By Carole Copeland Thomas, MBA, CDMP, CITM
The Who, What, Where, How, & Why of Black History
Part One: Dr. Carter G. Woodson and Black History Since 1619 The road to Black History is paved with genius, talent, hardships, unending tragedy, amazing opportunities and everything in between. This two-part series will examine the role of the black community in America and why Black History is integral to our past, our present and our future. Black History IS American History in every sense of the word!. Get out your pen and notebook and let’s examine the realities and dreams of black people throughout the land! Black History ResourcesArticle 1 Section 2 Clause 3 "American Caste System" Click Here To Download Dr. Carter G. Woodson Click Here To Link To His Historical Organization Black Culture Guidebook Click Here For Details March 14th Black History Breakfast www.mssconnect.com Movie: 12 Years A Slave Click Here For More Information
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By Carole Copeland Thomas  In the 31 years I have been in the diversity, multicultural, and inclusion industry, one of the most popular topics focuses on diversity names, categories, and labels. Let me share my perspective on one category that causes both agreement and disagreement with those who lay claim to its importance and meaning in our global society. Question: Which Term Is It? Black or African American? Answer: Either term is appropriate. Some people prefer African American, while others prefer black. Style, tradition, and history dictate which term to use. From a global perspective, black is more appropriate, referring to any person of African descent from Lagos, Nigeria, to Liverpool, England to Long Island, New York. The term African American pertains to those individuals living in the United States. It can relate to people like me, a 7th generation American whose ancestors were born in slavery. It can also pertain to those born outside of the US, but now living in America. However, don't be surprised if you encounter those born outside of the US who still reject self-identifying as "African Americans." For example, some in the Haitian community will call themselves Haitian-Americans or Haitians before calling themselves African Americans. It gets tricky because one term does not fit all. Your best bet is to ASK QUESTIONS and get feedback from a person or group before arbitrarily assigning a label to an ethnically different person. Here's where it gets a bit complicated: The socially acceptable term to use in the US: People of Color NOT acceptable in the United States: Colored People (this is an old term closely tied to racial discrimination of the past.) Please Note: The term "colored" is still used by some in South Africa to describe people of mixed race. Old Fashion Term in the United States that may turn heads if you use it: Negro or Afro-American Yes, I know about the Afro-American Newspaper in Baltimore, Maryland. The publisher emeritus was the best man at my brother's wedding. It is one of the oldest and most respected newspapers in the US. I also know about the NAACP - National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. That organization, like several others, decided to keep their original name first created in 1909. A term that is NOT ACCEPTABLE anywhere: Nigger. It's so distasteful that it’s difficult for me to even include it in this guidebook. I am particularly offended that it is the word of choice by some hip-hop artists, rap artists, comics, and other entertainers. NO, it is not at all cool to use that word. The historical implications connected to its violent past are still too radioactive to consider mainstreaming its use. And finally, there are those who only prefer to be called an "American" or "human" and see no value at all in the realm of diversity categories and labels. So, your best bet is to ASK people of color which term they prefer using. You might be surprised in their response.  
Carole Copeland Thomas at her Gaines Family Reunion in Orlando Florida. July 2018
Cousin Theresa Johnson of Detroit, age 90, giving sage advice to Cousin Ryan Law of Atlanta.
Focus On Empowerment can be heard every Thursday at 1pm Eastern.
Log Onto: www.blogtalkradio.com/globalcarole Listen LIVE or Download Anytime At This Blog Post. Each broadcast can be replayed immediately following the show. ======================== This year's Gaines Family Reunion was particularly poignant for me and for my daughter and many of my cousins, nieces, nephews, and other relatives who shared hugs, kisses, and stories last weekend in Orlando. First, it was sad to acknowledge that our family historian, Clarence Gaines, had died, leaving us with more questions about our expanding family that available answers. Meeting his brother, Douglass, and nephew, Doug, Jr. for the first time was comforting in our collective time of mourning. Then, it was the realization that our family was increasingly multicultural. Significant others who are Jewish, Russian, Hispanic and everything in between are also now a part of the Gaines equation. And that's a big aha moment for me. The question is, who is in your family mix? And what exactly does a modern-day American family look like in the days of diversity, multiculturalism, mixed marriages and inclusion? We'll explore this topic and its impact on the very social fabric of our society. =============== About The Gaines Family The Gaines Family represent the descendants of William and Louisa Gaines, two slaves who were allowed to marry on the Georgia plantation in Georgia in the 1700s. They had 14 children, and the family was not split up, like many slave families during that era of African bondage. One of their 14 children, Gus Gaines, had 14 children, and we are of that lineage. The reunions started in 1986 when cousins Theresa Johnson and Lula McKeever decided to pull the family together for biannual gatherings in celebration of our heritage and deep roots in America. Meticulous family research followed when Clarence Gaines took charge of that multigenerational activity. Now some 32 years later the matriarch of the family remains Theresa Johnson, who just celebrated her 90th birthday. Our family has owned small community banks, has produced doctors, lawyers, nurses, teachers, business owners and countless ministers in the past 200 years. We are also aligned with the late Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall, even though we are not directly related to him. And two Bishops of the African Methodist Episcopal Church are family ancestors. My mother's paternal grandmother was Sarah Gaines, one of the 14 children of Gus Gaines. I pay tribute to Sarah, my great-grandmother, and all other members of the Gaines family who came before me. We are Americans. We are a multicultural American Family! 
