Holdin’ court with jovial World War II Private Bud Tucker
Alapaha, Georgia, resident Bud Tucker generally doesn’t prefer to sit back and contemplate his compelling stint as a replacement infantry private during the waning days of World War II in Worms, Germany. But over the course of a thorough interview saluting his April 4, 1925, birthday, the lifelong tobacco and corn farmer’s lust for life became readily apparent. I was floored to discover that as a four-year-old kid I accompanied my grandpa, Pleasant Hill Missionary Baptist Church deacon and former pastor Paul Luke, to pray for Bill Solomon’s advanced emphysema. Twenty-nine years later the exact chocolate brown couch where I clasped my hands and bowed my head emulating my grandfather praying for Mr. Tucker’s brother-in-law had not moved an inch. Stick around as the overlooked veteran examines his back pages with joviality and a broad twinkle in his eyes. You’d be hard pressed to find a more energetic nonagenarian who doesn’t have an enemy in the world.
The Bud Tucker Interview
I played baseball and football when I went to school at Alapaha Elementary. I finished the third grade in the two-story red brick building that was later hit pretty bad when the tornado passed through in 1952. Only the lower floors could be salvaged. I went one day to the fourth grade, and I didn’t like my red-headed teacher. I…