Greetings, Friends.
My family and I still feel so lifted from your generosity and love since our beloved Congresswoman took her rest. Your heartwarming expressions were a comfort, reminding us of the immeasurable mark she left on Florida and the nation. As a trailblazer who relentlessly pushed for her people, Congresswoman Carrie Meek would want these touching remembrances to spark a seismic shift in the movement toward a society that serves EVERYONE. I carry that mandate with me as we enter this next era of her groundbreaking work.
The Congresswoman’s legacy challenges us to take action. Collective and community-led action is our focus as we follow Black History Month into Women’s History Month and a crucial year. Whether the redrawing of districts, protection of the sacred right to vote and a woman’s right to choose, or even whose history is taught in our children’s classrooms, the next decade will serve those who get engaged now to implement sustainable change.
Women are ready for this moment. Look at Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, President Madeline Pumariega, and our homegrown historymaker, Ketanji Brown Jackson. Their decades of work in the trenches has prepared them to decisively step up when so much is at stake for women across the U.S. and here at home. They’re like the doctors, nurses and frontline workers who led the way out of this pandemic, or the mothers who have made churches a safe, nurturing haven in Black and Brown communities for generations. We can trust their leadership because they know the issues, they know the solutions, and they’ve been pushing to make them happen for years.
They’re also not alone. So many residents raise families, work full-time jobs and STILL show up to help their neighbors. That is what inspires me about what we saw through the Meek Mobilize Grants program. Our people aren’t waiting for government or even nonprofits; they’re taking personal responsibility to support those who need it most. That’s the level of commitment and tenacity that we need throughout 2022 and beyond.
When we organize block by block around what we care about, we galvanize the energy needed to push our priorities to the top. But it takes each one of us – many parts of the same body advancing a united agenda. So, what will be your brick? How will YOU work to build our people and communities in the years to come? Carrie Meek believed in Dr. King’s “fierce urgency of now,” so as we commemorate the invaluable role of women and Black people in shaping our society, let’s take this momentum and drive the change we want to see this year.
Lucia Davis-Raiford
President and CEO
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What is shaping our lives and communities today? The next decade of our history is being written right now, and those who step up to make it, just as Congresswoman Carrie Meek did, will be the ones who ultimately benefit from it.
To kick off the year, we’re recognizing Meek Movers, key Black leaders and women who are shaping current history in South Florida. They step up in their own way to make a difference, inspiring others through their extraordinary work and commitment to service. We’re grateful for their contribution to moving our community forward.
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On February 25, President Joe Biden nominated Judge Ketanji Brown Jackson to become the 116th Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Born in Washington, D.C., and raised in Miami, she graduated from Miami Palmetto Senior High School in 1988. When Judge Jackson, a debate team star and student body president, told her high school guidance counselor she wanted to attend Harvard, the guidance counselor warned that she should not set her “sights so high.” She ultimately graduated magna cum laude from Harvard University, then attended Harvard Law School, where she graduated with honors and was editor of the renowned Harvard Law Review.
Her parents were both graduates of historically Black colleges and universities. Her father, Johnny Brown, served as the chief attorney for the Miami-Dade County School Board. Her mother, Ellery, retired as principal at New World School of the Arts.
The Carrie Meek Foundation celebrates the historic nomination of this outstanding Miami-Dade County Public Schools graduate and shining product of the Greater Miami community!
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Dr. Simeon Richardson is a Senior Associate Professor of English and Developmental Reading. Richardson was born and raised in the South Dade area. An innate realist, he strives to balance creating and cultivating a love for literature with the pragmatics of reading and writing in the real world. For the past 10 years, Richardson’s courses have ensured that his students are heard and are able to walk out of the classroom knowing they are prepared for the next step in their academic career. He is a co-founder of his campus’s Black Male Initiative, and has worked diligently to improve the enrollment, persistence and graduation rates for all of his students, especially Black men.
We are proud to welcome Dr. Richardson into the family of Carrie P. Meek legatees!
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Former Congressman Kendrick Meek strolled out of the Range Funeral Home and threw both arms in the air like a championship boxer who had just retained his title. Minutes before, Meek had pinned a congressional brooch on his mother, U.S. Rep. Carrie P. Meek, who laid supine inside a copper-colored casket. Now, for the first time since setting foot inside the funeral home, a smile broke across Meek’s face, his eyes turning a bright scarlet and welling up.
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“This Woman’s Work: Women of Action and Heart”
Friday, March 18, 4 p.m. at CIC Miami
1951 Northwest 7th Avenue | Miami, FL 33136
Join URGENT, Inc. to celebrate Women’s History Month as they announce the winners of the 2022 Bronze Bra Award. Featured entertainment will showcase talented youth from URGENT’s Film Arts Culture Entrepreneurship (FACE) program and the Rites of Passage Media Project.
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FIU Women's Center Presents: Women Who Lead Conference 2022
Tuesday, Mar 15, 2022, 9:30 AM – Wed, Mar 16, 2022, 5:00 PM
FIU GC Ballrooms | 11200 Southwest 8th Street | Miami, FL 33199
Women Who Lead (WWL) is a two day leadership & career conference designed to enhance the personal, professional & academic leadership development of students at FIU. We achieve this by engaging students with experiences central to to diverse women and gender expansive people of all types including faculty, staff, alumni and professionals of all industries.
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Jazz In The Gardens 2022 Women's Impact Luncheon
Friday, 9:30 AM – 1:00 PM
Hard Rock Stadium | 347 Don Shula Dr | Miami Gardens, FL 33056
The City of Miami Gardens presents the Women’s Impact Luncheon. Join our Special Host Natasha Mayne & Special Guest Sarah Jakes at the Hard Rock Stadium on March 11th for this popular occasion that hosts women of all backgrounds and professions to mingle, shop, brunch, and sip.
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