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JAC Exclusive Interview with
author
Colonel Eddie Hobgood
Colonel Hobgood celebrates the
launch of his book THE SANCTIFIED SALVATIONIST SHOWMAN,
published by Crest Books, 2024.
J.A.C.: This is the first biography of
Joe The Turk – what took so long?
EH: That’s a really good question! When
I began this journey with Joe 30 years ago, I was surprised to
find that no one had written a book about him. I could find
bits and pieces of articles here and there. Someone did a
series of stories about him, but they were so cartoonish and I
think that was some of the problem - then and now. I think
people thought of him as fluff and no substance, so why write
a book?
J.A.C.: And what took YOU so long?
EH: Back in the early 2000s, I
developed this strong feeling to want to tell Joe’s story more
fully. As the Territorial Youth Secretary for the USA South, I
had the opportunity to go to NHQ a couple times each year. I
would always stay an extra day to look through the files and
scan The War Cry to find stories about Joe. There were
literally hundreds of articles…Joe faithfully posted his
travelogue in the War Cry and because his stories were so
sensational, people wanted to read them. There are hundreds of
newspaper articles as well. I took out a one year subscription
in newspapers.com and anytime I had a few spare moneys during
that year, I would search for articles. Fortunately, many
newspapers have archives. Unfortunately, many do not.
Nevertheless, I ended up with about 8 3” binders of articles.
I also did research in New York at THQ, where there’s a
treasure-trove of Joe’s personal belongings and files. I say
all of that to say, researching wasn’t that easy and it was
very time-consuming. Then there’s Susan Mitchem, the National
Archivist, who has fed me dozens and dozens of photos,
articles from other periodicals and any little tidbit she came
across in her research. That filled up another couple binders!
So many of the articles were not in pristine condition, so I
determined I would transcribe them in Word docs so that at
some point in the future, they can be placed online for other
researchers. That process took me more than 5 years in my
spare time. I still have a couple notebooks to transcribe, but
I finally said to myself that if I kept putting it off, then I
would probably be dead before the book was written. So this
past summer, I hunkered down every evening and wrote until I
had a manuscript that I believed would be beneficial to The
Army.
J.A.C.: Tell us how you came to Jesus
and to where you are now?
EH: I came to The Salvation Army at the
age of 9 through an open-air meeting that was held in my
neighborhood. At first, I thought it was the circus. There was
a man playing a cornet, a woman playing the accordion, another
man beating a big bass drum, and a rather rotund lady singing
at the top of her lungs (badly), ‘Have you been to Jesus for
the cleansing power?” These were my people and almost
immediately I started attending the corps. First thing they
did was put a cornet in my hands and taught me to play, and
from there, became a junior soldier. When I was 12, I went to
summer camp for 2 weeks. Week 1 was youth camp and it was
during that week I had a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.
I asked him to be my savior and trusted him to forgive me from
my sins. The 2nd week was Music Camp and on that final Sunday,
I felt God calling me to Officership. I didn’t know what I was
getting myself into, but I knew that God had a plan for my
life and it would be something beyond my wildest imagination
if I would be obedient and trust him with my future. Today, my
faith is as strong as it has ever been and I am finding that
even at this stage in my life (as a retired officer), God is
giving me opportunity after opportunity to bear witness to his
faithfulness in my life. I’m as excited about serving Jesus
today as I have ever been. The best is yet to come!!!
J.A.C.: What sparked your fascination
in Joe?
EH: I was asked to portray Joe as a
part of a living Army history museum. It took about 15 minutes
to walk through it and interact with the people. My job was to
entertain the crowd that was outside waiting to go in. So I
did some research, which didn’t amount to too much, but I was
able to pull a 12 minute monologue together and I wrote a song
to end the presentation with. I presented that monologue more
than 50 times over the course of that conference. People kept
inviting me to come share it, so when I became TYS and was
looking for a less-preachy way to communicate with young
people, I believe I was led to expand Joe’s story and share it
through the Arts. By this time, I had been the TYS for 4 years
and had gathered a lot of good materials from NHQ.
J.A.C.: What part did your own shows
play in this process?
EH: Putting together this 50 minute
presentation forced me to dig deep and look beyond the showman
to the real person of flesh and blood and feelings and pain. I
wanted to make him a real person and not a cartoon character
that he had been made out to be over the years. I remember the
theme verse in our territory that year was , I Peter 2:9b -
…that you may declare the praise of him who called you out of
darkness into his marvelous light. That’s Joe’s story in a
nutshell. A lot of the divisions were focusing on Army history
over the weekend and it all fell into place with making the
presentation that I have been doing since 2005, to declare
that message to our kids - even in the face of persecution. A
lot of our youth are afraid to be bold about their faith and I
prayed Joe’s story would help with some of that.