 Watch Carole's Commentary On Watch Night Below... Dear Family, Valuable Friends, Clients, and Colleagues:
From my home to yours, I wish you rich blessings into the New Year. Here is a special article I created about the history of Watch Night Service in the African American community. The tradition predates the importance of the famous 1862 Watch Night Services and originated with the Moravians in Germany many years earlier. The first Methodist church in America to celebrate Watch Night in the 1700s was St. George United Methodist Church in Philadelphia, the home church of Bishop Richard Allen, co-founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Church. However, it has become particularly important in the Black Church, with its evolution in the early to mid-1800s. The word evolved from “Freedom’s Eve” to “Watch Night” as the freed and enslaved blacks “watched” the clock strike 12 midnight, turning the course of the Civil War and freeing 3 million slaves in the states of the rebellion. Wishing You The Best in 2017 ! Carole Copeland Thomas, MBA CDMP, CITM --------------------------- The History Of Watch Night Services In The Black Church by Carole Copeland Thomas With the festivities of Christmas, Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa now on full display, there is still time to reflect on the ritual of my ancestors and many other African Americans, whose forefathers sat around campfires and wood stoves in the twilight of December 31, 1862. There they sang spirituals acapella, prayed, and thanked the Good Lord for what was about to happen the next day. In the North Abolitionists were jubilant that the “peculiar institution” was finally about to get dismantled one plantation at a time. The booklet, Walking Tours of Civil War Boston sites this about this historic event: “On January 1, 1863, large anti-slavery crowds gathered at Boston’s Music Hall and Tremont Temple to await word that President Abraham Lincoln had issued the much-anticipated Emancipation Proclamation (EP). Those present at the Music Hall included Uncle Tom’s Cabin author Harriet Beecher Stowe, poets Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and John Greenleaf Whittier and essayist, poet and physician Oliver Wendell Holmes, Sr. Also present was Ralph Waldo Emerson, who composed his Boston Hymn to mark the occasion.” Now… Let’s Look Back...154 Years Ago Tonight... It was on January 1, 1863 amidst the cannon fire, gun shots, and burnings at the height of the Civil War that President Abraham Lincoln sealed his own fate and signed the Emancipation Proclamation. It begins with the following decree: Whereas on the 22nd day of September, A.D. 1862, a proclamation was issued by the President of the United States, containing, among other things, the following, towit: "That on the first day of January, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, all persons held as slaves within any State or designated part of a State, the people whereof shall then be in rebellion against the United States, shall be then, thenceforward, and forever free; and the Executive Government of the United States, including the military and naval authority thereof, will recognize and maintain the freedom of such persons, and will do no act or acts to repress such persons, or any of them, in any efforts they may make for their actual freedom.” That the Executive will, on the first day of January aforesaid, by proclamation, designate the States and parts of States, if any, in which the people thereof, respectively, shall then be in rebellion against the United States; and the fact that any State, or the people thereof, shall on that day be, in good faith, represented in the Congress of the United States by members chosen thereto at elections wherein a majority of the qualified voters of such State shall have participated, shall, in the absence of strong countervailing testimony, be deemed conclusive evidence that such State, and the people thereof, are not then in rebellion against the United States." CAROLE' S TRANSLATION: Effective January 1, 1863 all slaves in the states in rebellion against the Union are free. Technically that is all that President Lincoln could do at the time. He used his wartime powers as Commander in Chief to liberate the "property" of the states in rebellion of the Union. The act did not free the slaves of the Union or border states (Delaware, Maryland, Kentucky, Missouri, or West Virginia) or any southern state under Union control (like parts of Virginia). It would take the 13th Amendment (that freed all slaves in 1865), the Union Army winning the Civil War (April 9, 1865), and the assassination of President Lincoln (shot on April 14th and died on April 15, 1865) for all of the slaves to be freed. That included the liberation of the slaves in rebellious Texas on June 19, 1865 (Juneteenth Day) and finally the ratification of the 13th Amendment on December 18, 1865, giving all black people freedom and permanently abolishing slavery in the US. So in 1862 on the eve of this great era, the slaves "watched", prayed, and waited. My ancestors, including Bishop Wesley John Gaines of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME) (a