No, the Ferguson Boys were not an outlaw gang back in the day,
but they were two of the Military's Finest. First, there was
Sgt. William C. Ferguson, Sr., the oldest and one of the
"Tuskegee Airmen." He served his time during WWII in the
617th Bombardment Squad as a Radio Operator Mechanic Gunner
on a B-25 bomber. His brother, Sgt. John C. Ferguson, Sr.,
began his service in the U.S. Army one year later. Both of
these great men are deceased, and both of these great men
were my mother's brothers... my uncles.
Uncle Bill is the author of "Black Flyers in WWII" (1987).
There are numerous pictures of WWII and the Tuskegee Airmen.
His motivation was to let everyone know that....
"Black Men also shed their blood For Freedom."
My mother's sister married a U.S. Army man, Hobert Shipley,
WWI, who only served 8 months during 1917-18 right after
turning 18. He came home and was a mechanic til his cataracts
made him resign. My mother needed a daytime babysitter and
he needed someone to take care of, so he took care of me from
age 2 until he died in 1969 3 months before I graduated from
elementary school... he was the light of my life, and I called him
"Uncle HoHo."
He taught me the words to "America The Beautiful" for my
elementary school play so I honor him with that song.
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