May 6, 2025 • 40 mins
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Angela Pace powerful story weaves through the nurturing community of Columbus's historic Poindexter Village (the "Blackberry Patch") where three generations of women taught her about determination and sacrifice. With candid warmth and infectious humor, she shares how her grandmother and mother instilled in her a love of learning, proper English, and unwavering faith that would become the foundation of her broadcasting career.
One teacher's belief changed everything. When Angela Pace's sixth-grade teacher drove her home and told her mother, "This girl needs to go to college," a new path opened for a young girl from Poindexter Village who had never imagined higher education as part of her future.
The journey wasn't smooth. Angela reveals the heartbreaking challenges she faced – from her mother's death during her high school years to experiencing blatant racism as a young reporter in Newark, where police officials deliberately withheld stories from the "little Black girl with a teeny weeny 'fro." Yet for every obstacle, Angela encountered champions who recognized her talent and created opportunities, including former teachers who literally drove her to Capital University to help her re-enroll after she had to drop out to support her siblings.
Her broadcasting career brought extraordinary experiences – covering Princess Diana's funeral, reporting from the Nagano Olympics, and even meeting Nelson Mandela. But Angela's greatest pride comes from connecting with the Columbus community and inspiring younger journalists who tell her, "I want to be Angela Pace." Now honored as one of Columbus's Top 50 Icons, Angela doesn't see herself as a trailblazer but as "encouragement and maybe hope" for all the other kids from neighborhoods like hers.
What does legacy mean to Angela Pace? It's "doing something that somebody will remember, hopefully for all the right reasons." Listen now to discover how faith, mentorship, and perseverance shaped a broadcasting legend whose grandmother "prayed her through college" and whose story continues to inspire generations.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
Albert Leon Tapo was my sixth grade teacher at Kent
Elementary School and it was thefirst male teacher I'd ever had
and he was a big, big brotherfrom Louisiana somewhere and I
was scared to death of him,scared to death of him.
And one day he told me I had tostay after class.
I was almost in tears because Ithought I was a good kid.
(00:24):
I thought what did I do?
My mom was home on maternityleave and he knew that and he
sat us down and he told mymother.
He said this girl needs to goto college.
And my mother's looking at meand I'm looking at her and I'm
thinking what in the world iscollege?
All my mother had asked of meand my sisters was graduate from
high school, get a good job atthe phone company, because
(00:45):
that's what you did back then ifyou were a black girl.
And she said don't bring me anygrandchildren before you bring
me a son-in-law.
Those were the rules.
Those were the rules and MrTapo told my mother.
He said I see something in hershe loves learning, she's always
prepared, she always volunteersand I can just see her having a
(01:07):
successful college career.
From that point on, coach, mymother and I were on a mission
and that mission was to get meto college.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
Welcome to Be A Baller where we're building a
lifelong legacy for our families, communities and the world.
Your host, coach Tim Brown, isexcited for you to join him on
this journey.
On each episode, we'll betalking about how to be
intentional about building alasting legacy.
We'll be exploring what itmeans to leave a mark that goes
beyond just our lives but has apositive impact on those around
(01:40):
us and even generations to come.
So if you're looking forinspiration, guidance and
practical tips on how to build alasting legacy that makes a
difference, then you're in theright place.
So grab your earbuds, getcomfortable and let's dive in.
It's time to be a baller.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Welcome to a Be A Baller podcast.
I'm your host, coach Tim Brown,where we celebrate the stories
of individuals who are making alasting impact in their
communities.
Today, we're honored to have instudio Queen Angela.
She joins us on the show.
As a trailblazer in journalismand community service, angela's
legacy is a testament to herdedication and perseverance.
(02:17):
From anchoring newscasts toserving on numerous boards of
directors, angela has led anincredible mark on Columbus.
Angela has won an incrediblemark on Columbus.
Angela has won three Emmys.
In January 2012, angela Pacewas named one of the top 50
icons in Columbus by theColumbus Bicentennial Guide.
Angela's image is featured onthe Longstreet Culture Wall of
(02:39):
Fame.
There's a joke around that youhave a big picture.
Your picture is bigger thansome other folks.
Speaker 1 (02:46):
That's what they say on the streets.
My brothers and sisters came tothe ceremony and my brother
said why is your head so big?
Speaker 2 (02:50):
that's what they say on the streets, and I think is
it Chuck White who was reallymad at you oh yeah, he was not
happy, he was not happy.
I want to thank the audience forjoining us.
We're going to have a good timeand we have plenty of laughs,
and we just want to thank theaudience for joining us.
We're going to have a good time, there's going to be plenty of
laughs, and we just want tocelebrate you.
Oh, thank you All that you'vedone in the community and
continue to do.
Continue to do.
As we sit down with you, we'lldiscuss your journey, the
(03:12):
lessons you learned along theway, and how she's built a
legacy that continues to inspirefuture generations.
Angela Pace Queen Angela,welcome to the show.
Thank you.
You know your impact islegendary.
There's a fourth grade studentthat met you as a student when
you visited his elementaryschool.
You impact him so much that heis now your favorite county
(03:33):
commissioner, kevin Boyce.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Kevin will never let me forget that.
Yeah, he told me we were atsome event.
Now I'll tell you when it was.
It was when he was being, hehad just been named state
treasurer of Ohio, and so theyhad a reception for him.
And I was emceeing thereception and he said Miss
Angela, when I was a little boy,in the fourth grade, at Ohio
(03:57):
Avenue, and I thought here'sthis grown man, right, right,
remembering he was in the fourthgrade when I was a grown woman.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
He's one of my favorite guys and he is my
favorite commissioner.
All right, now let's set therecord straight.
You know you're growing up inPointe d'Ache Village.
What was it like being part ofthe Near East community during
that time, and how did yourchildhood experiences shape you
today?
Speaker 1 (04:21):
I tell everybody that when I think about myself and
when I talk to myself which I doa lot since I'm unemployed now
I refer to myself as a littlenappy head girl from Poindexter
Village, because that's the wayI am.
That's what shaped me.
My mom grew up in Poindexterand when she and my dad split up
, when my sisters and I werejust babies, we moved in with
(04:43):
her mother and my grandmotherand spent the first few years of
our lives on Clifton Avenue inPoindexter, the Blackberry Patch
, and I tell people all the timethat you know I'm 112 years old
now, but the years that I spentin Poindexter were the happiest
and safest I've ever felt.
It was a true, true village.
Safest I've ever felt.
It was a true, true village.
(05:04):
And that's when I learned aboutcommunity, about how you don't
just live in your little address.
There were tons of kids there,so I got a chance to play with
tons of kids my age and youngerand older, and the grownups had
permission from my grandmotherto.
If they saw us acting up, theycould swat us on our butts and
(05:26):
then drag us across thecourtyard to my grandmother's
house where they would say MsJones, I saw Angie doing blah,
blah, blah blah.
My grandmother would say thankyou very much, and then she
would drag me upstairs and I'dget more swats on the behind.
So you learn that there werepeople who cared about you, even
though there was no bloodconnection.
(05:47):
All these grownups were tryingto raise all these little
colored kids the best way thatthey could.
It was a great place to grow up.
Speaker 2 (05:56):
You know you had a special relationship with your
mom and grandmother.
