What made you want to be the recorder of the Black History in business, music and art?
Knowledge is power, and the power belongs to the young African Americans, who believe they have no history or no one has left a legacy for them to look up to. The African American race has to dare to dream and take risks, in order to achieve the economic strength and advantages of this country. They need to be aware of the entrepreneurs in their community. They need to have pride in the Black business person, they need to have pride in themselves. This information is not found in the school books. Many individuals have migrated into the city because of state or medical jobs, they would otherwise have no resource to this type of information.
Where did you get the bulk of your information, were previous books written?
At the time that I made up my mind to take on this venture, I hit the library in our city, our schools and our city offices, there was no recorded information in book form. It was as though, Black Springfield did not exist or contribute to the growth and wealth of this community. The bulk of my information came from my parents and their associates who on a regular basis, spoke with pride of the businessmen and women who were around this community and contributed in a positive way.
How many more editions do you think you will be able to publish, won’t the information run out?
As long as this city stands, there will be new businesses, musicians and artist popping up and others who may close their doors through struggles or death, leaving just a memory of what stood or what they stood for. This is history, and we must be able to account for it. There will always be someone who has memory of family members, neighbors or friends who had made a difference in this city, finding all of these individuals will be an ongoing process. History is made everyday, it can not run out.
Do you do all the research yourself?
I have a great resource of people who answer when the need is there. The majority of the work is done by me, but I will never take all of the credit, I will always recognize those that helped through information, pictures, and memories on the dedication page. There are times an illustrator is used, a free lance editor and proof reader may be utilized.
Last but not the least, if you have any questions that haven't been answered feel free to contact us with those questions.