SHORE PERSPECTIVES: Betty Fosque Shares How Her Son, Warren Fosque III, Made The Most Of His Dash

By Kelley Gaskill

There is a poem by Linda Ellis called The Dash that says, in part,
“I read of a man who stood to speak
at the funeral of a friend.
He referred to the dates on the tombstone
from the beginning…to the end.

He noted that first came the date of birth
and spoke the following date with tears,
but he said what mattered most of all
was the dash between those years.

For that dash represents all the time
that they spent alive on earth.
And now only those who loved them
know what that little line is worth.

For it matters not, how much we own,
the cars…the house…the cash.
What matters is how we live and love
and how we spend our dash.”

On December 15th, 2024, what was originally reported as a vehicle fire in the northern part of Accomack County turned into a homicide investigation that changed lives of family, friends and an Eastern Shore community. This week, Kelley visited with Minister Betty Fosque as she shared part of her son, Warren Fosque III’s, ‘dash’ and the indelible legacy he leaves.