A Warm Blanket: Celebrating the Life of A. “Tish” Mercer

By Pamela P. Mercer

Alicia A. Mercer, or Tish, as she was known, was a labor negotiator with Greyhound Bus Company during one of the largest strikes in their history. She worked diligently with the Harold Washington Campaign and later became a big part of his transition team. When Tish Mercer entered a room, corporate America listened. A Warm Blanket, Celebration of Life is the loving memoir of her life written by her sister, Pamela Mercer. This inspiring memoir also includes loving remembrances for many of her friends.

Tish worked as the human resources director of the Chicago Housing Authority and in global operations at ATM Global Resources. She had an impact on so many people, helping to move them into not just jobs, but careers. Pamela shares some of the most important journeys of Tishs life, from her independent youth to her productive and powerful reign in corporate America as a leader in human resources. Tish always lead by example and always treated people the way she wanted to be treatedshe was there to help others get back up on their feet if they were down.

A Warm Blanket is about who Tish Mercer was, but it is also a celebration of how she impacted the hearts and memories of anyone she met or worked with over the years.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: May 31, 2012
• ISBN: 9781469794891

Pamela P. Mercer

Pamela P. Mercer majored in journalism and has a degree in criminal justice administration. A wonderful sister and dear friend encouraged her to follow her dreams and continue to write. A. Tish Mercer was her older sister; her passing was a devastating blow that inspired Pamela to write this biography. Pamela currently lives in Illinois.

Book preview

A

Warm Blanket—

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CELEBRATION OF LIFE

Celebrating the Life of A. Tish Mercer

Sister, Friend, Partner

Leader

Angel in Heaven

Biography of an Angel

PAMELA P. MERCER

iUniverse, Inc.

Bloomington

A Warm Blanket—Celebration of Life

Celebrating the Life of A. Tish Mercer

Copyright © 2012 by Pamela P. Mercer.

Illustrations, copy design, photographs & graphics, compliments of family

Friends and the Legacy of A. Tish Mercer

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

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www.iuniverse.com

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4697-9488-4 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4697-9490-7 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4697-9489-1 (ebk)

iUniverse rev. date: 05/22/2012

Contents

Acknowledgements

Memoirs of A. Tish Mercer

Opening the Door to Celebrate Her Life

Where do We Begin?

Let Me Introduce you

The Estate of the Estate of

Alicia Ann Tish Mercer

Bits and Pieces

Chapter #1

Chapter #2

Chapter #3

Chapter #4

Chapter #5

Chapter #6

Chapter #7

Chapter #8

Chapter #9

Chapter #10

Chapter #11

Chapter #12

Chapter #13

Chapter #14

Chapter #15

Sermon Notes

Dedicated to the Loving Memory of

My big sister

My Best Friend

‘Tish’

I Love you so very much

August 31, 1950-September 28, 2009

Sometimes creative controversy will take poetic license in identifying all the many faces and phases of the life of A. Tish Mercer, born Alicia Ann Mercer to Vivian and Alvin Lewis Mercer. Traveling through decades of her experiences may keep you moving from now and then to then and now. However I found my sister to be a fascinating person in her living and even more fascinating as I discovered the inner workings of this modern day angel if you will with her passing. Even then people wanted to stand behind her or block the world’s view of her and so I gave you Don’t Be A Hater as the creative controversy for an introduction. This piece in some way also acknowledges a lot of people, both family and friends, who loved her and some who were and still are so incredibly jealous of my sister. They that sought to and continue to seek destruction of her legacy shall stumble as they have and will fall unable to pull themselves back up. Tish was so much more than an icon. You can’t delete her from the page. You can’t delete her from the screen. You can’t bury her or erase her memories in cyberspace or globally. She is a spirit that dwells in the hearts of many. And while she left this life too soon she lives. Know that her energy is as strong and aggressive as if she had planted her feet right here before you. Look up, haters, jealous hearts and Neigh Sayers. You may have destroyed the book cover but the content of her spirit and the fiber of being are powerful. And while she soars above the clouds still moving through the lives of incompletion . . .

She completes us

With her message

With her method

With her memory

With her music

Her death shall not go unpunished

Satanic warfare shall stand before the greatest powers

Destruction shall be a reversal of nurturing

A feast for mind, body and soul

Her life shall be a reward to those who know,

Who loved

And

Those who area not afraid of the real truth.

Don’t Be a Hater

Don’t Hate Participate

And if you can’t participate

Appreciate.

