Boots Randolph--Noted Musician

BOOTS RANDOLPH--NOTED MUSICIAN

1927-2007

Homer Louis "Boots" Randolph, 80, died on July 3, 2007 at the Skyline Medical Center in Nashville, TN.  The legendary saxophone player was honored by a special proclamation and resolution of respect given by Joyce Banister at the 36^th annual reunion of the Thomas-Bridges Association on Sunday, August 3.  Joyce reminded everyone present that Boots never forgot his roots.  He was a TBA Lifetime member and had supported the organization during the years since it was founded.  He had sponsored the golf tournament in the early years and he and his band had played in concert for several reunions over the years.  The members of the association share this loss with his family and friends.

            Boots was born on June 3, 1927 in Paducah, KY, the son of the late Homer Clay and Bessie Mae Skaggs Randolph and the grandson of the late J. Monroe and Enola Thomas Skaggs.  His wife, TBA Lifetime member,  Dee Randolph, died July 8, 2011.He is survived by his daughter, Linda O'Neal; his son, Randy (Barbara) Randolph; his grandchildren, Cody O’Neal, Patrick O’Neal, Kenny O'Neal, and Tara Harvey; and great grandchildren, Jon Harvey, Maggie Harvey, Samantha O’Neal and Conner O'Neal; his sister, TBA Lifetime member Dorothy Thomas of Leitchfield, KY; and brother, Robert Randolph of Ohio.

            Boots grew up in rural Trigg County with a family that was rich in musical talent.  He learned to play a variety of instruments, but at the age of 16 decided that the saxophone was his instrument of choice.  He served in the 1940s with the US Army and played in the Army Band.  After he was discharged in 1946, he struggled as a professional musician.  After the success of his trademark tune, “Yakety Sax”, he moved in 1961 to Music City USA,  to become a legendary studio musician.  He was the first to ever play sax on recordings with Elvis Presley.  Boots played on such diverse recordings as Roy Orbison, Al Hirt, Brenda Lee, Speedwagon, Chet Atkins, Buddy Holly, Floyd Cramer, Alabama, Johnny Cash, Richie Cole, Pete Fountain, Tommy Newsom and Doc Severinsen.  He remained active as an entertainer right up to the end of his life.

Boots and wife Dee celebrate their Golden Anniversary ! September 23, 1997

 

 THE LINEAGE:

(Homer Louis "Boots" Randolph was the son of Homer Clay and Bessie Mae Skaggs Randolph, grandson of James Monroe and Enola Clemantine Thomas Skaggs and great grandson of Albert Dillard and Mary Jonathan Vinson Thomas.  Albert Dillard was the second child of Peyton and Sarah Ethridge Thomas.  Peyton was the third child of Cullen and Elizabeth Futrell Thomas.  Cullen was the first child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.)

Jean Sholar Christman-Wake Forest Chaplain Wife

JEAN SHOLAR CHRISTMAN—WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY CHAPLAIN’S WIFE

