Impact Interviews and Music" Drye/Simmons (10-9-20)

Welcome to the newest entrant to our Impact Radio USA stable of shows, with "Impact Interviews and Music". The title says it all, as we provide exhilarating interviews with some terrific people and, of course, we augment the interviews with great music!

Each episode of "Impact Interviews and Music" airs LIVE every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 10:00 am ET, then repeats at 10:00 pm ET on the same date.

On today's show, we spoke with Willie Drye and Dr. Bertie Simmons:

WILLIE DRYE

From the "PR by the Book" Website: https://prbythebook.com/experts/willie-drye/

"In 1934, in the middle of the Great Depression, hundreds of jobless WWI veterans were sent to the remote Florida Keys on a government work program to build a highway from Miami to Key West. The Roosevelt Administration was making a genuine effort to help these down-and-out vets, many of whom suffered from what is known today as post-traumatic stress disorder. But the attempt to help them turned into a tragedy. 

The supervisors in charge of the veterans misunderstood the danger posed by hurricanes in the low-lying Florida Keys. In late August 1935, a small stealthy tropical storm crossed the Bahamas, causing little damage. When it entered the Straits of Florida, however, it exploded into one of the most powerful hurricanes on record. At that time, the U.S. Weather Bureau forecasters could only make an educated guess at its exact position, and their calculations tragically ended up being off the mark.

The hurricane that struck the Upper Florida Keys on the evening of September 2, 1935, is still the most powerful hurricane to make landfall in the United States.Supervisors waited too long to call for an evacuation train from Miami to move the vets out of harm’s way. The train was slammed by the storm surge and winds exceeding 180 mph soon after it reached Islamorada. Only the 160-ton locomotive was left upright on the tracks. About 400 veterans were left unprotected in flimsy work camps and approximately 260 of them were killed. This book is their story, revised and expanded with new information and stories of some of the heroes of the Labor Day 1935 calamity.

DR. BERTIE SIMMONS

From the "PR by the Book" Website: https://prbythebook.com/experts/bertie-simmons/

Whispers of Hope is a compelling narrative detailing the life of a young girl born in the deep south during the Jim Crow era. Her tale includes her realization that to make a better life for herself and others, she must run away from the struggles of her young life and go headlong into a world about which she knows nothing. Bertie Simmons eventually finds her way to Houston where she serves successfully in many leadership positions within a large urban school district and witnesses the painfully slow process of integration.

The story culminates with her adventures and challenges as the principal in a “throwaway” high school labeled “a pipeline to prison “and a “drop-out factory.” The reader learns of her innovative approach to building a culture of community and student success that results in the school winning a $10 million grant to rethink high schools. 

Bertie Simmons guides us through the painful experience of having her dreams dashed, and yet, she emerges with a strong commitment to spreading hope across the landscape,emerging strong and valiant.

And GREAT music selected just for you!

Thank you for stopping in! Enjoy!