(July 4, 1986, South Sutton, NH. Charles Massey, Tomie, Coleen Salley, John David Ridge. Thanks to longtime friend Charles for the photo.) South Sutton, NH, had a “famous” Fourth of July parade. Martha Wells of S. Sutton cornered Tomie in the grocery store and asked Tomie what he was doing for the Fourth of July. Tomie explained that he had guests. Martha said, “Great! Bring them!” Martha explained that almost all of the residents of S. Sutton were IN the parade. Bodies were needed to WATCH the parade. A woman overheard the conversation and asked, “May we come?” But Martha snapped, “NO, it’s private.” Martha led the parade as Miss Liberty. It was a classic and corny, small town parade. In the photo is Coleen Salley, a children’s literature professor at a university in Louisiana. She couldn’t correctly pronounce Tomie’s last name. When Tomie tried to correct her, she told him it would be easier for him to change the pronunciation of his last name than for her to contact the hundreds of teachers she had taught. We knew Charles’ friend John David as the designer who replaced Halston when Halston was kicked out of his own company. (Bob) Pray for Peace, Justice, and Equality
