Post and Courier MIE :: Students :: African American Heroes

African American Heroes is a Black History month feature that will be published in The Post and Courier each year throughout the month of February. The biographies, written by local students, will highlight the lives of African Americans locally and nationally who have made an impact on their communities and society. Participating classrooms are asked to research one African-American hero within their community or from the past and collectively write a brief (approximately 150 words) biography explaining the life and impact of that person on society. This should be a class project involving as many students as possible. Classes that are chosen for participation will have their African-American Hero's biography and their class photo published in The Post and Courier.

If you are interested in having your students participate call 937-5764 or send an e-mail to nie@postandcourier.com.

Examples of Lowcountry African-American Heroes featured in previous years are located below:

Major John Dunmyer, III

John Dunmyer, III was born in Charleston, S.C., August 30, 1954. He obtained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mathematics from Voorhees College, Master's Degree in Administration from Central Michigan University, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan and is pursuing a Masters Degree in Education at the Citadel. He motivates his students to attain the same if not more. He has been the senior Army instructor for Burke High School JROTC since 1997 and works diligently with students in JROTC. He's a great teacher, father figure and role model to many. Besides being a senior Army instructor, he is also a great humanitarian. So great he attained a proclamation, naming a day in Charleston, S.C .on March 11, "John Dunmyer, III Day" for service to the youth and as an Elder at Zion Olivet Presbyterian Church. He was named Man of the Year for the General Westmoreland Chapter, Charleston Military Order of the Worlds Wars (MOWW) for leadership and commitment to young people. He provides leadership experiences and we learn valuable lessons each week not only scholastically, but about life itself. The basic lessons that are taught by him to cadets are: respect, determination and intelligence. He serves proudly as a member on the board of directors for Christmas in April-Saint Paul's Parish an affiliate of Rebuilding Together and is the President of the Charleston Alumni Chapter of Voorhees College. Additionally, he is the father of three daughters and happily married. He has showed students that we too can succeed in life. He reminds us that attitude reflects leadership so we must treat others with respect. But most of all respect ourselves. John Dunmyer, III truly deserves the title of an African American Hero.

Right, are authors of this biography, Jerome Vanderhost's JROTC students in his 10th, 11th & 12th grade classes, Burke High School, Charleston, SC

Apostle Inez Middleton

Apostle Inez Middleton, a native of Berkeley County was born on July 5, 1943 in Russellville, South Carolina. Inez Middleton was affectionately known as "Grand. " She was a woman of tremendous faith. Apostle Middleton was called into the ministry at a very young age. Grand began her pastoralship at Bethel Miracle Temple of Deliverance in 1978, where she pastored for twenty-nine years. Through her ministry many were assisted, healed and lead to Christ. Apostle Middleton, a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister and friend, had such a wonderful soul. She delivered many touching messages of hope, faith and love to encourage those in her ministry and community. Apostle Middleton was a person of profound wisdom. She had the ability to make people feel better about circumstances they endeavored to overcome. Grand was a person of great inspiration and she always encouraged everyone to be the best they could be. Grand was an ordinary woman who did extraordinary things for her family, friends and most importantly her community. She was a pioneer and a visionary; The first African- American woman to begin a school in Berkeley County, in 1996, which is Miracle Academy Preparatory School. We will always honor her legacy by continuing to be the best individuals that we can be and living a godly life. We can think of no better way to continue the legacy for generations to come. Grand will always be there in our hearts for she was truly a "GRAND" person. She will always be remembered as our Above, the authors of this biography, Ms. Teresa Middleton's African American Hero.

