The Tallapoosa Possum Drop, a New Year’s Eve Tradition
New Year’s Eve in Times Square? Meh. The real action is in Tallapoosa, Georgia.
That’s where Bud and Jackie Jones, career taxidermists, live. They helped establish a completely different kind of New Year’s Eve tradition in their small town.
Bud and Jackie came to StoryCorps recently to share the love story that helped launch it all.
Since the Tallapoosa Possum Drop began in the late 1990s, the event has grown from about 40 people to over 7,000 in attendance. That’s more than twice the population of Tallapoosa itself.
Top photo: Bud and Jackie Jones pose after their StoryCorps interview in Tallapoosa, GA in September 2018. By Kelly Moffitt for StoryCorps.
Middle photo: Bud and Jackie Jones pose together in 1963. Courtesy Bud Jones.
Bottom photo: Bud and Jackie Jones pose near “Spencer” at the Possum Drop in Tallapoosa, GA in 2014. Courtesy Bud Jones.
Originally aired December 28, 2018, on NPR’s Morning Edition.
A Second Chance
“When I spoke to you it was the first time I got to truly understand the seriousness of what I did.”
Darius Clark Monroe & David Ned
For 15 years, StoryCorps has brought people together to talk about things that might otherwise seem difficult to talk about — like in this conversation.
A high school honors student in 1997, Darius Clark Monroe wanted to help his family get out of financial trouble. So he robbed a bank in Stafford, Texas at gunpoint with two of his friends.
During his time in prison, he decided to apologize to the people who were inside the bank on that day, including customer David Ned. Seventeen years later, they sat down at StoryCorps to talk about what it meant to both of them for David to offer Darius forgiveness.
We’re presenting this conversation through One Small Step, StoryCorps’ new national effort to encourage people to engage in difficult conversations. Join us.
Support for One Small Step is provided by The Rockefeller Foundation; The Corporation for Public Broadcasting; The Einhorn Family Charitable Trust; The Charles Koch Foundation; The Righteous Persons Foundation; and Present Progressive Fund at Schwab Charitable.
Para subtítulos en español, haga click en el ícono de YouTube en la esquina derecha, y escoja “Spanish” bajo la opción de “settings” y “subtitles/CC.
New Tracks
“I couldn’t walk in my father’s footsteps to save my soul.”
Lyle Link & Carly Dreher
Lyle Link felt like a disappointment when he told his father he couldn’t follow him into farming. But he found his purpose as a lifelong partner to his wife Marion, who he remembers at StoryCorps with his granddaughter, Carly Dreher.
In “New Tracks,” Lyle’s remembrances of his trailblazing life with Marion are a reminder that a great love can point the way.
Listen to Lyle and Carly’s original StoryCorps interview.
Para subtítulos en español, haga click en el ícono de YouTube en la esquina derecha, y escoja “Spanish” bajo la opción de “settings” y “subtitles/CC.
The Road Home
Eddie Lanier struggled with alcoholism for over 40 years, until his 28th stint in rehab finally led to sobriety. Homeless and hungry, Eddie found a friend in David Wright, a passerby whose frequent donations stood out. Four years after they shared Eddie’s remarkable story with StoryCorps, David persuaded Eddie to move into his home. They still live together to this day.
“The Road Home” is part of StoryCorps’ first-ever half-hour animated special, Listening Is an Act of Love, which premiered November 28, 2013 on the PBS documentary series, POV. Watch the special for free on our YouTube channel. Now also available for download on iTunes—or purchase the DVD!