Blog archive
October 2024
ARBORIST WALK: NOT FOR TREE HUGGERS ONLY!
10/29/2024
Bill Wishner: Visual Hunter
10/29/2024
Can a Village Group Fix Our Healthcare System?
10/29/2024
Community Board Directors Strengthen Village Board
10/29/2024
Connecting with Village Connections: The A, B, C, & D’s of Medicare @ 65+
10/29/2024
Grief is a Journey: Two Paths Taken
10/29/2024
Message from the President
10/29/2024
Promoting Informed & Involved Voters
10/29/2024
What Will Be Your Legacy?
10/29/2024
1619, Approaching the Election...
10/27/2024
Beyond and Within the Village - A Star is Born
10/17/2024
Happiness by Priscilla Leonard
10/11/2024
Those Winter Sundays by Robert Hayden
10/11/2024
Unpainted Door by Louise Gluck
10/11/2024
In the Evening by Billy Collins
10/10/2024
Wild Geese by Mary Oliver
10/10/2024
Betty Kilby, A Family History
10/01/2024
Betty Kilby, A Family History
10/01/2024
Betty Kilby, A Family History
10/01/2024
September 2024
Connecting with Village Connections
09/30/2024
Betty Kilby, A Family History
09/27/2024
Reflection on Life
09/20/2024
Expanding the Possibilities
09/19/2024
Need a Ride? No Problem!
09/17/2024
Security When Aging (Especially If You Are Single)
09/17/2024
The Bridge Begins at Thanksgiving
09/17/2024
The Power of Collective Service: Putting the Village First
09/17/2024
Tino Melchor - A Mentor for Young Teens in the Making
09/17/2024
Village Party Bus Delivers FUN
09/17/2024
We Don’t Know What We Don’t Know: That’s Why We Have Educational Programs
09/17/2024
On Rereading Tolle by Ed Rinderle
09/10/2024
Autumn Leaves
09/09/2024
August 2024
1619 Wide Ranging Interests
08/19/2024
1619 Wide Ranging Interests
08/19/2024
First Anniversary
08/19/2024
Alexandra Leaving by Leonard Cohen
08/16/2024
Muse des Beaux Arts by W. H. Auden
08/16/2024
The God Abandons Antony by Constantinos P. Cavafy
08/16/2024
Ch – Ch – Ch –Changes
08/15/2024
Cultural Activities Team offers an ‘embarrassment of riches’
08/15/2024
Engaging in Pasadena Village
08/15/2024
Future Housing Options
08/15/2024
Message from the President
08/15/2024
There Are Authors Among Us
08/15/2024
Villagers Welcome New Members at the Tournament Park Picnic
08/15/2024
Do Not Go Gentle Into That Good Night by Dylan Thomas
08/14/2024
A narrow Fellow in the Grass by Emily Dickinson
08/13/2024
Haikus
08/13/2024
One Art by Elizabeth Bishop
08/13/2024
Poem 20 by Pablo Neruda
08/13/2024
Still I Rise by Maya Angelou
08/13/2024
Trees by Joyce Kilmer
08/13/2024
July 2024
Alma Stokes, The Struggle in Pasadena
07/25/2024
A Poetry Gathering: Liberating Experiences Available
07/19/2024
Civil Rights Movement Series
07/19/2024
Happy Hours in Pasadena: A Villager’s Perspective
07/19/2024
Pasadena Village and the National Dialogue on Villages and Healthy Aging Research
07/19/2024
President's Message
07/19/2024
The Kern River Rafting Caper
07/19/2024
The Village Artists Group creates creative camaraderie
07/19/2024
An Example of Inherent Racism
07/14/2024
Current, Upcoming Events
07/04/2024
June 2024
No Real Recourse For Discrimination
06/30/2024
A Personal Statement of Strength and Well-Being
06/25/2024
Juneteenth Reflections
06/24/2024
Reflections on 2023-2025
06/21/2024
Reactions and Reflections Re: Juneteenth
06/19/2024
As Our Organization Grows, Villagers Recall Personal Highlights
06/17/2024
From the Outgoing President
06/17/2024
Letter from the Incoming President: Beginning Our ‘Lagniappe’ Year
06/17/2024
The Editorial Team Looks Back: Creating the Voice of the Village
06/17/2024
This Year's Resource Fair was the Most Successful Ever
06/17/2024
Telling the Whole Story
06/12/2024
Nashville
06/10/2024
May 2024
Emergency Preparedness: Are You Ready?
