Dempsey J. Travis, entrepreneur, philanthropist, historian, author
of over 20 best-selling books, real estate tycoon, jazz aficionado and
self-made multi-millionaire, among many other interests, marked his
88th birthday at Harold Washington Cultural Center, 47th and King Dr.,
across the street from where it all started, his first Sivart Mortgage
and Travis Realty offices. Proceeds from the gala dinner celebration
funded the Mittie, Moselynne and Dempsey J. Travis Scholarship
Foundation.
Two past recipients, Atty. David Askew, director of Pro Bono Community
Service at the law firm of Wildman Harrold & Associates, and Monica
Heady, compliance director with Abbot Labs, shared their appreciation
for the funds they received for their education. A video presentation,
"Life and Times of Dempsey Travis," told his story from birth in 1920
through his success and accomplishments to his current activities. John
Davis, former television anchor, narrated. A photo of the honoree at
11-months old was indeed la piece de resistance.
Other
highlights: a resolution from Cook County Board President Todd Stroger,
unveiling of a portrait of Travis by Pam Rice, artist; remarks by
Dorothy Tillman, Geraldine DeHaas, Jazz Unites Inc.; Bennett Johnson,
Third World Press; George O’Hare; Roland W. Burris; Joe Green, Columbia
College Chicago; and Chancellor Wayne Watson, Chicago City Colleges.
Music was provided by the HWCC Orchestra, headed by Jimmy
Tillman, playing favorite songs from the Duke Ellington era, and Ralph
Walker, Calvary Church Men’s Choir director. Among other guests:
Everett Rand, a long-time friend and former business partner, who
donated wine and cocktails for the evening; Dr. Carl Bell, Mr. and Mrs.
Joseph Caldwell, Mr. and Mrs. Lester McKeever; Mamon Powers, Clarence
Strahm; Dr. Lewis Baskin; Rev. Al Sampson; Laura Washington, Alvia
Baker, Howard Brookins Sr.; Johnny Brown, Rev. David Coleman; Clyde
El-Amin, Michele Simon, Atty. Wanemond Smith and Dr. Debra Ware.
Donna Todd’s Melon Express Catering provided the delicious
buffet dinner. What a very special evening for a very special gentleman!
Walk On!–An extraordinary display recognizing “foot soldiers” of
the Civil Rights Movement, entitled "The International Civil Rights
Walk of Fame Exhibition," will be hosted by Macy’s on State Street in
the seventh floor Archives from March 6-15. Lerone Bennett Jr.,
executive editor emeritus of "Ebony" Magazine, and Rev. Jesse Jackson,
president of Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, are among the 13 whose shoes are
featured in the exhibit. The Walk of Fame was created in 2004 to honor
“foot soldiers of the movement.” Their footprints, marked in granite at
the Martin Luther King Jr. National Historic Site, have become one of
the most visited tourist attractions in Atlanta. Other “foot soldiers:”
U.S. Sen. Edward W. Brooke III, Xernona Clayton, Sammy Davis Jr.,
Atlanta’s Mayor Shirley Franklin, Benjamin Hooks, Clarence B. Jones,
Cong. John Lewis, Bernard Parks, Rev. Fred Shuttlesworth, Cong. Maxine
Waters and Richmond’s Mayor L. Douglas Wilder. Lerone Bennett and
Xernona Clayton, founder, president and CEO of the Trumpet Awards
Foundation Inc., which sponsors the International Civil Rights Walk of
Fame, now in its fifth year, are the special guests at Thursday’s
private reception which kick-starts the exhibit. More than 50 “foot
soldiers” have been inducted to date. Others will be added each year.
Congrats–to Attys. Rita A. Fry, president and CEO of RAF
Consulting Inc. and Eileen Letts, founding partner of Greene and Letts
Law Firm, who will be saluted “for public service work and dedication
to the community” at the Chicago Bar Association’s 2008 Earl Burrus
Dickerson Award Luncheon on Thursday at the Standard Club. The event
recognizes minority lawyers and judges in memory of the late lawyer and
one of the first African American members of CBA whose life and
professional career were devoted to the law and helping others gain
equality and justice. For $65 luncheon tickets, call (312) 554-2057 or
visit www.chicagobar.org.
Book Look–In celebration of Women’s History Month, University of
Illinois at Chicago’s Jane Addams Hull-House Museum has chosen an ideal
author and topic to launch an inaugural lecture named for reformer Ida
B. Wells. On Monday, 6 p.m., Paula Giddings, professor of Afro-American
Studies at Smith College, author, historian and scholar, will discuss
and sign her latest book, A Sword Among Lions: Ida B Wells and the Campaign Against Lynching.
The free lecture, co-hosted by UIC’s Depts. of African American Studies
and Gender and Women’s Studies, will be held in the Residents Dining
Hall of Hull-House Museum, 800 S. Halsted, followed by a reception and
book signing.
Ida B. Wells, one of the most fearless crusaders for civil and
women’s rights in U. S. history, was a newspaper editor and publisher,
investigative journalist, co-founder of the NAACP, political candidate,
mother, wife, and the single most powerful leader in the anti-lynching
campaign in America. Giddings, former book editor, journalist and UNCF
Distinguished Scholar at Spelman College, is best known for her
authoritative social and political history of African American women,
"When and Where I Enter" (1985) and "In Search of Sisterhood: Delta
Sigma Theta and the Challenge of the Black Sorority Movement." She held
the Laurie Chair in Women’s Studies at Douglass College/Rutgers
University, and taught at Princeton and Duke Universities before coming
to Smith College. RSVP to (312) 413-5353.
For Openers–Markham’s Mayor David Webb Jr. along with the city
administration and the Library Board’s trustees celebrate the Grand
Opening of the Bradford Anderson Oglesby Public Library, 16640 S.
Kedzie, on Saturday noon. It’s been built in honor of the late Dorothy
Bradford, Ruth Anderson and Mary Oglesby, three community stalwarts.
For info, call (708) 331-0130 or visit www.markhamlibrary.org.
Condolences–To the family of Dorothy Bennett, whose funeral
service is Saturday, 11 a.m., at Sixth Grace Presbyterian Church, 35th
and Cottage Grove. “Dottie B” died Feb. 28 in her Hyde Park home from
cancer. After retiring from the University of Chicago, she worked as a
travel consultant. What a loss! She will truly be missed!
Show Biz Buzz–Chicago’s Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award
winning Mavis Staples, soul and R&B vocalist who received the
coveted Americana Music Association’s “Spirit of Americana Free Speech
Award,” is off to Australia as a headliner at Womadelaide, the annual
festival of world music, dance and arts, which begins Friday. Prior
recipients of the Free Speech Award include icons Johnny Cash, Kris
Kristofferson, Judy Collins and Charlie Daniels. Before coming home in
early May, Mavis and Yvonne, her sister and back-up singer, will have
performed in New Zealand, the United Kingdom, The Netherlands, Belgium,
Spain, Germany, France, Denmark and Norway. Whoa!
Jerry Butler sheds his Cook County Commissioner hat and wears his famed soul singer’s lid on March 10 when he inducts architects of the Philly Soul Sound, Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff, founders of the Philadelphia International record label, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It all takes place at the 23rd annual induction dinner in NYC’s Waldorf-Astoria Hotel. Mary J. Blige and Jay-Z’s tour, dubbed “Heart of the City” and initially slated for only 10 dates, has been extended to 16, culminating here at the United Center, April 26-27. The tour kick-starts March 22 in Miami. Jay-Z’s latest release is "American Gangster." Blige’s eighth studio album, "Growing Pains," hit stores in December.
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