My paternal grandfather, Booker Mays, was born on February, 10, 1910 in Mississippi. He lived in Mississippi until the 1930s when he moved to Missouri. He worked for the Missouri Pacific Railroad while in Missouri and after he moved to Arkansas. He married Gladys Denson in 1939 and started a family in Newport, Arkansas. He lived there until his death in 1964.

My family history research has made it possible for me to get to know the one grandparent I never got to meet. During this research I decided that if I had known him that I would have called him Grandpa Booker. I remember one time when I was little my Granny told me that my mouth and attitude reminded her of my father and his father. That was the only memory I had of Grandpa Booker growing up. I’m still researching him, his family, and his life in Mississippi. I hope that he is proud of the work that I have done to ensure that his story and legacy will always be remembered.