The Junk Drawer: A Place for Our Dreams introduces us to two groups of teens growing up in Memphis, TN, in the late sixties. One group is black and the other white. Their initial meeting almost ends with devastating consequences, but the hopes and dreams of these teens are put to the test in an effort to bring about racial reconciliation following the death of Dr. King and the violence that follows.

This story is tempered with the unforgettable good times of Washington Park in North Memphis. Rickey Alan Smith demonstrates that every person, even in war-ravished Vietnam, has dreams. No obstacle can stand in the way of true love. The Junk Drawer shows just what we should do to keep our hopes and dreams alive.

About the Author

Rickey Alan Smith is a seventy-two-year-old A/A male born and raised in Memphis. He is married in a blended family with two daughters, three stepdaughters, and one stepson.

 Rickey is fortunate in that he has had several careers. He retired from the Federal Bureau of Prisons in 2000. Following his retirement from the BOP, he spent fourteen years as a probation officer in Memphis, TN. He joined the U.S. Army Reserves in 1975 and served one tour in Iraq before retiring in 2006. Finally, he served as a chaplain for seven years at Methodist Hospital in Memphis, TN, retiring in 2021. Rickey is an associate minister at the Tabernacle of Praise Christian Church in Memphis, TN. He loves to swim, read, write, and listen to jazz, and he is currently a mentor in the Big Brothers/Big Sisters of the Mid-South.

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