Ramina
Williams and Yvonne Clear Community Engagement Award
Background
Aban is pleased to announce the establishment of the Ramina
Williams and Yvonne Clear Community Engagement Award. This award is
named in honor of two remarkable women, Ramina Williams and Yvonne
Clear who dedicated their lives "to making the world a bit better,
whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social
condition." ¹ Both were native New Yorkers who would
eventually move to the Washington Metropolitan Area to call home
and raise their families. Very determined women, they staked their
reputations on the line and were very passionate about serving
their communities.
Ramina and Yvonne were avid gardeners and loved seeing the beauty
that their green thumbs produced. Both left this earth too
early, within two years of the other, never having met.
Ramina and Yvonne made the world a bit better in their own special
way. Even in the brevity of their lives, the pursued their life's
purpose with passion and committment, never succumbing to
naysayers. Dr. Nura Green has stated, "as co-founder and executive
director of Aban, I was extremely fortunate to know Ramina and
Yvonne both professionally and personally. In many ways, they
mentored me to become the kind of person I am today, to
wholeheartedly dedicate my life to making a positive impact in my
community."
They were role models who inspired a whole generation of youth to
live out their dreams and make this world a better place to live.
Aban owes its existence to such powerful unsung
heroines.
Click here to download announcement.
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1. Line in a poem by Ralph Waldo Emerson.
Purpose of Award
Aban established this award
in honor of Ramina and Yvonne's committment to serving their
commmunities and creating social change. The purpose of this award
is to recognize annually one of our community partners, either an
individual or organization, for their efforts "to make the work a
bit better," as embodied in the lives of Ramina and
Yvonne. We are very grateful for the
support we receive from our community partners and wanted to show
our appreciation for their collective work. Without their support
we would be unable to fulfill our mission. They are all doing
exceptional work in the community.
Please visit our
partners page to view all our community partners.
Award Recipient
Our very
first award recipient is presented to Family and Medical Counseling
Services, Inc. for their tireless effort to reduce and prevent the
rate of HIV/AIDS infections in Ward 8, Washington DC., among their
other health and social services they provide. We acknowledge FMCS
for being one of the many frontline organizations fighting the
HIV/AIDS epidemic here in the District. They provide HIV Testing,
Counseling, Care and much more. FMCS embodies the ideal and
dedication that Ramina and Yvonne exhibited throughout their lives.
Aban applauds the founders, staff, and executives at FMCS for their
work and we know they will not rest until the tides change in a
favorable direction.
About Ramina Williams and Yvonne
Clear
Ramina
had spent the last 30 years as a community activist, as founding
member of Black Mother's Against Drugs - II (BMAD-II) and
Hurricane. She devoted her time and energy to preventing substance
abuse among our families. Tragedy struck Ramina in October 2003 as
she was driving from New York to Washington, DC to lay the ground
work for providing healthy family focused activities throughout the
summer. Aban's health program is based upon her groundwork.
She died
from the impact of a car crash. Ramina was only 55 years old and
left us with six children, three grand children, a husband, and a
host of friends and family.
In October
2005, Yvonne succumbed to complications from a brain aneurism that
occurred three years earlier. At the time of her death, Yvonne held
key leadership positions in Fredericksburg, VA Chapter of the
NAACP. Often affectionately referred to as the "General," she had a
vast territory to cover and many counterparts to lead. Just prior
to her passing, she had combined her skills as an IT professional
and her community activism to help support the recently displace
Hurricane Katrina Survivors who had relocated to the Stafford
County Virginia area. At age 54, Yvonne left behind a son and
daughter-in-law, her first grandchild, as well as host of family
and friends.
The establishment of the Williams-Clear Community
Engagement Award is an affirmation to the nobility of their lives
and their legacy for "making this world a bit
better."
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Aban Institute and
Associates, Inc. 
