Sunnybrook Road

My grandfather, Gerald William Barrax, was the first black professor at North Carolina State University and an acclaimed poet who is honored in the North Carolina Literary Hall of Fame. He and my grandmother, Joan Dellimore Barrax, have always felt like my true home. When my sister and I were younger, we were at their house more often than ours. They’d let us stay the night and rub our backs to sleep if our parents’ fighting got too bad, and would make breakfast and walk me to school in the morning. Just having one of them there still felt familiar, and when my grandmother died from breast cancer shortly after my 11th birthday, my grandfather was all I had. Even when we moved from Raleigh to Dallas, Texas, visiting him for the holidays helped me to feel connected to them both and remember the happiest parts of my childhood.

This of course did not mean that we were not affected by her death. My grandfather now had to sleep, eat, and live alone for the first time in over 40 years. His pre-existing mental health conditions of depression, insomnia, and anxiety worsened, and he used every outlet he could, including reading, listening to music, and his favorite, walking. There was a walking trail in Worthdale Park that was just down the road that he’d been exploring since he moved to his house on Cooper Road with my grandmother in the 70s. After she passed, his occasional voyages on the trail became daily, setting off every evening before dinner. When we visited him, we would go with him, reminiscing about her and talking about all of our past adventures. But when we weren’t there he went alone, not needing a GPS for he had memorized every tree, curve, and crosswalk on the path. However, that wasn’t enough to save him from Jamal Jones and his distracted driving. My grandfather was struck and killed by Jones when he failed to yield to him at a crosswalk on Sunnybrook Road. We later found he was a convicted felon who was on probation, distracted likely by his cellphone and failing to see my grandfather and give him the right of way.

After this tragedy my family was never the same. His loss deepened the hole that was previously left by my grandmother, causing us all to not only continue to feel her death, but to now also have to find a way to deal with his. My whole family changed and the dynamic between my mother, cousins, aunt, sister, and I took a turn for the worse. His death was detrimental to us all and still saddens me even after over three years. What saddens me more is that this story is not unique, or even the worst case scenario when it comes to unsafe drivers. There are millions of people who have lost loved ones at the hands of someone else being reckless and thoughtless. Whether it’s a cell phone, alcohol, or even just unattentiveness, when people are not fully aware and cautious on the road, they are jeapordizing not only themselves and the people driving near them, but also their families, friends, and everyone who know and love them.

Since his death, my family has commited to being more mindful on the road. I started Drivers Ed the following year and even when practicing in parking lots, I made sure to be dilligent and focused, stay at a safe speed, and check all of my surroundings. When I got my license in August, I made sure to always leave early anytime I needed to be at my destination at a designated time to avoid speeding, keep my phone away from me unless it is on my holster for directions, and check my mirrors everytime I leave to make sure I am able to see around me as much as I can. I drive in place of my parents if I see them have a single drop of alcohol, and always stay at or under the speed limit. I always signal, check my blindspot, and pay attention to let pedestrians cross.

I don’t want his death to be in vain, and I don’t want anyone else to have to suffer through what my family and I went through. I know that I am just one driver, and there are millions of others that are behind the wheel at any time and can cause accidents like the one that killed my grandfather. However, I try to share this story to encourage as many people I can to be safe on the road, and I hope that other people will take road safety as seriously as I do so that no one else has to be injured or killed from something that is 100% preventable.

Additional Information

https://www.google.com/search?gs_ssp=eJzj4tLP1TcwLTcorrI0YPTiTU8tSsxJUUhKLCpKrAAAb7YIqQ&q=gerald+barrax&oq=gerald+barrax&aqs=chrome.3.69i59l3j46i512j0i22i30j69i60l3.4312j0j4&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

https://www.wral.com/suspect-in-crash-that-killed-gerald-barrax-was-on-probation-for-felony-drug-charges/18822116/

https://www.nclhof.org/inductees/2006-2/gerald-barrax/

https://www.wral.com/driver-in-crash-that-killed-acclaimed-raleigh-poet-nc-state-professor-was-on-probation/18818728/