In the aftermath of the storm of the century, Rob Wyatt, a thirty-two-year-old Charleston bachelor, finds himself assessing his life as well as his property damage. Life changes culminate at the annual Volunteer Fire Department Fair, as Rob's past and future collide in what could either be catastrophe or salvation.

Remarkably removed from the devotional, certifying, and celebratory view of the South that has dominated books of this genre, The Southern State of Mind addresses the question of whether inherited Southern values, problems, and contradictions have survived the onslaught of modernization."--BOOK JACKET.

Originally part of the Bergen County area known as Godwinville and then Ridgewood, Glen Rock voted to become a borough in 1894. The rock from which the borough took its name was deposited at the end of the last ice age by a retreating glacier. Local folklore tells of Native Americans, the Lenni Lenape, holding meetings on the rock. Early settlers used the rock as a landmark in deeds for the farms they created out of the heavily wooded land. Local streams powered gristmills and sawmills. By 1842, trains brought goods to the area, and within a decade, passenger trains carried the first of the daily commuters to and from New York City. Glen Rock, a photographic journey, documents the growth of the community from the late 1880s through the late 1950s. The early strawberry fields, farms, mills, and hotels made way for today's stores and homes. The dirt roads once used by horse and buggy, stagecoach, and bicycle were paved for early automobiles. The original schools became too small to hold the growing number of children, and new schools were built. Glen Rock's leaders created municipal departments, civic organizations, emergency services, businesses, and places of worship. Parades, picnics, and pageants entertained Glen Rockers. Wars and the Great Depression brought citizens together, and residents gathered to help each other and the nation.

Black Sheep Son Nothing about going home to Gordon Falls is easy for fireman Clark Bradens. His role as local bad boy is firmly established, though he's determined to use his newfound faith to change people's minds. But Clark isn't the only one coming home to hard times. When Melba Wingate came home from Chicago to help her ailing father, she wasn't expecting to unravel a family secret. As Melba wades through the past to find the truth about her father, Clark becomes an unlikely ally. And while neither can change the past, the future is theirs to shape.

This fascinating pictorial history chronicles the vibrant development of the largest and most colorful fire service in the country -- the Fire Department of New York (FDNY). Beautifully illustrated, Badges of the Bravest tells the nostalgic story of the fire departments in New York City through a lavish collection of more than 900 badges -- the most time-honored of firefighters' symbols -- along with intriguing photographs and historical documents sure to captivate history buffs, firefighting enthusiasts, and collectors of fire memorabilia. Badges of the Bravest takes the reader through a vivid journey, from the early volunteer companies to the paid uniformed force, from bucket brigades to steam fire engines, from the hand-drawn to the horse-drawn to the motorized era! Badges punctuate the many important milestones in the FDNY's history and capture its most poignant events, including the tragic fires at the Brooklyn Theater, Triangle Shirtwaist factory and the Happyland Social Club. Often overlooked in other published histories of New York firefighting, Badges of the Bravest documents the important role of many specialized fire brigades protecting New York City's landmarks, including the World's Fair, United Nations, Grand Central Terminal, Brooklyn Navy Yard, Coney Island amusement parks, and the World Trade Center. Badges of the Bravest is the saga of a great city... of firefighting and firefighters... and the glorious badges that celebrate and pay fitting tribute to the bravest of American heroes. Book jacket.