Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon Lee spoke to hundreds of high school juniors at both the 2009 Boys State and Girls State programs.
On May 27, she addressed more than 600 students at Tennessee Boys State, which was held at Tennessee Tech University in Cookeville. During her remarks, she shared the stories of three World War II prisoners of war, who each have children who are now Tennessee judges. Her stories include that of Justice Lee’s father, Charles Lee, who was a member of the Army Air Corp and flew a B-17 bomber.
“Today as we face adversity of a much lesser scale, there is a great lesson there for us,” said Justice Lee. “Each day is a gift. We should face each day with optimism and hope and a determination to succeed.”
In her speech to the 540 Girls State participants on May 29, Justice Lee reflected on her experience as a Girls State participant in 1970 and also shared the story about how she became a judge. In telling this story, she conveyed the importance of diligence and hard work.
“To succeed you always have to take some chances,” said Justice Lee. “When you take chances, sometimes you fail. But you have to keep trying.”