By: Ms Jheri Worldwide
Staff Writer
In April of 2021, Evelyn Smith Booker published her autobiography “A Winner in Spite of …” this inspirational book is all about breaking through glass ceilings and honoring the journey. Booker truly poured her heart into these pages making it an absolutely enjoyable and uplifting read of her journey. Learning of her early helps the reader put the title into perspective. From birth she persevered to defy the odds one breath at a time.
Evelyn is truly a daughter of North Carolina and her dedication to our community is apparent throughout her story. From her humble beginnings in Nakina, NC, amongst a large, loving, and hardworking family, to her integrating her secondary school, Evelyn truly continued to push and win no matter the adversity. She shared details about leaving college to care for her mother. Determined to finish, she returned not only to earn her degree but to meet the love of her life Lee Booker, whom she is still happily dedicated to to this very day. Reading of her career and work experiences were especially enlightening. How she navigated through racism and bigotry to still rise in the ranks of the challenging media and advertising industry and lead and inspire with grace truly was the best message of the book for me. Faith and perseverance are my biggest takeaways from her honest and engaging text.
A passage from “A Winner in Spite of …” that I will hold on to speaks about attitude. Evelyn advised, “Attitude makes the difference … The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, money, circumstances, failures, successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, gifted ability, or learned skill. It will make or break any company, a church, a home, a person.” This is such a word. Attitude is everything and she expressed this sentiment flawlessly. There are so many gems dropped in this book.
Booker-Smith in the final chapters includes quotes from North Carolina’s coach Jim Valvano in his famous ESPY speech where he reminds us, “...three things we all should do everyday: laugh everyday, think; spend some time in thought. Cry -have your emotions moved to tears, which could be tears of happiness or joy.” Booker summarizes Valvano’s sentiments by adding, “...carry this without. Illness can take away physical and mental abilities, sometimes quickly, sometimes slowly, but as Coach Valvano reminded us, our soul remains.”
Filled with poetry, bible verses, quotes, photos, and sincere stories that speak to the reality of the African American experience there is so much to gain from the wisdom Evelyn Smith Booker has imparted. My final favorite passage is the prayer recounted by Evelyn’s sister Esther, who often retold the story of Evelyn struggling to breathe and function at birth. The pastor prayed over baby Evelyn alongside her loving parents and siblings proclaiming, “We are thanking you in advance, we count it done, and we walk in victory!” This is an excellent read for anyone looking to learn from a strong and confident woman. Remember, we walk in victory and we are winners in spite of!
