Black History Month….Encore Presentation with My Grandfather Frank Dinkins

Join me on an encore episode which honors the strength and contributions of my grandfather Frank Dinkins whose experiences echo through generations. Thank you, Pop-Pop for sharing a part of your story!

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:01

Good afternoon and welcome to everybody. The podcast which shares stories that highlight people in life, that make the world an interesting place, which ultimately ties us all together in unique and wonderful ways. And who am I, you might ask. I would be the headwrapped socialite Weith mom, micro-influencer in the fashion and etiquette world, but on this podcast I will be introducing you to some people who I've had the opportunity to meet along my journey, who have helped enrich me and my life in beautiful ways and who I hope will do the same in yours.

Speaker 2: 0:42

I'm a good boy too, but I've heard many things with Mr and Mrs. I would go up in the shelf yes, ma'am, and no ma'am. Yes, sir. Good morning, mr Teacher.

Speaker 1: 0:52

Hmm, I'm a black history mom. I bring you a special snippet from an earlier interview that I had with my grandfather, Frank Dinkins, whose wisdom echoes through generations. I'd also like to take this moment to extend him a birthday wish from us all. Happy birthday, pop-pop. Your legacy and love inspire us all. We love you.

Speaker 3: 1:18

Most of our parents and grandparents, including Trina's grandfather, attended that school. He was one of the last to attend that school Was operating, and he's in his 90s, and so that piece of history is also important to me.

Speaker 1: 1:35

I'm down with a true living treasure, an encyclopedia of history. My grandfather, frank Dinkins, joined me as I delve into the remarkable life of a man who has witnessed the world evolve and transform. Over the course of his 95 years. He has lived through pivotal moments, cultural shifts and monumental events that have shaped the fabric of our society. Please join me in welcoming my grandfather, also known as pop-pop, frank Dinkins. Hi Trina, hey pop. Thank you for being here. Can you tell the listeners a little bit about who you are?

Speaker 2: 2:12

I was born in Culpeper, virginia, february 28, 1928.

Speaker 1: 2:18

How many brothers and sisters pop did you have? 16. 16?.

Speaker 2: 2:22

Yeah, when I was born, everybody was going to say three of us, chester, eddie, minnie.

Speaker 1: 2:28

Can you name all of your siblings?

Speaker 2: 2:30

My brother's name is Clarence, jim, richard, lars, jurnia, and name Madison, woolly, calvin, eddie, sister. My sister's name was Maple Earl, lena, minnie, fanny, beatrice or Heywood. He died when he was a baby.

Speaker 1: 2:51

So tell me a little bit about your life. Tell me how it was growing up in Culpepper Virginia.

Speaker 2: 2:56

I had to get up in the morning early, feed the chickens, feed the hogs, milk the cows.

Speaker 1: 3:04

How did you come to the North Pop from living in the South?

Speaker 2: 3:07

Oh, my father used to be a temple on the streets and every time he shooed he cut this temple. At that time they didn't know it was cancer. They removed it to the doctor in Germachown. They couldn't find it with all of it. But we went back to Culpepper. He had Lord fire and you go pick him up and then tear off his back when you're done. That's how I met Bob at the school in Culpepper. How old were you, pop? Well, I'm nine, 20, something like that.

Speaker 1: 3:43

When you came to go to the doctors, you were nine years old, so you had to stop school.

Speaker 2: 3:48

No, when I went back to Virginia, I went to school. I had to get up, feed the chickens, all the animals on the farm, mm-hmm, and the song we had Dave, my father, he didn't let nobody. Dave and Bob, me and I had to go to school get the water, but all of us was in a one-room platform.

Speaker 1: 4:08

Mm, how many students do you think there were Pop?

Speaker 2: 4:11

Oh, I had Jackson, nobody, but she's three all together and this one teacher taught all of us.

Speaker 1: 4:18

Everybody from kindergarten all the way up through high school. Yeah, what were some of your favorite classes?

Speaker 2: 4:23

I think it was biology and how you could work in a workshop. I mean furniture, my mother on the coffin table. I was 16, I thought of working in a sawmill Mm-hmm, cutting the trees down, breaking the horses.

Speaker 1: 4:39

Mm-hmm, what was that like?

Speaker 2: 4:41

Oh yeah, you try to hold them, but most of the time they jump up the tree, mm-hmm. I've known one guy who worked in the sawmill and I was hooked in a mule up to the low and he kicked in on you oh my goodness, because he didn't want to go work.

Speaker 1: 4:56

Did you want to stay in the South once you got to be older?

Speaker 2: 5:00

No, I didn't. It was segregated. I think I had any age. Who was wrong? Mm-hmm, when I was young, I didn't go in the play. You couldn't walk down the feet. You had certain things to walk. Mm-hmm Restaurant they didn't even care for. These are called. You know the N-word and everything I knew. I didn't want to stay in the South because I thought they may kill me or something. Mm-hmm, I didn't do too much stuff, off too soon.

Speaker 1: 5:26

For all the listeners who are listening to this podcast. You've always been my hero. Thank you, pop. Thank you for taking this time out to talk with me today. Well, yeah, you Pop.

Speaker 2: 5:39

Oh, ok, I love you too. Talk to you soon, you coming down this summer.

Speaker 1: 5:42

Yes, we're going to come down this summer Pop.

Speaker 3: 5:45

OK.

Speaker 1: 5:45

Yeah, we're going to come down this summer, for sure.

Speaker 2: 5:50

So now we're going to be ready for our down in North Carolina. I couldn't swim, so they make me do seminary for Friday. Right, everybody is going Liberty, I'd be just trying to swim. So this black boy from Shiloh man, I'm prepared for Quinn. But he had a gold teeth, as only to tell us, and he took the swimming test for me and I didn't have to go anymore.