David Conway and Sarah Hamner

00:03 My name is Sarah and Hamner. I'm 25 years old today's date is October 24th, 2018. We are recording this interview in Athens, Georgia, and I'm here with my papa David Conway.

00:17 I'm David Conway my age 77 October 24th 2018 in Athens, Georgia my hometown my relationship to my partners my wonderful granddaughter.

00:33 So to start the interview, let's talk a little bit about your childhood. Can you tell me about your parents?

00:39 Yeah parents were.

00:43 Real good people Christian Church going. My father's a minister and Methodist minister.

00:50 Enough

00:52 They were pretty easy on me. I was kind of a handful.

00:56 The early years piano had very good parents. Very good siblings. What's go home? I cry just back then my father's work for the post office. He was only

01:14 On a post office route for some 25 years Karen male Got a Feeling morning at 5 every morning rain or shine like they always say about mailman.

01:26 And then he finally moved up in later years to the postmaster and he retired from the post office here in Athens, Georgia one of the other maybe so my dad is pretty straight. He was right, but he was he's a little strict with me. He was kind of a no-nonsense dad and my mother was a little loose. I'm more like my mother, you know, if she'd she'd let me get I got my share of spankings. What's up?

01:59 Howard said probably no closer to my mother. You know, you remember my grandfather's were I remember one of them was still alive when I was

02:19 I was 7 or 8 years old and 11 passed away. I don't remember him at all and I remembered my one grandmother on my mother's side. My my mother's mother.

02:31 And she was she came from Tiger Georgia up in the mountains North Georgia in the mountains, whatever and that's what mother was born. But she was a little over small lady. She weighed about 90 lb, she didn't know if she would rent a sewing machine all she made all our own clothes cuz you made them but she was she was little ball of fire. She was a Mountain Gap. She came up the hard way out how you came up the hard way a little bit you got into some trouble when you're a kid. So my next question was what was your childhood like talk to me about how you were?

03:17 Well, I was a little rambunctious. You know, I live at Five Points in the Athens and

03:25 You know, I wouldn't really bad. I want a juvenile's life. We done a few things. We shouldn't have done. You know that lot of that was a learning experience and maybe save me down the road, you know from doing things worse thing, you know, but

03:39 We got throwing rocks at cars one day and got trouble about that which wasn't a good thanks to the Georgia football game and they were coming that came right by our house when we were throwing up acorns not a rock, but I remember that within very well as for Georgia football. Will you tell that story like him right now walking straight right by our house that was before.

04:11 441 ran into Milledge Avenue so they came right by our house. So I parked cars. You know, we were we were about a good model Mormon from the stadium. That was great respect for cars that sent the car. I think I made about $40 one day. That was a fortunes back then in the only bad part was when they can't get the cars to leave though. He usually pretty well a deviated and I are the yard up to take daddy about a week to get the yard straightened out. So he didn't know it was worth the money. I'm not funny and you're talking a little bit earlier we read through looking at what used to be talkin about the movie theater and how movies kind of played a pivotal role in your life and they always have to talk about going to the movies when you were little. Well, that was a big deal. We are we always walk the road I bicycles.

05:07 Trauma Five Points Uptown and

05:11 I think to I said 245 movies. I remember for sure the richest ran the Georgia Theater and I can't think of the other but anyway that cost about $0.10 to go in. So if we went in and saw a couple of Westerns on Saturday is usually double feature you had a dolly had planned for popcorn drinks, whatever the candy bars and then would you to go to another theater and see two more so it took up pretty much the weekend.

05:43 And then sometimes Saturday night would walk up and see a horror movie or something and then be scared to death walking along with all these thoughts on my wood behind soda, the more we ran the last lick a fat seem like we got to where we wouldn't go see horror movies at night.

06:03 Scary

06:08 I was very close with all of them probably closes to my sister because she was the middle. Let me say how was the youngest?