Right, the authors of this biography, Ms. Teresa Middleton's African American Hero.
8th/9th grade class at Miracle Academy Preparatory School.
Russellville, South Carolina

Elijah McCoy

Black inventors: you may have heard of them all, but have you ever heard of Elijah McCoy? Elijah McCoy was a husband, inventor and engineer. He was born in Colchester, Ontario, Canada on May 2, 1843. At a young age, he attended school in Edinburgh, Scotland where he studied Mechanical Engineering for five years. After the Civil War Elijah and his wife returned to the United States. He was hired to be an oiler and fireman at the Michigan Central Railroad in 1870. While working there he invented the lubricating cup, a device that allowed oil to be released to different parts of a locomotive steam engine. In 1880, he started working as an industrial consultant with the Detroit Lubricator Company and invented the Locomotive Lubricator. The Elijah McCoy Manufacturing Company was founded in 1920 where Elijah served as vice-president. Elijah McCoy died in Detroit on October 10, 1929.

Right, the authors of this biography, Ms. Brown's 6th grade
class at D.P. Cooper Elementary School.
Salters, South Carolina

Grace Pendergrass

Grace Pendergrass was born on August 10th, 1953 in Charleston, S.C. From a young age Grace knew she wanted to work with children and she has always loved school. She attended Rhett Elementary School and then Burke High School in her early days. Her favorite subject was English, in fact, she still "loves helping my grandbaby with it." So it is no surprise that Pendergrass has worked in the public school system for over thirty years. Grace began her career in her twenties. She has worked at various schools and touched thousands of children's lives. She states, "I love my job because I get to communicate with children." She chooses to work the register out front instead of being in her office because of the direct contact she has with "her babies". As West Ashley Middle School's cafeteria manager, her responsibilities include calculating food needs, distribution, assisting food service employees, doing inventory and completing paperwork. Grace explained to us how her work was a hard and long climb. Yet, she has enjoyed every bit of it. Grace says "I love my job because I love my kids... all West Ashley Middle School kids are my kids."

Right, the authors of this biography, Leslie Fowler's 3rd period GT class at West Ashley Middle School. Charleston, South Carolina

Reverend Dr. Willis T. Goodwin

The Reverend Dr. Willis T. Goodwin was born September 2, 1935 in Charleston, South Carolina. He graduated from Burke High School, Claffin College, and Gammon Theological Center. He received his Honorary Doctorate Degree from Teamer School of Religion. As a United Methodist minister, Reverend Goodwin's sermons were a guidance of love from local pulpits to pulpits as far away as Africa. "Everybody is somebody and Christ is above all" was Reverend Goodwin's favorite statement. He lived by his words. His ministry and desire to help others led him to become the founder of the Rural Missions, Inc., and several other organizations in South Carolina. Reverend Goodwin served as the Senior Advisor at the South Carolina World Trade Center in Charleston, S.C., and was appointed to the Commission Board of Human Affairs by South Carolina Governor Mark Stanford in 2002. He testified before the U.S Senate Subcommittee regarding health and the plight of the migrant and seasonal farm workers, one of the many presentations made to make others aware of some of our world's problems. Reverend Goodwin died on December 10, 2007, we will add him to our list of great African American Heroes who brought about change.

Right, the authors of this biography, Mrs. White's 4th grade class at Burns Elementary School. Charleston, South Carolina

Ernest Everett Just

Born in Charleston, SC in 1883, E. E Just made enormous contributions in science. Mr. Just attended a boarding school in Orangeburg, SC and later graduated at Kimball Union Academy in Meriden, New Hampshire. No matter how intelligent an African American was at this time, many were not offered teaching jobs at white colleges or universities. He became an instructor at Howard University in Washington, D.C. where he assisted three students in establishing the Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. Some of Mr. Just's honors included many grants such as the General Education Board and the Carnegie Corporation, the Spingarn Award from the NAACP, and he performed extensive research in many laboratories. He wrote a book entitled The Biology of the Cell Surface in 1939. Mr. Just was respected internationally but not in the United States. Disappointed in the nonacceptance of his work because of his African American heritage, he moved to Europe. E. E Just believed that scientists should study whole cells under normal conditions, rather than simply breaking them apart in a laboratory setting. His primary legacy is his recognition of the fundamental role of the cell surface in the development of organisms.

