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Saint Leonard’s is not Saint Leonard’s without Black History.
The SLM Community hosted a Black History Month event, We Do It For Da Culture, gathering with over 65 staff and community participants for an afternoon of poetry, beautiful songs, and a journey through Black History eras. As Employment Specialist, Shatail Higgins shared at the end of the event, “Black History is sitting in this room.”
Thank you to our Employee Engagement Committee and dedicated staff and participants who made the event so meaningful. Special thank you to our culinary team for preparing a soul food lunch for everyone to enjoy together.
Grace House resident and poet, Towanda, shared, “Black history is personal. It ain’t something I just learned. It’s something I lived.”
“So as I stand here as someone who knows what it means to lose time, to be reduced to a number, to be judged by one chapter of my life instead of by the whole book.”
“Black history did not stop with our ancestors, or the Civil Rights Movement, and it didn’t stop yesterday. It is standing here right now in you, in you, and in every person who continues to not give up on their future.”
STAFF SPOTLIGHTS
“I’m honored to say that I live in a world where I actually know and experience what cultural diversity is about, and I owe that to my forefathers. Cause they didn’t just fought for themselves, they fought for all races to come together. That’s what I really love. The cultural diversity that they helped create.” – Maurice Hinton, Resident Coordinator
“Black history to me is a celebration of my ancestors; black folks who have worked and made progress in making sure that us as a people can be free and have opportunities that they did not have previously.”
“I am presently making Black history right now.” – Leslie Wooten, Director of Development
