Charlene Colson, a former resident of Marina Village who now lives at The Windward, read a poem she originally wrote and read at the ribbon cutting for the first phase of the apartment complex in 2021.
Here are her prose:
“No matter what building you lived in, you were family
We had some good times, we had some bad
We weren’t always happy, we weren’t always sad
We had everything; we didn’t have to go far|
We had Fish ‘n’ Chips, Famous, Duchess, just to name a few
Jefferson, Roosevelt and Bassick High School
Do you remember the cookouts in our backyards?
Bob’s Liquor Store. Block parties in the playground in the parking lot?
Do you remember turning on the fire hydrant?
Playing in the water when it was hot?
Do you remember Bonus Market, our grocery store?
Do you remember Mrs. Dempsey teaching us Sunday school?
Keeping us ’til it was dark?
The fireworks in Midway at Seaside Park?
Do you remember how we would all would go crazy
When we heard ‘Let’s Dance to the Drummer’s Beat?’
Do you remember playing frozen tag and hide and go seek?
These are the things that I remember and I wanted to share
They can knock Marina Village down, but the memories will always be there
Can we bow our heads and acknowledge our loved ones that we lost?
They may be gone but never forgotten
I say this because it is true
I will always rep Marina Village no matter where I go or what I do.”
