Monday, February 17, 2014
Martin And Shelton Honored During Black History Month Event
Two local individuals whose lives were dedicated to the betterment of the lives of young Lawrence County residents were honored during the Black History Month event held in Lawrenceburg on Sunday.
Black History Month is an annual observance in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom for remembrance of important people and events in the history of individuals and communities of African descent.
Longtime event organizer, community advocate, and mediator Cassie Martin, who passed away in July, was honored during Sunday’s event along with longtime local police officer E.O. “Bozo” Shelton, who died in October.
Martin’s sister, Frances Jones, explained, “We don’t want to have a funeral today. What we want to do is say, ‘Hey, we have some relatives that left legacies, and these legacies are something that we might want to take note of and try to trek behind them,’ because their legacies are good.”
Jones described Martin and Shelton as, “The two that intertwined; the two that made a difference.”
Jones explained, “My sister…was heart set on education. She was heart set on helping young kids. She was heart set on kids going to school, not falling through the cracks.”
Jones told those present, “Bozo Shelton didn’t care if you were blue. If you were wrong he was going to jack you up. But he was real cunning about doing it. He’d take you to your parents….he sat down with those kids. It wasn’t because he felt sorry for them. That had nothing to do with it. The man had a heart…He looked out for those kids. He drove the school bus and if the police were getting ready to jack them up for something, he already knew what they’d done and he’d sit down and talk to them.”
Martin’s son, Robert Martin, spoke about the impact that both his mother and Shelton had on his life. He said, “Looking out at the audience…this is what my mother strived for – unity in our community.”
Robert Martin described his relationship with Shelton, explaining, “Being a young man growing up in this community in the early 70’s, there was still a fairly descent amount of what is called ‘racism’ present. One day me and one of my cousins were up to no good, doing something we had no business doing. We didn’t know there was a gentleman who snuck up behind us - a police officer of all things - and that police officer happened to be Bozo Shelton. We just knew that we were going to jail but it didn’t turn out that way. He had other plans.
“He asked us, ‘Who’s you boys’ parents?’ I spoke who my mother was and he said, ‘I don’t recall no Ms. Martin.’ In my family, most everybody’s Simpsons so I said, ‘My grandmother’s Ms. Marie Simpson.’ Well that did it. So he said, ‘You boys come with me.’ We got put in the patrol car. Took me to my grandmother’s, and got a whooping of a lifetime.”
Martin told those present, “In other cities they’d take you straight to jail. They don’t give you the opportunity to straighten up. You’re automatically thrown into the judicial system. But Bozo…he would sit you down - literally sit you down…Not take you to jail, but talk to you. Find out what your issue was and why you were doing the things you were doing. People like him, that’s one of the reasons that I’m among you today…these are the kind of things that this man done on a regular basis…I’m glad that Lawrence County had Bozo Shelton…on their police force, and I’m very thankful for what he’s done for me and many other African American kids growing up.”
Before leaving the stage Martin turned back to the audience to add, “There’s one person in the crowd that I’ve got to thank. When I was younger I had some things going on in my life and just couldn’t get turned around. But, like Bozo, she said, ‘There’s something about you and I know that you’re a good man. I know you’re trying so I’m going to give you the opportunity to do what you need to do to get to where you need to be.’…Judge Patricia McGuire, thank you for being part of my life.”
LaShawn Baxter spoke about the impact Cassie Martin had on her life. “I was looking at the bottom of the program where someone has put the most wonderful quote. It says, ‘What you leave behind is not what is engraved in stone monuments but what is woven into the lives of others,’ and I think that represents Cassie to me.
“She was my Girl Scout leader and a positive influence…She gave me her most precious resource, which was her time. When you give a child your time you help foster self-esteem and you give them a gift, and you give the community a gift as well.
“Cassie was very politically astute. She wanted all citizens to be informed, and she wanted them to want to be informed and involved in the decisions made by the government leaders that affected them.”
Baxter explained, “Cassie had a dream and that was for the Lawrenceburg Colored School, or West Gaines Colored School, the only colored school left standing in our county, to be marked as a historical site for black people in the community. Black history is a part of Lawrence County history and she wanted that to be acknowledged…She wanted that building be marked as a historical site and also as a place where local children could have opportunities for after school counseling or tutoring, and things like that…Cassie cared very much about Lawrence County’s youth, and I would love to see her dream come true.”
Baxter said that others have now taken up the cause, working in the hopes of eventually making Martin’s dream a reality.
