Who influenced your desire to give to charity?
Michael: Both of our families stressed the importance of giving back, whether it’s with one’s time or finances.
Debbie: I agree. As a kid I was a Girl Scout, and I was encouraged to raise money for March of Dimes and the Shriner’s Hospital. In college, I helped coordinate blood drives and book drives as service projects for my sorority. As soon as I graduated from Spelman College, my alma mater, I started making an annual financial contribution, which I continue to do.
But Michael and I also saw our parents and grandparents give repeatedly and continually at church. We were raised in families where financially supporting the church through tithing was a priority. Our parents and grandparents also gave to support missions and missionaries, as well as the United Negro College Fund, United Way and the NAACP. My mom, who is in her 70s, still volunteers for a food pantry in my hometown and is very active with the American Cancer Society.
You were among the first generation in your family to graduate from college. What does that mean to you?
Michael: In the 1960s, there was a strong feeling that the way to be successful in a great country with issues of race and class, one had to be educated. Both of our families made huge personal sacrifices so that we could accomplish what our parents and grandparents did not have the opportunity to do. There also was great family pride when their investment paid off.
So attending and graduating college was a priority for you.
Michael: From a very early age, we were raised to believe we had no choice but to complete college.
Debbie: Definitely. I grew up in Tuskegee, Alabama, home to Tuskegee University. I spent a lot of time on campus attending social events and educational enrichment activities.
I knew very early that education was important to my family, especially my grandmothers, and I didn’t want to disappoint them. For me, family vacations to Walt Disney World or Washington, D.C., often included college tours as a way to plant the seeds of going to college.
You also choose careers in education.
Michael: I have always known that I wanted to work with young people, so for over 30 years that’s what I have done. I love seeing potential turn into success. I love investing in young people, watching them develop and later encountering them as successful adults.
Debbie: Education is a second career for me. After several years of working in public relations, including as the public relations director for a local school district, I made a career change. The thing I enjoy most about teaching social studies is discussing current social issues with my students. Many of them already have strong and interesting opinions about topics, such as immigration, gun control, gay marriage and the legalization of marijuana. I talk with them about the importance of becoming registered voters and how that’s the way to bring about change on the issues that are important to them.
How are The Dayton Foundation and the African-American Community Fund helping you to help others?
Michael: They enable us to focus our giving and be more mindful about contributing to worthwhile causes.
Debbie: Michael and I share a belief that it’s important to help others, sometimes it’s by buying books for a school library or it’s writing a check. The Foundation and the African-American Community Fund provide vehicles for us to contribute to causes that are important to us and continue to support those causes long after we’re gone.
Why is helping others so important to you?
Debbie: We feel blessed to have had people who helped us achieve our goals. We want to be a blessing to others. We also think it’s important to set a good example for our children that giving is simply a part of what you do when you’ve been blessed.
What inspires you about this community?
Michael: Dayton is resilient and determined. Our community leaders are so committed to making the Dayton region great.
How would you complete this sentence, “My giving makes me feel____?”
Michael: …connected to our community.
Debbie: …blessed to be able to help others.
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