Right, the authors of this biography, Ms. M. M. Pinckney's Homeroom Class at Haut Gap Middle School. Johns Island, South Carolina

Sarah Goode

Sarah Goode was an African American businesswoman and inventor who started her life as a slave in 1850. After the war, Sarah was freed and she moved to Chicago, Illinois. Because she had lived her whole life in slavery, Sarah was now greatly changed. After getting settled in, she opened a furniture shop and started selling her one-of-a-kind, hide-away bed. This bed was also known as the Murphy bed. Different models could be concealed different ways. One way was to turn it into a desk, while another was to fold the bed into a cabinet. Sarah submitted her concept for this bed, receiving a U.S. patent (number 322177) which was approved July 14, 1885. This officially made her the first African American woman to be awarded a patent in America. Although Sarah Goode might not have received all of the credit for her wonderful invention during her lifetime, she definitely deserved it!

Right, the authors of this biography, Mr. B. Kirkpatrick's Humanities Advisory Class at Robert Smalls Middle School in Beaufort.

Robert Smalls

Day by day, the former slave Robert Smalls struggled to become a leader. As students of Robert Smalls Middle School in Beaufort, we seek to have the same passion. Smalls was born in Beaufort, South Carolina on April 5, 1839. As a child slave, he was denied an education. However, as an adult, Smalls was determined to have an education; he hired tutors and studied on his own. On May 13, 1862, Smalls piloted The Planter, a steamship, into the Union hands, therefore achieving the victory of freedom for his family and twelve other slaves. In September 1862, New York abolitionists presented Smalls with a gold medal for his heroism, love of liberty and patriotism. Later in life, Smalls decided to pursue a different direction to help African-Americans, he went into politics. He held political offices at the local, state and national levels. With his strong belief for education, he was a member of the Beaufort County School District Board. In 1867, Smalls and 37 other African-American men helped to form the Beaufort Republican Party, the first organization of the party in South Carolina. With his determination, Smalls accomplished much during his lifetime. He died on February 23, 1915. The Civil War hero and SC statesman has a school and a parkway named in his honor in Beaufort. In September 2007, the Army commissioned a logistics support vessel as the Major General Robert Smalls. This is the first army vessel to be named in honor of an African-American.

Right, the authors of this biography, Faye Waters' 8th Grade Creative Writing Students, Robert Smalls Middle School. Beaufort, South Carolina

Ms. Mishawna Moore

Look! It's Ms. Moore, the principal of Sanders Clyde Elementary School in downtown Charleston. She is a very special person because she works so hard to better the school, our community and it's people. There are many things that make her a special "Gator." Mishawna Delane Moore was born in Atlanta, Georgia on October 27, 1972. Ms. Moore attended Washington High School where she graduated and received her diploma. Ms. Moore began her teaching career at Sanders Clyde where she taught first, second and fourth grade. Next she became a Lead Teacher for the district. In 2003 she ended up again at Sanders Clyde as principal. That's when good things started happening. We brought up our improvement rating and received the Palmetto Gold and Silver Award. Besides doing great things in our school, Ms. Moore has had a huge impact on the community. She does wonderful things everyday. When school begins, every student knows that they will have all that they need to be successful. Uniforms, school supplies and even shoes are received. Students also get to go on great field trips such as Barrier Islands, Cypress Gardens and Fort Sumter. Field trips are a great experience for everyone. When Christmas comes around, no one is left out. Ms. Moore makes sure that everyone gets gifts that they really want and need, She even remembers the children with cancer and shares with them. Ms. Moore has a motto. It is, "to whom much is given, much is required." That means a lot to the students at Sanders Clyde. Students know that they are blessed with so many things, which also includes love and understanding. All of these gifts come with a price. Students are expected to give great things back to the community. Our community deserves great citizens to make it the best place to live. Ms. Moore helps us to reach our potential and live the best life that we can.

Right, the authors of this biography, Melissa Kersey's Class at Sanders Clyde Elementary School. Charleston, South Carolina