Saturday, August 3, 2019
Ellington (Butch) was my cousin. When I was very young I would visit my Uncle Wallington and Aunt Jennifer in East Orange Nj, where Butch then resided... he would take me with him to a few basketball courts around town (East Orange and Newark), introduce me to the older guys on the court as his cousin from Boston, and they welcomed and made me feel accepted... it made me feel proud, significant, and confident; almost like he was a big brother....
I also remember, Butch was an absolute master on the basketball court, and few players out there were able to compete with him, though they seemed really good to me... I remember, he was equally good at "trash talking" while showing his mastery on the court, but he always did so with a smile on his face, so he was so well respected while "taking guys to the hoop"... once again, this made me feel proud that I was his family, and publicly identified by him as such, and taken under his wing while visiting from Boston... In retrospect, I believe his family hospitality had more impact on my upbringing then I probably realized, because the memory is so vivid still... Butch loved to laugh, and could have even been a stand-up comic as a career choice; he was also a master (in my opinion) at comedy one-liners... I am grateful for the memories, and I pray his soul is at rest with the Lord eternally.
