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Uncle Ollie

By Bill Branson

Once in a while, on what seemed an annual visit to our grandparents, we would see Uncle Ollie at my maternal grandmother's house. In later years, I suspected that Grandma W. arranged his leave times from the Home to coincide with our visits.

We were young, and so made few distinctions of relative age, but he seemed to be in his 40's to my current mind. Ollie was a smallish, child like man. He never said a lot, as I recall. But, he did like to hang out and play with us kids. One day, he came downstairs, from what I guess was his room, with his fly open. My sister saw him about the same time as Grandma. Ollie got a good chiding, and was sent back upstairs. Later, as kids will do, I overheard Ma and Grandma talking about him. He was to be sent back to the Home again. But, you see there was no evil in that man. He just found it more convenient to stay unzipped. My sister was not bothered in any way.

Ollie had been a sailor, somewhere during the Korean War. Something happened to Ollie as was. He became Ollie as is. The VA and Navy knew, because they gave him a disability and allowed him a slot in a soldier's home. Ollie would get leave to come and see his parents, but he always ended up having to go back to the Home. What was he like before and why was he like that after? Some-when, somewhere, the War killed that man. Well, there is no knowing now. He passed from a heart attack, while we were still in grade school.

Bill Branson is a VVAW board member and Chicago resident.