Gold, Fire & Refinement

Chapter Fifteen

"Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality." ~Edgar Allan Poe

Leaning back in his chair, Harvey rubbed his stubble, then ran his fingers through his hair. He didn't want to hurt Grandma Betty's feelings by leaving, or by not inviting her to come along, but it was Saturday morning, and he and Zarah had work to do. They would be paying visits to people participating in some of his Foundation's projects, and when Harriet and Amelia May started clearing the sunroom breakfast table, he looked at Zarah, and the two of them stood up at the same time. After a quick study of their attire, which consisted of jeans, T-shirts, light jackets, and gym shoes, his grandmother read his mind, smiled, and then spoke. She put Harvey's mind at ease.

"Now don't you two go thinking I'm expecting you to spend all your time here," Bettina said. "I can see you're dressed to go out, so go on. I want you to know I expect you to do the same things you always do, Harvey. When you're here. Just go on and check up on your Du Bois people, because I know that's what you want to do. Let's not let this ... thing ... I've got change who we are and how we live. You two just go on and tend to your Foundation's business."

Harvey walked over and gave her a big bear hug. "I promise we'll be back. Before dinner."

"I'll expect you no later than six," she warned him while smiling. "You know we shower and dress for dinner around here young man. Be at the dinner table, promptly, at seven. And don't be late."

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They spent the whole morning and afternoon visiting people and places connected with Harvey's Du Bois Project. The organization worked with Wilson Publishing, throughout the state, identifying black neighborhoods in dire need. Once identified, his non-profit's staff worked with people, businesses, and other organizations in the area to help change lives for good. Efforts were more concentrated in locations around the state with the greatest needs, such as some of the poverty-stricken communities in the Mississippi Delta.

After stopping in to check on families he'd contacted before leaving Jackson, Harvey visited the homes and families of several young men who had left one Du Bois program or another without accomplishing their stated goals—whether it was finishing high school, obtaining a GED, or completing a trade-school certificate. He spent time with each young man, doing his best to inspire them to go back, to give Du Bois another chance to help, and to give turning their lives around another try.

While he was doing that, Zarah was spending time with the director of the Du Bois Project's "Dance Delta Dance!" It was a twenty-member all-girl dance squad that taught girls, age seven to seventeen, the fundamentals of leadership and teamwork as they participated in popular and classical dance performances. The organization's director, Evelyn Edwards, was someone Zarah knew, a friend and fellow former "J-Girl." They once performed together as part of the Jackson City University marching band dance squad.

Evelyn's family had once been a Du Bois Project family, and now the family was one of the organization's success stories. Many years ago, when Evelyn was still in high school, her parents took their family from homelessness to a middle-class home and business-owning lifestyle after coming to the Du Bois Project for help. Evelyn took Zarah to lunch that day at a restaurant in town that was owned by a famous Hollywood actor. They'd had hopes of catching a glimpse of the star, but even though he lived in the area, he didn't show up at his restaurant while they were there. Others eating there that day were excited, however, about a celebrity who was in their midst. One crowd after another kept forming around Zarah. After recognizing her from the THN shows, people were asking for her autograph.

Uncomfortable with all the attention, Zarah smiled and signed autographs for all who asked, including members of the restaurant's staff. Once the crowds were gone, she apologized and told Evelyn she knew it was irritating having so many people asking for her autograph while they were having lunch. "I thought this was over," she said, "after I left the J-Girls."