Thelma Smith Bowie

Thelma Smith Bowie

Thelma Smith Bowie, Commissioner-at-Large for Texas City, Texas, describes moving from Temple, Texas to Texas City - La Marque, in 1957, and how living at 122 Lake Road “was the best place to be in the whole wide world”. She shares stories about her sisters, especially Wilma, her sister with down syndrome. She reminisces about spending happy times on her grandparents’ farm during the summer breaks, and her thoughts on the influence that church had on her and the community. Bowie tells of her family’s economic circumstances and how they improve after her mother’s decision to attend college. Bowie talks about her early experiences with racial discrimination from childhood to adulthood. She describes one incident when the superintendent of the school district called her out of the classroom so he could see for himself that a Black child had the highest standardized test scores of all the students from La Marque Independent School District. She shares stories about her choices to attend high school during the time of integration. She voices her admiration for Sara Miller, the PE teacher at La Marque, who recognized her athletic talents and encouraged her in her university vocations. She talks about Ann Simmons and how instrumental she was in convincing Bowie to run for a seat on the school board, which began her journey into politics.

2021-03-30

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2021OH_AAE001

Theresa Mayfield

Thelma Smith Bowie