Gloria & James Ruffins
Gloria Hearn grew up on Chicagoâs West Side, but her family frequently visited her motherâs sister on the South Side. She was there on the porch when Jim Ruffins came from next door to say hello.
Nearly every visit after that, Gloria and Jim talked about their high schools, their favorite classes, and sports. He played football. She was a cheerleader and ran track as part of the Douglas Park Junior Olympics Team.
âShe was really smart, bright, and interesting, and it was nice to be around her,â said Jim. After about a year of talking, Jim, then 16, asked Gloria for a date. Gloria wanted to say yes, but could not. âIâm not allowed to date until Iâm 16,â she told him.
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VAntage Point
VA nurse’s journey to treat his fellow Veterans
From Baghdad to bedside
Matt Mason is not most people.
From 2005 to 2006, the Army infantryman patrolled the Iraq-Syria border, quelled sectarian violence in Mosul and battled insurgents in Baghdad.
He also had to figure out his college class schedule.
“My friend convinced me to go to college, and I had to choose a major,” he said. “I really enjoyed the combat lifesaver courses we had to take and learn how to start IVs and do wound care, that sort of stuff. I figured I would just take this and see how it works out.”