With much sadness...

I have been quietly mourning ... It seems so many wonderful people have passed away in the past few weeks:

• R&B singer Gerald LeVert
• TV journalist Ed Bradley
• blues singer Ruth Brown
• blues singer Robert Lockwood, Jr.
• author BeBe Moore Campbell

That is heavy, heavy. I feel connected to each of them in so many ways:

--with Gerald LeVert, it's the Cleveland connection. Also, I met him once after a concert in Cincinnati and have some pix; I also met his dad and the O'Jays. Gerald's passing strikes me because he was only 40 years old ...

--with Ed Bradley, it is an affiliation w/the National Assn. of Black Journalists and the annual convention, which Ed often attended. I, like thousands of others, often watched his stories on "60 minutes." Wonderful to watch - and easy on the eye too.

--Ruth Brown, was an unknown icon! She was ultra fabulous. I met her one year at a big Rock Hall event in Cleveland. Actually hung out w/her most of the evening. Just a good ole time. She reminded me of my grandmother on my Dad's side - fiesty. And wow, could she sing ... she did her thing!

--blues singer Robert Lockwood, Jr. is legendary. I say is because he IS! And I know that his legacy will always be remembered. Clevelanders loved him like he was their native son (Lockwood lived and died in Cleveland, but he is actually from Arkansas) and he loved Cleveland. I used to live in rough Hough, a neighborhood in Cleveland (notorious for riots in the 60s), and Lockwood lived in the same neighborhood. It was not unusual to drive down his street and see him sitting on his porch steps ... Sadly, I never did see him perform LIVE - I know, shame on me because there were countless opportunities.

--BeBe Moore Campbell's passing is really tough to digest. I am an avid reader and I've read all of Campbell's books including her latest "72-Hour Hold." A few years back, she has an appearance scheduled in Cleveland and my reading group and I were reading one of her books - I think it was "What You Owe Me" and I remember making arrangements for the group to meet w/her prior to the speaking engagement. I was unable to attend, but she was so accomodating in the planning and of course, my friends said that she was just as pleasant in person; she just had a kind spirit and disposition. She was 56.

I could go on and on and on about how I feel, but I think I will just take some time to reflect ...