06:20 I have another brother and she was a metal and then I had to override an older brother, but she pretty much got stuck with taking care of me. You know, she took she was playing at the Bay by as much as mother was you know, so I and I kind of favored my sister. I guess I love my brothers and we got along fine and I'll up in later years. Do you know they all they all ended up in Florida and that worked out pretty good cuz I had three places to go in Florida for Nothing free vacation. So but they're all past now, but we all got along very well I was there when you were closer with than any others

07:05 Do you have a like a favorite memory with her that you could think of something that would tell me a lot about her with her?

07:14 Probably got several.

07:17 By far the biggest science was I was in a band playing when time and we were playing this country music show.

07:26 And play Strawberry Creek.

07:29 Knock knock on wood recreate Shoal Creek and I was playing up on stage and she was from Tampa Florida and I didn't know that they had come up, you know from Florida and I was up onstage playing and I looked at the audience and I thought I saw some that look like my sister more. She looks like my sister son real and I said that is my sister, but they had come up and needs it. I was going to play and didn't tell me and surprise me.

08:03 Well, I was going to move on next to talk in a little bit about music. So that was the perfect segue talk to me about music and all that. You've done got in the music. I'm 77. I got into music and back 1955. I was right.

08:21 15 Elvis came on

08:25 The Tommy Dorsey show everybody knows of that the other TV shows but I saw Elvis and there was never nothing. Nobody was anything like that.

08:36 And so I had been kind of wanting to get armor that Phil saw Elvis. I had to have guitar. So then I got to get to our dad bought me a $12 guitar.

08:49 And I start playing it and I'm imitating Elvis now. Dolittle shows and I'll Panama and there wasn't really singing.

08:57 Animated 7845 records of that one thing led to another and I just kept I just loved music not kept on and I think overall I had about 8 or 10 bands and then I went on to make a for records one with a national chart records and I went on the road with that for about a year which was pretty good and I enjoyed it and it all kind of pan. Which may have been for the best, you know in a way so

09:30 Music been a big part of my life just love is an RV and entertainment, you know and pass time.

09:41 Who recorded when you toward? What's one of the biggest things? It was a lot simpler than you know, I don't today's a lot of news. I don't know if it's cuz I got a bad here anymore, but I can't I can't understand what you're saying. And when I came up every song you can understand every word and it was just a lot sent for a lot more meaningful to me the things change people change.

10:10 I like a lot of this new music, but I guess you know you always go back to what you started with what you'd raised up on butt.

10:21 He told a story once about painting your guitars for a show you tell that story stalkers.

10:34 And we were going to play our this was our first first gig I guess.

10:41 And we will play on the tennis court for a little a group of teenagers in high school. Like I was in but 11th grade so so I thought we'd all look good while I get stars look same color. So that afternoon you got everybody to get two or three electors to electrics one base and I spray painting all of them red

11:04 And that night when we played we wore a white T-shirt and a red red windbreaker. That's what James Dean wore in Rebel Without a Cause. I'm sorry outfit and after that day and the guitar didn't completely dry.

11:26 An especially mine. So when we played I noticed after I played it while my get driver stuck to my t-shirt and everybody left the girl that was having the party. So y'all think of guitars. I'll come have some lemonade and cookies. No, I just keep mine on so that night. I never took my guitar off the way back through and Pull It Loose for my t-shirt with that red paint all over kind of stupid. I guess what you do stupid things. Do you think you would

12:03 Something sure some things I would but are things I wouldn't cuz I enjoyed it so much. I can't think of a time. I didn't enjoy it and what's one like specific thing. You would want to go back and do it again.

12:26 Go back.

12:28 Maybe spend more time with my parents because

12:32 I was gone how I was wanting to go or going from morning till night somewhere. If I didn't know any much of a homebody, you know, just say that if that sounds yeah, that would probably want to spend more time with my parents. You know, that may be true with everybody forever when they lose their parents and say I wish I'd stayed with the Moors for whatever, you know, that would be the only thing I can say.

13:01 I think that's a great answer. We were talking a little bit in the car on the way here talk to me about how you and Grandma met you met her you saw her for she saw you officially.

13:15 Well, I met her at a little school Halloween Carnival.

13:19 And he was I thought she was pretty girl there still, but if she was really didn't know that I was going to go with her just some buddies of mine that I want you go to tell when corn when it was another school and say this girl she's real pretty so I did and then I met her and then the next year.

