FAMILY HISTORY
DINNER, 2007
The 30th Annual Family History Dinner/Annual Meeting of The Afro Historical
Association of the Niagara Frontier will be held Friday, May 4th
6:45 P.M. at the New Golden Nugget, 2046 Fillmore Avenue.
Mrs. Eva Doyle will be the Family History presenter. During her two years
of research, Mrs. Doyle has traced her maternal side back to 1849. Her
search has been concentrated in Monroe, Conecuh Counties, Alabama and
Halifax County, North Carolina. Last names researched are Felts, Lindsey,
Brooks and Hollinger.
Eva Doyle retired from the Buffalo public school system after teaching 28
years. She is serving as a consultant to the African American Program for
the Buffalo public schools. She teaches a Masters level course at Buffalo
State College “teaching in a diverse classroom.” Mrs. Doyle has been a
columnist for the Criterion Newspaper “Eye on History” for 28 years. For
the past two years she has hosted a radio show “Eye on History” on WUFO-1080
AM.
William Wells Brown Awards for the preservation of African American History
will be presented to Sharon Amos, Ph.D, Fern Beavers, Debra M. Johnson,
Sandra Williams Bush, Robert Coles, and Jean Richardson, Ph.D.
Tickets for this event are $25 and can be obtained by sending payment made
payable to AAHANF to; M. Scott, 5 Coronation Drive, Amherst, NY 14226.
Advance reservations are required.
NEW
MEMBERSHIP DUES STRUCTURE
(effective, 2008)
For the last two
decades, the Association has maintained the same membership fee category and
structure. The Board of Directors recently appointed an ad-hoc committee to
review our membership structure. The Board at its November meeting accepted
the Committee’s recommendations, based primarily on the increased costs of
printing and postage, etc.
This new membership fee policy will be instituted with the 2008 membership
renewal campaign. We know that long-time members of the Association will
agree that these modest increases are long over-due and we look forward to
your continued support of the Association and its mission.
The new membership structure will be as follows: Student Member (grade &
high school) - $15.00; Basic Member - $25.00; Heritage Member - $50.00; and
Golden Member - $100+. All memberships include a subscription to the
Association’s newsletter and journal.
Barbara Nevergold, Chairperson
By-Laws and Fee Structure
Revision Committee
RAY BASS WAS A PIONEER
By
Marian Bass (daughter)
Black participation in the
history of Western New York would not be complete without acknowledging the
contribution of the first African-American building trades contractor; a man
who was to expand the unionization of unskilled workers, and to pioneer
minority representation in the mainstream of organized labor.
Ray Bass was born in rural Wilmington, N.C. in
the early part of the century during a period of severe economic and social
repression of people of color. Wages in the rural south were less than a
dollar a day. In addition to starvation wages, blacks were victims of Jim
Crow laws, lynching and disenfranchisement. Though over fifty years had
passed since the end of the Civil War, black peonage flourished, forcing
countless thousands into hopeless debt and virtual bondage.
In
the South, there were few educational opportunities available for poor
blacks. But World War I had given them a great opportunity for industrial
employment, and they migrated north in great numbers. Violence was
occurring in both the North and the South, and the times presented a chance
for southern blacks to escape Klan activity, mob rule, and lynching. The
anticipation of work at wages higher than ever before imagined was also a
great motivator for blacks to leave the South.
Hundreds of thousands of African-Americans fled north to work in
such industries as shipbuilding, meat packaging, steel and coal mining,
They developed a collective self-respect and independence. Being paid a
living wage helped to improve their quality of life and engendered a new
pride born of self-confidence.
But in 1929, the stock market crash and the Great Depression saw
them relegated back to their old position. They were the first to be fired,
and during this period of great suffering, they suffered the most
grievously. Hundreds of thousands of families, both black and white, were
forced to accept relief to survive. Occupations simply disappeared. Public
soup kitchens were for whites only, and wages were reduced to starvation
levels.
On the strength of hearsay that major highway construction was
taking place somewhere in the Western New York area, Ray Bass and his wife
migrated to Buffalo during the Depression. He applied for work at a
construction site, and when the foreman inquired about his skills, he
replied that he could lay bricks. Though he was not an experienced
bricklayer. The foreman told him to report to work in the morning.
All that day, Ray watched the professional bricklayers ply their
trade. The next morning he reported to work, and as he later related it, “I
laid bricks with the best of them.” This proved providential to say the
least. He has the distinction of being one of the first African-Americans
admitted into the building trades union in Western New York at a time when
minorities were being denied even the most menial jobs. Unknown to him at
the time, it marked the beginning of a career that would earn him singular
recognition.
He was bright, affable, and a hard worker, and spent his free time
in the construction site shack poring over blueprints. This amazed the site
foreman who told him to buy a set of drafting tools and he would teach him
how to use them. Ray proved an apt pupil. Late at night, he studied,
trying to assimilate the information gained from his on-the-job training.
