Page 4 - Florida Sentinel 4-4-17

King Assassination Local
Prominent Educator, Businesswoman Passes After
Short Illness
MARY LOUISE KEETON FLEMMINGS
Mrs. Mary Louise Keeton Flemmings, a prominent retired educator and businesswoman, passed away on Thursday, March 30, 2017, after a short ill- ness. She was 75 years old, having celebrated a birthday in January.
Mrs. Flemmings re- tired from the Hillsborough County Public School Sys- tem after 38 years of service.
Since May 30, 2008, she has been a part of developing minds from such fine insti- tutions as Barnwell High School, Barnwell, South Car- olina, Florida A&M Univer- sity, Tallahassee, Franklin Junior High, Horace Mann Junior High, Marshall High, Plant City, HCC as Coun- selor with Operation Upstart and Edison Elementary School, where she spent her last twenty-two years.
The Hillsborough County Counseling Association elected Mary as the first African American President of 400 counselors in 1988- 89. She was twice voted as the recipient of the Ida S. Baker Distinguished Minor- ity Award, served as the Im- mediate Past President of the Florida Association of Multicultural Counseling Development.
Mrs. Flemmings was elected Hillsborough Coun- selor of the Year 1998-99, and was featured on Channel 13, “What’s Right With Tampa Bay” three times.
The Tampa Tribune fea- tured her vast collection on Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s memorabilia, which is now a showcase at Dr. Wal- ter Smith’s Library.
The year of her retire- ment she was voted as Teacher of the Year, 2003.
Mrs. Flemmings was proud of her siblings (the Keetons) and numerous nieces, nephews, great nieces and nephews, and great-great niece and nephews.
Under the direction of the Hillsborough County Branch NAACP President, Henry Carley, Mrs Flem- mings organized the Youth ACT-SO Competition in the early 1980s. She became the ACT-SO Chair and sold many dinners to get the young people to compete at the national level in Los An- geles, California. She was the Educational Chair for the NAACP.
Mrs. Flemmings was a member of the Middleton High School Class of 1959, where she was active until her death.
A world traveler and a Motor Home enthusiast, Mrs. Flemmings was known to be on the Rattler campus in her RV as a strong Alumni Supporter of the University.
She was the founder of the Live Oak Square Associ- ation and MLK Beautifica- tion Program.
Mrs. Flemmings was always seen with her best friend, co-worker (at Edison Elementary) and world travel companion, Maurice Horne. They both enjoyed doing for others. Horne stated that when he met Mrs. Flemmings she was a very organized person who was great at any task she took on.
She loved working in her garden and played her music loud in the community. Some call her the neighbor- hood DJ.
She was a great supporter of students attending college as she helped many to get their books and other needs accomplished.
Wilson Funeral Home will be handling services for the family. Funeral services are planned for 11 a. m. Fri- day, April 7th at Allen Temple AME Church. Visitation is on Thursday.
49 Years Later:
Readers Talk About Affect Of Dr. King’s Assassination
BY IRIS B. HOLTON Sentinel City Editor
For members of the younger generation, the date of Tuesday, April 4, 1968 may have little meaning. However, for other members of the com- munity, it brings back an inci- dent that devastated America and perhaps, the world.
The Reverend Dr. Mar- tin Luther King, Jr., was as- sassinated on this date, 49 years ago. Rev. Dr. King and members of the Southern Christian Leadership Confe- rence were called to Memphis, Tennessee to support striking sanitation workers.
On April 4, 1968, at 6 p.m., Dr. King was standing on the second-floor balcony of the Lorraine Motel when a sniper’s bullet struck him. He was rushed to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead about an hour after the shooting. Dr. King was 39- years-old.
The question posed to Sentinel readers about the af- fect of the death of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., was “How do you feel Dr. King’s death affected the outcome of integra- tion?” Their responses were as follows:
Commissioner Les Miller, Jr.,
said, “Since
the death of
Dr. Martin
Luther
King, Jr., it
has become
quite obvious that Blacks and other minorities have made progress. But institutional racism still exists. It is quite obvious in what has come about in the last few years, specifically under this new ad- ministration in the White House, racism has raised its ugly head even higher.
“Blacks have made progress in business and other areas, but it appears that racism is becoming more and more prevalent and this ad- ministration seems to entice it even more.”
John G. Greene said,
“The United State of America has always been divided on integration, Dr. King’s
death was so shameful, and it gave a bully-pulpit to more li- beral White minds and voices, which suppressed the conser- vative Southern Jim Crow/ Dixie-Crats movement. Dr. King’s non-violent movement was a peaceful solution to equal rights.
“Dr. King’s death embar- rassed the USA into change. But, the national Dr. King’s riots blew out the candles on being patient, which changed the conscious, self- image and pride of the people from being Negroes to Col- oreds to Afro Americans to Blacks to African Ameri- cans. We as Americans have changed! It was a “Game Changer!”
Tyrone Keys said he was only 8 years
old on the
day Dr.
King was as-
sassinated.
But, he re-
calls listening
to his speeches all day. The words that stayed with the young man were: “...It's not the color of your skin, but the con- tent of your character” and “... Everyone can be great because everyone can serve..."
Keys said, “I signed up to become a Safety Patrol Officer and have been serving every since --- every time I see a ele- mentary Patrol Officer I salute them in honor Dr King.”
For the last couple of years, Keys has spoken to the patrol force at Just Elementary School, where two of his for- mer All Sports Community Service students are now teachers. When he visits the school, he talks about those who inspired him.
Ms. Sherna Blair Rich
said, “The Civil Rights Act of 1964 is a law that outlaws dis- crimination on the basis
of race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. Just a little over four years later, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated. Nearly 53 years later and even after a two-term Black American president has left the highest office in these United States of
America, Dr. King’s death has indeed affected the out- come of integration among God-fearing hearts.
“On the other hand, there remain hearts yet to be influ- enced, which law-abiding and prayerful citizens remain con- fident that there are still “many rivers to cross.”
Danny Green said, “I think a lot has been done since his assassina- tion in this country. It's sad he had to sacrifice his life to make this a better country. My prayers go out to his family. Immigration has gotten a lot better, but we have a long way to go. His as- sassination should not be in
vain.
“Black people should un-
derstand why he was assassi- nated and the purpose of his assassination. Rest In Peace, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.”
Dr. Samuel Wright, Sr., said, “Dr.
King's death
really im-
pacted inte-
gration in
America. Be-
lieve it or not,
it had an influence on what happened in other nations as well. However, we can't forget the legal work of Charles Hamilton Houston, Esq., Thurgood Marshall and the NAACP.
“Though integration has improved, many conditions and circumstances in America, it has hindered school progress for our children in many ways. We must be careful to work continually to make sure inte- gration works for everyone re- gardless of a person's economic status or social class.”
Billy Wheeler said, “Dr. King paid the ultimate sacri- fice for his peace-loving, humanitarian leadership. His murder was underscored by the relent- less bravery of others who also marched, sat, walked, and died to make change. It focused a world-wide spotlight on Amer- ica's hypocrisy regarding its claims of ‘liberty and justice for all,’ and its treatment of Black citizens. The pressure of that scrutiny was a critical fac- tor in breaking down barriers
to integration.”
PAGE 4 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY TUESDAY, APRIL 4, 2017