More secrets are being revealed about my family in this time period. The late Evelyn Louise Harris lived from November 5, 1936, in Southampton County, Virginia to March 24, 2022. She married James Henry Price (1938-2016) on December 24, 1960, at Southampton County, Virginia. Evelyn Louise Harris was my late 2nd cousin as we are both descendants of Zilphy Claud via my 4th great grandmother Sarah Claud. Evelyn's daughter with James Henry Price is Symea Ardell Price (b. 1963). Symea Ardell Price was born on June 4, 1963, in Franklin, Virginia, and she married Raymond Carl Fitts on August 26, 1989, at Richmond, Virginia. Their child is Evan Raymond Fitts (b. 1994), who is my 4th cousin. Evelyn Louis Harris's siblings are Bessie Elizabeth Harris (1914-1968. She married Samuel Westly Johnson with the children of Marien Ardell Johnson, Samuel W. Johnson Jr., and Theodore Johnson), Andrew Lee Harris Jr. (1916-1994), Marian Virginia Harris (1918-2016. She taught in a one-room schoolhouse in Boykins, Southampton County, Virginia), James Hurley Harris (1919-1944), Delaware Floyd Harris (1921-2010), Virgie Lee Mildred Harris (1924-2023), and Henry Cranting Harris (1926-1983). Evelyn Harris Price was a great teacher in Richmond, Virginia, and a church leader. Mrs. Price was best known for her role as a teacher at Blackwell Primary and Blackwell Elementary for more than 30 years and for her service to Second Baptist Church in Randolph. She had a great sense of humor and was always giving. Evelyn Harris Price loved to play the piano when she was growing up. She graduated from the Southampton County Training School and earned her bachelor’s degree at Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina. She supported the Second Baptist church ministry and other programs. Evelyn Louise Harris's parents were Andrew Jackson Harris (1892-1984) and Emma Mason Harris (1893-1980).
My late 2nd cousin Virgie Lee Mildred Harris lived from March 28, 1924, at Southampton County, Virginia to June 25, 2023. She married Galvin Lewis Jenkins (b. 1920) on July 9, 1949, at Lunenburg, Virginia. Their daughter is my 3rd cousin Avis Vanessa Jenkins (b. 1953). Avis Jenkins married Donnie Wayne Gresby on July 18, 1981, at Lunenburg, Virginia on July 18, 1981. Virgie Mildred Harris Jenkins was the seventh of nine children, and she lived to be 99 years old. Her foster brother is Maynard Boykins. Mrs. Jenkins joined Mount Tabor Baptist Church in Newsoms, VA. After marriage, the family moved to Chase City, VA where she became affiliated with the Calvary Baptist Church in Rehoboth, VA (1952—1966). Finally, the family moved to Victoria, VA, where she became a faithful member of the First Baptist Church. During her active membership, she was a Deaconess (Treasurer and Financial Secretary), a member of the Pastor’s Aide Circle (Treasurer) where she became an Emeritus member, a member of the Program Committee (Treasurer), and a member of the Church Women’s Auxiliary. Mrs. Jenkins was a graduate of Southampton County Training School in Courtland, VA in 1942. Upon graduation, she attended Virginia State College (Petersburg, VA) where she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Elementary Education in 1946. She also continued coursework through Longwood College in Farmville, VA, William and Mary College in Williamsburg, VA, and the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA. After graduating from college, she began her teaching career as an elementary school teacher in Southampton County for 6 years (1946—1952).
Mr. and Mrs. Jenkins moved to Chase City, VA in 1952 where she became employed as an elementary school teacher in the Lunenburg County Public School System in 1954. She served a total of 36 years of dedicated service to the children of Southampton County and Lunenburg County (grades 1-3). Her students respect her to this day, and she retired from teaching on June 9, 1984. Mrs. Jenkins was in the NAACP and other educational organizations in Virginia. Honors that Mrs. Jenkins earned included Outstanding Elementary Teacher of America (1975), the Virginia Education Association’s Honor Award for 25 Years of Service, etc. Her niece is Francine Delbra Harris Silver (b. 1950. She is the daughter of Henry Cranting Harris and Barbara Lee Williams. She married Floyd Silver on June 9, 1979, at Hampton, Virginia. Their children are Geoffrey Harris Silver [1981-2009] and Gerard Silver, who was born in 1984).
