Macon Magazine

CHOOSING MACON Gerri McCord A series featuring individuals from our community who, after some time away, have returned to share their skills and talents here. BY KELLEY DIXSON N ORDER TO FULLY TELL THE STORIES OF THE PAST, one must be unbiased, unwavering and unafraid to find the truth. "History is history," says Gerri McCord, executive director of the Ruth Hartley Mosley Memorial Women's Center. e home of its namesake, built in 1890 and purchased by Mosley in 1917, still stands on Spring Street in downtown Macon and holds not only the original furnishings, but also the rich history of black women in our city. Before Gerri even speaks, a feeling of warm welcome is exuded when she smiles, and you instantly feel invited to learn. She is dedicated to her charge, armed with compassion and purpose, and her intentions are clear: to educate, connect and uplift her community. Born and raised in Macon in the 1960s, Gerri graduated from high school at 17 and moved to New York at the urging of her grandparents. "My grandfather was the chauffeur for the CEO of Chubb Insurance Company and upon hearing about me he offered me a position at the company," she said. Coming from Macon where, at the time, "there seemed to just be black people and white people," her exposure to the experiences of others and the multitude of cultures that make up the city "broadened my perspective of life and I became very active in the social movement," including volunteering with the Congress of Racial Equality in the late 1970s. Her new perspective opened her eyes to the world of social justice and how the individual effort contributed to its pursuit. New York was the home of many activists fighting for justice, and without social media, many had to spread their message personally, so encounters with icons were not as rare as they are today. "We closed this club called Rust Brown one night and I found myself sitting at a table with Stokely Carmichael and Betty Shabazz," she recalls, showing me an autographed photo of her with Carmichael. e zealous conversations at the table revolved around "what our people could do to affect change and be heard." Being in the presence of those courageous voices gave her a sense of confidence and pride to speak her own mind. "My time in New York afforded me the opportunity to come back to Macon to be a force and be a change agent," she says. Her life in New York also began her career in the field of higher education. After acquiring a position at Pace University, she advanced to the position of assistant registrar during her 17-year career. Her return to Georgia in 1984 furthered her career in higher education, as assistant director of records at Georgia College in Atlanta, and was the beginning of her life as a mother when she welcomed her only daughter, Lawren, now a writer and artist, to the world. Other opportunities followed and she ended her career in 2012 at Georgia College and State University in Milledgeville. Her relationship with the Ruth Hartley Mosley Center began during her tenure at Georgia College when a connection with the prior director brought Gerri and her students to assist in the maintenance of the historic building. I PHOTO BY MIKE YOUNG 82 maconmagazine.com | OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2020

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