His quest for knowledge that would make him a true professional
knew no bounds. He had a certain arrogance and good looks that precluded
ever acting in a subservient manner. I was told that his manner led to many
union hall fights for his demeanor was atypical for the times. Through his
efforts, other minority workers were subsequently employed in construction,
but no one, at the time, achieved his status.
Before he passed, a few years ago, he had founded one of the
largest construction companies in metropolitan Buffalo. During his
professional career, he supplied the brick masonry for Friendship Baptist
Church, the St. Augustine's Center, the Sturgeon Point Pumping Station on
Route 5, the Weinheimer Plumbing Company on Niagara Falls Blvd., the North
Tonawanda Fire Station and many of the homes in the Como Park area.
He completed the masonry work on Towne Gardens and the West Seneca
State School. He erected the public school on Route 5 in Angola, Lincoln
High School in Lackawanna, and in the early days, he helped complete the
masonry work on the Liberty Bank Building in downtown Buffalo. But most
significantly, he is responsible for African-Americans being accepted as
apprentices in the building trades, and accepted as union members locally.
I realize how exceptional Ray Bass must have been to have created
a kind of life that was antithetical to the grinding poverty experienced in
the North and the South, and to have achieved the degree of success that he
merited during a period when Northern attitudes toward minorities were
hardly different from those in the South. In the middle of the Depression,
he bought a prized possession, a brand new Nash.
His was a quest for excellence. I have often wondered what he
might have accomplished had he been the recipient of a formal education and
equal opportunity. He was intelligent, caring and respected, and he made an
important social contribution. He was my father.
COMMUNITY
HISTORY MAKERS
We
invite others to submit biographical or autobiographical sketches
(similar to the one above) of family members or other people in the
community whose lives have helped to make our community better. Persons
may also submit histories of churches or other community organizations.
These are the history makers of our community. We will feature one or
more such articles in each future issue of the newsletter. Write about
yourself, community organizations, members of your family, or people who
have made a difference in our community and get their story published.
Send your article to P.O. Box 63, Buffalo 14207.
BOOK REVIEW BY CAROL J. MITCHELL
Once in a Blue Moon:
A Novel
By E.W. Lucas
Once in a Blue Moon
is a well-crafted suspense novel, written by a young Norfolk Physician. It
is his first novel and is self-published. The main character is Sable
James, a young African American woman--smart, single and attractive. She is
a Washington, D.C. detective. Her partner, Cochran, is a freckled, red
haired transplant from Alabama, with a wife and three small children.
They work well together and
respect each other, despite their very different cultural backgrounds.
Their personal strengths and styles compliment each other. Sable witnessed
the murder of her mother, a crossing guard, shot by a sniper as she walked
past a group of protesters, picketing an abortion clinic. The culprit was
never caught. This event is part of an unfolding series of murders
committed by a serial killer.
The author leaves plenty of
clues, leading the reader to draw conclusions that are misleading. A
prominent psychiatrist is found brutally murdered. His son, the owner of an
abortion clinic and beneficiary of a huge insurance policy is the suspect,
until his mutilated body is discovered on his boat. The clues are unusual
and suggest a ritualistic assassination. Many items lead to an ancient
Egyptian connection, tying all the events together. The many twists and
turns in the plot keep the reader on edge and interested. There is never a
dull moment.
Happily, Sable is
able to research the clues, correct previous mistakes by her partner and the
FBI and tie up all the loose ends, to reach a very satisfying conclusion.
This is a good read, especially for those who enjoy mysteries. It is well
done and plausible.
African
Americans Buried in
FOREST LAWN CEMETERY
This column will be
featured in each issue.
New names will be
featured in each issue.
Compiled by Patrick Kavanagh,
(Forest Lawn Historian)
SECTION 7
Du Bard, Ralph; DOD
9/6/1987 SG 189.
Ralph DuBard was
born in Columbia, SC. He came to Buffalo as a youth; graduated from
Hutchinson Central High School; attended Hastings College in Nebraska. He
married Mary Alyce Daniels. Won many awards for his community activities;
In 1950 won the local Voices of Tomorrow competition sponsored by WBEN
radio; awarded fellowship to the Chautauqua Music Institution. Toured Euope
in “Porky and Bess.” Past President of the Buffalo Branch of the NAACP.
Was at the head of the Buffalo delegation in the march on Washington DC in
August of 1963. Mr. DuBard was a senior investigator for the U.S. Equal
Employment Opportunity Commission. He was chairman of the Board of Sheehan
Memorial Hospital. In 1978 the African American Historical Association
worked with Mr. DuBard in organizing, indexing and microfilming his personal
papers. The “DuBard Papers” include personal correspondences, speeches and
other writings during the 1950’s the the 70’s. In 1986 he helped found the
Affirmative Action Equal Opportunity Association of Western New York. Mr.
