Greenwood man has Songs By You

Local resident makes his music your own

January 22, 2006

By JOANIE BAKER
Index-Journal staff writer

Don’t be jealous of Lucy in her sky of diamonds anymore.
You don’t have to wish that someone would rock ’n’ roll for you like Barbara Ann, and Johnny does not have to be your only angel.
Because not everybody can date a love-crazy rock star, Norman Keesee has offered his songwriting talent, gifted voice and instrumental talents to allow people to have a personalized song written and recorded about their significant other for special occasions such as Valentine’s Day or first dances at weddings.
And you don’t have to tell Norman Keesee that his music changes lives.
Keesee has used his own talents to propose to his wife, serenade her at their wedding and even resolve their “first fight.”
“I had no idea just how talented he was,” Tammy Keesee said as she beamed Norman and his guitar. “The first time he played that song (‘Will You Marry Me?’) for my mom and sister, they just cried.”
After 20 years of teaching guitar lessons and working as a director of music for different churches, including his current position at Emerald Baptist Church, Keesee said he is finally living his dream of recording music for others in his studio, Songs By You.
“Someone asked me to do a song for a wedding, but they wanted me to change the words,” Keesee said. “I got to thinking about it, and thought, ‘I bet a lot of people would want to do this.” Keesee said he started playing the guitar when he was in the first grade, and found an “old beat-up guitar” missing some strings in the hall closet and asked his dad if he could learn to play.
“I’ll always remember he quit what he was doing right there and took me to town to buy some strings on a Wednesday afternoon,” Keesee said. “He showed me three strings and, on Sunday, the preacher talked about a guy learning to play the guitar that will be playing a song in church that night. So I thought, ‘great, another guy learning, this will be neat,’ but it turned out he was talking about me.”
And, in front of a congregation of 20-30 people that “felt like a million,” Keesee “plucked” out “Old Rugged Cross,” chord by chord.
Having since advanced in his guitar playing and vocals, Keesee now has interviews with people about their significant others so he can give them the most personalized gift possible. Some of the questions help Keesee find out about the relationship and what type of music the two like the most. Others are more specific, such as “When you say ‘I love you,’ I …?”
Though Keesee has some “blueprint songs” that already have a chorus written and can be reprogrammed to contain personal moments in the lyrics, he said he makes sure his songs are anything but “cookie-cutter.” He even encourages people to share any poetry they’ve written to be included in the song.
Keesee also lets people choose who they want to sing the song he writes and records them in his studio. He said this seems to be a popular idea with brides who might have a friend or relative who can sing and truly personalize their day.
With the equipment in his studio, Keesee can record the singer twice, once flat and once with a reverberating effect so that when they are combined, it sounds as professional as songs on the radio. With this ability, Keesee can record songs for musicians who don’t have a loved one in mind but just want to have their music recorded, such as a woman who wrote and sang a song for soldiers in Iraq.
“My desire for doing this is to write my songs for my own personal use, and to help others get their music out there without paying thousands of dollars to record it,” he said.
Allowing any Sarah to be in a sky of rubies and a David angel to finally have a song just about them.

