Let's Talk Cincy: One on one with founder of The Cure Starts Now

CINCY WE HAVE SOME GREAT INNOVATIONS, SOME THINGS THAT ARE SHOWING THAT WE'RE STARTING TO CURE CANCER, BUT WE CAN'T GET THEM ACTUALLY TO BEDSIDE. PLUS, I'M A SURVIVOR OF THIS CRASH. I WAS A 15 YEAR OLD CHILD ON THE BUS THAT NIGHT MORE AND I SEE THEM OUT THERE ON A DAY LIKE TODAY. ENJOY THEMSELVES. THAT'S WHAT'S IMPORTANT. AND I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHO WE ARE AND WE DESERVE TO BE AT THE DERBY FROM WLWT. THIS IS LET'S TALK CINCY PRESENTED BY WESTERN AND SOUTHERN FINANCIAL GROUP. PUT OUR FINANCIAL STRENGTH BEHIND YOU. HELLO EVERYONE. I'M CURTIS FULLER AND WELCOME TO LET'S TALK CINCY. TODAY I HAVE SEVERAL STORIES TO SHARE WITH YOU. THE FIRST INVOLVES A FAMILY'S TRAGEDY TURNED INTO THEIR MISSION TO SAVE LIVES. THE CURE STARTS NOW AS AN ORGANIZATION DEDICATED TO ELIMINATING ALL CANCERS. IT BEGAN IN HONOR OF A SIX YEAR OLD GIRL NAMED ALAINA, WHO LOST HER BATTLE WITH BRAIN CANCER. WE GOT INTO THIS AS AS PARENTS. MY WIFE AND I AFTER WE LOST OUR DAUGHTER, SHE WAS SIX YEARS OLD. HER NAME WAS LANA. UH, SHE DIED OF A CANCER THAT WAS CALLED DIPG, WHICH IS A VERY RARE, BUT A VERY, VERY AGGRESSIVE CANCER, ONE OF THE ONES THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE DOCTORS INTRODUCED IT TO US AND TOLD US IT WAS THE CANCER. THEY WERE MOST SCARED OF. AND THAT'S NOT THE WAY YOU WANT TO BE INTRODUCED TO IT. AND THE OTHER THING THEY TOLD US ABOUT THE CANCER WAS THAT THIS WAS A CANCER THAT THEY BELIEVED THAT IF THEY COULD ACTUALLY CURE THIS CANCER, IT WOULD CHANGE HOW THEY FOCUS ON EVERY OTHER CANCER ACROSS THE BOARD AND POSSIBLY PROVIDE A HOME RUN CURE AND THAT'S WHEN WE KIND OF KNEW WE NEEDED TO DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT. WE NEEDED TO DO SOMETHING. EVEN IF WE COULDN'T SAVE. OUR OWN DAUGHTER FOR THE NEXT CHILD. THAT WAS GOING TO BE AFFECTED BY IT. KEITH DESSERICH TOOK HIS MESSAGE TO CAPITOL HILL, URGING LAWMAKERS TO SUPPORT THE PROMISING PATHWAY ACT. KEITH SAYS THE BILL COULD HELP SAVE LIVES BY FAST TRACKING THE WAY THE FDA APPROVES TREATMENT FOR CRITICALLY ILL PATIENTS. WELL, AFTER, YOU KNOW, ALAINA PASSED, WHAT WE WANTED TO DO WAS WE WE KNEW WE HAD TO FU RESEARCH. WE HAD WE HAD TO DO IT QUICKLY BECAUSE WE HAVE 300, 400 CHILDREN THAT ARE DYING EVERY SINGLE YEAR FROM THIS. AND SO WE WENT IN REALLY FOCUSED ON BUILDING THE CHARITY, YOU KNOW, KIND OF GROWING THAT TO THE CURE STARTS NOW. AND WE'VE BEEN ABLE TO FUND OF I THINK WE'RE UP TO 