Who, When, Why What

[Jim Garrett]

OK, great responses. Here's my maudlin answers:

WHO: My grandmother. In the mid 1960s she drove me by the closed Ford's Theatre and told me the story. Shortly after that she gave me the Reader's Digest condensed books that included "The Day Lincoln Was Shot" and I still have it today.

When: Mid 1960's.

Why: It is the single most pivotal event in our country's history. I also happened, for all practical purposes in my back yard. The tangibility factor is through the roof.

What Does It Mean To My Everyday Life: While the importance of the Lincoln Assassination has always been with me, it heightened in 1988. In the fall of 1987, my mother passed from a brain tumor. In the Spring of 1988, my daughter was also diagnosed with a brain cancer. My wife, young son and I pretty much lived at Childrens National Medical Center for about six weeks. For a respite, I took my son to Ford's and while there, my daughter had a sudden downturn and passed.....on April 26th, the anniversary of John Wilkes Booth's death. Whether it was coincidence or fate, it brought a greater meaning to my life and a greater understanding of the impact that event had on the lives of so many Americans.