Elizabeth Omilami
Encyclopedia
Elisabeth Williams-Omilami (born February 18, 1951) is an African-American human rights activist and an actress, a writer and a Pastor while being the voice of the less fortunate at Hosea Feed the Hungry.
, the daughter of activist Hosea Williams
and State Representative Juanita T. Williams. Her young life was spent within the confines of the Civil Rights movements of the 50's, 60's and 70's. After graduating from college she created the People's Survival Theatre and that company produced a season of five shows per year where Omilami acted, directed,wrote and did whatever was necessary to get the plays produced. She is credited with giving many professional actors their first jobs including Bill Nunn, Afemo Omilami and the late Carol Mitchell Leon. People's Survival Theatre continued to produce shows long after Elisabeth's journey to New York City when her husband Afemo
scholarship to New York University. In New York Elisabeth worked as Arts Administrator and Executive Assistant to many Arts luminries: Woody King, Rosetta Leniore and Melvin Van Peebles. She directed,acted as much as she could supporting her family as her husbands career grew. Her son Awodele was born while she was working in New York, however New York is a "hard place to raise a child" and after she became pregnant with her daughter Juanita
in 1985 she left New York to return to Atlanta where she lives today. While in Atlanta she continued to perform on stage and in film and television . Some of her favorite parts were shows that told stories she knew all too well from the racist South. Omilami is a graduate of Hampton University
and holds a Bachelor of Arts
in Theatre.
, after having the distinction of being one of the youngest people arrested in the fight for civil rights
, Omilami had t be sent off to boarding school. It was Wasatch Academy in Utah where she was the only black and she was often asked to recount the stories of her childhood. She also has the distinction of being the first African American
woman in seventy-five years to spend the night in the Forsyth County
jail during a march in January of 1981.
Omilami had also worked for over 15 years in the background of her father's Hosea Feed The Hungry and Homeless efforts, and upon his passing in November 2000 became the organization's CEO, expanding the organization from a budget of $200,000 to over 1,5 million working to provide programs meeting the basic needs of the working poor and homeless along a continuum of care leading to self-sufficiency expanding from four months to year-round human services and feeding and providing medical clinics, clothing distribution, barber and beautician services, children's educational programs, and home delivery of over 22,000 dinners per year through producing events on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Easter Sunday. She is has also spoken and toured worldwide for several international relief efforts in places like the Philippines
where she has founded and operates a school for the underprivileged children of Mindanou and sponsoring orphanages in Haiti
and Uganda
.
Omilami's acknowledgments for humanitarian service includes: A Georgia State Senate Resolution in recognition of her Community Service
, Atlanta Business League 100 Women of Influence, For Sisters Only, Women In Film Humanitarian Award, Secretary of State of the State of Georgia
Outstanding Citizen, State of Georgia Goodwill Ambassador
, YWCA
Women of Achievement Academy, Burger King
Urban Everyday Heroes, Kraft
Community Service; SCLC
Women Drum Major for Justice, T. D. Jakes
Phenomenal Woman, Daughters of Isis Community Service Award, the Emory University
M.L.K. Community Service Award and The National Conference of Black Mayors Fannie Lou Hamer
Unsung Heroine Award. She has traveled to many parts of the world with her husband Afemo and children Awodele and Juanita to conduct missions work including Haiti, where she distributed medicines and food, Kenya, South Africa, The Philippines, where she has founded a school and still supports it today. Her dream is to find sustainable funding for Hosea Feed The Hungry, so they can create an endowment that will fund the much needed work of this non-profit. She needs to find external sources of funding, international ones, so that this work will not die due to a lack of funds from American sources. She notes, "A hungry child cannot learn", and asks "How can you preach the gospel to a man whose whole existence is focused upon a desperate desire to live and feed his family?"
has written several plays, one of which is There Is A River In My Soul. She is a past member of both the Georgia Council For The Arts and the Fulton County Arts Council and is a passionate advocate
for the arts to be instituted as permanent part of society. She is an accomplished actress and has performed at the Alliance Theatre in A Christmas Carol
and in early 2002 in Left Hand Singing at the Jewish Theatre of The South. She can also be seen in the HBO made for television movie Boycott and will be remembered by fans of both In the Heat of the Night
and the award winning I'll Fly Away
.
, Co-Director of Hosea's Feed The Hungry and Homeless, and has two children - son Awodele and daughter Juanita. She is a member of Abundant Life Church
in Lithonia
, where her Pastor is Rev. Woodrow Walker, II. She is looking for that balance between married and ministry and she is blessed that her husband joins her in both! They are active members of the Prison, Missions and Drama Ministries at Abundant Life Church.
Quote Elisabeth Omilami:
Life and career
She was born in AtlantaAtlanta, Georgia
Atlanta is the capital and most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia. According to the 2010 census, Atlanta's population is 420,003. Atlanta is the cultural and economic center of the Atlanta metropolitan area, which is home to 5,268,860 people and is the ninth largest metropolitan area in...
