Carolyn Cunningham Interviewed on March 6, 1996

HUNTLEY: This is an interview with Ms. Carolyn Cunningham for the Birmingham Civil Rights lnstitute's Oral History Project. I am Dr. Horace Huntley. We are at Miles College and today is March 6, 1996.

Thank you, Mrs. Cunningham for taking time out of your schedule to come and sit with us today.

CUNNINGHAM: You are quite welcome.

HUNTLEY: I would like to start by asking some general questions about your family . Were your parents native to Birmingham?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes. Well, my mother wasn't born in Birmingham. My mother was born in Philadelphia. My father was born in Birmingham. But, they both lived in Birmingham for the greater part of their young lives. They both attended Parker High School although I do believe my mother attended Ullman High when it became 00:01:00a high school, years ago. And, so they were part of the Birmingham way of doing things.

HUNTLEY: You were born in Birmingham?

CUNNINGHAM: I was indeed.

HUNTLEY: Do you have brothers and sisters?

CUNNINGHAM: I have step brothers and sisters and most of them are still living with the exception of two. They do not live here in Birmingham. I'm the only one in Birmingham.

HUNTLEY: And you have recently returned to Birmingham?

CUNNINGHAM: I just recently returned in October of last year.

HUNTLEY: How many brothers and sisters did you have?

CUNNINGHAM: Oh, I have a number. My father and stepmother had ten in all. And, my stepmother and father had two.

HUNTLEY: That's a big family?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes. I lived mostly with my grandmother. My grandparents reared me 00:02:00and brought me up as a single child.

HUNTLEY: Both your parents finished high school at Parker?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, they did.

HUNTLEY: What kind of work did they do?

CUNNINGHAM: My father went from high school to the military and that's where he remained for about 30 years, with an exception of a little time when he decided he wanted to get out of the military. He did and was at the point where he said he really liked the military and he went back in. That's where he stayed. My mother, on the other hand, started a family with my stepfather and she later, in life, went back to college. She attended City University in New York City. She also has about four courses toward her doctorate degree. She is a very smart 00:03:00person. After having all the children she had, she decided she still wanted to go to college. She said to me that she wasn't going to let me out pass her or out do her. I don't have my doctorate, but she almost has hers and I'm very proud of her.

HUNTLEY: So she is still ahead of the game?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, she is a very talented person.

HUNTLEY: So, you were raised by your grandmother?

CUNNINGHAM: My maternal grandmother and grandfather. And, also with my father's mother and grandfather and grandmother and my father. So I had all of those people caring for me and taking care of me.

HUNTLEY: Were you the only child in the household?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, I was.

HUNTLEY: Where did you start elementary school?

CUNNINGHAM: I started elementary school at Kingston Elementary. I lived in 00:04:00Avondale at the time, and in order to get to Kingston, it was a matter of, I don't know if you're familiar with that area, but at the time there was a lumber yard. We had to travel across the railroad tracks, we called it "the bottom." Through "the bottom", that was the lumber yard and there was the school on the other side. So, it was a matter of a little bit of travel every morning, but it was a wonderful school.

HUNTLEY: Is there anything that stands out in your mind about your days at Kingston?

CUNNINGHAM: Oh, yes. It was a wonderful school. The teachers were just the best. I just believe that my foundation as far as an education is concerned, started at that school. I had one teacher who will remain in my mind forever, her name is Mrs. Little. She taught me all of the poetry that I know. We had to learn poems overnight. The Gettysburg Address. There wasn't a discussion about "Well, 00:05:00it's overnight, you can't learn it." She always said you can. We memorized overnight. We did everything she said. And, I just became, well everybody says I brag a little, but I just became the smartest because of her.

HUNTLEY: After Kingston, where did you go?

CUNNINGHAM: Because Kingston only went to the 6th grade, I went to Thomas Elementary School and, from there Ullman High School, where I graduated in 1955.

HUNTLEY: Were you active in extracurricular activities?

CUNNINGHAM: Sure. I was rather, I guess a little shy at the time. But, I could always perform. Sometimes they say a shy person might not be able to talk to maybe one person or two people, but they could always speak to an audience. I 00:06:00was a singer. I danced and recited poetry in the community. I was a girl scout it seems like forever. I was a member of Our Lady of Fatima Catholic Church at that time it was over on 6th Avenue, Avenue F, they called it. I went to girl scout camp. The Johnsons used to run the girl scout camp.

