By: Patricia Francis Good     

Saturday, May 18th, 2002 was a long awaited, glorious day in the life
of my friend, Paulette Stidwell. Let me tell you why. When I worked
at the San Antonio Lighthouse for the Blind, she was my friend and
co-worker. Paulette was blind, a single parent, African American, over
40, and a large woman both in body and spirit. She was raised in the
projects in Baltimore which wasn’t an easy life.

One day, while we were on a coffee break together, she told me she
had always had a dream to go to law school. I encouraged her to try
and make that dream come true!

She applied for admission to the St. Mary’s Law School, but didn’t
quite make high enough grades on the test. My husband, Skip had
graduated from St. Mary’s and had been the student body president,
so I asked him to see if there was anything that he could do. He had
just hired a young man at his law firm, who the Dean of the law
school at St. Mary’s had recommended. Ruben Valadez was one of
her writing assistants at the law school. Ruben became a very
successful lawyer. So, it turned out to be a terrific decision to hire
Ruben, at the Dean’s suggestion.

Skip asked Ruben to talk to the Dean about Paulette and see what
could be done. Well, with Ruben’s excellent persuasive skills, the
Dean put Paulette into a summer refresher course, and promised her
she would hold a place open in the fall semester if she could meet the
St. Mary’s Law School minimum requirements. She took the course,
met the requirements, and was admitted to St. Mary’s Law School.

The Dean made sure she had all the accommodations necessary to
adequately complete her studies and even gave her a little office at
the school to study, complete with a personal assistant. Everything
was going just great. Skip agreed to mentor Paulette and I even put
her in touch with a few blind lawyers from around the country. The
first lawyer I called to help Paulette was Judge Richard Casey, the
nation’s first blind federal trial judge who presided over some high
profile cases in the U.S. District Court in Lower Manhattan, and had a
guide dog named Barney.

When I called and asked if he would mentor Paulette, he quickly agreed and insisted she needed a guide dog like Barney to get her from class to class so she wouldn’t be late. And then when I told him we had already checked and it would take Paulette a year to get another guide dog, he made one phone call and Paulette had a guide dog in record time. He was a Golden Retriever named Utah who came from the same guide dog school in New York that Judge Casey’s dog Barney had come from.

So with more than adequate accommodations, a guide dog and Skip
and Judge Casey as her mentors, Paulette was ready, or so we
thought. Within months the Dean of the Law School left the law
school and everything changed.

The new Dean in an effort to cut back on the cost of students who
received some kind of help to get through law school, took away
Paulette’s accommodations and her grades dropped. He told her that
“she didn’t have what it took to be a lawyer” and that “she should
leave the law school”. She refused…received legal assistance from
Advocacy Inc. and she fought to get her accommodations back. Of
course ADA law supported her position. Her accommodations were
restored, her grades came back up and she continued her studies, in
spite of the new law school Dean.

When Paulette and her guide dog, Utah proudly crossed the stage,
there was a thunderous applause and it ended with a standing
ovation. A friend of Paulette’s made a matching graduation gown for
Utah and he walked with his head high! The two of them were a
glorious sight to see and more beautiful than anything that I have
ever seen…what a moment! Paulette’s smile and her loyal dog’s cap
& gown launched a thousand smiles that day. She had overcome so
much to be on that stage and Skip & I could not have been more
proud of Paulette and Utah!

I was taking photos, and when I looked over at my husband Skip, his
eyes were wet with tears…he had coached her even when he thought
she didn’t have a chance of graduating from law school! I can count
on one hand the times I saw my husband cry, and this was one of
them. What a day!

After every semester, Paulette and I would celebrate another
successful step along her dream’s journey by getting into my car,
putting on some fabulous music (we were particularly fond of Barbra
Streisand), and drove for hours singing and laughing until we came to
a place to have dinner, somewhere in the Texas hill country. Then,
back in the car for more listening and singing, and off we would go
down the highway. These were our little “road” trips. I have never
appreciated music so deeply, than when I’m with Paulette, whose
sense of hearing is exceptional. That is her special gift. You see
when you loose one sense, the others are enhanced.

We are taking our final “law school road trip” on Monday, and I can’t
wait! It will be our private celebration. I am so proud of her that I can
hardly stand it! What an honor just to be a small part of her life.
When I asked her why she didn’t tell me the new Dean took away her
accommodations she replied, “I was afraid that he was right about me
not being ‘lawyer’ material, and I was too embarrassed to tell you and
Skip.” If Skip had known, one call to the Dean would have cured that!
So, instead she took care of her own problem. I told her I had MORE
respect for her now than ever, for fighting her own battle.

She didn’t take the easy way, maybe because she’s never had that
luxury in her life. She fought for what she knew was her rights under
the law.

So, I told her, “if you had to fight to keep yourself in law school, what
does that say about the great lawyer you will be to your clients,
helping them fight their battles?” And, when someone says, “You
don’t understand, my life is at stake.” You can honestly say, oh, yes I
DO understand!! Paulette is one lawyer that the world really needs!
She is going to do wonderful things to help people.
So when you’re driving down the highway and you see these two
crazy women singing and laughing in a car, that will be me with Lady
Justice, rockin’ and rollin’ on another road trip!

Honey-Sriracha Chicken Wings

For the Wings:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, plus more for the pan
• 2 pounds chicken wings, split at the joints, tips removed
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 1 teaspoon granulated garlic
• Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

For the Sauce:

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup honey, plus more for drizzling
• 1/4 cup Sriracha (Asian chile sauce)
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Lightly coat a large rimmed
baking sheet with vegetable oil.

Dry the chicken wings with paper
towels and place in a large bowl.

In a small bowl, mix 2 tablespoons
vegetable oil, the melted butter, granulated garlic, 1 teaspoon salt
and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

Pour the mixture over the wings and toss
well to coat. Spread the wings in a single layer on the prepared
baking sheet.

Bake the wings until browned and crisp, 45 to 55 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the sauce: Melt the butter in a small pot over
medium heat. Add the honey, Sriracha, soy sauce and lime juice and
stir until the mixture bubbles gently. Remove from the heat and set
aside.

Carefully remove the wings from the baking sheet and transfer to a
large bowl. Pour the warm sauce over the wings and gently toss to
coat. Transfer the wings to a serving platter and drizzle with more
honey; serve with lime wedges.

Blue Cheese Dipping Sauce:

• 1 cup crumbled blue cheese
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl and stir to combine. Serve
immediately or store, covered and refrigerated, for up to 1 week
before serving. Yield: about 1 1/2 cups

INSPIRATION:

“Character cannot be developed in
ease and quiet. Only through
experience of trial and suffering can
the soul be strengthened, ambition
inspired, and success achieved.”

Helen Keller