March 2, 2020 - Issue: Vol. 166, No. 41 — Daily Edition116th Congress (2019 - 2020) - 2nd Session
HONORING RUTHIE MAE RANSOM MORRIS; Congressional Record Vol. 166, No. 41
(Extensions of Remarks - March 02, 2020)
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[Extensions of Remarks] [Page E244] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov] HONORING RUTHIE MAE RANSOM MORRIS ______ HON. BENNIE G. THOMPSON of mississippi in the house of representatives Monday, March 2, 2020 Mr. THOMPSON of Mississippi. Madam Speaker, I rise today to honor a remarkable public servant, Mrs. Ruthie Mae Ransom Morris. Ruthie Mae Ransom Morris was born on October 24, 1942 in Leland, Mississippi, to Henry Parker Ransom, Sr. and Blanche Johnson Ransom. She was the sixth of their ten (10) children. Ruthie accepted Christ at an early age and was baptized under the leadership of her uncle, Reverend Clarence Johnson, who was the Founder and Senior Pastor of the Shady Grove South Missionary Baptist Church (SGSMBC) in Greenville, Mississippi. During her years at SGSMBC, Ruthie sang in the Senior Choir, typed and printed the Church bulletins, organized special events, and served as a trusted confidant and adviser to Reverend Clarence Johnson as well as to his successor, Pastor Solomon B. Miller. Following Pastor Miller's departure from SGSMBC, Ruthie continued to serve under Pastor Gregory C. Lance, Sr., who, like Pastor Miller, not only became the Senior Pastor of SGSMBC, but was also ``a spiritual son'' to Ruthie. In 1997, Ruthie joined Agape Storge Christian Center (ASCC) under the leadership of Dr. Thomas Paul Williams, who was a lifelong family friend and former member of SGSMBC. During her years at ASCC, Ruthie served as a Greeter before answering God's call for her to become an ordained minister. In 2011, Ruthie obtained her Minister's License after graduating from the ASCC School of Ministry. She faithfully served on the Ministry Team until her health began to fail in April of 2019. Ruthie was educated in the Bolivar County Public Schools in Rosedale, Mississippi and in the Greenville Public Schools where she graduated from Coleman High School in the Class of 1960. She also attended Alcorn A&M College in Lorman, Mississippi where she first majored in Early Elementary Education. However, after her first day of practice teaching with a classroom full of young children, Ruthie quickly realized that she was in the wrong field and changed her major to Business Administration. She was the first of her siblings to both graduate from high school and attend college. After leaving Alcorn A&M College, Ruthie returned home to Greenville where she worked as a Secretary in the Greenville Public Schools at T.L. Weston High School and E.E. Bass Jr. High School before starting her banking career as a Teller. Throughout her career in banking, she worked at various banks including Commercial National Bank, Trustmark Bank, and Sunburst Bank, which later became Union Planters Bank before eventually becoming present day Regions Bank. Ruthie's natural gift for accurately and speedily counting money; her excellent people skills; and her strong work ethic led to her meteoric rise in every bank where she worked. Not only was she chosen to train numerous Tellers who came after her, but she eventually became the first African-American Branch Manager of a bank in Greenville, Mississippi. After retiring from Regions Bank, in the summer of 1996, Ruthie was hired as the Office Manager at lnfipro Security for several years before her love for both ministry and business led her to become the Bookkeeper at The Salvation Army in Greenville, Mississippi. She ``officially'' ended her work career when she retired from her bookkeeping position at The Salvation Army in 2012. However, in 2016, Ruthie was recruited to become the Office Manager at Jackson Heating and Air Conditioning where she remained for two (2) years and acquired yet another ``spiritual son,'' Malcom Jackson, who was her boss. Despite being a working mom with three (3) children, Ruthie still found time to be civically and politically active in her community. For more than thirty (30) years, Ruthie served on the Board of Directors of the Brent Daycare Center, which later became known as The Greenville Daycare and Learning Center (TGDALC). While serving on the Board of TGDALC, Ruthie worked closely with her fellow Board Members as well as various Directors, including Ruby Gloria Washington, who also became a close friend of Ruthie's; and Dollie Creath, who became a mentee of Ruthie's. Throughout her years on the Board of TGDALC, Ruthie formed strategic partnerships with various agencies to secure the necessary funding in order to ensure that numerous children throughout the South End and all over the City of Greenville were able to obtain an excellent pre-school education. She remained on the Board of Directors of TGDALC until it eventually closed its doors. In addition to her civic engagements with several organizations including her beloved Coleman High School Class of 1960, Ruthie was passionate about politics. In fact, she canvassed Delta neighborhoods and traveled around the State of Mississippi in order to get Democratic candidates elected on the local, state, and national levels. For many years, Ruthie was an active member of the Washington County Democratic Party, and she worked closely with the Democratic National Committee (DNC). She not only campaigned for State Democratic candidates such as Robert Clark, but in 1987, Ruthie campaigned diligently to elect Mike Espy to the U.S. House of Representatives (MS 2nd District). Then, in 1993, she helped to secure victory for Bennie Thompson when he successfully ran for Mississippi's same 2nd Congressional seat after Mike Espy became the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. In 1988, while serving as the Precinct Captain of 3-1, Ruthie galvanized the highest voter turnout in the precinct's history, which played a pivotal role in electing Mississippi's 60th Governor, Raymond Mabus, Jr. In 1993 and 1994, Ruthie was also instrumental in helping to elect Greenville attorneys, Johnnie E. Walls, Jr. and Willie Bailey to the Mississippi State Senate (12th Senatorial District) and the Mississippi State House of Representatives (49th District), respectively. Because Ruthie was such a gracious hostess who maintained a lovely home, she was often called upon to host visiting dignitaries at her residence, including The Reverend Jesse Jackson, Sr., Minister Louis Farrakhan, Judge James Earl Graves, Jr., and former Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young's daughter, Andrea Young, just to name a few. Moreover, long before the ``Me Too Movement,'' Ruthie recognized the need for women to hold political offices. As a result, she served as the Campaign Manager or as a volunteer for numerous female candidates, including Vernita King Johnson, Bernadine Young (Deceased), Laverne Moore Holmes, Margaret Carey-McCray, and Estelle Pryor, among others. Ruthie was preceded in death by her parents, Henry and Blanche; her siblings, Martha (Bay) Birkhead Brewer, Alma Catherine (Gloria) Ransom, Marguerite (Sister) Clark, Betty Jean (Beh Jean) Walker, Henry (Bay Brother/Ramp) Ransom, Jr., Clarence (Scrappy) Ransom, and Charles (Bimbo) Ransom. She will be missed by many more. Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join me in recognizing Mrs. Ruthie Mae Ransom Morris for her dedication to serving others and giving back to her community. ____________________