Today marks the sixth anniversary of the passing of Dr. Lawrence M. Clark. Dr. Clark was an accomplished mathematician and college administrator at North Carolina State University, but was equally passionate about following a calling to record the local African-American history of his hometown, Danville, Virginia. Dr. Clark and his wife, Dr. Irene Reynolds Clark, have stood as role models for me for the vital importance of the principle of sankofa and of the value and impact of preserving and presenting a people’s history.

I am thankful to the Clark children, my friends Lawrence Jr., Deborah, Linda and Sheila, for generously sharing their parents with all who know, admire and stood to learn from them. In some small way, I hope that Black Wide-Awake honors Dr. Clark’s legacy.

For the full post excerpting an interview with Dr. Lawrence M. Clark, published by the Virginia Center for Digital History, see here.