Can you talk about their impactand influence that they have in
your life that drove yoursuccess?
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Well with my mom.
First of all, for a few yearsafter my dad left, she was a
single mother and she workedhard to take care of my two
sisters and myself.
We all lived together.
There were three generations ofwomen all living together with
my two sisters and myself my momand her sister, my Aunt Jean,
and then my grandmother and hersister.
(06:26):
So three generations of women,and they were all.
We all had jobs.
As my grandmother said, her joband her sister's job, my Aunt
Ethel, were to go out and cleanfolks' houses to help bring
money in.
My mom's job was to get as manyjobs as she could to help take
care of me and my sisters.
My Aunt Jean at the time was inhigh school, so her job was to
(06:49):
finish high school and then geta job.
And for me and my sisters, ourjob was to go to school and
learn as much as we could sothat we could be the best people
that we could.
My mother was one of thesewomen who Coach.
I think that if, in a differentage and time, my mother would
have gone to college and she'dbe running a company or
(07:09):
something now, because she was avery, very smart woman, loved
reading, loved education Fromher.
I got my love of reading, mylove of learning.
She instilled that in me andwould sit up with me and go over
my spelling words and make suremy homework was done.
I also got my love of musicfrom her.
She played piano.
We had an old upright piano inour house and she would sit.
(07:30):
She had all the jazz albums inthe world so we would listen to
jazz.
She would sit at the piano andplay and I'd sit next to her and
I could read at this time andif I knew the words to the song
I would sing while she played.
So I grew up with music in thehouse, did music all through
school.
So mom had that incredibleinfluence on me.
(07:53):
I always wanted to learn and mygrandmother and I'm not going
to cry, but my grandmother wasalways in our lives.
It wasn't like we got in thecar and went to grandmother's
house, because she was alwaysthere for most of the time
anyway, so she would take careof us when mommy was working.
And then, even after my mothergot married again and my sisters
(08:13):
and I moved out and we had ourown house, nanny was always
always there, always helping out.
And when my mom died while Iwas still in high school, it was
my grandmother who stepped inand said I'm keeping this family
together.
My brothers were very young andI think there had been some
talk about maybe children'sservices coming in and putting
(08:35):
them.
My grandmother said, no, I'mtaking care of my baby's babies.
So she somehow provided a wayfor all of us to have a place to
live, have food and also have areligious upbringing.
She made sure that we went tochurch and that we went to Bible
study.
And basically I tell everybodythat my grandmother prayed me
(08:58):
through college, through all thejobs that I've had, and prayed
me into the career that I'vebeen blessed with.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
You have a story about your grandmother, North
Carolina, correct?
Speaker 1 (09:09):
Yeah, North Kakalaki.
Speaker 2 (09:13):
The story goes, she was determined that you wouldn't
have that accent.
Oh that you would talk good old, proper English.
That's the word.
Is that the word?
Is that right?
Speaker 1 (09:23):
That is the word.
She and her sister my aunt werefrom North Carolina.
They came up here as very youngwomen to find freedom in the
North, and so they weredetermined that they weren't
going to sound like they werefrom the South and that my
sisters and I were not going tosound like we were from the
South.
So they spoke very correctEnglish in the house.
(09:46):
They listened to their bosses,listened to how they spoke.
We watched news.
I mean, I was watching news ata very early age because that's
where you learned what they callgeneral standard English.
So in our house my sisters andI had to speak very correct
English, but we knew we couldn'ttalk like that out with our
(10:07):
buddies.
I tell everybody I wasbilingual because I knew how to
talk out in that house.
And never knowing, coach, thatthat was going to lay the
foundation for me to be able tospeak correct English on TV.
I didn't have to learn how todo it, I'd done it all my life.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
God has a way of working all things together.
All those things come together.
You know you attended a SouthHigh School.
Yes, Bulldogs.
Speaker 1 (10:37):
Sorry.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
You are all in that yearbook.
You're all in that 1970yearbook.
Now, you're all in that book.
You're all in that book.
You're all in that book.
You're in the marching band,will and Scroll Class Play,
national Iron Society, buckeyeGirls, state Sweetheart Ball
Queen, come on with your badself.
And commencement speaker.
It's even more now.
(10:59):
I read the book.
There, you, class and studentcouncil officer, student
newspaper and senior choir, goahead and sing something for us.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
Lord have mercy.
A lot of that was my mother'sinfluence.
She wanted me to have a greatschool life and I was all for it
.
I mean, I was all for it.
It was so much fun and it keptme out of trouble.
(11:31):
It kept me engaged.
It kept me out of trouble.
It kept me engaged.
I got to work with a lot ofdifferent classmates on a lot of
different levels and it gave meexposure to a world that I may
never have had.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
I had a group of friends and we were in a lot of
those same organizationstogether and we were what you
would call nerds now, I guess,but we were popular nerds.
I don't know how that happened.
Right, it was an oxymoron,Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (12:04):
It was a great experience.
I loved my experience at SouthHigh.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
School yeah, that's awesome.
And kids miss out on that todayjust being involved in those
different activities, because Ibet that class reunion is
something else, oh, my goodness.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
We've got a reunion coming up in September.
We've already got they'vealready sent out the save the
dates and it's and a lot, of, alot of my classmates I still see
, because they stayed here andI've stayed in touch with them,
which I think is great to beable to form those kinds of
friendships that can grow upwith you.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Yes, you know, when you were in sixth grade, your
teacher drove you home fromschool one day and sat down at
the kitchen table with you andyour mother and said this girl
needs to go to college.
Then you had your studentnewspaper advisor.
Talk about the influence.
Can you talk about theinfluence that those two
teachers had in your life?
Speaker 1 (12:56):
Albert Leon Tapo was my sixth grade teacher at Kent
Elementary School and it was thefirst male teacher I'd ever had
and he was a big, big brotherfrom Louisiana somewhere and I
was scared to death of him,scared to death of him.
And one day he told me I had tostay after class.
I was almost in tears because Ithought I was a good kid.
(13:18):
I thought what did I do?
My mom was home on maternityleave and he knew that and he
sat us down and he told mymother.
He said this girl needs to goto college.
And my mother's looking at meand I'm looking at her and I'm
thinking what in the world iscollege?
And my mother's looking at meand I'm looking at her and I'm
thinking what in the world iscollege?
All my mother had asked of meand my sisters was graduate from
high school, get a good job atthe phone company, because
(13:39):
that's what you did back then ifyou were a black girl.
And she said don't bring me anygrandchildren before you bring
me a son-in-law.
Those were the rules.
Those were the rules.
And Mr Tapo told my mother.
He said I see something in her.
She loves learning, she'salways prepared, she always
volunteers and I can just seeher having a successful college
(14:03):
career From that point on.
Coach, my mother and I were on amission and that mission was to
get me to college.
So a lot of those activitiesthat I was in that was part of
her plan to make sure that I wasalways engaged, that I was
active.
So if college admissions lookedat my resume they'd say, oh
(14:23):
okay, this is a good kid.
She would you know.
She had five kids and a job, afull-time job.
But she always made sure thatif I was doing something extra
at school, if I was working on aproject, she was right there,
she was right there.
