Staff reports

Pictured are Ms. Bessie (center), oldest daughter Shirley (back-right), Shirley’s daughter Sherrie (left), Sherrie’s daughter Shatikqua (front-right), and Shatikqua’s daughter Ja'Meriyah (seated with Ms. Bessie).   Photo: Urban News

“Momma” Bessie Mae Sherard Robinson moved to Asheville in 1940 at the age of 18. She came from South Carolina to live with her aunt, Mattie Reaves, to get away from her very strict father. “He walked with the Bible in his hand at all times,” mused her oldest daughter, Shirley.

Ms. Bessie married Herbert E. Robinson, and together they raised a family of eight children at 477 South French Broad Avenue – also known as “Bo-Weevil Hill.” Five of those eight children were girls – Shirley, Areta, Sharon, Frances, and Karen – and three were boys – Lawerence, James, and Calvin. The five daughters have, among them, blessed the family with four more generations of women.

“Life was good on Bo-Weevil Hill, and everyone looked out for each other,” says Shirley. For those mothers who worked outside the home, there were older mothers who stepped in to care for neighboring children. There was a ‘village mentality’ back then, where every adult was responsible for every child in the neighborhood.”

During the height of the urban renewal period, as part of the 1969 East Riverside project, the Robinson family was relocated to the Erskine housing community. “Momma raised us to always stick together because we are family. She also encouraged us to get an education,” stated Areta.

Taking seriously the encouraging words of Ms. Bessie, many of the children have educated themselves beyond high school and have embraced the family’s tradition of togetherness. The oldest granddaughter, Priscilla Robinson Ndiaye (not pictured) will graduate from Montreat College with her MS in Management and Leadership on May 23. She is also the author of A Mother’s Cry: He’s Still My Child.

When asked why she wrote the book, she replied, “To encourage others who are dealing with the frustrations of raising a challenging child. Momma planted the seed of family togetherness when I was a child. No matter what your child does or doesn’t do, he or she is still your child.”