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TO RECOGNIZE AND HONOR LUCILLE SIMMONS WHIPPER, THE FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN WOMAN ELECTED TO REPRESENT CHARLESTON COUNTY IN THE STATE'S GENERAL ASSEMBLY, AND TO REMEMBER HER SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS AS SHE SERVED THE EDUCATIONAL NEEDS OF THE GREATEST RESOURCE IN THE PALMETTO STATE, OUR CHILDREN.
Whereas, it is altogether fitting that the South Carolina House of Representatives should pause in its deliberation to acknowledge the pioneering impact of Lucille Simmons Whipper, the first African-American woman elected to represent Charleston County in the South Carolina House of Representatives; and
Whereas, born in Charleston on June 6, 1928, Lucille was the daughter of Joseph Simmons and Sarah Marie Washington and graduated from Avery Normal Institute in 1944. She earned a degree in sociology and economics from Talladega College in Alabama, and upon being awarded a scholarship to the University of Chicago, she traveled north, earning a master's degree in political science there in 1955; and
Whereas, in 1957, she married a widower with five children, the late Reverend Dr. Benjamin J. Whipper, Sr. They were proud parents of those children and of another child who blessed their union: Reverend Dr. Benjamin J. Whipper, Jr.; Ogretta Whipper Hawkins; Rosmond Whipper-Black; the Honorable J. Seth Whipper; Cheryl Whipper Hamilton; and D'Jaris D. Whipper-Lewis; and
Whereas, from 1949 to 1972, Mrs. Whipper served as a social studies teacher and high school counselor, and in 1972, she began serving at the College of Charleston as assistant to the president and director of the Office of Human Relations; and
Whereas, she interrupted her work at the College of Charleston from 1976 to 1978 to serve efforts of public education again, this time as director of Project ESSA (Elementary and Secondary School Act), a multimillion-dollar federal project which set up model school programs across Charleston County Schools. In 1978, she returned to the College of Charleston and retired from there in 1981; and
Whereas, devoted to her community and to the importance of education, Mrs. Whipper served as a member of the school board for District 20 of Charleston County Schools, her first real experience with politics. She also served in a number of appointed positions, including the South Carolina Mental Health Commission and the South Carolina Human Affairs Commission; and
Whereas, in 1986, she was elected as the first African-American woman to serve Charleston County as a member of the House of Representatives for House District 109, and she remained in office until 1996; and
Whereas, among her many honors, Mrs. Whipper was inducted into the South Carolina Black Hall of Fame in 1995 and received the Order of the Palmetto in 1996, the highest honor that may be given to a civilian by the State of South Carolina. Now, therefore,
Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:
That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, recognize and honor Lucille Simmons Whipper, the first African-American woman elected to represent Charleston County in the state's General Assembly, and remember her significant contributions as she served the educational needs of the greatest resource in the Palmetto State, our children.
Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Lucille Simmons Whipper.
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