On Legacy: Queen Mother Moody-Shepherd Returns

This weekend I traveled to Pennsylvania to spend some time with my

son and his wife, Cynthia. Family is vital to me, and I have

learned to prioritize spending time with my children. Cyndi invited me

to watch the history of the Alpha Kappa Alpha (AKA) Sorority Incorporated, "TWENTY PEARLS," on Netflix. It reminded me that I had neglected that family: the one that I had become a member of 61 years ago at Alabama State University (then Alabama State College) in Montgomery, Alabama. We watched the history and legacy of AKA's that featured the nine incredible founders of the first African-American Greek sorority at Howard University. The heritage of my sisters and how they continue to be trailblazers reminded me of my legacy. I can proudly say that this sisterhood helped shape me during my formative years. Viewing the history of this historic sorority reminded me of my own family

legacy and the birth of my first great-granddaughter. In one of my previous blog posts, I shared a picture of four generations of my maternal line. My mother was the matriarch in that picture, and now I have lived to be in her seat. My great-granddaughter was born on September 13, 2020, in Sharon, Connecticut, where both her grandmother Wendy and mother Rachel were born. Rachel and her husband Kadeem Rodgers, named

her Amelia Simone.

After a refreshment on the history of my sorority, I started looking at the legacy that I will leave for my great-granddaughter. I took a trip down memory lane and met the child in Alabama who was exposed to a community that was still in the shadows of enslavement, striving to develop self-sustainability and self-reliance. Jane and Jim Crow were the law of the world that she lived in and navigated down in the Heart of Dixie. Despite these constraints, there was a powerful energy of an underground movement to change the world

for future generations. My mother introduced me to the world

outside of Alabama and the United States through her love of reading.

Through the mentoring of so many wise people in my community, I

was inducted into the underground railroad. I began an odyssey of

seeking freedom and working toward making the world a better and more

just place for all people. Education was available to most people and

was seen as a path to the development of future leaders. I started on

that trajectory of education and leadership training with the help of my

family, church, and local educational institutions. In 1958 I reached

two of my first milestones by participating in the Civil Rights

Movement at Alabama State University(College) and the Alpha Kappa

Alpha Sorority Incorporated. Entering into the sisterhood of the Beta Pi Chapter, I learned the ethical principles of leadership and what it meant to prepare to be a trailblazer.

Folks, I think this will give Amelia a peep into her legacy.