SHADOWS OF THE PAST AND HOPE FOR THE FUTURE: OPHELIA'S PROFILE OF SERVICE

By Ophelia Simon Averitt

There was a young girl who moved from Alabama to Akron, her name was Ophelia Simon. She was a graduate of Patterson School of Nursing, promoting health and beauty in her boutique designed to put people on A Journey into Better Health. For years she wrote a column as a health advisor entitled, "You are what You Think and What You Eat." For all her affiliates throughout her life she put forth an endless effort to express to ALL Children that an Education, good character, respect, and attitude is the greatest life lesson to all is set by example. She was recognized as one of the most influential women in Northeast Ohio by the Cleveland Foundation.

She was introduced to the inner workings of the NAACP when she was very young becoming a member at age 3. It became her passion. She became involved. Ophelia came from a family of, Civil Rights Activists As a member at an early age stamping out injustice wherever it appeared she is dedicated to her beliefs that all people of all ages, races, colors, and creeds are entitled to the same quality of Life.

After volunteering for over 21 years as the President of The Akron NAACP Chapter she continues to solicitate for the organization, raising memberships and Life Memberships for the organization. She helped establish five new NAACP Youth Chapters, including one at the University of Akron. She was given a seat on the NAACP National Board. Throughout her life she continues to try daily to emphasize to others to make the world a better place for everyone as she encourages those who read this book, to be inspired to encourage all others to do the same.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Covenant Books, Inc.
• Release date: Dec 16, 2022
• ISBN: 9781638858270

Book preview

Table of Contents

Title

Copyright

The Magic Word

Preamble

Ophelia's Family Background

Ophelia's Parents and Their Roots

Early Childhood

Adulthood

A Lifetime of Volunteerism and Many of Those Who Helped Her Give Service to Others

Summit County Juvenile Court Judge Linda Tucci Teodosio Observes Black History Month and Women's History Month

Believe in Yourself

About the Author

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SHADOWS OF THE PAST AND HOPE FOR THE FUTURE

OPHELIA'S PROFILE OF SERVICE

Ophelia Simon Averitt

ISBN 978-1-63885-828-7 (Hardcover)

ISBN 978-1-63885-827-0 (Digital)

Copyright © 2022 Ophelia Simon Averitt

All rights reserved

First Edition

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods without the prior written permission of the publisher. For permission requests, solicit the publisher via the address below.

Covenant Books

11661 Hwy 707

Murrells Inlet, SC 29576

www.covenantbooks.com

Special Thanks to Mrs. Barb Greene for her helping and encouraging me to write this book, a part of my life's journey. Thank you, my friend, for your help in telling my story.

The Magic Word

Attitude

It is our attitude at the beginning of a task which, more than

anything else, will affect its successful outcome.

It is our attitude toward life which

determines life's attitude toward us.

We are interdependent; it is impossible to succeed without

others, and it is our attitude toward others which will determine

their attitude toward us.

Before a person can achieve the kind of life he wants, he must

become that kind of individual. He must think, act, talk, walk, and

conduct himself in all of his affairs as would the person

he wishes to become.

The higher you go in any organization of value,

the better will be the attitude you will find.

Your mind can hold only one thought at a time; and since there

is nothing at all to be gained by being negative, be positive!

The deepest craving of human beings is to be needed, to feel

important, to be appreciated. Give it to them, and they'll return it to you.

Look for the best in new ideas. As someone said:

I've never met a person I couldn't learn something from.

Don't waste valuable time broadcasting personal problems.

It probably won't help you, and it cannot help others.

Don't talk about your health unless it's good.

We need the attitude of well-being, the confidence of a person who

knows where he is going. This will inspire those around you, and you

will find good things will begin happening to you.

For the next thirty days, treat everyone with whom you come in contact

as the most important person on earth. If you do this for thirty days,

you will do it for the rest of your life.

Preamble

To the prospective readers of my life's journey, I ask you to be open-minded. Read with a heart to understand what I have gone through trying to make the world a better place for all through volunteering and helping others regardless of race, creed, or color who strive to pursue a quality life.

Are you one of these? If not, start now to do as I tried to do and leave your mark, trying to make a difference in your community and in America. Can I count on you? If so, let me hear from you if you read this book and say you are trying to make a difference helping others wherever you are.

Ophelia's Family Background

Ophelia Amanda Simon Averitt hails from the warm sultry town of Demopolis, Alabama. If ever there was a fitting birthplace for this woman and leader who has made education, volunteerism, and civil rights the focal points of her life, it is Demopolis—so named by French migrants to honor democratic ideals as its meaning in Greek is the people's city. Ophelia grew up in a family rich with a diversity of cultures and experiences, a reverence for education, and a deep commitment to civil rights.

Her paternal grandfather, Nathaniel Eskridge, was Dutch and Irish, a Confederate soldier, who served in the Spanish–American War.

Her paternal grandmother, Amanda Eskridge, was of Mexican Indian heritage and did not speak English. Ophelia's maternal grandmother, Ophelia, was a teacher who died when her daughter, Carrie, was only eight years old. Nonetheless, she instilled in Carrie a quest for education and a desire to be engaged and a contributing member of her community.

As a child, Ophelia's mother, Carrie, was put in a boarding school for girls before going to Talladega School for formal education. She taught in Faunsdale, Alabama, later coming back to Demopolis as principal of Black Belt High School in the day and volunteer in the evening. She loved to keep busy helping others. Her father was a hardworking restaurant owner and farmer.

Ophelia's maternal grandfather, Mathew Hamilton, was a well-educated and a good friend of Booker T. Washington. Together and with others, Hamilton and Booker T. Washington were instrumental in establishing the Alabama Club International for Tuskegee University. In later years, they also raised funds to support the civil rights work in the community. The letters they exchanged are part of the historical records in Alabama.

Ophelia's parents were Caroline Carrie and Arthur Simon. As a child, her mother, Carrie, was sent to Talladega Boarding School for girls, where she learned to speak four languages. She became a beloved teacher and principal in Demopolis. She spent many of her evenings as a volunteer teacher, extending the opportunity benefits of education to others, and to do so at a time when the farmers weren't working. Carrie's dedicated time teaching helping others acquire skills that earned them extra income and pursue new lines of work and even to start their own businesses.

Carrie and Arthur Simon provided their daughters, Ophelia and Cora, and son, Mathew, with a rich and loving childhood, where education, civil rights, and service to others were essential priorities.

They reminded their children that helping others was a service to be given daily for God, and He would bless them as they helped others. This was a daily reminder.

Ophelia's Parents and Their Roots

Life can be as unpredictable as the wind, swaying of the leaves on the trees. You can never know where you may be going and when you may get there, and in what condition you will be in as you look around and say, Now what?

Often your roots have so much to do with your direction in life. Keep in mind what you want out of life as you go from day to day and year to year. As we mature, we change minds many