Thank you so much for posting! I would love to know anything and everything possible about my PaPa, and family. Since he passed away at such an early age, my mom, who was only 12 at the time, Carolyn Ann Cudd-Gourdon, has maybe only 3 photos of him, and knows hardly nothing at all about her grandma, or any of the Cudd Family, other than through my cousin Charles and Fannie Strother. Charles' Mom was Earnest Earl Cudd's sister, Beatrice. She married Charles' dad, Uncle T.J. Strother.
I actually got to meet my Great Aunt Beatrice one time before she passed away, and I was so very excited, as was my mom. I could have sat there with them for hours just talking. But, I found myself totally intrigued by her zest for life, and the sparkle in her eyes.
My e-mail address is
gkgourdon@yahoo.com, and I would love it if you could send me any information that you possibly could. I've been searching for years, and my mom asks every once in a while if I've found out any new information. And I'll fill her in on whatever bits and pieces I can.
I have a strong connection to family, and my mom was deprived of a connection with her dad because of Emily Johnson, who is my mom's mom. I never called her grandma when she was living, because of the way she treated my mom, and refused to allow her any contact with PaPa Earl, or any of the Cudd family. Thank God my mom moved in with my Auntie Marie Gordon, and my Uncle Ellis Gordon. Otherwise, she'd have been abused even more than ever. Emily's third husband, Clyde Creel, abused my mom so much, and it's amazing that she's the strong woman that she is still today. And she is the sweetest, and most beautiful, inside and out, woman that I've ever known. We are not just mom and daughter...we are best friends. That's why I'm putting this book together about the Cudd Family. I'm doing it for all of us as well. But, this is something that I aim to put together and give my mom one day, and hopefully, whether it brings laughter, or tears, she will be proud.
And maybe someday, there could be a reunion where we could go, so we could connect in person with our cousins, aunts, uncles, and our fore-fathers. What a great day that would be...to have a Cudd Family Reunion. Thank you, and I hope to hear from you very soon.
Merry Christmas to you all!
Gwen Gourdon