* * *

Don’t Be a Hater

At last the dust has settled

In a whisper the wind has stopped

The clouds have gathered to an overcast

A victory flag has dropped

Cheers still echo in the quiet places

Where no one heard a sound

A hand that waved in great walls of doubt

Crashing to the ground

The blankets of life enfolds her

Memories that will never die

Connected in pages of history

This force no one can deny

She was she is truth and power

She fought for what was right

Family, friends and even strangers

Beseeched the humble side

Her presence commanded excellence

No works she did in vain

A legacy of life and power

In both time and space remain

From politics to people

This thriving for success

Slowing down give homage to others

Still at her very best

Some want us all to forget her

One said let her go

Her frame was planted to replenish the souls

Helping other spirits to grow

She was she is one in a million

Beyond foolish jealous

The haters, the Scruggs the envious beings

Will never take her away

She lives on in history

Her work her visions her dreams

The endeavors of change and challenge

Stoke the furnace of unborn dreams

For some they will just miss her

For others she remains hugging close

Her work will continue

In the spirit of her giving

No limits

No bars

No holds

There was no stopping her in her living

She commands

In her brand new life

With us she lives on forever

Her talents her beauty her love

The transition was beyond corporate levels

The competition breathed a sigh of relief

Still she lives and moves among us

Some tremble in disbelief

Haters don’t hate she is history

Like Sojourner, Correta Scott or Joan of Arch

Combing shores and boarders with her presence

Molding memories in even corporate hearts

Stop competing with her you can’t make it

From the side of God she will still defend

The Spirit that was love abounding

Of family and lovers and friends.

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(a) a contribution from her dear friend

at her homecoming celebration October 2009

Don’t spend too much time searching for my errors, my flaws, my inadequacies; harvest that energy to find your success failure only happens when you give up. I’ve learned that when I compete against you I will always have something to prove. However when I compete against myself I can enjoy the process of my inevitable growth.

Pamela P. Mercer

Tish’s Sister is constantly inspired

By Tish in heaven and on earth

Acknowledgements

To A Loving God, first for all we are and for all that he has made us, I give Him all honor praise and glory. Grateful to Him more than anyone for giving us the years, the memories, the magic and the moments that will last our lifetime. For the days that we connected and for the peace that you brought for her last days on this side and for your presence in all of our lives for the home going celebration when she traveled beyond this life to be in the arms of the Lord. For the many names I may fail to mention in this acknowledgement, may God add a very special blessing to each of you that your faith may increase while you trust the decisions of the creator. We do not mourn her leaving we celebrate her life. Each day her memories connect with us is a moment to love, a moment to cherish and a moment to embrace all that she was and all that she will continue to be. To God be the glory for blessing us with this special time and this very special person to share our live, our hopes, our dreams, our fears, our tears and our tomorrows. To our mom and I can call her by name Vivian Mercer for being the strong, loving and nurturing parent that made us a family and connected each one of us by our blood lines and our talents. She is a number one mom that epitomizes what I believe parents should be. She instilled in us the values we need to grow and inevitable become exactly who we are, while my sister, not just corporate America but corporate universe challenge us to be leaders individually and together. For several hundred friends, co-workers and well wishers who passed through to say farewell on that Spring-like day in October as she transcended to a place beyond our touch but well within our spiritual reach. To each of her siblings, Debbie, Gregory (Halalhiel) Cynthia, Archie, Andre and a host of family and friends who looked to her for a heads up on projects, decisions and life journeys as they remember their sister. She is well remembered and so strongly supported by her nephew and niece by marriage Robbie and Hope Robinson (my son and daughter in law) who were also a very positive force in the Don’t Dink Me, Inc. project. Their love and commitment continue to be a force of inspiration, motivation and determination. My grand daughters who spent time at her house reminiscing and the baby who talks about the red pop sickle that she rescued from Tish’ freezer, still brings laughter and life to the room when we are trying to make the emotional adjustments. And though I might easily fit right into this group not including my name emphasizes it’s not about me, it’s about my big sister and the magic she has woven into the fabric of so many lives. To nieces, nephews, aunts, uncle’s cousins and even grand nieces and nephews both close and distant whose lives were changed just a little because of the role she played and continued to play in building foundations for family, for future generations and bridging the gap with her unfailing love and commitment. While I am encouraged by the family connection and the extended family I must remember a few very special people who made known the relationship that profoundly epitomizes the spirit of my sister. Remembering and acknowledging her dear friend, spiritual partner and confident, Goddess Yvette Whorton who continues to share wonderful memories, one of her oldest and dearest friends David Alan Harris who was one of the petals in a 55-year friendship and competent professional associate. Least we not forget Coach, Don, Cedric, Sheila, Peggy, Essie, and Helen whose messages continue to draw a wonderful picture and provide an awesome depiction of who she was who she is and who she will forever be in our heart and memories.