And then I had a couple ofreally great, influential
(14:45):
teachers at South who helped meout.
There was a guidance counselor,mr Tate, who would call me into
his office and just check andmake sure that I was on that
college path.
And I tell people all the timethat there were teachers.
Teachers have one of thetoughest jobs that there is.
They really do.
But if they see something inyou, they got a classroom full
(15:10):
of kids, maybe four or fiveclassrooms.
If they see that kid who needssomething or wants something and
they zero in on that, then itmakes all the difference in the
world.
It makes all the difference inthe world.
One of my teachers, mikeRotunda.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
He was a college football coach you know, rotunda
, he was doing activities yeah,rotunda, he was a college
football coach.
Speaker 1 (15:34):
You know Rotunda, he was doing activities.
Yeah, mike Rotunda was mygovernment teacher and got to be
just a real good friend, alwaysencouraging me.
And when I had to drop out ofcollege after my mother died, it
was Mike Rotunda who I wasworking at Nationwide Insurance
trying to help my grandmothersupport my brothers and sisters.
And I'd only had one year ofcollege, I'd had a year at OU
and then my stepfather said wedon't have any money to send you
(15:55):
back, so I had to get a job.
I was devastated, ran intoRotunda about three years after
that.
He said you ought to be aboutready to graduate, right, and I
told him no, I'm working andhelping with the family.
About a week later, mike Rotundacalled me and said can you play
hooky from work tomorrow?
Mike Rotunda called me and saidcan you play hooky from work
tomorrow?
I said okay.
He said I'll pick you up atnine or whatever.
(16:17):
He came by with John Grossmanwho was another teacher at South
and later became head of theColumbus Education Association.
They were both CAP alums.
Come on, they drove me toCapital University and they took
me from office to officebuilding to building advisor to
professor.
(16:37):
By the end of the day I wasenrolled as a student at capitol
university.
Wow, what a story.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
What a story teachers wow, teachers, what a story.
We had a jordan miller.
Speaker 1 (16:50):
You know jordan oh yeah, I went to high school with
his sisters, yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Jordan said this.
He said, tim, it's nice to havementors, but he said, most
important, you got to have asponsor.
You got to have a sponsor.
And that's what Mike and Johnwere.
They were sponsors, they weresponsors, they were right there.
Hey, give her a chance.
Give her a chance, you know,walk you through.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
I was by the end of the.
I mean seriously.
I thought what just happened.
Right, right, these twosponsors who said no, this girl,
she needs to be in college.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
Yes, yes, Wow, what a blessing.
What a blessing.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
You know the word is when you went there you wanted
to be a lawyer.
I can't believe.
You know a little bit of thesales.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
Sorry, can you hear my sources?
You know, I knew you was comingin.
I had to do my homework.
Speaker 3 (17:37):
Now it couldn't be no joke now.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
But you took a radio broadcasting class for easy A.
You felt it.
What was it about that classWow?
Speaker 1 (17:48):
Yeah, I was pre-law at Capitol.
One of my friends was takingthis radio broadcast course and
said hey, take this class withme, it'll be easy and we can
partner on projects.
And so I did some projects forthat radio broadcast class and I
just something clicked.
I just fell in love.
But I thought no, this is notthe career for me.
I'm going to be a lawyer.
(18:09):
At the end of the class, theprofessor Armin Langholz pulled
me aside and said I know you'rea poli-sci major, but have you
thought about broadcasting?
And I said no, I can't make anymoney.
I'm going to be a civil rightslawyer.
That's what I'm going to do.
And he said well, just thinkabout it.
And I changed my major.
Wow, I changed.
(18:29):
It just felt you know somethingwhen it feels good, it feels
good.
That's the way I felt takingthat class, taking that class,
and somebody else saw it again.
Another sponsor saw that I washalfway decent at it.
The rest, as they say, ishistory.
Speaker 2 (18:47):
You know, people see you now, they see your glory,
but they really don't know thestory.
You know and you started yourcareer as an intern at Channel 4
and became a radio reporter inNewark Ohio.
Speaker 1 (19:01):
You know what was some of the challenges you faced
during those early days.
Oh Lord, I was still when I wasdoing my internship at Channel
4, we didn't have a car and Iwas still living with my
grandmother and so I would haveto take like three, four buses
to get to Channel 4.
So that was always a challenge,but I got an opportunity to
work in a lot of differentdepartments and one of the best
(19:24):
things that happened to me wasworking with Ann Walker, ann B
Walker, who is the real queen ofTV here in Columbus.
She was my internship guidancecounselor and I learned so much
from her, especially aboutrepresenting the community,
representing all people, givingall people voices.
And then, when I got the, I gotan opportunity then to work at
(19:48):
Channel 4 on a part-time basiswhile I was still in college and
I was a floor director.
So for all you kids out there,a floor director is the bottom
of the totem pole job at a TVstation Sounds important.
Oh yeah, you do all the stuffnobody else wants to do.
So I did everything from typingin sports scores to painting
(20:10):
sets, to wiping out the anchor'sashtrays because they smoked in
the studio back in those daysto running errands, and I did it
all.
I did it all.
Then I got a job working inradio news in Newark.
Had to get an old beat up car soI can move to Newark and the
(20:31):
big challenge coach with meliving in Newark was that Newark
back then there were not a lotof Black people in positions of
authority.
I think there was a judge ortwo and a couple of lawyers, a
great minister, dr Noble, whojust had an incredible church
there.
So I'm this little Black girlhad teeny, weeny, fro at the
(20:55):
time big hoop earrings, becausethat was the look.
And I had the audacity to gointo somebody's office and put a
microphone in front of them andask them hey, can you explain
to me how?
Blah, blah, blah, blah.
And there were a lot of peoplewho did not appreciate that.
So I got a lot of folks whowould not do interviews with me,
(21:15):
a lot of people who would passme off.
If they were the president orthe chief they'd pass me off to
other folks.
Morning I did morning driveradio and I used to have to go
in early in the morning and stopat the police station and look
(21:36):
at police reports, things thathad happened overnight, and then
take those notes and then putthat in my newscast and I would
go in and the dispatcher wouldgive me all the notes and then
I'd go back, write up stories,have them on the air.
Well, after about a month myboss came to me and said you
know what you've been missing?
A lot of big crime stories,police stories from overnight.
And I thought, well, I got allthe information.
(21:58):
I went in the next day I wasdevastated.
Devastated because this guy hadtaken a chance on me.
I went in the next morning andI asked the dispatcher.
I said am I missing something?
Am I doing something wrong?
Because I'm missing big stories.
And bless his heart, this guytold me.
He said I shouldn't tell youthis, but he said the captain
will come in, he knows what timeyou come in and he'll take the
(22:20):
big stories out and then you getwhat you think you're getting
and then you leave and then thereporter, the white reporter
from the other radio stationwill come in and she'll have
those stories.
My boss, who God bless himreally took care of me.
He was a big guy, weighed 300pounds, jumped in his he had a
(22:42):
silver Volkswagen Rabbit Jumpedin his car, went downtown and
told the police chief.
He said look, I put you in thisjob.
I can take you out.
You're not going to treat mypeople like this.
You give this girl everythingshe needs and from then on I
didn't have any problem.
But it was things like that andpeople like that who really
(23:03):
made it difficult for me.
