Roll call! What is your middle name? No one ever reads this blog, so it will stay a secret. Yeah right! :) Do you like your middle name? Does it still fit you or your personality? What were your parents thinking? :) I will start. I like my middle name "Orlando".
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Roanoke, Virginia is often called the "Star City". Who are famous African-Americans (past and present) with roots in the Valley? The first ones that come to mind for me (KOH) are Booker T. Washington (from Franklin County - legendary world leader), Oliver Hill (Roanoke - late civil rights attorney), Oscar Micheaux (Harlem Renaissance filmmaker), Charles "Big Dog" Thornhill (Roanoke - '60s college football) and Al Holland (Roanoke - major league baseball), but there must be many others before them and since from all throughout the Valley (including the surrounding counties) - and from all professions. We would like to post this so that the world will see our stars! This will be compiled, updated regularly and listed at: http://roanokerelatives.weebly.com/roanoke.html. This list is of all African-Americans from the Valley, not just relatives. Mother Ruby Muhammad of Sacramento, California passed away in 2011 at the age of 113. We honored her on her 110th birthday by featuring her in the April 2007 episode of the CV Drum News. At the time of her passing, she was also the oldest subscriber to my publication. Have you ever known or met anyone over 100 years old? Pictured above are two photos of KOH's senior sister in Roanoke, Virginia. She passed away in July 2012. The photo on the left accurately shows her in her maturity, while the photo on the right was taken of her when she was a teenager. Both photos capture her beauty. We are only here for a short time, so let those that you love and care about know how you feel while they are with you. Our heartfelt sympathies go out to her two sons, Billy and Barry, her daughter-in-law Vickie, her grandchildren, and her many friends and family.
I am not sure if commercialization is ever a good thing, but Mother's Day 2012 (May 13 in the U.S.) was one of the most profitable holidays in the United States, and sales for gifts spiked during the days preceding that Sunday. With that said, what does this special day mean to you personally and how and who do you honor that day and everyday? Show of hands; how many of you have seen your names on that outstanding Hylton-Joyce Family Tree (now filled with over 3,500 names)? My apologies to the historians, especially Cousin Lawrence Hylton, but I took liberty and created a very, very, very rough (short) video and slideshow teaser for those who have not seen the tree yet! A better version is coming soon. http://roanokerelatives.weebly.com/hilton-side-family-notes.html. It is my understanding that it will be on display in Charlotte, NC at the 2013 family reunion. I know this teaser is rough and unpolished, but what the hey. Thoughts about the tree or my efforts to spread the word? What should the young boys in our family be told about growing up African-American in 2012? Any danger signs? Any advantages? What lessons can we learn from this sad story (as our hearts go out to his family)? Should we care? Let's start with the following top 15 list (but please add or change): Phyllis Hyman, Gladys Knight, Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin, Randy Crawford, Whitney Houston, Patti LaBelle, Chaka Khan, Dinah Washington, Sade, Sarah Vaughan, Alicia Augello Cook Keys, Stephanie Mills, Patti Austin. Others, past and present? Take a look at this website to start with. _The 2012 movie "Red Tails," about African-American pilots in the Tuskegee training program, is a great lead into this family blog question. Which family members do you recall serving in WWI, WWII, the Korean War and/or the Viet Nam War? For example, my father, Richard Hilton, served in the Army, I think as a staff sergeant (World War II), as did several other men such as Leonard St.Clair and June St. Clair, I think Clarence Williams (Roanoke) served in the Korean War. My grandfather, Clarence Reynolds served in World War I. Pictured left is Lena Bell Richardson, one of KOH's great aunts on his mother's side. For KOH, it was Aunt Martha Gibson (born cc 1895), who was like a second mom to him, when he was growing up in Slate Hill, Roanoke County. In fact, their homes shared a "phone line" during those early years. How about you? Who was like a second parent to you? |
Keith Orlando Hilton, PhD
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