, the daughter of activist Hosea Williams
Hosea Williams
Hosea Lorenzo Williams was a United States civil rights leader, ordained minister, businessman, philanthropist, scientist and politician...
and State Representative Juanita T. Williams. Her young life was spent within the confines of the Civil Rights movements of the 50's, 60's and 70's. After graduating from college she created the People's Survival Theatre and that company produced a season of five shows per year where Omilami acted, directed,wrote and did whatever was necessary to get the plays produced. She is credited with giving many professional actors their first jobs including Bill Nunn, Afemo Omilami and the late Carol Mitchell Leon. People's Survival Theatre continued to produce shows long after Elisabeth's journey to New York City when her husband Afemo
AFEMO
AFEMO is the ancestor of the Middle East Pact .Created in February 2004 by a group of French-speaking academics, its main aim was to share research on the Middle East...
scholarship to New York University. In New York Elisabeth worked as Arts Administrator and Executive Assistant to many Arts luminries: Woody King, Rosetta Leniore and Melvin Van Peebles. She directed,acted as much as she could supporting her family as her husbands career grew. Her son Awodele was born while she was working in New York, however New York is a "hard place to raise a child" and after she became pregnant with her daughter Juanita
Juanita
Juanita may refer to:*Diminutive of Juana, a female given name in Spanish**All Wikipedia pages beginning with Juanita*Mummy Juanita, or "The Ice Maiden", 15th-century Inca mummy discovered in 1995*Wanita or Juanita, 1923 Al Jolson hit song...
in 1985 she left New York to return to Atlanta where she lives today. While in Atlanta she continued to perform on stage and in film and television . Some of her favorite parts were shows that told stories she knew all too well from the racist South. Omilami is a graduate of Hampton University
Hampton University
Hampton University is a historically black university located in Hampton, Virginia, United States. It was founded by black and white leaders of the American Missionary Association after the American Civil War to provide education to freedmen.-History:...
and holds a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in Theatre.
Activism
At an early age, Omilami's parents taught her that people should be accountable for each other, for their environment and should fight for justice for all people. As a young girl, she accompanied her father on marches and movements across the South. During the height of the Civil Rights MovementCivil rights movement
The civil rights movement was a worldwide political movement for equality before the law occurring between approximately 1950 and 1980. In many situations it took the form of campaigns of civil resistance aimed at achieving change by nonviolent forms of resistance. In some situations it was...
, after having the distinction of being one of the youngest people arrested in the fight for civil rights
Civil rights
Civil and political rights are a class of rights that protect individuals' freedom from unwarranted infringement by governments and private organizations, and ensure one's ability to participate in the civil and political life of the state without discrimination or repression.Civil rights include...
, Omilami had t be sent off to boarding school. It was Wasatch Academy in Utah where she was the only black and she was often asked to recount the stories of her childhood. She also has the distinction of being the first African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
woman in seventy-five years to spend the night in the Forsyth County
Forsyth County, Georgia
Forsyth County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. The county seat is Cumming, Georgia. Forsyth County is a part of the Atlanta metropolitan area...
jail during a march in January of 1981.
Omilami had also worked for over 15 years in the background of her father's Hosea Feed The Hungry and Homeless efforts, and upon his passing in November 2000 became the organization's CEO, expanding the organization from a budget of $200,000 to over 1,5 million working to provide programs meeting the basic needs of the working poor and homeless along a continuum of care leading to self-sufficiency expanding from four months to year-round human services and feeding and providing medical clinics, clothing distribution, barber and beautician services, children's educational programs, and home delivery of over 22,000 dinners per year through producing events on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Easter Sunday. She is has also spoken and toured worldwide for several international relief efforts in places like the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
where she has founded and operates a school for the underprivileged children of Mindanou and sponsoring orphanages in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
and Uganda
Uganda
Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by...
.
Omilami's acknowledgments for humanitarian service includes: A Georgia State Senate Resolution in recognition of her Community Service
Community service
Community service is donated service or activity that is performed by someone or a group of people for the benefit of the public or its institutions....
, Atlanta Business League 100 Women of Influence, For Sisters Only, Women In Film Humanitarian Award, Secretary of State of the State of Georgia
Secretary of state of Georgia
The secretary of state of the U.S. state of Georgia is an elected official with a wide variety of responsibilities, including supervising elections and maintaining public records....
Outstanding Citizen, State of Georgia Goodwill Ambassador
Goodwill Ambassador
Goodwill Ambassador is a collective term sometimes used as a substitute honorific title or a title of honor for an Ambassador of Goodwill; but, most appropriately for a generic recognition, it is a job position or description that is usually indicated following the name of the individual recognized...
, YWCA
YWCA
The YWCA USA is the United States branch of a women's membership movement that strives to create opportunities for women's growth, leadership and power in order to attain a common vision—to eliminate racism and empower women. The YWCA is a non-profit organization, the first of which was founded in...
Women of Achievement Academy, Burger King
Burger King
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain...
