Griffin Speaks

A TRIBUTE TO WYNTON (RED) BLOUNT

On October 24, 2002 Montgomery, Alabama lost one of its finest citizens, Wynton (Red) Blount. When I learned that he had passed I was very sad, because I admired him so much. When Greg Jr. noticed my despair he wanted to know more about Mr. Blount.

I reminded Greg how flattered I was that my picture hung on the same wall at the Capital City Club as Mr. Blount’s picture. He was the founding Chairman of the Board of Governors and I am the present Chairman of the Board of Governors. Mr. Blount’s picture is first and mine is last. Why was I so flattered?

Wynton (Red) Blount was a great man by anyone’s assessment. I can’t imagine anyone more deserving to enter the kingdom of heaven. My exposure to him was centered on the Capital City Club and Republican politics. I concluded through those contacts that he was the type of man described in Rudyard Kipling’s poem “IF”. This is what I told Greg Jr. about Mr. Blount:

If you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs and blaming it on you, if you can trust yourself when all men doubt you but make allowance for their doubting too, if you can wait and not be tired by waiting, or being lied about, don’t deal in lies, or being hated, don’t give way to hating, and yet don’t look too good, nor talk to wise: if you can dream—and not make dreams your master, if you can think—and not make thoughts your aim; if you can meet triumph and disaster and treat the imposters just the same; if you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, and stoop and build’em up with worn out tools: if you can make one heap of all your winnings and risk it all on one turn of pitch and toss, and lose, and start again at your beginnings and never breath a word about your loss; if you can force your heart and nerve and sinew to serve your turn long after they are gone, and so hold on when there is nothing in you except the will which says to them: “hold on!” If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, or walk with kings—nor lose the common touch, if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you; if all men count with you, but none too much, if you can fill the unforgiving minute with sixty seconds’ worth of distance run, yours is the earth and everything that’s in it. And which is more—you’ll be a man my son, like WYNTON MALCOM (RED)BLOUNT. GOD REST HIS SOUL!!

Greg Griffin is a free-lance writer. You can read his previous articles by logging on to www.greggriffin.com