What Heroes Leave Behind

On April 1, 2015, a hero passed on.

http://www.mercedsunstar.com/news/article17187011.html

Les Williams was one of the few remaining Tuskegee Airmen. He achieved the rank of Captain in the first class of Black bomber pilots.

But that's not why he's my hero.

After WWII, Captain Les Williams overcame the remnants of racial prejudice in his home town of San Mateo, CA, to open a dance studio. He was my first tap-dance teacher. He was 45 years old when my twin sister and and I became his 5 year old students. I remember him as a patient, kind and smiling teacher.

In fact, I remember him so fondly as my first tap-dance teacher that I wasn't even aware he was a famed Tuskegee Airmen until a few years ago. I wanted to tell my students about my first hero. Knowing he was a famous dancer in the San Francisco Bay Area in my youth, I searched his name on the internet and was puzzled when references to Tuskegee Airmen kept popping up. Mr. Williams never marketed himself as a WWII and Civil Rights hero when advertising his dance studio. When I asked my father if he knew, he said he had no idea. He just saw a dance studio near his workplace and, probably because of the popular influence of his childhood neighbor, Shirley Temple, decided to enroll his young daughters for tap-dance classes.

I didn't dance again until high school, then taught dance in a small town in Nebraska as a young adult.

Since I have learned of Les Williams' rich life story, I have woven it into lessons I give as an Intermediate public school Librarian. When he and his daughter, Penny, wrote his autobiography, I purchased several copies and he was kind enough to autograph them for circulation in my school. At the beginning of this school year, I did a book review featuring his book, Victory. Several students, especially boys, asked about learning more about tap dancing. I recommended books from our library, then decided in the new year to offer a Tap Dance Club, even though I had not danced in over 30 years (I'm 55)! Happily, the skill returned quickly - it's kind of like riding a bike - and I think I'm having more fun than my students. About a dozen students joined. Some dropped out, but there are almost as many boys as girls learning the Stray Cat Strut. Three of the girls are learning so quickly that they want to perform at the school Talent Show in May.

Because of a Tuskegee Airman who invited me into the joys of tap dancing, I continue to tell his inspirational story and teach fancy footwork as I remember his impression on my life, hoping to inspire hundreds, even thousands of young students.

What do heroes leave behind? Gratitude.