Ada Louise Emanuel

Celebrate the life of Ada Louise Emanual her interment will be taken please as follow; 

Date: Tuesday June 28, 2022

Time; 2:00pm

Location: William C. Doyle Veteran Cemetery

Entrusted to Donato Askew Memorial Home 

Ada Louise Emanuel

Visionary - Feisty – Adventurous

Ada Emanuel led a visionary, pioneering life.  I, Valencia Emanuel, am writing this tribute to my momma who went for what she wanted in life.  Her gift to Henry and I is her teaching us to be free minded, and spirited.  Momma was proud that Henry is in the class of 2020 at St Joseph High School – Metuchen, a College Preparatory School for Boys.  Please donate to their Need-Based Financial Assistance fund in my mother’s name.  Put Ada Emanuel – Need Based Assistance in memo.  Send check to John Nolan; St Joseph High School; 145 Plainfield Ave. Metuchen, NJ 08840.  Henry benefitted greatly from this fund.  https://alumni.stjoes.org/g/give-annual-fund.  

Before I get into her trail blazing life, let me first thank the people who extended her independent living.  Anita Nock Garrett cooked for momma and was her confidant.  She kept me sane as I dealt with the decisions for her care.  She tried to thwart my momma’s efforts to get rid of her granny nannies one by one.  David Griffin checked on my mother and visited her often.  He tried to mow the lawn and shovel her snow.  Momma loved to try to beat him before he could help her.  They would argue about her climbing on her roof to clean the gutters.  David was often called to turn her tv on to Daniel Boone and MSNBC.  John McCaskill who drove momma to at the Baltimore VA.  She enjoyed bickering with him.  He learned to find Daniel Boone on her tv.  When Tim or the Granny Nannies could not make it, he would bring her food and put out her medication.  He had the key when she locked them out.  Beverly Taylor who was her New Shiloh Comfort choir mate.  She adapted my momma as her Aunt Ada.  She took momma to the bank and grocery store (not always an easy task).   She told me that she was scared of my momma when she first met her; but soon learned that her Aunt Ada had a heart of gold and was fun.  Tim Smith who came nightly to sneak and put out her nightly medication!  He heated up Anita’s food, would cook for momma, and enjoyed Hamburger Friday with her.  Of course, he was in charge of evening Daniel Boone.  Momma was not always appreciative of him, but he hung in there.  

Ada Emanuel’s Visionary History

Ada Emanuel was born in 1929 in North Carolina.  Momma had much sadness in her eyes when I asked her about her personal life.  Ada was the first Hunter clan to go to college.  She went 2 years to Johnson C. Smith.  Her biggest regret was given in to the financial struggle and frustration of the limited majors for women and black folks.  This experience led her to encourage the next generation to go and finish college.  After college, Ada roomed with her sister Ella in Baltimore where she worked “in the white folks houses”.  The stories my aunts’ and mother shared with me were very similar to the movie The Help.  They ended with you will do better because you will finish college.  

Ada joined the army in 1955 because she “had no other choice”.  I enjoyed hearing her stories of how the Army meant freedom from segregation.  A few times in her travels in the deep south, white people were removed so she could fly.  She was invigorated living in Germany and visited Paris several times.  She wanted to stay but returned to Baltimore to help grandma.  Ada Emanuel's army benefits allowed her to graduate from Cortez Peters in 1959.  This qualified her to be a secretary at Ft Meade.  