Remembering everyone in a couple of pages is going to be a difficult and dubious task still I digress and openly recognize the people that I spoke with both then and now recognizing the value of their relationships and the impact of this legacy living in the heart and the memories of so very many. Acknowledging those friends who took the time to afford a metaphorical warm blanket to this literary production, her biography and to celebrate her life and her legacy; I thank you. Each of them will always have a very special place in this publication as they continue to share her with those who will always love her and the rest of the world. To the people we battled that forced us to draw strength from each other to embrace the victory that only God could give. To those who made us laugh, those who made us cry and those who just made us stand firm on what we became or failed to become today. But most of all and more so than any of you, I acknowledge my big sister Tish, for sharing her wisdom, her love and her zeal for life. For all the challenges we face and those we embraced together. For the sermon notes and the network of people that she brought into our lives so that we could respectively continue to grow and to glow.

And in her own words . . . .

Blue Skies

God bless us everyone

Memoirs of A. Tish Mercer

Is a contribution by David Allan Harris

He was her friend, at least that is what I had always thought of him. She was his friend and she never failed to be exactly that. I mention David because Tish was more to so many people than they could ever be to her. Seeing it and feeling it was just a small part of the reality that became so glaring when she needed someone or something. Her time alone convinced me that she was here for everyone but who was really here for her? David said a great deal in his memoirs and I inserted an exact copy of what he presented at the homecoming celebration because that is what Tish would have wanted me to do. It will be difficult to keep my personal feelings on the left side of the room and only bring to light those things that my sister would say was cool. At the end of the day right will be in the light and wrong will be a sad song whatever reveals itself. So many people revealed themselves and if the truth must be told they will tell on themselves. Silence is the moment we needed to thank David for being in her life. These pages will connect them in memory until their next meeting. The relationship with David and the family was severed not too long after her passing. There are numbers of friends who stayed in touch and then there are those who completely melted in the wax of the last candle. Well aware that only family and lovers will morn for years; however memories are truly something that will linger forever. I can recall old relationships and friend passing. I reached out to their family long after the funeral. On a spiritual level sometimes families continue to relish that kind of support. Real friends bring that kind of support. Helen did, Yvette did, David did not! I may return to David later but for the moment the family and I thank him for his contribution to her memory and his gift of friendship to her life. I also know that David was one of the folks who tried diligently to reach out to her when she had taken ill. No one could reach her by phone because her phone calls were screened, monitored or just avoided. She really didn’t want to see anyone until she was better but folks kept her from seeing people. It is so important to have prayer partners and friends close when you’re sick. It is really very important. If the world takes nothing else with them other than this part of the message, family is important, keep them close before during and after. Keep them close when you’re healthy and celebrating. Keep them close when you’re days are dark and you’re riding the storms and keep them close when the storm is over. Regardless of how I personally felt about David, he and Tish were thicker than thieves, more than paper and people my reveal but there is no one to disprove it.

image007.jpg

And I painlessly dedicate this moment

and this memory to her childhood lifetime friend

David Alan Harris.

Dedicated in spirit—included because it’s not about me I wanted to eliminate this message from this publication! I move as the spirit leads me and this dedication is because David was the friend who was always around. We owe the world the truth and he was part of her truth. Like a brother, he was one of those best friends that had a reflection traveling all the way back to the school yard. She often talked about their history even as she spoke of their unending relationship.

I didn’t really care that much for her friend David. And I still don’t. She knew it, he knew it and it was the topic of a couple of conversations when we were networking with each other. I enjoyed his work but I did not enjoy nor like the person he was or he is inside. He is extremely talented in his own right which is one of the great connections between him and Tish. I won’t tell David’s secrets but I know the truth about him. As far as he and Tish are concerned, they were friends for a lifetime but she was more of a friend to him then he would ever be to her. While I honored the piece he wrote for her home going service, I honor it because this isn’t about me it’s about the angel Alicia. I looked back on a lot of things that they may have shared on a professional and social level but I’ve continued to acknowledge how Tish has impacted the lives of others. Would a friend leave your service because a girlfriend was feeling jealous or insecure? Would a friend make excuses or would a friend go the distance. I felt David’s tears at her service and my heart hurt for him because I knew how close they were. He had been unable to reach her when she had taken ill and it was sudden. He tried repeatedly to reach her by phone but her cell phone; as well as her phone calls were controlled by her sister Debbie. While she was shielded from the world she was also shielded from the love so many people had and so much support that was blocked. The kind of love that could help you to heal was blocked out like the sun in a room with heavy blinds and thick curtains. So many people talked about what they would have, could have or should have and the list continues to grow. While this is really so much not about me I can recall some of the things that connected them on a business level and the things that connected them on a personal level. Tish always checked to make sure that entering or exiting a place would not be a hardship for David. He was invited to every family gathering, every dinner, every bar b. que. She would phone ahead to make arrangements or make sure that someone took care of it so that his movement was not restricted.