130 VARIOUS TYPES OF NEW THERAPIES TO BE ABLE TO ATTACK THESE TYPES OF CANCERS. WE FUNDED OVER $33 MILLION IN RESEARCH AND SUPPORT, BUT THERE'S A PROBLEM WITH IT. AND THE PROBLEM WAS WE HAVE SOME GREAT INNOVATIONS, SOME THINGS THAT ARE SHOWING THAT WE'RE STARTING TO CURE CANCER, BUT WE CAN'T GET THEM ACTUALLY TO BEDSIDE. AND AND WE FOUND OUT THAT THE OBSTRUCTION, UM, WAS, WAS THE FDA, THE OBSTRUCTION WAS OUR REGULATORY SYSTEM. AND IT JUST DIDN'T PROVIDE FOR ANY REAL PATHWAY TO BE ABLE TO GET ANYTHING THAT IS RARE AND TERMINAL TO THE BEDSIDE. THE PROMISING PATHWAY ACT WAS FIRST INTRODUCED BY US SENATOR MIKE BRAUN OF INDIANA. THE MEASURE, NOW REINTRODUCED IS CALLED PROMISING PATHWAY TO 2.0. WE WENT TO SENATOR BRAUN AND WERE KIND OF BOLD ABOUT IT, BUT WE ASKED WE THINK THIS BILL COULD BE BETTER AND WE ASKED FOR PERMISSION TO BE ABLE TO MAKE SOME CHANGES TO IT SO THAT IT COULD BE MORE EFFECTIVE, REALLY, FOR RARE AND TERMINAL CASES. THEY ASKED US TO DO TESTIMONY IN FRONT OF THE SENATE, AND I WENT THERE THIS PAST OCTOBER TO TALK ABOUT THIS. UM, ONE OF THE THINGS THAT WAS A LITTLE FRUSTRATING ABOUT IT, THOUGH, WAS THAT THE THE THE REBUTTALS, YOU KNOW, THE PEOPLE WHO SAID THEY WEREN'T FAVOR OF IT, IT WASN'T THAT THEY DIDN'T FEEL THAT THE PROGRAM WAS EFFECTIVE. IT'S THAT THEY SAID KEPT SAYING THAT THE POPULATION WASN'T SIGNIFICANT ENOUGH TO MANDATE THE FDA CHANGING SOME OF ITS PROCEDURES. THIS IS MY DAUGHTER. THIS IS 300. YOU KNOW, KIDS A YEAR IN THE RARE CASES YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT, 200,000 PEOPLE IN THE UNITED STATES THAT ARE FIGHTING RARE CANCERS OR RARE DISEASES EVERY GIVEN DAY. AND WE'RE TELLING THEM THAT IT'S NOT SIGNIFICANT ENOUGH FOR US TO SIMPLY CHANGE ONE THING, TO BE ABLE TO CHANGE. AND MAYBE EVEN CURE THEM OR EVEN SAVE THEIR LIVES. IT'S ABSOLUTELY SIGNIFICANT. THIS IS ABSOLUTELY SOMETHING THAT WE SHOULD HAVE AS A SOCIETAL CRIME AREA. THIS SHOULD BE, YOU KNOW, CENTER TO EVERYTHING THAT WE HOLD AS DEAR AND I THINK PPA ACTUALLY DOES THAT. AND DOESN'T WASTE WE'VE NEVER DONE BEFORE. IT'S HARD NOT TO CRY FOR KEITH AND HIS DAUGHTER. GRACE DELIVERED DOZENS OF FRAMED ARTWORK TO LAWMAKERS. THESE PRINTS WERE MADE BY CHILDREN IN TRIBUTE TO KEITH'S DAUGHTER ELENA'S PAINTING THAT SHE MADE WHEN SHE WAS GOING THROUGH HER CANCER BATTLE AND WHAT SHE CALLED IT WAS I LOVE YOU. THAT WAS THE TITLE BECAUSE WE HAD TO GIVE IT A TITLE, AND EACH YEAR WE HAVE CHILDREN FROM AROUND, I GUESS THE GLOBE NOW THAT PAINT CANVASES WITH THESE HEARTS