I Am Honored

I am an associate member of the Motor City Doll Club of Detroit (MCDC). MCDC is a United Federation of Doll Clubs, Inc. (UFDC) affiliated member. Each year a selection of UFDC members are nominated by fellow members for their service to UFDC and/or to the doll community.

I have received two or three UFDC Award nominations from MCDC and several years ago from the late Lillian Bartok for my service to the doll community (my black-doll reference books, article contributions to UFDC's Doll News, and other periodicals), and most recently for my work on the Virtual Black Doll Museum. My past nominations did not result in awards. (I discussed this with my sister last week. She called me the Susan Lucci of UFDC award nominations.) Through persistence, however, Sharon nominated me again this year.

On the evening of 07/23/2024, Sharon called me from Kansas City, Missouri at the 75th Annual UFDC Convention Opening Ceremonies. She asked me to "listen to something." There was a lot of background noise, but I heard the speaker reading the mission statement of DeeBeeGee's Virtual Black Doll Museum and I realized I was being awarded!

Sharon asked if I heard what was said and confirmed that I received a UFDC Award of Excellence. Shocked, overjoyed, and truly grateful were the mixture of emotions I felt as my eyes welled up, and through tears, the audience heard me express my gratitude through the speaker of Sharon's cell phone. Sharon accepted the award in my absence. UFDC Region 15 Director Jeri Robinson took the following photos and emailed them to me minutes after the award was accepted. (Thank you, again, Jeri!)

Sharon Harbin, president of the Motor City Doll Club, accepted my UFDC, Inc. Educational Endeavors Through Dolls Award. (Photo courtesy of Jeri Robinson)

This is Jeri Robinson's photograph of the award.

Sharon Harbin holds the award while Barbara Stone (past President of UFDC) looks on.

Sharon mailed the award to me which arrived exactly one week later enclosed in a black gift box.

I photographed the award after it arrived.

As a recipient of such a highly regarded award, I am grateful and honored. (I know Lillian Bartok would be just as grateful because she too believed in the importance of preserving black dolls as illustrations of how African American identity has evolved with time.)

Special thanks to Sharon Harbin and my fellow Motor City Doll Club members who always stood in agreement with Sharon's nominations. I give further thanks to Barbara Stone and everyone who played a role in blessing me with this honor. 

To learn more about UFDC, Inc.'s Awards of Excellence, visit the following link where the nomination form is posted as a PDF and explains each award category.

UFDC, Inc. Awards of Excellence

Related Link

Notecard Memory Leads to Discovery

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There are countless items to collect and write about. Black dolls chose me.

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