slave in Georgia freed by the EP) and the other three million slaves prayed for divine guidance and an empowered Abraham Lincoln to do the right thing. It is as important today as the tradition of black people eating black eyed peas on New Year's Day for good luck. Following the Emancipation Proclamation slaves were freed in stages, based on where they lived, the willingness of the plantation owner to release them and when Union troops began to control their area. Black educator and community activist Booker T. Washington as a boy of 9 in Virginia, remembered the day in early 1865: “As the great day drew nearer, there was more singing in the slave quarters than usual. It was bolder, had more ring, and lasted later into the night. Most of the verses of the plantation songs had some reference to freedom. ... Some man who seemed to be a stranger (a United States officer, I presume) made a little speech and then read a rather long paper—the Emancipation Proclamation, I think. After the reading we were told that we were all free, and could go when and where we pleased. My mother, who was standing by my side, leaned over and kissed her children, while tears of joy ran down her cheeks. She explained to us what it all meant, that this was the day for which she had been so long praying, but fearing that she would never live to see.” The longest holdouts were the slaves in Texas, who were not freed until June 19, 1865, two months after the Civil War ended. That day is not celebrated as Juneteenth Day around the United States. That is the history of Watch Night in the African American culture. May you and your family enjoy a spirit filled New Year throughout 2017. Thank you for ALL of your support you have given to me and my business throughout 2016. -Carole 
For Ticket Information To The October 27th Tuskegee Gala
Email Willie Shellman at [email protected] or Buy Your Tickets Online At: http://bit.ly/2dBwCwQ
Focus On Empowerment can be heard every Thursday at 1pm Eastern.
Log Onto: www.blogtalkradio.com/globalcarole Listen LIVE or Download Anytime At This Blog Post. Each broadcast can be replayed immediately following the show. ======================== They piloted great airplanes during the critical days of World War II despite the naysayers who declared that black men could not possibly fly. Men of honor and integrity. Men who stared American bred racism and foreign hatred down and fought on anyway. They were the grounds crew. The flight crew. The administrators and leaders of their soldiers. Those who flew the planes. And those who supported or led the squadrons on the ground. And the military and civilian champions following World War II who continue to keep their legacy alive. This is great American story of the Tuskegee Airmen, whose roots go back 75 years to their beginning in 1941. I am proud to be the daughter of a Tuskegee Airman who bravely served from 1941 to 1946. As we celebrate Global Diversity Awareness Month throughout October, we salute the 75th Anniversary of the Tuskegee Airmen with our special guest, Willie Shellman. The New England Chapter of the Tuskegee Airmen will celebrate this great story with a75th Anniversary Gala set for Thursday October 27th on the Boston Campus of the University of Massachusetts. -------------------------------------- History of the Tuskegee Airmen For More Information visit: www.tuskegeeairmen.org This is the official organization for the Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. The term, "Tuskegee Airmen," refers to the men and women, African-Americans and Caucasians, who were involved in the socalled "Tuskegee Experience", the Army Air Corps program to train African Americans to fly and maintain combat aircraft. The Tuskegee Airmen included pilots, radio operators, navigators, bombardiers, aircraft maintenance, support staff, instructors, and all the personnel who kept the planes in the air. Virtually all black military pilots during World War II received their primary flight training at Moton Field and then their basic and advanced flight training at Tuskegee Army Air Field (TAAF). Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. (TAI) is headquartered in Tuskegee, Alabama (about 35 miles east of Montgomery), where the training of black military pilots during World War II began. There are currently 57 active chapters of TAI located in major cities and military installations throughout the United States. ------------------------------------- October is Global Diversity Awareness Month, a celebratory time period I created more than 18 years ago to highlight the importance of expanding your reach beyond your own race, culture or ethnicity. Click Here To Learn More About Global Diversity Awareness Month  We will celebrate the military achievements of Rev. Dr. Carlita Baldwin Cotton at the March 3rd Black History Breakfast. Rev. Dr. Carlita Baldwin Cotton has combined her love of ministry and the military to serve others throughout her career path of achievement and excellence. An only child, Carlita was born to Rev. Carl L. (deceased) and Dr. Alexinia Y. Baldwin in Birmingham, Alabama. She was baptized, converted and joined St. John AME Church while living in Birmingham.
