HOW MANY OF YOU REMEMBER "MORNING DEVOTION" ?

[Cassie Richey Robinson]

I remember quite well, because after early morning cheerleaders practice we would run across the street to the little Mom & Pop store on the corner to get maybe doughnuts and a bottle of soda pop, but always a dill pickle and peppermint sticks to put in the pickle. Well running back across the street not yet inside the building if we heard the organ playing and Miss Davis starting to pray we KNEW WE WERE LATE AND IN TROUBLE.

Looking back we all respected the devotion and would stand tall with bowed heads and you could hear a pin drop until DEVOTION was over. I know it helped most of us to be the fine and respected adults that we are today.

Share your experiences about our MORNING DEVOTION and what it meant to you.

[Cassie Richey Robinson]

YES MY FELLOW BULLDOGS, WE RESPECTED "MORNING DEVOTION"..IT IS PART OF THE INGREDIENTS THAT HELPED CREATE THE " BOND / CONNECTION" that we have TODAY.....CHECK THIS OUT>>>>>>

A lot of students DID NOT have church going, church believing parents or mothers and CHURCH WAS JUST NOT IN SOME HOMES BUT THEY GOT IT AT SCHOOL....YES DEVOTION / PRAYER HELPED SAVE OUR GENERATIONS FROM A LOT OF THIS MEAN WORLD.. THANK GOD FOR THOSE OLE SO GOOD DAYS.

 LOVE YALL!

[Deborah Young Love]

Girl you are dead on it! Boy, oh boy oh boy...[to myself...'Deb how could you forget something like that so significant?']  But yes...yes, yes...we "sure did" have Morning Devotion..."how quickly we forget."  Yes, I too remember Morning Devotion, over the "PA System. And yes, we all did stand proudly for those magnificent words to penetrate our hearts and minds, for without Morning Devotion, many of us could not start our day, and besides, we were "trained" that we must start each day with Morning Devotion--prayer.  And I know I needed prayer, like many of my classmates. And I'm not going to get political, as to why it was taken out of the schools, for we all know why...but that's another subject for discussion.  But yes, my sisters' and I too frequented the corner store for pickles with peppermint sticks; for those soft and moist "plain" --- I didn't care for the chocolate covered one---I think the guys liked them better---but they all just melted in your mouth, which left a residue, (of evidence) of sweet and sticky sugar crystals around your mouth...ha, ha, ha....remember ya'll....you know you do.  But now we must not forget the sugar babes; baby-ruth candy bar; snickers; oh yeah >>>> jellie roll doughnuts...those were "my" favorite, and the caramel stick candy...what were those called?  Well I'm through...I've spent about 25 cent...all of my lunch money, I'll have to get some money from my sisters for lunch...(yelling! >>> Gloria...Mary, come on, we need to get to school..Miss Holloway and Madear---that's what we called our Mother--- will whip us if we are late!  (And I know I left somebody still in the store buying candy...and they are probably still in detention!)

[Karen E. McMillan]

Linda Sue Green said:

Devotion was a very good thing at that time and would be a great thing today. We do not have to wonder what happened when it was removed from the schools. We know it has been chaos every since. If you were thinking about doing something you shouldn't, when you got all of that positive inspiration you would possibly change your mind. Thank God for devotion. I feel it could possibly make some of the bullying that is occuring now possibly slow down. At least it would give them something positive to focus on on for those few minutes. Now they walk right in and start their day on the wrong foot. We were fortunate and blessed as students at that time.
Linda Sue Green said:

Fred Walker said:

MORNING DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE REAL WATCH THAT START OUR CLASS ROOM DAY.WALKING TO SCHOOL IT WAS VERY COMMON TO HEAR SOMEONE SAY ,WE GOT TO GET TO SCHOOL BEFORE DEVOTION.THIS IS ME NOW, IN SOME CASES IT MEANT A LITTLE EXTRA SLEEP, FINISHING THAT HOME WORK. BORROWING A PENCIL AND SHEET OF PAPER .NOT TAKING DEVOTION LIGHT,IT WAS GREAT THEN AND WOULD BE EVEN GREATER TODAY. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE DEVOTION BACK IN THE SCHOOLS.DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE NATIONAL ATHEM,IF YOU WERE LATE YOU STOP AND PAID RESPECT.

