The struggles and achievements of African-American families in Monmouth County is the subject of a new book by Dr. Walter D. Greason, a native of Freehold.
Area residents came together at Barnes & Noble, Freehold Township, on Feb. 8 to celebrate Black History Month and black pride with a visit from Greason, who came to speak about his book “The Path to Freedom.”
Greason was joined by the Voices of Hope choir from the New Hope Baptist Church, Freehold, and by youngsters from the New Jersey Orators Club who brought original compositions to share with the audience.
The event was coordinated by Lillie Ham Hendry, president of the board of trustees of the Court Street School Education Community Center, Freehold, and Barbara Knight, manager of Barnes & Noble.
The Court Street School Education Community Center was formed in 1990 as a nonprofit organization to restore the historic Court Street School for use as an education community center and to preserve the building as an African- American historic landmark. In 1995 the building was added to the National Register of Historic Sites.
The Voices of Hope choir was led by singer-musician Minister Donnie Henderson. The congregation is led by Vester L. Dock, pastor. Setting the stage for Greason’s talk, the program included gospel hymns led by choir member Kathy Copeland.
Original readings by members of the Freehold chapter of the New Jersey Orators Club were also presented. The Freehold chapter of the club was founded by Dr. Tunde Onitiri and his wife, Retha, in 2002. Students range from 7 to 18 years old.
Hendry said the orators program is important because it is “critical for young people to learn to express themselves clearly and precisely.”
Maya Gwynn, 13, of Lawrenceville, Imani Wideman, 12, of East Orange, and Brandon Williams, 11, of Manalapan, all shared their original compositions.
Williams spoke about the importance of reading, especially for young people.
Wideman called her piece “Failure Is Not an Option” and emphasized the importance of education.
Gwynn spoke about bullying in schools today.
Hendry then introduced Greason, noting that the author and professor was not only the evening’s guest speaker, he is also her nephew. Greason’s book is filled with references to the Ham family. Greason is an associate professor of history at Ursinus College, Collegeville, Pa., where he teaches American history and African- American history.
His talk focused on the history of African-Americans in Monmouth County. His research began in 1998 for “The Path to Freedom” and for an upcoming book, “Suburban Erasure, How Suburbia Ended the Civil Rights Movement in the North.”
Greason said his research involved “spending a great deal of time in dusty libraries and archives,” pulling together the bits and pieces of the history he wanted to make complete.
“There had not been a history written of Monmouth County in about 50 years and there had never been one written onAfrican-American history in Monmouth County,” he told the audience.
Greason said some African- American histories written by church officials existed, but never one by a historian or scholar.
“I saw many primary resources collected, but they were never put into a book,” he said.
The author gathered many of the photos that appear in his book from his mother, Wilma, and from his aunts, Hendry and Nicy Ham Russell.
Greason documents the lives and sacrifices made by many African-Americans who lived and made a difference in New Jersey, including those of the Russell, Ham and Brown families.
Hendry’s father, Walter Ham Sr., worked as a landscaper, butler and custodian, among other things. Greason said he was “an odd-job man.”
“He walked to where there was work available, and many times it was not less than five miles away from his home,” he said.
Hendry’s mother worked as a domestic.
Greason said the Ham boys went into the military and the girls went to college. Lillie participated in a Fulbright International Education Exchange program in England.
According to Greason’s book, when Lillie’s family moved to their dream home on Court Street in Freehold, they became the first black family to acquire a home outside of the traditionally African- American sections of Freehold.
The Ham family achieved other firsts in Freehold. Wilma, Greason’s mother, became the first African-American to serve on the Freehold Board of Education.
Greason said he wrote the book because “recording the history of African-Americans in New Jersey is important. I hope to show young people that every individual story matters. If they study history and study it seriously, they can change the world and save lives.” The book chronicles the struggles of people who, Greason said, “laid the foundation for my generation and for future generations ofAfrican-American families.”
“The opportunities I have had in my generation were unimaginable to families generations ago, but they always had those dreams that one day their grandchildren or greatgrandchildren would become engineers, doctors or attorneys. We all have the opportunities now and live those dreams because of their sacrifices,” he added.
Borough Council President George Schnurr, who attended the program, said, “Equality and fellowship do not spring up out of nowhere. We have to work at it every day. Events such as this highlight that valuable lesson for all of us— a lesson that we should try to incorporate into our everyday lives.”
Author Kevin Coyne of Freehold Borough, who is the town’s historian, said the program was “terrific.” Coyne said Greason’s family was an important family in Freehold Borough.
“It was gratifying to see them share their stories with a large audience. More people should know about these stories,” Coyne said.
Hendry said, “We wanted it to be a community involved event and we had a good representation of our community there. Everyone seemed to really be a part of the whole sprit of remembrance and pride. That’s why we are here at the Court Street School, making experiences people can enjoy and creating an atmosphere where people can come together.”