There were some really greatpeople too, but it was people
like that who made me see, doesracism have to be this tough and
ugly?
You guys are trying to keep mefrom doing my job because I'm
black, are you kidding me?
And that's where my grandmotherand her faith came in, because
she would call me and say, baby,what's going on?
(23:23):
And I would just tell her I'dbe crying sometimes.
I don't know what I'm doingwrong.
I don't know these people.
These people don't know me.
Why do they hate me?
But again over time and with MrPricer's help.
Over time and with Mr Pricer'shelp, I was able to build up a
reputation and people started togrudgingly respect me and that
(23:44):
made a lot of difference.
But it was tough.
It was a character buildingexperience.
Speaker 2 (23:47):
Yes yes, it was.
You know, you preserved and yougot through that.
You rose through the ranksweekend anchor.
Then you came over to Channel10.
The word is that first day,that first day, you're going on
the ranks weekend anchor.
Then you came over to Channel10.
The word is that first day,that first day, you're going on
the air.
The community really showed upfor you.
Speaker 1 (24:06):
There were so many roses.
When were you getting this?
Speaker 2 (24:10):
Just tell the story.
You know my job is to ask thequestion.
Just tell the story.
You know how you treat peoplewhen you're interviewing them.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
So now you're on that seat, I'm on the other side,
I'm not doing well.
I'm a coach, I'm not handlingthis well.
Talk about that first day.
Well, I was scared to deathbecause I thought, you know, my
viewers at Channel 4 were alwaysso kind and that was my family,
and I thought, here I've madethis change.
Did I make the right choice?
Are people going to appreciateme making this choice?
(24:43):
And that first day it reallydid look like a flower shop.
It was, and I have allergies.
Oh, my goodness.
So I'm sneezing.
My eyes are watery.
I can't even tell you how manybouquets of flowers there were.
It was so gratifying thatpeople were happy because I had
(25:08):
to be off the air for like six.
I was off the air for eightmonths and the people were happy
to see me back on the air andthat they were setting me up for
success at this new station.
It was I said this is my city,this is my home, these are my
people, these are people.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
My people.
You know, what advice would yougive to young people who want
to break into this industry?
Speaker 1 (25:32):
Oh goodness, I used to say don't do it Run, don't do
it Run, don't walk away.
But the industry has grown insuch a way that it presents so
many options.
With social media, all thecable stations, all the internet
stations, podcasts.
(25:53):
Young people today have so manyoptions and I would say, first
of all, believe, believe inyourself, believe that if this
is something that you reallywant to do, even if you think
you want to be a lawyer, butthen, all of a sudden, you hear
your voice, I'm ready.
You're going to say, oh no, thisis what I want to do.
(26:13):
Believe that you can do it andbelieve that there are people
out there who will help you doit.
And then also be strong.
Be strong, understand that it'sgoing to be tough.
This is a tough business to getinto.
There are going to be peoplewho will try to discourage you.
(26:33):
I had a vice president of newsover at Channel 4 who told me
and I was wearing the short afrothen and told me that they
needed to change my look if Iwas ever going to make it, that
I needed to do something with myhair and with my teeth, that I
needed to look more like JanePauley, who was a blue-eyed
blonde who was doing the morningnews on NBC.
I said, well, I don't know howthat's going to happen.
(26:54):
I don't know how that's goingto happen, but, yeah, be strong
and understand that there aregoing to be a lot of bumps in
the road.
And then, thirdly, I would saybe kind.
Be kind to other people,because those are the people
you're going to need and want,at your side, at your back,
along the way, leading the way,but also be kind to yourself.
(27:16):
There are going to be some uglymoments.
There are going to be some uglymoments.
There are going to be sometimes when you don't believe in
yourself.
There are going to be timeswhen you fail and you just want
to stay down.
You don't want to get back up.
Be kind, give yourself graceand understand that it's not an
easy path.
But if it's what you reallywant to do, even if you mess up,
(27:36):
be kind to yourself and knowokay, I'll get it next time,
I'll get it right next time.
That's a good word.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
You've had quite a few experiences, stories,
experiences.
Can you tell us about some ofthose most memorable stories or
experiences you've had?
Speaker 1 (27:51):
It's been a blessing, Coach.
I have had an opportunity withthis career to go places.
I never thought a little nappyhead girl from Point Dexter
Village would ever get to go.
I remember when I was anchoringthat six o'clock one day I was
getting ready to go off on theset to do the six o'clock, my
news director said do you have avalid passport?
And I said yeah.
(28:12):
She said okay.
When I got off the air she saidI'm sending you to London.
I thought London, Ohio, why isshe sending me to London?
She was sending me and aphotographer to London to cover
the death of Princess Diana.
She wanted a local presence inLondon to cover the death of
Princess Diana.
So here I am, my photographer,Mike Limley, who I just had
(28:33):
lunch with the other day, andwe're in London covering that
huge funeral.
In 1998, February 98, I spent amonth, four weeks, in Nagano,
Japan, covering the WinterOlympics, and that was
incredible.
To be in another country,another culture.
That was.
(28:54):
I was doing like three, I thinkthree live shots a day, and
that was absolutely amazing.
And then one of my greatestexperiences, though, was thanks
to John Kasich, who was acongressman at the time.
He asked me if I wanted to cometo Washington the next day.
I said, okay.
He said we got somethingspecial going on in Congress.
I said, okay, cool, I got tostand on the floor of the House
(29:20):
of Representatives in ournation's capital, just yards
away from a podium where NelsonMandela, who had just been
released from a South Africanprison after, like decades, just
been released weeks before, wasaddressing a joint session of
Congress.
I got to stand there andbreathe the same air that this
(29:41):
man was breathing, and thenKasich made sure I got a chance
to meet him and shake his hand.
So it's just been those great,great moments.
And then just all the people notjust the big people, but all
the great people, folks who aredoing great work in this
community that I've had a chanceto meet and do things with.
(30:04):
I think about people like JerryHammond, City Council President
Jerry Hammond, who was one of mymentors, Ben Espy, Les Wright
these are the folks who helpedme when I didn't know what I was
doing.
These are the people who saidsit down, we're going to tell
you how to do this, and thecommunity out there.
And being able to try to helpcomfort a community during 9-11,
(30:25):
to try to help connect acommunity and inform a community
during the pandemic, just allthose to try to help people
understand what the murder ofGeorge Floyd really meant, to
try to help tell those storiesand it's the people stories that
(30:50):
really, really touch me andbeing able to connect with
people, to have somebody say,hey, thanks for coming out and
covering the cleanup of ourneighborhood or the fact that
we're building this newplayground at our church, or
thanks for coming to our schoolsand talking to our kids.
It's being able to meet peopleand if I can make a difference
(31:13):
by meeting these folks andtelling their stories, then
that's what I'm here for bymeeting these folks and telling
their stories, then that's whatI'm here for, amen, amen.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
You know what does it mean to you to be a trailblazer
for young Black women and womenof color in journalism and
community service as well.
Speaker 1 (31:27):
It means I'm old but I'm still cute and that's all
that matters.
No, we're talking about falloff the stool here.
Speaker 2 (31:39):
Kevin told me we're going to be like this.
