The McKinney-Ellis Clan had its beginning in the late afternoon of the day that we laid our mother to rest, September 5, 1951. Since most of us lived in various cities where we carried on our occupations, mother was the “clearing house” who in her letters to each of us always let us know how and what the rest of us were doing. Now that she was no longer with us physically, we recognized the need for keeping the sense of unity which she provided for the family.

As we sat on the porch reminiscing about past family experiences, it was suggested that we establish a formal family organization to meet annually and enjoy the fellowship and the support which members of a family can give to one another. Heretofore, after reaching adulthood, we had come together only on sad occasions – the death of a father, a sister, and now mother. We asked, “Why should we meet on occasions when there was no sadness to mar our fellowship?” We then decided to meet every year and to treat the occasion as we treat an emergency, that is, to put aside anything we were doing in order to attend the meetings, just as we would do if there was a death in the family.

The twenty-five years of our history which we celebrate today have been quite meaningful in many ways. We have included in our fellowship all our relatives on both sides of the family, and also our close friends. In addition, as the children have grown up, they have increasingly taken leadership roles in our meetings.

Our meetings have been held in different places – from Detroit and Idlewild, MI to Nassau and Jamaica of the British West Indies. Featured have been educational talks, artistic performances by the younger members, services of remembrance, and recreational activities.

–Excerpted from a program for a service held Sunday, August 1, 1976, celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the founding of the McKinney-Ellis Clan. The service was held at the African Baptist Church, Live Oak, FL and paid homage to Dr. George Patterson McKinney Sr.