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funeral Jack and another friend, Cliff Miller, flew Fran and me to Oxford in a Cessna 190 in time to see Bob graduate. Then we all returned to Gulfport.
A few months before, while on a weekend at home, Bob had come into my room and begun pacing up and down. I knew he had something on his mind so I asked what was bugging him. He said, "Dad, Shirley and I want to be married when I graduate. I was lying down at the time and he probably thought I would jump up and strike my head on the ceiling, but I said, "Bob, what's wrong with that? You and Shirley are now old enough to do as you wish and, if you can support her on a second lieutenant's salary, it's OK with me." He said, "Dad, what do you think Mama will say?" "The same thing I did," I replied. "Call her in here and ask." He did and she almost quoted me word for word. He hugged and kissed both of us, then ran to the car and drove to Shirley's home probably to tell her what wonderful parents he had. They were married that summer.
The twins had graduated from Pass High School that spring. We had attended their graduation party the week before.
In 1957 we sold our home in Cuevas and purchased a lovely old home in Gulfport. After we remodeled the interior and painted the exterior, we had a home we all loved. The twins had enrolled at Ole Miss in September but were home for their 1957 summer vacation to assist us in planning and decorating our new home which was located at 1110 - 31st Avenue.
After two years at the University, the twins' mission was accomplished - they were both engaged to be married. When they were about ten, I had expressed a keen desire for them each to marry a boy with a college education, and they both did! I know that Fran was happy to be able to hold both wedding receptions in our lovely home. Toni was wed on September 13, 1959, to Albert Bullock of Meridian, and Patti was wed December 28, 1960 to Lucas Giordano, of Metairie, Louisiana.
In 1959 I founded the Rebel Blueprint Company in Pascagoula, spending two days each week there in order to sell our service and merchandise in Jackson County, and instruct our employee. Bob was a Captain when he completed his three-year tour of duty in the Marine Corps, and because he was not certain
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as to what line of endeavor he would choose, Fran and I decided to make him a present of the Rebel Blueprint Company. It did not take him long to succeed. In less than three months, he doubled the gross.
In 1960 we founded the Laurel Blueprint Company. It was a good move, in fact, business was so good Bob had to move his family to Laurel and spend most of his time there. He sold Rebel Blueprint and used part of this money to expand his business in Laurel, which Fran and I had given him for a Christmas present. About a year later Bob received an excellent offer for his business and decided to sell. When he asked for my endorsement I replied, "Bob, the business belongs to you and if you want to sell go ahead, but what are you going to do?" He said he had accepted a position with Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada. He assured me that it would be a lifetime career. As always he was true to his word, for in 1973 he was superintendent of agencies and manpower development officer in the United States with offices in Boston, Massachusetts.
In 1961 a delegation representing the Gulfport Police Department called at our home at 1110 - 31st Avenue and implored me to run for mayor. I declined because I did not feel well enough to tackle the job that should be done. However, I must have been destined to enter politics, for in the spring of 1963, two fine conservatives from Jackson, Fred Beard and Dr. Ney Williams came to the Coast to see me and asked me to run for the state legislature. They convinced me that our legislature was in dire need of conservatives and, because of my outspoken objection and fight against the liberal push for integration and the equalitarian theory, and because I had coined the phrase "It's time for all white men to stand up to be counted, rather than lie down and be counted out," while serving as president of the Harrison County Citizens Council and was well known throughout the state, I agreed to run for the House of Representatives. Fran agreed that, if I were to enter the political arena, I could accomplish more for the people of my county and state in the legislature.
After a long hot summer spent making some sixty-eight speeches at as many political rallies plus other engagements, all the time aided by my devoted wife, I defeated four opponents in
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