By LATASHA DANIELLE DRAX / LOVE BEYOND THE WALL
It was a Thursday when Morris Edward Grady told his beloved wife that he would call the following day. On Friday, February 13th, Theresa waited with anticipation for her husband’s call. Valentine’s Day 2026 would be the celebration of their 18th wedding anniversary—a marriage of bliss but not without blisters. His familiar voice would be the jumpstart to another milestone marking their journey, joined by love, yet separated by conviction.
But when the phone rang, it was not Theresa’s husband on the line. Instead, it was the superintendent from the Eastern Correctional Facility informing her that Morris Edward Grady, also known as Eddie, had died….
Summer Love in New York City
It was 1975. On hot summer days in the streets of Harlem, Eddie would watch her play volleyball, and she felt the heat of his gaze watching her like a hawk. Their first date was at Mount Morris Park around 120th Street, where they had a simple lunch—a sandwich and a soda—and shared their first kiss. Eddie was Theresa’s first love, her first everything. Despite her father’s warning when she was 15 years old that she could not date “no hoodlum,” Theresa saw the truth. In her mind, her future husband was not a mere bad boy on the block; he had swag, he was a handsome man—he was not a hoodlum. When he looked at her, his face wore a particular smile, a certain grin that revealed how infatuated he truly was….