Man of Three Centuries
On December 27, 2008, my Great Grandfather, George Rene Francis, passed away in Sacramento, California at the age of 112.
The picture below, I feel, summarizes the legacy he has left. The picture was taken by the Sacramento Bee the day after the election of President Obama, and shows my Aunt Veronica holding the front page of The Sacramento Bee up to my Great Grandfather, with the image of a victorious Barack Obama gracing the cover.
Below is a letter I wrote to President Obama, while he was still Senator Obama, requesting his acknowledgment of my Great Grandfather at some point during his campaign. On the night he won the election, President Obama cited a woman who was 109 years old and had voted in the election. My Great Grandfather was 112 years old when he voted for Barack Obama to become the 44th President of the United States of America, and was able to do so before he passed on December 27, 2008, about six weeks after Obama’s election. I can’t think of a finer way for my Great Grandfather to have left this Earth.
Both President Obama and my Great Grandfather were a part of the creation of each others’ histories.
Here is my letter:
***beginning of letter
October 2, 2008
Senator Barack Obama
Washington D.C. Office
713 Hart Senate Office Building
Washington, D.C. 20510
Dear Senator Obama,
My great grandfather, the oldest living man in the United States of America – at 112 years old – supports you! I am writing you on behalf of my great-grandfather, George Rene Francis, who also shares the position of second oldest living man in the world. It would be an honor, in every meaning of the word that denotes a profound privilege, if, during your intensely demanding schedule, one could arrange for you to meet my great-grandfather, who lives in a convalescent home in Sacramento, California.
I understand that accommodating the logistics of such a meeting might be challenging; however, I believe a meeting between you and my great-grandfather would prove rewarding. Though such a visit might provide incremental press coverage for your campaign, my request for you to meet my great-grandfather is disengaged from politics – it derives from my belief in the necessity of hope, prayer, and love – dynamics that have allowed you both to be creators of history. He is a maker of history by being a man of three centuries, having lived the last four years of the nineteenth century, the entire span of the twentieth century, and, so far, the first years of the twenty-first century. You are a maker of history by representing the dream Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke of when he emphasized the primacy of personhood and internal character in the quest for personal and social triumph.
This letter seeks to express to you how profound your potential Presidency is to the life of my great-grandfather, and, not only that, but how meaningful, simply, your candidacy for Presidency is to the remarkable legacy of his life.
George Rene Francis was born on June 6, 1896, in New Orleans, Louisiana, to George and Eliza Francis. As we know, the nineteenth century South into which he was born was governed by, and marred with, resolute racist ideologies, attitudes, and abominable cruelties. Yet, despite the racial, social and economic adversity he faced, my great-grandfather is not a product of circumstance – he has been a part of a cultural history even larger than himself: at the age of seven, he heard Booker T. Washington speak, and, at another time, saw Louis Armstrong play on his front porch. But most importantly, my great-grandfather, as an individual, is a true self-made man: He has been a prize fighter, self-taught barber, automobile mechanic, vaudevillian dancer, and independent trucker, and worked several other small jobs as well. Though, temporarily, he was able to face the challenges of living in the socio-economically disadvantaged South, he moved to California in 1949 to seek out a better life for himself and his family.
The idea of an African-American running for President in a country that has been relentlessly divided over race would have been inconceivable to the nineteenth-century consciousness into which my great-grandfather was born. The fact that you, Senator Obama, are in the midst of creating a remarkable national, political and social history my great-grandfather is here to witness – 112 years after his birth into a United States that was, at the time, only thirty-three years removed from the Emancipation Proclamation – is, to say the least, a miraculously spiritual experience for him.
My great-grandfather, as the oldest living male in the United States of America – and also its oldest registered voter – has been acknowledged by several institutional, media and governmental entities. Some of the recognition he has received includes:
• Guinness World Records recognition, which acknowledges him as the oldest living male in the United States
• A letter of recognition from United States Senator Barbara Boxer (California), dated June 21, 2008;
• A “Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition” from Congresswoman Doris Matsui (U.S. House of Representatives), dated June 21, 2008;
• A “Resolution of the City Council, City of Sacramento;” signed by a number of Sacramento council members including Mayor Heather Fargo of Sacramento, dated June 21, 2008;
• A letter from Bishop William Weigand of the Sacramento Catholic diocese, dated May 29, 2008, congratulating him on his 112th birthday, and stating: “Such a momentous occasion most certainly calls for a special celebration.”
• A letter of recognition for his 100th birthday from Bill and Hillary Clinton
• A front page headlining article by The Sacramento Bee for the Monday, June 4, 2007 issue
• A front page headlining article by The Senior Spectrum for the Tuesday, May 8, 2007 issue
• Willard Scott of NBC’s The Today Show announcing his birthday from Centenarian to Super Centenarian over the last eight years
• And many, many more honors
I believe that meeting my great-grandfather, Senator Obama, would be a humbling experience, allowing you to starkly and authentically realize how much of a miraculous figure you are to him, personally, and would have been to those of his generation, and before. My grandfather has told me that the grandparents of my great-grandfather were slaves, meaning that my great-grandfather had firsthand contact with the legacy of slavery. Therefore, meeting my great-grandfather, as an African-American on the cusp of assuming the office of Presidency in a country that, during my great-grandfather’s generation, politically and socially disenfranchised so many African-Americans, would be a very real symbol of triumph for both you and him.
I joyously await your response to my request, which you may be able to fulfill during one of your Northern California tours. I, too, have the audacity to hope for your meeting with my great-grandfather.
Most Sincerely,
Simone M. Youngblood
**end of letter