J.A.C.: What is Joe’s deserved place in
SA lore?
EH: In my opinion, Joe was the epitome
of a Salvation Soldier. He was so overwhelmed by what God had
done in his life - and he had sunk to the gutter - that he
could not adequately repay God for this new life he found in
Jesus. He also found a new family - the Sallys - and he loved
The Army with all of his heart and he was bound and determined
to not give up without a fight. He fought against those who
denied their constitutional right to assemble in public and he
made it known far and wide how his comrades were being treated
on the main streets of towns and cities across the country. He
was a true pioneer & evangelist. He was known all across
America and thousands would come out to see him when he came
to town. Yes, he was eccentric and maybe even a little
obnoxious with his blaring cornet and his India Ink stamp, but
he was all in!
J.A.C.: How was Joe like Jesus?
EH: I think he was most like Jesus in
that he spoke truth - he was very blunt, and he never missed
an opportunity to speak to people about their souls. He was in
a couple of train wrecks and when the passengers had to
disembark the coaches, he immediately struck up an open-air.
When he traveled by boat, he used the captive audience to his
advantage and had a praise meeting. On a transatlantic voyage,
he had the passengers marching around the ship while he led,
playing his cornet! Joe was about the Good News. He used his
accoutrements to attract people, but once they were reeled in,
he went straight for their souls.
J.A.C.: What of Joe’s life has directly
or indirectly influenced your life?
EH: I was a junior soldier when I first
heard about Joe. He was on a trading card that was a part of
the junior soldier curriculum. Honestly, it wasn’t until I
started presenting the fuller version of his life that he
began to influence me. There’s a very serious moment in the
presentation where Joe shares from his heart about how
important it is to share our faith, even in the face of
rejection and mockery. As an introvert, I’ve struggled with
sharing my faith with strangers. Having to memorize 50 minutes
of dialogue, it has become more than just words I recite.
These words of Joe have penetrated my heart and I find myself
more passionate about sharing my faith and more urgent as
well. Of course, sharing the presentation opens up doors
everywhere for deeper conversations with people. I don’t know
how I got the blessing of telling his story, but it has been
and continues to be one of the greatest joys of my life.
J.A.C.: What should salvationists take
away from absorbing this book?
EH: Hopefully, those who know of him,
will see him in a different light, a more well-rounded
representation. He had a family that he left behind. His heart
was broken when they died the way they did or had to flee from
their home to avoid being murdered in cold blood. I hope
people see how God can use anyone of us, even with our
eccentricities, to be witnesses to the truth that sets people
free. There is such beauty in being exactly who God called you
to be. I believe that is when he is most able to use us for
his glory!
J.A.C.: How would The Army look
different if we embraced the principles of Joe’s life and
warfare?
EH: Well, first thing, we’d still be
having open-air meetings…2 or 3 a day! During the pandemic,
when we couldn’t gather in our buildings, the corps I attended
started going to apartment complexes and playing our
instruments in the parking lot or in the driveways of our
soldiers. It took me back to what brought me to The Army. If I
were a kid today, I most likely would never have an encounter
with The Army and I often think about how many thousands of
kids and adults we’ve missed because of that. I understand
life is very different, but one of the things we proved during
the pandemic was that The Army was at its best outside the
walls. It forced us to take ministry to the streets and out of
doors.
I think we have to find ways to be bold
and courageous in sharing our faith. Joe lived his faith in
the public eye as well as inside The Army hall. How different
would our Army and world be if we did the same?
J.A.C.: What’s your hope for your book?
EH: First of all, that people would
read it, and when they do, are first of all, inspired and
blessed by the story of the Sanctified Salvationist Showman. I
really pray the book is worthy of people’s time and resources.
I pray it will spark something within us to do and dare for
Christ in ways we never have or haven’t in a long time. I hope
the book is good! If it isn’t, don’t tell me!
J.A.C.: What’s your hope for The Army?
EH: I love The Salvation Army with all
my heart. It is the instrument God used to bring me to faith
and to not only receive, but work out my calling. I hope this
book inspires other would-be Joes to be brave and allow God to
use their uniqueness and passion to honor and glorify him. For
as long as I can remember, I wanted to be an actor and in
theatre. When I fully accepted my calling, I figured I’d have
to give up that dream. Boy, was I wrong. In every appointment
I have had as an officer, God has given me opportunities
beyond my wildest dreams to embrace my uniqueness and passion
for the Arts. What a life - I wouldn’t trade a moment of it -
the good, the bad, the difficult and the amazing - it’s formed
me into the person I am today. If you had any idea how my life
started out…but God took it and all of its imperfections and
used it. I pray always it has been for his honor and his
glory!
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