A fella named Chester and a gal named Gracie

Chester was a one of a kind. If someone said anything about him it was sufficient to only use his first name because there was hardly anyone in Tellico that couldn’t recite a Chester story. He was famous for his Tarzan yell, riding his bike everywhere he went with his son following right behind him, and even for the time he drove his car from Tellico to Madisonville – in reverse! Chester was a quiet man but he didn’t hesitate to light you up if he had a burr in his saddle over something.

Chester was found dead yesterday afternoon. He had been shot. Rumors started circulating immediately about his death, and phones were ringing all over town passing the word around that Chester was gone. No one knew what had happened but the one question that stood out above them all was “how could anyone do anything to hurt Chester?”  

Gracie was another fixture in Tellico. Even though Gracie was probably a common name at her time you still just had to mention the name Gracie and everyone instantly knew who she was. Some called her the town beggar; others said she participated in the oldest profession (if you know what I mean). She was always walking the streets day and night and dressed as if she hadn’t owned new clothes in several years. Mostly everybody just laughed off poor ole Gracie if she took to one of her yellin’ fits.

In church a couple Sundays ago we got to talking about certain people and how you stereotype them by their appearance. A lady went on to tell us when her little niece was killed that there were people all around and all that she could hear amongst all the crying was Gracie on her knees praying. When Gracie passed away years ago people say that when they went to her house that it was spotless and they were so amazed because they never would have thought that by how she dressed and acted.

I guess that just goes to show that no matter how crazy someone acts, how they dress or how they present themselves there is always a side to someone that you don’t know or don’t look too hard to see.

There are a lot of people that live in our community. Some are held in high regards because of an office or position that they hold and some are just your average citizen. Very few of them though can be mentioned by first name and you automatically know who they are talking about. I have well over 200 cousins, quite a few friends and at least a 100 or so people that have worked with me over the past 30 years; but even if you mentioned me by just April some would know who you are talking about but others would ask ‘April who?’ I have accumulated over 1,000 people on my prestigious “friend’s list” on Facebook and most of those would have to have you make reference to April Duckett White before they knew who you were speaking of.

Wouldn’t it be nice to live your life so that it would be sufficient when your first name is mentioned people instantly know who you were because of an impact that you had left in people’s lives?

I used to dream of being an actress [like a lot of little girls do] when I was just a kid. But now that I am older I would like to be known for more than credits on a movie screen or a picture on People magazine. I would like to know that many years after I am gone that I lived a life in some way, shape or form that made people remember ‘just April’. I don’t think that you have to be a pillar of the community to be remembered. I think that you have to make your presence known in a community. Chester and Gracie both were really just everyday, normal and down to earth people. They were simple people, which granted most thought were a tad bit on the crazy side, but nonetheless, they were a person that people will always remember. I would wager my last nickel to say that in another 10-15 years someone can bring up a story about a man named Chester or a woman named Gracie and there will always be someone in the crowd that either knew them or that can say “hey I heard my parents talk about him or her.”

I think that Chester and Gracie lived a life that gained them recognition without them striving for it or wanting it. I think they lived a normal life, not afraid to be who they were, and that’s why they are remembered. They left impressions on the people in our community that will be imprinted in our minds for many years to come.

I don’t want to be famous, I want to be more like crazy Chester and Gracie – I want to be someone that leaves behind a legacy so that when people talk about me it is sufficient to just say ‘April’ and not have to hear the response “April who?” But I want that life to be one that whenever someone mentions “April” that people smile at the memory of me.

Sure will miss seein’ you around town Chester – make sure you say hi to Gracie when you run into her and tell her that just like you, she will never be forgotten.