HUNTLEY: In Bessemer?

CUNNINGHAM: No. This one was in Zion City and I can't think of the name of it. But, anyway I used to go there every summer and Mrs. Johnson was over it at that time.

HUNTLEY: So, you were quite busy then?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, I was.

HUNTLEY: What community did you live in when you went to Ullman?

CUNNINGHAM: I lived in Titusville with my great-grandparents right there on Center Way. There was a cemetery there. It has now been moved and that's where Our Lady of Fatima Church and the school have been built.

HUNTLEY: That was a cemetery where the school is now?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes. It was an old cemetery. So, I lived there with my great-grandparents and in Avondale with my grandparents. So, there were times when I lived with, it seems, everybody.

HUNTLEY: How would you describe your community?

CUNNINGHAM: Well Titusville was the kind of community that seemed to have been growing at that time. I recall when I was a little girl, where the projects are, there were no projects at that time. There was just a pasture . My friends and I used to walk all the way from Center Way to the pasture.

HUNTLEY: Is it Elyton or Loveman's Village?

CUNNINGHAM: Loveman's Village. We would go there and play in the pasture with the cows and all. Of course, we would get spanked because that was not where we were supposed to go, but I think everybody enjoyed going there. That's what that type of community was. There was one Black store and one Italian store in that community. Both are now no longer there. And, of course, the cleaners was on Avenue F, run by a Black person. Avondale was a little bit different because there, in order to get to Thomas Elementary School, my friends and I had to travel to a White community. I remember that at that time we weren't supposed to 00:09:00do that. We weren't supposed to go through their community and they weren't supposed to go through our community. So, the thing is, that when we did that, we would run very quickly through and they would throw rocks at us. I don't think anybody was ever hurt. It was just that something that happened. And, when they went through our community, we would do the same thing to them. So, that's as far as that kind of conflict went.

HUNTLEY: They were adjacent communities?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes.

HUNTLEY: Did you ever have any good relations with any of the White children that lived near you?

CUNNINGHAM: Well, we didn't have any good relationship with the ones that lived in that little area. I think it was the cotton mill right there on First Avenue and, the people who lived in that area, I believed worked in the cotton mill. I don't recall anyone having a good relationship with them. But, on my street there was a store, an Italian store, and the Italian family had three children, 00:10:00as I recall and we all played together until all of us started attending high school. I recall that I went downtown on a streetcar one day and I saw one of the little Italian girls, I spoke to her and she didn't speak to me. Well, that just hurt my feelings. I remember I went home and I cried. I said, "Well, why did she do that?" Because, where I lived, my grandparents had a big, old house. It was a nice house right there on

42nd Street in Avondale, right up from Hominy Street Church. It was a nice area. Nice, big old houses. We had a very long front porch. So, on Sundays, or during the rainy season we would all sit on that porch and play, the Italian kids and 00:11:00I. Well, anyway my grandmother said, "Well, this is the way that is going to be. She just might not ever say anything to you, but don't feel terrible because I think she still likes you, this is just the way the south is." I rather understood it. I never saw her again. My grandmother did domestic work and I recall when she took me to work with her, the White lady's daughter always wanted me to play with her terrible toys, the dirty ones, the ones she should have put in the garbage and I wouldn't do it because I had very nice toys. I told my grandmother and she started letting me bring my own toys. So, that relationship wasn't the best.

HUNTLEY: So your grandmother worked as a domestic?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, she did.

HUNTLEY: What kind of work did your grandfather do?

CUNNINGHAM: My grandfather was in the military in his younger life. He has always been a very good cook, so he was the captain's cook. During that time the captain always had his private cook, so that's what my grandfather did. After he was discharged from the military, he worked for Merita Bakery right there on First Avenue and that's where he worked until he retired. So my grandparents always worked. I don't know, my grandmother was such a budgeter. She was able to keep everything together.

HUNTLEY: After you finished Ullman High School, what did you do?

CUNNINGHAM: When I finished Ullman High School, I was 16 years old and I went off to Xavier University in New Orleans. I remained there for a semester, and 00:13:00because I was 16, not really knowing what I wanted to do, well, I won't say I didn't know what I wanted to do, but I didn't know the best thing to do, because I wanted to join the military. And, at 16 years one of your parents had to sign for you. Now, at the time, I took the test and everything to join the Navy and I just needed that signature from my father, who was overseas at the time. He said, "No, you can't join the military. You must go to college." That was a very good decision he made.

