Search by Name

Search by Name

Beverlee Bruce Obituary

BRUCE--Beverlee. The Board of Directors, Overseers and staff of the International Rescue Committee and the Board of Directors, Commissioners and staff of the Women's Refugee Commission are deeply saddened by the death of our dear colleague Beverlee Bruce. A social anthropologist, development specialist and educator, Dr. Bruce served as Chair of the Women's Refugee Commission from 1995 to 1999. She joined the Board of the International Rescue Committee in 1995 and was chair of its Program Committee from 2000 to 2005. She became an IRC Overseer in 2007. Dr. Bruce traveled extensively to assess the needs of refugee women and children and led the Women's Refugee Commission delegation to the Fourth World Conference on Women in Beijing in 1995. We express our deepest sympathies to her son, Darryl Bruce; her sisters, Shirlee Smith and Angela Pickett; and her brother, Eugene Pickett. International Rescue Committee, Alan R. Batkin and Jonathan L. Wiesner, Board Co-Chairs George Rupp, President Women's Refugee Commission Glenda Burkhart and Dina Dublon, Board Co-Chairs Carolyn Makinson, Executive Director

Published by New York Times on Sep. 23, 2009.
34465541-95D0-45B0-BEEB-B9E0361A315A

To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.

Memories and Condolences
for Beverlee Bruce

Sponsored by A grateful student from Howard University, Cheryl Poinsette Brown.

Not sure what to say?





Dr. Bruce would understand and "get" the power and the point of the new movie The Woman King. I smile as I think of her own warrior ways--and how she helped me find my own warrior inside. Thank you and Ashé

Cheryl Poinsette Brown

School

September 17, 2022

MY DEAR HIGH SCHOOL FRIEND. FUN WE HAD.
REST IN PEACH.
CORA.

CORA CUEN

December 4, 2015

ESSENCES AND METAPHORS

We are all composed of only two things-
our essences and our metaphors.

Her metaphor was cloth.

She had hundreds of outfits made from the richest of kente, mudcloth, kuba, and aso oke.

She looked really good in the swath of ethnicity.

One day, somebody stole her dry cleaning, all thirty-seven dresses, shawls and jackets...a hat.

Just for a minute she set them down to bring in the groceries. When she returned, the clothes were gone. Friends and neighbors cried in indignation. But she was quiet and said only a few words, "Somebody just needs those clothes more than I do."

Life's changes are not always made from the minister's vestments
or the fabric of the threapist's couch but from the tapestry of interwoven souls.

She was a great weaver,this one,
who managed secretly to orchestrate
the clothing of thousands of refugee women,
the swaddling of untold displaced babies,
the canvas and thatch of shelter,
the sale of quilts to fund education,
the actualization of robes of justice to fight the crime of genocide,
the intertwining of international flags of understanding,
the caps and gowns sported by Liberian students,
bestowed through her generosity.

If we took her gift of cloth, we could wrap the world ten times over.

But cloth is finite.

The closet filled with her remaining dresses will be emptied.
The clothes of her fifty years of giving probably do not remain and the canvas of temporary homes might have given way to sand and wind.

Finite things just break down.

Metaphors are finite but their essences are not.
They continue to live in some undiscovered, timeless, non-dimensional place.

Maybe it's in Plato's world of the Forms or in the non-locality of the quantum world.

Maybe these essences live on in the human heart.

All we know is that they continue to exist and they continue to empower.

Everything the weaver did she did with her grace of being.

Because of that, every thread became a ray of hope.

-Ruth Ded-Friedman
October 2009

For Dr. Beverlee Bruce. Based on memories of Carmen, Carol, Ruth, Selma & Vivian

Sisters Forever

October 20, 2011

As the Nigerian proverbs say:
A tree does not move unless there is wind.

If death be terrible, the fault is not in death but in thee.

