The Power of "Lee"

Everyone called my uncle by his middle name Lee. Lee and Frances named their only child, Dorothy Lee Anderson. She grew up being called Dorothy and now many people call her Dot.

Dorothy's first marriage was in March, 1966 to Milton Lee Masencup. Although you wouldn't know it by looking into the faces of Lee and Frances in the above picture, they did like Milton. I suppose the photographer snapped the picture before their pose was ready.

On the other hand, perhaps they felt their daughter was too young at age 18 for matrimony. They may have had dreams of a college education or Hollywood stardom and realized in that moment their dreams were evaporating.

The picture below shows Uncle Lee in a little more joyful pose.

The wedding took place on Saturday afternoon at Macedonia Baptist Church in Tobaccoville, North Carolina where Dorothy and Frances were members. Glenda Mabe, Vickie Merritt, Shirley Duggins, and Belinda Webb were bridesmaids and Barbara Jean Bodenhamer was maid-of-honor. Ronald Petree and David Petree were groomsmen and Joe Masencup was best man.

(I received no invitation to the wedding. I assume I was not invited because I was in Vietnam and they knew I couldn't attend anyway.)

Lee was a man with broken or missing body parts, but his ego was complete, his confidence assured, his attitude "can do", and his spirit strong. Frances and Dorothy loved this man beyond all measure.

Dorothy's marriage to Milton lasted twelve years. She then married Walter Lee Cornatzer for a short period. Later, she met and married Donald Lee Shuford. These three husbands are called by their first name, but possessed Lee as their middle name. Dorothy acknowledges this coincidence and insists it had no bearing on forming these relationships.

Don and Dot have been married twenty-seven years and are great for each other. Dot's father, Lee, and Don became best friends and spent much time together. They went fishing, searched yard sales for bargains, worked gardens, and loafed together.

Return here on Wednesday, June 21 for another chapter about Lee Anderson.

Have a good day!