She met my father John Henry Emanuel dancing at a Ft Meade club.  I found the date and location of their marriage on ancestry.com.   I have the document showing dad flying in from Vietnam to marry her.  They married at Calvary Baptist Church in East Orange NJ.  She passed that church so many times when we visited Bruce and Gail and never mentioned it.  The only thing I know about the marriage was dad was always out of the country.  Dad got in trouble with his commanding officer because momma interoffice mailed the copy of the mean letter he wrote her because she got a driver’s license and a car in her name.  She needed that White Chevy to drive 50 miles/day to support grandma and me.  Momma refused leaving with him because she doubted he would treat us well.  She had a house in her name before she met him.  Dad was sitting uncomfortably on the couch one morning when I was 7.  He disclosed 20 years later he was there to see if she would take in my Korean brother.  He decided not to ask.  He bought me presents and left the title to his new car for momma to keep.  She sold it by the end of that day with the rest of his stuff he left!   Dad shared he never worried about us because momma provided well.   Momma consoled many military wives.  She advised them to keep a job, stay near their family, and not pay for the divorce.  Dad died in September 2021.  In the same conversation I had about her marriage being in a church we passed hundreds of times, I asked her for divorce papers.  She said she did not pay for the divorce.  I asked her did you sign anything. She said no.  I WAS NOT PAYING FOR THE DIVORCE.  I asked did she get any paperwork.  SHE SAID NO I WAS NOT PAYING FOR THE DIVORCE!

Ada Emanuel acted on her visions.  She went from working as a maid in Pikesville to being a homeowner there.  Every time we passed a bus stop where she got off, she reminded me of that accomplishment.  And I do the same with Henry.  April 11, 1968, the federal Fair Housing Act became law.  My momma moved me into our neighborhood 14 months earlier in February 1967.  The early Black families arrived within 3 weeks of each other.  In September 1967, I remember vividly the look on the principal’s face as I got off the bus and integrated the newly built Milbrook Elementary school.  She made sure the teachers’ attitude were adjusted.  I remember momma tossing the male principal against the wall and letting him know that she owned a home in Pikesville - he WORKED out here.  Momma made sure Principals at Sudbrook and Milford Mill conformed to her expectations.  I overheard my gym teachers arguing over who would get stuck with me.

Ada Emanuel retired from Social Security Administration 01/02/1987.  She won several union and Equal Opportunity grievances which improved working conditions.  For at least 7 years, momma used her sick leave a few days a week.  She was quick to remind her bosses as a vet, she could not be fired.  She only needed a doctor’s note after 3 consecutive days.  Momma used up all 17 years of sick leave.  I hated the job she got me there filing social security numbers.  She said “if you hate these 4 hours - imagine 8.   Finish college.  If you drop out - you pay for it!  My money is a terrible thing to waste.”

My Soprano mother loved to sing.  When I was under 5, she took me to rehearsal and made me sit with her on the choir stall at New Shiloh Baptist Church.  My first experience with musical theater was when she was Queenie in ShowBoat at St Charles Catholic Church’s Community theater.  She taught me negro spirituals and songs from her childhood.  She slept through many of my performances but woke up when I came on stage.  She never missed a Sunday Matinee when I was in Amen Corner at Center Stage.  Center Stage let her and her friends in free.  Momma was mad at me for spending too much and threatened to get me a job pumping gas.  That prompted me to form Exposure Musical Revues.  She sold 120 tickets to her Social Security coworkers for my dinner theater.  She toured with us and helped us drive.  She loved when we would get snowed out of NYC because Derrick would fix things when we came to her house.  Poor Stephon.   He smoked a cigarette in the back yard.  She smelled the smoke and accused him of smoking in her house.  She kept asking him questions about where he smoked, to the point she almost convinced him he smoked in her house.  We still laugh at that today.  

In her later years, my mother doted on her grandson Henry.  Bruce Gillespie would go get her whenever she called.  Momma loved to sing to Henry.  At 3 months he started trying to out sing her.  At 3 months they would argue with each other.  I asked her since one of them could not talk, which one should stop arguing. She told me that she is not taking that from a baby.  Henry babbled something that showed he was not going to give in either.   I got the game Trouble which Henry loved.  He taught momma how to play it when he was 5.  It took a while to realize that he would change the rules when she was winning.  They could never peacefully play a game because they cheated each other.  They could only play Hungry Hippos and Simon.  At 6, Henry made momma mad.  She grabbed his wrist and would not let go until he apologized.  She held on to him for 6 hours.  Momma would get Henry to break my rules, then would snitch on him when he made her mad.  They loved throwing each other under the bus.   