DuBard was 67 years of age at the time of his death.
SECTION 10
Birch-Johnson, Glendora;
DOD 3/2/2002; Lot 1109.
Glendora was a
pastor’s wife who had several leadership roles in the Baptist Church. Born
Glendora Fant in Beaver Dam, Kentucky, “Mother Birch” as she was called by
her family, attended the Kentucky Industrial Training School, where she
became an accomplished seamstress and cook. She married the Rev. Carris S.
Johnson Sr., and moved to Lackawanna, New York in 1945 where they became
members first of the Michigan Street Baptist Church, then Mount Olivet
Church. Mrs. Johnson lived in the Buffalo area until 1983 when she moved
back to Kentucky to care for her ailing sisters. In 1988 she returned to
buffalo, where she lived the rest of her life. A former Sunday school
teacher and past President of the Ministers Wives of Buffalo, she was an
active member of the Great Lakes Baptist Assoc.. She was also President of
the Green River Valley District Assoc. Missionary Convention in Kentucky
from 1984 -89 and also past President of the New Immanuel Missionary
Society. In 1989 she joined Providence Baptist Church in Buffalo. At the
time of her death she was 93 years of age.
Richardson, Isaiah “Ike”
DOD 6/18/1984; Lot 1330.
Mr. Richardson was
a professional photographer; owner of an Eastside photography shop; also
operated Richardson’s Photo’s on Northland Ave. for 34 years; photographer
for “Our Town” magazine. In 1958 joined Mr. James H. Lyons to form
Niagara Negro Sales Service Inc., and published the “The Negro Directory of
the Niagara Frontier”. Mr. Richardson was the first African American
foreman at the Chevrolet Delevan Ave. plant; co-founder of the St. Peter
Clover Youth Center. Mr. Richardson was 61 years of age at the time of his
passing.
Lewis, Doris Ann; DOD
8/16/1999; Lot 1387.
Buffalo Police
Officer Doris Lee was born in buffalo and graduated from East High School.
She studied Business Administration at Bryant and Stratton Business
Institute. After working for 13 years for the Buffalo Board of Education
she became a Buffalo Police Officer serving in the Genesee Station. She
received many awards for her job performance, and served as liaison for the
Weed and Seed program. She also organized several block clubs and a
mentoring program for the youth called “Walk in my Shoes.”
Baptized into the
Zion Missionary Baptist Church at a young age, she also was active as a
church member and was a member of the sanctuary choir, Nurses Guild and
Women helping Women Ministry. She also served as a supervisor for the youth
choir, and was dedicated to helping the youth of the community.
She also enjoyed
traveling, music, entertaining and spending time with her grandson, Edward
Bishop, whom he affectionately referred to as “Nana’s Man”. She also raised
a nephew, Edwin Lewis. It is likely Officer Lewis learned her commitment to
helping others from her Mother’s example. Mrs. Lewis and her mother, Ora Lee
Lewis, were killed in a vehicle accident on the NYS Thruway in the Town of
Portland, Chautauqua County, on the date mentioned above. Officer Lewis was
43 years of age at the time of her death.
Lewis, Ora Lee; DOD
8/16/1999; Lot 1387.
Born in Nitta Yuma, MS, the
former Ora Lee Pendleton married the late Hezekiah Lewis Sr. in 1952 and
they moved to Buffalo a few years later. Ora Lewis was the mother of
Officer Doris Ann Lewis, above who also died in the tragic accident that
killed her daughter. She joined Zion Missionary Baptist Church after moving
to Buffalo and became a faithful member of the choir, Missionary Society and
Sunday School department. She was awarded a Evangelist certification in
1982 by the Women’s Ministries Christian Club. Ora Lee Lewis was 63 years
old at the time of her passing.
Givens, Walter
Jackson “Jack”; DOD 6/10/1998; Lot 1121.
Walter “Jack” Givens was
considered one of the areas’s pioneering physical therapists. He completed
his degree in physical education in 1949 at UB. He received his certificate
in physical therapy from NYU in 1951 and taught at UB’S Chronic Disease
Institute before beginning a 25 year career at BGH. He was a native of
Danville, VA and he attended Tuskegee Institute before he entered the US
Army serving in Germany and France during WWII. Mr. Jackson was 76 years of
age at the time of his death.
Johnson, James
Jr. (Rick James); DOD 8/6/2004; Lot 1624.
Buffalo native “punk funk”
superstar. Won Grammy for best R&B song in 1990; recorded numerous gold
albums.
Franklin,
Barbara S.; DOD 3/7/1952; Lot 1428
Mother of Soul sensation Aretha
Franklin.
Earle, June
A.; DOD 1/6/2006; Lot 187A .
