Sons of Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas graduate from Morehouse
Sebastian and Sinclair Ridley-Thomas
Los Angeles, CA -- It’s been an exciting time for Sebastian and Sinclair Ridley-Thomas.
The sons of County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas and his wife, Avis, the twin boys recently threw their caps in the air and joined 500 African American males in graduation ceremonies at the historic Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia.
Both twins, who will celebrate their 22nd birthday on Aug. 12, revealed that their experience at the renowned university was unparalleled. “It was very positive,” said Sebastian, who graduated with a degree in Sociology and served as senior class president. “I played on the Morehouse Maroon Tigers football team for one year. I worked in the Martin Luther King, Jr. International chapel where I coordinated community service activities and programs. I also covered football as a sportswriter.”
“Academic achievement at Morehouse is held in the highest regard,” adds Sinclair, who received his degree in business administration and added that the college stressed community service. “I worked with an afterschool program and ran the Learning Program for the Fulton County juvenile court.” Sinclair said he was also a running back for the Maroon Tigers for four years and a member of the All Conference Academic Team.
Between academics, volunteering, internships and other activities, the twins said that they were exposed to a myriad experiences. “The hardest thing was striking a balance between athletics and academics and finding time to excel in both,” said Sinclair, who was a member of the Golden Key Honor Society.
“Morehouse was an affirming place like no other,” said Sebastian. “Being a part of the tradition and legacy of Morehouse was inspiring and powerful.”
One of the highlights for the twins was participating in a cultural exchange program in Beijing, China, a city that boasts 15 million people. “We studied Mandarin Chinese in the morning and then embarked on site visits of the city in the afternoon,” said Sebastian. “We visited Tianamen Square, where there was the massive student demonstration several years ago and we climbed the Great Wall.”
“We spent half a day climbing the Wall,” said Sinclair, who added that the Great Wall is the largest manmade structure in the world and the only one visible from space. “It was quite chilly up there. We had to wear extra layers of clothing to make sure we didn’t expose ourselves to the elements.”
Both young men said that during their stay at Morehouse, they were in constant contact with their parents who dispensed sage advice about how to succeed in college. “Dad said, ‘What you invest your time in, you will get the greatest yield from,” said Sebastian.
“My father advised us that life is long and whatever momentary success you have can easily be followed by extreme failure. He said to always keep things in perspective.”
“Our mom Avis said live by the platinum rule,” said Sinclair, who added that his parents will celebrate 30 years of marriage on August 30. “She said, ‘Treat people the way they want to be treated, not the way you want to be treated.”
David Starr Jordan High School sits smack within one of America’s best known ghettos—Watts. In the past, most of its students have consistently performed on par with the ambience of their surroundings.
Morehouse College, one of the most distinguished historically Black colleges—with graduates like Dr. Martin Luther King, former Atlanta Mayor Maynard Jackson, film director Spike Lee and others—literally shut down for spring break this week. As its 2,000 students took their break, every member of the faculty and staff was furloughed without pay as the college struggles to balance its books.
The Frederick K.C. Price III Schools is partnering with Stepping in the Right Direction to host “The Black College Fair,” a free Historically Black College and University (HBCU) college fair on Saturday, Dec., 15, 2012, from 11 a.m.-3 p.m. The fair will feature more than 45 HBCUs from around the country, including Spelman College, Howard University, Morehouse College, Hampton University and Xavier University. The fair will be held in Crenshaw Christian Center’s Youth Activity Center of Price Schools. The church is located at 7901 S. Vermont Ave. in Los Angeles.
After the Rev. Lewis Logan Sr. died on Aug. 6, his son, Lewis E. Logan II, wrote in his “A Farewell Tribute to ‘The Man’—My Father, Lewis E. Logan Sr.” that his father was a workaholic. He was out for a walk when death found him.
Memorial services for veteran news cameraman Artie Williams III, who may rank as the most beloved local camera journalist ever, were pending Wednesday. Williams, who was 59, died Saturday during a diving accident at the Santa Catalina Island isthmus, it was reported. He would have turned 60 on Sunday.
