Join us as we celebrate Black History Month in February and Bold Women’s Day during Women’s History Month in March. Follow this blog every Monday as we reflect on bold women of faith—women whose collective voices continue to change the lives of women and girls every day!
by Valora K Starr
Week 4 – Quiet Faith
Myrlie Louise Beasley was born on March 17, 1933, in Vicksburg, Mississippi, during an extremely hard time for Black women. Myrlie’s parents separated when she was just a year old. Her mother, 17, decided to leave Vicksburg, leaving her with her mother, who worked all day in a service job. Myrlie was raised by her paternal grandmother, Annie McCain Beasley, and aunt, Myrlie Beasley Polk who were schoolteachers and women of faith. Myrlie followed their lead in both.
Music was her gift. She mastered the piano and singing through high school, and in college, she performed at church and in the community.
In 1950, her life was set on a new trajectory when she met and fell in love with Medgar Evers, a World War II veteran eight years her senior. They married in 1951. They quickly started a family. Medgar was later murdered getting out of his car at his home in Jackson, Mississippi, in 1963.
Their work together with the Mississippi NAACP investigating murders, voter rights, and organizing marches and boycotts left her a widow with three small children. She relied on her faith to sustain her. She recalled, “But in crisis, we are all truly alone, and we must face terror in ourselves with only God as our solace. Especially in moments of self-doubt, it was my faith that saw me through. I trusted God, knowing he knew what he had in store for me, even if I couldn’t understand or accept it at the time.”
Her work continued with becoming the first woman chair of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (1995-1998), and she is still serving the community as a renowned activist. Her words and works of faith have inspired generations.
Describe your faith. How will it move you forward?
Valora K Starr is director for discipleship for Women of the ELCA.
Photo of Myrlie Louise Beasley. Used with permission.
Read Week 1, Driven Faith
Read Week 2, Tender Faith
Read Week 3, Resilient Faith
Thanks for sharing and increasing our knowledge, Val