Craig Cotten:  

Life My family moved from Dallas, Tx to Jackson, Mississippi in August of 1973. I left behind great friends there, Bobby Guinn, David Collier,Tony Hammontree, Donna Reece, Shannon Murphy and many others. Jimmy Meadows, I do hope you made it home from Vietnam. I graduated from Forest Hill in 1978, and attended Hinds Community college. In 1981 I married and began working as a Lab tech for Clinical Pathology Laboratory in Flowood. In 1982 Michael was born, he is my only son, he is now a Ranger in the army stationed in North Carolina. I am so proud of him, and my prayers are continually with him. I worked in the Laboratory for twenty years, During that time I worked in almost all disciplines of the Medical Lab. My favorite department was automated chemistry, Give me those big machines with bunches of robotics and computers and I was at home. I loved making those monsters run. The biggest challenge was doing L/S ratios to determine maturity of an in-utero babys' lungs. I was responsible for telling the doc if the baby was gonna breathe or not when delivered. Gas/Liquid Chromatography was all there was during the 80's. Nothing like it is today. Push button tech's, so spoiled with todays technology. The memory of Sally King will forever be with. After 106 years I was her last sight. She was the first person I witness die. The last person I saw I couldn't tell you his name. I only remember he was 67 and wearing the same type socks that I was. During the late 80's Penny Ball Black found me at the end of a needle. I had no idea she suffered from juvenile diabetes. Penny was one of the first to recieve a pancreas transplant in America. I was her personal vampire, The only one she would allow to stick her. God rest her soul. I am so thankful I knew her. Truly, we had an angel amongst us, I have faith she is resting in the Lord's arms. My last two years in the Lab was spent at The old Hinds General Hospital, I was on the code...Expand for more