Speaker 1 (31:44):
But it's funny because I just got a Lifetime
Achievement Award from theSociety for Professional
Journalists here in town and Ithought, wow, lifetime, that
means I have to be decades anddecades older than everybody
else in the room and I've beendoing this.
I've been doing this for 47years and, if I can, there
(32:11):
weren't anybody who not a lot ofpeople who look like me on TV,
so I couldn't say, gee, I wantto do that.
When I grow up To be able tohave a Yolanda Harris say she
told a news director, I want tobe Angela Pace, to have like a
Sierra, matt, barr, carrie,charles, all my local babies, to
(32:32):
have them say I watched yougrowing up.
To have other folks say youknow what?
I knew that I didn't reallywant to do TV.
But listening to you talk aboutcommunity service, I want to do
something to help my community.
Or I've heard you talk aboutyour college story and how hard
it was for you to get back intoschool and work three jobs to
(32:55):
finally get your degree.
I want to do that.
So I don't think of myself as atrailblazer.
I'd like to think of myself asencouragement and maybe hope, so
that all those other littlenappy head kids from Poindexter
Village or North Linden or theHilltop or the South Side they
(33:18):
can say, oh okay, well, if shecan do it and she told me I can
do it, so I can do it that feelsbetter than being a trailblazer
.
Trailblazer makes me sound likeDaniel Boone.
Right, you were warned.
(33:39):
You were warned about me, sodon't act surprised it's all
true.
Speaker 2 (33:43):
It's all true, it's all true.
Once they get you out thestudio, you know how Mama and
them used to say can't take younowhere, I lose my mind, you can
dress me up, but you can't takeme out.
As we come around the corner.
You know this is a legacypodcast I want you to share
about.
You mentioned this earlier,about your faith, you know, in a
(34:05):
praying grandmother.
Can you talk about how faithhas played a role in your life?
Speaker 1 (34:10):
My sisters and my brothers and I were first
dragged to church by mygrandmother.
My grandmother was just.
If you look in the dictionaryunder faith, you'll find a
picture of my grandmother, youknow, coming up from the South
and having to work in people'shouses cleaning houses and then
having to raise her daughter'sfive kids.
(34:30):
She is the epitome of faith,and so my sisters and I always,
and my brothers, epitome offaith, and so my sisters and I
always, and my brothers always,knew that we had to obey her and
that we had to follow her lead.
My grandmother would, when I wason the air and I was doing the
11 o'clock news, I would comehome and there'd be a message on
(34:53):
my answering machine from mygrandmother at least three
nights a week.
She'd say hey, baby, I watchedyou on the air tonight.
You look so pretty, I love whatyou had on.
Or she'd say, hey, baby, Iwatched you, you look tired, Are
you okay?
And then she would always endby saying I prayed you home Talk
.
And I prayed you into yourgarage and I prayed you upstairs
(35:15):
.
Oh no-transcript in me and makeme have faith in myself and in
(35:36):
God than anybody did before andanybody has since, because I
know I tell people all the time,I know she's up there, she's
going to pray me into heavenWith all my faults.
She's going to pray me intoheaven.
Speaker 2 (35:53):
Look at you now.
You never heard this sayingthat you are truly epitome of
this our ancestors and wildestdreams.
When you think about that point, disability experience and the
things that your grandmother andmother and it's just a wildest
dream.
This is really happening to mygranddaughter.
Speaker 1 (36:11):
Coach.
That's why I don't take it forgranted.
I'm not doing this just for me.
It's been great and I'm veryproud of what I've accomplished,
but I'm standing on shoulders.
I'm standing on shoulders.
There are people out there whoI wouldn't be sitting here
talking to you if it wasn't forall those folks, who not just
people in the business, peoplelike Amos Lynch and Ann Walker,
(36:35):
liz Evans, not just those folks,but all those other folks who
came north, stayed here, workedhard so that this next
generation and the generationsafter would have it better.
I can't betray that.
I can't not honor that.
Are you kidding that?
I can't not honor that?
Are you kidding?
(36:56):
I am where I am because allthose people, many of whom I was
blessed to get to know on apersonal level- but even more so
all those folks that I nevermet.
So their legacy is my legacy.
Speaker 2 (37:12):
You are truly a.
This is a podcast about ballers.
You are truly a.
This is a podcast about ballers.
Speaker 1 (37:31):
You're truly a baller and you know, for us, a baller
is building a lifelong legacy.
Think about that word legacy.
What does that word?
First of all, what does thatword legacy mean to you done
something or are doing something, or are somebody that somebody
will remember, hopefully for allthe right reasons?
It's a gift, even if you don'thave a will and testament.
(37:51):
It's what you leave behind forfriends, family, your community,
people you will never, everknow.
It's what you leave behind andif you're doing the right thing,
it's all good and it's allhelpful and it is a thing of
(38:15):
beauty.
It's something that will.
If somebody says, oh, I rememberCoach Brown, they're going to
say I remember how he helped medo that's part of your legacy.
That's part of your legacy andI think we all are in a position
to leave a legacy.
To leave a legacy.
(38:39):
What I would want to leavebehind is again to tell people
this little nappy head girl fromPoindexter Village got an
opportunity, not just throughher own hard work and
perseverance, but standing onthe shoulders of others and
through the love and support andprayers of so many people who
cared about her and folks whotook a chance folks who took a
(39:01):
chance on her.
She got a chance to live out herdreams and what she wants is
for all those other little nappyhead kids and other kids, even
if you're not nappy headed forall those other kids, kids with
dreams, to have dreams and to beable to realize those dreams.
Speaker 2 (39:20):
Well, this has been great.
I want to thank you for being aguest on Be A Baller podcast.
You are a true legend andencourager to so many young
women of color in broadcasting,and you are truly one of our
queens.
You got the crown.
You got the crown.
You got the crown, you got thecrown.
You got the crown, and I'm soglad that you decided to become
(39:41):
a broadcaster.
Instead of that Ben Crumplawyer, you're a civil rights
lawyer.
You would have been good atthat too.
Now you would have got it done.
Now you would have got it done.
But we're so glad that we wereable to see your face and I
think it was just a blessinggrowing up in Columbus.
When I came to Columbus seeingyou and Jerry Rebich, just
seeing you every night, that wassuch an encouragement, I'm sure
(40:04):
, to me as an adult and I knowit was to some young people- and
I certainly hope so.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
Jerry Rebich is one of my favorite people and I
think we're both very proud ofthe fact that there are a lot of
young people and youngjournalists out there who said
that's what I want to do.
Speaker 2 (40:19):
So thank you to our listening audience for your
continued support of Be A Ballerpodcast.
I'm Coach Tim Brown, continuingto be a baller and building a
lifelong legacy.
Speaker 3 (40:29):
If you've enjoyed this episode, please share it
with family and friends.
The Be A Baller podcast isavailable on all major podcast
platforms.
This podcast was created byCoach Tim Brown and recorded and
edited by the video productionclass of Worthington Christian
High School.
Be sure to come back next weekas we continue to discuss on how
to build a lifelong legacy.
(40:50):
Until then, don't forget to bea baller.
Albert Leon Tapo was my sixth grade teacher at Kent
Elementary School and it was thefirst male teacher I'd ever had
and he was a big, big brotherfrom Louisiana somewhere and I
was scared to death of him,scared to death of him.
