Elizabeth Omilami
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| Elisabeth Williams- Omilami |
|
|---|---|
| Alternate name(s): | Elisabeth Omilami, Elizabeth Omilami, Elisabeth Williams- Omilami |
| Date of birth: | February 18, 1951 |
| Place of birth: | Atlanta, Georgia, USA |
| Movement: | Arts, International Missions, Poverty Rights, Civil Rights, Human Rights, Women's Rights, Malnutrition, Homelessness and Peace Movement |
| Major organizations: | Hosea Feed the Hungry and Homeless |
| Religion: | Christian |
| Influences | Fannie Lou Hamer, Fannie Lou Hamer, Juanita Terry Williams, Juanita Williams, Gandhi, Andrew T. Young, Martin Luther King, Jr., Hosea Williams |
Elisabeth Williams-Omilami (born 1951-02-18 in Atlanta) is an African-American activist an actress and the voice of the less fortunate at Hosea Feed the Hungry.
She is the daughter of activist Hosea Williams and State Representative Juanita T. Williams.
Contents |
[edit] Activism
I'm on the battlefield for the Lord
– Elisabeth Omilami[1]
At an early age, Omilami's parents taught her that people should be accountable for each other, for their environment and should fight for justice for all people. As a young girl, she accompanied her father on marches and movements across the South. During the height of the Civil Rights Movement, after having the distinction of being one of the youngest people arrested in the fight for civil rights, Omilami was sent to boarding school. She also has the distinction of being the first African American woman in seventy-five years to spend the night in the Forsyth County jail during a march in January of 1981. Omilami had also worked for over 15 years in the background of her father's Hosea Feed The Hungry and Homeless efforts, and upon his passing in November of 2000 became the organization's CEO, expanding the organization to provide an additional 40,000 dinners yearly with the addition of events on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Easter Sunday. She is has also spoken and toured worldwide for several international relief efforts in places like the Philippines and Uganda.
| Hosea Feed The Hungry and Homeless, Inc. | |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1971 |
| Type | Human Services anti-poverty |
| Headquarters | Mailing Address: P.O. Box 4672 Atlanta GA 30302-4672 Physical Address: 1035 Donnelly Avenue SW Atlanta, GA 30310 Phone (404) 755-3353 Fax: (404) 755-0978 |
| Location | 1035 Donnelly Avenue SW Atlanta, Georgia USA 30310 |
| Membership | none |
| Official languages | English, Spanish |
| CEO | Elizabeth Omilami |
| Key people | Afemo Omilami, Awodele Omilami, Andre Williams, Amy Smith |
| Budget | 1 million 5 |
| Staff | 6 |
| Website | http://www.hoseafeedthehungry.com/ |
Omilami's acknowledgements for humanitarian service includes: A Georgia State Senate Resolution in recognition of her Community Service, Atlanta Business League 100 Women of Influence, For Sisters Only, Women In Film Humanitarian Award, Secretary of State of the State of Georgia Outstanding Citizen, State of Georgia Goodwill Ambassador, YWCA Women of Achievement Academy, Burger King Urban Everyday Heroes, Kraft Community Service; SCLC Women Drum Major for Justice, T. D. Jakes Phenomenal Woman, Daughters of Isis Community Service Award, the Emory University M.L.K. Community Service Award and The National Conference of Black Mayors Fannie Lou Hamer Unsung Heroine Award.
[edit] Education
Omilami is a graduate of Hampton University and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Theatre.
[edit] Theatre and Film
Omilami founded of one of Atlanta's earliest theatre companies People's Survival Theater, as well as the "Summer Artscamp", providing arts programming for economically challenged youth for over 7 years. She is a playwright has written several plays, one of which is There Is A River In My Soul. She is a past member of both the Georgia Council For The Arts and the Fulton County Arts Council and is a passionate advocate for the arts to be instituted as permanent part of society. She is an accomplished actress and has performed at the Alliance Theatre in A Christmas Carol and in early 2002 in Left Hand Singing at the Jewish Theatre of The South. She can also be seen in the HBO made for television movie Boycott and will be remembered by fans of both In the Heat of the Night and the award winning I'll Fly Away.
[edit] Home life
She is the wife of actor Afemo Omilami, Co-Director of Hosea's Feed The Hungry and Homeless, and has two children - son Awodele and daughter Juanita. She is a member of Abundant Life Church in Lithonia, where her Pastor is Rev. Woodrow Walker, II. She is an active member of the Prison, Missions and Drama Ministries there.
Quote Elisabeth Omilami:
We can raise the consciousness of the people and really make a difference over the next 40 days. I know a fast is a private discipline between the believer and God, or it can be done for health reasons. This is not the fast that we choose. We choose to feed the hungry. This is not a private fast this is a corporate call to action designed to get attention. Attention for those who are forgotten after the holidays, those thousands we see year-round at our offices for rent assistance food and clothing, those we feed weekly at outdoor camps and indoor ghettos right here in Atlanta, and those around the State that we serve through partnerships with other organizations meeting the needs with our help. What better time than during one of the holiest times of the year for humble servants to do their reasonable service. The prophetic, our ability to speak truth to power, to know the times and see Gods hand in the earth; will only come from our prayer life. So we are asking Atlanta to pray for us as they help us serve God's people. The prophetic life is a product of prayer, and when we see the people on Easter the whole dinner is one great prayer Oh Lord bring us together to know the true value of life the human soul.
– [1]
[edit] Sources
- Atlanta Women's Network. (2006). About Elisabeth Omilami. Retrieved 2007-06-12 from http://www.atlantawomensnetwork.org/Speakers/06JulyElisabethOmilami.html
- The Internet Movie Database. (2007). About Elisabeth Omilami. Retrieved 2008-01-18 from http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0648417/bio