IN TRIBUTE TO ELENA'S HEART AND WHAT'S NOW OUR LOGO. AND, UM, THEY RAISE MONEY FOR CANCER RESEARCH. THEY DO IT THEMSELVES, YOU KNOW, THEY'RE RAISING THE MONEY. IT'S NOT LIKE WE'RE ASKING SOMEBODY ELSE TO COME ON FROM HIGH. YOU KNOW, THIS IS GRASSROOTS STUFF IS WHAT WE DO. AND, UM, SO THESE HEARTS DECORATE OUR HALLWAY. WE HAD THEM RUNNING ALL THE WAY UP AND DOWN THERE. WE LIKE FILLING THEM IN THEIR MATTER SO MUCH THAT, UM, WE HAVE TO NOW CHANGE THE FORMAT OF THEM BECAUSE THERE'S TOO MANY HEARTS. AND THAT'S A GOOD THING. IT'S A BAD THING. IT MEANS MORE OF THESE KIDS ARE IN THE FIGHT WHERE KIDS ARE, UNFORTUNATELY, ARE PROBABLY GOING TO PASS FROM DIPG. UM, THE GOOD THING IS, IS THAT IT'S A CELEBRATION EVERY TIME YOU WALK IN THE DOOR, WHEN YOU SEE ALL THESE HEARTS, BUT NOW ALL THOSE HEARTS, I HOPE THAT THEY HANG IN THE SENATE HALLS. YOU KNOW, OUR OUR HALLWAYS BARE NOW, BUT I'M HOPING THAT WE ENDED UP FILLING THEM UP THERE WITH 100 OF THEM HANGING IN THE HALLS OF THE SENATE AND 400 SOME ODD PLUS IN THE HOUSE. AND THEN MAYBE WE WON'T NEED THE HEARTS ANYMORE. WELCOME BACK EVERYONE. WELCOME BACK EVERYONE. THIS YEAR MARKS 36 YEARS SINCE THE DEADLY CARROLLTON SCHOOL BUS CRASH. NO ONE WILL EVER FORGET THE NIGHTMARE THAT HAPPENED ON INTERSTATE 71 ON MAY 14TH, 1988, A BUS TRAVELING BACK FROM A CHURCH TRIP TO KINGS ISLAND WAS HIT BY A DRUNK DRIVER WHO WAS TRAVELING ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE ROAD. BRIAN HAMRICK HAS THE STORY OF ONE PERSON WHO THINKS ABOUT THAT CRASH EVERY SINGLE DAY. YOU SEE, HE WAS ONE OF THE SURVIVORS. WELL, IT'S A VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE, ESPECIALLY THIS TIME OF YEAR WITH GRADUATIONS AND PROMS JUST AHEAD. AND SOME OF THE STUDENTS HERE AT GALLATIN COUNTY SAY THIS WAS ONE OF THE MOST POWERFUL DEMONSTRATIONS THEY HAVE EVER SEEN. ON THE TOPIC OF DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE. AND IT WAS DELIVERED BY A MAN WHO COMMUNICATES THROUGH A BUS. I HAVEN'T BEEN THIS BUSY IN A LONG TIME, QUINTON HIGGINS DRIVES A BUS. THIS HAS BECOME LIKE A HEALING JOURNEY FOR ME, BUT THOSE WHO GET ON THIS ONE ARE TRANSPORTED TO THE PAST. HIS DOORS OPEN TO MAY 14TH, 1988, THE DAY OF THE CARROLLTON BUS CRASH. THE CRASH THAT KILLED 24 KIDS, THREE ADULTS, 287 KILLED BY A DRUNK DRIVER. ALL RIGHT. I GUESS YOU GUYS ARE THE FIRST GROUP. ALL THE KIDS THAT DIED IN THE CRASH. THE PICTURES ARE ON THE SEATS. EXACTLY WHERE THEY WERE SITTING AT. IT HIT ME HARD EMOTIONALLY ON THIS TRIP. THE MEMORIAL BUS IS