Phoenix Lodge # 703

Count Constantine was a French philosopher, historian & politican during the mid 18th century, and on his trip to Africa he commented on the Sphinx during the 1700's (that tiger looking thing in Egypt, saying) "It is upon seeing that head [the sphinx of Giza] typically negr0e in all it's features, i remember the remakable passage of Heroditus, the Ancient Egyptians were true negr0es of the same type as all native born Africans Just to think that this race of Black men today, are slaves & the object of scorn,, the very race to which we owe the origins of our arts, sciences & even the use of speech"

Today we remember Dr. Daniel Hale Williams, born January 18, 1856 in Hollidaysburg, Pennsylvania. He was an African-American general surgeon, and the first phys...ician to successfully perform open-heart surgery on a patient. In 1891 Williams also opened the nation’s first non-segregated hospital with a nursing and intern program, Provident Hospital and Training School for Nurses, in Chicago, Illinois. We Thank You for all that you've done. Ann Tripp Tune in http://bit.ly/WBLSLive1

Today we remember the late Emily Jazmin Tatum Perez, the first female minority Cadet Command Sergeant Major in the history of the United States Military Academy... at West Point. She died during a deployment to Iraq in 2006 as a Medical Service Corps officer at age 23. A makeshift bomb exploded near her Humvee. Lt. Perez graduated from Oxon Hill High School in Maryland, where she was wing commander of Junior ROTC. She was born February19 1983 in Heidelberg, West Germany, of African American and Hispanic parents in a U.S. military family. Happy Belated Birthday 2nd Lt. Emily Jazmin Tatum Perez. **Lieutenant Perez's military awards include the Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Army Commendation Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, and the Combat Action Badge. She posthumously received the NCAA Award of Valor in 2008.** Thank You for your time and dedication to our country and the doors you opened in the process. We salute you. Ann Tripp Tune in http://bit.ly/WBLSLive1

Matthew 6:22 But the lamp of the body is the eye; therefore if your eye shall be sound, your whole body also will be illuminated.

BOLD: "Stagecoach" Mary Fields (1832-1914), the first African American mail carrier (male or female) in the United States Mary Fields began her life as a slave ...in Tennessee in 1832, the exact date is unknown. Mary’s mother Susanna was the personal servant to the plantation owner’s wife, Mrs. Dunnes. The plantation wife also had a daughter who was born within two weeks of Mary, and named Dolly. Mrs. Dunne allowed the children to play together. Over the years Mary was taught to read and write and the two girls became best friends. At sixteen, Dolly was sent to boarding school in Ohio and Mary was left all alone. Mary’s father worked in the fields on the Dunnes’ farm. He was sold after Mary was born. Mary’s mother wanted her daughter to have a last name, so since her father Buck worked in the fields, her mother decided her last name should be Fields. So thus Mary Fields came to be. After Mary’s mother passed away, Mary became the head of the household at the young age of fourteen. After Dolly went away to boarding school, The Civil War began. The slaves were left to fend for themselves. It was during this time that she learned many life survival skills. She learned how to garden, raise chickens and practice medicine with natural herbs. Around the age of 30 Mary heard from her dear friend Dolly. Dolly was now a nun and was renamed Sister Amadaus. The Sister asked Mary to join her at a convent in Ohio. Mary immediately began her twenty-day trip from Tennessee to Ohio. Mary remained with the Ursuline Sisters for many years even when Dolly relocated to the St. Peter’s Mission in Montana. Mary never married and she had no children. The nuns were her family. She protected the nuns. Mary wanted to follow her friend to Montana, but was told it was too remote and rustic. However, that all changed when Mother Amadaus became ill with pneumonia and wrote to Mary asking for her support and healing. Mary wasted no time and departed for Montana by stagecoach in 1885. At 53 years old Mary started her new life in Montana. Mary helped nurse Mother Amadaus back to health. The sisters were all in amazement of this tough black woman. Mary was no stranger to rolling a cigar, shooting guns and drinking whiskey. She grew fresh vegetables that were enjoyed by the Sisters and the surrounding community. Mary was forced to leave her beloved mission and the Sisters after a shooting incident. Mary shot in self-defense, and was found innocent, but had to find a new home. Wells Fargo had the mail contract during that time and was looking for someone for the Great Falls to Fort Benton route to deliver the U.S. Mail. It was a rough and rugged route and would require a person of strong will and great survival skills to maneuver the snowy roads and high winds. Mary immediately applied at the ripe age of 60 years old. It was rumored that she could hitch a team of horses faster than the boys half her age and due to her toughness, she was hired! Mary became the first African American mail carrier in the United States and the second woman. Mary was proud of the fact that her stage was never held up. Mary and her mule Moses, never missed a day and it was during this time that she earned the nickname of Stagecoach, for her unfailing reliability. The townspeople adopted Mary as one of their own. They celebrated her birthday twice a year since she didn’t know the exact date of her real birthday. Mary Fields was known as Black Mary and Stagecoach Mary. She was considered an eccentric even in these modern times. She was six feet tall and over 200 pounds. By the time she was well known in Central Montana, she had a pet eagle, a penchant for whiskey, baseball (which was a new sport at the time) and a heart as big as the gun she was famous for carrying. Mary wore a buffalo skin dress that she made herself you might say she drew attention wherever she went even in a small western pioneer town. Mary was a local celebrity and her legend and tales of her adventures were known by surrounding communities and neighboring states. Gary Cooper (the actor) had his mail delivered by Mary as a young boy in Cascade County. As an adult, he wrote about her for Ebony Magazine in 1955. Her wrote of her kindness and his admiration for her. The famous western artists Charlie Russell drew a sketch of her. It was a pen and ink sketch of a mule kicking over a basket of eggs with Mary looking none to happy. Mary retired her post in 1901 and passed away in 1914. She is buried at Highland Cemetery at St. Peter’s Mission. Her grave is marked with a simple cross.

Wishing W.G.M. Sis. Anita Shannon a very Happy Birthday today !