And one day he told me I had tostay after class.
I was almost in tears because Ithought I was a good kid.
(00:24):
I thought what did I do?
My mom was home on maternityleave and he knew that and he
sat us down and he told mymother.
He said this girl needs to goto college.
And my mother's looking at meand I'm looking at her and I'm
thinking what in the world iscollege?
All my mother had asked of meand my sisters was graduate from
high school, get a good job atthe phone company, because
(00:45):
that's what you did back then ifyou were a black girl.
And she said don't bring me anygrandchildren before you bring
me a son-in-law.
Those were the rules.
Those were the rules and MrTapo told my mother.
He said I see something in hershe loves learning, she's always
prepared, she always volunteersand I can just see her having a
(01:07):
successful college career.
From that point on, coach, mymother and I were on a mission
and that mission was to get meto college.
Speaker 3 (01:17):
Welcome to Be A Baller where we're building a
lifelong legacy for our families, communities and the world.
Your host, coach Tim Brown, isexcited for you to join him on
this journey.
On each episode, we'll betalking about how to be
intentional about building alasting legacy.
We'll be exploring what itmeans to leave a mark that goes
beyond just our lives but has apositive impact on those around
(01:40):
us and even generations to come.
So if you're looking forinspiration, guidance and
practical tips on how to build alasting legacy that makes a
difference, then you're in theright place.
So grab your earbuds, getcomfortable and let's dive in.
It's time to be a baller.
Speaker 2 (01:56):
Welcome to a Be A Baller podcast.
I'm your host, coach Tim Brown,where we celebrate the stories
of individuals who are making alasting impact in their
communities.
Today, we're honored to have instudio Queen Angela.
She joins us on the show.
As a trailblazer in journalismand community service, angela's
legacy is a testament to herdedication and perseverance.
(02:17):
From anchoring newscasts toserving on numerous boards of
directors, angela has led anincredible mark on Columbus.
Angela has won an incrediblemark on Columbus.
Angela has won three Emmys.
In January 2012, angela Pacewas named one of the top 50
icons in Columbus by theColumbus Bicentennial Guide.
Angela's image is featured onthe Longstreet Culture Wall of
(02:39):
Fame.
There's a joke around that youhave a big picture.
Your picture is bigger thansome other folks.
Speaker 1 (02:46):
That's what they say on the streets.
My brothers and sisters came tothe ceremony and my brother
said why is your head so big?
Speaker 2 (02:50):
that's what they say on the streets, and I think is
it Chuck White who was reallymad at you oh yeah, he was not
happy, he was not happy.
I want to thank the audience forjoining us.
We're going to have a good timeand we have plenty of laughs,
and we just want to thank theaudience for joining us.
We're going to have a good time, there's going to be plenty of
laughs, and we just want tocelebrate you.
Oh, thank you All that you'vedone in the community and
continue to do.
Continue to do.
As we sit down with you, we'lldiscuss your journey, the
(03:12):
lessons you learned along theway, and how she's built a
legacy that continues to inspirefuture generations.
Angela Pace Queen Angela,welcome to the show.
Thank you.
You know your impact islegendary.
There's a fourth grade studentthat met you as a student when
you visited his elementaryschool.
You impact him so much that heis now your favorite county
(03:33):
commissioner, kevin Boyce.
Speaker 1 (03:37):
Kevin will never let me forget that.
Yeah, he told me we were atsome event.
Now I'll tell you when it was.
It was when he was being, hehad just been named state
treasurer of Ohio, and so theyhad a reception for him.
And I was emceeing thereception and he said Miss
Angela, when I was a little boy,in the fourth grade, at Ohio
(03:57):
Avenue, and I thought here'sthis grown man, right, right,
remembering he was in the fourthgrade when I was a grown woman.
Speaker 2 (04:07):
He's one of my favorite guys and he is my
favorite commissioner.
All right, now let's set therecord straight.
You know you're growing up inPointe d'Ache Village.
What was it like being part ofthe Near East community during
that time, and how did yourchildhood experiences shape you
today?
Speaker 1 (04:21):
I tell everybody that when I think about myself and
when I talk to myself which I doa lot since I'm unemployed now
I refer to myself as a littlenappy head girl from Poindexter
Village, because that's the wayI am.
That's what shaped me.
My mom grew up in Poindexterand when she and my dad split up
, when my sisters and I werejust babies, we moved in with
(04:43):
her mother and my grandmotherand spent the first few years of
our lives on Clifton Avenue inPoindexter, the Blackberry Patch
, and I tell people all the timethat you know I'm 112 years old
now, but the years that I spentin Poindexter were the happiest
and safest I've ever felt.
It was a true, true village.
Safest I've ever felt.
It was a true, true village.
(05:04):
And that's when I learned aboutcommunity, about how you don't
just live in your little address.
There were tons of kids there,so I got a chance to play with
tons of kids my age and youngerand older, and the grownups had
permission from my grandmotherto.
If they saw us acting up, theycould swat us on our butts and
(05:26):
then drag us across thecourtyard to my grandmother's
house where they would say MsJones, I saw Angie doing blah,
blah, blah blah.
My grandmother would say thankyou very much, and then she
would drag me upstairs and I'dget more swats on the behind.
So you learn that there werepeople who cared about you, even
though there was no bloodconnection.
(05:47):
All these grownups were tryingto raise all these little
colored kids the best way thatthey could.
It was a great place to grow up.
Speaker 2 (05:56):
You know you had a special relationship with your
mom and grandmother.
Can you talk about their impactand influence that they have in
your life that drove yoursuccess?
Speaker 1 (06:04):
Well with my mom.
First of all, for a few yearsafter my dad left, she was a
single mother and she workedhard to take care of my two
sisters and myself.
We all lived together.
There were three generations ofwomen all living together with
my two sisters and myself my momand her sister, my Aunt Jean,
and then my grandmother and hersister.
(06:26):
So three generations of women,and they were all.
We all had jobs.
As my grandmother said, her joband her sister's job, my Aunt
Ethel, were to go out and cleanfolks' houses to help bring
money in.
My mom's job was to get as manyjobs as she could to help take
care of me and my sisters.
My Aunt Jean at the time was inhigh school, so her job was to
(06:49):
finish high school and then geta job.
And for me and my sisters, ourjob was to go to school and
learn as much as we could sothat we could be the best people
that we could.
My mother was one of thesewomen who Coach.
I think that if, in a differentage and time, my mother would
have gone to college and she'dbe running a company or
(07:09):
something now, because she was avery, very smart woman, loved
reading, loved education Fromher.
I got my love of reading, mylove of learning.
She instilled that in me andwould sit up with me and go over
my spelling words and make suremy homework was done.
I also got my love of musicfrom her.
She played piano.
We had an old upright piano inour house and she would sit.
(07:30):
She had all the jazz albums inthe world so we would listen to
jazz.
She would sit at the piano andplay and I'd sit next to her and
I could read at this time andif I knew the words to the song
I would sing while she played.
So I grew up with music in thehouse, did music all through
school.
So mom had that incredibleinfluence on me.
(07:53):
I always wanted to learn and mygrandmother and I'm not going
to cry, but my grandmother wasalways in our lives.