05/28/2024
Farewell from the 2023/24 Social Work Interns
05/28/2024
Gina on the Horizon
05/28/2024
Mark Your Calendars for the Healthy Aging Research California Virtual Summit
05/28/2024
Meet Our New Development Associate
05/28/2024
Putting the Strategic Plan into Practice
05/28/2024
Washington Park: Pasadena’s Rediscovered Gem
05/28/2024
Introducing Civil Rights Discussions
05/22/2024
Rumor of Humor #2416
05/14/2024
Rumor of Humor #2417
05/14/2024
Rumor of Humor #2417
05/14/2024
Rumor of Humor #2418
05/14/2024
Springtime Visitors
05/07/2024
Freezing for a Good Cause – Credit, That Is
05/02/2024
No Discussion Meeting on May 3rd
05/02/2024
An Apparently Normal Person Author Presentation and Book-signing
05/01/2024
Flintridge Center: Pasadena Village’s Neighbor That Changes Lives
05/01/2024
Pasadena Celebrates Older Americans Month 2024
05/01/2024
The 2024 Pasadena Village Volunteer Appreciation Lunch
05/01/2024
Woman of the Year: Katy Townsend
05/01/2024
April 2024
Rumor of Humor #2410
04/28/2024
Rumor of Humor #2411
04/28/2024
Rumor of Humor #2412
04/28/2024
Rumor of Humor #2413
04/28/2024
Rumor of Humor #2414
04/28/2024
Rumor of Humor #2415
04/28/2024
Rumor of Humor #2416
04/28/2024
Stimulated by "Caste"
04/22/2024
Tulsa reparations, Religion and Politics
04/09/2024
March 2024
Trumps War with Black Women
03/31/2024
Addressing The Needs of Older Adults Through Pasadena Village
03/25/2024
Coming Soon: More Resources for Older Americans, Online and in Person
03/25/2024
Community Building Locally and Nationally
03/25/2024
Preparing for the Future with Ready or Not
03/25/2024
Volunteering is at The Heart of the Village
03/25/2024
Women's Liberation: Then and Now
03/25/2024
Writing Memoirs Together
03/25/2024
Current Views on Current Events
03/20/2024
Unchained
03/18/2024
Rumr of Humor issue # 2409
03/10/2024
Blacks Portrayed by European Artists
03/03/2024
Rumor of Humor #2408
03/03/2024
February 2024
Caring for Ourselves and Each Other
02/27/2024
Doug Colliflower Honored
02/27/2024
Great Decisions Connects Us to the Worldwide Community
02/27/2024
Letter from the President
02/27/2024
Pasadena Village's Impact
02/27/2024
The Power of Touch
02/27/2024
Villages as a New Approach to Aging
02/27/2024
Addressing Gang Violence in Pasadena-Altadena
02/21/2024
Rumor of Humor Issue 2407
02/19/2024
Thank You For Caring.
02/12/2024
Rumor of Humor 2405
02/11/2024
Curve Balls
02/10/2024
Sylvan Lane
02/10/2024
Rumor of Humor 2404
02/09/2024
Larry Duplechan, Blacks in Film
02/03/2024
January 2024
Pasadena Village Joins Community Partners in Vaccination Campaign
01/29/2024
Rumor of Humor #2403
01/28/2024
Pasadena Village Joins Two Healthy Aging Resource Projects
01/25/2024
Decluttering: Do It Now
01/24/2024
Village Volunteers Contribute to the Huntington Magic
01/24/2024
Villagers Creating Community
01/24/2024
Villagers Reflect on Black History Month
01/24/2024
Walk With Ease, 2024
01/24/2024
Wide Ranging Discussion on Current Issues
01/22/2024
Wide Ranging Discussion on Current Issues
01/22/2024
Rumor of Humor # 2402
01/21/2024
Rumor of Humor # 2401
01/15/2024
Re- Entry Programs, a Personal Experience
01/08/2024
Cousins. One Family, Two Branches
By Blog MasterPosted: 05/13/2021
Meeting Notes by Sharon Jarrett.