Carlita first heard the call to the military, joined the United States Air Force in 1980 and served a variety of positions until her retirement in 2000. She was a manager, supervisor and educator and served as a Russian linguist, a strategic debriefer and a combat interrogator during her years of service. She received numerous military awards and citations, including the Joint Service Meritorious Service Award, Joint Service Achievement Award, Air Force Achievement Award and was recognized by the Director of the National Security Agency. Since retiring from military service, Carlita has a permanent listing on the wall at The Women in Military Service Monument in Arlington, Virginia. Carlita is a lifetime member of the American Veterans (AMVETS). She is a lifetime member of Disabled American Veterans and a lifetime and founding member of the Berlin, Germany chapter of the American Legion. Carlita graduated cum laude from State University of New York at Albany in 1989 with a bachelor’s degree in Russian language and literature. She received her masters of divinity degree from Howard University in 2000 and received a Ph.D. in educational psychology from the University of Connecticut in 2008. She is a clinician/counselor and professor of psychology at Goodwin College in East Hartford, Connecticut. Carlita holds memberships in several organizations including Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Women in Ministry/New England Annual Conference, Pi Lambda Theta Honors Fraternity and Altrusa International, Inc. Rev. Dr. Carlita Cotton is also an ordained itinerant elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church. She is happily married to Rev. Hollis M. Cotton, pastor of St. James AME Church in Danbury, Connecticut. The Black History Month Breakfast will be held on Thursday March 3, 2016 at the Boston Colonnade Hotel from 8:30 am to 11:00 am.  Resourceful, resilient and transformational, Vietnam Era Veteran Haywood Fennell knows how to reach out to the community with gusto. We look forward to honoring him at the March 3rd Black History Breakfast. =================== Fusing Compassion and Community, Learning and Literacy, Haywood Fennell, Sr. continues to add dimensions to his writings. Born in New York City, the now Boston resident recently self-published the first book from The Coota Experiences Trilogy, Coota and the Magic Quilt, (ISBN No. 0-9720404-0-4) and has completed writing the second book, Coota and the Challenge. (ISBN 0-97204046-3).
A well-respected figure in Boston, Haywood is often called a Renaissance Man because of his prolific writings, which draw upon our history for his source material. He is an ex-offender who has refused to allow his past mistakes to hold him “hostage.” He is well known throughout the City of Boston as an advocate for prison reform. A great deal of his work centers around transitional services. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Stanley Jones Clean Slate Project; an ex-offender think tank working to educate and to empower those marginalized by the CORI Laws. Haywood advocates for professional social/mental health services as soon as the person enters the prison system. He helps by visiting jails and prisons and talking about the importance of opening up to change the mindset from wanting to be a smooth criminal to become with skills development a taxpayers a opposed to tax-burden. Also, a Vietnam Era veteran, who served nearly six years in the US Army as a clerk, photographer, and information specialist, Haywood founded The Tri-Ad Veterans’ League; a veterans’ rights advocacy organization where the members incorporate their military skills with program development for educational/cultural programs, particularly around incarceration and HIV/AIDS. The League recently partnered again with The Boston Local Vulcans Society of African-American Firefighters to produce the annual (televised) 9/11 Memorial Service. Presently, the veterans’ organization he founded works withNortheastern University to improve health care services. Their current project focuses on health disparities for African-American veterans that seek health care from the Veterans Administration Medical Centers. Haywood co-hosts a popular weekly cable television program called Speaking About, which welcomes a weekly guest list of community champions who have updates to share and ideas to discuss. This soft-spoken author/playwright has written, produced and staged eight annual performances of the cultural education play,The Harlem Renaissance Revisited With a Boston Flavor (the show’s title will change in the 2007 season toA Story from the Harlem Renaissance.) Haywood attended public school in Wilmington, N.C. and on to Boston University where he studied Urban Planning and U/Mass Boston’s College of Community and Public Service studying Urban Issues. He is the Boston Editor