He has always found the study of books a rather difficult task, owing to the lack of early training in them; but he has proved a good student and a very valuable helper at the Academy. The longing desire to become a capable and successful teacher, has kept him there, amid all the changes that have occurred since his arrival in 1903. He has now acquired an unusual degree of skill as a performer on the piano and his enthusiastic accompaniments on that noble instrument contributed greatly to the pleasure and delight of the work at the Academy. He has become an earnest worker in the Sunday school and endeavor meetings. He has a strong voice for song or public address, and has become an excellent leader of religious meetings. He served one year as an assistant teacher at the Academy. He has proved himself a very efficient and valuable helper at the Academy, always looking after the entertainment of visitors.
In 1912 he was ordained an elder of the Oak Hill church and in May of that year was sent as one of the commissioners of the Presbytery of Kiamichi, to the general assembly at Louisville, Ky. Through the courtesy of Rev. E. G. Haymaker, he spent the summer of 1903 at Winona Lake, Ind. He is now serving, as superintendent of the farm work and musical instructor, at the Bethesda Home and school at Wynnewood, Okla.
The boy who wins is,
"Not the one who says, 'I can't';
Nor the one who says, 'Don't care;'
Not the boy who shirks his work,
Nor the one who plays unfair.
But the one who says, I can',
And the one who says, 'I will;'
He shall be the noble man,
He the place of trust will fill."
STUDENT WORKERS
These tributes to worthy workers seem incomplete, without some reference to the faithful co-operation of some of the young people, who, making rapid progress in their studies and industrial training, during the later years of this period, and serving efficiently as workers, foremen and occasional teachers, made possible the large amount of improvement work necessary to overcome the losses sustained. The memory recalls the names of the following students, whose responsible and efficient co-operation was thus worthy of grateful mention.
Occasional Teachers and Leaders: Paul Thornton, Vina Jones, Delia Clark[*], Isabella Monroe, Ruby Moore[*], Virginia Wofford, Sarah Milton, Celestine Seats, Solomon Buchanan, Riley Flournoy, Clarence and Herbert Peete.
Carpenters and Cement Workers: David Folsom[*], Solomon Burris, Louis and Alvin Pitchlin, Isaiah Nelson, Clarence Peete, Noah Alverson, Riley Flournoy, Fred and Percy McFarland, Thomas Wilson, George Hollingsworth, Frank Dickson, Ashley and Alonza McLellan and Brown Gaffony.[*]
Painters: Solomon Buchanan, Frank Dickson, John Black, Eugene Perry, Wesley Lewis, Herbert Peete and Cornell Smith.
Farmers and Trustworthy Teamsters: James Stewart, James Burris. James Richards, Dee McFarland, Robert Johnson, Robert Maxie, S. S. Bibbs, and Everett Richards.