| HOME | MEET THE STAFF | PAST ISSUES | IN THE KITCHEN | ABOUT | WHERE TO FIND IT | CONTACT | ADVERTISE |
Bookmark page
 Print this
 Email this
|
Last updated: June 21. 2006 6:18PM
REFLECTIONS
From darkness, a light
Segregation nearly destroyed us. Education may save us.
Enlarge image | Order reprint
BERTHA B. TODD has been involved in education for most of her life.
File Photo
The four of us tried very hard to satisfy this by earning undergraduate, graduate and, for some, doctorate degrees. After my father passed, my mother remarried a farmer with nine children. Five of these became educators. They, too, were nurtured by the phrase “Education is the key to a better life.”
When I moved to Wilmington in 1952, I discovered many relatives of mine. Once I was here, a Wilmington native asked me if I “came in on the train.” Little did I realize that in 1952, this was a common question posed to those of us who were not born in Wilmington. Innocently, I looked at him and replied, “No, my brother brought me by car.”
Moving to Wilmington from Durham was not what I had planned. County schools were segregated in those years. After I signed a contract with the New Hanover County Board of Education, the president of a junior college near Charlotte offered me a position that would pay more than the public school system. But when the New Hanover County Schools superintendent at the time sent a message that he would see to it I never got a job in any local education agency, I knew which job I would choose.
In 1953, one of the junior high coaches and I were married. Two children were born, a daughter who continues the legacy of education as an elementary school teacher. But during those years of child rearing, many times my husband and I did not have the courage to clearly explain the reasons we could not stop at the restaurants or swim at several pools that were in Wilmington, our home. We simply did not wish it to affect their self-esteem.
I remained at Williston Senior High School for 15 years, during which yours truly sponsored the first-ever countywide book fair. Due to segregation, though, only African-American students were involved. The assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. brought chaos to Williston Senior High School and the entire community. It was during this volatile period that I began to hone my riot-control skills.
Williston held its final graduation in 1968, and during the summer, the school was dissolved, as the majority of the African-American teachers and half of the African-American students were assigned to New Hanover and Hoggard high schools. Many teachers, students and residents from all ethnic groups spent countless hours in an effort to provide a smooth, effective desegregation – a process that continued until the mid-1980s.
Hoggard’s desegregation years were rough, to say the least. Those years gave me the opportunity to perfect my riot-control skills. Many of those years, I worked night and day, summer and winter, with or without financial compensation. I really worked hard to prove that all human beings can learn together – regardless of the hue of the skin.
During that time of uprising and anger, I challenged the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce to take a stand in assisting the schools in the initial desegregation efforts. And today, the chamber has made tremendous strides in various leadership roles.
The then mayor of Wilmington, B.D. Schwartz, formed the first Human Relations Commission, and he and I were invited by the governor to serve on a statewide committee. It caused us both to think that either New Hanover was effectively desegregating its schools, or that we needed additional help.
I retired in June 1992 after 39 years of work. I have watched as Wilmington has grown from the efforts of many residents who have been – or still are – involved in the healing process. Wilmingtonians and those who live in Southeastern North Carolina are not perfect, but I can honestly say a great deal of progress has been made. Understanding, compassion and especially education is our key not only to growth, but also to a better life.
Bertha Boykin Todd’s list of civic accomplishments could fill a book, and her involvement in the community has been crucial. As an earnest advocate for racial harmony, a lifelong, dedicated school professional and a fund-raising leader, Ms. Todd has built a reputation for wisdom and generosity that has touched several generations.
|
Here is the list of Wilmington's culinary greats who you selected from.
More fundraiser/gala photos. |
|
Looking for a special recipe for your next party? Browse all the recipes from Wilmington Magazine.
|
|
|