for Unity First, a Springfield, MA based diversity community newspaper. Haywood received the prestigious Boston Neighborhood Fellow’s Award in 2003. He serves on the Advisory Board of the William Monroe Trotter Institute at U/Mass Boston and sits on the board at Boston’s Urban League. He is a lecturer on the Harlem Renaissance Era and its importance to American history and served as a member of the Judging Committee for Reflection in Action; Building Healthy Communities, sponsored byThe Harvard Medical School Office for Diversity and Community Partnership and as a Presenter for theCommunity Enrichment Fellows 2004 and as a member of Roxbury Community College Community Advisory Group. He was named as Boston Herald Literacy Hero in 2005. He was honored on November 4th, 2005 as one of the 100 Distinguished Black Men sponsored by ThePrince Hall Masons of Boston, MA. When speaking to youth, and especially on prison visits, Haywood talks about his going from stealing books to writing books and how is life was changed by other people praying for him, when he would not pray for himself. Haywood’s second Coota book, Coota and the Challenge, will release in early 2007. In 2006 he completed This Man: Thoughts About Our Times, an anthology of his of poetry and prose. He also enjoys freelance photography. The Black History Month Breakfast will be held on Thursday March 3, 2016 at the Boston Colonnade Hotel from 8:30 am to 11:00 am.  Pat Odom is a renaissance woman who has pushed her career boundaries throughout her life. We'll honor Pat at the March 3rd Black History Breakfast and celebrate her active role as Massachusetts Army National Guard's first black female recruiter. ================== Patricia Odom is a graduate of Washington Senior High School in Pensacola, Florida and a graduate of Washington Senior Vocational School of Cosmetology also in Pensacola.
Pat began her career as a flight attendant for Mohawk Airlines based in Utica, New York, and was the second black flight attendant who was hired in the early 1970’s. Later she worked for New England Telephone Company as an operator and clerk for two years and bid on jobs to explore different job opportunities. From 1976 through 1987, Pat served her country in the United States Army and served in the Massachusetts Army National Guard. She becoming the first black female recruiter for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Pat also achieved the rank of Sergeant First Class (SFC - E-7) while serving in the army. Pat was honorably discharged from the army. She is a proud member of the 60 Plus Veterans Group. Pat earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Massachusetts, Boston and a master’s degree in moderate special needs from Eastern Nazarene College. She retired from a twenty year teaching career in the Boston Public School system. As a special needs teacher, she was voted in as a union representative for teachers. For more than seven years, Pat has owned and operated a landscaping business. Her community activism continues to this day. She has served on the board of the Clark Cooper Community Garden in Mattapan, Massachusetts, and is a neighborhood advocate and supporter of the East River Neighborhood Association. Pat’s talent as an artist has expanded to her latest business venture. She currently sells her paintings throughout the Boston area, and is a member of both the Roxbury Open Studio and the Hyde Park Menino Art Center. She is the mother of one son, Idrissa Johnson, a grandmother of three beautiful girls. Pat is a longtime member of Bethel AME Church-Boston and serves as a church greeter. The Black History Month Breakfast will be held on Thursday March 3, 2016 at the Boston Colonnade Hotel from 8:30 am to 11:00 am. Ron Armstead: Congressional Black Caucus Veterans Braintrust--Honored at the March 3, 2016 Breakfast2/27/2016  We celebrate the achievements of Ron Armstead, who is the Executive Director of the Congressional Black Caucus Veterans Braintrust. He will be honored at the March 3, 2016 Black History Breakfast at the Boston Colonnade Hotel. Ron E. Armstead, is the Executive Director for the Congressional Black Caucus Veterans BraIntrust (CBCVB) located in Washington, DC, and a past consultant to the late Secretary Jesse Brown’s Veterans Administration’s Advisory Committee on Minority Veterans. He has served as Executive Director of the CBCVB since its inception in 1988, first under Rep. Charles B. Rangel (D-NY), a decorated Korean War combat veteran and Dean of the New York Congressional Delegation, and currently under Reps. Corrine Brown (D-FL), new Ranking Member of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, and Sanford Bishop, Jr. (D-GA), Ranking Democratic Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction and Veterans Affairs, and Co-Chair of the bi-partisan Congressional Military Families Caucus.