It wasn't like we got in thecar and went to grandmother's
house, because she was alwaysthere for most of the time
anyway, so she would take careof us when mommy was working.
And then, even after my mothergot married again and my sisters
(08:13):
and I moved out and we had ourown house, nanny was always
always there, always helping out.
And when my mom died while Iwas still in high school, it was
my grandmother who stepped inand said I'm keeping this family
together.
My brothers were very young andI think there had been some
talk about maybe children'sservices coming in and putting
(08:35):
them.
My grandmother said, no, I'mtaking care of my baby's babies.
So she somehow provided a wayfor all of us to have a place to
live, have food and also have areligious upbringing.
She made sure that we went tochurch and that we went to Bible
study.
And basically I tell everybodythat my grandmother prayed me
(08:58):
through college, through all thejobs that I've had, and prayed
me into the career that I'vebeen blessed with.
Speaker 2 (09:07):
You have a story about your grandmother, North
Carolina, correct?
Speaker 1 (09:09):
Yeah, North Kakalaki.
Speaker 2 (09:13):
The story goes, she was determined that you wouldn't
have that accent.
Oh that you would talk good old, proper English.
That's the word.
Is that the word?
Is that right?
Speaker 1 (09:23):
That is the word.
She and her sister my aunt werefrom North Carolina.
They came up here as very youngwomen to find freedom in the
North, and so they weredetermined that they weren't
going to sound like they werefrom the South and that my
sisters and I were not going tosound like we were from the
South.
So they spoke very correctEnglish in the house.
(09:46):
They listened to their bosses,listened to how they spoke.
We watched news.
I mean, I was watching news ata very early age because that's
where you learned what they callgeneral standard English.
So in our house my sisters andI had to speak very correct
English, but we knew we couldn'ttalk like that out with our
(10:07):
buddies.
I tell everybody I wasbilingual because I knew how to
talk out in that house.
And never knowing, coach, thatthat was going to lay the
foundation for me to be able tospeak correct English on TV.
I didn't have to learn how todo it, I'd done it all my life.
Speaker 2 (10:27):
God has a way of working all things together.
All those things come together.
You know you attended a SouthHigh School.
Yes, Bulldogs.
Speaker 1 (10:37):
Sorry.
Speaker 2 (10:39):
You are all in that yearbook.
You're all in that 1970yearbook.
Now, you're all in that book.
You're all in that book.
You're all in that book.
You're in the marching band,will and Scroll Class Play,
national Iron Society, buckeyeGirls, state Sweetheart Ball
Queen, come on with your badself.
And commencement speaker.
It's even more now.
(10:59):
I read the book.
There, you, class and studentcouncil officer, student
newspaper and senior choir, goahead and sing something for us.
Speaker 1 (11:11):
Lord have mercy.
A lot of that was my mother'sinfluence.
She wanted me to have a greatschool life and I was all for it
.
I mean, I was all for it.
It was so much fun and it keptme out of trouble.
(11:31):
It kept me engaged.
It kept me out of trouble.
It kept me engaged.
I got to work with a lot ofdifferent classmates on a lot of
different levels and it gave meexposure to a world that I may
never have had.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
I had a group of friends and we were in a lot of
those same organizationstogether and we were what you
would call nerds now, I guess,but we were popular nerds.
I don't know how that happened.
Right, it was an oxymoron,Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (12:04):
It was a great experience.
I loved my experience at SouthHigh.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
School yeah, that's awesome.
And kids miss out on that todayjust being involved in those
different activities, because Ibet that class reunion is
something else, oh, my goodness.
Speaker 1 (12:16):
We've got a reunion coming up in September.
We've already got they'vealready sent out the save the
dates and it's and a lot, of, alot of my classmates I still see
, because they stayed here andI've stayed in touch with them,
which I think is great to beable to form those kinds of
friendships that can grow upwith you.
Speaker 2 (12:35):
Yes, you know, when you were in sixth grade, your
teacher drove you home fromschool one day and sat down at
the kitchen table with you andyour mother and said this girl
needs to go to college.
Then you had your studentnewspaper advisor.
Talk about the influence.
Can you talk about theinfluence that those two
teachers had in your life?
Speaker 1 (12:56):
Albert Leon Tapo was my sixth grade teacher at Kent
Elementary School and it was thefirst male teacher I'd ever had
and he was a big, big brotherfrom Louisiana somewhere and I
was scared to death of him,scared to death of him.
And one day he told me I had tostay after class.
I was almost in tears because Ithought I was a good kid.
(13:18):
I thought what did I do?
My mom was home on maternityleave and he knew that and he
sat us down and he told mymother.
He said this girl needs to goto college.
And my mother's looking at meand I'm looking at her and I'm
thinking what in the world iscollege?
And my mother's looking at meand I'm looking at her and I'm
thinking what in the world iscollege?
All my mother had asked of meand my sisters was graduate from
high school, get a good job atthe phone company, because
(13:39):
that's what you did back then ifyou were a black girl.
And she said don't bring me anygrandchildren before you bring
me a son-in-law.
Those were the rules.
Those were the rules.
And Mr Tapo told my mother.
He said I see something in her.
She loves learning, she'salways prepared, she always
volunteers and I can just seeher having a successful college
(14:03):
career From that point on.
Coach, my mother and I were on amission and that mission was to
get me to college.
So a lot of those activitiesthat I was in that was part of
her plan to make sure that I wasalways engaged, that I was
active.
So if college admissions lookedat my resume they'd say, oh
(14:23):
okay, this is a good kid.
She would you know.
She had five kids and a job, afull-time job.
But she always made sure thatif I was doing something extra
at school, if I was working on aproject, she was right there,
she was right there.
And then I had a couple ofreally great, influential
(14:45):
teachers at South who helped meout.
There was a guidance counselor,mr Tate, who would call me into
his office and just check andmake sure that I was on that
college path.
And I tell people all the timethat there were teachers.
Teachers have one of thetoughest jobs that there is.
They really do.
But if they see something inyou, they got a classroom full
(15:10):
of kids, maybe four or fiveclassrooms.
If they see that kid who needssomething or wants something and
they zero in on that, then itmakes all the difference in the
world.
It makes all the difference inthe world.
One of my teachers, mikeRotunda.
Speaker 2 (15:29):
He was a college football coach you know, rotunda
, he was doing activities yeah,rotunda, he was a college
football coach.
Speaker 1 (15:34):
You know Rotunda, he was doing activities.
Yeah, mike Rotunda was mygovernment teacher and got to be
just a real good friend, alwaysencouraging me.
And when I had to drop out ofcollege after my mother died, it
was Mike Rotunda who I wasworking at Nationwide Insurance
trying to help my grandmothersupport my brothers and sisters.
And I'd only had one year ofcollege, I'd had a year at OU
and then my stepfather said wedon't have any money to send you
(15:55):
back, so I had to get a job.
I was devastated, ran intoRotunda about three years after
that.
He said you ought to be aboutready to graduate, right, and I
told him no, I'm working andhelping with the family.
About a week later, mike Rotundacalled me and said can you play
hooky from work tomorrow?
Mike Rotunda called me and saidcan you play hooky from work
tomorrow?