            Ed and Jean Sholar Christman have been a part of the Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC community for more than 60 years. Both arrived at the old campus as college students in the late 1940s.  Aside from Ed’s three years in seminary, they’ve spent their lives as part of Wake Forest, including Ed’s service as Assistant Chaplain and then University Chaplain. Now retired, Ed and Jean live only a few miles away from the campus and still enjoy spending time there.
            Ed and Jean’s presence has always reflected a constancy of joy, kindness, service, and a belief in progress as embodied in Wake Forest’s motto Pro Humanitate.
            Jean Carolyn Sholar was the daughter of Robert Euel Sholar and Emma Goebel Cox Sholar.  She was born in Cadiz, Kentucky, which is in the southwestern part of the state.  She was the fifth of seven children and the youngest of the three girls.
            Jean’s family moved to Hopkinsville, KY, when she was in elementary school. She was valedictorian of Hopkinsville High School, editor of the high school yearbook, and a member of the National Honor Society.  She then attended Bethel Woman’s College where she was Phi Theta Kappa president.
            In 1949, Jean met Edgar D. Christman. New to the campus, she was working in the cafeteria line.  They met when she served him a cup of steaming coffee served without a saucer, were introduced under a shady tree on the old campus,  became acquainted over a snooze in church, and have been together ever since.   As Ed says, “We found each other’s company very pleasant.”  And thus begins a love story…
            By Christmas, when Jean went home to Kentucky, she already knew she was going to marry Ed.  They were married three years later, on December 23, 1952 at Wake Forest Baptist Church, in Wake Forest, North Carolina, by Pastor J. Glenn Blackburn.  Jean’s brother Ronald gave her away, and Racine Brown, Ed’s roommate, served as best man.
            Jean wrote about the old campus in her notes for the Class of 1951 Reunion Directory, from Homecoming 2001:  “My memories of the ‘old’ campus include the bell ringing after athletic victories, the tradition of speaking to everyone, magnolia trees covering the campus, the rock wall, brick walkways which ruined all high-heeled shoes, meeting my husband, and living in ‘new’ Johnson Dorm with wonderful hall mates and housemother Ma Overby.  Wake Forest professors who have been very influential were Roland Gay, K.T. Raynor, David Smiley, Henry Stroupe, Howell Smith, and Sterling Boyd.”
            Jean had a distinguished school career of her own. She graduated magna cum laude in 1951 with a BA.  She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and Mortar Board, and she was inducted into the honor society Tassels “in recognition of her outstanding attainments in Scholarship, Leadership, and Character at Wake Forest College.”
            After Wake Forest, Jean went on to graduate school at Duke University and was awarded a Master of Arts in Teaching (M.A.T.) on September 2, 1957 (when baby Carolyn was four months old!).  She taught mathematics at high schools in Spring Hope, Bunn, and Youngsville, near to the town of Wake Forest.
            Ed Christman was ordained to the ministry on January 15, 1955. Ed and Jean returned from a year in New York City and Union Seminary in the fall of 1969. Ed was turning 40 years old and he was offered the job as University Chaplain at Wake Forest University, a position he would hold for the next 34 years, retiring in 2003.
            Ed and Jean were members of the Wake Forest Baptist Church in Wake Forest, and they were organizing members of the Wake Forest Baptist on the campus in Winston-Salem.
            Jean’s greatest love was to be the mother of two daughters, Carolyn Jo Christman and Kimberly Jean Christman, and even more so to become a grandmother in 2003 to Francisco Christman Shehee.
            Jean was an active member of the Wake Forest community as a leader of the Faculty Wives Club and of the Wake Forest Baptist Church mission group.  She was a literacy volunteer in the Winston-Salem public schools, and she also tutored many children and adults in reading, writing, and mathematics, setting up her ‘school room’ on the dining room table.
            The Wake Forest Divinity School Dean and Faculty honored Ed and Jean Christman upon his retirement as Chaplain by naming the school’s full-tuition fellowship the Ed and Jean Christman Fellowship. The fellowship is awarded to the most promising applicants, providing them up to three years of tuition support.
            Wake Forest University also created, as part of its William Louis Poteat Scholarship program, a scholarship in the names of Ed and Jean Christman. The Christman Scholarship, like the 20 other Poteat Scholarships, is awarded to first year students who are active members of a North Carolina Baptist church and who show promise of making a significant contribution to church and society.
            In 2009, Ed and Jean moved from their house on Royall Drive to Salemtowne, a Moravian-affiliated continuing care retirement community just a few miles away.  Salemtowne is a wonderful home, with splendid neighbors, excellent food, and a spacious apartment.  As Ed says, “we have landed in a wonderful place.”
            What’s best about Salemtowne has been the combination of old friends from Wake Forest (including the Royall Drive neighborhood!) plus new friends from other places. Everyone has had interesting lives and experiences to share. Ed and Jean love the community spirit, the dining room, and the many varied programs. They also appreciate being able to stay so close to the campus.

THE LINEAGE:

(Jean Carolyn Sholar Christman was the daughter of Robert Euel and Emma Goebel Cox Sholar and granddaughter of Drewry and Rosetta Olive Grigsby Sholar.  Drewry was the son of William Bridges and Mary E. Hutt Sholar.  William was the fourth child of Allen and Jemima Bridges Sholar.  Jemima was the first child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.)

Edison Thomas--Author and Family Historian

EDISON H. THOMAS—AUTHOR AND FAMILY HISTORIAN

Edison Hugh Thomas, historian, writer, genealogist and organizing member of the Thomas-Bridges Association, Inc., was born on June 5, 1912.  In 1971, he was instrumental in the organization of the Thomas-Bridges Association, serving as its first vice-president.  He was the second president of the association and served as newsletter editor for the next thirty-one years.  As some members have said, the newsletter, in those formative years, was the glue that held the organization together.  He attended every reunion, except one, as long as his health permitted, as well as other extra meetings.

