Overview

This is the story of a typical public high school in a typical small American town during the Vietnam War. The boys who graduated from that school in 1966 faced some difficult challenges-the most serious being whether to join the American military, be drafted, or seek some sort of deferment. The girls also had to deal with the war. Some dated guys who faced the uncertain future, some married them, and all were aware, because of nightly news reports, that it was an unsettled time. Some of the boys embraced the opportunity to join the service and go to Vietnam. Others volunteered just to get the uncertainty over with. Yet others looked for ways to avoid the military completely. Those choices are at the center of this story. Air Force veteran and journalist EDMUND SHELBY has crafted this well-researched memoir based on his own recollections and lived experiences combined with insightful interviews with his peers from the iconic Class of '66. Shelby's enlightening study is wrapped in cultural and political contexts of those years when the war in Vietnam and southeast Asia was steadily escalating to its very height. In GRADUATING PRESENT, members of the Class of '66 recall their shared anxieties brought on by facing a military draft, struggling to fathom an unclear mission and dealing with troubles on the home front. Their stories are compelling; their regrets are palpable. Shelby's incisive analysis moves readers effortlessly through the lifespan of a generation - from a post-WWII childhood to feelings of being unwillingly ensnared in and threatened by the global politics of war.

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9781934894804

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EDMUND SHELBY was born and raised in Corbin, Kentucky-in many ways a typically American small town. Growing up, he was influenced by the people of the town and by the news. In fact, he was a newspaper delivery boy. This experience and being on the staff of the high school newspaper led him to choose journalism as a career. The news of the day informed him of world events, including the happenings in a distant land called Vietnam. By his senior year in high school, Shelby knew who the major players were in Vietnam, and he'd heard about the buildup of American military forces there.He and his best friend visited the Marine recruiter's office, but the recruiter was out. They then went to the Army recruiter who told them he knew their parents and was not going to be a part of sending them to Vietnam. He suggested they see the Air Force recruiter, which they did, and they successfully entered the service in May of 1967. While in the Air Force, Shelby turned against the war. He could see what it was doing to the United States. He did not go to Vietnam, but instead served his overseas duty in Turkey. After leaving the Air Force, Shelby met his wife-to-be and went to college, graduating in 1975, just before the fall of Saigon.He spent his first three years as a working journalist in Hazard, Kentucky, before he, his wife and their son moved to Lexington, so she could earn her master's degree from the University of Kentucky. He took a job in public information for state government, working there until the GTE Corporation offered him a better paying position.In 1992 the family moved to a rural home in Clay County, Kentucky, where he taught at a private school. While teaching, Shelby received the offer of another job in the newspaper business. He practiced journalism for several more years in Beattyville, Jackson and Manchester, Kentucky. Duringthose years, he received numerous awards from the Kentucky Press Association (KPA) and served as president of KPA in 2009.Shelby, now retired, is still living in Clay County with his wife and their four dogs.

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