OKELLEY-L Archives

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Subject: o'Kelley family of Gainesville. GA
Date: 27 Mar 2005 20:22:42 -0700

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Surnames: OKelley
Classification: Query

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http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/an/Zl3.2ACEB/93

Message Board Post:

The following was posted to a local newspaper regarding the O'Kelly family from gainesville. This is the same family that a movie was made for, starring Ricky Schroder, 1990. (I personally know one of the O'Kelley's)
HEADLINE:
Band of Brothers: Seven O'Kelleys hang tough despite hard times


STORY:
Twenty years ago, seven young Gainesville brothers were facing insurmountable problems. They had no parents, and before it was over they had no home, yet they were determined to stay together.

Their story pulled heartstrings. Their round, handsome faces were photogenic, and their last name had its own lilting appeal: O'Kelley.

An article about them in The Times was picked up by Associated Press and became widely distributed. Television cameras and reporters came from Atlanta and New York, movie executives came from Hollywood.

Before it was over, the boys and their original local helpers were trying to survive an avalanche of goodwill.

A movie about the brothers' ordeal starred Ricky Schroder and was called, "A Son's Promise." It's still shown on television now and then, but it cannot tell of all the heartaches and problems. The movie contract with the brothers included no royalties.

The O'Kelley brothers are Terry, Tommy, Charles, David, Jeff, Michael and Jason. The story began in the early 1980s when their mother, Judy O'Kelley, was diagnosed with a brain tumor.

Terry, the oldest, was 15 years old in March 1983 when his mother died at age 33. Before dying, she asked Terry to look after his six younger brothers and make sure they all stayed together. He promised her that he would. It's been 22 years since she died, and today they all are men, but Terry still worries about his brothers.

The boys' alcoholic father, Wayne O'Kelley, abandoned them. So the seven boys went to live with their paternal grandfather in a mobile home on the grandfather's 7.5-acre farm. After three years, the grandfather died of heart failure and the boys were left alone again.

The grandfather's death brought Wayne O'Kelley back, and he cleaned out the bank account, sold anything that he could sell, wrecked the family car and stole checks from Terry, who had just turned 17.

Soon, threats over non-payment of bills caused Terry and Tommy, who was a year younger, to drop out of school and find jobs in poultry plants.

Terry had to place the youngest, David, Jeff, Michael and Jason, into foster homes, while he and Tommy worked long hours, but they still couldn't make enough to pay the debts.

In the poultry industry, word was spreading about the plight of Terry and his brothers. Jack Hodge, who had a poultry distributorship, heard the story and talked with Terry. Later, Hodge told his friends at Gainesville's First Presbyterian Church about the young boys, and every person who heard the story wanted to help.

A fund was begun for the brothers. After the story about them appeared in The Times, money began coming in, along with clothing and other gifts.

Another setback

The boys still were living in their late grandfather's old mobile home when it caught fire and burned to the ground. No one was home, and the blaze was attributed to faulty wiring, but the new clothing and gifts burned along with the home.

Now the O'Kelley brothers had no place to live.

The story continued to spread, and money still was coming in, along with offers from across the country to adopt all seven brothers.

The North Georgia Homebuilders Association constructed a new four-bedroom house on the farm for the O'Kelley boys and gave it to them. Other gifts included a car for Terry and a trip for the brothers to Walt Disney World.

President Ronald Reagan, who was running for re-election, invited them to a campaign rally in Atlanta. There, he told their story and referred to Hodge and Terry as "American heroes." A crowd of 18,000 people rose to their feet in applause.

But the boys were young and had struggled for many years. Now they were dreaming of riches. There was no way they could have been prepared for their rollercoaster ride of publicity and excitement.

Jack Hodge and his wife Martha also began to be overwhelmed with the response. Some of the well wishers not only insisted on helping, but also wanted to take charge. Some even accused Hodge of using the boys to make a name for himself.

Hodge decided to step aside and he put the money, about $200,000 by then, into a bank trust fund.