To All Colored Girls

An Original Work written by
Neema Kamaria Hanifa-Pickett

A Poem for my dear Aunt Beverlee Bruce
As Presented at your Memorial Services

What of this legacy
Passed through me generationally
Blood lines that bind our history
Her story is the story in you,
It is the story in me

Little colored girls who long to get out
Searching to be found
Drifting against the wayside ,
holding dream catchers to the winds of time

She was not politically correct when she said it
Never spoke in turn
But she did it
Had the PHD to prove it ,
And we pause to remember life,
Some call it the absence of breath,

I call it freedom

Little colored girl, Little colored girl
Where you at?
It Just ain’t your day to die
not yet, NOT YET

Eyes met
Upon blood spilled floors
Voices echo through her head
of laughter just this mourn-
Ing,
but even love and tear drops running can’t bring them back

Breath pushing her forward, feet moving by instinct
Running for life out a back door
Hate kills, it steals and replaces joy with fears

But little colored girls can not be afraid
Your momma didn’t raise you that way

Yeah she cleaned them old white peoples house
And she did it smiling all the way
Grandmother Smiley knew that her work was not in vain
One day, her little colored girls were going to college
And they did

Had the Audacity to hope
For something more than
Little colored girls should want for
Dreamed big and big dreams made
Lawyer, Writer & Doctor of Anthropology

This is only the beginning,
that is why we call it a legacy
There is a wealth of information that must be preserved
For future generations to learn from
to inspire little colored girls from every nation to rise up
There is a world that should give
clean water, food, and shelter, every freedom
every pursuit of education

Because humanity must be heard
And You must listen,
aging is the age old battle we war against
but remember it makes way for each of us to live

Be present in it
This is what she believed in
Deeply rooted in the fibers of this community
Spinning out new realities, fighting in the battle for equality
This is her legacy,

She was next door neighbor to some
To others Doctor or Professor,
Big Bad Beverlee Bruce in her youth
Mommy to one son
Older sister to the younger ones

But to me, she was Auntie,
Always standing taller than me, fuller then me, Wiser, Stronger,
more Powerful then me
Just like that Nigerian tree, listen to the branches as they sing
They are still now, as the wind moves softly

My hands and legs outreached to embrace thee
As we must grow, and not in a shadow
As they Say,
“A tree does not move unless there is wind that blows”

Be the breeze , moving through the tree’s, this is Aunties legacy

Neema Pickett

September 23, 2011

Aunt Beverlee,
As life continues to twist and turn I am reminded of you in so many spaces. I am a Jr. in college now at the age of 32. I finally made it back, my course of studies are Clinical Psychology and Anthropology. 18 credit hours is such a huge undertaking but I am determined to finish in 3 semesters. Why? Because no one said it can't be done. Hannaiyah started her moon cycle and will be 13 this October. Do you remember when we came to visit you in NY, overlooking the Twin Towers from your high rise office. And even those buildings have been laid to rest. New Ground has been broken and new structures are nearing completion. Maya said it best "Out of the Huts of History's Shame I Rise."
Our two years living in China was amazing and has changed me forever, thank you for insisting that I must go. Returning now to the USA each day has struggles of its own.My Salon is still going after 8 years (I know you are proud, and yes we still do individual eye lashes!) My marriage needs nurturing and I am a bit weary. But today I posted your poem which I cried all the way through giving at your Memorial. Until now the piece was stored away in computer land, but today I released Auntie's Poem.
I love you and miss you still.
Loving You Always, your niece.
"The Little Colored Girl."
Neema Kamaria Hanifa

Neema Pickett

September 9, 2011

Rasheed Pickett

September 9, 2011

Dr. Bruce was director of the Honors Program when I matriculated to Howard University in the 1970s. She taught a course "Literature as Anthropology: The Black Woman" which opened my mind to the ideas of interdisciplinarity and serious scholarship of the African world. I later encountered her with another of my mentors, Fatimah Jackson, while I was doing a bio-anthropology project in Liberia. I was saddened to learn of her passing, and especially so long after the fact. She challenged me and countless others to stive for excellence and relevance in our professional lives. I can only hope to exert a fraction of her influence on my charges. "It is your path that I walk". She is missed.

Myron Williams

September 7, 2011

Neema Pickett

October 22, 2010

Neema Pickett

October 22, 2010

Neema Pickett

October 22, 2010

Just the thought of your soul led me to this unfortunate discovery and outcome we all must pass when time allows. My friend signed me off into a UN position and 1982 was never the same. My condolences to the family and may her spirit be captured in everyone's soul. Salaam my sister!