DELIVERING THE IMPORTANT DON'T DRINK AND DRIVE MESSAGE TO GALLATIN COUNTY HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WHEN THEY SEE PICTURES OF ALL OF THE VICTIMS IN THE SEATS WHERE THEY WOULD HAVE BEEN AT THE TIME OF THE CRASH, PEOPLE WHO QUINTON HIGGINS DOESN'T CALL VICTIMS. THESE WERE MY FRIENDS, YOU SEE. QUINTON ALSO HAS A PICTURE ON THE BUS. EXACTLY WHERE HE TOO WAS SEATED. I'M A SURVIVOR OF HIS CRASH. I WAS A 15 YEAR OLD CHILD ON THE BUS THAT NIGHT. HE NOT ONLY REMEMBERS THE CRASH, HE RELIVES IT. I RELIVE IT ALMOST EVERY DAY, ESPECIALLY AS A BUS DRIVER BY TRADE. BUT. BUT, UH, I'M OKAY WITH IT. IT'S JUST BECOME PART OF WHO I AM. AND IT'S PART OF A HEALING FOR ME. BE THAT FRIEND TO MAKE A BETTER CHOICE. HIS PRESENTATION INCLUDES HIS FIRSTHAND ACCOUNT OF THE CRASH, HOW EVERYONE SURVIVED THE INITIAL IMPACT, BUT IMMEDIATELY THE BUS BURST INTO FLAMES. HE SHOWS STUDENTS THE PICTURES OF HOW BADLY BURNED HE WAS AND REMEMBERS THOSE WHO DIDN'T MAKE IT OUT. IT'S AWFUL. I MEAN, IT IT REALLY IT TOUCHES YOUR HEART BECAUSE IT'S LIKE ALL THOSE LIVES THAT ARE LOST FOR NO REASON. UM, WE JUST RECENTLY ACTUALLY. LOST A SENIOR IN A, UM, ACCIDENT. SO I THINK THAT WITH THIS BEING PRESENTED TO US AT THIS TIME, RIGHT BEFORE PROM, IT DEFINITELY, DEFINITELY HIT US HARD. IT'S ABSOLUTELY RESONATED WITH THEM. AND I THINK THEY REALLY TOOK IT TO HEART, ESPECIALLY WITH IT'S SOMETHING THAT DIDN'T NECESSARILY HAPPEN IN OUR COUNTY BUT HAPPENED LOCALLY. AND I MEAN, THIS HAS AFFECTED OUR COMMUNITY. FOR QUINTON HIGGINS, THE JOURNEY CONTINUES IN A TEN TON TIME CAPSULE. WITH A MESSAGE FROM THE PAST, NEVER MORE IMPORTANT THAN THE PRESENT. NOW THAT BUS DRIVER QUENTIN HIGGINS SAYS THE MOST DIFFICULT PART OF THE DAY ISN'T GIVING THE MESSAGE TO THE STUDENTS. INSTEAD, IT'LL BE WHEN HE HAS TO DRIVE PAST THE EXACT SPOT OF THAT CRASH THAT HAPPENED BACK IN 1988. BRIAN HAMRICK, WLWT NEWS. FIVE NOW CHANGES WERE MADE TO INCREASE SCHOOL BUS SAFETY AND STRENGTHEN DUI LAWS. LARRY MAHONEY WAS CHARGED WITH SECOND DEGREE MANSLAUGHTER AFTER HE SPENT MORE THAN TEN YEARS IN PRISON. RELEASED IN 1999. I'LL BE BACK IN A MOMENT. THE KENTUCKY DERBY IS CONSIDERED THE GREATEST TWO MINUTES IN SPORTS, AND THIS YEAR THE 150TH EDITION LIVED UP TO ALL THE HYPE WITH A PHOTO FINISH ENDING ADDING TO ITS LEGACY. BUT THERE IS A PART OF THAT LEGACY THAT IS HIDDEN HISTORY. THE ROLE OF BLACK JOCKEYS KENTUCKY GOVERNOR ANDY BESHEAR SAID, QUOTE, THERE IMPORTANCE HAS OFTEN BEEN FORGOTTEN IN THE HISTORY OF HORSE RACING, AND