A house RESOLUTION

TO EXPRESS THE PROFOUND SORROW OF THE MEMBERS OF THE SOUTH CAROLINA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES UPON THE PASSING OF THOMASENA STOKES-MARSHALL OF MOUNT PLEASANT, TO CELEBRATE HER LIFE, AND TO EXTEND THE DEEPEST SYMPATHY TO HER FAMILY AND MANY FRIENDS.

Whereas, the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives were deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Thomasena Stokes-Marshall of Mount Pleasant on January 6, 2023, at the age of seventy-nine; and

Whereas, born February 13, 1943, in the historically Black settlement of Snowden in Mount Pleasant, the young Thomasena and her family moved to the Bronx of New York City when she was a young child. Educated in New York City's public school system, she went on to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree in Public Administration and Community Organization from New York University; and

Whereas, Ms. Stokes-Marshall began her career as a correctional officer for the New York State Department of Corrections. Five years into her career, she took the exam to become a police officer and in 1968, she began her tenure with the New York Police Department serving as a patrol officer. She climbed the ranks and was promoted to detective where she worked in community affairs. After twenty-four years with the department, she retired her badge in 1991, and along with her husband, Claude, returned to her hometown of Mount Pleasant in 1993 to care for her aging parents; and

Whereas, though she spent much of her life away from the Lowcountry, the Snowden community remained important to her. In 1998, she successfully ran for a seat on Mount Pleasant's Town Council and had the distinction of being the first African American to sit on the council for which she served with diligence and excellence for four terms. She remains the only Black person to have been elected to the town's one hundred eighty-six year-old council. During her seventeen-year tenure, she served as the chairperson of the Council's Planning Committee, chairperson of the Action Committee for Mt. Pleasant's aging population, on the Affordable Housing Task Force Committee, and during her fourth term, she served as the council's Mayor Pro Tem; and

Whereas, a true civic servant, Ms. Stokes-Marshall anchored the town's development of a senior center and formed local institutions to preserve Black historic settlements and celebrate Gullah-Geechee culture. The Thomasena Stokes-Marshall Senior Center opened its doors in 2009 and was an accomplishment she considered one of the greatest of her life. She also formed the Sweetgrass Cultural Arts Festival Association for the purpose of creating an annual event to educate, expose, engage, and bring attention to the growing threats to the Gullah-Geechee people's history and their ancient sweetgrass basket making art form. Since 2004, the annual Sweetgrass Festival has grown in size and scope to become a major attraction in the Town of Mt. Pleasant; and

Whereas, after leaving the council, she co-founded the African American Historic Settlement Commission in 2016 to protect the history and character of settlement communities such as Snowden that were created after Reconstruction by formerly enslaved Black Americans; and

Whereas, exemplifying her servant's heart, Ms. Stokes-Marshall remained active in numerous charitable organizations including the Board of Directors of Housing for All Mt. Pleasant, as a board member of the Thomasena Stokes-Marshall Senior Center Association, on the Women's Advisory Board for East Cooper Medical Center, East Cooper Meals on Wheels, East Cooper Habitat for Humanity, the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation, and the International African American Museum; and

Whereas, the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives are grateful for the life and legacy of Thomasena Stokes-Marshall and for the example of service and kindness she set for all who knew her. Her lasting legacy and mark on the Town of Mount Pleasant will be remembered for generations to come. Now, therefore,

Be it resolved by the House of Representatives:

That the members of the South Carolina House of Representatives, by this resolution, express their profound sorrow upon the passing of Thomasena Stokes-Marshall of Mount Pleasant, celebrate her life, and extend their deepest sympathy to her family and many friends.

Be it further resolved that a copy of this resolution be presented to the family of Ms. Thomasena Stokes-Marshall.

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