The Lucedale City Park will soon be home to a new gazebo built in honor of one of George County’s most energetic educators.
A groundbreaking ceremony will be held at 2 p.m. Wednesday, April 19, on the north side of the park somewhat up the hill from the George County Co-op for the structure. The 14’ x 20’ gazebo is intended to be a place of rest, meditation and study – a tribute to the unflagging dedication of Doris Alexander to the education of young people.
Born on May 3, 1930, Doris Ivory grew up in a time of racial segregation and limited educational opportunities for black children. She began her education in a one-room schoolhouse in the Shipman community. When it consolidated with the Lucedale Elementary Colored School, Doris continued her education through the eighth grade in Lucedale. At that time, black students had no high school in George County, so she went to Mobile, Alabama for her high school education.
After high school, she entered Alabama State College and received a BS degree in education. From there she went to Northwestern University in Chicago where she earned a Master’s degree in education. She then went to the Tuskegee Institute for additional studies.
In the late 1950’s, she met and married Robert Alexander. The couple raised a son and two orphaned nephews.
Her first teaching job was at the small White Creek School in the Basin community. From there she went to the Lucedale Elementary Colored School, which was later renamed the Oak Grove Attendance Center. She taught at Oak Grove for many years before eventually moving to a school in Meridian. She retired from the Mobile County School System in 1989.
Retired, the petite dynamo was far from finished as a teacher. She began tutoring struggling students, holding after-school classes in what is now the L.T. Taylor Intermediate School. She eventually organized the George County Concerned Citizens for Youth and leased the by then abandoned Oak Grove Attendance Center building for tutoring classes.
The Oak Grove building was heavily damaged during Hurricane Katrina, and largely through her efforts was deeded to the Concerned Citizens. The group was successful in getting the building named a Mississippi historic site and eligible for a $150,000 grant for repairs and modernization. It continues to be used as a community center, computer lab and tutoring facility.
Ms. Alexander has also been a powerhouse in local politics and community service. She was the first president of the Lambda Delta Mu Chapter of the Alpha Pi Chi Sorority. She organized the Torch Lighters and the Sunlight Homemakers Club. She has been a leader of the High Light 4-H club and served on the George County Habitat for Humanity board. She served on the George County Foster Care review board, the Head Start board, the George County Emergency Food and Shelter Program, the George County Hospital Auxiliary, and is an active member of the George County AARP. She is a member of the Retired Teachers Association and a member of the NAACP. She is president of the George County Concerned Citizens for Youth and a member of the Democrat Party.
Over the years she has received many awards and honors.
The gazebo project is being led by Ms. Angie Cowan and is being paid for with private funds and donations. The completed project will be donated to the City of Lucedale. Anyone wishing to help with this project should contact Ms. Cowan.
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