Urban Everyday Heroes, Kraft
Kraft Foods
Kraft Foods Inc. is an American confectionery, food and beverage conglomerate. It markets many brands in more than 170 countries. 12 of its brands annually earn more than $1 billion worldwide: Cadbury, Jacobs, Kraft, LU, Maxwell House, Milka, Nabisco, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Trident, Tang...
Community Service; SCLC
Southern Christian Leadership Conference
The Southern Christian Leadership Conference is an African-American civil rights organization. SCLC was closely associated with its first president, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr...
Women Drum Major for Justice, T. D. Jakes
T. D. Jakes
Thomas Dexter "T. D." Jakes Sr. is the chief pastor of The Potter's House, a non-denominational American megachurch, with 30,000 members, located in Dallas, Texas.T.D...
Phenomenal Woman, Daughters of Isis Community Service Award, the Emory University
Emory University
Emory University is a private research university in metropolitan Atlanta, located in the Druid Hills section of unincorporated DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The university was founded as Emory College in 1836 in Oxford, Georgia by a small group of Methodists and was named in honor of...
M.L.K. Community Service Award and The National Conference of Black Mayors Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer
Fannie Lou Hamer was an American voting rights activist and civil rights leader....
Unsung Heroine Award. She has traveled to many parts of the world with her husband Afemo and children Awodele and Juanita to conduct missions work including Haiti, where she distributed medicines and food, Kenya, South Africa, The Philippines, where she has founded a school and still supports it today. Her dream is to find sustainable funding for Hosea Feed The Hungry, so they can create an endowment that will fund the much needed work of this non-profit. She needs to find external sources of funding, international ones, so that this work will not die due to a lack of funds from American sources. She notes, "A hungry child cannot learn", and asks "How can you preach the gospel to a man whose whole existence is focused upon a desperate desire to live and feed his family?"
Theatre and film
Omilami founded of one of Atlanta's earliest theatre companies People's Survival Theater, as well as the "Summer Artscamp", providing arts programming for economically challenged youth for over 7 years. She is a playwrightPlaywright
A playwright, also called a dramatist, is a person who writes plays.The term is not a variant spelling of "playwrite", but something quite distinct: the word wright is an archaic English term for a craftsman or builder...
has written several plays, one of which is There Is A River In My Soul. She is a past member of both the Georgia Council For The Arts and the Fulton County Arts Council and is a passionate advocate
Advocate
An advocate is a term for a professional lawyer used in several different legal systems. These include Scotland, South Africa, India, Scandinavian jurisdictions, Israel, and the British Crown dependencies of Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man...
for the arts to be instituted as permanent part of society. She is an accomplished actress and has performed at the Alliance Theatre in A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol
A Christmas Carol is a novella by English author Charles Dickens first published by Chapman & Hall on 17 December 1843. The story tells of sour and stingy Ebenezer Scrooge's ideological, ethical, and emotional transformation after the supernatural visits of Jacob Marley and the Ghosts of...
and in early 2002 in Left Hand Singing at the Jewish Theatre of The South. She can also be seen in the HBO made for television movie Boycott and will be remembered by fans of both In the Heat of the Night
In the Heat of the Night (TV series)
In the Heat of the Night is a television series based on the motion picture and novel of the same name. It was broadcast on NBC from 1988 until 1992, and then on CBS until 1995...
and the award winning I'll Fly Away
I'll Fly Away (TV series)
I'll Fly Away is a television series set during the late 1950s and early 1960s, in an unspecified Southern U.S. state. It aired on NBC from 1991 to 1993 and starred Regina Taylor as Lilly Harper, a black housekeeper for district attorney Forrest Bedford and his family...
.
Home life
She is the wife of actor Afemo OmilamiAfemo Omilami
Afemo Omilami is an American actor.-Career:He has appeared in many films such as Glory , The Firm , Gordy , Remember the Titans , Hounddog , and The Blind Side...
, Co-Director of Hosea's Feed The Hungry and Homeless, and has two children - son Awodele and daughter Juanita. She is a member of Abundant Life Church
Abundant Life Church
The Abundant Life Church is a large Christian neocharismatic church based in Bradford,in the north of England, which is part of the British New Church Movement. It is led by senior Pastors Paul and Glenda Scanlon....
in Lithonia
Lithonia, Georgia
Lithonia is a suburban town in eastern DeKalb County, Georgia, incorporated as a city. Lithonia's population was 1,924 at the 2010 census.-Geography:...
, where her Pastor is Rev. Woodrow Walker, II. She is looking for that balance between married and ministry and she is blessed that her husband joins her in both! They are active members of the Prison, Missions and Drama Ministries at Abundant Life Church.
Quote Elisabeth Omilami:
External links
- Atlanta Women's Network. (2006). About Elisabeth Omilami. Retrieved 2007-06-12 from http://www.atlantawomensnetwork.org/Speakers/06JulyElisabethOmilami.html
- Official Website of Hosea Feed The Hungry and Homeless