Legacy 2016 Miami: Black History Month Issue | Page 14

14BB

AN INDEPENDENT SUPPLEMENT BY MIA MEDIA & COMMUNICATIONS GROUP TO MIAMI HERALD

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 2016

The History of AARP in Miami
By Dionne Polite

Dionne Polite
State of Florida Operations Manager
AARP

Marcus Garvey once said that “a people
without knowledge of its’ history is like a
tree without roots.” Therefore, let us take a
moment to reflect on our past. It was in
1989 when Commissioner Barbara Carey
Shuler was contacted to select an individual
to organize a local chapter of AARP and the
person she approached was our very own,
Nancy S. Dawkins. Mrs. Dawkins accepted
the challenge and met with Kathleen Cole,
an AARP representative. Kathleen Cole
advised Ms. Dawkins to arrange a group of
interested persons who would assemble and
discuss various issues. In 1990, Ms. Dawkins
received a letter from John & Barbara Rudd
who met with her and the other interested
persons to discuss the requirements for
organizing a chapter. Mr. & Mrs. Rudd, who
were chapter organizers, guided and
mentored the group for approximately 6
months.
The initial meeting took place at the
Joseph Caleb Model City Library, where
information was distributed to the invited

guests who were Dorothy Graham, Hosley
Gray, Emanuel Hutcheson and Ellen Heidt.
The Rudds were also in attendance. The
second meeting held at the Joseph Caleb
Model City Library had an even better
turnout. Persons in attendance at this
meeting included George Ellis, Rev. James
Cash, Cecile McCartney, James McFagden,
Dorothy Edwards, Benny O’ Berry, Elry
Sands, Martha Day, Genevieve Lockhart and
Leon McCartney.
In Ms. Dawkins quest to organize this
chapter, she atten YH