The Life and Times of Anthony Joseph Hopkins from Dayton, Ohio February 16, 2022

                          Preface

        Good Day Everyone!!  My name is Anthony Joseph Hopkins, and I am from Dayton, Ohio.  This book is dedicated to all of the members of my family who are no longer with us right now.  My mother, sister, great aunt, and my two grandmothers and grandfathers.  It has taken a very long time for me to write this autobiography.  The people who I am dedicating this book have been solely responsible for helping me to get on my feet.  They have molded me into the person that I am right now. 

        Next, I want to inform everyone that this book will be written in first person.  The reason why is because I do not have permission from my family members and friends to use their names in my book.  I am also dedicating this book to all of my family members and friends.  I am a person who has come a very long way in my life.  The purpose of writing this book is to edify everyone from all walks of life.  Writing helps me to cope with a mental illness called schizoid affective disorder.  I was diagnosed with a mental illness on July 15, 1997.  This day was on a Tuesday. 

        Further, I want to inform all of you that my memory is excellent.  I remember when I was a child, my sister told me that I am going to be successful someday.  She also mentioned to me that I am going to become the first person out of the family to graduate from high school.  My two grandmothers and grandfathers taught me how to be a human being with a lot of common sense.  My mother used to read to me when I was inside of her stomach.  My mother was young when she gave birth to me.  My mother graduated from Roosevelt High School in Dayton, Ohio in 1961.  She graduated from school with honors.

        Moreover, my mother had given birth to nine children.  My mother got married when she was 23 years old.  My sister was born on September 18, 1967.  She was my mother’s second oldest child.  My grandmothers were the Rock which kept the family together.  My grandmothers allowed me to live with them when I was at least 6 months old.  My grandparents took me to church all of the time. 

        Finally, the purpose of this autobiography is to help those people who did not earn enough education to read this book without using a lot of big words.  I am writing this book because I am edifying a nation of young people who grew up very hard in life.  This is a book that is simple.  This is an easy read.  This is a book that will take everyone on a journey through the mind of a person who had a very difficult upbringing.  This is a book that will have everyone thinking twice and reflect on their own life.

 This is a book that is not boring.  The purpose of this book is to cause everyone to examine their life and say “Did I go through that myself.  I am writing just to cope well with my own personal demons.  I am writing this book just to help everyone think and reflect on their own personal life. 

        On Thursday June 24, 1965 at 7:30PM I was born to my mother.  My mother was 21 years old when I was born.  My father did not acknowledge my mother because his name is not on my birth certificate.  Therefore, I became a bastard child.  Like they say, mother’s baby daddy’s maybe.  I was born at St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Dayton, Ohio.  After my mother had given birth to me, she took me to my grandmother’s house.  I guess, my mother had a life other than being a mother for the first time.  I supposed being a mother was very difficult for her. 

During the first 7 years of my life, I was raised by my great grandmother.  I recall attending Bethel Church of God in Christ, which is located in Dayton, Ohio.  Bethel Church of God in Christ became my church for quite a few years.  My two grandmothers accepted me into their household.  I grew up with a lot of women inside of the house.  While living with my grandmothers, I read the Bible.  I attended Edison Elementary School in Dayton, Ohio.  The first 7 years of my life had many ups and downs. 

However, it was rough living on the West Dayton, Ohio.  I remember a whole lot about my childhood.  I remember when the African Americans lived around a lot of factories.  I also remember when the police used to harass African American Men all of the time.  There was a period of time when single women used to keep the men away from their houses.  If you were not married, you could not live with a single mother with children.

 The Child Welfare agencies used to come around and check to see if there were any men’s clothes inside of the house.  If so, then a mother would eventually got evicted from her house.  A single mother would lose her food stamps and benefits because she had a man living inside of the residence.  Also, my mother during that time, got married to her husband in 1967.  This was also during the time when my sister was born.  My sister was born on September 18, 1967 at St. Elizabeth Medical Center.  I do remember when African American children attended schools inside of their neighborhood. 

My mother and her husband lived inside of an apartment located on 1119 West Third Street in Dayton, Ohio.  My mother was doing very well for herself.  Her husband was a veteran in the Armed Forces.  My mother had given birth to a third child on May 31, 1970.  My brother looked like his father.  I was still living with my two grandmothers until September of 1972.  My mother had given birth to another child on July 19, 1971.   As I recall, my mother asked my oldest grandmother could she let me live inside of her apartment with the rest of the family.  My mother had given birth to her fifth child.  On August 12, 1972, one of my baby sisters was born. 

My mother and her husband were happy living together.  In spite of the alcohol that they consumed together, it did not stop them from having children.  I know because every time my mother and her husband used to argue, I ended up staying with my grandmother.  My friends at school used to fight me all of the time.  I even had friends who used to protect me from the school bullies throughout the time I attended Edison School and Franklin School.  My friends came from dysfunctional families themselves. 

One thing that I forgot to mention is that one of my relatives had given birth to her first child when she was 14 years old.  My cousin was born on October 27, 1970.  She looked exactly like her mother.  My grandmother became very angry during that time because one of my female relatives was having sex without using protection.  Afterwards, this same relative gave birth to another child on August 29, 1972.  I was only seven years old when all of this has been taking place. 

Oftentimes, things did not change inside of my grandmother’s house either.  I was forced to go live with my mother.  My female relative kept having children.  It is a shame because my grandparents were upset because my female relatives did not listen to her own mother.  I want to inform all of you that both places had chaos.  My mother used to help me with my homework because I did not like math.  My mother helped me with my math homework because the teachers at Edison School were preoccupied with taking care of other children.  To be honest with you, parents used to bring their kids to school just to get a break from them.  Therefore, all of the schools inside of the neighborhood became safe havens for children.