HUNTLEY: Why did you want to join the military?

CUNNINGHAM: I had been brought up loving the military. My father bought me the first WAC uniform as a little girl. I had a little jeep that I used to ride down the sidewalk. I just loved the military because of him. Well, I couldn't join the military at that time, but years later, at about 34 years of age, I joined 00:14:00the military. They still had the WAC. There were two of us who where older than the kids in basic training.

HUNTLEY: So after the first semeste,r you left Xavier?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, I did.

HUNTLEY: Then, what did you do?

CUNNINGHAM: I left Xavier and still wanting to follow some other dreams, I wanted to be a singer. I went to live with my aunt in Chicago. I attended music school there and I appeared on some amateur programs.

HUNTLEY: Did you ever appear on Ted Max Amateur Hour?

CUNNINGHAM: No, I didn't. I wish I had. But, I guess I could have been a singer, 00:15:00but I had to work, too, because my parents weren't rich. So, the first job I got I really disliked it.

HUNTLEY: What was that?

CUNNINGHAM: Well, I had to get up very early in the morning and go to a hospital to work in the dietary kitchen. I do remember that the hours were long. I wasn't familiar with all of the deserts, because you know they use those conveyor belts. It wasn't my type of thing to do. My grandfather had already said I wouldn't like the job. So I had to call him back. I was in Chicago and I called him here in Birmingham and he answered the phone. He said, "Well, you don't like that job, do you?" I said, "No, I've got to go to college." I had to beg my grandparents to send me back to college. My grandmother said, "Well, we're not wealthy, this is the last straw. You either go again, you must stay." And I stayed. This time they let me choose what college. Before they wanted me to go 00:16:00to a catholic college because I'm catholic, but I really wanted to go to Southern University. They let me attend there.

HUNTLEY: So, how long did you stay in Chicago?

CUNNINGHAM: I stayed in Chicago a year and half or two years.

HUNTLEY: And then you returned to started Southern?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, I went to Southern University and I graduated.

HUNTLEY: What was your area?

CUNNINGHAM: Speech and English.

HUNTLEY: What do you remember about Southern?

CUNNINGHAM: I do have a vivid picture of the way it used to be. It is not that way now. It is beautiful. But, when I first attended Southern, there were no paved roads on campus. The one thing that I do remember is walking in all of that mud during the raining season. It was nice because we had a small dormitory 00:17:00and it was safe. When I look back on colleges now, and the way ours were then, I can say that we lived in a safe environment, because we had everybody there. The doors were locked and we weren't allowed to leave after 11:00 p.m. We had to be in at 11:00. We had to begin studying at 7:00 p.m., so there were rules and regulations. It took an act of Congress for us to get off campus at night.

HUNTLEY: Was that a good experience? Did you enjoy your time you spent at Southern?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, I did. Of course, Southern is situated right near at the Mississippi River and the campus sits on the edge.

HUNTLEY: Have you been back?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes. I returned twice.

HUNTLEY: After you graduated from Southern, what did you do?

CUNNINGHAM: After graduating from Southern I came back to Birmingham and Dr. George C. Bell was still the principal of Ullman High School. I remember my grandmother received a phone call and she was told that there was a job for me if I wanted it, because it was in my area at Ullman High School. I remember telling Mr. Bell I really didn't want the job because I was going to California to live with my father because he had promised to buy me a car. That tells you how spoiled I was. I really didn't want the job and I hung the phone up. Well, my grandmother took the phone and said, "She will talk to you later. She will call you back." After hanging up the phone she said, "Well, you really will have 00:19:00to take that job. You need to work. So, you must call him back and let him know that you will take that job." And, I did as she said. So, needless to say, I bought my own car, which was better and I got that job and I've been working ever since.

HUNTLEY: How long were you at Ullman? When was this?

CUNNINGHAM: This was in the 60s. This was 1961. I was there until the later part of '63. And, then there were times, like I said, when I came back to Birmingham and I worked. But I taught drama and English there at Ullman when I first returned.

HUNTLEY: In 1961, the year of the Freedom Riders, in 1963 the year of selective buying campaigns. Do you remember anything about those two events that were 00:20:00taking place?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes. During that time they were still meeting.

