2024 sdusmp
Award Winners
ANNOUNCED
CERTIFICATE OF SPECIAL RECOGNITION
Danté Eubanks, Genealogy Blogger
Orice Jenkins, Recording Artist, Genealogist, Educator, and Author
CHAIRPERSON’S Award
Jonnie Ramsey Brown, Award-winning Author & Family Historian
WILLIAM WELLS BROWN Leadership Award
Kathy Marshall, Author
Ida B. Wells Leadership Award
Dr. Antoinette Harrell, Historian, Genealogist, and Civil Rights Activist
SOLOMON NORTHUP SERVICE Award
Renate Yarborough Sanders, Genealogy Blogger
CRISPUS ATTUCKS Leadership Award
Charles Holman
HARRIET TUBMAN Leadership AWARD
Debbie-Ann Paige, Historian
FREDERICK DOUGLASS Leadership Award
LaJoy Mosby, National President of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, Inc.
BIOGRAPHIES
DANTÉ EUBANKS
Danté Eubanks is a native of Cincinnati, Ohio. His interest in family history and wanting to know more about his roots began in the spring of 1987 when his English Teacher tasked his class with our research project which was to develop a family tree. At the time he knew his maternal great-grandparents on his grandmother, Jessie Mae Heath-Eubanks’ side and so he began the task of asking questions. His dedication to his ancestry research truly began in 1989, and he have not regretted one moment.
He knew the assignment would be easy as he spent every summer and weekends at his great-grandparents house, so he knew the family history or at least he thought he did. His grandmother’s parents were Mitchell Heath and Anna Lue Barrow, and their story is told within the his blog posts. Genealogy to him is more than just research, but it is discovering the journey of his Ancestors, their life stories, and what they want to be shared with the generations of today. He has always felt this was his calling, and he is honored to have answered the Ancestors’ call!
Through his journey, he also discovered his maternal grandfather, William Eubanks’ lineage through his parents with emphasis on his mother, Henrietta Jones-Eubanks’ family which is Dante’s Yazoo County and Madison County, Mississippi; Maryland, Kentucky, and South Carolina connections. His paternal lineage is Dante’s Attala County, Mississippi, Putnam County, Georgia; Charles County, Maryland, and Virginia family connections.
ORICE JENKINS
Orice Jenkins is a recording artist, genealogist, educator, and author from Hartford, Connecticut. He began researching his family history upon discovering that Whitney Houston’s grandparents were from his grandmother’s hometown of Blakely, Georgia. Since then, he has traced his ancestry back to 1756, uncovering the stories of several formerly enslaved Americans.
Orice is a member of the Sons and Daughters of the U.S. Middle Passage and the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society. He has been featured on podcasts and radio shows such as “Research at the National Archives & Beyond” and “Grating the Nutmeg” and presented his findings to Racial Justice Rising and at the Indiana African American Genealogy Group annual conference. Orice has worked as a consultant for Dr. Matt Baker, the creator of UsefulCharts.com, collaborating on genealogy videos that have garnered millions of views on YouTube.
In 2022, he contributed to Bernice Bennett’s latest book: Black Homesteaders of the South (Arcadia Publishing/The History Press) and appeared with other Homesteader descendants at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture during Black History Month in 2023. Orice also publishes a blog called Chesta’s Children, and serves as the Executive Director of a youth music program in Greenfield, Massachusetts.
JONNIE RAMSAY BROWN
Jonnie Ramsey Brown holds an MBA and is a CPA and Certified Information System Auditor. She worked at colleges and universities for over twenty years and served on the 1984 and 1996 Olympic Games organizing committees. Jonnie retired from the Department of Homeland Security in 2019.
An award-winning writer, Jonnie has traced her family back to slavery and the American Revolution. She is the family historian and storyteller, holding membership in many lineage, genealogical, and historical societies. Jonnie resides in Metro Atlanta, bringing awareness to racial disparities in healthcare in honor of her late husband’s legacy.
KATHY LYNNE MARSHALL
Kathy Lynne Marshall is an Ancestor Biographer who works as a Diversity and Inclusion Specialist on behalf of our ancestors. Her books enhance the American Historical Record by adding factual accounts of the lives of women, enslaved African Americans, and other underrepresented groups who helped shape America.
