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Ralph 'Don' Jessee (September 13th, 1921 - April 3rd, 2016) was born in the mountains of southwestern Virginia. During the Great Depression his family moved to Kentucky. After two years at Lincoln Memorial University, he earned his engineering degree at University of Kentucky. He was hired by Westinghouse and after a stint in the army he returned to the Aviation Division at Lima, Ohio. He enjoyed his work designing control and protective devices and methods for aircraft electric power systems. He was granted 30 U.S. patents during his 49 year career. Meanwhile he took a wife and reared a family of four children. Late in life he moved to Louisiana to live with his daughter Catherine and her family. He enrolled in a life writing class at Catherine's insistence. Don wrote prodigiously for 10 years in spite of worsening macular degeneration, and has left a surprising legacy of stories, poems and letters. They are archived here for your perusal and enjoyment.

Stories


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Mitchell

“Now that we’re in South Dakota we ought to stop in Mitchell and see the Corn Palace,” I said as we drove along in our Volkswagen minibus en route home from a month’s tour of the western parks of the USA. The minibus was loaded with camp gear that left just enough room for four children big enough to do most of the cam...(click to continue reading)

Estimated Reading Time: 5.4 minutes

Dreams

Many times a day a freight train with twenty to twenty-five cars loaded to the brim and beyond with output from the coalfields just a few miles away, came up the hollow puffing tons of black smoke. My family lived across the narrow valley of the hollow from the railroad at the time when I was just learning to read. The...(click to continue reading)

Estimated Reading Time: 4.3 minutes

Physical Challenge

Asked to describe the most physically challenging task I ever completed, I thought back over a lifetime to see what I could remember. A few things came to mind but I had a hard time picking the most challenging.

As a Boy Scout working on the life-saving merit badge, I found the toughest requirement was to retrie...(click to continue reading)

Estimated Reading Time: 5.1 minutes

Pictures


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Recordings


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Guestbook


Thanks for stopping by!
We'd love it if you could leave a comment or memory of Don to share with us.

Jayna Strunk says: over 7 years ago

And Stephen! Oh goodness!

Jayna Strunk says: over 7 years ago

What a beautiful idea -- and then crafted with excellence. What an inspiring gift you have given to those who read. How loving a memorial of my favorite -- Uncle Don. Everyone should be so blessed to have as their heritage on the earth the likes of David, Catherine, and Andre.

lynnecastle says: over 7 years ago

Thanks for this collection; I enjoyed hearing Don tell me one of his stories not very long before he died. I liked his wit and humor, as well as his keen intelligence. He was one of a kind, and I will miss him. Lynne Castle

David L.Jessee says: over 7 years ago

I was concerned about Fred getting lost. I was pleased that Jake found him. I would have enjoyed getting an invitation to partake of the rabbit stew, but was that glad that Fred did not have to partake.

Andre Jessee says: over 7 years ago

Thanks Dad and Catherine! I appreciate the kind words. Building this site has been a labor of love and has gotten me closer to my grandpa by being able to dive into his stories and learn so much about his life that I didn't know before.

Catherine Jessee Sarwar says: over 7 years ago

Andre, you have given us a priceless gift with this blog. I agree with David's fine assessment of your creative and elegant work. I look forward to adding some of my favorite photos, as soon as I learn how.

David L.Jessee says: over 7 years ago

I must extend a heartfelt thank-you the developer of this wonderful website - Ralph Donald's grandson, Andre Jessee. Your design Andre is elegant, ingenious, engaging, and challenging. You have found a number of intriguing passages in his stories and used them to pull us in and explore with the hope, not far fetched, of finding others just as intriguing. You are challenging the reader to respond and contribute, whether it be a comment on a story, a photo, a comment on the gentleman himself, or a contribution to one of his favorite organizations (see the last page of his obituary). Your work Andre on this website is a labor of love and reflects your affection.

David L.Jessee says: over 7 years ago

The use of Dad’s signature is imaginative and somehow connects me with the gentleman. His handwriting was pretty legible and I always enjoyed reading his hand written letters. Because of his poor eyesight, he wrote probably all of these stories on a computer with a very large typeset. So it is nice to ground the work with his signature.