Grace Church Women

Ella B. McLean’s father, Noah Brown, was not a slave. He owned land. But her grandfather, Charles Brown, who had purchased property, first in southern #Augusta, Virginia, then over the mountain in 1896 in #Staunton, Virginia, was a former slave who had gained his freedom. Noah Brown drove Black students to school and laid the groundwork to build a high school for Blacks in Augusta County; education and owning land for him was essential to a successful life. McLean, at 102, has made her own dent with accomplishments, including supervisory positions at Brookhaven National Laboratory and several retail stores that included Grant’s in #Patchogue. An esteemed elder at Grace A.M.E. Zion Church who lives in #EastPatchogue, Ella McLean sat with the Advance along with other church trustees, Pamela Gwathney, Mary Durham, Beatrice Gambles, and Pastor Jesse Fields, who told similar stories of creating their lives bolstered by their church amidst ups and lows. Read more in a story by #LindaLeuzzi at the @liadvance https://www.longislandadvance.net/stories/with-grace-and-fortitude-they-prospered,91943 *Subscription may be required.