My friend, Adell

Adell Crump
Love For All, Hatred For None


I don’t have many friends, only God knows why. It isn’t that I don’t like people because I do, but friendship is something that for me is light years beyond the point of “…you are my friend because I like you.”

A good friend, in my humble opinion, is someone you love and care for because of his love for you. A love that is never stated and never marginalized by repeated military like declarations at birthdays, or whenever you meet.

I have such a friend, his name is Adell Crump.

Now, to set the stage for my journey with Adell Crump, we must delve into the wonderful world of friendship. What do others, the philosophers, great men and women, what do they say about friendship?

The answer is easy for me because I have this big old impressive book – The New Dictionary of Thoughts. If I don’t know something in this crazy world, it’s the “good book” that has quick definitions and answers for me on a myriad of subjects.

Its not a holy book like the Torah, Bible, Holy Qur’an, Zabur, or Suhufi Ibrahim…of course I’ve been taught to recognize the truth of all sacred scriptures. The Dictionary of Thoughts, which I found in a thrift shop, just looks like a holy book, but I know it doesn’t qualify for sacred scripture status.

In 1955, the authors said this about the book: “…a cyclopedia of quotations, from the best authors of the world, both ancient and modern, alphabetically arranged by subjects. Furthermore, the authors make this prolific thought pondering statement:

“In this twentieth century, with the radio and the improvements in modern publishing greatly enlarging the field for speakers and writers, it is more valuable from the purely practical point of view than ever before.”

So, there it is folks! Do I need to say anymore about my quasi-holy book, “The New Dictionary of Thoughts.” You can simply refer to it in quiet, spiritual-like reverence, as the village idiot’s cyclopedia. A good book with good definitions. Amen!

After sniffing the old book smell, the pages flipped open (akin to something in the Twilight Zone) these are just a few of the many quotations on friendship. There are a whole bunch on friendship and just a few for hatred.

“A friend should be one in whose understanding and virtue we can equally confide, and whose opinion we can value at once for its justness and its sincerity.” -- Robert Hall

“By friendship you mean the greatest love, the greatest usefulness, the most open communication, the noblest sufferings, the severest truth, the heartiest counsel, and the greatest union of minds of which brave men and women are capable.” – Jeremy Taylor

“A true friend is the gift of God, and he only who made hearts can untie them.” – South

Okie dokie, that’s enough for now, if you want more go out and find your own cyclopedia. Although, I believe there are only a few like mine left on earth.

Now, before boredom begins to creep into this story, let me tell you about my friend, Adell.

First of all, let’s be clear about one thing…Adell is not perfect and he certainly isn’t a saint, if you don’t believe me ask his wife, Rose. She is the saint who will be given a special seat in paradise for putting up with the very strange behavior of a creative Adell.

You see, Adell is an artist. And he isn’t just any old goofy artist who spends his life painting stuff that ultimately finds its final home in a thrift shop galleria. He is an artist who has a gift from God that has caused him to take on the crazed look of a madman. It goes with the occupation for anyone who knows anything about the creative soul.

Adell isn’t a madman in the sense that we may have to lock him up tonite, but he is madly in love with his creator, who endowed this brother with a love for that which is created by man. He is a lover of God.

If you don’t understand just take a look at what he has created with love, affection and compassion beginning with his family.

It was his mother, who found his wife. God is truly wonderful, now I understand why they say “paradise lies at the feet of all mothers.” She is simply his Rose. Any other name would have been the wrong name for Rose Crump.

Through the many years of marriage, pain and suffering, love and contentious relations, they have survived with patience, trust and a strong belief Almighty God. Somewhere along the way, they took time to bring seven wonderful (I believe…I stopped counting at five) children into this world.

The love story is legend in the Crump family archives and oral history with some variations and embellishment as time moves along, but somehow truth always manifest itself in history.

Adell’s mamma found Rosemary Crump in a Waukegan factory. Mrs. Crump knew her quirky son was not the man to be left on his own when it comes to making a big decision about a woman. I tried to tell you he wasn’t perfect.

It was a mother’s love for her son. It was the best gift she could give to a son that she knew was destined for greatness. This story is so good I should write a book about it and have Adell work on the illustrations (let’s talk later, Adell).

Rosemary walked into his life and she almost walked out because Adell just couldn’t grasp what his mother saw to be divine. But as it is that God protects the ignorant, children, the elderly and wayward artists who can’t see beyond the canvas.

Now, let me make this a little clearer to those who still haven’t understood this beautiful love story. Adell’s mother somehow knew Adell was stuck on himself. This isn’t a bad thing, as some might think. He is totally consumed by his work. It’s a passion and a love affair that has nothing to do with how he feels about relationships. It’s a different world. It is a a weird world of creativity, free expression, color, shapes, illusions, perspectives and things that only he sees in his world. Some might think that he’s on drugs, but the man is a borderline saint. He doesn’t booze, smoke, nor is he a dope head, although he can be a little dopey.