13:42 She came to my school high school.

13:46 And I was going with some other girl and we've been sleep broke up and I've graduated from school and went to work in Greenville, South Carolina, and I wanted to date her but I couldn't I'm going to figure out some way I could get it get it to remember who I was what she did. So I sent her a Christmas card and she said that's what she still got from 1959. So she sent me a Christmas card back. I said well that might need your date me so so I came home when I called her up and asked her for a date.

14:26 And she said oh I would love to but I've got a date not to told me that's the end of that and I worked in Greenville, South Carolina and come home to Roar.

14:37 So anyway, I've tried to make a long story short I said, okay, so I called another girl and asked her for a date and she said okay so married my wife she called me back and she said well I got this date but my sister's going that line and wants me to ride up there with her later tonight. If you want to go with us, and I said well, I guess

15:04 So anyway, she wouldn't die this boy and I went dated this girl and took her to walk in the movie. But you know, what a walk in it. It was a drive-in in a walk-in walk-in.

15:15 What's up, man? Are stayed about an hour? And I said I need to go so we got up and left. She didn't know she thought she done something wrong. She told everybody in school. You know, I must have she must have made me mad. So I took her home. When was Maryanne. We went to Lana with her sister and came back the next night about that night about 1 and then start dating Dorothy long. Did you know it was her right at the beginning and you know, you know, that was your your person at the beginning or it take long.

15:55 Instagram about me

16:01 So then you started dating about how long did you date before you got married?

16:11 I was scared to death of Mary. So I couldn't I mean that I said merry just terrible you got to

16:17 You got to work the rest of your life. You can't do nothing. I said, I don't want to get married. So I'm in good shape financially.

16:26 So I will.

16:29 The clamps Nantucket coursing Heat Treating commercial Heat Treating went to work for a company Tri-County Heat Treating come in at Clemson. She went to

16:40 University of Georgia Reinhardt College, then she went to University and finished and we didn't get married till she finished school know which we want to get like it's five years and after you got married.

16:54 Well, if we we just got married and wouldn't

17:01 About time. We had a little modest little trailer my mum about Schrader. We got us a little car with I gave me a little one about the trailer guy said if you buy this trailer I give you this little ranaut that would look for selling a Renault car, which is pretty good deal. You don't get a car with a trailer now, I don't call him trailers anymore.

17:21 So in about a year, so we found out your mother was going to leave so

17:29 I came home. I was working in the volume. Came home one day and she said I got something to tell you by so what is it? She said well, we're going to have to let you getting a dog know I will go have a child. That's fantastic. Yeah, so when you found out you're going to be a mother father you were ecstatic. You said we were talking a little bit earlier about finding out that my mom was born in kind of how that happened. We tell that story.

18:09 How it happened, where was what I came home from work. She told me because I might want you was bored. And I know you getting a ball hit voices are long. But anyway, I was in the waiting room and for some reason about four or five guys in there that many babies being born which I guess it's kind of unusual. The nurse was coming down say mr. So-and-so. Yes. I'm just me you have a son. Do you have a boy how great you are so that happened three or four times. I think 4 and I was the last one left and they gave 9. Mr. Conway. You have a new lady. That's really I said, I know it's going to be a girl cuz if I already had four boys, you've got a baby girl crazy, you know.

19:07 And you didn't know until right then that you were going to have a girl. Did you have you didn't know you have names picked out beforehand are the names of the islands a few girls names? Because that was your mother's name and we had talked about if it was the girl popular name in a ruby, you know, cuz we like that name, but it worked out.

19:39 My brother was living in Florida that time and he had this little girl that they had kind of adopted foster child the sweetest, sweetest little girl in the world and her name was Patty and I always loved that name cuz of her and I asked me and I said, can we name her Patty? Because I remember that little girl being so sweet and she said, yes, so we named Patty Suzanne.

20:05 Was she sweet like you thought she'd be

20:12 Ela really blessed what was she like growing up real bad? It was real easy going and yet she was kind of

20:21 Want to check everything out. She didn't leave any stones on tires. You know, she had a lot of me and her not a whole lot of them are a good little bit more Me Maybe the better parts of a car.