Ms. Earle was a retired
teacher’s aide who was active in her church and community. Born June Banks
in buffalo, NY. She was a graduate of Fosdick Masten HS; Livingston College,
NC and UB. and Mrs. Earle helped implement the Head Start Program in
buffalo and later served as an aide in PS 74, 84 and Lafayette HS. With
her mastery of short hand she worked as a secretary for Dr. Lydia T. Wright,
as well as other businesses and professional people. She was a former
secretary for the Buffalo, NY chapter of the NAACP and was a member of the
Urban League; and various parents groups at her children’s schools. At St.
Phillip’s Episcopal church she was a Sunday School teacher and was a member
of the Altar Guild. She also was a former member of St. Luke AME Zion
church. Mrs. Earle was 82 years of age at the time of her passing.
Jones, Beulah
Lorena; DOD 9/29/1997; Lot 1496.
Beulah Jones was
a descendant of former slaves who had traveled with Harriet Tubman. After
traveling north to freedom some of her ancestors settled in Niagara Falls,
while others continued across the border and made their homes in Canada.
Ms. Jones was born and raised in Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. As a
young girl Mrs. Jones joined the historic British Methodist Episcopal church
in Niagara Falls, Ontario; learned to play the piano and used her gift to
play for the Sunday school and morning services. Mrs. Jones became a US
citizen after moving to Buffalo in 1926. She joined the Bethel African
Methodist Episcopal church here in 1942. She was the oldest member with the
longest continuous membership. She was often sought out for information on
church history and she contributed pictures, articles and artifacts for the
church archive room. She was the first Queen of Bethel Church and served
for many years as a captain for Women’s Day. She was also a lifetime member
of the NAACP. Mrs. Jones was 95 years of age at the time of her passing.
30th
ANNUAL CARTER G. WOODSON ESSAY CONTEST
2007 WINNERS
The winners of the 30th
Annual Carter G. Woodson Essay Contest received certificates and cash prizes
at the Awards Program held on Saturday, February 24, 2007 at the Frank E.
Merriweather, Jr. Branch Library, 1324 Jefferson Avenue. The theme of this
year’s program was A Tribute to an African American Uncrowned Queen in
Western New York”. Winning essays will also be printed in Historically
Speaking, the newsletter of the Afro-American Historical
Association of the Niagara Frontier.
1st Place – Grades 4-6
Brice P. Beathley
Grade 6, Martin
Luther King Multicultural Institute
Queen Stephanie
McLean Beathley
My Mother is An Uncrowned Queen. I know that every kid will be
writing about his or her mother. I don't know how to make my mother sound
more special than she is, but she is very special to me.
My mom was born
Stephanie Elaine McLean and later got married and changed her name to
Stephanie McLean Beathley. Long before she married my dad, she got her
Master Degree in Social Work from UB. When she was at UB, she won the
Hazeltine T. Clements Award for Excellence in the Field of Education.
Ever since I was a little boy, I can always remember my mom
helping other people. She says that God requires us to help others and to
share our knowledge. Maybe that is why she became a Social Worker to help
other people. Right now, she works for the Western New York Children's
Psychiatric Center helping kids with mental illness and their families. One
of the things she does at work is train parents using a program called
Common Sense Parenting. She teaches Common Sense Parenting all over Western
New York, because sometimes I travel with her to places like Randolph, Cuba,
and Lockport. Sometimes, people have to take her class to get out of
trouble with Child Protective Services for being mean to their children.
One time. Mommy said that she trained over 500 people in one year. She was
teacheing people to respect each other as a Diversity Trainer and teaches
about Sexual Harassment.
My mom also helps out at the Greater Niagara Frontier Council, Boy
Scouts of America. She is a district commissioner in charge of training
leaders in the city. My mom became involved in Boy Scouts, because of my
brother and me. She has won many awards like the District Award of Merit and
the national volunteer award called the Silver Beaver. I think her nickname
should be Ms. Boy Scout.
Also, my mom thinks healthcare is important. She is an original
board member of the Univera Community Health Program which helps poor
parents get medical care for their families. Mom does not want people to
suffer if they need a doctor, especially kids.
Also, she is always doing something at our church - New Mount
Ararat Temple of™ Prayer. Our church is doing great things, especially the
outreach ministry which my Mom is working with.
Plus, people are always stopping her and asking her for advice or to write a
letter for them. She never says no, but willing offers assistance and never
gets a dime for her services.
But most important, she is my mom. I know that she works very
hard to provide the things that I need and some of what I want. My mom may
not be in the newspapers or on television, but she represents hard work and
devotion to her family and many other women do these things everyday. This
is why my mom is an uncrowned queen and leader of my village.
2nd Place, Grades 4-6
Jazmine Turner
Grade 4, Frank A. Sedita Academy
Queen Lessie Clark
My great grandmother, Lessie Clark passed away on November 25th
2005. She may not be here physically, but her spirit lives on. She left
footprints behind that can not be erased, and her presence will be felt and
passed on generation after generation in my family.
