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Milledgeville: Stories from the South

A Milledgeville resident (far left) tells his story to Sandra Worsham (far right) and a group of Baldwin High students. Photo courtesy of Sandra Worsham.

Here are three stories excerpted from Baldwin High School's Everybody Has a Story to Tell: Stories from Flannery O'Connor's Milledgeville. The Chief's Story by Chief Eugene Ellis as told to Albert Turnell That Wit of Flannery's by Harriet Kidd as told to Kim Hollinshead The Tractor that Ran Over the Displaced Person by Mr. Tiny Ivey as told to Geoffrey Grimes

The stories they collected are as varied in subject matter and tone as life itself. Some are comic, such as Jake Goldstein's story of a man named Red Bailey, whose drunken behavior often got him into trouble with a particular judge.

"When this judge died," said Mr. Goldstein, "Mr. Bailey climbed through the back window of the church. He sneaked to the organ and started playing 'Happy Days Are Here Again.' Needless to say, the family was upset!"

Some of the stories are gut-wrenching, such as Diane McCarty's account of her life, in which she survived everything from an alcoholic father and a teenage suicide attempt to a rape at a school dance and an abusive husband whom she later killed in self-defense. It's a brutal story, but ultimately an uplifting one, about courage and survival in the face of incredible challenges.

Many of the stories are simply remembrances of the way things used to be—both the good times and the not-so-good times. "One of the things that means so much to me about this book," says Worsham, "is that I grew up in a segregated Milledgeville. And we haven't really had that many chances for black people and white people to sit down and tell about how they felt, growing up in a Milledgeville that was so divided right down the middle. This book tells those stories."

And then there's Flannery O'Connor, Milledgeville's most famous past resident. Several of the people interviewed by Worsham's students knew O'Connor personally, including a friend of the Wise Blood author who relates this anecdote in a story titled, "That Wit of Flannery's":

     Flannery had lupus, and I was once the head of the blood bank at the hospital. One night I got a call from Dr. Fulghum. He said, "Can you get a pint of blood for Flannery?" Flannery had an unusual blood type, but I got her a pint and took it to the hospital. I went up to her room and leaned over her bed. She looked as if she might be asleep, but she opened her eyes. I said, "Flannery, is Dr. Fulghum coming back here tonight?" She said he was, so I asked, "Would you tell him I got you some blood? It's downstairs."

     Flannery looked up at me, as sick as she could be, as white as a piece of cotton lying on that pillow. She looked up at me and asked, "Is it wise?"

     I said, "I hope so!"

Student Geoffrey Grimes (left) at the home of Tiny Ivey (right). Photo courtesy of Sandra Worsham.

By collecting stories like these, Worsham's students have given the community a precious gift: a permanent record of its life and times, as recalled by its longtime residents. And as with all Festival for Youth projects, the act of helping the community has helped the students in return.

"I went with them after school on over fifty of these interviews," says Worsham. "Some of them told me later how nervous they were in the car riding out to the interview. One of them said he was just hoping and praying his person wasn't going to be at home. A lot of these are at-risk kids and they'll say, 'I never thought I could do something like that.' But they actually got interested in the story they were hearing and started thinking of questions to ask.

"And when we finished the interview and got back in the car, they were just bouncing off the walls, they were so excited and so proud about what they'd accomplished."

Harriet Whipple, resident of Milledgeville, and Baldwin High student Nikki Ballew. Photo courtesy of Sandra Worsham.

And as if that feeling of pride weren't enough, Worsham's students have one more thing to be proud of—something that will place them in the company of their project's celebrated namesake, Flannery O'Connor.

"There is no feeling like the feeling of being published," says Worsham. "And they're not even out of high school yet! They were always excited about the project, but when they actually held that book in their hands, there was just nothing like that feeling."

It's sure to make a great story someday.

Article by Johnny Cho

To obtain a copy of Everybody Has a Story to Tell: Stories from Flannery O'Connor's Milledgeville, send $13 per copy ($10 plus $3 for postage) to:
Baldwin High School
c/o Sandra Worsham
155 Highway 49 West
Milledgeville, GA 31061.
Proceeds will be divided evenly between the Boys & Girls Club in Milledgeville and the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.

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