Beautiful People: Shirley Coleman and family of Atlanta, Georgia

Shirley Henderson-Coleman

Wow! Look at this picture of Shirley Henderson-Coleman.

It could be an image of her on ANY day at the University of Illinois campus, Urbana-Champaign.


Except...it's many, many years ...um....even decades, later, after Graduate School when we were both there.

Does time stand still?


On any given day, I would say "no, time waits for no one!" Then, I saw this recent picture of my friend, Shirley, and now, I say, TIME DOES STAND STILL!

You see, time, like anything else can be manipulated.

Except not many know this.

This is the secret of a chosen few...

...those who remain "like children" in the purity of their thoughts and Spirit!

So, yes, time HAS stood still for my friend, Shirley.



That's because over the many years...um...decades... I've known her, when we both were in the Communications program at U of I, with my focus on Journalism and hers on Advertising, there has not been EVEN ONE TIME that Shirley has never reflected the image of "vintage Shirley."


In my many years on Earth, I have never, and doubt I will ever, meet anyone who has a more refreshing Purity of Spirit as does Shirley Henderson Coleman.

To say that she is "unique" is to downplay the essence of the woman, because she is so much more.


Her husband, Weldon, recognized this "Purity of Spirit" when they met so many years ago, ultimately marrying on August 29, 1992. Her children, Patrick, age 14, and Simone, 11, , don't know any differently: they think ALL moms are like her.


But...I'm here to tell you...because I know:


There are NOT many people walking the Earth today who are truly, truly essentially so fresh and truly "natural" all of the time.



Who IS She?


Shirley Henderson is the youngest of four children, born to Jake (Jacob) and Freddye Henderson. They established the first black-owned, fully accredited, travel agency in the United States, *"Henderson Travel Service." Jake and Freddye instilled in Shirley and her sisters, Carole and Gaynelle, and brother, Jake, Jr., humility, respect for all people and cultures, and to establish these things as priorities in their lives, above all else.

[At right, Mrs. Freddye Henderson, Shirley's mom, who was honored in Ghana as an Ashanti Queen Mother for her pioneering work in Travel.]

Although Shirley has traveled around the world as a result of her parents' business, you will never know any of this. It's not something that she flaunts or talks about in any way. The only time you'd know of her travels, or her family history and background, is to truly get to know HER!

Shirley is as unpretentious and authentic as 'they' come!


She keeps her years of travel and her accomplishments in the background of her life. For example, Shirley has never mentioned that she'd spent an entire year abroad studying one semester at the University of Paris, then at the University of Dakar in Senegal, as a Merrill Scholarship winner while a student at Spelman College, Atlanta. She simply is...as real and as humble as 'they' come.


My warmest feeling about Shirley and her husband, Weldon, go back to the year 2000 when I went to Atlanta for a simple procedure, not offered in the San Francisco Bay Area at the time. With the care and precautions Shirley and Weldon took to support me during this procedure, it might have been the most major of operations: they rearranged their entire schedules with the kids to provide flexibility for their being able to support me in ANY way I needed.

Another time was even before that, when I received in the mail from Shirley, a CD of "Sounds of Blackness," a beautiful ensemble of upbeat, spiritual African-American music that lifted me out of the funk I was in at the time.

You never can forget such thoughtfulness. You never forget such a friend.

As friends have come and gone over the years, you never could forget the Spirit of Shirley Henderson-Coleman.
[The Coleman family, picturing a younger Patrick and Simone]

She is a mix of a very proper Southern upbringing and New England charm, having been born and raised in Atlanta. She attended Elementary School there and in Orangeburg, South Carolina. She went to High School in Atlanta and a Prep. School at Northfield Mt. Herman in Massachusetts. Add to this, her "hip" Spelman College years as an undergraduate: you get Shirley.



She is perennially joyous and happy in Spirit. This caused a former pastor at the First Congregation Church, United Church of Christ, Atlanta, which she has attended most of her life, to describe her family as "The Happy Colemans."

[Family time at the Colemans is a happy time...one of joy and laughter!]

Shirley says about this,"When you're happy it shows. We're blessed.

My husband and I like each other, as well as love each other. As a family, we laugh a lot and play a lot together. Our dog, Tyson, also provides a lot of comic relief as well.

"Almost every day of the year, we eat breakfast and dinner together. We pray as a family every night before bed."


Until the current state of the economy took its toll, Shirley and Weldon owned a retail golf shop, and even though this year they let go of the business, she says, "Weldon makes us all play golf and tennis together from time to time. He loves it, and I like it. The children...well, they tolerate it.



[The Coleman family at a golf master's vacation.]

"We also have 'no-screen days' twice a week, when we don't watch television, play on the computer or play with gameboys and such. This gives us a lot more 'face time' together. We listen to music, then, or play board games or simply just 'talk.' The kids like this time a lot."


Despite the family "together" time, Shirley says she still finds time to go within. "I lean on the Word a lot," she says. "When I find myself worried or anxious about something, I try to remember what the Bible says about it. If I can't, then I'll research what the Bible says, then try to keep that at the forefront of my mind.

"I pray alot. I also talk to trusted people to get good advice."


Actually, that's how Shirley first got so connected to the Bible. When she was working in Advertising in Chicago, the family friend who had recommended her for the job, Dr. Mary Ellen Strong, also lived nearby and talked to Shirley about the Bible and about Christ. "She began to tell me things about Christ and the Bible that I had never known. It ignited my curiosity and made me more conscious of my spiritual life."


Even with a strong spiritual base, Shirley still has moments when she's taken off-guard by the goodness of God. One such instance is when she was "pitching" for an Advertising account as a consultant. "I was new at being a consultant and this was only my second time 'pitching.'"

"One person interviewing me asked me about my consulting fees, stating that it was much higher than they had previously paid. Before I could gather my thoughts to make my case, the other gentleman in the meeting proceeded to tell the first one how 'you shouldn't ask business people to lower their prices because they know what the job entails and what the costs are.' He went on to make a better case for me than I could have made for myself, so all I could do was thank God when I got the account."


Since those days, Shirley has come a long way in "pitching" accounts. She stayed home full-time for a while when Patrick and Simone were young, doing only volunteer work. Today, she works as a development and marketing consultant for a Nursing Home where she previously volunteered. She is thrilled to be in this environment, because she is able to honor her Spirit there by doing work that she deeply values.


"When I'm at the Nursing Home, I speak to all the residents and give them the respect and attention that I would like to get when I am old."

Shirley adds that on a daily basis, she follows the "Ten Commandments" and sees God as "my creator, my father, my guide, my protector. He is everything!"
This truly is a reflection of who this beautiful woman is to her world.


"I'm not quite sure I know what God created me to be," she says. "But I believe that I am a good friend to my friends, a good wife to my husband, a good mother to my children, and a good sister to my sisters and brother, and I was a good daughter to my parents before they died."

As Shirley looks to the future, she is looking forward to enjoying the new home she and her family just moved into and "growing old with my husband."


As to the rest, she says, "One Step at a time."


May God Bless you, lovely lady and friend, and keep you so joyous in Spirit, fresh in your approach to life, untroubled in your world. You truly are a delight, the way your light shines so brightly as a beautiful reflection back on us all.

Happy Birthday!

Namaste',

Che'
NOTE: Dr. Jaynelle Henderson-Bailey continues to operate Henderson Travel out of Maryland. The agency has specialized in tours to Africa since 1957. For more information go to: http://www.hend.com.