Under his leadership the Veterans Braintrust has expanded from its small core group to become one of the premiere forums for policy debate between veterans of African descent and representatives of government in the country. Lastly, Ron holds a Master Degree in City Planning (MCP) with a concentration in Affordable Housing and Community Development from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT); is a Licensed Social Worker (LSW) in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, and is currently on an extended leave of absence from Howard University’s Graduate School of Social Work Doctoral Program focusing on Social Policy and Planning. The Black History Month Breakfast will be held on Thursday March 3, 2016 at the Boston Colonnade Hotel from 8:30 am to 11:00 am.  From Left to Right: Enoch Woodhouse, Willie Shellman, Harvey Sanford, The Late William Vickers, Delbrook Binns and Dr. Harold May Photographer: Dennis Stein/Metrowest Daily News ===================================================================================== Our March 3, 2016 Black History Breakfast will pay tribute to the six LIVING New England area Tuskegee Airmen and the Tuskegee Airman who just passed away earlier in February. Below are their biographical profiles and the history of the New England chapter, headed by Willie Shellman. All will be honored at the Breakfast. Special Thanks to Willie Shellman for providing this article about these extraordinary men. -Carole Copeland Thomas A Short History of the Tuskegee Airmen and Biography Notes of Massachusetts Tuskegee Airmen The New England Chapter is based in Massachusetts and is one of approximately 50 chapters of Tuskegee Airmen Incorporated. Tuskegee Airmen Incorporated (TAI) is a national civic organization that was formed in 1973. The goals of TAI are to:
On January 16, 1941 the War Department announced the formation of the 99th Pursuit Squadron, a black flying unit, to be trained at Tuskegee, Alabama, the home of the Tuskegee Institute. Thus the "Lonely Eagles," as the black pilots called themselves, became reality. The first class, which was designated 42-C, began on July 19, 1941. Five students completed the training and received their wings on March 7, 1942 The 99th was later joined other Tuskegee squadrons to form the 332nd Fighter Group. The 332nd flew P-40, P-39, P-47, and P-51 aircraft in combat throughout the Mediterranean and European Theaters and became a respected and decorated group of fighter pilots. The group was known as the "Red Tails" for their aircraft paint scheme. The bulk of the Black flyers were in the 332nd Fighter Group. Veterans of the 332nd Fighter group and newly trained pilots were used to form the 477th Bombardment Group. The Bombardment squadrons were equipped with B-26 aircraft and later with B-25s. The war ended before the 477th Bombardment Group was deployed overseas. From the inception of the 99th through the period that signaled the ending of World War II (1946), the following number of black combat flyers completed their training:
Class 46-C, which graduated on June 29, 1946, was the last pilot class to finish at TAAF. In order to support the black flyers ten times as many administrative and ground support personnel were trained. In order to keep the pilots flying the Army Air Corps trained and deployed Black servicemen in all the required support functions (mechanics, ground crew, nurses, etc.). The “Tuskegee Experiment” succeeded beyond the expectations of even those who proposed the program. The excellent record of the 332nd Fighter Group in combat led to a review of the War Department's racial policies and a presidential order in 1947 to desegregate the United States Armed Forces. There were 14 pilots and numerous support personnel from Massachusetts. Today the following Tuskegee Airmen are living in Massachusetts. *Raymond Baker entered the U.S. Army in 1944. He went to Biloxi MS for basic training and then was assigned to Tuskegee Army Airfield. After several months Raymond began pilot training as a member of Class 45I. The war ended before his completion of the flying program. Mr. Baker was discharged in July 5, 1946 and returned to Brockton, MA. *Jack Bryant grew up in Chicago, IL and followed his brother into pilot training in the Army Air Corp in 1945. The pilot training program at Tuskegee Army Air Field was discontinued before Jack’s class completed training and Jack was discharged in 1946. Jack entered the University of Michigan and graduated with a degree in Civil Engineering. In 1961 Jack moved to Boston and started Bryant Engineering, a civil engineering firm specializing in major infrastructure projects. *George W. Giddings from Yonkers, N.Y attended Fisk University. He entered Aviation Cadet training in 1942 and was assigned to Class 43H at Tuskegee Army Air Field. Served until 1946. George