The Brooklyn group on Jan. 18 paid its final respects to “Honorary Guyanese” Dr. Marguerite Thompson, a outstanding African American early childhood educator, group chief and artist, whose late husband, Dr. Thomas Thompson, was a Guyanese native.
Throughout her lifetime, relations stated Dr. Marguerite Thompson was devoted to serving to and studying extra about Guyana. She died “peacefully” on Dec. 20, 2024, at 94, kin stated.
Caribbean-American Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke was amongst mourners who paid tribute to Dr. Thompson throughout an Official Memorial Service on Jan. 18 at Fenimore Road United Methodist Church (FSUMC) in Brooklyn, Dr. Thompson’s dwelling church. A Memorial Service was additionally held the day earlier than on the Weeksville Heart in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
“I consider the work she did in the neighborhood,” stated Clarke, the daughter of Jamaican immigrants, who represents the 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn. “She was a stalwart in the neighborhood.
“The legacy she’s left is a bar that has been set,” added the congresswoman earlier than presenting a Congressional Quotation to Dr. Thompson’s grandchildren.
“To the granddaughters: It’s my hope that you simply proceed to carry them in your arms; that you simply encourage them to be a part of our lives,” Clarke continued. “What she has completed for the group, it’s a treasure.”
Earlier than studying a tribute from Mayor Eric Adams, Brooklyn native Malcolm McDaniel, director of constituent providers, stated: “It was form of laborious for me as a result of she was an ideal lady.
“We’re all household,” he stated. “On her 80th birthday, she had a Mardi Gras. Once I stated household, she actually meant to be household.”
In eulogizing Dr. Thompson, the Rev. Dr. William G. Smartt stated: “From the Sixties, our household relationship grew. Dr. Thompson was the primary particular person to encourage me to run for Group Faculty Board 17 (in Brooklyn).
“Dr. Thompson was at all times there to present help and encouragement,” added Rev. Smartt, whose father hailed from Guyana. “Dr. Thompson at all times had a particular place for Guyana. Dr. Thomas Thompson was from Guyana. Dr. (Marguerite) Thompson celebrated something you’ll be able to consider.
“However you’ll be able to’t converse of Dr. Thompson with out speaking of the Weeksville; the Weeksville ambassadors got here into being,” Rev. Smartt added. “We had a relationship that lasted over 50 years.
“She didn’t name me Rev. Smartt; she known as me Invoice,” he continued. “It was fairly a trip. As I used to be placing my ideas collectively, she was a power to reckon with.”
Guyanese Patrine Josiah Simon stated Dr. Thompson “has left an indelible presence in all of us.
“I do know she’ll carry that degree of kindness,” she added. “When she was known as, she got here.”
Noel McDonald, whose mom hails from Guyana, stated: “Lots of people in right here is due to Dr. Thompson.
“The younger individuals who grew up on this church, this lady had impacted lots of people,” he stated. “She advised lots of people about Heritage Sunday (celebrated on the final Sunday in February at FSUMC). She confirmed us to be of service to others.”
Doreen Thomas and Joycelyn King, members of FSUMC and the church’s United Girls of Religion, introduced a decision to Dr. Thompson’s grandchildren; Lakeisha Moffatt provided a prayer of consolation; Jay St. Flono rendered “It’s Effectively with My Soul”; and Aboti Walters mimed to Donnie McClurkin’s “Stand.”
In collectively studying the obituary, Dr. Thompson’s grandchildren, David Ishmael and Marguerite Allen stated that Dr. Ethel Marguerite Casanave Thompson was a “cherished matriarch, beloved educator, thought-provoking artist and group chief.
“A visionary in early childhood schooling, Dr. Thompson leaves a exceptional legacy that touched numerous lives regionally and internationally,” they stated, stating that Dr. Thompson was born on Oct. 6, 1930, in New Orleans, Louisiana, to “a multicultural group and household that spanned three states – Louisiana, Georgia and New York.”
The grandchildren stated Dr. Thompson, the daughter of George Casanave and Fannye Richards, grew up in a household devoted to the Methodist religion and the development of schooling.
Ishmael and Allen stated Dr. Thompson “lived by The Nice Despair and the Civil Rights Motion, revealed a number of books, dabbled within the arts, traveled the world, mentored fellow educators, educated numerous kids, and misplaced each of her pure kids – an image of true resilience.
“All through her distinguished profession, she grew to become an influential power in early childhood schooling, creating pioneering packages and dealing tirelessly to enhance the lives of youngsters and households throughout the USA and overseas,” they stated, stating that Dr. Thompson’s journey as an educator began with a two-year scholarship to Dillard College in New Orleans.
