鈥�Jesus loves me, this I know, though my hair is white as snow,鈥� he began. 鈥�And my eyes are going dim, I鈥檝e had cataract surgery. Still He bids me to trust in Him. Though my steps are oh so slow 鈥� I have a cane. I belong to the Canaanites. Though my steps are oh so slow, with my hand in His I鈥檒l go. On through life, let come what may, on through life, He鈥檒l be there to lead the way.鈥�

Davis, who was baptized in 1943 while serving in the U.S. Army, worked from the 1960s through the 1980s in Christian institutions of higher education to bring multicultural awareness and diversity into curricula and campus communities.

He came to EMU near the end of his career, serving from 1980 to 1985 as the first director of the Cross-Cultural Center, the precursor to today鈥檚 .

Davis was introduced in the chapel service by senior Philip Watson, a member of the Black Student Union and a student representative to EMU鈥檚 Diversity Taskforce. Watson spoke of Davis鈥檚 scholarly accomplishments and thanked him for the role he played nearly 35 years ago.

鈥淗e is one of the unsung heroes of EMU鈥︹�� Watson said. 鈥淗is accomplishments paved the way for many of the programs and organizations that are active today, such as the Black Student Union, Latino Student Alliance and International Student Organization. Without people like Dr. Abraham Davis being one of the first to pioneer cultural change at 草莓社区, many of these organizations would not exist today.鈥�

An invitation to lead change

The Cross-Cultural Center, known as the CCC, was a place 鈥渨here international students and students of color could support each other鈥� and where 鈥渟trong relationships鈥� could be established with the predominantly heterogenous campus community at the time.

Davis was also tasked with 鈥渆thnically integrating the curricula in the various departments,鈥� he said in an October interview at Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community with Watson. 鈥淭he curricula was prevailingly ethnocentric at the time, from the white perspective only. I spoke in chapel, bought books and films for the library, spoke in classes, invited other black professors and musicians to campus from around the country.鈥�

In 1980, as a result of a 鈥渃ross cultural task force,鈥� Davis also became minority advocate program coordinator.

鈥淚t was the beginning of things 鈥� It was so new then,鈥� said Davis, of the move towards multicultural curricula and inclusion. 鈥淭here were some who were supportive. Some professors invited me to class and some would send students to me. Some people had never met a black professor with a PhD from a Big 10 university. Even now, that鈥檚 true.鈥�

Carpenter to professor

Davis鈥檚 six years at EMU were among his last appointments in a long and challenging career in academia. He often encountered prejudice and bigotry. Just a few years before he began teaching at Indiana University while earning his doctorate in rhetoric and public address, a crowd of white students had marched with Confederate flags in protest of the election of a black student to the position of student body president.

While Davis jokes that he might now choose a more practical major than rhetoric, and perhaps even a different career, he is sure of one thing looking back over his 92 years: that his professional choices were driven by a hunger to know more about the Bible.

Raised in South Carolina under Jim Crow restrictions and trained as a carpenter, Davis says his parents, neither of whom attended high school, encouraged him to seek further education. But it was his acceptance of Christ at age 22 while stationed with the U.S. Army in Marseilles, France, and his subsequent baptism in Okinawa in 1946, that changed his life.

鈥淎fter I became a Christian, I became much more interested in people than in building things,鈥� Davis says.

Blessed with a beautiful baritone voice and a flair for performing, Davis wasn鈥檛 sure 鈥渨hat direction the Lord wanted me to go 鈥� should I be a singer, a preacher, what?鈥� For a time, he trained as a teacher with the Child Evangelism Fellowship in Santa Monica, California (at this point in the interview, Davis reeled off three short snippets of hymns, all perfectly in pitch, that he used to teach children on the playgrounds in California and his hometown of Beaufort, South Carolina).

Eventually, though, using the GI Bill, Davis pursued studies at Lancaster (Pa.) School of the Bible (now Lancaster Bible College) and then Houghton College in New York, where he graduated in 1955 with a degree in classical Greek and minors in speech and art. He earned a master鈥檚 degree from Temple University (Philadelphia, Pa.) in speech correction the following year and a PhD. from Indiana University in 1971.

When he came to EMU in 1980, Davis had taught a wide variety of subjects at several universities, including South Carolina State College for Negroes (now South Carolina State University), Houghton (where he was also debate coach), Indiana University, and Messiah College, where he rose to be dean of the Philadelphia campus.

鈥榃ork to be done鈥�

Among the speakers to honor Davis were President Loren Swartzendruber and professor emeritus Titus Bender, a member of the committee who hired Davis from his position at Messiah.

鈥淚鈥檓 grateful for the work that Dr. Davis did while he was here and I pray that we can continue his legacy,鈥� said Swartzendruber. 鈥淭here is still much work to be done and we know that.鈥�

He noted that the current campus community continues to work on cultural competencies and communication as it welcomes an increasingly diverse student population (this year鈥檚 includes 37 percent of students who are ethnic minorities or from another country). Swartzendruber also spoke of EMU鈥檚 early support for integration 鈥� the college admitted its first black student in 1949, just one of first two institutions in the former Confederate states to do so.

Though Watson, with the assistance of Multicultural and International Student Services Director , was the organizer of the service, Eric Payne was the link between past and present. It was Payne who met Philip Watson one day outside the fitness center. Payne is an assistant coach with women鈥檚 basketball and Watson a sprinter on the track team. The two started talking, and Payne urged Watson to reach out to Davis, who lives in Virginia Mennonite Retirement Community.

