I was notified of Lloyd Austin’s nomination as Defense secretary in a flurry of excited text messages from other Black West Point graduates Monday night.
For so many of us, his nomination signified that yes, we have to work twice as hard, but at least it is rewarded when it counts.
I met Austin at the Thayer Hotel, a gothic-style 1925 building outside the gates of West Point. Lloyd Austin is West Point Class of 1975 and I am Class of 2013. At the time of our meeting, I was an admissions officer trying to convince the brightest Black students in the country that they should become members of the West Point Class of 2023.
Dec 10, 2020
COLUMBUS Strong values, deep faith, and community service characterized the life of Youngstown native Ruth Marie Gatewood Squire, 96, a force of nature known for her boundless energy, deep conviction and fierce commitment, who passed away Sunday, Nov. 29, 2020.
Ruth’s steely determination was a byproduct of Depression-era Youngstown, where Mayhue and Ella Gatewood raised their children with high standards and a strong sense of right and wrong.
Like millions of other black families who left home in search of employment and security, the Gatewoods were part of what historians term the Great Migration from the rural, agricultural south to the urban, industrial north. In 1921, Mayhue and Ella Gatewood relocated from Marianna, Ark. to “Stop 26” in Youngstown, better known as “The Sharon Line.” On Feb. 29, 1924, they welcomed Ruth to their growing family. She would go on to be an avid participant in church and civic activities before graduating from Sciencevill