During Black History Month every year we get the opportunity to honor the legacy of Mary Washington, a nurse and advocate for seniors, and for whom our Mary Williams Community Senior Center is named.
Washington grew up in Charlottesville and wanted to be a nurse. Because she was Black she couldn’t attend school here to become one, so she had to move away to fulfill that ambition. When she returned with her degree she found that she had to leave town again because she couldn’t find a job here. After a successful career elsewhere, she retired and returned to Charlottesville, only to discover that many seniors, especially Black seniors, had no adequate place where they could gather, have lunch, and socialize. There was a senior center located at the Jefferson School, but the space was in such disrepair that the local Health Department had threatened to close it down. So Williams helped organize a protest downtown demanding that the City help provide a senior center, and with signs in hand she and her fellow seniors headed to a City Council meeting to voice their concerns.
“I could not attend school here to get a nursing degree, so I had to leave town,” Williams told Councilors. “When I returned as a nurse, I could not get a job because I was Black. I had to leave town again. Now, I’m back and don’t tell me I have to leave my town again to go to a senior center.”
In 2011, William’s granddaughter, Michele Gibson, joined former JABA CEO Gordon Walker at the opening exhibit for the new Jefferson School City Center, where he announced that JABA’s Charlottesville senior center located in the building would be named in honor of Williams.
“Mary and her colleagues in arms were women of dignity, pride and self-determination; virtues honed by an era of segregation, yet motivated at the time to seek a better future,” said Walker.
While JABA’s Mary Williams Community Senior Center is no longer located at the Jefferson School, having moved into a newly renovated space at JABA’s main offices on Hillsdale Drive, Williams’ legacy is still alive and well.
“Ms. Williams was a wonderful leader in advocating for the needs of seniors, both at the community level, and even within the center to expand activities of interest, something that continues today,” says current JABA CEO Marta Keane. “It is wonderful to honor another strong woman of color, who made such an impact on her community, in so many ways. We are glad that Mrs. Williams set her sights on helping create a space for seniors in Charlottesville, and we are glad to honor her by naming our Charlottesville/Central Albemarle Community Center for all her efforts and wisdom.”