Though the house has been vacant – with the windows boarded up — for quite some time. It holds great significance to both Memphis and the singer, who was welcomed into this world in 1942, behind those very doors.
So much so, that Potter, along with Jeffrey Higgs, president of the LeMoyne-Owen College Community Development Corporation, even the DIY Network have extended a hand to aid in repairing the home and if need be, move it to a safe location, so that tourists can soak up a bit of the icon’s legacy. “I’ll go out and help them,” Potter said. “I’m not going to be nailing up anything because it would be crooked if I nailed it up. I’m not a carpenter. But I’m serious about the fact that I want that building rehabbed.”
Though, Franklin has not yet responded to news of saving her birth home, what a wonderful honor to land on her birthday weekend. Happy birthday to the Queen of Soul!