Charles (Ches) McCartney – Goat Man

As I continue on with memorable people and events in my life, I must include Goat Man.

Ches McCartney moved from Iowa to Georgia the middle part of the last century and settled close to where I grew up. He was an eccentric man that one would not soon forget. He resembled the description of John the Baptist, a voice crying out in the wilderness, repent for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. Every Spring during the 50’s and thru the 60’s, he would set out on a trek across America. Ches would be dressed in goat skins fashioned by his wife, riding a wagon that was pulled by a herd of goats. We would usually see him coming or going and many times we'd come across him on vacation up in the mountains or at the beach.

He went around much like John the Baptist preaching the Word. His later years were fought with personal and physical conflicts. Ches' view of the world was very different than most of ours. He asked very little of it, yet gave all of himself.

It wouldn’t hurt us to crawl up into his wagon and take a look at the world around us; we might see it a little differently.