My grandmother had a very hard life and worked very hard. She had
only a 4th grade level of education. She didn't know how to read well. She
taught herself how to read by going to Sunday school and learning the
Bible. Lessie Clark was a great leader in her church, Friendship Baptist
Church. She was there when it was a very small church. She helped build
the foundation that grew Friendship Baptist Church into the big congregation
that it is today.
Every Sunday, she would pack as many people as she could into her van and
take them to church with her. She wanted everyone to hear the word of the
lord. Also she never missed Sunday school no matter how sick she was. Even
when bone cancer attacked her, she would still pull herself together to go.
My grandmother loved all of her grandchildren. She was a very
important figure in my family. She was a mother, grandmother, great
grandmother and a great, great grandmother. I always remember our talks
about Jesus, life, and school.
She was also part
of the church chorus. She would drives miles and miles to travel with the
chorus to sing at other churches. My grandma also taught herself to sew.
She would make beautiful dresses. She once made a gorgeous dress for her
great granddaughter's prom. She also had a talent, which she called "a gift
from God" to take anything that might have been considered garbage into
something beautiful. She would take an old pair of shoes and recover them
and decorate them into a beautiful pair of shoes. Many people would bring
their shoes, hats, and purses over to her to make beautiful again.
Grandma also looked sharp and she never had to spend all kinds of
money. All she used was her magic hand and she was always willing to teach
others. She also was part owner of an upholstering shop on Bailey Ave in
Buffalo. Her and her good friend made old furniture into new furniture that
came from a showroom. My grandmother was a self made, strong woman. This
is why my grandmother, Lessie Clark is an uncrowned African American Queen
to me and I will always remember her for the wonderful grandmother that she
was.
3rd Place, Grades 4-6
Roosevelt W. Lee
Grade 6, Buffalo Academy for Visual and
Performing Arts
Queen Yvonne Vining
Sister Yvonne Vining was born
April 3, 1933 in Scott Haven, Pennsylvania to the late Bro. James E. and
Pastor Odessa Elizabeth Bennett (Johnston). She was the third child of
seven sisters and four brothers.
The product of a loving Christian home, Yvonne was baptized in
Jesus' name and filled with the Holy Ghost at an early age, confessing Jesus
Christ as her Lord and Savior, at the Bethlehem Temple Faith Church in
Arnold, Pennsylvania. She attended Crescent Elementary, Baxter Junior High,
and graduated from Westinghouse High School. Yvonne was united in holy
matrimony to Bro. Napoleon Vining on March 7, 1952. To this union five
children were born in Pittsburgh, and the family relocated to Lincoln Beach
and five more children were born. Sis. Vining gained employment at the H J.
Heinz Company in Pittsburgh, P.A. and the couple were spiritually blessed.
1st Place,
Grades 7-9
Nicholas Grazes
Grade 7, Native American
Magnet
Queen Catherine Dickes
Harris
Catherine Dickes was born June 10, 1809 on a farm near Meadville,
Pa. At age 19, she married her husband, an Erie, Pa. man. They came to
Jamestown in 1831. They built a small house at what later became 12 West
Seventh St. Mrs. Harris' was a tall and slender with a refined and
intelligent face. She was a woman of a peculiarly sunny and happy
disposition, generous, thoughtful and unselfish." She was well known in the
community for her skills as a natural doctor, nurse and midwife. The house
at 12 West Seventh grew over the years, with additions being built as
necessity dictated. Today's house bears little or no resemblance to the
original. However, the role played by that original little house is not
forgotten. Although only 16 feet in length, it is maintained that Mrs.
Harris could hide as many as 17 runaway slaves at one time in the attic.
During the years preceding the Civil War and the abolition of
slavery, she harbored untold numbers of runaway slaves, furnishing food and
medical care as well as refuge. Defying the Fugitive Slave Law, she risked
fines of $1,000 and up to six months in prison to help her fellow man.
Unmindful of her own safety, she played the deadly game of hide and seek,
one of the few blacks in the United States to maintain a station on the
torturous trip between the southern states and Canada.
In 1881, 17 years after the close of the Civil War, the little
house served as the site for the birth of the A.M.E. Zion Church in
Jamestown, where most of the city's 120 blacks who attended were
freedom-seekers. Catherine Harris died Feb. 12, 1907, nearly 98 years of
age. She had been active up to the last few weeks before her death from
pneumonia.
I chose Catharine Harris because,
one day I was visiting my grandmother and on her refrigerator she had a
magnate of a lady, and I asked her who it was. She told me that it was
Catharine Harris, and from that day on I was interested in who this lady
was. The Uncrowned Queens essay contest allowed me to educate myself on the
importance this magnificent women had on Western New York.
