Frieda Parker Jefferson

Frieda Parker Jefferson

Frieda Parker Jefferson dedicated her life to education. Frieda was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, into a family of educators at a time when the right to an education for Black Americans could not be taken for granted. Frieda was the eldest child of Frieda Alice Campbell Parker and Frederick Allen Parker. Frieda's parents were both distinguished college graduates. The Parkers raised their children to exhibit formidable mental and emotional strength. Though still somewhat rare in the African American community, it was a foregone conclusion that like generations before them, all of the Parker children would have a college education. Frieda Parker Jefferson led the way.

Frieda graduated from the then segregated, Crispus Attucks High School in Indianapolis, where her father taught math and where the entire faculty and student body were Negroes. Freida was second in her class.

In the Fall of 1946, Frieda and her younger sister Winifred enrolled in Purdue University. Frieda and Winifred were the first two African-Americans to integrate the residence halls at Purdue. This was not an easy exercise. At the time, African Americans were not permitted to live in West Lafayette, Indiana, where the Purdue Campus was located; they were all required to live some distance away in the Black section of segregated Lafayette, Indiana. This is despite the fact that the rules of the University, a state supported public research institution, required all freshman women to live on campus.

Frieda and Winifred, supported by their parents, insisted that Purdue University abide by its own rules because, despite their race, they were nonetheless a tax-paying family in the State of Indiana. Their residence request was denied by the University administration so the family organized Black community leaders and appealed the decision to Governor Ralph Gates, who eventually yielded to their unwavering persistence and directed the University to change its policies regarding segregated housing. At the time, only twenty-five Black students were enrolled in the University, which then had a student body in excess of five thousand.

In 1950, Frieda graduated from Purdue University with a B.S. in Home Economics. Frieda immediately went into teaching. Frieda's entire career was in education. Following a temporary placement in Tucson, Arizona, Frieda embarked on a teaching career in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where she was one of the founding organizers of the Teachers Union in the Milwaukee Public School System. Frieda worked for more than 50 years in the Milwaukee Public Schools, the Milwaukee Area Technical College, V.E Carter Development Center, and various other community entities. In addition to teaching high school students, Frieda supervised student teachers, coordinated child development and day care programs, as well as created and implemented "School to Work" programs for the Milwaukee Public Schools.

Frieda has always generously shared her talents with family and friends; there is no way to recount here the full extent of Frieda's decades of contributions to her community and the positive impact she has made on those with whom she has come into contact. After officially retiring from education, Frieda remained active in several community and national organizations including the NAACP, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, the Milwaukee Links, Jack and Jill and the Purdue University Black Alumni Association. Frieda was also a founding member of Central United Methodist Church on Wisconsin Avenue.

Frieda received numerous awards across the decades from her Delta Sigma Theta sorority and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), Frieda was a lifetime member of both organizations.

Frieda met Ralph A. Jefferson, Jr. in 1952, and on August 17, 1953, they were married in Indianapolis. They remained married for 62 years until Ralph's death on August 5, 2015. Frieda was preceded in death by her brother Frederick A. Parker Jr. and sister Winifred Parker White. Frieda is survived by her sister Carolyn Parker Cliver and her two sons Ralph Alvin Jefferson III and Brian Lane Jefferson; her daughters-in-law Vernetta Nelson Jefferson and Angela Threlkeld Dodd; her granddaughters Lauren Alice Jefferson and Zoe Elise Dodd; eleven nieces and nephews, fourteen grand nieces and nephews and eight great-grand nieces and nephews, as well as many "adopted" nieces and nephews and extended family members that Frieda and her husband Ralph nurtured over the years.

Frieda was an active advocate of civil and equal rights and an avid sports fan, however her family believes that Frieda will be most remembered for her generosity of spirit, her warmth, her genuine interest in others and her wonderful sense of humor. Frieda's door was always open to anyone of any age who needed someone to listen.

Frieda encouraged her students and mentees to pursue greatness and she applauded them as they did. The many collective memories of Frieda and her exploits will live on for generations because of their spirit-lifting power and because people enjoy telling positive stories. Frieda blessed us with so very many of those!

There will be a Memorial Service starting at 1 PM on Saturday, July 17, 2021 at Central United Methodist Church, 639 N 25th Street, Milwaukee.

The family has suggested in lieu of flowers that contributions be made to Purdue University in Frieda's name at the link below:

Giving.Purdue.edu/InMemoryofFriedaJefferson

Or by mail to:

Purdue Foundation, 403 West Wood Street, West Lafayette, IN 47907.

Care of Purdue Black Alumni Organization Scholarship Endowment in Memory of Frieda Jefferson.