In 1979, while working for the Federal Aviation Administration, I was selected for the Education for Public Management program. It is a government-wide program that selects high potential personnel to study for a year at one of seven public administration programs.
The next step was to then apply to the top three universities you were interested in. I was selected by Harvard. So, Betsy and I loaded a U-Haul truck and headed up I-95 in the heat of the 1979 summer, gas crisis and all.
The year at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government was an eventful one. The number of famous people I met was a little overwhelming, but I adjusted. They included George Cabot Lodge, Bob Hope, Ben Bradley, Ted Kennedy, Griffin Bell and others. Course work involved lots of case studies and lots and lots of reading. It was meant to be challenging, and it was.
I grew up in the coal fields of Southwest Virginia. My father was a coal miner and entered the mines at 17. He was an early member of the United Mine Workers of America and was a follower of John L. Lewis.
Like many mining families, we were a large family – nine children. I am the oldest of the brood. My parents valued education because theirs had been cut short. We were strongly pushed to attend school every day. I did not miss a day of school from the sixth grade through high school. Missing school was not an option.
As my parents aged they became more involved in the church. Mom was the ultimate “church lady” and was the leader of the annual apple butter sales drive that funded the modernization of the church hall and kitchen.
She took out her energy left over from not having all of us at home anymore. Mom’s reaction to us going to Boston for the year was mixed. She never liked any of her brood moving away. I kept her entertained with calls and stories about school and Betsy’s family. Betsy’s father was from Boston and was one of 11 Irish Catholic children. So, we had lots of family in the area.
As the year at the Kennedy School begin to wind down, I tried to prepare my parents to come to graduation ceremonies. There were a lot of anxieties and apprehensions that Mom and Dad thought up. I finally bought the plane tickets and put the issue to bed. So, they came to Boston.
The trip was basically a whirlwind. Trips to Maine, touring the Tall Ships, meeting Betsy’s large family, eating lobster rolls and touring Boston all happened before graduation.
Graduation in Harvard Yard is historic and impressive. The schools then break out for their individual ceremonies and parties. Our speaker for the Kennedy School was none other than Walter Cronkite, the “Most Trusted Man in America.” Walter had a lot to say about the state of the world and the U.S. in 1980.
After graduation and presentation of diplomas there was a lawn party in the courtyard. In a scene from “The Great Gatsby,” the tents and the food and drink looked the part.
I made my trip to retrieve drinks and noticed on the way back that Walter had joined the party. And he was talking to Mom!
After some time, we remarked how long the conversation had gone on and chuckled about what it was about. Some more time elapsed and now I was beginning to get the sense that others were looking to engage him as well.
Finally in some panic I thought I should intervene. As I approached Mom and Walter, I smiled and introduced myself. Walter was charming and said he’d heard a lot about me. Somehow that worried me. I jokingly asked if he needed me to rescue him. He said that I could move along now. “Your mother is one of most interesting women I have met lately.”
A few minutes later, Mom joined the rest of the family at the reception. She was thrilled and admitted making her first commercial flight had been worth it. After driving my parents to Logan Airport the following day for the flight back to Virginia, the only thing I could think of was those other poor church ladies at next Sunday’s service. Mom had met Walter Cronkite, and he thought she was interesting. They would never hear the last of it.
By Bob Woods
This story was originally published in “Our Neighborhood,” a quarterly publication that focused on the lives of RWC residents – one story at a time.