The Coral Gables Times

THE CORAL GABLES TIMES Thursday, August 31, 1961

'Send a Man, Not a Dollar' First Peace Corps?

By BECKY DOYLE-QUINN Times Reporter Will Rogers once said, "There are only two kinds of people in the world — those we love and those we don't know." Dr. Robert Cherry, a local dental surgeon and civic worker, is a believer in this philosophy. But Dr. Cherry is not a man to just sit and think about something — he acts. As a member of the People-to-People Committee, he was among a delegation of Gableites which journeyed to Coral Gables' sister-city of Cartegena, Colombia, last November. While there, the medical men in the group learned of the acute need for medical and dental knowledge in that country. They also became aware of the need for drugs. GOT BUSY When they returned, Dr. Cherry got busy. He organized a group of 20 area physicians and dentists and began to contact some of the nation's drug firms. In April, the group left carrying 97,000 units of Salk polio vaccine and over $10,000 worth of drugs. The drugs were given to the Children's Charity Hospital to be used for the poor people. The medical men were shown the hospital and discovered that the major sicknesses were anemia and amoebic dysentery, of which the great cause is malnutrition. "The conditions of the poor people are deplorable," Dr. Cherry recently told the Soroptimist club here. "Many of the people live in shacks with dirt floors and thatched roofs. The sanitary facilities are quite poor. MONEY NOT BEST "It is my opinion that our conceptin of sending money to these countries is not the best. We can best accomplish our purpose of helping them by sending people and materials. "Communism does flourish down there because of the deplorable conditions under which the poor people live. Until their standards are elevated communism will continue to flourish because of these hungry people. "The type of government does not matter. They believe in a government that will elevate their standards and bring food to their tables." Dr. Cherry feels that the people of Coral Gables can do a great deal to further our interests in helping these people. "When you talk with a South American, he only mentions two cities, Miami and New York. These people look to us for their future. WANT EDUCATION "They don't want only our money, they want our help in teaching them to help themselves. We must help them improve their standards of living as well as their medical and educational standards. "One of the greatest things we could do would be to establish a good, well-staffed, well-equipped, modern hospital for them. There should be a plaque above the door in large letters, 'Donated by the United States of America.' "People will see this and remember it. The children we help today will run the coun- try tomorrow and they remember. They will recall that it was the United States that made possible the good care they received when they were sick. RUSSIANS READY "I was told by some of the doctors there that the Russians are waiting and willing to do what I have mentioned. "It would be a good idea for some of the civic clubs and the rest of our people to take part in any way possible to help establish one or more of these hospitals in our sister cities." If the people in our area answer Dr. Cherry's plea, a committee could be formed to direct the project. It is his hope that such a move here could be the generating start of a nation-wide campaign. Dr. Cherry feels that the occurence of a third world war depends largely on how South America reacts to the current Communist penetration. A BULKHEAD "As long as she is a friend of democracy, there will be a bulkhead against communism and World War III." "And we can help at home too. Miami is the gateway to the Americas. We have many visitors from the South American countries arriving every day. We should do our best to welcome them, extend ourselves to become their friends. "When visitors from our country arrive in theirs, these people extend themselves in every way to become our friends. So much could be accomplished if we would just do the same." Dr. Cherry's group has been invited to visit several countries in South America since word of their efforts has been carried. He received a visitor from India who heard of their efforts of good will and he requested the group come to India to help him establish and organize a modern hospital there. The medical men aren't sure they will be able to go yet. First they will return to Colombia. But they will continue to visit any countries they can help. They all pay their own expenses. The government doesn't give them a cent. But that hasn't stopped them. They're working to help others, and help themselves by trying to preserve peace, not with arms, but with alms. This is a copy of an editorial written by Dr. Robert Cherry and published in the Rotary Club Bulletin, Sept. 26, 1958. Sound like Dr. Cherry scooped Kennedy on the idea of the Peace Corps? "We are living in a period of tension caused by a misunderstanding between nations, with the expectancy of war at any moment. There must be some way to prevent this condition. "An idea would be to let the youth of the different nations become better acquainted. Instead of our government sending millions of dollars to foreign lands to buy friendship—why not take part of that amount and send 56,000 of our best youth between the ages of 17-21 years to all the foreign countries for a period of one year? "Place the boys and girls in good homes to live with the average people, learn the languages, go to their schools, churches and entertainments. "In return, accept an equal number of foreign youth in our homes. Each member would act as our ambassador of good will. "The youth are the ones who fight the wars and could just as easily prevent them. As Will Rogers once said, 'There are only two kinds of people in the world—those we love and those we don't know.'" DR. CHERRY

And the Navy's Mistake The Sounds of Sheep and Popeye Scored in 'Cookie's' Background