鈥淚t鈥檚 been a mission of mine to see that Dr. Davis get his recognition and I鈥檓 honored to be here to help in that 鈥�,鈥� said Payne, who has coached at EMU since 2002. 鈥淭his is a high point in my life. I told Dr. Davis that a few days ago and he thought I was joking but it鈥檚 true.鈥�

Teacher and coach mentored by Davis

Payne calls Davis a mentor even though the two just missed each other on the EMU campus. A native of Waynesboro, Virginia, Payne came to EMU in 1986 and struggled with the culture on campus. By that time, Davis had seen his position eliminated by budget cuts and was teaching elsewhere. Payne, though, found traces of the professor, of his eloquent rhetoric and his incisive cultural criticism, in the chance discovery of an article by Davis.

Payne quoted a few sentences during the service from the article, which he still has in his possession: 鈥溾�� [M]any if not most are not motivated to intensify or dilute the ethnocentricity in curricula to the adaptive methods of teaching, testing and advising according to the needs of select international and national minorities. However, I am still willing to rap and dilute this hypothesis with faculty and students whenever and wherever they desire individually or collectively.鈥�

The blunt accuracy of the statement, along with the use of the word rap 鈥� 鈥淚 love that,鈥� Payne told the audience 鈥揷aused him to think someone 鈥済ot it.鈥� Though Payne stayed on campus long enough to help invigorate the Black Student Union, he eventually finished his degree at James Madison University.

Still, that chance encounter drew Payne to seek out the professor when he retired to Harrisonburg a few years later. For many years, the two stayed in touch. Payne eventually finished credential coursework at EMU and now teaches at Fort Defiance High School. He plans to graduate from EMU with a master鈥檚 in education in the spring.

He too, along with Philip Watson, who graduates this spring with a degree in psychology, carries on a legacy that was sustained and energized by Davis and his work at EMU.

鈥淚t was one of the great honors of my life to be part of this,鈥� Payne said. 鈥淚 thank God for Dr. Davis.鈥�

A crowd of about 200 enjoyed the game, cheering on both the Kingz and their opponents, a team made up of faculty, staff, alumni and students.

The event was billed as the EMU Charity Classic by the (BSU), which hosted the game and an after-party later that night. More than 150 tickets were sold, with the funds going towards an alternative spring break trip planned jointly by BSU, the EMU Gospel Choir, and .

鈥淚 really love how the game brought a lot of energy to EMU,鈥� said sophomore Anna Messer. 鈥淚t was a great time for students to get together with professors and with each other. It was a good community event for people to just let loose and have fun.鈥�

Crowd-pleasing hoops

The Streetball Kingz is a group managed by Dewey Jackson, based in Delaware. The team plays across the U.S. for community and nonprofit events. Their flashy style of play incorporates crowd-pleasing dunks, top-notch ball handling, and supreme shooting.

The fundraiser was quickly put together and gained momentum after the Streetball Kingz, just weeks before, contacted , director of , about coming to EMU since they had already played at James Madison University and Bridgewater College. Lepley passed along the idea to BSU student advisor .

鈥淲e wanted to do something that would be fun and late night so that students would have an option of doing something that鈥檚 substance free,鈥� said Thomas. 鈥淲e thought it would bring a lot of energy to the campus and it was something new. I think we did well taking a risk and trying something different.鈥�

鈥淚t always feels good to see hard work pay off,鈥� said BSU event coordinator Richard Robinson, 鈥渆specially for an event like this that has never happened on EMU鈥檚 campus.鈥�

The fundraiser will help defray costs of an alternative spring break civil rights experiential learning trip to Alabama and Georgia.

鈥淚nstead of going to the beach, we鈥檒l be going to Selma, Tuskegee and Atlanta doing a civil rights tour,鈥� said Thomas. 鈥淚t鈥檚 the 51st anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, so we鈥檒l walk across the Pettus Bridge, stop by national civil rights museums along the way, and go to some of the churches that they marched from. We鈥檒l visit Martin Luther King Jr. father鈥檚 church, go to MLK鈥檚 church in Montgomery, and also where Rosa Parks got on the bus from her job and decided not to sit in the back of the bus.鈥�

Team brings families and communities together

Streetball Kingz player Randy Gill, aka White Chocolate, splashed three three-pointers within the first five minutes of the game and they did not stop coming. A crowd pleaser, Gill interacted with the fans the entire time.

Following a collegiate career at Bowie State University, Gill started playing streetball and minor league basketball. He was eventually asked to play overseas, and since his return, has been playing for the Streetball Kingz.

Gill explained that the mission of his team is to support youth, and to bring families and communities together.

鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter if there are 20,000 people or even 100 people. We鈥檙e here to spread the love, bring the community together, and have a good time,鈥� he said. 鈥淲henever there鈥檚 a cause or a mission and we can help bring the people together that鈥檚 what it鈥檚 all about. We want young people to believe in themselves and let them know that they can do anything they want to if they practice their craft, whatever it may be. My mission is believe to achieve.鈥�

More BSU events

This month, BSU will be hosting a Nov. 18 chapel with the theme of #BlackLivesMatter. On Dec. 11, BSU will be joining the Campus Activities Council to host the .

鈥淲e鈥檙e expecting about 150 people for the ball,鈥� said Thomas. 鈥淲e鈥檝e contacted a band called Ebony Blue, and that will be another large event before we leave for winter break. When we come back we鈥檒l have a week-long celebration for MLK in January, then in February we鈥檒l have Kwanzaa for Black History Month, and finally the trip will be in March. We鈥檙e trying to expose the campus to different things. 鈥�

A version of this article was first printed in Nov. 5, 2015, issue of The Weather Vane.