WFTV anchor Vanessa Echols and 9 Family Connection decided to honor Black History Month in Central Florida by bringing attention to the stories of leaders in our communities.
Dr. Bracy integrated Gainesville High in 1965. She endured emotional and physical abuse while enrolled there. She graduated, but she says it took a long time for the wounds to heal.
Orange Co. Mayor Jerry Demings told Vanessa Echols he believes it is important for black children to believe they can attain the positions they want to be in and he tries to live be example.
Josie Lemon Allen is responsible for getting the lynching marker in honor of July Perry, a black man who was murdered by a white mob in the Ocoee Massacre in 1920.
To kick off Black History Month this year, Google debuted on its homepage an illustration of Carter G. Woodson, who is often touted as the “Father of Black History.”
The National Civil Rights Museum opened in 1991 and houses exhibits and historic collections that chronicle the fight for civil rights in America. The museum is on the site of the Lorraine Motel where King was shot and killed.
Belvin Perry Jr. grew up in Orlando during the 1950s, the son of one of the Orlando Police Department's first black officers. Perry witnessed the dramatic changes that occurred in Central Florida – and across the South – as a direct result of the Civil Rights movement. He knew what Orlando was like as a completely segregated city, but also experienced firsthand the opportunities that opened up to African-Americans with integration during the mid-1960s.
I have been a member of the Eyewitness News team since 1992 and currently anchor Eyewitness News at Noon and 4 p.m. on Channel 9.
I was born in Auburn, Ala., and graduated from The University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa with a degree in Broadcast Journalism. I got my start in broadcasting at a country music radio station in Tuscaloosa and have worked at television stations in Georgia and Tennessee.
I am very involved in the central Florida community: a frequent speaker at churches and schools and involved with several community service organizations, including UNCF and 100 Women Strong, a philanthropic giving circle. I am also a lifetime member of the Girl Scouts.
I took on a new cause in 2004. After I was diagnosed with breast cancer in February of that year, I made it my mission to educate women, men and their families about the importance of early detection of cancer and coping with cancer treatments.
In October 2007, I founded Compassionate Hands and Hearts Breast Cancer Outreach to help local patients and their families. You can visit our website here.
In the cancer fight, I am involved with Sisters Network, Relay for Life and Making Strides Against Breast Cancer. I am also on the board for Orlando Serve Foundation, which is planning the biggest outreach for the homeless in central Florida on Easter Sunday 2016.
I'd love to hear from you. Please email me if you have a story idea or comment.
