Leona Ford Washington facts for kids
Leona Ford Washington (born 1928, died August 5, 2007) was a special person who helped her community in Texas. She started the McCall Neighborhood Center in El Paso. Leona also taught school for 39 years in the El Paso Independent School District. She even wrote a song called "The City of El Paso," which became the city's official song in the 1980s!
Leona Ford Washington's Early Life and Work
Leona Ford Washington was born in El Paso, Texas. She grew up in a neighborhood called Segundo Barrio. Later, she went to Prairie View A&M College, which is now called Prairie View A&M University.
Leona taught school for two years in Las Cruces. After that, she came back to El Paso. She began teaching at Douglass School. At that time, Douglass School was a "segregated" school. This means it was a school specifically for certain groups of people, as schools used to be separated.
In 1983, Leona started the McCall Neighborhood Center. She was the first leader of this center. The center helped both African American and Mexican American families in El Paso. Leona also took over a newspaper called The Southwest Torch Newspaper. She changed its name to The Good Neighbor Interpreter. This newspaper shared important news with the black community in El Paso.
How Leona Ford Washington is Remembered
Today, a recreation center in El Paso is named after Leona Ford Washington. It is located on East Missouri Avenue. A special foundation was also created in her name. This foundation helps high school students go to college.
In 1991, Leona also gave a very special gift. She donated over 800 old photographs to the University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP). These photos help us learn about history.
