CHAPTER 1

Desiree Chase was born during the early Winter monthsin the middle of the 50's decade. The very day thatDesiree was born was exciting to everyone, to say the least.John Chase goes into the street and tells his friends thatRuby Chase, his new wife is about to have the baby andhails a cab. Clarence and Gloria Walker, Ruby's parentsare all coming out to the cab to get in and they all did. Afterclosing the doors to the cab, the cabdriver noticed thatsomeone very important was missing, the mother who wasabout to deliver. In that light moment John opens the cabdoor to tell ruby to come, there was not time to loose.

The day that Desiree was taken home from the hospital,she demonstrated to all around her and to the entire worldjust how powerful and developed a new born baby's setof lungs could possibly be. It was at that point that hergreat-aunt assumed that she was holding a future greatsoprano in her arms. Coming home to a couple of veryproud parents, beholding their very first child, a set ofvery proud, Christian and humble grandparents, futureGodparents and a host of long time friends and neighbors,they all agreed without a doubt that she was a wonderfulsight to behold. Someone who did not know any betterwould think that Desiree was the first baby to ever comehome to the thriving and warm community of a ManhattanCounty Hospital, New York.

These were the times and the years where an entirecommunity took care of each other. These were the timeswhereas people would not even think or consider the thoughtof locking their doors or windows or even their cars. Thesewere the years whereas a grocer would not think twice aboutfeeding a family of a father who may be out of work andnot ask for a dime on the bill. These were the years wherethe children were safe to walk the streets and play withoutparents having the fear of a child being taken or lost withouta trace. These were the early to mid-fifties and for manyof the Black American families, sometimes referred to asNegroes and other times referred to as coloreds, a differenttime, a different place, different people, different thoughts,different mind-sets, different priorities, a different era, adifferent world, President Dwight David Eisenhower was inthe White House.

Some say that it was a better time, a better world.Some say that this was a time that the bond and strengthof the family unit was the very core and foundation ofAmerican society. Some say that the church family and thenever-ending, devoted practices of our religious faiths andtraditions are what held our families as well as our societytogether. Then, there are those that say that these were notthe best of times, but the worse of times. The opportunitiesfor advancement in the labor force for minorities were grimand discouraging. Some lived with the memories of the lossof loved ones to polio disease and spinal meningitis. Otherslived with the memories of the loss of loved ones to the evilof the streets. The evil of the experimentations of a notoriousdrug called Heroin which claimed so many innocent lives,young and old. The paths of destruction that it left of thosewho saw no other alternative to escape the harshness ofdaily living with the formation of the era of the AmericanGangsters of the fifties. Notwithstanding, however oneviewed their places in life during this time, it was for certainthat the world of John and Ruby Chase was perfect in theireyesight, because their baby girl Desiree Chase was borninto the world.

John and Ruby Chase were both very young at this time.They had tied the knot of matrimony barely 6 months priorto Desiree's birth, with the assistance of John's mother CoraLee along with the blessings of Ruby's parents, Clarenceand Gloria Walker. John was born in the heart of Manhattan,Ruby was a child of the southland, born in North Carolinawhere here parents lived until she was 2 years of age.

John and Ruby met while students in junior high school.Ruby's family worshipped at Garden of Gethsemane BaptistChurch. John's family worshipped at Shiloh Baptist Churchwhich was further downtown. Clarence Walker made hisliving and supported his family as a carpenter, and workedout of a unionized factory located in the Bronx, near theMajor Deegan highway (better known as 87 South), whichleads to the east side of Harlem, when crossing the bridge.While his wife Gloria contributed to the family approximatelythree to four days per week as a domestic worker. CoraLee Chase spent many years working in the jewelry districtof Manhattan, New York. Her specialty were the Pearls,all types of pearls, cultured and uncultured. John's father,John Chase Sr. spent most of his time over the road afterhis retirement from the military after serving in World War11. John barely saw his father thus not having as close ofa relationship with him as he would have liked. He oftentimes spoke of his father and wondered quite often if hewas just like him, or was he the exact opposite of his father.Since John's mother and father separated when John wasapproximately 9 years old, Cora Lee Chase would choosenot to speak much about her estranged husband. Cora Lee'smother, Clara Washington, known to all in the communityand to the church as "Mother Clara", helped Cora Lee toraise both John and his younger sister Loretta.

Six months have passed and for the passed months,there was much talk about Desiree's christening. Rubywanted all to go well for her first child's day of, "giving thebaby back to GOD" as the older folks would so often callit. Now this was not all very easy for Ruby, simply becauseshe had promised her first child to her childhood friend,Michelle. Ruby and Michelle were as tight as two peas in apod. Michelle was one year older than Ruby and they had avery close circle of friends. Even though they were all close,it was Michelle who was to be the Godmother of Ruby'sfirst child. Ruby also had another very good friend namedCharles Etta, whom had two daughters and one of them,she gave to Ruby as her goddaughter, and her name wasLorene. As the two girls would grow up through the years,Desiree and Lorene would become extremely close as amatter of fact, Lorene had designated herself as Desiree'sprotector in school, if she should ever need one. Ruby hada handful of friends, but her and Michelle would prove to bevery close. Charles Etta's cousin Amelia Lawson and herhusband William, who lived just down the street, was anotherof Ruby's very good friends. Amelia and William had a totalof seven Children as the years went by.

What made this such a difficult task for Ruby wasbecause her mother Gloria also had a best friend. Sarahand her husband Scott Charles were both very close foryears to Clarence and Gloria. Therefore out of respect forher mother, Ruby had also promised Desiree to Sarah andScott Charles. How fortunate can a child be, sometimes it isdifficult to find one suitable Godparent, Desiree will have two.It was decided that the services will be held at the Gardenof Gethsemane Baptist Church. Rev. McLeay was thepastor and a well known pillar of a figure in the Manhattancommunity at this time.

Deacon Armstrong was the chairman of the Deaconboard of the church. Now it was usually procedure inthe church to have a meeting with the parents and theGodparents when a child is to be christened, just as it wascustomary for a perspective bride and groom to have acounseling session with the pastor and the Deacon BoardChairman.

One day while Gloria Walker was at home, shereceived a...