Trip from Miami unusual adventure
Willie Lee has lived in Claremore since 2005, but on Nov. 4, 1938, she lived in Miami, Oklahoma, where she grew up. Her parents, admirers of Will Rogers, drove to Claremore fore the opening of the Will Rogers Memorial. Although it was unusual for them to come to Claremore, “My mother wanted to be part of it,” she said.
Willie especially remembers movie actress (Marilyn Weaver spoke on behalf of the motion picture industry).”Being a teen-ager, I got her autograph. When she handed it back to me, she gave me a personal smile. I remember that”
She remembers the statue and that there were more people than she had ever seen.
This year will have another special meaning for Willie with the “Wilson on Will” exhibit of Will Rogers’ paintings by Charles Banks Wilson. “All of us that grew up there (in Miami) knew about him, turned out he has been a good representative.”