WE ARE WORKING TO CHANGE THAT AND MAKE SURE THEY TOO, ARE REMEMBERED FOR GENERATIONS TO COME. THE FAMILY OF THE DERBY'S FIRST JOCKEY WINNER LIVES IN CINCINNATI, AND THEY WANT HIM TO GET THE RECOGNITION HE DESERVES. I HAD NO IDEA HE HAD WON THE KENTUCKY DERBY. OLIVER DIED IN 1924. LUCY, HIS WIFE. SHE DIED IN 1958, AND WHEN I INHERITED SOME THINGS, UM, I DIDN'T KNOW THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THEM, BUT I LIKE ANTIQUES, SO I WOULDN'T THROW ANYTHING AWAY. BUT I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND THE SIGNIFICANCE BEHIND IT. UH, THERE'S A CLOCK WITH A HORSESHOE ON IT, AND THERE WAS A TELEGRAPH LEFT IN THE HOUSE. MAKES SENSE NOW, WHEN RUTH JOHNSON WATTS IS THE GREAT GRANDDAUGHTER OF OLIVER LEWIS, THE JOCKEY TO WIN THE FIRST KENTUCKY DERBY BACK IN 1875. A BIT OF HISTORY OFTEN OVERLOOKED, ESPECIALLY WHEN WE WENT DOWN AND. AND ARISTIDES IS IS THERE. BUT ARISTIDES DIDN'T GET THERE WITHOUT OLIVER TAKING HIM THERE, BUT HE WASN'T, UH, RECOGNIZED. AND SO THOSE ARE THE THINGS TO ME THAT THAT HURT THAT YOU SEE WHAT THEY HAD DONE AND THEN DIDN'T GET ANY RECOGNITION, LET ALONE APPRECIATION. ANOTHER BIT OF HISTORY. 15 OF THE FIRST 28 DERBY WINNERS WERE AFRICAN AMERICAN. YOU HAVE NO CONCEPT OF YOUR WORTH IF YOU'RE WORKING FOR SOMEBODY AND YOU'RE ONLY WORKING FOR WHAT THEY GET OUT OF IT, HOW? HOW DO YOU FEEL APPRECIATED. THAT'S ALMOST. IMPOSSIBLE. ABLE TO TO IMAGINE BECAUSE SOMEONE ELSE IS CONTROLLING EVERYTHING YOU DO EVERY THING YOU HAVE AND THAT THEY'RE BENEFITING FROM YOUR YOUR LABOR, SWEAT AND TOIL. SO I CAN'T IMAGINE WHAT WHAT OLIVER FELT. MAYBE FREE ON THE HORSE, EVEN THOUGH HE WAS GOING AROUND IN A CIRCLE. BUT BUT THERE WAS A CONNECTION BETWEEN HIM AND THAT HORSE. I'M SURE YOU KNOW WHAT THIS MEANS TO ME. IT'S AN AMAZING ACHIEVEMENT. WE AFRICAN AMERICANS, WE HAD TO BE GREAT. WE HAD TO BE GOOD. BECAUSE IF WE WEREN'T, WE WOULD DIE. WE WOULD BE MAIMED. WE WOULD BE KILLED. SO WHEN THE MASTER TOLD YOU TO GO OUT AND TRAIN A HORSE AND GET HIM IN A POSITION YOU HAD TO GO TRAIN THAT HORSE TO DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO. I HAVE THREE PROJECTS I'M WORKING ON. I'M WORKING ON A FEATURE FILM. I'M WORKING ON A DOCUMENTARY AND I'M WORKING ON A NIGHT SIGHT NIGHTTIME DRAMA THAT'S GOING TO BE, YOU KNOW, VERY CREATIVE WHAT I WANT TO DO. AND I WAS TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHERE THE RELATIONSHIP COMES WITH BLACK MEN AND HORSES, AND I COULDN'T FIGURE IT OUT. SO I DID MY OWN RESEARCH, AND