Dallas Richard Longstreath as you likely remember was the husband of Bessie Cain Longstreath who was featured in Issue 1. He was also the half-brother of Elmer Fieldon Ward who was the husband of Rosie May Rebecca Cain Ward, so there was a tightly wrapped family bond associated with Dallas. Dallas left us May 1990 after a long battle with diabetes and complications.

Melba Ward Dupree writes: About My Sweet Uncle Dallas. I cannot remember the exact year but I think it was about 1933 or 1934 that I first met Dallas. It was dark and our family was sitting around talking and about to prepare for bed. The doors were already locked for the night. My Dad worked shift work and he was on the evening shift so he wasn't at home. We heard a knock on the door and we all looked at each other - a little bit afraid. Mom turned the front porch light on and there stood three men. Mom did not recognize them because they were so dirty they appeared to be black people. This was still part of the depression years and we were all very poor. They had ridden on freight trains from Oklahoma to Cotton Valley, La. The soot and dirt from the train had them covered. The three were Uncle Bert, Uncle Lester and Uncle Dallas - my Dad's half brothers; they had come to our area looking for work. They asked for Elmer Ward. After finding out he wasn't there they told Mom who they were. And, of course, she recognized them then.

Uncle Bert left first after not finding a job. Uncle Lester found work and moved out to his own place there in Cotton Valley. And - Dallas fell in love with Bessie (my mother's sister) and they were married later.

Dallas would go with us to church. He was addicted to smoking cigarettes, and Mom told him if he would stop smoking, she would buy him a new suit. He stopped smoking and she kept her word. I thought he looked so nice in his new suit.

He was always a very pleasant person. I can't remember there ever being a cross word. When he and Bessie were "dating" they had no place or no way to go, so they would go sit in our car and take James (who was a baby at that time). They would have him laughing so loudly he could be heard everywhere. I don't know what they were doing to him.

He and Bessie went through some tough times financially- along with every one else - when they first married. These were still the depression years. But as time went by, he found a good job and made his family a very good living and seeing that their every need was met.

At the time of his death, I was standing by his coffin. Donna and Richard were also standing there - his daughter and grandson. I heard Donna say, "He was a good Daddy". I thought that pretty well summed up his life. He was a good man - good husband, good daddy, good friend.

"A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches …" Proverbs 22:1.

Margaret Ward: I loved him very much. He was jolly and kind. He always was glad to see us when we came. He loved his family very much.

Linda Hilburn: Uncle Dallas liked to pick with kids. His name for me was "Sue Willie Bell". When I was quite young, perhaps 8 or 10 and very skinny, he used to tell me, "You are going to dry up and blow away". Unfortunately, no one tells me that any more!

I can remember great times when Aunty Geek and Uncle Dallas would be at our house and Aunt May or Aunt Ruth and Uncle Olon, Babe, etc., would be visiting. Everybody was shelling peas. I would be sitting on the floor shelling peas and listening to the grown-ups talk about the present day problems of the world. I loved this more than going out and playing.

Many times, I have witnessed Uncle Dallas and Aunty Geek coming over for a visit. After about 10 to 15 minutes, Uncle Dallas would say, "Bess, Are you ready to go?" Of course she wasn't, because she had not had time to visit.

I have fond memories of Aunty Geek and Uncle Dallas coming over for wiener roasts in the fall. We would have a big fire going in the driveway. We would sit on the back of pick-ups, roast wieners and marshmallows over the open fire. Some of us would have Frito pies. We really enjoyed these wiener roasts.

Uncle Dallas could probably have been in the Guinness Book of Records for being an automated pea sheller! He could talk a blue streak and shell a many a pea! He loved to tell tales about his work at the CVOC Refinery and we loved to hear them!

Uncle Dallas was known for these sayings, "It came a toad strangler last night!", “Somebody had a cast-a-stroke!” (catastrophe).

Jon Barker: Uncle Dallas was always nice to me and everyone else. I don't remember him ever getting too upset about anything.