Letter from FCA Alumni President

In the Mid 1950s a man named Douglas Johnston moved from Tulsa, Oklahoma to French Camp, and took up residence at French Camp Academy. He had been in the oil business and prospered well. He wanted to come to French Camp and become a friend of the Academy, including the students, the French Camp Presbyterian Church, and people in the French Camp neighborhood.

In the summer of 1959, just before my senior year at the Academy, Mr. Johnston came to me one day and told me about a car in Tulsa. He asked me to go with him and help him drive it back to French Camp. I had gotten to know Mr. Johnston quite well since his arrival in French Camp and wanted to take advantage of the opportunity to be helpful to him. I asked my dad for permission to go with Mr. Johnston, and after his conversation with Sam Patterson, the President of French Camp Academy, my dad said yes. I had absolutely no idea as to the adventure I was about to have.

Mr. Johnston and I boarded the train in Winona, MS, and went to Memphis, where the adventure began. I soon found out, to my complete surprise, that Mr. Johnston had decided for me to stay in a room in a dorm at Southwestern College in Memphis while he continued to Tulsa. Since it was summertime, there were no students on the campus at Southwestern, and I had the dorm entirely to myself. Mr. Johnston gave me some cash and told me that he would like me to stay there for a week, ride into the city on the bus, eat in restaurants, go to movies, walk around the city, and enjoy myself. Then he gave me this advice. “Don’t ever hesitate to ask questions of anyone about locations or directions.” He handed me a bus ticket for the trip from Memphis to Tulsa and said he would be at the bus station when I arrived on Saturday.

I spent those several days in Memphis, TN, doing what Mr. Johnston had recommended. I had an enjoyable time. I learned to practice his advice about asking questions and have done that ever since. On Saturday, I boarded the bus, took the trip to Tulsa, where he met me at the bus station. We stayed with his sister for two or three days, and he drove the car all the way back to French Camp.

What was his purpose in all of this? He was “breaking me out,” so to speak, and teaching me how to navigate life on my own when the need arose to do so. It was intimidating, but it was very effective in reducing my intimidation factor and building my confidence.

I have other stories to share, and in the next edition of FCA Today I’ll explain why I’m sharing them.

Lynn Downing, President French Camp Alumni Association

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Averie Gundy represented Choctaw County in the Mississippi Distinguished Young Woman State Finals in Meridian in July. Averie won Top 5 in Self-Expression and Top 5 in Fitness, earning $800 in college scholarships. Averie is forever grateful for the opportunity to represent her school, town, and county in this amazing program!