I STARTED RESEARCHING THE CALLED THE WILLIE LYNCH LETTER 1772. SO IT'S 25 TIMES IN HERE THAT, UH, UM, WILLIE LYNCH TALKED ABOUT THAT BREAKING THE HORSE AND BREAKING THE MAN. AND THEN IT STATES, ONCE YOU BREAK THE HORSE AND THE MAN, THEN YOU HAVE AN ECONOMICAL WAY OF BUSINESS. SO MANY OF OUR YOUNG AFRICAN AMERICAN BOYS DIED ON HORSES BEING THROWN OFF THE HORSE AT VERY EARLY AGE BECAUSE THEY WERE PUTTING THESE KIDS ON BEASTS. I CALL THEM BEASTS BECAUSE THEY WERE AT A VERY, VERY EARLY AGE OF NINE AND TEN. I WANT THE YOUNG PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT DREAM BIG AND JUST KNOW THAT, UM, WE AS A PEOPLE, AFRICAN AMERICANS HAVE MADE A TREMENDOUS IMPACT ON THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. AND I THINK THAT'S THE IMPORTANCE OF OLIVER'S ACCOMPLISHMENTS. HE WASN'T GETTING PAID FOR IT, BUT HE DONE SOMETHING THAT NO ONE ELSE HAD DONE BEFORE, AND IT HAS LASTED. 150 YEARS, 150 YEARS TO BE TALKING ABOUT IT NOW. SO, UM, AND YOU, WHEN YOU'RE DOING IT, YOU DON'T REALIZE THE IMPACT IT WOULD HAVE. THAT'S MY MESSAGE. I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE GET CREDIT. I WANT TO MAKE SURE THAT WE KNOW THAT THE RIGHT IMAGE OF OLIVER LEWIS IS UP, BECAUSE THERE'S SO MANY OTHER BLACK JOCKEYS OUT THERE. THERE PASSED HIM. BUT PEOPLE ARE CONFUSING OLIVER LEWIS WITH THE OTHER JOCKEYS BECAUSE THEY DON'T KNOW THE HISTORY. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW WHO WE ARE AND WE DESERVE TO BE AT THE DERBY. WE DESERVE TO HAVE A PLACE AT THE DERBY. OLIVER LEWIS'S FACE IMAGE, LIKENESS DESERVES TO BE NEXT TO ARISTIDES. PERIOD, YOU KNOW, AND THAT'S ALL WE WANT. WE JUST WANT OUR FAIR SHARE OF WHAT IT IS. AND ECONOMICALLY, IF YOU RECOGNIZE US, YOU'LL GET PAID, WE'LL SHOW UP AND WE'LL SPEND MONEY ALL DAY LONG BUT DON'T RECOGNIZE US. WE CAN'T. WE CAN'T HELP. WE CAN'T HELP THE SYSTEM. IT'S NOT JUST FOR THEM. IT'S FOR ALL OF US. AND WE ARE THE BACKBONE OF IT. AND WE JUST WANT TO DO. I KNOW THE TRUTH, AND THE TRUTH SHALL SET YOU FREE. AND I'M GOING TO CONTINUE TO TO PASS IT ON. I WANT MY AUNTS AND UNCLES TO BE RECOGNIZED BECAUSE THEY'VE DONE A LOT OF WORK. AND THEN WE'RE GOING TO KEEP THIS GENERATION GOING, AND WE'RE GOING TO CONTINUE TO GET THE RECOGNITION THAT OLIVER, OLIVER LEWIS AND HIS DESCENDANTS NEED ON THE LEWIS SIDE. AND ON THE JOHNSON SIDE, BECAUSE WITHOUT THE LEWIS, THERE WOULD BE NO JOHNSON. AND EVEN IF IT WASN'T PUBLICLY KNOWN, IT WAS SATISFACTION TO KNOW WHAT MY ANCESTORS ACCOMPLISHED, HOW THEY