Bearcats snap PBC losing streak

January 22, 2006

By RON COX
Index-Journal sports writer

The Lander University men’s basketball team answered a lot of questions for second-year coach Bruce Evans.
The Bearcats grabbed a big lead, responded when challenged and made free throws down the stretch to win their first Peach Belt Conference game of the season, beating USC Aiken, 71-64, Saturday night at Finis Horne Arena.
The win ended a three-game losing streak and was the third for Lander (4-10 overall, 1-6 PBC) in its last 11 games.
“It’s been a struggle. It’s been disappointing up until this point because we’re not where we thought we would be at this point,” Evans said. “But it feels good to get that first conference win because it takes some of the pressure off the guys. I really felt like our guys have been pressing.
“Tonight, what we decided to do was come out and play hard and play as a team, and I really think we did that tonight.”
Senior guard J.T. Greene came off the bench to lead four different Lander players in double figures, scoring his game-high 15 points off 4 of 5 shooting from behind the 3-point line.
Lander junior forward Emanuel Hodrea scored 10 of his 13 points in the first half, while the team’s leading-scorer, Jarred Jackson, added 11 points and starting guard Michael Griffin chipped in 10 points and five rebounds.
The Bearcats will look for their first back-to-back wins of the season Monday when Clayton State (11-3, 4-3) comes to town.
The Pacers (3-11, 1-7) were led by 13 points from Arnold Coates and 10 from Kingsley Oguchi.
The Bearcats started the game with a flurry from the outside.
After a layup from Coates to open the contest, Lander rattled off the next 13 points, with seven coming from Hodrea.
“We wanted to attack their inside and he (Hodrea) did a great job,” Evans said.
“He hit a couple of shots and it helped him get his momentum. If we can keep him out of foul trouble as well as Scottie Smith, it helps us because those guys are scorers.”
It was a 6-minute, 11-second scoring drought for USC Aiken, which eventually ended on Tiago DePaula’s turnaround jumper to make it 13-4 with 13:28 left in the first half.
Lander’s J.T. Greene answered that with the first of his three 3-point field goals. And after one Pacer free throw, sophomore forward Derek Brooks knocked down a 3-ball, giving Lander a 19-5 lead.
USC Aiken put together a small 7-0 spurt, but Lander quickly fired back with 3-pointers from Hodrea and Jason Davis to jump back to a 13-point advantage with 8:30 remaining before halftime.
The Pacers worked their deficit down to five (29-24) when Coates followed a 3-pointer from Kingsley Oguchi with one of two free throws with 2:55 left.
But Lander went on a 10-0 run, keyed by back-to-back 3s from Greene, and took a 39-28 lead into the break.
With their lead down to nine following a Coates putback, Griffin got the Bearcats back to a double-digit lead with a three-point play after being fouled on a layup.
It was the start of an 8-2 run that gave Lander its largest lead of the game, 49-34, with 12:58 remaining.
However, the Bearcats wouldn’t add to their total for more than three minutes of play. During that stretch, the Pacers scored nine straight, including 3s from Richard Glover and Kenny Burr.
Greene ended the drought with a 3-pointer, but USC Aiken fired back with a 3-ball from Josh Poston and a three-point play from Oguchi.
After Lander’s Joe McEachern put back his own miss, Poston responded with another three-point play, cutting Lander’s lead down to two, 54-52, with 6:18 remaining.
But the Bearcats never gave up. Lander might not have enjoyed the comforts of a double-digit advantage the rest of the way, but the team never relinquished the lead either.
“I’m probably more pleased that we didn’t fold during that stretch,” Evans said. “Any time a team is 0-for, instead of playing to win, you find ways to lose. And we were trying to emphasize during timeouts that we were playing to win.”
The Bearcats were able to ice the game, and their first PBC victory of the season, by making 12-of-14 free throws over the final 2:35 of play. Jackson dropped in four foul shots, while Davis and Greene each made three.
“It was very big for us to step to the line and hit those free throws,” Evans said.

Opinion

World we used to know is gone with the wind

January 22, 2006

The South Carolina of today is not the same South Carolina of 50 years ago. It’s not even the same state it was 15 years ago. Everything changes, of course, and sometimes it’s good. But not always.
It wasn’t all that long ago when major deals were finalized on nothing but a handshake. An individual’s word was his bond and when promises were made, it was automatic ….. promises were kept. What you saw was what you got.
It’s pretty clear these days that those times are indeed gone with the wind.
Nowadays, if it’s not in writing, forget it! Put your money on a handshake? Now, really! Also, these days you always look over your shoulder and make sure your back is covered.

THAT IS A TERRIBLE COMMENTARY on life, no doubt about it. It makes pessimism standard operating procedure. In times, though, when litigation has become part of just about everybody’s vocabulary, values seem to be at a premium.
In some ranks, you never know what might happen if you make a very innocent or compassionate comment to someone. The words themselves may be fraught with a “legal” meaning never anticipated. Watch declarations of sympathy, too. You just might be held responsible for something unintended.
Statements that used to put “civil” into civilization are misconstrued – or misinterpreted on purpose – and when you least expect it, you’re sued.
Physicians know. Many of them “have been there,” along with others who have come to rue an offhand remark that’s really meant to soothe but somehow inflames.

IT IS INDEED A DIFFERENT world today. And, one of the saddest aspects of it all is that too many of our young don’t have the environment of innocence that the rest of us knew so well. They have no basis for comparison to show them that a handshake or a smile, or a promise or a yes mam or a no sir made all the difference in the world. That world, not the one today.
Contrary to what the poets and other scribes say, you can go home again. It may, however, be a struggle to return to the days of innocence, but it’s not out of reach. Yet. We still have time. We still have the will. We just have to use it. Most of all, we have to believe we can and that it’s worth it. Nothing is as patently transparent as disbelief. Especially in ourselves.

Editorial expression in this feature represents our own views.
Opinions are limited to this page.

