Black History Series: Legacy Matters & The Art of History

Legacy Matters. Tell Your Story–Everybody Has a Foot Locker: Presented by Juanita Stroud Martin

Sharing family history is an invaluable means of passing on to coming generations the skills, values, dreams, and strengths that previous generations employed to overcome obstacles to success. The Stroud family of Colorado Springs exemplifies this strategy.

The Art of History: Presented by Ashley Cornelius

Poetry has always been a way to capture and preserve history. This presentation will explore Payne Chapel and its significance for the Black Community and highlight influential Black leaders, Fannie Mae Duncan, Lulu Pollard, Vera Gary Scott, and the McRae Sisters. You’ll learn about these incredible women through history and poetry.

About Juanita Stroud Martin:

As young children, my three siblings and I left Colorado Springs to live in Detroit, Michigan, with our mother and step-father. After graduating from high school with honors, I enlisted in the Navy for 4 years and was honorably discharged as a Yeoman 2nd Class. I have seven children and am married to Greg Johnson. I graduated with honors from three colleges in Philadelphia and attained an MS Degree in Elementary Education from the University of Pennsylvania. Greg and I have volunteered KRCC programming in the past and have volunteered ethnic programming on Comcast Channel 17 for well over 25 years. I am retired from the El Paso County Department of Social Services.

About Ashley Cornelius:

Ashley Cornelius is the Pikes Peak Region Poet Laureate and is a Licensed Professional Counselor (LPC). Ashley is a nationally recognized and awarded spoken-word poet and facilitator; her poetry reflects her intersectionality as a Black queer woman, and is committed to increasing access and invisibility for BIPOC and queer artists. Ashley received the Bee an Arts Champion Award from the Bee Vradenburg Foundation in 2021 and the Lyndon E e Music and Arts Influence Award in 2022. She is the 2019 winner of the Colorado Springs Independent Best of Artist Category and a two-time TEDx speaker. Ashley grew up in Colorado in Colorado Springs and is excited about the way poetry has shaped her experiences and aims to create spaces for others to feel connected and joyous through art.