The group met on May 7, 2021 at 10:00. There were 30 participants.
This meeting was recorded and the link is below.
The group was welcomed by Dick Myers, who introduced the topic of the session which was the book, Cousins: Connected Through Slavery, published by Walnut Street Books. He introduced the authors, Betty Kilby Baldwin and Phoebe Kilby.
Betty began by indicating that the African American Kilby family members knew about the white family members, however, the white family members discovered their African American family.
Phoebe then shared the discovery story. Since 2006, Phoebe has worked with the Center for Justice and Peace at Eastern Mennonite University and been a member of “Coming to the Table”, a community based organization focused on racial reconciliation and peace building.
She began by sharing that her family did not talk about slavery. She did not think of her family as slave owners but, realized, in hindsight, she “should have known”. She based this on the racial attitudes of the family, the fact that they owned farm land in Virginia across generations and that there were African Americans with the last name Kilby in the Shenandoah Valley. These Kilbys were well known due to community and Civil Rights activism. This activism included Betty and her brother being involved in the desegregation of the Warren County School District. Phoebe’s research began with the current African American family members.
Beginning with census records, she discovered her great, great grandfather LeRoy, owned two slaves. For more information and with the help of a genealogist, she used court records including wills and bills of sale to discover an ancestor she suspected was a common ancestor to both branches of the family. (DNA testing has confirmed this white male ancestor fathered children with an enslaved female, Juliette). During this period, Phoebe discovered the book, “Wit, Wills and Walls” by Betty Kilby Fischer (now Baldwin). She found what she described as “hints” in the book, eventually learning that the white and black Kilby families lived within a mile of one another.
Phoebe shared her research with her “Coming to the Table” group, who encouraged her to contact Betty. Phoebe determined that email would be the best way to contact Betty as it allowed Betty time to process the information. Email offered and gave her the chance to determine how to respond. Having received no response to her first email, Phoebe tried again indicating “someone needs to apologize and maybe that person is me”. Shortly, Phoebe received an email with the subject line “Hello Cousin”. Betty began her response with, “We are the key to healing”. Phoebe indicated after reading the email, she felt no fear and saw Betty as “just like me only a different color.”.
Betty and Phoebe then shared a documentary film “Wit, Will and Walls: The Betty Kilby Fischer Story.” The documentary was produced to honor the fiftieth anniversary of the desegregation of the Warren County Virginia Schools. Betty Kilby was the first African American female to attend this high school. On the fiftieth anniversary, a plaque was placed in front of the school indicating the history.
Moving to the present day, Phoebe shared that her view of reparations was making amends, making repairs as personal, local and national. As a personal act, she established a scholarship fund in 2014 to help the descendants of the enslaved Kilbys attend college. At present, seven descendants have received scholarships with one having graduated already.
Betty and Phoebe have decided that any proceeds they receive from the sale of their book “Cousins” will go to the fund.
A discussion followed:
● A question was asked about the reactions of the two branches of the family to the book and talks given by Betty and Phoebe. They indicated the reactions were mixed with some family members participating and others “not getting on board”. Phoebe indicated that her family members were supportive.
● Betty shared that Wit, Will and Walls had been self published and sales are handled through a website. Cousins was published by Walnut Press and easier to obtain.
● Betty and Phoebe shared that Guidepost Magazine had an article about their story and book.
● As a concluding thought, Betty and Phoebe offered the following “we have to come to grips with our past (at our own pace).
View the Video by clicking on this link Cousins Presentation
On our June 4th meeting at 10AM, we will have another speaker. Linda Pope did her undergraduate work at Overland College. She graduated from Ohio State Medical School in Ophthalmology and completed her Residency at Baylor College, in Houston, Texas. She then opened a private practice in Houston, Texas, where she is affiliated with Baylor College of Medicine and the Houston Medical Center. Linda is the daughter of David Pope, who played successfully in the Negro League and Major League Baseball with the Cleveland Indians and the Baltimore Orioles. Linda has participated in a mission in Central Africa, providing eye care to local residents on several occasions. This life experience has given her a rich story to tell us about and provide perspective that we can share. We look forward to Linda's presentation.