   
Mining Family Opens Home to Rev. Jackson
On Tuesday night June 8, day three of the “Reinvest in America: Put America Back to Work!” Appalachian Bus Tour, Rev. Jesse Jackson in the home of John and Betty Shumate in Beckley, W.Va. Retired miner and WWII veteran John E. Shumate, 84, worked in the coal fields for 41 years.
Betty Shumate said that she and her husband were glad to have Jackson stay with them in her home. After gathering with friends and family to visit with her guest Tuesday night, Mrs. Shumate rose at 5:00 a.m. to prepare a full breakfast including baked apples, bacon and biscuits.
The couple
traveled
with Jackson
to the Beckley
rally at
the local
headquarters
of the UMWA
where there
is a career
center for
unemployed
miners.
“He
was such
good company,” said
Mrs. Shumate
of Jackson. “We
could have
stayed up
talking with
him through
the night
but we wanted
to let him
rest.”
Jackson
thanked the
couple before
the rally
and complimented
Mrs. Shumate
on her homemade
blackberry
pie.
Serving
in the South
Pacific from
1942 to 1946,
Shumate later
became American
Legion state
commander.
Since retiring
from mining
coal in 1980
when he was
diagnosed
with black
lung, Shumate
has endured
congestive
heart failure,
prostate
and bladder
cancer and
kidney problems.
Requiring
oxygen and
numerous
pills to
breathe,
he is spirited
when regaling
listeners
with stories
of his life
and amorous
remarks about
his wife
Betty, whom
he calls “Little
Admiral.”
“I
owe organized
labor my
life,” said
Shumate. “The
UMWA made
it possible
for me to
send my five
children
to college.
I’ve
given my
union 65
years of
my life and
they have
taken care
of me through
all of my
hospitalizations
and treatments.”
Shumate
said that
the Appalachian
bus tour’s
message offer
people the
hope of leveling
the playing
field for
everyone.
“Reinvesting
in this region
will set
the table
for my grandchildren
so they can
have a better
living and
better education,” said
Shumate. “We
don’t
want a handout.”
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