“When The Ancestors Sleep”
By
Chaplain Kimberly Cain
Naval Station Norfolk Deputy Command Chaplain
Former NNOA National Chaplain
“Then David slept with his ancestors, and was buried in the city of David. The time that David reigned over Israel was forty years; he reigned seven years in Hebron, and thirty-three years in Jerusalem.” So Solomon sat on the throne of his father David; and his kingdom was firmly established. 1 Kings 2:10-12
Dearest NNOA Family & Friends,
It is with a heavy heart that I offer my deepest condolences and words of solace in the recent loss of a stalwart member and founder Ret. Captain Sandy Pollard. In her third book, “A letter to my daughter” Phenomenal Woman and Poet Laureate, Dr. Maya Angelou wrote,“You may not control all the events that happen to you, but you can decide not to be reduced by them. Try to be a rainbow in someone’s cloud. Do not complain. Make every effort to change things you do not like. If you cannot make a change, change the way you have been thinking. You might find a new solution. Never whine. Whining lets a brute know that a victim is in the neighborhood.” This powerful statement is the epitome of Retired Captain Sandy Pollard’s influence upon my life and the lives of so many that she touched. Her finger prints are gracefully etched throughout the span of my Naval career, my personal life, the lives of my daughters and so many others. She is the one who time after time breathed life into a dying or hopeless situation. I cannot recall a time when I did not see her smiling or having an encouraging word. Just this past Tuesday evening, at our monthly Tidewater Chapter NNOA meeting she was present and contributed with the same level of passion and enthusiasm for her beloved NNOA. I wish that we could all bring that level of gracious love to our organization! CAPT Pollard is a titan in our timeline! May we continue her trailblazing legacy as she now sleeps with the ancestors. When David was anointed King, there was strife between the “anointed” King David and the people’s “chosen” King Saul. What God “anoints”, God also firmly established. NNOA is forever “established” by the testimony of our ancestors! Especially those who now sleep like The Golden Thirteen, Phyllis Mae Dailey, Jesse LeRoy Brown, John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr. Those whose lives have irrevocably transformed the life & legacy of one who now sleeps with the ancestors, Ret. CAPT Sandy Pollard. May we always speak your great name.
Rev. Kimberly Cain, LCDR, CHC, USN