By JOE C. MORRIS Correspondent It was Saturday night . . . the year 1955. At the Coral Gables Country Club it was one o'clock in the morning. The moon hung high in the star-studded sky — as if it were a huge silver dollar. Its soft white light sifted through the coconut-palms onto the dance floor reflecting in the eyes of the dancing couples. Walter Raymond Cunningham, leader of the band and better known as "Cookie," lifted a golden trumpet to his lips. As he played "Goodnight Sweetheart," a gentle breeze carried the muted melody far down Greenway Drive into neighboring homes. It was the last time anyone heard "Cookie" toot the trumpet—professionally. MUSICAL FAMILY Born into a musical family in Alliance, Ohio, in 1918, he was playing a trombone at the age of six. His arms were too short to reach the seventh position so he switched to the trumpet. His father, John Cunningham, a master musician, played the clarinet and his sister, Lois, was a pipe-organist, known throughout the country before she died at 23. By the time "Cookie" was 12, he was playing professionally. Making $18 a week with a 12-piece orchestra in the pit of a vaudeville house he was forced, many times he says, to hide or go home on the nights when the union business agent checked into town. At 15, and still without wanting the child labor law to protect him, he went on the road. Traveling with one jazz band, then another, he eventually booked into the William Penn hotel, in Pittsburgh, with Austin Wylie. And at 16 he was playing with Don Bester and his orchestra. OTHER BIG NAMES Later he trumpeted with Tommy Dorsey, Paul Whiteman and Hal Kemp. Digging into another part of his past "Cookie" remembered something and said: "We were at the Ohio State Fair in 1935. I was soloist in the all Ohio State Band and we were on the air every day for almost a week. But we had to perform in a 'sheep-barn' and people listening to their radio thought it very funny everytime we played, 'Somewhere a voice is calling' the sheep in the background would bleat, 'Baa, Baa!'" That was the year I was offered three musical scholarships and chose the University of Miami over Louisiana State and Stetson. "I studied at the UM three years but I had to earn money to eat so I organized a jazz band and played at hotels on the beach. 'KITTY DAVIS AIRLINER' "The Kitty Davis Airliner was the last one we played before I quit college and became a writer for Paramount Studios. I did sound effects and musical scores for over 200 Popeye Cartoons. "Now they come back to haunt me on television in the afternoon at five o'clock," he grinned. "My name is still shown in the credits. "Someone is always asking me, 'Are you in the movies now Cookie?'" When the war started Walter Raymond was drafted by mistake. They were after another W.R.C. but before he found that out he quit his job at Paramount, ran out to see the commanding officer of the Navy at Opa-locka and enlisted. "I went in as a First Class petty officer," he said, "but the yoeman filling out my papers resented my outranking him and wrote P.I. (political influence) on my card. "At boot eamp, P.I. was taken to mean "Physical instructor' . . . and they made me a boxing instructor. BUSTED NOSE "I lasted a year before someone busted my nose," he laughed, "which proves that I was a better bluffer than a boxer. "Then I was assigned as an athletic instructor for the Chaplain Corps. Soon they found out I could play the piano and organ and I had to perform at the 6 a.m. Catholic Mass, the 8 o'clock Jewish Service, the 9:30 Christian Science and 11 o'clock Protestant Services. "In the afternoon," he said, "I gave general service lectures on religion to the chaplains." After leaving the service, "Cookie" opened a real estate office, but again he had to make enough money to eat. This time he took a job as musical director of the CG Country Club. TOO MUCH But making money in the daytime and making music at night was too much. Finally, after a 10-year stretch "Cookie" stopped. He resigned forever, he says, from music-making. Today, six years have passed since he blew the last note of his swan song. Now he's president of the Sunland Realty Co. NEW FIRM And is also Comptroller of a new mutual trust company called Futures Unlimited of Florida Inc., which opened its offices at 3280 Ponce de Lec Blvd., Aug. 21. "Cookie" and his interior decorator wife, whom he refers to as the "red-head" rather than Janet, have lived at 825 Alberca Ave. one year less than the 16th wedding anniversary they'll celebrate this month. He is, in addition to being a successful realtor, a yachts-man-Kiwanian-Mason and a active Brig Brother. "Working with a young boy as his big brother and helping him help himself is much more gratifying," he says, "than hearing someone say, 'Music maestro, please!' " WALTER RAYMOND CUNNINGHAM

Detective New Constable

Gov. Farris Bryant reached to Coral Gables this week to pick a replacement for Constable George F. Rogers, who died recently. He is Floyd F. Miner, 45, a Miami area private detective, who lives at 1715 Granada Blvd. Miner has been an undercover agent in Dade County for nearly a quarter of a century, having served as a special investigator for the Crime Commission of Greater Miami. The District 2 constabulary pays $7,500. It covers the area immediately north of Coral Gables and from Biscayne Bay to the western limits of the county. "I appreciate Gov. Bryant's confidence in appointing me to fill this vacancy. I feel that it is an important job as it is one close to the people and I will certainly do everything possible to render prompt and efficient service," Miner said.

Radio Used to Fight Red

The Anti-Communism School of the Air Inc. was recently formed by a group of Coral Gables citizens. The non-profit corporation will sponsor weekly broadcasts over local radio stations WMIE, WWPB and WQAM. The broadcasts will include taped speeches of many speakers who are members of the Christian Anti-Communism Crusade. Negotiations for radio time are still under way with Coral Gables station WVCG. Officers of the School of the Air are president Julius Bauer III, owner of the University Cab Co., 306 Alcazar Ave.; secretary, Jean Westerfield, owner of the Coral Gables Letter Service, 158 Valencia Ave.; and auditor Tom Huston Jr. of 6601 San Vicente Ave. The series will be presented by Dr. Fred C. Schwarz, president of the CA-CC, who directed the recent Greater Miami School of Anti-Communism. More than 5,000 attended the school. Letters regarding the Anti-Communism School of the Air, Inc., were mailed recently to many residents in the Gables to acquaint them with the aims and purpose of the school.