In October of 1968, the family moved to Buffalo, New York to join the Church
of Jesus Christ under the pastorship of Elder Allmon E. Bailey. Yvonne
was an exceptionally talented and a faithful worker in the church. She
was a piano player who sung high soprano and wrote and composed her own
music. She loved music and played piano by ear. Sewing, knitting
and crocheting was her second love. Using these God-given talents, she
secured employment at Kleinhans Clothing Company where she worked as a
seamstress and tailor. Part-time she worked at Lee's Upholstery.
She opened up her own restaurant and ran it for a few years.
Sister Vining also had a great love for helping people.
She served as a
personal care aide for 30
years, for agencies such as Health Force and Staff
Builder. Her favorite
clients were "Polly" and "Dorothy" who she aided for 13
years. If she knew you had a large family you
could expect food to be dropped at your
backdoor. Vonnie taught her children to value education, own
property, only cook with stainless steel
pots and pans and always have a juicer
machine in your home to distribute green
juice to everyone that became sick.
When you were around Vonnie you had to
respect her and other grown-ups, you
could not talk back or speak out of
turn. She was a wonderful role- model for a
mother, women and grandmother for today's
house wives.
Yvonne is survived
by her husband of 53 years, Elder Napoleon Vining of Buffalo, N.Y.; three
sons: Anthony P. (Linda) Vining of Buffalo, N.Y., Jerome K. (Leslie) Vining
of New Kensington, P. A., and Alfred O. (Charlene) Vining of
Buffalo, N.Y.; five
daughters: Roberta M. (John) Owens of McKeesport, P.A.,
Sheila L. (Roosevelt) Lee
of Buffalo, N.Y., Starlene J. Vining of Gadsden, A. L., Yvonne (Harold)
Roberts of Amherst, N.Y., Mercedes B. Vining of Orlando, F. L.; 19
grandchildren: Nadine, John, Delia, Anthony Jr., Sheila, Daniel, Tanisha,
Shevonne, Roosevelt III, Rozella, Larry, Jerome Jr. William,
Daniel, Lataundra,
Crystal, Cassandra, and Alexis; 20 great-grandchildren; a host of
nieces, nephews, family,
saints, and friends.
I would like to acknowledge four people who were very dear to Vonnie's
heart: Sis. Mary
Oliver, Evangelist Delores Grant, Pastor Janet Stewart & Mrs.
Elizabeth Robson. I
believe she would make a beautiful tribute to an African
American Uncrowned Queen
In Western New York.
Sincerely,
Her Children
2nd Place, Grades 7-9
De-Jon T. Brice
Grade 7, Frank A. Sedita Academy
Queen Yvonne L.
Morrell
Ms. Yvonne L. Morrell was born August 10, 1936 in the city of
Buffalo to the late Mr. Alien and Mrs. Nellie Morrell. Ms. Morrell was
born into a large loving family including nine brothers and sisters. Ms.
Morrell believed that family, faith, education and service were the pillars
to having a meaningful life.
Ms. Morrell was a graduate of East High School. She was a single
parent of six children, Stephanie, Jacqueline, Angela, Carolyn, Shareen and
James. A life long member of St. Ann's Roman Catholic Church, she served on
several committees. She sang in the Adult Choir, directed the Youth Choir,
served as lecture, commentator and on Parish Council. Leaning on her faith
and determination Ms. Morrell provided a better life for her children when
she earned a Bachelor's and two Master's Degrees from the University at
Buffalo and Buffalo State College in Education and Child Psychology, shortly
thereafter she began her teaching career.
Ms. Morrell was a grammar school teacher in the Buffalo Public
School system for over thirty-five years, until her retirement in 2004. In
her earlier teaching career she taught the G.E.D. and Literacy programs to
inmates at the Attica Correctional Facility. Ms. Morrell was a leading
member of the parental committee which established the Follow Through
School. Dedicated to her community, Ms. Morrell was a member of the Junior
League and tutored students in need before and after school. She believed
all things where possible with an education and set forth to provide
educational opportunities to all.
Ms. Yvonne Morrell was affectionately called "Nana" by family and
friends and alike. She was a proud African-American woman who contributed
to her church, family, community and education. Her accomplishments
encouraged us to achieve the very best and prove success is in reach.
Ms. Morrell was surrounded by family and friends when she was
peacefully called home on January 4, 2007. She leaves behind a legacy of
service to her community, faith and family for generations to come.
3rd Place, Grades 7-9
Tina Akaic
Grade 7, C.C. St. Monica
Queen Teraza Mnwal
My mom Teraza Mnwal is my
uncrowned queen. She was born in Africa. She was born into a family of
five. She has three sisters and one brother. My mom lived only with her
mother because her father died from gun violence when she was a young girl.
My mom did not get an education when she was young because she had
to take care of her sick mother. My mother was the oldest child in her
family so she had to take care of her younger siblings. She always did a
great job at taking care of them. My mom got married and had four children
in Africa.