The step-grandmother sued for $16,000 as her share of the estate, saying that she was unable to care for herself. The courts were given the chore of deciding whether Terry could be made responsible for his brothers.

Roller coaster ride

Finally, in May 1987, Terry was given the responsibility of raising his brothers and they were reunited in their new home. The Hall County Department of Family and Children's Services was instructed to monitor the boys and supervise the case. Terry was 19 at that time. Tommy and Charles both were 17, David 15, Jeff 14, Michael 12, and Jason 9.

But the boys had been through much and they had been more or less taking care of themselves for years before they attracted national attention. After about a year of trying to be a responsible guardian of six young boys at or approaching puberty, Terry said it was impossible for him to continue. The courts stepped in again.

During that time, everything the young men said or did was reported in the news media; as a result, they don't like to talk to reporters today.

Six of the O'Kelley brothers now have families of their own. Terry and Charles both live in Florida; David lives in Lula; Michael lives in Sardis; Jason lives near Pendergrass; and Jeff lives in Braselton.

And Tommy has again lost everything he owned in a house fire.

Tommy and his wife, the former Debbie Godek, live with their two sons, Dustin, 12, and Dalton, 4, and Debbie's mother, Gerry Lynn Shay, in an old two-bedroom mobile home off Joe Chandler Road. They moved into the current dwelling in February after their four-bedroom home burned completely on Jan. 22.

The evening of the fire, the wind was blowing strong. At about 2:30 in the morning, Tommy was awakened by loud bangs. He knew almost immediately that the noise was caused by 22-gauge shells exploding in the basement where he had guns and ammunition locked in a cabinet. The basement was on fire.

He woke Debbie, saying "Get everyone out of the house," and grabbed his pants off the foot of the bed, which luckily still contained his wallet. The hardwood floors of the home were vibrating, and Debbie called her mother and got their two boys, helping Dustin find his way out because he is legally blind.

Just as she bent down to grab their 14-year-old cat, a window beside her blew out and a ball of flame flew over her head.

Four county fire trucks came to the fire, but the home could not be saved. The fire was declared accidental.

Tommy had only recently started full-time mechanic work at home after working as a shop foreman for eight years in Norcross. While still in that job, he had been working at home on weekends and had a good collection of tools plus several car engines, a couple of trucks, a motorcycle and go-kart. All were lost in the fire.

A letter from the family printed in The Times on Jan. 31 said, "In an instant, everything was gone. It's overwhelming. Yet what a miracle that a family of five and two of our three pets survived." Tommy and Debbie expressed only gratitude for their survival.

Friends rally again

Once again, people have stepped in to help. Joyce Powers called all her friends and members of Welcome Home, Mount Calvary and Flat Creek Baptist churches are among those who have helped. Millie's Drapery provided new carpeting and vinyl for the mobile home, and an O'Kelley Benefit Fund was set up at Regions Bank.

Amy Whitaker and the store where she works, Best Buy Quality Foods in Flowery Branch, have provided food and certificates for groceries.

"We can't help any more until they find a bigger place to live," Whitaker said. "Debbie and Tommy are always helping other people, and now it feels strange that we are the ones helping them."

Beverly Wright was able to get the O'Kelleys a new stove and other items.

"This family has a long history of hardships. I just wanted in my heart of hearts to make something good happen for them," Beverly said.

Martha and Jack Hodge were contacted by The Times and asked about their early involvement with the O'Kelley brothers. They had not heard from them in some time and immediately wanted to know if they were OK.

Martha said, "They're such good boys." Said Jack, "I wish we could see them all again."

As for the trust fund set up in the '80s, "There wasn't much to it by the time it was split up and the taxes were paid," Tommy O'Kelley said. "It was a headache and aggravating to deal with, not to be any more than it was."

Their father called them a "couple of times" after serving a prison sentence for abandoning his sons and stealing from them.

Today, the March days around the anniversary of their mother's death are sad times for the O'Kelley brothers. They continue to get together whenever they can. One of their reunions took place this past August when their father was buried at Yellow Creek Baptist Church.

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