Ronnie Bynum

In this interview, Ronnie Bynum discusses his family history, including the career of his grandmother as a midwife and the changes she witnessed on Airport Road, which is now MLK Boulevard. He talks about how much he learned from his grandmother, and how easily it is for the fabric of an extended family to break when an important family member passes. The early history of St Joseph is also discussed including its use of typically unused pieces of lumber from Fitch Lumber Company. Mr. Bynum also discusses the power of church mentorship, specifically telling stories about Reverend Manley and his mentorship of Valerie Foushee. Mr. Bynum also talks about the tension in interracial interactions he experienced growing up, noting how white businesspeople were often caught between wanting to serve black patrons and being afraid of reprisals from the Klan. Mr. Bynum himself experienced some of this tension, and discusses the difficulty some of his white friends experienced regarding the disapproval of their parents.

Ronnie Bynum: Yeah, I remember the marches, and everything- the meeting areas out in front of St. Joseph’s. I remember when Reverend Manley and First Baptist, for example, saying Martin Luther King can’t speak here because during that time they had moved from Franklin Street, near McDonald’s, and they moved to where they are now. But during that time it was a different area saying they were bombing churches and so he was like, “I can’t do this,” and so they had Martin Luther King speak somewhere else. But yeah, First Baptist did a lot for the communities and everything else and they are still here to this day. So as far as having Martin Luther King coming to speak at First Baptist, Reverend said “It’s not the time. I respect it, I’m fighting with you but right now as for the vision God has for me, it’s not the time.” And so, it was honored and respected, even by Martin Luther King.