Rose walked into his life with some fear and trepidation for the brother’s behavior but somehow she fell in love with him. Adell isn’t a bad looking guy. In his youth, he thought he was cool and maybe a little cute. Some would say that in his youth he resembled a young Muhammad Ali. It could be that his killer smile touched Rose’s heart, she won’t tell and he doesn’t have a clue.

It certainly wasn’t money. Rose was working in a factory making big bucks back in the day. She could buy and sale the penniless Adell, who was a struggling artist. As an art student at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts, Adell sold Rose on the idea that he was going to be a big time artist. At that point, you would have thought she would have hit that door running and screaming: “Feet don’t fail me now.”

But Rose, ever so humble and loving, didn’t run and the rest is history. Adell did distinguish in the field of art as a graduate of the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts. He paid for his own education by working odd jobs and he was mentored in the art of sign painting by the renowned African American sign painter, Ed McAllister, who operated the only black owned sign painting business in Lake County.

His hard work as a student was a blessing that led to a permanent job with Dickens Design Group, a package design specialty firm in Chicago. In the American spirit of hard work and dedication, Adell focused on his work and rose through the ranks to become a vice president of the firm.

The world of package design is something that is so abstract to the average consumer who is the focus of the creativity of an artist seeking to catch your fleeting attention with a colorful and useful package that literally jumps on a shelf and into your shopping basket.

To understand this world just take a quick stroll through any major grocery store without any intent to make a purchase. As you walk along the aisles, take notice how your eyes are drawn to certain packaged goods. What is it that causes you to stop and pick up an item for closer examination?

You may have picked up a package designed by Adell Crump. You have entered the world of the package designer who uses colors, designs and shapes of plastic containers and seemingly innocent packages to entice the consumer. Adell and others in the world of package design agonize and have sleepless nights over packages that we take for granted and at the end of a day toss with ease into the nearest garbage container.

The package designer is an artist/magician who dibble and dabble in a creative process that involves the environment, safety and ultimately how to help sell a product. Adell’s designs were of the highest quality and some of his designs are still found on everyday products in the supermarket.

But of course, Adell’s journey and celebration of life was to take him far beyond the world of package design. As a humble soul from a very poor rural background in Newport, Arkansas, Adell settled in Lake County, close to Chicago where he and his wife built a lovely home in Beach Park.

With his talent in a variety of art medias, Adell founded his own design firm, Crump Designs. He takes on a variety of projects including one of my personal favorites for the Head Start program in Lake County. Using animal characters, inspired by his grandchildren, Adell created several large wall murals with a colorful menagerie of animals. Children and visitors walking through the facility find themselves in the midst of these beautiful, lifelike animals that convey a feeling of learning in a safe environment.

While all of his contemporary accomplishments are captivating, his story took a downward turn when Adell was diagnosed wikth Hodgkin’s lymphoma, cancer of the lymph system. It was a crushing blow to family and friends. How could it be that an Almighty God would allow the precious life of someone we all loved so dearly to slip away from this world?

While family and friends shed tears, Adell refused to give in to the doctor’s prognosis and instructions to “go home and prepare for death.” Adell sought relief and recovery through prayer and those prayers were answered. He completely recovered and returned to his daily family responsibilities, along with longer fishing trips much to the distress of friends who are completely baffled by his uncanny fishing ability.

The Adell Crump story continues to move on as his work gains national attention. It was a simple city sticker design for the first African American Mayor of North Chicago (located 40 milies north of Chicago) that brought him more attention and notoriety. Mayor Bette Thomas, was catapulted to the national scene, after a decale designed by Adell featured the colorful and outspoken mayor with the American flag as a backdrop.

Adell, in his innocence as an artist, had no idea that the political fall-out from the design would result in national coverage by the media. The historical city sticker was blasted by local politicians who said it was an abuse of authority by the mayor. The entire story, plus images of Adell’s work, was carried by national newspapers including a prominent feature in Jet Magazine (Sept. 8, 2003).

It’s ironic that the black magazine is published by a man most admired in Adell’s collection of great African Americans, none other than John H. Johnson. Adell also had the honor of once being featured in Johnson’s Ebony Magazine’s “Speaking of People” section as a designer at Dickens.

As one of his many friends and admirers, you can’t help but wonder what his legacy will be in life. I really believe one day the world will discover the work of Adell Crump after he is long gone. It is the way of life for the artist. We fail to appreciate the talent that God has give us through the artist, until he his no longer with us. I celebrate the life of Adell Crump today. He is a special person in the life of his wife, family and many, many grandchildren who will one day tell others about Adell from their own personal and loving perspectives.

I believe what distinguishes Adell from others is not only his talent but his good, righteous qualities, a sense of responsibility along with a profound love and fear of Almighty God.

I’m honored to be his friend!

Hasan