Author: Sudeepto Chakraborty

Cecil Poole was born in Birmingham, Alabama, on July 25, 1914 and was the youngest of three siblings. He was four years old when his family moved to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where he would spend the rest of his childhood. Poole was involved in the black empowerment movement throughout his life, beginning with his membership in the Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity at the University of Michigan, the first African American Greek lettered fraternity, and the founding of the Gamma Chi Lambda graduate chapter in San Francisco. Continue reading “JUDGE CECIL POOLE”

William Henry Reno was a proud member of the Western Addition who valued his relationships within the community and connecting with its members. In the Fillmore community, Reno was a beloved businessman, and he strove to incorporate the sense of community he felt into his business. He strove to maintain a sense of community even as community in the Fillmore was being diminished by outside figures. Continue reading “WILLIAM HENRY RENO”

Small in stature yet resilient in spirit and tenacious in style, Mary Helen Rogers became known as the mother of the Western Addition and fought for its preservation as an African American business and cultural hub. Born and raised in Texas, Mary married in 1945, and moved to San Francisco in 1965 with her husband and their twelve children. Continue reading “MARY HELEN ROGERS”

Former San Francisco Police Chief Prentice Earl Sanders was a prominent influencer in the San Francisco Police Department’s homicide department for decades before being named chief by Mayor Willie L. Brown in 2002. Numerous accomplishments, including his role in promoting the civil rights work for San Francisco’s Officers for Justice, earned Sanders a place on the Inspiration murals at the Ella Hill Hutch Community Center in the Western Addition.  Continue reading “CHIEF PRENTICE EARL SANDERS”

Thomatra Scott, a youth program coordinator for the Economic Opportunity Council’s (EOC) Multiservice Center, broke the status quo to elicit a change within his community. He was an advocate for kids in education, health, housing, employment, human rights, prison reform and cultural/ethnic issues. Continue reading “THOMATRA SCOTT”

Joseph Floyd ‘Bunny’ Simon, a man of humble beginnings, born on November 24, 1928, into a family of 16 in Lake Charles, Louisiana, became an ambitious entrepreneur who opened multiple jazz clubs across the city of San Francisco. Long before he earned the moniker ‘Bunny,’ his parents Elizabeth and Alcide Simon had nicknamed him ‘Bonnie,’ a Creole term of endearment. Continue reading “JOSEPH ‘BUNNY’ SIMON”

Thelma and Benjamin Smith earned their place on the Ella Hill Hutch Community Center Inspiration murals for their extraordinary influence as parents in the community (Ness). Continue reading “THELMA AND BENJAMIN SMITH”

Phillip Arnold Smith was an inspirational basketball player and remarkable man. He was born on April 22, 1952, in San Francisco to Benjamin and Thelma Smith. Smith was the second youngest of nine children. Growing up, his love for basketball was immense. According to his brother, Stephen Smith, basketball was “probably the biggest thing on the planet.” Continue reading “PHIL SMITH”