Obituaries

Verna Rea

COLUMBIA, SC — Services for Verna Beatrice Dillon Rea, 74, of Columbia, will be held at 7:30 PM Sunday, January 22, 206 at Kornegay Funeral Home, Lugoff-Elgin Chapel. A private committal service will be held Monday, January 23, 2006 at 12:00 noon in the Beaufort National Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer’s Disease & Related Disorders Association – MidState – SC, PO Box 7044, Columbia, SC 29202.
Mrs. Rea died Friday, January 20, 2006. Born in St. Johns, Newfoundland, she was the daughter of the late Stephen and Mary Smith Dillon. She attended the Catholic Church.
Surviving are her husband, Robert John Rea; sons, Robert Rea and his wife, Diane, of Logoff, David Rea of Camden, John Rea and his wife, Stacey, of Walterboro; daughters, Kathleen Rea of Altamonte Springs, FL, Barbara Rea of Greenwood, Laura Rea of Easley, LTC. Maria Gervais and her husband, LTC. Christopher Gervais, of Ft. Leonardwood, MO, Gina R. Williams and her husband, Bill, of Joanna; grandchildren, William Dudley, Lauren Rea, Brandi Gervais, David Haynie, Michael Rea, Ashley Rea, Jennifer Johnson, Joy Pack, Jean Merritts, Alexis Rea, Kelly Rea, Desmond Merritts, Danielle Merritts; great-grandchildren, Elizabeth and Ben Johnson, Cody Howard, Bobby Lee III & Amber Pack; 3 sisters, Margie Dillon, Pauline Gorman, Myrtle Dillon; 3 brothers, Albert, Ronnie and Wayne Dillon. She was pre-deceased by a son, Stewart Rea, grandson, Robert John Rea II; 2 sisters, Florence and Dorthey and 3 brothers, Patrick, Thomas and Gerald.
PAID OBITUARY

Alfred Douglas Stevenson

Alfred “Duckman” Douglas Stevenson, of 3603 McCormick Highway, died Saturday, Jan. 21, 2006 at his home.
Born in Greenwood County, he was a son of the late Frances Elizabeth Stevenson and the late Alphonso Washington. He was a former employee of Snead Builders Supply Co.
Survivors include his wife, Montread Turner Stevenson of the home; three sons, Jerunaca, Jomar and Douglas Turner, all of Greenwood; a daughter, Ashley Foster of Greenwood; a brother, James Stevenson of Greenwood; two sisters, Cathy Walker-Jackson of Atlanta and Connie Washington of Greenwood; and seven grandchildren.
The family is at the home in the Promiseland Community.
Services will be announced by Parks Funeral Home.

Paul Smith Jr.

GREENWOOD — Paul D. Smith Jr., 70, of 219 Kentucky Avenue, husband of Dorothy Jean Dorn Smith, died Friday, January 20, 2006 at the Hospice House.
Born in Spartanburg he was the son of the late Paul D. Smith and the late Rosey Weathers Smith Lewis. He was a retired automobile salesman and a retail salesman from Discount Furniture He was a US Air Force veteran of the Korean War, serving in Sea Air Rescue. Mr. Smith attended Westside Baptist Church.
Survivors include his wife of the home; a son Eric C. Smith and wife Julie of Greenwood; two daughters, Connie S. Bagwell and husband Donnie, and Susie S. Penington and husband Alvin of Greenwood; a brother Tommy Lewis of Greenwood, and four grandchildren, Griffin Chad Smith, Peyton Rees Smith, Christopher Donald Bagwell, and Taylor Nicole Bagwell.
Services will be 3:00 p.m. Monday at Harley Funeral Home Chapel with the Reverend Hal Lane officiating. Burial will be in Oakbrook Memorial Park.
Pallbearers will be Keith Rearden, Roger Dorn, Rhett Dorn, Buddy Dorn, Mike Rutland, and Norman Outzs.
The body is at Harley Funeral Home and Crematory where the family will receive friends Sunday night from 6:00 until 8:00pm.
Memorials may be made to the Hospice House, 408 W. Alexander Avenue, Greenwood, SC 29646 The family is at the home of his son, 111 Shortleaf Court, Greenwood, SC 29649.
Online condolences may be sent to the family by visiting www.harleyfuneralhome.com
PAID OBITUARY

Erica Henrietta Williams

McCORMICK — Erica Henrietta Williams, 23, died Saturday, Jan. 20, 2006 at Doctors Hospital in Augusta, Ga.
Born in Greenwood, she was a daughter of Henry W. and Ammie Sue Jennings Williams. She was a member of Zion Chapel A.M.E. Church where she served in the Youth Choir, the Y.P.D. and as a Sunday school teacher. She was a 2001 graduate of McCormick High School and a graduate of Clemson University with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in sociology and a minor in criminal justice. She was employed with Wal-Mart in Central, S.C.
Survivors include her parents of the home; a sister, HM 1 (SW/FMF) Marilyn Williams, USN, RET. of Pensacola, Fla.; two brothers, Henry Williams Jr. and Kevin Williams, both of McCormick; her grandmother, Josie Williams of McCormick.
The family is at the home on Rt. 2, Highway 378 West.
Services will be announced by Walker Funeral Home.