My momma is so stern she got a bunch of 4- and 5-year-olds to stop splashing at a Fl kiddie pool.  When she sat down, the other parents and hotel staff left.  I come back 10 minutes later, and my mother had confiscated the buckets and the kids were sitting quietly in the kiddie pool.  One little girl went to complain to her mother.  Her momma made her get back in the pool and bought my mother a drink. Other parents did the same and momma was tipsy. 

Ada Emanuel collected a hefty “Momma Tax”.  When Henry started private school, she reduced the tax.  She helped with his school expenses.  Momma made sure he knew she had high expectations since she paid for his hot lunch and trips.  My mother agreed that Henry complete his Catholic Church membership.  She felt that since St Bartholomew helped us out with tuition, and educated him religiously, that Henry should be part of the tradition.  She laughed so hard when Henry told her Bruce and my reaction when we found out that we had taken our first communion in the Catholic Church as well.   Momma enjoyed taking Henry to church with her.  She took him to Concorde, Gillis and First St Stephens Baptist Church.  

She was proud Henry graduated from Metuchen NJ’s St Joseph Boys College Prep.  She loved Henry’s stories about the Brothers and his schoolmates.  She often showed off her St Joseph Bracelet, pictures of Henry school activities.  We have several pictures of her wearing St Bart Track sweatpants with ST Joes T Shirts.

In May 2017, Derrick drove us to MD because she had a mini stroke, where she gave Henry her car in the emergency room.  Henry noticed that her anger improved her speech and would bother her and run.  He would then tell her you can’t catch me without physical therapy.  After a few weeks of therapy, he congratulated her when she grabbed him.  He sang to her, and she laughed at his silly dances.  But still she only would let him drive her car - once.  

The most important thing to her is that Henry finishes college.  She was so happy when he got into Seton Hall and NJ Institute of Technology, and insisted he not go to Towson or UMBC to be close to her.  She encouraged him to go to NJIT and took great joy in wearing her NJIT grandma Tee shirt.  She had a tear in her eye when she found out NJ made college free.  She said “use my house, and whatever I have left to pay for his master’s degree.  Henry played a major role in comforting after she fell.  Her last words to him were GET YOUR MASTER’S DEGREE.  His last words to her are see you next week grandma.  She kept her faculties to the end.  

Ada Emanuel was proud of her military service.  She loved going to the VA for health care where she led the laughter and mischief.  I caught VA security laughing at Henry and my mother arguing on their security system.  They complimented him on his patience - they knew her well.  My mother was proud she did not have medicare partb because of her veteran’s benefit.  I enrolled her in partb because VA cannot pay another government agency (NJ State).  It will be effective July 1st.  Ada Emanuel left this earth June 21 – PROUDLY without Medicare PartB. 

As we celebrate my mother’s life, I am asking everyone to: encourage our younger generation to work beyond their wildest dreams, never tell them what they cannot do, and ALWAYS fight to keep the world from killing the magic in their spirit (Darren Cofield).  My momma was thrilled to see Madison become a beautiful young lady, Calvin grow tall, Hunter get her Master’s from Harvard, David work for tech icons, Tiffany get her Math Master’s Degree, to see Carmen Esq, and Jarrod all grown up, Curtis and Ron on TV with Gospelfest, Stephon’s and Kwame’s video’s on YouTube, Derrick’s shows on Facebook.  And to hear about Nock/Harris family grandkids degrees.  She loved to see Darrell play for College Park.  Darrell’s NBA news was the first-time momma and I could not celebrate good news together.

I think God for giving me an original mother.  To God Be The Glory – Great Things He Had Done!

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