HUNTLEY: The Alabama Christian Movement for Human Rights?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, at the motel. That famous motel that is now a nursing home.

HUNTLEY: It was A. G. Gaston's Motel at the time.

CUNNINGHAM: At the time I never saw anything written down to say that teachers couldn't participate in marches and demonstrations, but it was somewhat of an unwritten type of proclamation that you were not supposed to do those kinds of things. I remember when I first started going to the meetings, I really had to sneak. I had to say that, but it's true. Later, I became more bold and I think most of the teachers who participated in all of that had a more bolder spirit. I 00:21:00remember going with some of the other teachers at Ullman to the meetings. I remember the dogs and the hose pipes, the water that was turned on the marchers in the park. I was here for all of that.

HUNTLEY: Why did you decided to get involved?

CUNNINGHAM: I wanted to get involved because of the fact that when I was a child, growing up in Birmingham, I remember the Klu Klux Klan. I lived right there in Avondale. I remember that the Klan used to wait until midnight or so, to drive through our neighborhood. You could hear people yelling turn out the lights. My grandparents would turn the lights out and we would get very, very quiet. As a matter of fact, everybody on our street. The street was just very quiet and they would ride up and down the street. I always thought that their 00:22:00headquarters was there at the park in Woodlawn, that's what we always thought. So, I remember all of that. I remember when we couldn't drink at the fountains, so I had a reason to want to get involved, because to me, it was a challenge. To me things would get better if I got involved. I had to work, so there was so much that I could do. But, as I think back, I think everybody's effort helped the Movement. So, at the time, I wasn't in the forefront and, even now, I have a tendency sometimes to do a lot in the background unless somebody nudges me to get into the forefront. Now, if I'm asked to do something, I will do it. But otherwise, I'll be back there doing something. So I wasn't as verbal or as seen 00:23:00as much as I could be now, because of my job as a teacher.

HUNTLEY: Were you in the classroom during the 1963 demonstrations?

CUNNINGHAM: No. I wasn't teaching at that particular time. I was here during the on start of everything, the meetings leading up to that.

HUNTLEY: You were not here in April or May of 1963 when the children got involved?

CUNNINGHAM: No.

HUNTLEY: Had you left Birmingham by then?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes.

HUNTLEY: You mentioned that you were involved in demonstrations. Tell me about that. What demonstrations was this?

CUNNINGHAM: It was a lunch counter sit-ins in Louisiana. When I was at Southern University, we had the sit-ins at that time. The school was closed several days 00:24:00because students were getting involved. We were told that if we got involved in any marches, any sit-ins that we would be sent home. And, some students were sent home. I wasn't one of the ones who was sent home. But, we didn't have classes for awhile. So, I was involved in that. When I came here, I was involved in the mass meetings that we had and the marches and so, I was around when the dogs were sicked on everyone.

HUNTLEY: So you attended meetings at 16th Street Baptist?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes.

HUNTLEY: Can you give me a description of what the mass meetings were liked?

CUNNINGHAM: Well, as I recall they were spirited. There were speakers there. We, as an audience was asked to speak if we wanted. Everyone had a chance to voice 00:25:00their opinion about what they would do to help end the strife that we were facing. There were people who helped to prepare the food and there was singing. I just remember the togetherness of the people at that time and the challenges that they faced knowing how the south was at that time. That, even before the bombing, we could have all been killed at the church. A sniper could have been outside. But, I never got the feeling that people were that much afraid. I just think that they saw that something needed to be done and they did it. Now that I think about things , I'm not to sure if we would have that cohesive spirit now. 00:26:00I don't know. I've been thinking about that. Because there was that cohesion among the adults and the young people. The young people were more active.

HUNTLEY: Why do you think there is a difference then than now?

CUNNINGHAM: Well, as I said, during that time, we really had something to fight for. We really have something to fight for now, as I see it. I'm wondering if others see it. If there are people who don't see that prejudice still exists. That, I have travelled here and been around the United States and I've seen prejudice. I've seen where people of color have been the last hired and the first fired, or laid off. Not only, color, but religion plays a part, even as a 00:27:00black person. Sometimes you might be too light skinned or you might be too dark, you never know. I see a lot to still fight for, but I'm not sure. I haven't taken a poll. I don't know if the majority of the people see that there is still something to fight for. And, that's why I say I don't know if we have the cohesiveness. Our children are really interested in the material things in life. They are interested in the clothes with names on the back and gym shoes and boom boxes and the things that are material, wherein we were interested in an education. We saw that as a means of getting out of a terrible situation, getting a good job. I'm not to sure, as I talk to young people, if they see 00:28:00getting an education as a way out of anything and I'm not putting down sports, but I see that some of them feel that that's a way of getting out of their situation. But, when I ask them about attending college, spending time in the library, starting their own library with the money that they are making, it seems to me if a child has a job that some money should be spent for a book for his or her own library. I still see education as a way out. But, I have a question. Am I the only one who sees that as a way out? Or, do the children really see that as a way out.

