[Congressional Record Volume 141, Number 127 (Wednesday, August 2, 1995)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1587]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


              NOTING THE PASSING OF MARJORIE BLACK WILSON

                                 ______


                           HON. LOUIS STOKES

                                of ohio

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, August 1, 1995
  Mr. STOKES. Mr. Speaker. I am saddened to rise today and report the 
passing of Marjorie Black Wilson. Marjorie was a very gifted and 
inspirational women who was loved by all who knew her. On July 16, 
1995, the St. Louis community mourned her passing after a prolonged 
illness. I join my colleague from Missouri, Bill Clay, his wife, Carol, 
and many other as we reflect upon the life and legacy of this talented 
and courageous individual.
  Throughout her life, Marjorie Black Wilson gave freely of her time 
and talents. For many years, she volunteered in city schools where she 
counseled teenage girls on the importance of education. She also had a 
great love for the arts and theater. In remembering Marjorie, friends 
recall that she was the type of person who always expected the best 
from people. Marjorie encouraged others, and she inspired them to reach 
their fullest potential. They also recall that during her long battle 
with cancer, Marjorie did not retreat, but she drew them even closer 
and sought to educate women of color about the disease.
  Just recently, The St. Louis American paid special tribute to 
Marjorie Black Wilson and acknowledged her contributions to the St. 
Louis community. The article captures the spirit of an individual who 
was very special to each of us. I am pleased to share this article with 
my colleagues and the nation.
  Mr. Speaker, the passing of Marjorie Black Wilson brings to a close a 
rich, full life devoted to family, friends, and the community. Those of 
us who had the privilege of knowing Marjorie will always remember her 
zest for living. My wife, Jay, and I extend our deepest sympathy to her 
husband, Earl; to her daughters, Denise, Stacy, Kim, and other members 
of the Wilson family. We take comfort in knowing that Marjorie's spirit 
lives on.
            [From the St. Louis American, July 20-26, 1995]
              Marjorie Black Wilson Loved Arts and Theater

                          (By Kimberly Kendle)
       DOWNTOWN.--A phenomenal woman. Someone who wove a tapestry 
     of love. A friend to children, an appreciator and champion of 
     the arts and theater. A tenacious spirit who was always 
     driven, even in the face of adversity.
       These are the words used by close friends of Marjorie Black 
     Wilson, an artist and volunteer in St. Louis public schools, 
     who died Sunday, July 16, 1995, at home in her sleep after a 
     prolonged illness. She was 61.
       ``She truly had a zest for life and lived it fully and 
     lovingly until the end,'' said Barbara J. Mabrey, who met 
     Wilson in college in 1952. ``She possessed an unusual ability 
     to establish and maintain close relationships. Margie 
     cultivated, nurtured and enriched relationships with many 
     people. She made each of her friends feel very special and 
     important to her.''
       Mrs. Wilson was born September 5, 1933, to Theodore and 
     Lurline Black in Jefferson City, Mo. She attended the 
     Jefferson City Public Schools and attended college at Lincoln 
     University where she graduated magna cum laude. While 
     attending Lincoln University, she met her husband, Earl 
     Wilson Jr. The two married June 11, 1954, and moved 
     extensively around the country and abroad before setting in 
     St. Louis in 1987.
       Mrs. Wilson volunteered in city schools, counseling teen-
     aged girls on parenting skills and the importance of 
     education in a program called Sisters and Sisters United. The 
     program encourages leadership, character development, rights 
     of passage and womanhood training. She encouraged the girls 
     to postpone sex and parenthood until they finished high 
     school and college.
       ``One of the things she would do is tell them (the 
     students) about her travels,'' and Cora Cade-Lemmon who knew 
     Mrs. Wilson for four years. ``She had an Afrocentric spelling 
     bee where she would give the girls awards.''
       Mrs. Wilson was expecting the best from people, Cade-Lemmon 
     added. Cade-Lemmon recalled one day when Wilson, who wanted 
     to give fruit as a reward to the students for good work on 
     their projects, was skeptical about how the children would 
     receive the kind gesture.
       ``We were thinking these kids aren't going to be into 
     fruit,'' Cade-Lemmon said. ``It turned out to be one of the 
     best awards we had.''
       During her eight-year battle with cancer, Mrs. Wilson 
     worked diligently to educate women of color about the 
     disease. She is featured in a program to be aired this summer 
     on PBS on treatment options for black women stricken with 
     cancer.
       ``Margie dealth with her illness as she did with her life, 
     accepting those things she could not change, always including 
     family and friends in her endeavors and fighting the good 
     fight until the end,'' said Elizabeth J. Chandler, a close 
     friend of Mrs. Wilson.
       ``I guess the thing I remember most about her is that she 
     was a cancer survivor,'' Cade-Lemmon said. ``Her love for 
     life, she lived life fully and encouraged the girls to do the 
     same. She didn't talk about her illness. She focused on the 
     girls and their development. She put them first.''
       Mrs. Wilson frequently traveled with her students to visit 
     black colleges and universities across the nation. An admirer 
     of poetry, Mrs. Wilson often took her books with her on such 
     trips, Cade-Lemmon said. ``She felt very strongly that only 
     African Americans can save African-American children and that 
     we must lift while we climb.''
       Mrs. Wilson's ability to lift as she climbed also spread to 
     the world of arts and theater, and she frequently found 
     herself enjoying plays at the St. Louis Black Repertory 
     Theater with friends.
       ``She was an appreciator and champion of the arts. She 
     encouraged all artists and was a source of inspiration to us 
     all,'' said Chirley Simmons, an artist and friend of Mrs. 
     Wilson for 10 years.
       In what was described by one friend as ``a tapestry of 
     love,'' Marjorie Wilson will be best remembered for her 
     kindness and generosity as she embraced life fully and 
     forcefully.
       ``Her spirit is alive,'' Cade-Lemmon said quietly, as she 
     reflected on the memory of a friend. ``What she left with us 
     in that life is for the living. And so we take those 
     memories, those memories of Marjorie, we take them with us.''
       A rosary Mass will be celebrated 7 p.m. Friday, July 21, at 
     St. Nicholas Catholic Church, 701 N. 18th Street. A brief 
     prayer service will be held at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 22. 
     Burial will follow in Calvary Cemetery in North St. Louis.
       Among the survivors are her husband, Earl Wilson Jr.; three 
     daughters, Denise Wilson of Washington, D.C., Stacey Wilson 
     of Paris, France, and Kimberly Wilson of Washington, D.C.; 
     one grandson, Timothy Alexander Brown Jr.; a sister, Mildred 
     Ballard of Washington, D.C.; a brother, Theodore Black Jr. of 
     Omaha, Neb.; and a host of nieces, nephews, extended family 
     and friends.
     

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