Roy Slezak refuses to call it a birthday.
“Birthdays are meant to be happy,” Slezak said from his home in New Mexico. “I don’t know what to call it.”
Slezak, who was living in Passaic, New Jersey, at the time, could have been on the plane that, on November 14, 1970, crashed and claimed the lives of 75 passengers – including 44 football players and coaches of Marshall University, 26 fans and a crew of five.
His close friend and neighbor, Art Harris Jr., was one of the late Marshall players. Harris’ father, Art Sr., was one of the fans of the plane.
“Art was all-state, it was sought after by all the major colleges on the East Coast,” Slezak recalls. “He was an incredible all-rounder. Art could have been playing professional baseball or professional football. “
Harris Jr. was named to the Bergen Record All-Century team for Passaic County. His jersey is hanging at the high school in Passaic. At the time of the crash, Harris Jr. led Marshall in the run and kicking returns.
“He definitely had professional potential, without a doubt,” former Passaic coach John Federici told The Record in 2001. “He was a great athlete who could do it all. He was well liked by his teammates – not a rah-rah kid., but the one who led by example. “
For Slezak, a retired banker / IT specialist, the 50th anniversary of Saturday’s crash is a moving occasion.
In 1970, he had already attended two Marshall games with Harris Sr. (Huntington, W.Va. is about a nine hour drive from Passaic) and was approached to go see the Thundering Herd play in East Carolina. Slezak initially agreed but said it would mean breaking a date. Harris Sr. told Slezak he had to keep his promises.
“He said, ‘No, you keep your commitment, that’s what you do,’ there will be other games,” Slezak said. “I never wanted to miss an opportunity to see Art perform.”
No one will ever know exactly how Harris Sr. ended up on the plane. Slezak believes Harris Sr. flew to the wrong city – Greenville, South Carolina, instead of Greenville, North Carolina, where East Carolina is located. He had to rent a car to get to the game, then asked if there were seats on the plane to return to Marshall.
The Harris family detailed this evening in a 1995 article in The Record. Yolanda Shoebridge, mother of Lyndhurst / Marshall star Ted Shoebridge, called the Harris home on Linden Street.
“My mom called and then she passed out,” said Carolyn Harris, the youngest daughter. “I picked up the phone, but Mrs. Shoebridge was crying hysterically. I just hung up the phone. I didn’t know what to do. I don’t think I believed it.
“I kept thinking that he [Arthur Sr.] was driving in the car, “said Maja Harris, mother of Art Jr. and wife of Art Sr.” At 1 a.m., a detective came to the door. He said: ‘Ms. Harris, I have some bad news. But I already knew. I knew as soon as I saw the police car.
He said, ‘Your husband is also on the plane. “”
Slezak realized how fickle life can be. If he had left with Art Sr., would they have made the same mistake or would they have flown to the right city? And then, after the game, if Slezak had been there, would that have dissuaded Art Sr. from getting on the plane? Or would he have boarded the plane himself?
Slezak went to visit Marshall in 2011, saying it was on his “ bucket list ”. He met Marshall’s former coach Red Dawson, who relinquished his seat on the plane that evening. The two had lunch together and chatted for hours.
Slezak bought a wreath and rose petals for the crash site, and remembers the store wouldn’t let him pay for the items when he said what they were used for. He has followed Marshall’s football his entire life and pays a video tribute to his friend every year.
“I try to think of all the good times and memories that we made,” Slezak said. “I promised Mrs. Harris that he would never be forgotten.
He achieved this goal. It’s not a birthday, but it’s an unforgettable day.