HUNTLEY: Do you have children?

CUNNINGHAM: I don't. I've taught so many I just feel I have so many.

HUNTLEY: You mentioned that you witnessed the water hoses and dogs, did that 00:29:00mean that you participated in those demonstrations or did you see that from afar?

CUNNINGHAM: No. I was standing right there in the park and I saw all of that occurring. I wasn't one of the ones who was hit by the water, but I saw it with my own eyes. And, the only time that I really became frightened was when I saw the statue and it reminded me, the statue that was just presented days ago. The statue with the teenager and the police with the dog. That reminded me of the fear, but at the time, I think it was the challenge and the fact that something had to be accomplished, that there wasn't that kind of fear. But, yet, when you 00:30:00look at the statue, there should have been fear. It was just too much of a challenging effort.

HUNTLEY: There has been some criticism of the placement of that statue in the park. What are your ideas in relationship to the statue being placed in the park and if it should have been or not?

CUNNINGHAM: I don't have a negative feeling about it. I feel that it is symbolic of what happened.

HUNTLEY: So, you were there. Does it depict sort of the spirit of what took place at that particular time?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, it does. I think it's in the right place.

HUNTLEY: So you would be supportive?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes, I would support it.

HUNTLEY: I know there are people who were involved with the Fraternal Order of Police, for instance, that suggested that it could have a negative impact upon 00:31:00how the community today look at policemen.

CUNNINGHAM: Perhaps so. But, it is symbolic of what took place during that time. I remember leaving the south being afraid of police. When I first went to New York City, I really was afraid of police and I was an older person, because of what had happened.

HUNTLEY: This was around '63?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes. And, being an older person I shouldn't have been afraid of police, but I was. Now, after having stayed in New York, my feelings changed. There are precincts there. You get to know the police. The police walked through the community, so the fear left. I just think the people won't really fear the police because of the statue, they might fear the police of their own experiences.

Maybe their present day experiences with the police. I don't think the statue would have anything to do with it.

HUNTLEY: Well, I don't think that he was suggesting that people would fear the police. In fact, it was just the opposite. That people would not respect the police as a result of the image it projects. Were there others in your family that participated?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes. I have a cousin who played an active role as a teenager. She was one of the ones who was put in jail. So she has a vivid memory of sitting on the floor and how the jail cell looked and how they were treated, having to go without necessities.

HUNTLEY: Although you had left Ullman as a teacher, at that time, if you had been there in April and May of 1963, would you have encouraged your students to 00:33:00get involved or what would have been your stance on your student's involvement in the demonstrations?

CUNNINGHAM: I would encourage students or anyone. However, in the back of mind, I know that I would give them some kind of insight into the danger involved. But, it was an effort that anyone could have stopped the students from participating in the struggle. They would have found a way anyway. And, I applaud that in them.

HUNTLEY: After you left Birmingham, what did you do in New York?

CUNNINGHAM: When I left here, I started working for the Department of Social Services and I have to admit that I didn't know anything about welfare. There 00:34:00was so much I didn't know. I really didn't know that we were poor. And, the reason being is that I wasn't ever told that we were poor. There wasn't anyone in our house that said on a daily basis, "Well, we're poor." And I find that if you don't say that to children, sometimes they won't even think about it. They'll just go on with their life. And, when I left here, I didn't know about welfare. There was an ad in the paper for case workers to work for the City of New York for social services. I applied and instead of being placed in social services for welfare, I was placed with children in a day care center. So, I worked for the Division of Day Care, but it was still under the auspices of the New York City Department of Social Services. I worked for them for about 12 00:35:00years. As a matter of fact, I was able to attend graduate school and still work for the Department of Social Services there at the Division of Day Care. But, while in graduate school, attending Columbia University Teacher's College, I worked at night for the state's child abuse registry. My office was the office that accepted all of the child abuse cases coming into the City of New York. I could probably write several books about what happens to children in New York City and all over, child abuse all over, because it's the same. Maybe not the same numbers, but the same kind of abuse that happens to children on the night and on the weekend and I've gone out on cases. So, I did that for a long time, also.