When I turned eight years old, my mother wanted me and my sisters
to get a good education so she brought us to the United States. My mother
now has eight children and is a single mother. My mother cares a lot about
our school work. Education is the most important thing to her. She makes
sure we get to school on time. When I am having a hard time hi school, she
tells my teachers to give me a little more help and they do.
My mother takes us to church every Sunday for Mass and on every
Saturday for bible classes. My mom is a very hard worker. She goes to work
at ten o'clock at night and comes home at eight o'clock in the morning.
After my mom comes home from work, she takes my two youngest sisters to
daycare. What I most admire about my mother is that she is full of wisdom.
A good example of that is when my pastor asked me to be in the choir I was
very nervous. She told me I would do just fine and I did.
My mother is a
very religious person. She gets up every morning and reads the Bible. My
mother goes to school every Tuesday. She goes to the International
Institute to improve her English Language Skills. My mom volunteers at my
church, Holy Angels. My mom also has a job. When my mom gets her pay
check, she buys me and my sisters all the things we need for school. After
my mother buys us the things we need, she sends some of her money back to my
grandmother back in Africa.
When I grow up I want to be just like my mother because she is a
beautiful and independent person. My mother is my role model. I want to be
just like her because she is a kind and loving mother.
1st Place, Grades 10-12
Martin L. R. Russell
Grade 12, East High School
Queen Lucille Colston
Hicks
First and foremost I would just like to say I am blessed and truly
thankful for God giving me a grandmother like Lucille C. Hicks. She gives me
inspiration to be a better person and also is able to bring out the best in
others around her. It is no wonder that everyone who knows her falls in love
with her, because she is an angel on earth! I pray for her everyday.
Biography of Lucille Colston
Hicks
Lucille Colston Hicks was born on February 5,1929 in Bessemer,
Alabama. She is the daughter of Woody and Nancy Colston, who were the
parents of fifteen children, (10 boys and 5 girls). Lucille was raised on a
"real" farm with many different crops and animals which helped to sustain
their large family. She states that, "though they were poor, they wanted
for nothing, and theirs was a family where even strangers came for food,
help, shelter, and comfort."
Though her parents were not allowed the benefits of a formal
education, they knew the value of a good educational foundation and demanded
that their kids excel and be their best. Lucille's father even went so far
as to petition the school board of Muscoda County to give him a school bus
to drive his children and other students the ten miles to school and was
granted permission to do so. Her mother Nancy became the custodian for
their school as well. Lucille graduated with honors and a scholarship from
Muscoda High School in Bessemer, Alabama.
Lucille married Udell Hicks in 1949, and they moved to Buffalo,
New York. This was during the time of the Great African American migration
from the south to the north, when many moved with the promise of more
opportunities and a better way of life. Lucille and Udell were blessed with
six children, and they instilled in
them the same desire to take advantage of obtaining a good education.
Mrs. Hicks became an active participant in her children's
education, first becoming recording secretary of the P.S. #53 PTA, Parent
Advisory Member and then President of the Head Start Overall Policy Council
(OPC) of the Community Action Association of Western New York. This is a
position that she held for eight years.
Next, Mrs. Hicks gained employment as a member of the Board of
Education, where she was named the supervisor of six community aides for the
Follow Through Program. This pilot programs' purpose was to take each
student and family within the grammar school where they were academically
and developmentally, work with them, and then follow them through to high
school graduation. The community aides who worked under Mrs. Hicks credit
her with encouraging them to return to college and earning their bachelor
and graduate degrees. As you can see, Mrs. Hicks was a very busy and
important person!
After getting a Masters' Degree from State Teachers College in
Pupil Services and Community Relations, Lucille Colston Hicks was appointed
the FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN ATTENDANCE TEACHER FOR THE BOARD OF EDUCATION IN
THE CITY OF BUFFALO, NEW YORK, a position she held for 28 YEARS!!
Lucille spent ten of those years with the Attendance Intervention
Module, (A.I.M) Team, a specially created unit where she teamed with a
Buffalo Police officer, and they rode the streets of Buffalo and the
surrounding suburbs visiting homes, game rooms, shopping malls, and checking
street corners, making sure that students who were not in school and should
be, were there, and this was another African American First!
Always advocating for youth, Mrs. Hicks was a member of the Masten
Community Action Organization's Junior/Senior Drop-Out Program (JUSENDO),
created to help students improve their academic skills and decrease high
school drop out rates. She is also a member of the Masten Neighborhood
Advisory Council, The Hamlin Park Concerned Taxpayers Association, as well
as President of the Blaine Avenue # 1 Block Club and the Buffalo Block Club
Coalition.
Mrs. Hicks has received numerous awards, including the Black
Achhievers in Industry Award, the Masten District Community Service Award,
and the Urban League Family of the Year.