            A native of Trigg County, KY, he was a retired public relations executive of the old Louisville & Nashville Railroad; a Navy veteran of World War II, Pacific theater; member of the Filson Club; the Kentucky Historical Society; the John Hunt Morgan Chapter, Sons of  Confederate Veterans, Orphan Brigade Kinfolk; The Kentucky Society, Sons of American Revolution; a Kentucky Colonel; past-president of the Thomas-Bridges Association; the Pioneer Club; deacon and moderator, Valley Station Baptist Church and their XYZ Club.  After moving to Fort Wayne, he was an active member of Faith Baptist Church and their XYZ Club.

            The son of the late Robert H. and Ora Bridges Thomas, he was the last surviving member of the family of two brothers and one sister.  His Thomas-Bridges ancestry originated with James Thomas, Jr. and his wife Margaret Ethridge Thomas and William Bridges and his wife Mary Thomas Bridges, all pioneers in what later became Trigg County, KY.

            Edison died July 16, 2011, in Fort Wayne, IN, at the age of 99, following a fall a few days earlier.  Funeral services were held in Louisville, KY on July 23, 2011, at W. G. Hardy Funeral Home, 10907 Dixie Highway with eulogies given by Barbara A. Garrett Read, Ronald L. Garrett, Dwayne R. Garrett and two granddaughters.  Interment was at Louisville Memorial Gardens West.

            His wife, Thelma Waits Thomas, died February 8, 2001.  He is survived by three children, Barbara A. Read (Joe) of Chesterfield, MO, Ronald L. Garrett (Vicky) and Dwayne R. Garrett (Betty) of Fort Wayne, IN, 11 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, one great-great grandchild, two nephews, four nieces, many cousins and good friends.  One daughter, Sue Garrett Manahan nee Garrett (Warren) preceded him in death.

Edison at work in his early years at The Cadiz Record

 

 

THE LINEAGE:

(Edison Hugh Thomas was the son of Robert Henry and Ora Agnes Bridges Thomas and the grandson of Carroll and Margaret Jane Reid Thomas and Cullen Thomas and Martha Ann Virginia Thomas Bridges.  Carroll was the second child of James, Jr. and Margaret Ethridge Thomas.  James, Jr. was the sixth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.  Cullen Bridges was the twelfh child of William and Mary Thomas Bridges.  William was the fourth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.)

A Family Tragedy from 1926

A FAMILY TRAGEDY STORY FROM 1926

The following story was reported in the “The Cadiz Record” on February 21, 1926:

February 21, 1926

Burned To Death In Illinois Town

Wife of Jagoe Thomas Formerly Of Trigg Meets Horrible Death

Daughter In Law Of Cadiz Citizen And Trigg County Relatives Attend Funeral

                Marcellus Jagoe Thomas, a former popular young man of Trigg county and son of Mr. and Mrs. William H. Thomas, of Cadiz, lost his wife by a most horrible death at Christopher, Ill., on Tuesday night of last week. 

                She sustained burns and injuries when the Thomas home burned at Christopher which caused her death some hours later.

                The father and mother, Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Thomas, Conrad Thomas and Herschel Thomas, brothers of Mr. Thomas, of Trigg county, and another brother, William S. Thomas, and wife of Hopkinsville, left here on Thursday morning and motored to Christopher to attend the funeral and burial.

                Funeral took place Saturday morning at the First Baptist church in Christopher, a large crowd of sorrowing friends and relatives being present, and burial followed Saturday afternoon at Benton, Ill.They reached their homes Sunday afternoon.

                Young Mr. Thomas has hosts of relatives and friends in Trigg County will sympathize with him in the sad bereavement that has befallen him.

                The Christopher, Ill. PROGRESS of last Thursday, February 18th, gives the following detailed account of the death of Mrs. Thomas and the circumstances leading up to it.

                A most deplorable tragedy which plunged the city of Christopher into a concord of sorrow occurred Tuesday night about midnight when the home of M. J. Thomas, 809 South Emma Street, burned and the death of Mrs. Thomas was brought about as a result of injuries she received from the flames while she was trying to escape from the burning building.The blaze was probably discovered from the outside by Richard Shoof, who lives on Thomas street, almost directly behind the former home of the Thomas's. As he drove his car into the garage shortly before midnight he observed sparks coming from the roof of the house and thought at the time that they were coming from the chimney. He decided to put his car in the garage and go over and warn Mrs. Thomas of the danger. On coming out of the garage he was amazed to see the fire shooting from the entire front of the house. He quickly ran to the telephone and turned in the fire alarm. He then went to the scene of the fire.