20:35 You know, what's up?

20:38 She went through dance and she loved that and she loves she loved animals and she loved playing.

20:47 How did everything most kids do I remember first tricycle for her high chair for a dog putting it together one Christmas all night, you know stuff like that.

20:59 If you had like one memory of Mama to share when she was little like a younger child, what would you tell me?

21:06 Anything you can remember we used to go off.

21:12 Thankful for a while. I was working out of my house, you know, I was in the Draper business and I had this lady so in for me.

21:21 And we spent an awful lot of time together. None of my friend. I was keeping you know, especially during the summer when she was when she was small and waist better than off lot of time together the morning watching cartoons together. I'll be working in my workroom. She be sitting up on the table in that women had a big work table making cornice boards and all this kind of stuff and I guess that was really some valuable time that I had but maybe a lot of parents didn't ask because we were together 24 hours a day you

21:54 Overall like that. Do you remember any liked songs that you sang to her when she was a baby? That's all we've talked about earlier little red bird in the tree and night was bad and we sing patty cake patty cake baker's man Conway Twitty became a friend of mine later years and Edwin Patty was smaller, and he was crazy about Patty been came to our house, and when she was real little we got a badass got a picture of him sitting in Conway has lapsed. But anyway, call to Patty Cake.

22:38 And no way to find out all time cuz I was her name.

22:46 Can you tell me?

22:48 A little bit. Can you tell me about one or two people who have been the biggest influences on your life?

22:55 I think

22:57 Having my father because but not in the beginning.

23:02 I hate to say it. But you know, he didn't really influenced me in my younger years, but later I didn't realize but I had Works he did he worked a lot with wood and cement.

23:14 Tools Woodworking and I worked a lot with him when we lived in Athens.

23:19 And I learned a lot of stuff from him and didn't realize I would not interested in it till you later years, you know, and I kind of carried that on but I do stuff today that I learned from being mean just common sense. If he taught me, and said she wasn't mad at you know, he's very smart man. We had a lot of common sense and that like I died I was thought you know, there's nothing nothing common about common sense and I think it sometimes hard to come by.

23:51 How would slay him?

23:56 Are there any positive moments or memories from your life that you think shaped who you are today? Or maybe any negative moments and memories?

24:06 I can't really think of any negative memories.

24:11 My father was a minister and

24:14 A lot of times lot of times. I didn't listen to preaching and then a lot of times I would listen to it and I think I would pick up things.

24:25 Me and I are off from his ministry.

24:29 Is it registered with me later years that what kind of you know in my

24:36 Black Eagle what? I don't know, you know, you know what I'm trying to say. I think about things like that now I think I can be the last of his ministries sermons more than that. I couldn't lay on when I think about the things that he ministered about. I'm sorry that I didn't think that then you know, but that's part of growing up and being stupid. I guess. Sure. Sure. Can you tell me one of your happiest memories?

25:09 Could only bathe your mother the birth of your mother and Jessica my two daughters. I can't think of.

25:19 And is there anything else on marriage part would be first I would say.

25:26 Not married to call your grandmother and then Patty's Burson and Steph and then y'all's birth was the next you know, I don't think yeah for sure.

25:39 What was it like the day you married grammar?

25:42 Well, we were really excited about it. It's kind of a

25:47 We had a little more than we thought was going to have we didn't have a big blowout LED, but we did we had some pretty face in my flowers and my father is very special my father Myers because he was a minister.

26:02 And

26:05 We had a church wedding in one of his churches.

26:09 And there were maybe channel 15 people that my sister was there and

26:14 Her sisters and brothers and then my best friend in high school with my best man.

26:20 And the funny thing my dad was Mariners a little country church, and I don't know if anybody but me Country Church probably seeing wasps flying around is always a road Walton Daddy was man, that's not noticed his face got so red and he had heart problems. Not seriously scared me because I thought I said, oh Lord is going to have he's having a heart attack. So what happened while I was marrying a wall scroll up his leg and stone him on the leg and he never Flint never moved. He's popped out and sweating. But I remember that about a Wedding Crasher and weight.

