Dixie Strawbridge

11/2/2024

I wonder if readers of Reckonin.com have ever heard a name as unusual as Dixie Strawbridge.

Dixie Strawbridge is a real name, and a real man. I have known Dixie for 52 years. He was born in 1954, went to the local public school and played on its football team. Unlike many of his peers who moved off to Chicago or Detroit or Albany, New York, Dixie stayed in southeast Mississippi.

Following high school, he worked for my father (who was the county forester) for a couple of years in the Mississippi Forestry Commission. For the last several years, he has driven a truck for a plant which manufactures styrofoam cups. He delivers this product all over the southeast. Yes, he's still working at 70. Every time I see him in town I holler 'Hey, Dixie!' And every time I see him, he has a huge smile on his face. I saw him in town a couple of months ago, and we conversed for several minutes. He has no interest in retiring, only to sit at home all day watching 1970s reruns on the boob tube. He bought a beautiful old house in town which had been the residence of a prominent attorney.

Dixie tragically lost a son in a drowning incident on a Gulf fishing trip several years ago. My heart was heavy for him, but he kept his faith in God, kept his head up, and knew he had to just keep living and working.

Dixie, believe it or not, is a black man. I never met his mother, so I have no idea why she named him Dixie. I'm thinking it might simply be because she liked the sound of the name. Or perhaps she simply loved the South. Regardless, Dixie is definitely not ashamed of his name. I am sure that he will never change his name to Mustafa, or Jirekus or Ta'Darius. Dixie suits him just fine. Imagine the scorn and ridicule he would have faced had he moved to a northern city. 'Dixie! Man! Your momma actually gave you dat name!' And you kept dat name! Come on man! Ain't you gonna change yo name?' I'm sure if Dixie had moved North, hearing taunts, he would have simply responded 'Naw, man. My momma gave me my name. It's my name, and I ain't ashamed of it.'

But Dixie had the wisdom to stay in Mississippi. He works for a living, minds his own business, respects others, and they respect him.

Dixie Strawbridge. He's a friend of mine.

4 Comments

Paul Yarbrough

11/4/2024 05:38:18 am

Dixie sounds like a man who has made sound decisions in life.

Anthony Powell

11/6/2024 07:19:01 pm

Indeed he has, Paul. Thank you.

William Smith

11/4/2024 06:17:32 am

Wonderful! Thank you, sir!

Willie Mitchell

5/21/2025 03:43:28 pm

If he is Dixie Lee Strawbridge from Waynesboro, then I know him. We grew up as neighbors in Waynesboro in the early 1960s. His father had remarried, so I didn't know his mother. I believe she was dead. However, I knew the rest of his family. My family moved across town after a few years, but we went to the same schools. I was about 3 years behind him at WCHS. Dixie, his younger brother Floyd & I played on the 1972 Panther's football team for Coach Tom Boszer, Asst. Coaches Shanks & Cain. He played defensive tackle or guard most of the time. On special plays, he played on offense as a blocking fullback. He was a strong man. I remember one game when he blocked a guy so hard that the guy flipped over his back, like a bull had hit him.

I was one of those people who moved away from our home town, but never regretted it. I went to college. His brother Floyd died, & I lost track of Dixie. I was working for Boeing & NASA about 21 yrs. ago, when we launched two US modules for the International Space Station in 2001. I had seen a Space Shuttle launch back in 1989 from outside KSC. I've worked on other important projects you see often in the news, but I still can't talk about some of them, now. I have only had one home town, but lived in several states, working on gov. & aerospace contracts. I saw my first airplane, an old bi-plane upclose, when it landed in a field beside the old Northern Electric Co. blanket factory. Years later, I worked summer jobs at NECO, at Wells Lamont glove factory, the Wayne County Bus Garage, & the County Surveyor's office when I was in college. I also noticed jets flying overhead. & groundout they were from NAS Meridian. I knew where my past was &
where my future was starting. My first job out of college was for a company once called Space Crafts Inc.

Author

Anthony Powell is an unreconstructed Southerner, a married, home-schooling father of seven, four of whom are still at home. He and his wife own a screen-printing business. He is a life-long resident of rural Wayne County, Mississippi, who has lived on the same 20 acres his entire life. In his spare time, he hunts, fishes, enjoys Scrabble with his children, and plays bluegrass music.

Anthony Powell

Dixie Strawbridge

Leave a Reply.

Author

Archives