[Linda Sue Green]

Devotion was a very good thing at that time and would be a great thing today. We do not have to wonder what happened when it was removed from the schools. We know it has been chaos every since. If you were thinking about doing something you shouldn't, when you got all of that positive inspiration you would possibly change your mind. Thank God for devotion. I feel it could possibly make some of the bullying that is occuring now possibly slow down. At least it would give them something positive to focus on on for those few minutes. Now they walk right in and start their day on the wrong foot. We were fortunate and blessed as students at that time.
Linda Sue Green said:

Fred Walker said:

MORNING DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE REAL WATCH THAT START OUR CLASS ROOM DAY.WALKING TO SCHOOL IT WAS VERY COMMON TO HEAR SOMEONE SAY ,WE GOT TO GET TO SCHOOL BEFORE DEVOTION.THIS IS ME NOW, IN SOME CASES IT MEANT A LITTLE EXTRA SLEEP, FINISHING THAT HOME WORK. BORROWING A PENCIL AND SHEET OF PAPER .NOT TAKING DEVOTION LIGHT,IT WAS GREAT THEN AND WOULD BE EVEN GREATER TODAY. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE DEVOTION BACK IN THE SCHOOLS.DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE NATIONAL ATHEM,IF YOU WERE LATE YOU STOP AND PAID RESPECT.

[Linda Sue Green]

Fred Walker said:

MORNING DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE REAL WATCH THAT START OUR CLASS ROOM DAY.WALKING TO SCHOOL IT WAS VERY COMMON TO HEAR SOMEONE SAY ,WE GOT TO GET TO SCHOOL BEFORE DEVOTION.THIS IS ME NOW, IN SOME CASES IT MEANT A LITTLE EXTRA SLEEP, FINISHING THAT HOME WORK. BORROWING A PENCIL AND SHEET OF PAPER .NOT TAKING DEVOTION LIGHT,IT WAS GREAT THEN AND WOULD BE EVEN GREATER TODAY. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE DEVOTION BACK IN THE SCHOOLS.DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE NATIONAL ATHEM,IF YOU WERE LATE YOU STOP AND PAID RESPECT.

[Galen Ollison]

I'm way late on this, Cassie. Talk about "a walk down the halls of BTW"!!! Morning devotion was a fixture of school from my first grade year through BTW graduation. There is truly NO DOUBT in my mind it was THE force that made school so enjoyable, productive, and relatively trouble-free. Seems I remember that at some point NDCC cadets started being posted at the doors on a kind of "devotion duty" (though we didn't call it that), and on good-weather days if devotion had started they required us to stay outside until it was finished.

Some cadets were "easy" and let you in knowing you were in trouble being late. But even if you got past the 'soldier' and ran into a teacher you had to stop cold! Especially Prof. Harrison, whom I had at first period at least two semesters as an upper-classman. Prof would see you at your locker 10 minutes before the bell and even chat and kid with you, but when devotion started he'd frown and hold out a stern hand even if you were RIGHT OUTSIDE HIS DOOR STANDING NEXT TO HIM ! Then depending on his mood, after devotion and after you walked into his room he'd ask you in that "you're in trouble now, boy!" gruff way he could sound ( sometimes playful ... sometimes not ) "WHY YOU LATE TO M' CLASS !!???" We knew whether he was serious and ready to paddle somebody or whether he was just being jovial, we were about to have a few minutes of laughter surrounding roll call!!

It seems after awhile we knew which doors/cadets were "easy" and if it wasn't a big detour we'd definitely use those. Then I think Capt. Sasser got wind of it and at times posted cadet OFFICERS at certain doors. Their uniforms and rank got more respect as if Captain Sasser himself were there, which he actually a few times when he surprised us! (Thank God I was on time those days.)

Some teachers would let you "slide" if you were near their room when devotion started (... Was there a second bell for devotion after the tardy bell, or were they the same? ...) and some would strictly make you get a tardy slip from the office.

Man, how I miss those days.

[Fred Walker]

MORNING DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE REAL WATCH THAT START OUR CLASS ROOM DAY.WALKING TO SCHOOL IT WAS VERY COMMON TO HEAR SOMEONE SAY ,WE GOT TO GET TO SCHOOL BEFORE DEVOTION.THIS IS ME NOW, IN SOME CASES IT MEANT A LITTLE EXTRA SLEEP, FINISHING THAT HOME WORK. BORROWING A PENCIL AND SHEET OF PAPER .NOT TAKING DEVOTION LIGHT,IT WAS GREAT THEN AND WOULD BE EVEN GREATER TODAY. I WOULD LOVE TO HAVE DEVOTION BACK IN THE SCHOOLS.DEVOTION WAS LIKE THE NATIONAL ATHEM,IF YOU WERE LATE YOU STOP AND PAID RESPECT.