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Doris Topsy-Elvord, known arsenic “Mother Doris” for her legendary enactment successful the community, and for being some the archetypal Black pistillate to beryllium elected to the Long Beach City Council and the archetypal Black idiosyncratic to service connected the harbor commission, has died. She was 90.
Topsy-Elvord, who entered hospice attraction successful aboriginal November, died peacefully astatine her location successful Central Long Beach connected Wednesday morning, Dec. 15, said Cecile Walters, the erstwhile councilwoman’s one-time main of staff.
Topsy-Elvord had Alzheimer’s disease, said Jackie Topsy, her daughter-in-law.
Topsy-Elvord’s past nationalist quality came successful August erstwhile the metropolis named the recently renovated assemblage halfway analyzable successful North Long Beach’s Houghton Park aft her.
Sitting successful a wheelchair, she blew kisses astatine Long Beach Mayor Robert Garcia, who called her “a past shaper successful Long Beach, an unthinkable pistillate who continues to permission an important bequest successful our community.”
Long Beach Vice Mayor Rex Richardson said that naming the installation the Doris Topsy-Elvord Community Center was the “perfect day gift” for the erstwhile councilwoman, who turned 90 successful June.
Topsy-Elvord was elected to the Long Beach City Council successful 1992, becoming the archetypal Black pistillate to service connected the panel. She represented the Sixth District, successful Central Long Beach, for 2 terms. During that time, she served arsenic vice politician twice.
In 2003, she broke crushed again, becoming the archetypal Black idiosyncratic and lone the 3rd pistillate to service connected the Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners.
Topsy-Elvord served 1 five-year term, acting arsenic committee president successful 2005.
Topsy-Elvord is known affectionately successful the metropolis arsenic Mother Doris due to the fact that of her enactment mentoring young and aged alike, according to Aaron Day and Indira Hale Tucker successful their book, “The Heritage of African Americans successful Long Beach – Over 100 Years.”
“She is known to beryllium spiritual, committed and colorblind and states she wouldn’t person it immoderate different way,” the brace wrote successful their book. “Doris has worked tirelessly for the assemblage of Long Beach and has made a quality successful the hold of quality rights to everyone.”
Doris Topsy-Elvord, née Walker, was calved connected June 17, 1931, successful Vicksburg, Mississippi. She and her household moved to Long Beach successful 1942 erstwhile she was 11 years old.
In 1949, Topsy-Elvord became the archetypal Black pupil to postgraduate from St. Anthony High School.
One of her proudest moments, she erstwhile told the Press-Telegram successful an interview, was being inducted into the St. Anthony Hall of Fame successful 1991.
After precocious school, she initially pursued a grade successful chemistry astatine UCLA but changed her caput – and began what would go a decades-long vocation successful nationalist service.
In 1956, she worked arsenic a California Youth Authority counselor. She followed that station up with jobs successful the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the Long Beach Department of Parks and Recreation.
Topsy-Elvord past went to the Los Angeles County Probation Department arsenic a lawman probation officer. She spent 19 years there.
Her career, however, was lone 1 facet of her ambition.
She went backmost to schoolhouse successful the 1960s, earning her bachelor’s grade successful societal payment from Cal State Long Beach successful 1969. In 1981, she received her master’s grade successful transgression justness medication from Chapman College, a schoolhouse successful the metropolis of Orange that’s present named Chapman University.
Topsy-Elvord retired successful 1988.
But she didn’t dilatory down.
Rather, she became a subordinate of the Long Beach Civil Service Commission, serving 1 word arsenic president. She besides served arsenic vice president of the Long Beach Unified School District Personnel Commission, and arsenic commissioner of the First Justice and Peace Commission of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.
Topsy-Elvord was conscionable shy of her 61st day erstwhile she edged incumbent Clarence Smith to go the Sixth District councilwoman.
Some of her proudest achievements arsenic a City Council subordinate included helping recovered the Atlantic Community Economic Development Corp., establishing the Long Beach Midnight Basketball League, cofounding the African American Heritage Society with Indira Hale Tucker, starring efforts to designate the location of civilian rights icon Ernest McBride arsenic a taste practice tract and eradicating graffiti successful the Sixth District to let for economical growth.
Topsy-Elvord was successful her 70s erstwhile different legendary Long Beach woman, then-Mayor Beverly O’Neill, appointed her to the harbor committee successful 2003.
During her clip connected the harbor commission, she helped make the Green Port Policy; that policy, which came astir successful 2005 and inactive exists today, is aimed astatine reducing the antagonistic interaction of larboard operations connected the environment.
Topsy-Elvord besides played a large relation successful expanding the port’s Small Business Enterprise Program.
Topsy-Elvord has received galore honors and awards for her assemblage service, including being named Woman of the Year by the Long Beach Chamber of Commerce successful 1993 and by California State Sen. Ralph Dills successful 1994.
Topsy-Elvord was erstwhile asked however she was capable to execute truthful galore things successful her lifetime. Her reply was succinct – and epitomized the erstwhile councilwoman’s years of nationalist service:
“You tin get thing done,” she said, “if you don’t attraction who gets the glory.”
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