“We will not see another of her ilk because of her history, someone who was born in the darkest hours of segregation and having a great personal tragedy to befall her. ... To have someone overcome the kinds of obstacles she overcame to achieve the kind of influence, respect -- almost reverence that she had in this community -- that would be hard to match."
That's what UNC professor Reginald Hildebrand told staff writer Jesse DeConto this morning, upon the death of Rebecca Clark.
If you knew Clark, we'd like to hear from you. You can respond here or send an e-mail to Jesse at jesse.deconto@newsobserver.com. If we get enough responses, we may add them to our story or publish them in the Chapel Hill News.
And a thank you to Elsie Pickett, who called this morning to get us started on this important story.
Comments
Rebecca Clark
Wed, 01/07/2009 - 10:35 — mschultz (author)This post is from mecorvette:
We have truly lost a wealth of knowledge, with her passing. She may not
have started the civils rights movement, but she did everything in her
power to support it and ensure that we made every attempt to
appreciate the liberties that we now have. She balzed paths that we
now try to follow. She was a giant in the neighbor hood. Never asking,
but always offering. I'm so hapy that she didn't have to suffer the
awful life of a nursing home patient. She was strong,
knowledgeable,caring and independent. Lots of us owe everything to her,
not just monetary, but being where we are today. She was the roots of
the Sellars Family, always concerned that everyone was ok. I can only
hope that when the angel came for her, she was not afraid, she was
always up for a challenge and in most cases she WON!! Even in the most
recent election she was instrumental is assisting people in getting to
the polls to vote. Ican go on,and on, but I will suffice to say that
she was and is that bright shinning star when you look to the heavens,
and I can imagine that her arms are out stretched even now telling us
"don't be afraid"... and don't be sad...I HAD A GOOD LIFE!