Founder Of Buffalo African American Cultural Center Leaves Legacy - msnbc.com |
| Founder Of Buffalo African American Cultural Center Leaves Legacy - msnbc.com Posted: 18 Dec 2010 09:10 PM PST (Buffalo, NY) The board, administration and staff of the African American Cultural Center sadly report the passing of its esteemed founder, Malcolm Erni, Mr. Erni, who was 74, died on Sunday, December 12, 2010 at the Hawthorne Nursing Home, where he had been a longtime resident. He founded the African Cultural Center in 1958. "The vision of Malcolm Erni was ahead of its time. I think he was a genius. He wanted to build a place where young people, especially, would be able to learn about their heritage and culture and become better individuals because of this self-knowledge," AACC Executive Director Agnes M. Bain said. Born and raised in Buffalo, Malcolm Erni was a young evangelist with Caribbean roots and a devout faith in the virtue of his African ancestry when he started the African Cultural Center. His dream, now more than half a century old, was of a cultural and spiritual sanctuary for the youth and families of East Side Buffalo. The first meetings of what is now the African American Cultural Center were held in a funeral home, and then in the basement of a church near Glenwood Avenue. Founding programs were sustained at several other locations before Erni led the board in mounting a capital campaign to purchase its present home at 350 Masten Avenue in the late 1960s. "Uncle Malcolm provided a lot of inspiration to me and my family. I would like people to remember him for his dedication and accomplishment in establishing an institution to uphold the arts and culture in perpetuity for the Buffalo community," Albert Erni, Malcolm Erni's grandnephew, said. Erni also was the author of "A Time for Miracles," a copy of which is housed in the Buffalo and Erie County rare books collection; and produced a television series entitled "Portraits of My People." In addition to Albert Erni, Malcolm Erni is survived by sister and brother-in-law Agnes and Horace Tucker; daughter Carol Rebecca Erni of Detroit, Michigan; three, grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, the Faulkner Family, and numerous nieces, nephews and grand nieces and nephews. -- more -- His legacy lives on at the African American Cultural Center, now a multi-disciplinary agency that serves more than 1500 children and families annually. AACC program components today include its founding cornerstone, the AACC Dance and Drum Performance Company; Paul Robeson Theatre at the African American Cultural Center, AACC Cultural Enrichment / After School Program, Jumpin' Jambalaya Summer Program and Pine Grill Jazz Reunion. The agency also provides administrative support for numerous community-based programs and projects. "At least three generations of the Buffalo community, the children of the first children who were here, their children and sometimes their grandchildren, have benefitted from the vision of Malcolm Erni," Bain said. Home-going services for Malcolm Erni will be held at 10 a.m. on Monday, December 20 at the Living Water Fellowship Church at 382 Pine Ridge Road in Cheektowaga, NY. The wake is at 10 a.m.; services will be at 11 a.m. Reverend Clara M. Castro is the officiating pastor. The African American Cultural Center is a not for profit, multipurpose cultural arts organization. It is supported through public funds from the United Way of Buffalo and Erie County, City of Buffalo Community Development Block Grant, the County of Erie, NYS Council on the Arts (a State agency), NYS Office of Children and Family Services, the State of New York and through the generosity of friends and supporters. All donations are tax deductible. For more information about the history of the African American Cultural Center and its programs, visit www.africancultural.org or call 716-884-2013. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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