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Rikers Island Jail Football Program
Connie Jenkins Delivers Powerful Speech at “The Warden’s” Funeral
(October 31st, 2007) A multitude of people gathered at the Rikers Island Chapel for the Memorial Service of Elwood “The Warden” Jenkins.
Many family members and friends attended along with all 12, 300 inmates that are locked up at Rikers. The inmates came to show respect to the man that gave his life trying to bring them hope and happiness.
Despite the fact that there were many powerful speakers, the one that stood out was Connie Jenkins. Connie, the wife of “The Warden”, delivered a powerful speech that sent chills down the spine of everyone in the chapel.
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"Here lay my husband, dead. Lifeless. His time on this planet has come to an end. He will no longer be here to share his goodwill, and joy with us. However, you know what isn’t in there, dead and lifeless in that box? His dream! This man dreamed of sacrificing for the good of thousands of others who will find joy in the sport of football. He gave his life in hopes that it would be enough to make his dream a reality. While today I do mourn the loss of my husband and best friend, I do not mourn the death of his dream. I stand before you today and swear that we will have a football program at Rikers Island! Not maybe, not possibly, not hopefully… we WILL! I will see to it! They better kill me too if they hope to stop me from making sure the dream of my loving husband comes true!
I sat by my husband’s side every moment since he was rushed in that hospital. As the end neared, he would look at me, our son Elroy, and our grandson, Woody, all together and you could see the twinkle of happiness in his eyes. However, once the news came on about the fire that was set to “The Jailhouse”, a sorrowful look came over him and a tear ran down his face. He loves that program and what it could bring to so many great people who have made mistakes. It hurt me to see him upset so I’ll be d**ned if I’ll let that dream pass away with him!
If you are with me, great! If not, I don’t care! I am not making excuses! This man made no excuses in the 40 years that we’ve been married yet he made things happen! I aspire to be the same way! I’m through waiting for things to happen. My husband’s death is a horrible reminder of how short life is, so if this is going to get done it needs to get done now! In the words of my loving husband, There’s no time to waste!"
***
Connie found the strength to get the speech out powerfully, but burst into tears before making it back to her seat. The chapel rose and applauded her. The remainder of the service was a beautiful tribute to a great man
Many family members and friends attended along with all 12, 300 inmates that are locked up at Rikers. The inmates came to show respect to the man that gave his life trying to bring them hope and happiness.
Despite the fact that there were many powerful speakers, the one that stood out was Connie Jenkins. Connie, the wife of “The Warden”, delivered a powerful speech that sent chills down the spine of everyone in the chapel.
***
"Here lay my husband, dead. Lifeless. His time on this planet has come to an end. He will no longer be here to share his goodwill, and joy with us. However, you know what isn’t in there, dead and lifeless in that box? His dream! This man dreamed of sacrificing for the good of thousands of others who will find joy in the sport of football. He gave his life in hopes that it would be enough to make his dream a reality. While today I do mourn the loss of my husband and best friend, I do not mourn the death of his dream. I stand before you today and swear that we will have a football program at Rikers Island! Not maybe, not possibly, not hopefully… we WILL! I will see to it! They better kill me too if they hope to stop me from making sure the dream of my loving husband comes true!
I sat by my husband’s side every moment since he was rushed in that hospital. As the end neared, he would look at me, our son Elroy, and our grandson, Woody, all together and you could see the twinkle of happiness in his eyes. However, once the news came on about the fire that was set to “The Jailhouse”, a sorrowful look came over him and a tear ran down his face. He loves that program and what it could bring to so many great people who have made mistakes. It hurt me to see him upset so I’ll be d**ned if I’ll let that dream pass away with him!
If you are with me, great! If not, I don’t care! I am not making excuses! This man made no excuses in the 40 years that we’ve been married yet he made things happen! I aspire to be the same way! I’m through waiting for things to happen. My husband’s death is a horrible reminder of how short life is, so if this is going to get done it needs to get done now! In the words of my loving husband, There’s no time to waste!"
***
Connie found the strength to get the speech out powerfully, but burst into tears before making it back to her seat. The chapel rose and applauded her. The remainder of the service was a beautiful tribute to a great man