My mother and her husband became occupied with giving birth to children that I was up to here with the giving births to children.  My mother had me raising children myself.  I remember when I had to change baby diapers and take care of my younger siblings that I did not have a proper childhood.  My safe haven at the time became a nursery for children.  I am referring to my grandmother’s house.  My older female relatives kept giving birth to their children.  Do you know that it is frustrating when a mother could not stop having children?  The 1970s were very difficult for all of us in the family.  I stayed with my grandmother for another few years because Children Services came to my mother’s house and they remanded my siblings into their custody because of what was going on inside of the house.

My female relatives were having children nonstop.  As I recall, I had to sit inside of my mother’s house and change diapers while my mother used to stay away from the home.  I recall having a conversation with the school nurse regarding my mother’s husband.  This is because we ended up getting tuberculosis in 1976.  My mother’s husband had the disease and we all had it.  The 1970s were hard on me because I had to travel from place to place.  Some of the excitement that I had was when I used to play basketball at Edison School.  I played basketball at the YMCA during the weekends.  I also played basketball at Franklin School for one year.  In spite of all of the dysfunctional family behavior in my own family; I still spent time with my friends inside of the neighborhood.

My mother had given birth to three other children from 1974 to 1977.  My siblings and I had a lot of fun.  I know that I am the oldest child in my family.  I guess, I relied on church, school, and the YMCA as a safe haven.  My mother pawned her shotgun at the Pawn Shop just to pay for a membership at the YMCA for all of us.  My family had grown tremendously during the 1970s.  While I was a student in school, I was a C average student.  I could not stand math.  I abhorred math intensely.  The subjects that I had excelled in were English, Spelling, Science, Social Studies, and Gym.  I did not like math. 

In Addition, I also used to play basketball at Riverview Park from 1976 to 1980.  I will also admit that I had to attend Summer School in the 3^rd grade and 7^th grade.  I had to attend Longfellow and MacFarlane Schools because Edison was not open during the summer.  I used to write inside of a journal just to keep my thoughts in check.  The 1970s were rough on me because I had to fight a lot of people.  I want to inform everyone that I attended Roth High School on September 5, 1979.  I was a freshman during that time.  I was taking NJROTC classes.  As soon as I got to high school, I made a lot of mistakes.  I was smoking marijuana with my friends.

Also, I traveled in high school to Norfolk, Virginia and Chicago, Illinois.  As I got older, I rebelled against my mother and her husband.  I do recall fighting girls in class.  I had a lot of fun, but my family members were doing everything that I was doing.  I remember my freshman year in high school, I only missed 22 days the entire year. 

The 1980s were terrible for me and my family.  I remember when I missed over 100 days the entire year my sophomore year in school.  I failed school for two straight years.  When my baby brother was born on April 29, 1980, I had to stay at home and take care of him, I really did not care about myself back in the 1980s.  My mother sent me to Job Corps in Grand Rapids, Michigan on June 22, 1983.  I really did not stay in Job Corps very long because my behavior was terrible. 

On April 18, 1984, I was inside of a car with a Caucasian Man and I was transported to the hospital because we crashed into a railroad bridge.  I had to wear a neck brace for almost a month.  I had whiplash.  Three months later, I broke my left-hand playing basketball on Friday July 6, 1984 at 3:45PM.  I was so intoxicated that I had to wait until the next day before I was able to have surgery on my left hand and wrist.  The 1980s were working out for me.  I guess I had to change my attitude.  The definition of the word attitude is a state of mind or a particular feeling.  I do remember graduating from high school on June 10, 1986 from Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Dayton, Ohio.  The School Counselor stated to me that I finally finished school.  The School Counselor prayed for me for three years. 

I recall learning how to box when I was 14 years old.  I did not excel in the sport because I spent too much time getting high and drinking beer.  My life was filled with ups and downs.  I learned how to play pool when I was eight years old.  Santa Claus blessed me with a pool table when I was in the 3^rd grade.  I had that pool table for 4 years.  I do recall living in different neighborhoods in Dayton, Ohio.  I used to live inside of a rat-infested house located on Williams Street.  This occurred when I was 12 years old.  My mother was angry because I started drinking alcohol and smoking marijuana at an early age.

 My mother stayed away from the house for at least 2 years.  My siblings and I had to raise ourselves.  This is the reason why my siblings and I do not get along because they continue to talk and live in the past.  I am too old to be trying to live in the past.  What happened in the past stays in the past.  There were so many things that has transpired that it is very hard to leave the past in the past.  I entered college for my freshman year on Monday April 1, 1987.  I enrolled in college at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio.  I wrote so many papers in my first year that I really did not want anyone to know about my past.  I stayed in college for 2 years.  I did better in college than in high school.

I do remember spending time in the Marine Corps.  I did not stay in there very long either.  I hurried up and went back to college.  When it comes to employment, I worked at restaurants such as Skyline Chili for almost 2 years.  I also worked at the King Cole Restaurant as a dishwasher.  I also worked at Church’s Chicken for one day.  It was hard because they had me frying chicken.  I could not keep up with the demand of the customers.  I used to go to the Pine Club Restaurant with my grandmother during the weekends.  I had to cut onions all of the time.  I also peeled potatoes.  My grandmother used to pay me for helping her at the restaurant.