Gary Pruitt

My oldest and dearest friend has been me to write another blog. I must confess that I had delayed writing for awhile not because there were no important issues; rather it was desire to communicate more effectively to those who read my thoughts. I often post my thoughts on my face book page in a condense fashion. Thus today’s topic is a reflection of my first encounter with Integration.
After high school I attended Hoke Smith Technical School in Atlanta, I was studying photo-offset lithography, many of my high school classmates were also attending this institution. However, what makes this experience memorable was one student, Gary Pruitt, who was the only white student in the class and a graduate of Grady High School in Atlanta. During the course of the year we became friends at school, obviously because of the times, we were never friends socially. This changed radically on the day that Gary said, “I will drive you home.” It was his experience traveling to the west side of Atlanta. My mind was racing as drove towards Hunter and Ashby Streets: What would be the reactions of my neighbors, my friends and my family. Although this transition of experiences was at times uncomfortable for some of my friends, Gary was always treated with respect and we found that we had much in common. It is worth noting that our parents supported our friendship, our mothers always caution us to be careful. We remained friends until I move to California in 1966.
During a visit in 2008 my friends and I talked about the ‘good old day’, one friend reminded me that I brought the first ‘white boy’ into the neighborhood….he continued man you were ahead of his time. Another said you always looked outside your surroundings. By no means am I stating that I lived in a perfect environment, what I am saying that all children need examples to nourish their dreams. From my vantage point, we all need to remember those “Encounters of the First Kind.” We must ask ourselves “Are we living a meaningful life.”