Gloria Louise Harper Dickinson was the only child born of Clifford Harper, a merchant seaman and Martha Louis Sinton Harper Hasell, a registered nurse on August 5, 1947. She was raised in Jamaica, Queens, NY and her early education was received in the New York City Public Schools. Gloria graduated from Hunter High School then attended CCNY where she received her Baccalaureate degree, later earning her Masters and Ph.D from Howard University. Dr. Gloria H. Dickinson, who resided in Willingboro, NJ, was the immediate past chair of the Department of African-American Studies at the College of New Jersey in Ewing, NJ. Her spheres of academic expertise included Africana religion and food ways, black popular culture, women writers of the African Diaspora and infusing New Media Technologies into Africana Studies. Since patenting “Sisters at the Spa”, Dr. Dickinson had also planned numerous African spa trips for organizations and individuals. Her love of travel around the world must have been “a genetic imprint from her father”, her mother stated on many occasions. Her extensive globetrotting took her to five of the seven continents where she met and connected with many people. Gloria was a multi-tasker before that term was coined. During her life she was a wife, friend, soror, neighbor, professor, mentor, confidante, advisor, sponsor, presenter, matchmaker, organizer, photographer, ultimate shopper, therapist, historian, collector of Black memorabilia, Black Art and Angels. She was the consummate mass communicator via snail mail, the telephone, fax and the Internet. Gloria was a woman of many passions, the warm sands of a beach, delicious tastes of exotic food, spa treatments, gospel music, good down home collard greens, crispy fried chicken, rhythm and blues, the effervescence of a glass of chilled champagne, spicy tuna sushi, the Motown Sound, gumbo, dancing, watching CNN, crabs or lobster, going into Manhattan for live theatre, attending concerts, fried fish and grits, Jazz, reading the Sunday New York Times, and staying up late. Gloria was involved and belonged to several professional and civic organizations. GHD was the immediate past President of the “Association for the Study of African American Life and History”, former Vice President of the “Association of Black Women Historians” and served on the Board of Directors of “ASALH”, the National Council for Black Studies and the American Studies Association Crossroads Digital Media Project. She was a member of the Rancocas Valley Chapter of the Links, Inc. Gloria was the primary catalyst in establishing “Sister Will You Help Me?”, a breast cancer support group for Women of Color and Faith in the Willingboro community. She was an active parishioner at the Wesley African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. In 1966 as a member of Lambda Chapter in New York City, Gloria began her commitment to her beloved Sorority. She was a Silver Star Life member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and has held a myriad of key leadership positions on the local, regional, national and international levels. In July 2008, because of her health, she resigned her most recent office as Centennial International Regional Director. Gloria received her wings and became an angel on Sunday, January 18, 2009 and is survived by her devoted husband of thirty eight years, Lt Col. (Ret.) Arthur C. Dickinson, her cousins; Joelyn (Charles) McIwain, N. Babylon, NY, Jacqueline Sinton, Jamestown, NY and Ronald (Cheryl) Goodridge, Hempstead, NY, Thurston Groomes of S. Orange, NJ, her nephew, Wyndell (Pam) Dickinson, her grandniece, Nadia Dickinson, Leonia, NJ and “Aunt” Daisy Poole McFadden, Bronx, NY; also her godsons, Jason Hollingsworth, CA, and Darrell G. Thomas, CA. She will be sorely missed and always cherished by a host of other relatives, friends, colleagues and sorority sisters. |
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| Gloria Louise Harper Dickinson President, 2001-2004 |
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Short list of Presidents with
available information.
1965-1966 Lorenzo J. Greene
1966-1967 J. Reuben Sheeler
1974-1976 Edgar Toppin
1977-1980 Charles Walker Thomas
1989-1990 Andrew Brimmer
2001-2004 Gloria Harper Dickinson
2004-2006 Sheila Y. Flemming-Hunter
2007-2009 John Fleming
available information.
1965-1966 Lorenzo J. Greene
1966-1967 J. Reuben Sheeler
1974-1976 Edgar Toppin
1977-1980 Charles Walker Thomas
1989-1990 Andrew Brimmer
2001-2004 Gloria Harper Dickinson
2004-2006 Sheila Y. Flemming-Hunter
2007-2009 John Fleming