After an illustrious career, Mrs. Hicks retired in 1998.
Everything that she has done for herself, the community and others, will
never be forgotten. Her legacy will for ever live on. She has made
accomplishments that would take some people a lifetime to achieve, yet she
remains humble. She is a true angel, and when she does something for someone
she does not look for recognition. She is always modest, and does things out
of the kindness of her heart
Married to this day to her husband of 58 years, Udell, Lucille is the happy
grandmother of ten grandchildren and two great grandchildren. She is a
member of the Greater Works Christian Fellowship Church.
Lucille Colston Hicks is a real Community Leader, Trailblazer, and
truly an UNCROWNED QUEEN. I have written this essay to finally give her a
crown!
2nd Place, Grades 10-12
Curtis N. Gardner, Jr.
Grade 10, McKinley High School
Queen Lene Ford DuBois
"Everything that happened to me that was good, God did it!" In
the words of this gospel song, she describes her life. If you ask her about
her life, she would tell you that it's been good, and it's all because of
God. Now a widow at the age of 76, Mrs. Lurie Lene Ford DuBois reminds me a
lot of the grandmother in the movie "Soul Food". She is strong, determined,
caring, a great cook who feeds everybody, and will take anybody in need,
into her house. Mrs. DuBois and her husband, the LATE GREAT, Rev. Glenn
Harvey DuBois, have been our family leaders for a long time. When Rev.
DuBois died on February 9, 2005, she became the head of the family. She
still leads us today. This is just one of the reasons I think she should be
an Uncrowned Queen.
Mrs. DuBois was born on November 12, 1930 in a little house in the
little town of Hughes, Arkansas. She was the 4th child of her parents' 10
children. When she was a child, she only went to school when no farm work
was needed. School was in the Baptist Church. There was only one room and
one teacher for all the elementary grades. She was such a good student that
she helped the teacher to teach the other kids. There was no high school in
the area where Mrs. DuBois lived. She had to go away from home to go to
high school. She was the first "Negro" from her area to ever attend High
School, but she started something, because after her, others started going.
Mrs. DuBois could always sing. She has sung and directed choirs
for as long as I can remember. When she was 7 years old, she sang so good
that when she joined the church she started singing with the Adult Choir.
She also attended Sunday School, B.T.U., Mission meetings, choir rehearsals,
prayer meetings, revivals and anything else held at the church. She still
does all this and much more today! She has been a member of the Jordan Grove
Baptist Church since it started in 1955. Her husband was the Pastor for 40
years. She did a lot of work at this church, such as: directing choirs,
teaching classes, leading prayer services, sponsoring programs for fund
raising, supervising the young people's department, serving as secretary and
treasurer for different groups and working as the Pastor's personal
secretary. Mrs. DuBois also works with our local church association, the
Great Lakes Baptist Association., and with our State and National
Conventions. With our local Association, she has been the Coordinator and
director of the Choir's Department, the corresponding secretary for the
Women's Auxiliary, the chairperson of the Radio & Press Committee and of the
"Hat Extravaganza" program.
Mrs. DuBois cares
about the community, and about education as well as home and foreign
missions. Her ministry begins in her home and spreads abroad. She has
taken many people into her home and nurtured them, fed them, taught them and
been acounselor to them. She is a true Christian
mother.
For about 50 years, Mrs. DuBois lead the singers with the "Upper
Room Prayer Band" when they visited nursing homes and centers each year on
New Year's Day. They would walk all around the building singing songs, and
praying for people who lived in these places. This included the Erie County
Home and Infirmary, the Grace Manor Nursing Home and the 1490 Senior
Citizens building. Mrs. DuBois is still helping people today. She helps to
sponsor The Lurie DuBois Post War Orphanage for Abandoned Children
International Ministry Inc., in Monrovia, Liberia, West Africa. This
facility was named after her hi 1996. She, some of her family and friends,
and her church family send quarterly provisions of rice and money to support
the people there. She and her supporters are the main source of food and
money for the children who live hi this facility.
For her tireless work, Mrs. DuBois has received many awards and
certificates. ,She received Certificates of Appreciation from many groups,
including The Evangelistic Temple Church for providing encouragement to
Women; The Christian Women's Council Award; The Stellar Award from Kathy
Bowman Ministries for Lifetime Achievement in Ministry; The Virtuous Woman
Award, from the Children's Ministry Department of her home church; The No
Cross, No Crown Award for Service, from the Great Lakes Baptist Association;
An Appreciation Award from a sister church hi Omaha, Nebraska, etc.
There are many
reasons why I feel Mrs. DuBois should be an uncrowned queen. With the help
of God, she went from being a plantation sharecropper to the "First Lady" of
a Church. If she knew that I was writing this paper about her, my
Grandmother, Mrs. Lurie Lene Ford DuBois would use the phrase that she says
so often in church: "Bless your sweet heart"!!