With apprehension I’ve reflected on why I wanted to eliminate this piece from her memories but I can’t erase what is. The truth will see the light. Giving proper recognition to all those who would dare to remember her in any way I’m acknowledging David but remembering that he was NOT there for her but he really tried to be. The service for many was sudden and extremely painful, some even him perhaps, was just there for themselves, not in a negative sense but to close that part of their lives where they reach out to her and she always reached back. They needed to let go and letting go of Tish was not an easy thing to do. Two years later I am personally struggling to finish the biography while I felt obligated to reach out to him and find out if he was okay. Only for Tish would I even attempt to talk to him and I may have failed her. To me he was just another individual who attempted to tear down the soldier who was building up the queen. It’s not about me it’s about the one person who changed so many lives while she was evolving. She cocooned but became a butterfly in the lives of those who attached themselves to her wings time and time again so that they could fly. As the pages of her life unfold we all might get a clear understanding as to why I did not eliminate this or any other portion of her life that I could squeeze into a page. She’s still giving and there is nothing that we can do about it here on earth but accept that she was, she came, and she conquered she is and she will always be. One of the greatest points David made was in closing, As long as some one remembers you, your soul never dies. So we all write, reach out and remember. Again and again, my humble thanks to David for that part of their lives that will continue to illuminate the word friends forever.

***Sound Card—30 seconds—Autumn Leaves

or

On a Clear Day

The warm blanketing voice of Alicia A. Tish Mercer

(a)www.atmglobalresources.com

ATM Global Resources Founded and Established by Alicia A. Mercer (1996? 2009)

President and CEO—ATM Global Resources—Extended—Her legacy lives on

(ATM Global Resources—Extended) does not conclude her person but continues to follow in her footsteps.

ATM Global web site shut down in April of 2011. That part of her life may have closed but the memories she left behind are etched into the stones of her history, never to be forgotten.

(a) A sound chip presentation from the CD of A Tish Mercer and the media files of ATM Global Resources web page.

(a) A sound chip presentation from the CD of A Tish Mercer and the media files of ATM Global Resources web page.

Opening the Door to Celebrate Her Life

I have personally requested written contributions or submissions

from so many people.

What better way to start a biography about the life of someone so special than to ask the people in her life to contribute their personal stories. It was like pulling alligator teeth. I have requested written contributions or submissions from friends, family and co-workers. This request was made by mail, by phone call and I have bombarded their e-mail boxes with e-mail request. The options were easy. You could tell me something, a story if you will about the relationship and the life that you shared. You could write something about her or about you that draws attention to how she might have impacted your live. Or, I could do this lengthy interview like the one I did with my mom. Mom didn’t know it was an interview because she was just talking about her daughters. I’ve asked a lot of people a lot of questions. I made a lot of phone calls and I went through a lot of paperwork. Wanting so much not to fail her because my sister would have never given up, the efforts continued even when folks didn’t know that we were still trying to build. Somehow expecting folks on a list roughly prepared to volunteer to open up was a lot more difficult that one could imagine. Expecting something, anything at all, reflecting on how she would ever say no, never turn anyone down and she was always there for someone we still fell short. The names on the list limit the true identity but the request went out to each one of them repeatedly. We used what we had and by God’s grace there is so much to say about this remarkable woman, as the words begin go flow and stories began to bubble up from memories, conversations and past experiences her life unfolded.

Still expecting folks on the list below to make a contribution; pursuing those bits and pieces like a gentle demand continued only because I believed that she was very special to them. Tish was always there for somebody. Even before she became ill and no one knew much her health was changing her day to day activities, she still gave of her time and herself. Just so you know, there were a couple of people on this list that fed me really good Tish Mercer stuff, and there are others who just forgot about her. Perhaps it was me but this book was not and is not about me. The truth is in the pages. The last names are deleted to protect the intent of innocence. Those who failed their expectations are guilty. And they know who they are. All we wanted you to do was remember your sister or your friend with love. In her life she remembered so many people so often. All we wanted you to do was remember her!

As the pages of A Warm Blanket gentle open its’ petals to the sunlight of celebrating life she is being remembered. She is being remembered in her youth, in her profession in her romance and in her many worldly experiences. She is being remembered.

And as she is remember one might recall her brother Halahliel (Gregory) wrote something that was reprinted from the home going. She was the home he lived in and the place where he brought friends and family whenever he was in America. I managed to squeeze some emotions out of a few family members but it was like mock interviews. Her oldest sister wanted to do a journal but it’s not about her like it’s not about me. Other family members like her cousin, her nephew took what they could and scurried away like roaches when the lights come on. The friends that I believed would write something since the celebration of life affair that was planned for several months after the home going wasn’t going to happen because of finances. The Estate bills were kicking us