My Father's Story of The Montford Point Marines and the 51st Defense Battalion

The new guest to the Primus house was given a tour around the residence. I escorted her through the split level house, squeezing past chair glides that graced two flights of stairs. The Veterans Administration paid for the newer, sleek model with the remote. Introductions were made, and small talk ensued. Al Sharpton's robust voice could be heard from the living room television as it usually does at 6pm. One gregarious person who came to visit my father had left. Dad became engrossed in his show.

I was working on Montford Point Marine and Honor Blog and showed the remaining guest the writing. I explained that it was about my father and pointed out to her my mother's post. At age ninety my father is not really interested in the Internet. He prefers newspapers. I then noticed that he suddenly became agitated.

His voice changed and he spoke directly to me about our guest, in right front of her. Dad's penetrating brown eyes looked sharply into my questioning gaze.
 "She didn't notice anything when she came in."
The guest and I shifted nervously. It seemed like forever and we both waited. It was like in the movies when the alpha male makes a statement and no one knows how to react.
"She didn't notice my awards."
Everyone burst into laughter, relieved. " I'm sorry, let me show you my Dad's awards and explain his history, I was wondering why he was getting all testy!" I smiled.

dvidshub.net
Corporal Lynn L. Williams (far right) walks with other Marines during liberty in the 1940s. 

Montford Point Marine and Honor Blog is slowly growing. A month into my blog, people have expressed interest in doing a documentary on my father's life. They include former students of mine, random strangers, and cohorts. What readers fail to realize is that this is really my father's story and I write because he wanted others to know about his life, the story about the 51st Defense Battalion, and the Montford Point Marines. Of course by reading this you get a chance to discover how living in the United States as a Black man of my father's generation was difficult. You also get some trailblazers, military topics and general history thrown in for good measure.

Some of my consistently ranked top ranked posts are the ones such as the Great Depression and my mother. His Non-Welcoming Homecoming, is popular. Consequently, stories in Montford Point Marines and Honor Blogspot are universal and timeless. Who can't relate to being ostracized at one time or discriminated? I write from the viewpoint of a teacher, remembering when students would be interested when I shared stories about my father's life. All those years of  teaching children how to write a five paragraph essay in forty five minutes paid off, apparently. I spend countless hours on posts, finding appealing photos, and researching multiple sources. I am learning SEO, social media, and how to add links. You can see the difference in the posts over time. Which leads us to....

....Ill-intentioned people who want to profit from my writing and achieve all the glory without doing the heavy lifting. Who are they? They know who they are. I see where they come in through analytics, where they are researching my page views and website's net worth. So I retained the services of an attorney in Washington, D.C. and conferred with others in Connecticut and Florida. Writers today cultivate followers over time. It is where trust and a relationship forms. I could easily write a book today and let it languish.  For someone else to simply write a book after I done all the research and work is--well, inherently wrong. Especially since said person (s) reads this blog on a regular and pretends like it does not exist.  My Dad is very proud of me and likes talking to me about his life. He likes to remember the old days as it keeps his mind active. Alas, there appears to be people out there who are trying to get the glory and a payday, people who really don't care about my father.

Some Montford Point Marines received their Medal of Honor at home.
They were unable to make the ceremony because of health reasons.
Source: 3bp.blogspot.com

When I talked to him about a book and a documentary, he says make sure no one calls him and I want my cut!  So just as some people are waiting for my posts in order to get a payday, I wait for my Google alerts that scan the Internet for any resemblance of my Dad's story. The daughter of a Montford Point Marine, in case you haven't noticed, pays close attention.

I thank the loyal readers of this blog for their support. My father is very pleased when I read to him the list of countries throughout the world who are learning about him. Seventy years is a long time to tell his story of the Montford Point Marines and the 51st Defense Battalion, nicknamed the "Lost Battalion," by the Black Press. With Google alerts, I read about Montford Point Marine Veterans receiving their medals at their residence or at a nursing home. They were too ill to make the ceremony in Washington. D.C. Others had no idea the United States Marine Corp were trying to locate them. Usually a Marine Officer arrives at the Veteran's house to award the coveted Medal of Honor to a proud "Leatherneck."


So what do you think? Should a "Johnny Come Lately" slap a book or movie together and exploit my father's story, using my words and efforts? Why aren't these individuals reaching out to me if they are so interested in my father's life as a Montford Point Marine? Isn't it great that my father has an uncanny memory about his past?


Please feel free to comment and share.

Source: Nola.com
Reading about the history of the Montford Point Marines

Source:
dvidshub.net

Leatherneck-Slang word for US Marine