd’s but usually just cleaned and ironed so Frances went immediately into the kitchen and started cooking supper. It was already 4:30 and she wanted to have dinner prepared, eaten, and the dishes put up before the 6:00 o’clock news came on. She heard what Winifred said, something about Wallace standing in the door when Colored people tried to register, but that was about it.
That night Frances prepared a country dinner that included her specialty, fried okra. She fixed a pot of purple hull peas with a few bean sprouts thrown in, fried chicken, corn on the cob, and egg custard cups for dessert. A pitcher of sweet iced tea was served at every meal. Frances enjoyed cooking during the summer months when she wasn’t teaching. Winifred and Trisha enjoyed it too. They set the table and dinner was served at the dining room table at 5:20. Odelle ate in the kitchen like she always did. After dinner Frances suggested her daughters put the dishes in the sink. They could wash them after the news. By 5:58, everyone was in the living room, including Odelle, waiting for the news to begin. Odelle’s last chore for the day was ironing which she did standing up, using the ironing board that was placed in the corner of the living room.
That night it didn’t matter if they watched NBC, CBS, or ABC. Every channel focused on the same story—the integration of the University of Alabama. The family and Odelle watched it all on NBC. Winifred had been there when Wallace stood in front of Foster Auditorium and she had eaten lunch with Vivian Malone. When the announcer reported Vivian Malone and James Hood had registered for classes in Foster Auditorium, everyone was silent. Everyone, that is, except Odelle.
“Why that girl want to go where she ain’t wanted?” asked Odelle.
Winifred was stunned. She thought Odelle would be elated. Winifred believed this was a major victory for Civil Rights, but did not say anything. She began to realize Nana and Daddy Mims’ and Odelle’s generation would have to pass before beliefs and opinions about integration would change in Alabama.
The next day summer school began for Frances and Winifred. They would drive to Tuscaloosa, drop Trisha at Helen’s home in Alberta City, and park the blue and white Bel-Air at a strip mall next to the University because automobiles were still not allowed on campus. Mother and daughter would attend their respective classes, meet at the Union Building, walk to the strip mall, pick up Trisha and go home. This would become their daily ritual that fateful summer of 1963.
Homewood, Alabama
Weekend of July 4, 1963
The only holiday during summer term was July 4th. Because it came on a Thursday that year, the University gave the students Friday off as well. Independence Day was the Dodd family’s favorite and most festive holiday until the year before. In 1962, they celebrated the day with the usual picnic of potato salad, hotdogs, baked beans, cole slow, pimento and cheese sandwiches, French fried potatoes, and T-bone steaks. Edmund was in charge of the grill and family members from Alabama were there, as usual. Edmund’s younger sister, Natalia from New Orleans always came too. In 1962, their celebration was held in the back yard. Some of the family were playing horseshoes while others were sitting at the picnic table under the large umbrella, deep in the card gamed called Rook. Edmund needed more charcoal and whispered to Frances, who was playing Rook, that he would be right back. He was going to the grocery store to get more charcoal. He kissed her on the forehead. She looked up at him lovingly and reciprocated with a peck on the cheek, and that was the last time Frances saw Edmund alive. On the way home from the grocery store, a pick-up truck full of drunk college students ran a red light and plowed directly into Edmund’s car on the driver’s side. None of the students were hurt but Edmund was killed instantly.
Frances blamed herself. Edmund had asked her to buy charcoal when she bought groceries for the celebration, but she had forgotten. Instead of Edmund’s absence getting easier over time, the guilt and sadness continued unabated. This year there would be no celebration. However, Frances had invited Natalia to come for two weeks, beginning the weekend of Independence Day. Trisha had become irritable and impatient from getting up at 7:00 am every weekday to accompany her mom and sister to Tuscaloosa. She wanted to stay home and sleep. Since Natalia always visited Birmingham in early July, she was happy to come for several reasons. She wanted to remain close to Edmund’s immediate family, especially her nieces. She was also delighted to leave the oppressive heat and humidity of New Orleans for a couple of weeks. Birmingham was hot in July, but nothing like New Orleans.
Natalia’s mother used to say, “God broke the mold when He made her!” Natalia was Edmund’s younger sister and only sibling. Edmund had been born in 1898 and Natalia in 1900. No child was ever more independent than Natalia. After high school she went all the way to Berkeley for college, eventually marrying Raymond Merot, a classmate from Los Angeles. They had lived in San Francisco where her husband was a banker. Natalia had attended law school and became one of the first women graduates of Person School of Law in Marin County.
During World War II, Raymond was needed in the Philippines because he spoke Japanese. While he was there, Natalia took their two children, Phil and Audrey back to New Orleans. Natalia wanted to live where she grew up while Raymond was gone. While in New Orleans, Natalia saw an advertisement for women welders. She immediately signed up for welding school and two months later she was working with 24 other women at the Delta Shipbuilding Company, welding Liberty ships. Some of the women she met at the docks became lifelong friends. Her roommate from college, Thelma Burnette, who had moved eventually to St. Louis, came to New Orleans as well and worked as a welder with Natalia during the war years.
Raymond died in the Battle of Mindanoa. Natalia stayed in New Orleans. Phil and Audrey were grown now and lived on opposite sides of the country—Phil in New York City and Audrey in San Diego. Natalia worked for the Boudreaux and Boudreaux Law Firm on Canal Street until 1960, when she decided to retire and travel. And travel she did. For the next two weeks she would be in Birmingham.
That summer, Winifred had been dating Matt Funderbirk, a high school classmate, but there was nothing going on between them. In fact, Winifred found Matt to be dull and