Truman & Georgia Pope

When Uncle Sam cut me off from the good life of free room and board plus almost $20 a week, my plans were to become a member of the Indiana State Police. As the next recruit class didn’t begin for eight months, I took a “temporary” position at Ball State that turned out to last over 40 years. I found that a college campus is certainly a super place to be employed. Ball State joined URMIA in 1971, and I attended all the annual meetings except two during my tenure. URMIA was the most friendly and interesting organization that I ever experienced. The relationships were close and, in Charlie Emerson’s words, we became family. We still correspond with many of the former members and have visited several. During my time with URMIA, Mary Breighner and I established a recognition service for retiring URMIA members, which I hope is still being utilized as it has meant a lot to those who have retired.

For Georgia and me, these are truly the golden years. We’ve been to England, Hawaii, and to California several times. We enjoy our home on the banks of the White River and do a lot of flower gardening and lawn work. I’m probably the only employee who received a chain saw as a retirement gift from his department, but how practical a gift it was. I’ve used it heavily each year, and it’s essential to keep the river debris in check. Having been involved in Scouting since the ‘60’s, I’m now a full-time volunteer Scouter. Along with three other adults, I took a Boy Scout patrol to England last year to an international Camp. I correspond by e-mail with Scouters in Europe, Hong Kong, and New Zealand. My interest in vexillology (flags) was heightened by finding a web site for a national organization which I’ve joined.

Georgia is enjoying her club, sorority, herbs, baskets, and flowers. Yes, she still likes to laugh. We both enjoy the activities of our three married children and our one grandchild and are looking forward to more. We keep in touch with the university through our free passes to athletic events, stage shows, and cultural happenings, and it never forgets us in its many fund drives. We enjoy the four seasons and the Indiana winters, especially when we don’t have to get out in the weather. Charlie Emerson once told me the only good thing to come out of Indiana was I-65 bringing all the Hoosiers down to Kentucky to bet on the horse races, but I’ve found that it’s a beautiful and interesting place to have grown up and raised a family. We’ve lived through interesting times: Coolidge; Hoover, the Depression; the Roosevelt years; that fateful Sunday of December 7; the postwar years; Korea; Vietnam; the working years; and, now, retirement. URMIA holds so many pleasurable memories for both of us and each of our former friends holds a special place in our lives.

Truman Pope