My 2nd cousin Dotsie Lee Barrett (1908-2008) had the parents of Sarah Harris and Frank Barrett. She married Martin Luther Pinkston on August 21, 1949, in Newport News, Virginia. Sarah's parents are Nelson Harris (b. 1861) and Susanna Sarah M. Hill (b. 1867). Dotsie Barrett Pinkston's 2nd great-grandmother was my 4th great-grandmother of Sarah Claud. Dotsie Barrett Pinkston grew up in the Capron and Courtland area of Virginia. During her early adult life, she lived in Hampton, Virginia with her late Uncle and Aunt, Nelson and Rosa Harris. She also joined Lincoln Park Baptist (now Canaan Baptist Church), where she served in the capacity of Organist, Church Clerk, and Custodian for many, many years. She also sang in the Inspirational Choir and served as a Gleaner until her failing health. Dotsie made her own clothes as a master seamstress, and she was a self-taught pianist. She loved to sing religious songs about God. Dotsie Lee Barrett and Augustus McNeil had the child of Benjamin Frank Barrett Sr. (b. 1947). Benjamin Frank Barrett Sr. married Mary Louise Mills (b. 1949) on August 19, 1947, in Newport News, Virginia. Their child is Benjamin Frank Barrett Jr. She has six grandchildren, Terethia (Terri) Denai Barrett of Portsmouth (she is the daughter of Benjamin Frank Barrett Sr. and Mary Louise Mills. Terethia was born in 1970), Benjamin ("BJ") Barrett, Jr. and James A. Barrett both of Hampton, James Harris stationed in Germany, and Jerome Anthony Barrett (he was born on October 6, 1972, at Hampton, Virginia, and he is married to Angela Marci Bowles [b. 1973] since February 19, 2011, at Hampton, Virginia), and Timothy Barrett, both of Brooklyn, N.Y. Dotsie Lee Barrett has 29 great-grandchildren; one great-great grandson; a special niece, Carrie Glymph of Hampton; a special great-niece, Antoinette Whitts of Hampton, and a host of other loving family members and caring friends.
As we enter the Winter season of 2023-2024, we realize that we are in a new era of our time. Many of us Millennials are in early middle age. I'm a middle-aged person now, and that is very interesting. I remember many events like yesterday like the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, the 9/11 attacks, the start of the Iraq War, the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, and the Ferguson protests in 2014. Now, we witness a time nearing 2030. Time is going so fast, but the ultimate truth remains constant. The truth is that human beings should show love, improve their lives, and show integrity during their journeys. We have to expose deceptions too. One deception is the No Labels Party movement. This movement claims to be a "moderate" group, but they are funded by reactionary forces. Many people are sick of the two major parties, and that is understandable. Yet, the only person who will win the 2024 election will be Trump or Biden. Trump donors back the No Labels group according to Robert Reich in his video. Trump and Biden aren't equally extreme. Trump has been impeached twice, found liable for sexual assault, wants to abolish the Constitution, and is accused of multiple felonies too. Biden is not equivalent to the most corrupt former President of the 21st century, being Donald Trump. Trump has tried to overturn the 2020 election. Democracy barely won in the 2020 election with Georgia, Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Michigan going for Biden. A fraction of the anti-Trump vote going to a third party will cause Trump to be President in 2024. There is no middle ground between democracy and fascism. The House Republicans want an impeachment inquiry against Biden which is ludicrous as Biden is not guilty of the massive felonies that Trump is being accused of.
Music has differently changed over the course of thousands of years. Now, we are in the 2020's. During this time, we saw the Russian-Ukrainian war, the COVID-19 pandemic, the growth of RSV worldwide, the end of the Afghanistan War, and the Israel/Hamas war that started on October 7, 2023. Climate change has grown with ecological crises have escalated with droughts, floods, and massive earthquakes worldwide. Many people are using teleconferencing, online learning, streaming services, e-commerce, and food delivery services at a higher level than in the 2010s. The rise of A.I. has changed music and culture too. We have the advanced robotic humanoid named Ameca showing human gestures in this Fourth Industrial Revolution of the 2020's. Now, we have A.I.-generated songs that some people threaten to sue to prevent A.I. from using their voices on songs. The ninth generation of video game consoles existed like PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X being released in 2020. Decorative face masks are in vogue in the 2020s. Among Zoomers and other human beings, Tik Tok became a major influence on music and popular culture in general. Apple TV+, Max, and Paramount+ give shows and movies constantly in the 2020's too. Avatar: The Way of Water is the highest-grossing film of the decade, and currently the third highest-grossing film of all time. Other financially successful films at the box office include Top Gun: Maverick, No Time to Die, Jurassic World Dominion, and Oppenheimer. Superhero films mostly continued to do well financially, with Spider-Man: No Way Home being the second highest-grossing of the decade. Other successful superhero films include The Batman as well as most of Marvel Studios' "Multiverse Saga of the MCU." In terms of music, there is an increase of merging genres into one. Ariana Grande, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Megan Thee Stallion, Dua Lipa, Jack Harlow, BTS, Beyonce, and tons of other musicians have expressed their music to the world. A retro embrace of vinyl records is here, and rock is not dead. The Beatles, Haim, U2, and other artists have shown their talents. A new generation of country stars like Kacey Musgraves, Zach Bryan, Luke Combs, etc. have existed. Music readily reflects society, and the 2020's being so complex represents the more complex nature of modern-day music in our generation.
By Timothy
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