She leads workshops to guide others in researching and writing their family origins and self-publishing their stories. Kathy has delighted audiences at the Sons and Daughters of the United States Middle Passage and writing conferences, won multiple Book Awards from the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society and Northern California Publishers and Authors. She also served as a consultant to West Virginia’s Beverly Heritage Center to help bring alive the African American experience there.
Kathy has been featured in Sacramento Magazine, The Sacramento Bee, The Sacramento Observer, the Sacramento News & Review, and Elk Grove Citizen. She has been interviewed on CBS-TV and Fox40-TV, American Spark-TV and podcasts like the Research from the National Archives and Beyond, Beyond Kinship, and Speak On It.
For 36 years, Kathy worked for the California Highway Patrol as a researcher, technical writer, and Manager of their State Traffic Officer Processing System and Selection Research Program. She earned a Masters Degree in Public Administration, with a Minor in Research Methodology, from California State University at Sacramento.
Kathy is also known as the artist named Kanika, for thirty years creating Afrocentric sculptures made from clay, recycled steel, African textiles, glass and wood. Her award-winning artworks have been purchased by collectors worldwide, from galleries, stores like Nordstrom, vendor shows, and online.
To learn more, visit, https://kathylynnemarshall.com/
DR. ANTOINETTE HARRELL
Dr. Antoinette Harrell is a renowned genealogist and local historian with an emphasis in African American history in Tangipahoa & St. Helena, Louisiana Parishes. For the past twenty years, she has researched the subject of peonage and modern day slavery in sixteen states. Her peonage research was featured on VICE. Dr. Harrell is also the producer of Nurturing Our Root Genealogy Educational Talk Show. She was appointed as Honorary Attorney General for her dedicated commitment in documenting the study of genealogy in 2003 in the State of Louisiana. Her research has been featured in many media publications, TV News and radio programs nationally and internationally, including People Magazine. Dr. Harrell received the Living Legacy ASALH Award in 2014 for documentary film productions. She is a community activist and organizer in Louisiana.
You can find out more about Antoinette on her website, and follow her on YouTube.
DEBBIE-ANN PAIGE
Debbie-Ann Paige is a public historian specializing in local African American history, a co-president and founding member of the Richard B. Dickenson Staten Island Chapter of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society (AAHGS) and professional genealogist. She is a community history strategist that leads engaging public history forums exploring the historical aspects of race and race relations.
She actively serves on various committees and projects, such as the strategic planning and program committees of AAHGS, the NY & NJ Middle Passage Port Markers Project steering committee, and the Narrative Change Subcommittee of the New Yorkers 4 Reparations Coalition. Additionally, she was appointed to the New York City Council task force that evaluates monuments and historical markers on city-owned property and is also a member of the Collections Committee for both the Staten Island Museum and Historic Richmondtown.
Debbie-Ann has worked on numerous local history projects including: Taking Care: The Black Angels of Sea View Hospital, the Access, Collaboration and Equity in Genealogy (ACEGen) initiative, Women of the Nation Arise!, and Farm to City, with the Staten Island Museum; In Pursuit of Freedom with the Brooklyn Historical Society; and she established the “Louis Napoleon House” as a site with the National Park Service Underground Railroad Network to freedom on behalf of the Sandy Ground Historical Society. She is the creator of the Staten Island African American Heritage Tour App, which is a digital trail of people and places significant to Black history on Staten Island.
Debbie-Ann has showcased her skills as a historical interpreter on various acclaimed television programs such as Secrets of New York, WITF Toward Racial Justice: Tracing Family History, and PBS shows like Metrofocus: Juneteenth and Treasures of New York: Snug Harbor. Additionally, she has been featured as a guest on popular podcasts including Speak on It, Realty Check, Site Unseen, Talk Ain’t Cheap, and All Things Considered.
Debbie-Ann holds a BS in Business Studies from Southern New Hampshire University, and both a BA and MA in History from the College of Staten Island, CUNY. She is currently working towards a Doctor of Education in Community-Based Leadership at the College of Staten Island.
RENATE YARBOROUGH SANDERS
Renate Yarborough Sanders is the descendant of formerly enslaved ancestors, enslavers, and free people of color. She authors two blogs: “Into the LIGHT” and “Genea-Related;” and produces a “(Mostly) African-American Funeral Programs” online database.