SUFFERED, HOW THEY PERSEVERED IN SPITE OF. AND THIS FOOTNOTE 13 OF THE 15 JOCKEYS IN THE FIRST KENTUCKY DERBY WERE AFRICAN AMERICANS. BUT BETWEEN 1921 AND THE YEAR 2000, THERE WERE NO BLACK JOCKEYS PARTICIPATING IN ANY US RACES. MEANWHILE, SOME OF YOU MIGHT RECOGNIZE RODNEY JOHNSON. HE IS AN ACTOR, PROBABLY BEST KNOWN FOR HIS ROLE ON THE OLD SOAP OPERA PASSIONS. HE TOLD ME THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD FREEDOM CENTER CONTACTED THE FAMILY AND NOW WANTS TO PRESERVE THE LEGACY OF OLIVER LEWIS BY PUTTING ARTIFACTS OF THE JOCKEY IN THE FREEDOM CENTER FOR ALL TO SEE BACK IN A MOMENT. AND FINALLY, TODAY, THE LUCILLE CHENNAULT SENIOR BALL IS AN EVENT THAT BEGAN 50 YEARS AGO. NEARLY 1000 PEOPLE ATTENDED THIS YEAR'S PROGRAM. MRS. CHENNAULT PASSED AWAY BACK IN 1989. BUT FOLKS HAVE MADE SURE THIS GREAT COMMUNITY EVENT CONTINUES TO BRING JOY TO MANY PEOPLE. WHETHER LUCILLE CHENNAULT, SENIOR CITIZEN BALL WAS BEGUN LIKE 47 YEARS AGO AND MY FATHER AND MISS CHENNAULT, THEY WORKED TOGETHER, SHE TOLD HIM THAT SHE NEEDED SOME SUPPORT. HE HELPED HER ORGANIZE AND GET BASICALLY HELPED RAISE THE RESOURCES. SO THEY CAN CONTINUE THIS THIS EVENT. SHE WAS A COMMUNITY ORGANIZER IN HER DAY, AND SHE RESIDED IN OVER-THE-RHINE. UH, SHE ENDED UP ONE DAY GOING ON A BOAT RIDE AND BROKE HER HIP AND AS A RESULT OF THAT, SHE WENT TO A NURSING HOME. AND WHILE SHE WAS THERE, THERE WERE OTHER PEOPLE WALKED OVER TO HER AND SAID, YOU KNOW, WE GET SO LONESOME WE DON'T NEVER GET TO GO ANYWHERE. WE WE WANT TO GET DRESSED UP AND WE JUST REALLY WANT TO GO OUT WHERE WE CAN ENJOY OURSELVES, HAVE A GOOD MEAL AND GET DRESSED UP. SO SHE SAID, WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE, SHE DIDN'T SAY IF I GET OUT, BUT WHEN I GET OUT OF HERE, I WILL DO SOMETHING SO THAT ALL THE FORGOTTEN PEOPLE WILL BE ABLE TO GO OUT ONE DAY OUT OF THE YEAR, GET HOT FOOD, DRESS UP, DANCE AND SOCIALIZE AND INTERACT WITH EACH OTHER. BUT IT'S DEAR TO MY HEART. MY HEART IS FULL WHEN I SEE THEM OUT THERE. ON A DAY LIKE TODAY ENJOYING THEMSELVES, THAT'S WHAT'S IMPORTANT. AND I MOVED HERE AND HIGH WATER TO TRY TO DO EVERYTHING I CAN. AND I EVEN TELL THE COOK HERE ANYBODY ELSE FIX IT LIKE YOU'RE FIXING IT FOR ROYALTY BECAUSE THEY ARE ROYALTY. SO FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO SEE THEM AND SEE THEM HAPPY, SEE THEM DANCING, SEE THEM BEING ABLE TO COME TOGETHER AND A LOT OF THEM HAD TO OVERCOME A LOT OF HEALTH ISSUES. SOME OF THEM ARE WALKERS, SOME OF THEM ARE ON