Gregory Durrette

August 25, 2010

Dr. Beverlee Bruce was an inspiration to those of us learning about international development and women's and children's issues worldwide. I had the great pleasure of meeting her on several occasions back when I studied at Harvard's John F. Kennedy School of Government, served on the board of American Refugee Committee and was involved with the Beijing Women's Conference. Beverlee took the time to have coffee with me on several visits to New York, so graciously mentored other women exploring the work of the Women's Commission and IRC, and was an incredible mentor, teacher, advocate, scholar and leader. She touched so many lives. I will always remember her smiling face, her outgoing and welcoming nature and her brilliance and compassion surrounding the needs of vulnerable women and children. Her loving spirit is alive and well as evidenced through the lives of so many. Blessings to her family.

Sue Klaseus

July 31, 2010

Hello, My name is Michael Okeyo.
I am the son of Dr. Achola Pala. She was a great friend of my mother's and a colleague. My mother told me of her as well. I unfortunately didn't have the pleasure of meeting Mrs. Beverlee Bruce before her departure from the physical world. However as a sister and woman of the African Family she will be missed and remembered for her remarkable humanitarian and academic efforts and accomplishments. I wish the best for her family and may you all stay strong. Dr. Beverlee Bruce is now looking down upon us from the heavenly skies and is wishing us the same.

God bless.

Michael Okeyo

March 31, 2010

Dr. Bruce was one of a kind! My husband and I remember her fondly from her days as our professor and mentor at Howard. She was integral to our early understanding of the life of Maggie L. Walker when we began the project in 1984. She left Howard soon after for "greener days," and we did not keep up with her, but every now and then we'd fondly recall her with a smile. It's wonderful to know how many people's lives she affected. May you be comforted in knowing how much she was loved!

Kim and Terence Leathers

February 5, 2010

Beverlee, Carol Henderson-Tyson and I as students and Claudia Mitchell-Kernan as faculty, integrated the graduate anthropology program at Harvard in 1969-70. Beverlee from Roosevelt High School in East Los Angeles and I from Jordan High School in Watts! What a team. We maintained our close relationship until Beverlee's departure. I knew when I heard, "Colored chile, where are you?" on my answering machine that I'd better hurry and return that call to her. What beauty she had!!

Jerry Wright

November 16, 2009

The American Friends Service Committee Women's Program was fortunate to have Beverlee as one of its committee members. She brought depth and breath to all of our discussions. Her gracious and practical manner was a gift to all of us. We were shocked and saddened to hear of her death but feel grateful that some of us were able to be with her last July here in Philadelphia . She will be sorely missed.

Angela Berryman

November 9, 2009

My thoughts and prayers are with you in your time of grief. May your memories bring you comfort.

Teresa Leslie

November 7, 2009

I met Beverlee in the early 1960's when she was managing an EDD office in Hollywood, CA. I was conducting a research on unemployed people for a study of hard-core unemployment in Watts before the riot afor the Institute of Industrial Relations at UCLA. We needed comparative data for other areas of the city, so she sent me every tenth claimant. Beverlee said she always wanted to complete her graduate education. I encouraged her to come to UCLA and to my surprise, she did return in the mid-sixties. I returned to UCLA in 1969 and was in her office in the building where Bunchy Carter and John Huggins were killed. It was oe of the most memorable experiences of our lives.

My wife and I saw her last in the Schomburg Library in Harlem in July 1968. We pledged to meet at the 40th Anniversary of the Center for African American Studies at UCLA, but she died at about that time.

We miss her very much. Our prayers are with her family.

Bob and Helen Singleton

Robert Singleton

November 5, 2009

Jerard M. Matherson

October 31, 2009

I met Beverlee as we were both members of the Nationwide Women's Program Committee of the American Friends Service Committee. Her contributions to our work was filled with heartful insights and intelligent analysis that surely derived in part from the committed work she did on behalf of women and refugees all over, but particularly Liberia. Having just seen her a short while ago in Philadelphia, I was completely shocked about this news of her untimely death. I was so looking forward to spending some more personal moments of adventure with her here in NYC. We of the Women's Program Committee will miss her greatly. My condolences to her son, family members and friends.

Leah Margulies

October 29, 2009

Beverlee was a colleague,extended family member and indeed deeply respected and loved. We have often talked about shared experiences in west Africa and the implications in the U.S. We will miss her humor, creativity,wisdom and deep commitment to family. I share a profound since of loss. We love you Bev.

Stanley Wilson

October 22, 2009

Beverlee was my "big sister". We laughed together, ran about NYC to different events and shared special moments together. I will miss the weekly report on everyday life and the progress of President Obama. Most of all I will miss her frantic messages when she couldn't reach me "Where are you?" and her calming voice when I was upset. I give thanks for her life and the many people she touched by her presence.

