My Friend, My Brother - One Year Later - Part 1

I was laying in the bed watching the morning news at my best friends house in Dallas. I had just spent a month in Phoenix visiting my daughter and was going to spend a month with my bff to continue my rehab from major spine surgery. That morning, I received a phone call that would change everything……….

It was 1985 and I just started working for Xerox. There was a help line we could call when we had problems with our computers. My system stopped working so I called.  The voice of the man who answered the phone made me forget my computer and any issue I was having!! Once I was able to gain my composure, my first question was an inappropriate one, “Are you married?” His answer, “Happily married!”  My second question and how it ended up has two different stories, depending who you are talking to. This is my version:

Me: Have you ever been interested in radio?

Him: No, I haven’t

Me: With a voice like that, you need to be on the air. Call Andre at WDKX. This is the hotline number to reach him

Him: I will call him

A few weeks later, I visited WDKX Radio on a Saturday morning during the Memory Lane Show. When I walked in the studio, Andre had a hot mic, so I remained quiet.  There was a nice-looking gentleman in the studio as well. When Dre turned the mic off, the man extended his hand to introduce himself to me. “Hello” was all he had to say, and I knew exactly who he was! His radio career and our friendship both began on that day! 

We began to play the “who are your people” game. Come to find out, his wife Lynn’s family had known my family for years. I didn’t remember her (she is a few years older than me), but I knew her family.

I learned that he had a crazy sense of humor and could impersonate people very well.  When I worked at Xerox, I worked with major account sales reps, processing their orders for copiers and printers. It was normal to deal with irate sales people because I would have to reject their orders for incorrect paperwork. One day I received a call from a very angry gentleman named Wardell. He was yelling at me with a very strong southern accent. As I proceeded to look for his order on my computer and couldn’t find it, the call became intense! I decided I would no longer take his abuse and was going to transfer him to my manager! He finally let me know it was him! After I cursed him out, and laughed till I cried, “Wardell” was born. How/why he named me “Deanie Mae” is still a mystery!

Over the years, our friendship grew, and he became like a brother to me.  He never judged me, but also would tell me when I was wrong! He knew things about me that no one else did. I never worried that he would repeat things I shared with him. He and Lynn came to Phoenix to visit me a few times. Well, Lynn came to see me, but he came to see the golf course! Lol! During their second visit, I told Lynn she had to make him spend one hour alone with his little sister.  She made it happen, but we spent that hour on a Scottsdale driving range!

I didn’t realize until I sat down and started to write this how long it would be.  I have so many feelings I need to share. It’s taken me a year to gather my thoughts to write this. I promised I would on the one-year anniversary.  I will share the rest on Tuesday.  Maybe by then I will be able to write his name.