Rita Derrick:  

I remember living in Oak Cliff some time prior to my first year of school in 1962, where I attended Clinton P. Russell. My birthday came after the start of school so I was behind alot students of my same age. My first grade teacher was named Mrs. Dyke. I don't remember my second or third grade teacher's names, but I do remember exactly where I was sitting in my chair beside the windows in the second seat of the last aisle when the speaker annouced President John F. Kennedy was shot. There was a boy Freddie Fisher who was right behind me saw me crying and said,"What are you crying for? He wasn't your daddy or nothing". He made me so mad, mainly because I mean, I was so young and really didn't know why I was really crying. I went by the sir name of Lee not knowing that it wasn't my real name, but my stepfather's (whom I totally adored and loved). But, sometime between the 3rd and 4th grade I found out that I wasn't a "Lee" but a "Derrick" and I wanted it changed, I guess because He and my Mother weren't together anymore and I wanted a changed, who really knows why I insisted on it. In my 4th yr. my teacher's name was Mr. Corley, if anyone remembers. It's funny I was an all A student, even in the 1st grade I rated 4th grade average, well in a nut shell that was the 4th grade end of my good grades. For my 5th yr. I attended Jeff. Davis elem. and continued there until the 7th grade. I lived on Polk St. right across from the school. It's funny because even tho we live where we did, I had the gall to skip school and stay at a friend's house right next door to where I lived. And what's worst is my mom wasn't working that week and I had to go home for lunch. I only got to skip 2 days b4 I got caught, and my stupid wrong was I did get on the school grounds b4 I changed my mind into not going that day and a teacher was parking her car which was in the parking lot right there on Polk facing my house. When she notice I didn't show up for class that day "after her seeing me that morning" well lets just say I was doomed. The principal called my house during lunch and I answered the call and when he asked if my mother was home I went into the next room and said no, but somehow he knew and scared the s..t right out of me when he said,"let speak to her." Either I wasn't good at lying to him or what, but he tricked me right into it. Who knows he might have called earlier and they had it planned. Anyhow I was caught. All that happen when my little sister, who was in the 1st grade had been skipping too. Which we didn't know about till later on in the year. It being in her first yr of school, well we all know school wasn't for her. I started Greiner in my 7th grade of school 1967, was in the pep squad and good at homemaking,and liked the choir even thought I was a low alto,really closed to a bass, and couldn't carry a tune, but that was about it, grades weren't to hot I even made a D in gym at one time. I did hang banners and even created a rally speaking up for the girls in my Jr hi years for the girls to wear pants in school, I however was explain as to how the school board and even member students decided before school year started that they all vote on inssues such as that. And that issue had been voted down, but the next year we WERE abl...Expand for more