After Dillard, they stated Dr. Thompson matriculated on the traditionally Black Wiley Faculty in Marshall, Texas, incomes a Bachelor of Science and pledging within the Phi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. to a lifetime of sisterhood and repair to all mankind.
Later, Ishmael and Allen stated their grandmother grew to become a constitution member of the Psi Lambda Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha in Brooklyn.
They stated Dr. Thompson’s time at Wiley opened the door for her to journey, however with an escort named Dr. Thomas Thompson, who finally grew to become her husband.
Their union produced two daughters, Drs. Fannye Victoria and Georgene Sheryl Thompson.
Ishmael and Allen stated that, all through the Thompson’s marriage, Dr. Thompson traveled “backwards and forwards” to Guyana.
“She devoted time to studying about his (Dr. Thomas Thompson) nation through the years, the place she, alongside along with her buddies and Guyanese empaths, based a company that offered provides and clothes to the agricultural areas of Guyana,” Ishmael and Allen stated.
They stated that Dr. Thompson additionally contributed to the Guyanese group by her work because the founding member of the Allied Organizations of Guyana U.S.A., offering scholarships to Guyanese college students and supporting the Uncle Eddie House for the Growing older in Guyana.
“To this present day, she is called an ‘Honorary Guyanese’”, Ishmael and Allen stated.
They stated that after their grandmother was accepted at New York College (NYU), she moved from Texas to New York, incomes her grasp’s and doctorate levels in Early Childhood Schooling.
Ishmael and Allen stated that Dr. Thompson’s mentors, together with “a multicultural crew of Rabbinical, Afro-American and different pundits,” helped her craft her dissertation on “Creating Constructive Self-image within the Internal-Metropolis Minority Baby By Use of the Group as a Classroom/Weeksville”.
Along with her educational and creative pursuits, Ishmael and Allen stated that Dr. Thompson was “a tireless advocate for international schooling and cross-cultural alternate.”
Because the founder and director of The Weeksville Younger Ambassadors Alternate Program, they stated Dr. Thompson impressed over 2,000 kids from Brooklyn and different areas of the USA by “exposing them to thrilling locations, reminiscent of London, Paris, Panama, Guyana, Barbados and African international locations.”
Ishmael and Allen stated that Dr. Thompson’s work spanned varied academic settings, together with delivery to pre-kindergarten packages, Head Begin, and private and non-private college techniques.
They stated Dr. Thompson was primarily famend for creating one of many first Pre-Okay packages in District 16, Brooklyn, and for her position as a facilitator for a nationwide useful resource middle at Financial institution Road Faculty in New York Metropolis.
“Her program grew to become a mannequin for early childhood schooling, acknowledged nationwide and internationally,” the grandchildren stated.
At FSUMC, they stated Dr. Thompson, served as chairperson of the Trustee Board and the Pastor-Parish Relations Committee; president of the United Methodist Girls/Wesleyan Service Guild; Sunday Faculty superintendent and instructor; and founding father of the Summer time Youth Camp Challenge and the Silent Supper.
They stated Dr. Thompson was the primary Black Woman Scout Commissioner in Brooklyn, touring to Guyana and Barbados.
FSUMC honored Dr. Thompson throughout its 120th anniversary celebration in 2009. The church’s United Girls of Religion additionally honored her throughout its 60th anniversary celebration in 2019.
Whereas being a passionate advocate for youngsters, Dr. Thompson’s grandchildren stated she was additionally “a devoted artist”, identified for her summary expressionist work, watercolor items, and authentic jewellery designs.
“Her work with stones from Guyana was broadly admired,” stated Ishmael and Allen, including that Dr. Thompson additionally served as a curator for the Guyana Artwork and Schooling Heart.
They stated Dr. Thompson’s artwork was featured in exhibitions at prestigious establishments, together with the Brooklyn Museum, the Metropolis College of New York (CUNY), and the United Nations.
An writer of over 42 books, posters, and educational papers, the grandchildren stated Dr. Thompson was a principal, employees developer and administrator at many schools all through the New York Metropolis space, and the founding father of T.O.C (Instructor Alternative Corp) at Brooklyn Faculty, CUNY.
Dr. Thompson’s granddaughter, Patrice Eleah, thanked mourners for attending the Memorial Service.
Dr. Thompson can be survived by her grandchildren – Timothy Thomas, Marguerite Victoria Casanave, Patrice Eleah and David Thomas; and one great-grandson, Ezra George Thompson.
“Dr. Marguerite C. Thompson’s contributions to schooling, the humanities and her group have left an indelible mark on the world,” Ishmael and Allen stated. “Her dedication to service, love of household and keenness for schooling have made her a renaissance lady, whose reminiscence will reside on within the lives she touched.
“Might she relaxation in peace, and will her legacy proceed to encourage all who knew her,” they added.
