I remember my mom as an extraordinary person. Education was important to her, and she had a genius-level IQ. She has a Master’s degree and worked on her Ph.D. My mom read the dictionary to learn new words. She also read the encyclopedia for fun! I can still hear her laughter in my head; her laugh was infectious! I can still hear her jokes and recall how kind she was. 

My mom had a beautiful voice when she sang. She was a great cook and taught me how to pick vegetables at the grocery store and shop for the right meats. She read stories to us and taught us to play chess as children.

My mom set the bar high for me as a mom, and I followed her example as she never raised her voice at her children. When my first son was born, she taught me how to bathe him, brush his hair, change his diaper, burp him, nurse him, and how to hold him properly. Mainly she taught me how to love
him and love family. 

My mom was the first Black woman to run for mayor of North Little Rock, AR. She was a college professor and taught at Philander Smith College. Before this, she desired to open the first black-owned employment agency in Little Rock, AR. I can recall going to the office where she was establishing her business as a young girl. 

My mom left this earth at 47-years old. She died from a pulmonary embolism that traveled to her lungs. Before this, she was diagnosed with schizophrenia and manic depression. With changed her later life tremendously as physicians did not know how to treat these disorders. I saw her suffer with no one to help her. My mom’s faith in God was definitely tested through this experience, but she
knew who He was in her life at the end. 

I love her, honor her, and miss her. Your only daughter, Deidra