‘Moguls, Movies & Music’

A variety show will cap a month of Black History events, and a program showcasing the contributions of local black citizens will be installed at the Kelsey-Aycock-Burrell Center.

A free variety show titled “Moguls, Movies and Music” at the Rome City Auditorium on Wednesday night will wrap up the local public events marking Black History Month.

Stephanie Dean, coordinator of the program for Rome City Schools, said the performances celebrate the contributions of black writers, producers, actors and entertainers to American culture. It’s a recognition, she said, of the heritage we all share.

“We’ll have all ages, colors and creeds on stage,” Dean said. “The whole community is invited.”

The show — poetry, skits and musical performances by students, faculty and staff — runs from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the auditorium in City Hall, 601 Broad St. The cast also will put on special shows for RCS students at 9:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. in the Rome High auditorium.

Dean made the announcement last week during a Rome City Commission program honoring black residents whose lives made a difference in the city’s history.

Proclamations issued by the board, along with photos and a video presentation will be displayed in the KelseyAycock-Burrell Center.

Now the headquarters of numerous black community organizations, the KAB Center at 41 Washington Drive started out as a segregated school for Floyd County children. It was named for three of its former principals.

“This was a black school, a great institution,” said Esther Vaughn, who presented the program. “They were educators at a time we didn’t have to lock our door; we didn’t need a dress code. It was just (about) dignity, respect and people going on to further their education.”

Vaughn thanked city administrators and commissioners for help with the program, along with local historian Rufus Turner, who made it his mission

to preserve memories of the school. She also recognized Dan Bevels of Floyd Medical Center, who produced the video “Uniting our Community: Past and Present,” which focuses on six honorees:

The late Robert Kelsey was principal of Rome Colored High School from 1922 to 1940, when the parents and grandparents of today’s civic leaders were in their formative years.

Charles William Aycock took over as principal in 1940. A civil rights leader and aide to then-governor Jimmy Carter, Aycock also forced the state to pay for his attendance at Tuskegee Institute in Alabama when he was barred from the all-white University of Georgia.

“There’s a time and a season for everything, and I think this is our season,” a visibly moved former student, City Commissioner Milton Slack, said as he presented the proclamation to Aycock’s daughter Cheney Aycock.

Samuel T. Burrell, Sr., was principal until his retirement in 1988. He “learned at an early age that education was a vehicle to a better life,” Vaughn said, and ended up seeing the segregated school into an era of integration. A teacher and coach, Burrell also served six years on the Floyd County Commission.

Burrell’s widow Josephine Burrell and son Sam Burrell Jr. were on hand to receive a standing ovation from the crowd.

Martin H. “Buddy” Mitchell, a white Rome City commissioner who died in the late ’90s, was honored for casting the tie-breaking vote in 1985 to implement the city’s Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Day Holiday. “

Mitchell took the opportunity to change our cultural narrative,” Vaughn said.

His family, including children Mary Hardin Thornton and David Mitchell, attended. “He set the bar high for all of us,” Mayor Jamie Doss said.

John Stevenson was on hand to accept his own proclamation from his niece Rome City Commissioner Sundai Stevenson. A civil rights activist who marched with Hosea Williams, John Stevenson is a long-time community mentor who founded organizations including The Godfather Ministry for elementary school boys, Rites-of-Passage for elementary school girls and Summer Academic Camps.

Delores Chatman, a longtime educator, is a Heart of the Community Award recipient for her decades of community service. Most recently, the 88-year-old Chatman spearheaded the drive to install a massive monument to the late Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. at Five Points in North Rome. She received her proclamation from Rome City Commissioner Evie McNiece, who asked for the honor, saying, “This is very special to me because you’re very special to me.”

Diane Wagner / RN-T Gail Veal (left) listens to Delores Chatman speak before the City Commission’s Black History Month program.

Diane Wagner / RN-T Laney Stevenson (from left) and Rome Police Chief Denise Downer-McKinney share a laugh with John Stevenson, one of the honorees during the City Commission’s Black History Month program at Rome City Hall.

Doug Walker / RN-T Gail Veal (from left), Laney Stevenson, John Stevenson, Commissioner Sundai Stevenson and Commissioner Bill Collins participate in the reading of a proclamation honoring John Stevenson during a Black History Month observance in City Hall.

Doug Walker / RN-T City Commissioner Evie McNiece (from left) presents a proclamation honoring Delores Chatman. Chatman’s son Gary Chatman and Gail Veal participate in the ceremony.

Doug Walker / RN-T Mayor Jamie Doss (far left) reads a proclamation honoring former Commissioner Martin H. “Buddy” Mitchell while members of Mitchell’s family including son David Mitchell, grandchildren Henry Thornton and Wyatt Thornton, daughter Mary Hardin Mitchell...

Doug Walker / RN-T Commissioner Milton Slack (from left) reads a proclamation honoring the late C.W. Aycock. Aycock’s daughter Cheney Aycock was there to receive the proclamation with Edna English and Commissioner Bill Collins.

Doug Walker / RN-T Commissioner Wendy Davis reads a proclamation honoring the late Robert Kelsey as Evelyn Hamilton and John Ware listen.

Doug Walker / RN-T City Commissioner Randy Quick (from left) reads a proclamation honoring the late Sam Burrell. Burrell’s widow Josephine Burrell was on hand along with Sam Burrell Jr. and Edna English.