Renate is a member of the National Genealogical Society, the North Carolina Genealogical Society (Publicity Director), the Afro-American Genealogical and Historical Society (member of National Editorial Board and Vice-President and Newsletter Editor for the Hampton Roads Chapter), and several North Carolina local societies. She is also a member of the lineage society, “Sons and Daughters of the United States Middle Passage.” Renate cohosts “Let’s Talk North Carolina Genealogy,” an online platform and YouTube show, presenting genealogy programing and virtual events for North Carolina researchers; and she has served as panelist and guest on numerous web shows and podcasts. Renate has provided genealogy education for George Washington’s Mount Vernon, Norfolk State University, The College of William and Mary and for NASA. Her research has been featured on PBS Radio and in a National Geographic cover story and podcast. Renate provides coaching and consultation services for clients seeking assistance with genealogical research and continues to engage in project work for various organizations and institutions.
Renate lectures on a variety of genealogy topics but specializes in teaching beginning to intermediate research methodology and sharing specific techniques for researching ancestors of color – both pre- and post-Emancipation. She is a retired elementary school educator, mother of two daughters, and grandmother of four beautiful granddaughters (and a grand dog).
CHARLES HOLMAN
Charles is the great-grandson of an enslaved person who in freedom became a civil rights leader and who in the 1870s became one of the first lawyers of color in his state. Since that time 150 years ago, civil rights has been a dedicated mission in Charles’ family as well as Charles’ personal calling.
Charles’ civil rights career began in the NAACP where he served as a member of its National Board of Directors, founded its then leading college chapter at the University of Michigan and worked to expand its outreach to students across the nation. In the 1980s he was awarded its Juanita Jackson Mitchell Leadership Award as its most outstanding young leader in the country. Later, he worked to expand protections for women and minorities as a Trial Attorney at the US Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, as a Senior Trial Attorney at the Civil Rights Division of the US Department of Justice, and as an Assistant United States Attorney on the National Church Arson Task Force (NCATF) which prosecuted individuals for burning black churches in the South. His work at NCAFT brought him personal commendations from the US Attorney General and Director of the FBI. Since 2003 he has headed his own law firm which has obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in redress for African Americans, native born Africans and others who have suffered discrimination on the job and in housing.
In addition to his civil rights work, Charles is a genealogist in his spare time. He traces his interest in genealogy to 1968 where he was the only black student in the class and unable to share his family’s history. In 1973 he met the late Alex Haley and was inspired to learn volumes more about his ancestors dating back to Colonial America and beyond. He has met dozens of descendants of those who enslaved his ancestors and even visited several sites and plantations where his ancestors were enslaved. This past winter he discovered and visited a former plantation where ancestors of Presidents Bush enslaved generations of Charles’ ancestors including some who escaped to freedom in Canada and then returned to Kentucky to rescue other enslaved people. It is their spirit of courage and resistance to injustice that he channels into his civil rights work today.
LAJOY MOSBY
Ms. Mosby currently serves as the National President of the Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society, Inc. (AAHGS). She also serves as the president of the Central Maryland Chapter of AAHGS. Ms. Mosby has been researching her ancestors from Alabama and Kentucky since the 1970s. In addition to AAHGS, Ms. Mosby is a member of the National Genealogical Society, Inc., a charter member of African American Genealogy Group of Kentucky as well as a member of the Woodford County Historical Society, the Kentucky Genealogy Society and the Alabama Genealogy Society.
LaJoy is a recipient of the 2021 Paul Edward Sluby Sr. African American Scholarship sponsored by the Board for the Certification of Genealogists. She has completed coursework at various genealogy institutes including MAGGI, SLIG, TIGR, IGHR and GRIP.
Ms. Mosby’s professional career includes experience in both public and private sectors. Mosby retired as the Deputy Project Manager of the Office of Minority Health Resource Center in 2018 after 23 years of service. She holds memberships in community organizations and professional associations.
She is Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors for the Bronze Villagers, a community organization devoted to improving the academic achievement of African American students in Howard County, Maryland. Ms. Mosby is an active member of The Peoples Community Baptist Church where she serves as Host Site Coordinator of Project SHARE, a food for community service program. She is a life member of the National Black MBA Association and Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Ms. Mosby obtained a B.S. in Microbiology and an M.B.A. in Health Services Administration from Howard University.