CANES. UM, BUT TODAY SYMBOLIZES THEY'RE STILL HERE AND WE LOVE THEM FOR THEM. THIS ONE DAY OUT OF THE YEAR, THEY GET OUT OF THAT NURSING HOME. OUR SENIOR BUILDING OR WHATEVER. ONE LADY TOLD ME THIS MORNING, SHE SAID, I JUST WANT TO SOCIALIZE. I JUST WANT TO MEET PEOPLE AND TALK TO SOMEBODY. I'M LONESOME BY MYSELF. SO. SO THIS DOES HER A LOT OF GOOD, AND THEY GET TO MEET PEOPLE AND SOMETIMES THEY SEE PEOPLE THEY'VE NEVER SEEN. THEY HAVEN'T SEEN FOR YEARS. BUT SEEING THEM GETTING OUT, OUT, YOU KNOW, THEY DRESS UP, YOU KNOW, THEY PUT ON THEIR, THEIR THEIR DRESS UP CLOTHES. THEY ARE REALLY LOOKING SHARP. AND THEY GET OUT THERE AND THEY DO THE LINE DANCES. YOU KNOW, THEY HAD THE GRAND, THE DANCING GRANDMAS DOING THE TAP DANCING AND THEY ARE NOT, YOU KNOW, READY TO SAY, HEY, MY LIFE IS OVER THERE. THEY'RE STILL LIVING AND THEY'RE LIVING THEIR LIVES. YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, IN A THRIVING MANNER. YOUNG PEOPLE. I WANT THEM TO SAY THANK YOU. THANK YOU TO THE SENIOR CITIZENS WHO HAD TO OVERCOME SO MANY OBSTACLES SO THAT WE COULD BE BENEFICIARIES OF BEING ABLE TO GO TO THE SCHOOL THAT WE WANT TO GO TO BE ABLE TO GO INTO STAY IN THE HOTEL. WE WANT TO STAY IN, STAY AT, BE ABLE TO PERFORM IN MAJOR VENUES. FOR ME TO BE ABLE TO BE IN A CONVENTION CENTER, THERE WERE DAYS WHEN THEY COULD NOT BE IN A CONVENTION CENTER. SO I WANT THEM TO SAY THANK YOU FOR THE SACRIFICE. BUT THEN I ALSO WANT OUR GENERATION TO LET THEM FEEL AS THOUGH WE GOT YOU. DON'T WORRY, WE GOT YOU. AND SO I THINK THAT'S WHAT, UH, WHAT TODAY IS. AND WHEN YOU LOOK IN THERE, WHAT YOU SEE IS A SEA OF WISDOM. AND I WANT TO SOAK UP ALL THE WISDOM, THE HISTORY AS WE MOVE TO THE FUTURE. WELL, I'M HOPING THAT MY DAUGHTER, SHE'S BEEN ACTIVE. YOU KNOW, WORKING BEHIND THE SCENES, MAKING ALL THE BEAUTIFUL CORSAGES AND, AND, YOU KNOW, DIRECTING IN THERE. HOW EVERYTHING GOES. WE'LL TAKE OVER AND DO IT. THIS IS. I'M TURNING IT OVER TO HER AFTER THIS YEAR BECAUSE I'M TIRED. BUT I'LL BE IN THE BACKGROUND AND SHE'LL BE MORE IN THE FRONT WHERE SHE'S BEEN IN THE BACKGROUND. HOW I'M GOING TO TAKE THE BACKGROUND LEAD. I SEE IT GOING ON FOREVER. I MEAN, AT LEAST ANOTHER, I HOPE ANOTHER TEN, 15, 20 YEARS. I WAS HOPING WE'D GOT TO 50, YOU KNOW, AND WE DID GET TO 50, BUT WE JUST DIDN'T GET TO HAVE THE BALL THOSE THREE YEARS. OH, AND THANK YOU SO MUCH TO DORIS BROWN. SHE WILL TURN. 95 IN JUNE. THAT DOES IT FOR THE PROGRAM I'M CURTIS FULLER I'LL SEE YOU NEXT TIME FOR ANOTHER EDITION OF LET'S TALK CINCY.