- Date Of Birth: October 1, 1931
- Date Of Death: August 22, 2017
- State: New York
Lenora Morris was born on October 1, 1931 in Walterboro, South Carolina, the oldest child of Victoria Green Harrison. When Lenora would speak of her life in the south, she would often say she learned very early that the love of family was key in her potential to thrive and survive in the worst of circumstances.
She first moved to Philadelphia and stayed with family until she married and moved to Harlem, New York. In Harlem, her aunt Ella Wilson [Mommy] became her greatest support and cared for her children so that Lenora could work. As the family matriarch, in New York, Ella required that the family get together regularly no matter how small her apartment.
Lenora joined the Nation of Islam in 1963, shortly after hearing Malcolm X speak on the streets of Harlem. Upon joining the Nation of Islam, Lenora quickly rose up the ranks to the position of Lieutenant and became good friends with the wife of Malcolm X, Betty Shabazz. After Malcolm’s death, Lenora and family left the Nation of Islam and moved the family to Brooklyn.
Her entrepreneurial spirit evolved from jewelry design and watch repair to starting a Childcare business out of her home, which she maintained for more than 30 years. She became so adept at helping parents in their nurturing, that parents would tell the children “I am going to call Mommy Morris” when they misbehaved at home.
Our Family Protection Association was her first introduction to community organizing. It was an organization, which sought to bring the community of Harlem together to care for their families through service and social interaction. She learned the power of unity and working together for the empowerment of families and communities. In Brooklyn, she supported the African American Teachers Association as they sought to gain community control of schools. She produced fundraisers for many of the politicians in the neighborhood. She was also an integral part of the East Family and the starting of the first independent African American school in Brooklyn, Uhuru Sasa. A school where all of her children attended because it met her core values: family and community empowerment.
Lenora is predeceased by her husband James, mother Victoria, brothers James, Esdone, Clyde, Nathaniel, Christopher, and sister Geneva. Lenora leaves to celebrate her life, her children: Earl [Martha], James [Nadine], Kwame [Tracey], Omar [Chelesse], Herbert [Shirley], Melissa [Darryl], Arleyah and Rodney. Sisters Loann and Cynthia, Sisters-in-law: Dorothy and Linda. Grandchildren: Rashad, Tushema, Rahman, Khalil, Devin, Miles, Maya, Alexis, Brittany, Darryl Jr, Nicole, Kelly, Gregory Jr, Danielle, Nia, Zishon and Treyshon; eight great grandchildren, god-children: James and Jennifer, close family friends, and a host of other relatives and friends.