HUNTLEY: You mentioned that you were 34 years old and you decided to go into the military?

CUNNINGHAM: Yes.

HUNTLEY: Why did you make that decision?

CUNNINGHAM: It was a dream come true. I always wanted to join and I couldn't and I forgot about it. After working for the city, then I had worked for the American Red Cross. I had all those jobs and really forgot about joining the military. And, to be honest, I saw the ad in the paper and it said, "Uncle Sam Wants You." I said, "Does he still want me at 34 years old?" I called the recruiter and I didn't tell him how old I was. He said, "Well, come to the office." I went. I took the test and I joined the 42nd Infantry Division, which is called the Rainbow Division in New York City. And, the Rainbow Division has a 00:37:00long military history, and I'm proud to say that I was a part of that. And, that's where I learned to be a soldier and I'm glad to have been a WAC, too.

HUNTLEY: How long were you in the military?

CUNNINGHAM: I was in the Army National Guard first. Afterwards I joined the reserve. In all, I stayed in the military 18 years. Eighteen adventurous, good and rewarding years. I never thought I actually could become a soldier because I had a background in education and not getting dirty and all of that, but I loved it.

HUNTLEY: Why 18? Why not 20?

CUNNINGHAM: Now, that would be another show. I spent 18 years in the military 00:38:00and on a weekend I went to my unit and had to re-enlist on that particular weekend, but I also had a PT test. And the stipulation said that if you do not past the PT test, you will no longer be a part of the military. Now, this occurred in Novembe.r Prior to that I had been practicing everything I had to do and on a rainy day, I passed that PT test and I was tested by one of the officers in my unit. I was soaking wet, passed the PT test and I got a call from the commander saying that my captain should not have given me the test and he 00:39:00disavowed the test. So, in November I had to take it again. In Novembe,r I did my very best, but I missed four sit-ups. I did 18 push-ups. I did 22 sit-ups and I did my two mile run in 23 minutes. And, at the end of the day, my captain said, "Sgt. Cunningham, you did not pass your PT test and you've been a good soldier, but we have to discharge you." So, I was discharged with an honorable discharge, but feeling very terrible that it had been a part of my life for so long and that's all I received. I remember driving down the 1- 5 , crying and 00:40:00all of that. And that's what happened. Four sit-ups, that's all I needed. I wasn't overweight or anything.

HUNTLEY: Do you think that the decision was made based upon your being a woman, being black or something else?

CUNNINGHAM: The decision was made on the basis of the fact that I wasn't a male. As a female, I didn't have a family. I think as a female, if I had a family, I think that would have meant something. But, I was a female without a husband and children, black and that was it. And, I did not belong to the good old boys club and that was it. On my discharge it says that I am not physically fit, but I know that I am, but that's what it says. So, that's the way it goes.

HUNTLEY: So you've returned to Birmingham very recently. What are you doing?

CUNNINGHAM: At the moment, I am subbing for the Birmingham Board of Education and also for the Catholic Diocese, I have been subbing for Our Lady of Fatima Catholic School and also the Midfield School District. I also sell property out at Elmwood Cemetery on a part-time basis.

HUNTLEY: Well, Ms. Cunningham I just want to ask this final question. Is there anything that you would like to convey to whoever may view this video, you have the opportunity to do that now.

CUNNINGHAM: I'd like to convey the thought that hard work is worth it. That, 00:42:00there are rewards in hard work. I've had to work hard. I haven't regretted a minute of it. And, I'm looking forward to working hard for many years in the future. I plan to be around for a long time, because I haven't finished everything that I have to do, and I know that hard work is a part of it. Also, that we are never alone because Jesus Christ is right there with us at all times and I know that he is with me. So he just keeps me going and he keeps me smiling and that's important to me.

HUNTLEY: You have a beautiful smile.

CUNNINGHAM: Thank you.

HUNTLEY: Thank you, Ms. Cunningham for coming out and being with us today. We certainly appreciate it.

CUNNINGHAM: You are quite welcome, it's been a pleasure.