County celebrates black history
Winding down Black History Month in grand style, the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services Black History Month Committee hosted a program Feb. 27 that was highlighted by joyful music, speakers, tributes to African-American heritage and even health tips from an expert.
The event, held at the Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services Center, 1430 DeKalb St., was emceed by committee member Hakim Jones, who told the crowd, “Many of you are coming from all ends of the county; some are coming from outside the county. So we’re excited about getting this program underway.”
Fittingly, Tara Gaudin, director of Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services, welcomed guests with an evocative quote by author Richard Wright: “I was (leaving) the South to fling myself into the unknown ... I was taking a part of the South to transplant in alien soil to see if it could grow differently, if it could drink of new and cool rains, bend in strange winds, respond to the warmth of other suns and, perhaps, to bloom.”
Noting that the national theme of Black History Month was “Black Migrations, “which is a period of American history between 1950 and 1970, where more than seven million black families moved from Southern states to places like Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, and yes, Norristown, in search of a better life free from the suffocating and often fatal daily atrocities of the (general) South,” Gaudin told a poignant story about her grandmother, who passed away 10 years ago from Alzheimer’s Disease.
“The strange part about this disease is that, although more recent memories eventually become impossible to recall, much earlier ones rush up to the forefront of the mind. So the distant past becomes the very tangible present. And that was both a gift and a curse,” Gaudin said.
“The gift part was that right before her disease wiped out all of her ability to function in the present we would talk for hours and hours on end.”
In spite of Alzheimer’s, the one consistent element about her grandmother’s memory, Gaudin allowed, were her stories about the great migration.
“In 1939 as a very young mother and wife, she and her husband, my grandfather and my then-twoyear-old uncle fled Ashland, Mississippi in the middle of the night, taking with them only what they could carry and, in secret, left by train.”
Her grandmother conveyed the overwhelming fears she was experiencing to her granddaughter, Gaudin said.
“Although there was the promise of a better life, it took an almost supernatural courage and grit to pack up and leave everything that was familiar and comfortable … their home, their place of birth.”
Even the “promised land” that awaited them, held its dangers, Gaudin said.
“But she and my ancestors journeyed on, made the long trek to Norristown, more specifically to Ann Street, and built a new life that continues to (flourish) many generations later … and yes, the warmth of other suns helped my family to bloom.”
Dr. Dele Babatunde, a onetime Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery in Lagos, Nigeria, and the author of “Matters of the Heart,” offered a detailed and spirited talk about heart disease, diabetes, stroke and hypertension, and ways to help avoid the diseases, at one point encouraging the audience to stand and stretch, while striving for daily exercise in their lives and healthier food choices.
Garfield Jackson, Black History Month Committee co-chairman, offered an invocation, followed by several moving musical performances, including “Lift Every Voice and Sing” by Danavia Williams, and a selection by the Eisenhower Science & Technology Leadership Academy Choir.
In addition to Babatunde, guest speakers during the four-hour event included the Rev. Dr. Marsha Brown Woodard, Maurice A. Tony Davis, counselor at Montgomery County Community College and Eric K. Grimes, also known as Brother Shomari.
Honorees included Gaudin; Chief Mark E. Talbot Sr. of the Norristown Police Department and Stacey Woodland, CEO YWCA Tri-County Area.
A press release noted that the “Black Migrations” theme was established by the Association for the Study of African American Life & History.
“For more than 10 years, this program has been a wonderful opportunity to share the significant contributions of AfricanAmericans in our history with county employees as well as the community at large,” noted Doretha Fields, program co-chairperson.
“We are fortunate to work for an organization that appreciates the accomplishments of all communities and encourages us to celebrate those contributions.”
Jackson added: “Many opportunities opened up for African-Americans as they moved throughout this country searching for economic, political, and social equality,” said “For many families, these migrations were life-changing and provided economic empowerment for generations to follow.”
The release noted that Historian Carter G. Woodson,often referred to as the Father of Black History, initiated Black History Week on Feb. 12, 1926, which for many years was celebrated in February to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. In the mid-1970s, Black History Week expanded to Black History Month.
Event exhibitors included American Heritage Federal Credit Union, Montgomery County Historical Society and Norristown Public Library.
Sponsors included Chick-Fil-A of East Norriton and King of Prussia; Delish, Norristown; Giant supermarket; Weis Supermarket, East Norriton; H & L Deli; Shoprite, East Norriton; Taste of the Islands, Norristown and The Pretzel Factory, Norristown.