Selma Jackson

October 22, 2009

Beverlee was a colleague, a mentor, and a friend. We will miss her, but we'll cherish the times we shared and will always value the knowledge we gained from her.
Jim and Lyn Gray
Monrovia, Liberia

October 20, 2009

Beverlee has left an indelible mark on the hearts of Liberians and humanitarians worldwide. Her passion for making a difference in lives permeated every molecule of her being and one could not help but get drawn to it. Beverlee, thanks for a wonderful and transformative time with Pat Hough and I at the little Vietmese bistro around the corner...Many thanks to her family for sharing the "force" that was Beverlee with us - she will be dearly missed.

Here's to you Beverlee, for expanding minds and nurturing spirits,
Romelle A. Horton, Cuttington University, Liberia

Romelle Horton

October 20, 2009

I don't remember a time when I didn't know Beverlee. Her father and my father were best friends. Her Mother and my mother were soul sisters.
Beverlee was a big sister to me. Not only someone who protected me but someone who loved and nurtured me.
That ability to nurture, to inspire and to give confidence to, is what I will most remember of this loving African woman.
She spent her life well.
Ernest Wilson,
Los angeles

ernest wilson

October 20, 2009

We come this way but once that I know of. And granted a finite window of opportunity to touch and be touched. Live and let live, give and let give. My Aunt Bev always received me with the warmest of arms. She inspired me to speak, even when no one wanted to listen. And above all else, to never apologize for just being me. I can honestly say she loved me and it was such an honor to love her in return. Even today, as I write it feels strange because I feel my Aunt all around me. That is the beauty of death, the soul is set free... :O)

Neema Pickett

October 19, 2009

Beverlee's spirit has moved on to her next level in life after fulfilling so many wonderful, wonderful purposes in her past level. Her love, peace and joy will be welcomed by the angels with open arms.

She was a loving part of our family and her beautiful smile will be sorely missed.

Elzie and Barbara O. Lewis

Barbara O. Lewis

October 19, 2009

Beverly will truly be missed. I met her through our work with Friends of Liberia, Inc and as a Liberian, she was one of the board members I was drawn to. She reminded me of the women in my family and she brought a refreshing perspective and knowledge to FOL that I thought was very on point with needs of and the things that matter most to the average Liberian. She did not shy away from being direct and to the point.

I also learned a lot from her stories of her experience in Liberia. She was very empowering and it impacted my own development. She truly made an impact in this world and will be missed.

My condolences to her family.

Candace Eastman

October 19, 2009

I am still overwhelmed by the loss of Beverly who was such a generous person to everyone. She was a delight to be around with her warm smile, her sense of humor and warm personality. I met Beverly through BMCC and was amazed to learn of her involvement with Friends of Liberia and the Women's Commission. She was a valuable member of our book club.We lost her way too soon. My condolences to her family.

Pat Hough

October 19, 2009

Her legacy lives on in the lives of Daryl and Pam, of Bernice and Angela,of Shirlee andPhoenix,Paul,Peggy Pia and all the meshpucha she shared with me when we were single parents and classmates at Cal State U. at L.A. May the family flourish.

Laurel Moss

October 19, 2009

I feel blessed to have known Beverlee. We met during meetings to draft NGO input in advance of the Beijing conference eons ago and stayed in touch, having lunch about once a year to catch up a bit. I miss her humor and her very wise counsel. My sympathies to her family for the loss of this amazing woman.

Lynda Selde

October 19, 2009

Our thoughts and prayers are with you during this time of grief. Although we only knew Beverlee a short time, we knew she was a special person. She will be missed. The Pritchett Family

Kim Pritchett

October 19, 2009

Please accept my condolences to you and your family for the loss of a good friend and mentor. Dr. Bruce and I worked on several occasions evaluating projects or participating in forums on Liberia. I quite admired her passion for Liberia and we as Liberians are quite grateful for her contributions to our country and all those lives she touched. She truly will be missed. She led a research team for which I was apart of, which took us to some very difficult terrain in Liberia. That experience however, was quite an adventure where we shared so many funny moments. I am grateful to have met her and inspired to have shared those wonderful moments with her. We have truly lost a giant on the forefront of advocacy for Africa. She will be missed. I pray that you find solace in knowing that she lived a full life, one far too many people only dream of. May God bless you all and grant her soul perfect peace.

