Page 17 - Florida Sentinel 7-19-16 Online Edition

Death Announcement/Memoriam
IN MEMORIAM
WILLIE ADAM “HOP” HOPKINS
He was called home to be with The Lord on Friday, June 24, 2016. He worked at the Uni- versity of Tampa for many years.
Well-Known Businessman Passes
(PAID ADVERTISEMENT)
On Wednesday, July 13, 2016, one of Tampa’s well known business- men, Mr. Jack Benjamin Bagley, also known as Badr Abdullah, made his grand exodus.
He started his professional career
at St. Joseph’s Hos-
pital, and at Wolf Brothers. Like one
of Wolf Brothers’
regular customers,
Abe Brown, Mr.
Bagley dressed to impress. He only
wore clothes from
Wolf Brothers, and would travel to New York to pur- chase his wardrobe. He was known as the best dressed Black man in Tampa.
After St. Joseph and Wolf Brothers Jack Benjamin established, owned and op- erated a shoe shine business, called “The Shoe Shine Man,” on Central Avenue, right next to Moses White’s “Cozy Corner.”
In the 1960s, after the riots, Mr. Bagley moved up North. He moved back to Tampa to care for his father, Wallace Bagley, in his family home. He resumed his business in the house where he was born at 213 West Oak Avenue in Tampa Heights. “The Shoe Shine Man” expanded his business and began to sell a variety of merchandise (hats, caps, and tams, accessories, jew- elry, plus more). Just to mention a few some of his most loyal shoe shine cus- tomers were: Dick Greco, C. Blythe Andrews, Jr., Clarence Wilson, and S. J. Wilson.
He ventured out to bring his business to the people, as a “Walking Salesman” in Central Park and Tampa Park Apartments. Eventu- ally, Mr. Bagley, aka Badr Abdullah, purchased a brand new truck as his business expanded. People called him “The Incense
WALLACE BAGLEY, JR. AND JACK BENJAMIN BAGLEY, aka BADR ABDULLAH
Man,” because he always had an unlimited variety of unique fragrances. The brothers and sisters throughout the community loved him.
Mr. Abdullah fought for his community when urban development began to encroach to take over and demolish homes in Tampa Heights. Badr was a coura- geous voice for the people. Because of his persistent loy- alty for his community, on March 24, 1999, he was fea- tured in “The Tampa Trib- une” with his brother, Wallace Bagley, Jr., his next door neighbor. Highly respected as a people’s advo- cate, on May 27, 1999, “The Weekly Planet” acknowl- edged Abdullah as a fighter for his neighborhood, for his home, which was his par- ents’ home, and his “Legacy.”
During his battle, he met
Kenneth “Kenny” Rush- ing, a real estate investor who negotiated for Badr in the final sale of his home. Because of Badr’s strong positive spirit throughout his fight to save his commu- nity, and his home Mr. Rushing highlighted Badr Abdullah in his Rushings Investment Company’s com- mercial on national televi- sion, on the BET Network.
After suffering a stroke, Badr was not able to con- tinue his business. Even as
he was in and out of the hos- pital and medical rehab, he never gave up his fight to live and to recover. His daugh- ter, Gennie C. Bagley shared, “Daddy was a war- rior to the end. Even as the enemy came in through an infection in his blood, he was still fighting. Jesus visited him and said, ‘That’s enough! Let’s go home to Our Father God.’ ”
Gennie continued, “Daddy taught me cleanli- ness and how to be a strong Black woman. To me, he was the Greatest Daddy of ALL time. He had nine children and loved two others as his own. His greatest joys were traveling to Jamaica, his mother, Josephine’s, birth place, two or three times a year; rapping with the broth- ers and sisters in Central Park and Tampa Park, being around his children, grands, great-grands, nieces and nephews – The Dunbars; and reading in his down time.
“To the Brothers and Sis- ters of Central Park and Tampa Park, Daddy would say, ‘Lay Cool!’ ”
“I want to thank every- one in the community for the decades that you all sup- ported my Daddy in his unique business!”
Funeral services will be held Saturday, July 23, 2016 at Ray Williams Funeral Home.
DEATH NOTICES
AIKENS FUNERAL HOME
Henry Battle, Tampa. Leonard Larry, Tampa. Ruben Resto, Tampa. Mrs. Mary White, Tampa.
CREAL FUNERAL HOME
Mr. Johnny Hall, 3001 E. Ida St., Tampa. RAY WILLIAMS FUNERAL HOME
Mr. Jack Benjamin Bagley, AKA Badr Abdullah, Tampa.
Mrs. Catherine Belnavis, Tampa.
Mrs. Virginia G. Billups, Tampa.
Mr. Marquette A. Dames, Tampa. Mr. Richard Holmes, Tampa.
Mr. Leonard A. Jordan, Brandon. Mrs. Edna Locker, Tampa.
Mrs. Jennie McVely, Tampa. Mr. Kelly E. Stacy, Sr., Tampa.
WILSON FUNERAL HOME
Mrs. Evelyn Diane Jackson, Thonotosassa.
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