27:02 Well, whatever you are in town. I don't know I think it is.

27:13 And I remember going by my wife's mother and Daddy's house before we going we had made reservations then a big deal a little Motel Windham home the beach but I made the reservation think it was 40 something dollars a night a lot of money so we went by

27:33 My wife mother and father's house and we're getting ready to go leave out to drive down Savannah.

27:40 And her daddy gave me $40 and I thought that was a four to nothing that we can go out and eat for the we get the ale and I would like to eat in the room and that's one thing I moved and then we went and had it got a good time at the beach got video of what you've seen all that.

28:00 Change lot since then.

28:05 He talked about how old mama and Jessica on the days they were born. What was that like and maybe how was it different from one to the other?

28:14 Well, it was different.

28:18 I told you story about your mother and then when I went up and I don't know if I do it now, but they brought her out out of the room out in the hall, you know to let me see much but they let me see her but then when Jessica was born me and Patty were together, you know, so me and Patty were sitting in the waiting room together and then they came and got the both of us and then we went and saw Jessica together. We will both, boohoo, Indiana.

28:52 That was a different Patty was pickles at and patted named named Jessica.

29:03 And how were they is sister's growing up. Jessica was kind of a pain to Patty because that's good, but age difference there and Patty at her room just at her room, but bad Jessica Ward everything in Patty's room.

29:21 Do you want to learn makeup and her stuff if I didn't really have toys cuz she was a teenager. But but when they grew out of that, you know that it was all so good to Jessica. She just

29:36 Just couldn't get much fives to whether you know.

29:42 Was just really really hot.

29:48 I'm about kind of how how your life has been thus far. What would you say you're most grateful for what would you say?

30:04 Would be your biggest like piece of wisdom or advice that you would like to share with anybody. Listen to the interview with future Generations. What would you say is the biggest thing?

30:17 I don't know how I would think.

30:21 Probably to think about anything at your interest by doing for you to it would be one thing. I've learned do something on impulse and to try to always treat somebody as you want to be treated, you know, which goes back to the snow. Do I know that you haven't been doing you and I think it'll only if you do that, if not think what goes around comes around.

30:46 So I would say

30:49 Trying to get along with your fellow man and treat him as you want to be treated, you know.

30:55 How would you like to be remembered?

30:58 Is a good old boy, you know not if I say too many bad things about being a good song he would help you out if you needed help if he could help you.

31:17 I think that's definitely true. I think I think we all feel that way about you. What are your hopes and wishes for me and maybe as an extension for that your other grandkids, what are your hopes and wishes for us and for future Generations I do and I don't know what I would wish for is for you to call me what you want. And how do I you know, and what would mean the most to you whether it be knowledge or riches or children or grandchildren of whatever I was just like for the things that you want to come true and the thin the next fast and years.

32:02 And for you to be happy and your family.

32:05 And the last thing I had was for us to take a few moments to tell your interview partner what they mean to you. So I'll go first. I did want to take the chance to tell you on record that you are.

32:22 A big Mentor in my life. You're one of the reasons that I appreciate Stories the way that I do the the reason that I'm drawn to stories the way that I am you're one of the reasons that I appreciate music and songs and the way that that can bring people and families and even people who are very different from each other together and I am appreciative that you have taught us all you've always taught us how to laugh even when they've been very difficult or tense situations or even sad situations. You have always been around to lighten the mood and because of that humor is it is a really big part of our life and that I don't know.

33:16 I don't know that I could I could ever replace that. I think it's it's a very special special piece that you brought into my life that way.

33:26 Now that's that's office. What? Yeah, I get that from my mother. I've been known to have a sense of humor, which I think everybody would for Chetopa do some people more than others in a Bud lot of times that help soften the blow for you know,

33:44 I hope that I've always been interested let it to you in whatever and I think maybe you get some of that from you tickle when you do say something like that because I've always my best idea school was English always, you know, I could always write something or something to get by, you know, I wouldn't lay days in English. So I left and right stories have written stories written songs.

34:17 But I'm glad you feel that way.

34:21 Thank you for coming and having this conversation. I appreciate it.