H. Lee Waters, Gastonia 1942, Movie Theater & Shift Change Scene

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[@dereksuddreth8672]

I am a Gastonia native. I now live in rural Blacksburg, SC. My paternal grandmother Grace (Merrill) Fish, a single mother, raised three sons on textile mill wages in East Gastonia at the Groves Mill. All of her children, including my father, Max E. Fish, went to college. My maternal grandparents, James A. and Margie L. (Mincey) Waldrep, worked many years at the old Firestone Mill. They lived a couple of blocks away on Brunette Street in a former duplex mill house the bought from the company. Grandpa, a native of Gainsville, Georgia (and WWI Vet), wore overalls and work boots daily, even after retirement, except on Sundays. Grandma, born in Franklin, NC, was the sweetest person I have ever known. She had that Appalachian "mountain talk" lingo. I still use some of her expressions, which confuses some and delights others.They, along with other family members, cared for my younger brothers (Brent, Hal) and me while Mom (Sandra Fish-Suddreth) was sick with leukemia until her death in 1967. My mother was the founder of the Preschool for the Deaf in Gastonia, which started as a privately funded school in the basement of Flint Groves Baptist Church. My youngest brother Hal had lost his hearing at age two due to meningitis. She lived long enough to see the program get funding from the State Legislature. The preschool moved into Woodhill Elementary soon after her death. I truly do miss all of them dearly. The stories they told are still with me, and I pass them on to the next generations every chance I get. "Hello" to all of my Gaston County friends and family out there!