                The fire department soon had the blaze under control and no damage was done to the adjacent residence except a severe scorching and cracking of window panes. Thomas' house and all its contents were completely destroyed.

                In the meantime the large crowd which had assembled sorrowfully received the word that Mrs. Thomas and her 17 month old daughter, Marcella had been seriously burned while escaping from the inferno.

                Mr. Thomas is a storekeeper for Old Ben Corporation and had recently been transferred to watchman at the Old National because of the closing down of some of the mines. He had been working from midnight until the preceding Sunday when he changed shifts, beginning work at noon and coming home at midnight.

                On the night of the tragedy Mrs. Thomas had retired early rather than wait up for her husband's coming. According to the best story she could give, she woke up to find the house on fire. She slipped on her shoes and a pair on the baby and then wrapping the child in its feather mattress, attempted to escape thru the front door. She had trouble unlocking the door and almost before she could realize what had happened she found herself trapped in a mass of flame. Apparently a grim determination to save her baby at any cost saved her and the child from death then and there.

                She finally got the door open and running out fell from the porch to the ground. Her gown and hair were in flames. Mrs. Walter Burklow who had just arrived home from Benton was attracted by her screams and hastened to her relief. She took charge of Marcella and her husband carried Mrs. Thomas to their home. Medical aid was summoned and all-----.

                By this time several of the neighbors had been awakened and had reached the scene. They aroused the family of A. E. Townsend whose home was only a few yards from the Thomas house, only a driveway and a few feet on each side between the houses. Some little difficulty was encounters in waking up this family who were deeply wrapped in slumber.

                The Thomas house was now a mass of flames from one end to the other. It was seen that efforts to save the burning house or any of its contents would be van and the men who had assembled began emptying the house which was not afire. In a few minutes all the household goods had been safely deposited in the yard with very little damage except that usually occasioned by hurried moving.

                When he arrived he first observed Mrs. Thomas at some distance up the ----- was done that could be done to relieve her suffering and that of the little girl and to save the life of the mother who had offered the extreme sacrifice of mother love. It was found that Marcella was painfully but not seriously burned.

                Both were later removed to the home of Mrs. Olive Leitch, 410 North Emma street, where at three o'clock Thursday morning Mrs. Thomas passed from this earth to receive her reward at the hands of Him whose mission on this earth was to die that others might live.

                Mrs. Thomas; maiden name was Minnie Olive Leitch. She was born July 15, 1905, at Spencer, Indiana. She with her family moved to Christopher about seven years ago.

                On May 22, 1920 she was united in marriage to Marcellus J. Thomas, of Christopher. A daughter, Marcella was born to them September 30, 1924. They bought the home which was destroyed Tuesday night shortly after their marriage and had devoted themselves faithfully to their home, each other and to their daughter.

                The father of the deceased preceded her in death about eighteen months ago. She leaves to mourn her untimely and apparently cruel departure from the earth her husband and daughter, mother and three sisters, Mrs. Lyda McMann, o9f Westville; Mrs. Joe Rigo, of Valier, and Miss Billie Leitch, of Christopher. It would be entirely appropriate to mention also her brother in law, Raymond Thomas, who has made his home with Mr. and Mrs. Thomas most of the time since their marriage, and who loved the deceased with all the devotion of a full brother.

                It is useless to indulge the eulogy of the departed. Her life was exemplary and made beautiful by her friendly and ineffective simplicity. Her sacrificial death was the crowning glory of her life. May she rest peacefully and live long in the memory of those who loved her.

A Follow up story in the Cadiz Record adds further tragedy:

February 1926

Jagoe Thomas Loses His Baby Daughter

Little Daughter Follows Mother Who was Burned To Death In Illinois

Mr. and Mrs. W. H. Thomas, of this city have received notice from their son, Jagoe Thomas, of Christopher, Ill.,  stating that his little daughter, Marcella, died on last Saturday.

Last week THE RECORD contained a long account of the death of the mother by burning. At the time it will be remembered the little daughter also suffered burns. This, counted with an  illness the baby already had caused her death.

The little one was about eighteen months of age.      THE LINEAGE: (Marcellus Jagoe Thomas was the son of William Henry and Martha Ellen Tinsley Thomas and the grandson of Stanley and Emily Ann Light Thomas.  Stanley was the second child of Starkie and Mary Bridges Thomas.   Starkie was the fourth child of James and Mary Standley Thomas.  Mary Bridges was the fifth child of Drury and Charity Cohoon Bridges.)