Gerald Eubanks, who was active with St. Augustine's NAACP Youth Group during the Civil Rights Movement has died. He was 77.
St. Augustine is mourning the loss of Gerald Eubanks, a Civil Rights icon, teacher and community leader who died Friday at the age of 77.
Growing up in Lincolnville, Gerald Eubanks experienced firsthand the turmoil and triumph of the Civil Rights Movement.
The second of nine children, he watched as his family members spoke out against segregation and white supremacy and were arrested for their activism. It was only natural for him to carry on the legacy.
“Gerald came from a very large family, many members of whom were active in the Civil Rights Movement,” David Nolan, local historian and friend of Eubanks, told The Record. “Somebody once said that you could almost have the entire Civil Rights Movement with just the Eubanks, there were so many of them.”
Eubanks became president of the local NAACP Youth Group under Dr. Robert Hayling and Gerald’s uncle Goldie Eubanks, both of whom met with Dr. Martin Luther King and organized protests in St. Augustine. As president of the organization, Eubanks wrote Vice President Lyndon Johnson in 1963 to ask him to allow African Americans to attend the city’s 400th birthday celebration, Nolan said.
As tensions grew between the black community and the local officials, the Eubanks family became a vital part of the Civil Rights Movement in St. Augustine. The St. Augustine foot soldiers and the national attention brought by Dr. King were monumental to the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
In 2012, Eubanks wrote “The Dark Before Dawn,” a book about his family’s personal involvement in the St. Augustine Movement. Instead of focusing on the well-known figures like King, he told the stories of the everyday heroes — “those who demonstrated tirelessly, picketed fearlessly, encouraged, consoled, stood tall, and never wavered in their determination to do the right thing despite overwhelming opposition.”
Gerald’s sister Gail Eubanks said that he always stood up for what he believed in.
“Whatever he felt, that’s what he lived by,” she said. “He was beating to his own drum, he didn’t wait for someone else to do it, he went and did it.”
Another sister, Marva Saulsby, described him as "driven, straight-forward and passionate."
“He will be sorely missed and each of us should pick up a memo or two and be as passionate as he was,” Saulsby said.
Eubanks carried his activism throughout his life, serving the St. Augustine community in addition to working as a teacher, vice principal and principal in St. Johns County for over 30 years.
“The teacher that you had that you never forget? He’s that kind of guy,” Gail Eubanks said. “And once you met him, you could never forget him.”
Debbie Hagenbuch-Reese met Eubanks when the two of them were working as teachers.
“It’s one of the neat things about being a teacher is every now and then you hear from somebody you knew way back, and they tell you what impact you had on their life,” she said. “I would imagine he impacted a lot of people.”
Nolan said Eubanks pushed for a new public library, served on the board of the Fort Mose Historical Society and got Civil Rights Movement historical markers placed on sites around the city. He was also a member of the Rotary Club of Hastings.
“He was a kind of moving force,” Nolan said. “He was a trustee of Florida Memorial College, which was his alma mater. Out in West Augustine they had moved the old entry gate of the college across the street and created a park around it, and Gerald was a moving force behind that.”
Later in his life, Eubanks dedicated his time to the arts as president of the St. Augustine Community Theatre and owner of Arielle Productions. Many remembered Eubanks for working on productions such as “The Cross and Sword” and the St. Augustine Passion Play.
“He was always encouraging everybody; ‘find out what your talents are, make every day count, let your light shine,’” Hagenbuch-Reese said. “Always very, very positive. Not just to me, but to everyone.”
Eubanks leaves behind five sisters and one brother, all of whom have moved out of St. Augustine. But the nation’s oldest city will still hold onto his legacy.
“In any community, you have certain people who — whatever is happening — they will be among those called upon to take part, and Gerald was one of those people for St. Augustine for half a century,” Nolan said. “I think those are the kinds of things that he will be remembered for.”
Eubanks’ visitation will be held on Friday, July 12 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the St. Johns Family Funeral Home, 385 State Road 207 in St. Augustine. Services will be held Saturday, July 13 at 11 a.m. at Trinity Episcopal, 215 St George St.
No comments:
Post a Comment