Payne AME to honor black veterans

From WFC Courier: Payne AME to honor black veterans WATERLOO, Iowa --- Ordinary people doing extraordinary things. That's who, and what, Payne AME Church plans to recognize Saturday with a special tribute to African-American veterans of the U.S. military. "African-Americans have served in every conflict this nation has ever had," said Dorothy Simpson-Taylor, formerly of Waterloo, a Vietnam-era U.S. Air Force veteran and retired University of Iowa psychology faculty member now living in Indianapolis. That dates back to Crispus Attucks, a black dock worker who was the first casualty of the American Revolution, killed in the "Boston Massacre" of 1770. Black Iowans have served in every conflict since the Civil War. "We continue to serve. We serve our communities, We serve our country, and we serve our families," said Simpson-Taylor, a 1962 graduate of East High School. Simpson-Taylor also is a co-organizer of Sister Soldiers, a fledgling organization of black women veterans started in Waterloo a few years ago. A mental health counselor and psychotherapist, she has been involved in a number of activities supporting returning veterans and their families. As is the case with the community at large, multiple members and generations of many black families have served in the military, Simpson-Taylor said. That includes veterans such as Johnnie Berry, who served in the U.S. Army Air Force in the China-Burma-India theater of operations during World War II, and his grandson, Emmanuel Berry, part of the Waterloo-based U.S. Marine Reserve Delta Battery, 1st Battalion, 14th Marines that helped liberate Kuwait during the 1991 Persian Gulf War. Veterans are at or near the heart of many volunteer efforts in the community, Simpson-Taylor said. "People do not see the way they volunteer," she said, and the role the play in caring for one another --- like U.S. Navy veteran Sharina Sallis, who serves on the Waterloo Human Rights Commission and the Black Hawk County Veteran Affairs Commission. "This isn't a service. It's a celebration," Simpson-Taylor said of the Saturday event. "We know where to go to get benefits. We know where to go to get information about what's available. "This is an opportunity to say, 'Let's come together. Let's just be proud of who we are. Let's let our community, our children know.' " The event begins a 11 a.m. at Payne, 1044 Mobile St. A meal is planned, as well as a presentation of colors and a "fallen soldier" ceremony. The East High Junior ROTC is the color guard. U.S. Marine veteran Michael Kates, a historian and executive director of the Fort Des Moines Museum, will speak. Veterans who have displayed exemplary community service will be recognized. Master of ceremonies will Anthony Tisdale of Waterloo. The decorated Vietnam combat veteran is former local chapter and past state commander of Military Order of the Purple Heart. Simpson-Taylor said those who have served in the military in any capacity are invited to participate in Saturday's event. "We have unique experiences because we've been in the military," Simpson-Taylor said. "And that binds us. It creates a sisterhood and a brotherhood." They're there for each other and their com munities. Very often, she said, it's veterans who organize and "give form and function" to community service endeavors. "Let's celebrate the sacrifices we have made and the contributions we continue to make," Simpson-Taylor said. "They're contributing to our society and to our country, contributing to the well being of the Cedar Valley and the state of Iowa. This notion of celebrating veterans is my way of saying, let's bring our community together and let's let our community celebrate one another."