Axel Addy

October 18, 2009

I never met Dr. Beverlee Bruce, the Scholar, the Professor.....,I met the lady across the street with the lovely smile, the warm eyes that reflected her soul, the woman who laughed from deep in her belly, and shed a tear over the silliest of things. I met the woman who had a heart of gold and I got to know her from the inside out. Now I miss looking across the street and seeing the light from her window, I miss going to performances with her, and I miss the lady who gave so much and asked nothing in return. That's the Beverlee I knew, and she was without a doubt, Barak Obama's other Mama. Beverlee lived, she laughed and she loved.

Sandra Cherry

October 18, 2009

Among Beverlee's greatest contributions to us is her son, Darryl Gregory Bruce. Her passion and her spirit live on through Darryl. He is a remarkable man who continues to adore her. She also adored him and took pride in him and in their relationship.

Angela Pickett

October 17, 2009

Indelible remembrance. Joined in sorrow with who loved her. And in joy with having had her love us back. Beverlee gave and gave wherever she found herself. Her essence lives on.

John Stewart

October 9, 2009

Beverlee Bruce and I go back to LACC/LASC in the 50's--
she'd call up out of the blue and start riffing; then she'd laugh that inimitable laugh only hers. I was teaching at Harvard when she was struggling with her doctoral dissertation; then she'd run off to some new area of inquiry: very restless soul, and soulful to a fault. Blessing on all her kin: the ancestors are happy to have her: libations all around. Michael S. Harper
Brown University
Providence, RI 02912-1923

michael harper

October 9, 2009

How Beverlee, Dr. Bruce's presence will be missed in this world! From Cambridge/Boston to DC to Liberia to New York to China; from Harvard to BMCC to City to Columbia; from St. Paul AME to Bridge Street AWME---awesome does not even begin to describe the "work" Beverlee did with us and with me personally and the life/wisdom she shared. Tears will continue to well up for a while but the "Light" of Bev's life will be long carried in my heart, in my daughter's heart, and in the hearts of so many who have been "touched" by this earth angel.

My condolences to Bev's family, especially to her much beloved son, Daryl and niece, Pam.

Olivia(Libby) Cousins

October 4, 2009

May the family find solace in knowing how Beverlee positively impacted so many during her life time.

My prayers to the family.

Beverly Hawkins

October 1, 2009

Rest in peace, Dr. Bruce. You were one of a kind and you will be missed.

Momoh Sekou Dudu

September 23, 2009

Showing 1 - 40 of 40 results

Make a Donation
in Beverlee Bruce's name

Memorial Events
for Beverlee Bruce

To offer your sympathy during this difficult time, you can now have memorial trees planted in a National Forest in memory of your loved one.

How to support Beverlee's loved ones
Commemorate a cherished Veteran with a special tribute of Taps at the National WWI Memorial in Washington, D.C.

The nightly ceremony in Washington, D.C. will be dedicated in honor of your loved one on the day of your choosing.

Read more
Attending a Funeral: What to Know

You have funeral questions, we have answers.

Read more
Should I Send Sympathy Flowers?

What kind of arrangement is appropriate, where should you send it, and when should you send an alternative?

Read more
What Should I Write in a Sympathy Card?

We'll help you find the right words to comfort your family member or loved one during this difficult time.

Read more
Resources to help you cope with loss
How to Write an Obituary

Need help writing an obituary? Here's a step-by-step guide...

Read more
Estate Settlement Guide

If you’re in charge of handling the affairs for a recently deceased loved one, this guide offers a helpful checklist.

Read more
Obituaries, grief & privacy: Legacy’s news editor on NPR podcast

Legacy's Linnea Crowther discusses how families talk about causes of death in the obituaries they write.

Read more
The Five Stages of Grief

They're not a map to follow, but simply a description of what people commonly feel.

Read more
Ways to honor Beverlee Bruce's life and legacy
How to Write an Obituary

Need help writing an obituary? Here's a step-by-step guide...

Read more
Obituary Templates

These free blank templates make writing an obituary faster and easier.

Read more
Obituary Examples

You may find these well-written obituary examples helpful as you write about your own family.

Read more
How Do I Write a Eulogy?

Some basic help and starters when you have to write a tribute to someone you love.

Read more