Page 9 - Florida Sentinel 2-8-19

Feature
Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris Has Ties In Tampa
Some of the Spring 1986 Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. line sisters, from left to right at the 2012 Convocation are: Karyn Up- shaw, Inez Brown, Sen. Kamala Harris (she was Attorney General at the time), Valerie Thomas, Karen Hayes, and Monique Poydras.
BY GWEN HAYES Sentinel Editor
Two of her line sisters are Tampa natives.
On Monday, January 21, 2019, Senator Kamala Harris (D-CA), announced on ABC’s Good Morning America her intent to run for President of the United States in 2020. She added that she couldn’t have chosen a better day because it was the Na- tional Holiday to celebrate the life and legacy of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Her announcement was well received by the audience. She followed up with an announce- ment in her hometown of Oak- land, CA, on Sunday, January 27, 2019.
On Thursday (January 24, 2019), on CNN’s Erin Burnett Show, a segment of the show featured Senator Harris and included some of her line sis- ters of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. The Spring 1986 line featured 38 young women on the campus of Howard University, pledg- ing Alpha Chapter.
Tampa natives, Karen
Hayes and Lisa Campbell were on that line. Karen, an entrepreneur, is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. James (Gwen) Hayes. Lisa, a cur- rent judge, is the daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. James (Dr. Doris) Campbell.
Hayes and Campbell, 1983 graduates of C. Leon King High School, have been friends since they met at Tampa’s Greco Junior High School. They chose Howard University as their choice of higher learning. However, they chose separate career paths – Hayes choosing Elec- trical Engineering and Camp- bell majored in Political Science and English, which led her to law school.
The bond followed them into college and beyond, and also included becoming mem- bers of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., on the same line.
Since these 38 women united, they have come to- gether every 5 years to cele- brate. These reunions take place in Washington, D. C. or in other cities inside and out- side the United States.
But they gather regularly at
All of the ladies on the Spring 1986 Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., line at Howard University. Lisa Campbell is seated bottom left.
other times, too, celebrating milestones of their sisters – weddings, graduations, birth- day celebrations, births, homecomings, convocations, and so many other events.
For instance, those who could make it to Senator Harris’ book tour event in the Lisner Auditorium on the campus of George Washington University, were there.
Days later, on Saturday, January 19th, CNN stopped by a private tea in one of their homes, where they were dressed in hats and fascinators to celebrate a milestone event of one of their sisters that had been planned weeks earlier. Fifteen (15) from the line at- tended that event.
"Our sisterhood is so pre- cious. We came together as a
line over thirty years ago and we still support each other, like the book tour and recently the tea," states Hayes. "It was important to choose a tea date so those out of town could at- tend or participate via Zoom."
Showing up at events for Senator Harris is not spe- cial for this group of ladies – they do that for each other all the time.
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2019 FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY PAGE 9-A