was grounded due to an eye problem. He then attended Navigator training at Hondo AAF, Texas, Bombardier training at Roswell AAF, NM and Gunnery training at Yuma AAF, AZ and was discharged in 1946. *Harold May, MD. from Poughkeepsie NY, completed two years of undergraduate study at Harvard University before joining the Army Air Corp in 1945. The war ended before Harold could complete his pilot training and upon discharge he returned to Harvard University to complete his undergraduate studies and completed the medical degree program and Harvard Medical School. Dr. May began a missionary medical assignment in Haiti and stayed for eleven years. Upon his return to the United States Dr. May practiced medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital until retirement. Dr. May remains active as a founder and Board member of the humanitarian organization Family, a human service organization operating in Dorchester Massachusetts and Haiti. *Harvey F. Sanford graduated from the Boston Trade High School in Airplane Engine mechanics in 1944. In 1945 Harvey entered the U.S. Army Air Corps and was stationed at Tuskegee Army Air Field as an Air Inspector (Airplane and Engine) until his discharge in 1946. While at Tuskegee Harvey often traveled with the Base Commander while being responsible for the maintenance of the commander’s aircraft. And, from 1950 to 1952 during the Korean Conflict served in light Aviation Aircraft maintenance in the 272nd field Artillery group. Returning to Boston Harvey worked in aircraft research and development at Hanscom Air Force base until 1970. And, from 1970 until retirement in 1983 he worked as a FAA Airworthiness Inspector assigned to Logan Airport Boston, MA. *Enoch Woodhouse II, Esq. graduated from English High School in Boston, MA. Joined the U. S. Army Air Corps and completed the Officers Candidate School in 1946, at the age of 19. Served as Finance Officer for the 477th Bombardment Group at Lockbourne AF, OH. He was discharged from active duty in 1949 and joined the Air Force Reserves. While in the Air Force Reserves, Enoch attended Yale University and Boston University Law School. He was assigned to the Air Force JAG Office in 1956, while serving as a reservist at Hanscom AFB. Mr. Woodhouse retired from the Air Force Reserves as a Lt. Colonel in 1972. Attorney Woodhouse practiced law in Boston and served as a Diplomatic Courier for the U.S. State Department in Europe, Africa and South America. He is former Assistant Corporation Counsel for the City of Boston and served as Public Member for Promotion of the State Department of Officers. Sadly, Mr. William Vickers passed away on February 2, 2016. Here is his biographical profile. *William Vickers graduated from Boston Trade High School and entered the U. S. Army in 1944 qualifying for assignment in Pilot Training program. Mr. Vickers took basic training at Kessler Field in Biloxi, MS. Mr. Vickers was stationed in Sebring Florida as a member of the B-17 Ground Crew. Later William was sent to Bombay India and stationed in the Assam Valley in India as part of the Air Transport Command. Upon discharge in 1946, Mr. Vickers joined the National Guard and was recalled to active duty in 1950 and stationed at Camp McCoy in Wisconsin and later sent to Helicopter school before his release from active duty in 1952. Mr. Vickers continued to serve and retired from the National Guard after 22 years of service. ****************  Willie Shellman joined Tuskegee Airmen, Inc. as a civilian in 1985 and currently serves as President of the New England Chapter. He graduated from high school in Chicago, IL. and later graduated from Tuskegee University with a degree in Electrical Engineering. Willie was employed as an Auto Pilot Design Engineer on C-5 and F-14 aircrafts and as an Avionics Design Engineer in missile systems.
Mr. Shellman majored in Business Administration at Northeastern University and was employed as a Sales Operations manager in the computer and internet industries. Mr. Shellman most recent employment was as the Executive Director of the YMCA Achievers Programs at the YMCA of Greater Boston. Mr. Shellman is currently retired. Having lived in several cities around the United States, Willie and his wife Maxine, along with their daughter and son have resided in Sudbury Massachusetts for the past thirty-five years. Acknowledgements: Many dedicated Massachusetts Tuskegee Airmen have preceded us in their Homecoming. We dearly remember George S. Lima, Jr. (Rhode Island), William Bennett, Vernon Burke, Charles Diggs, James Fischer, Lloyd Godfrey, Daniel Grant, Stephen Hargrove, Milton Hopkins, Fuzzy Hector, Luther McIlwain, James McLaurin, Allen Monroe, Daniel Moore, Robert Newton Sr., John Roach, Frank Roberts, Thomas Ross, Willis Saunders, Herman Wells and many others. |
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