I said okay.
He said I'll pick you up atnine or whatever.
(16:17):
He came by with John Grossmanwho was another teacher at South
and later became head of theColumbus Education Association.
They were both CAP alums.
Come on, they drove me toCapital University and they took
me from office to officebuilding to building advisor to
professor.
(16:37):
By the end of the day I wasenrolled as a student at capitol
university.
Wow, what a story.
Speaker 2 (16:45):
What a story teachers wow, teachers, what a story.
We had a jordan miller.
Speaker 1 (16:50):
You know jordan oh yeah, I went to high school with
his sisters, yeah.
Speaker 2 (16:55):
Jordan said this.
He said, tim, it's nice to havementors, but he said, most
important, you got to have asponsor.
You got to have a sponsor.
And that's what Mike and Johnwere.
They were sponsors, they weresponsors, they were right there.
Hey, give her a chance.
Give her a chance, you know,walk you through.
Speaker 1 (17:10):
I was by the end of the.
I mean seriously.
I thought what just happened.
Right, right, these twosponsors who said no, this girl,
she needs to be in college.
Speaker 2 (17:21):
Yes, yes, Wow, what a blessing.
What a blessing.
Speaker 1 (17:26):
You know the word is when you went there you wanted
to be a lawyer.
I can't believe.
You know a little bit of thesales.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
Sorry, can you hear my sources?
You know, I knew you was comingin.
I had to do my homework.
Speaker 3 (17:37):
Now it couldn't be no joke now.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
But you took a radio broadcasting class for easy A.
You felt it.
What was it about that classWow?
Speaker 1 (17:48):
Yeah, I was pre-law at Capitol.
One of my friends was takingthis radio broadcast course and
said hey, take this class withme, it'll be easy and we can
partner on projects.
And so I did some projects forthat radio broadcast class and I
just something clicked.
I just fell in love.
But I thought no, this is notthe career for me.
I'm going to be a lawyer.
(18:09):
At the end of the class, theprofessor Armin Langholz pulled
me aside and said I know you'rea poli-sci major, but have you
thought about broadcasting?
And I said no, I can't make anymoney.
I'm going to be a civil rightslawyer.
That's what I'm going to do.
And he said well, just thinkabout it.
And I changed my major.
Wow, I changed.
(18:29):
It just felt you know somethingwhen it feels good, it feels
good.
That's the way I felt takingthat class, taking that class,
and somebody else saw it again.
Another sponsor saw that I washalfway decent at it.
The rest, as they say, ishistory.
Speaker 2 (18:47):
You know, people see you now, they see your glory,
but they really don't know thestory.
You know and you started yourcareer as an intern at Channel 4
and became a radio reporter inNewark Ohio.
Speaker 1 (19:01):
You know what was some of the challenges you faced
during those early days.
Oh Lord, I was still when I wasdoing my internship at Channel
4, we didn't have a car and Iwas still living with my
grandmother and so I would haveto take like three, four buses
to get to Channel 4.
So that was always a challenge,but I got an opportunity to
work in a lot of differentdepartments and one of the best
(19:24):
things that happened to me wasworking with Ann Walker, ann B
Walker, who is the real queen ofTV here in Columbus.
She was my internship guidancecounselor and I learned so much
from her, especially aboutrepresenting the community,
representing all people, givingall people voices.
And then, when I got the, I gotan opportunity then to work at
(19:48):
Channel 4 on a part-time basiswhile I was still in college and
I was a floor director.
So for all you kids out there,a floor director is the bottom
of the totem pole job at a TVstation Sounds important.
Oh yeah, you do all the stuffnobody else wants to do.
So I did everything from typingin sports scores to painting
(20:10):
sets, to wiping out the anchor'sashtrays because they smoked in
the studio back in those daysto running errands, and I did it
all.
I did it all.
Then I got a job working inradio news in Newark.
Had to get an old beat up car soI can move to Newark and the
(20:31):
big challenge coach with meliving in Newark was that Newark
back then there were not a lotof Black people in positions of
authority.
I think there was a judge ortwo and a couple of lawyers, a
great minister, dr Noble, whojust had an incredible church
there.
So I'm this little Black girlhad teeny, weeny, fro at the
(20:55):
time big hoop earrings, becausethat was the look.
And I had the audacity to gointo somebody's office and put a
microphone in front of them andask them hey, can you explain
to me how?
Blah, blah, blah, blah.
And there were a lot of peoplewho did not appreciate that.
So I got a lot of folks whowould not do interviews with me,
(21:15):
a lot of people who would passme off.
If they were the president orthe chief they'd pass me off to
other folks.
Morning I did morning driveradio and I used to have to go
in early in the morning and stopat the police station and look
(21:36):
at police reports, things thathad happened overnight, and then
take those notes and then putthat in my newscast and I would
go in and the dispatcher wouldgive me all the notes and then
I'd go back, write up stories,have them on the air.
Well, after about a month myboss came to me and said you
know what you've been missing?
A lot of big crime stories,police stories from overnight.
And I thought, well, I got allthe information.
(21:58):
I went in the next day I wasdevastated.
Devastated because this guy hadtaken a chance on me.
I went in the next morning andI asked the dispatcher.
I said am I missing something?
Am I doing something wrong?
Because I'm missing big stories.
And bless his heart, this guytold me.
He said I shouldn't tell youthis, but he said the captain
will come in, he knows what timeyou come in and he'll take the
(22:20):
big stories out and then you getwhat you think you're getting
and then you leave and then thereporter, the white reporter
from the other radio stationwill come in and she'll have
those stories.
My boss, who God bless himreally took care of me.
He was a big guy, weighed 300pounds, jumped in his he had a
(22:42):
silver Volkswagen Rabbit Jumpedin his car, went downtown and
told the police chief.
He said look, I put you in thisjob.
I can take you out.
You're not going to treat mypeople like this.
You give this girl everythingshe needs and from then on I
didn't have any problem.
But it was things like that andpeople like that who really
(23:03):
made it difficult for me.
There were some really greatpeople too, but it was people
like that who made me see, doesracism have to be this tough and
ugly?
You guys are trying to keep mefrom doing my job because I'm
black, are you kidding me?
And that's where my grandmotherand her faith came in, because
she would call me and say, baby,what's going on?
(23:23):
And I would just tell her I'dbe crying sometimes.
I don't know what I'm doingwrong.
I don't know these people.
These people don't know me.
Why do they hate me?
But again over time and with MrPricer's help.
Over time and with Mr Pricer'shelp, I was able to build up a
reputation and people started togrudgingly respect me and that
(23:44):
made a lot of difference.
But it was tough.
It was a character buildingexperience.
Speaker 2 (23:47):
Yes yes, it was.
You know, you preserved and yougot through that.
You rose through the ranksweekend anchor.
Then you came over to Channel10.
The word is that first day,that first day, you're going on
the ranks weekend anchor.
Then you came over to Channel10.
The word is that first day,that first day, you're going on
the air.
The community really showed upfor you.
Speaker 1 (24:06):
There were so many roses.
When were you getting this?
Speaker 2 (24:10):
Just tell the story.
You know my job is to ask thequestion.
Just tell the story.
You know how you treat peoplewhen you're interviewing them.
Speaker 1 (24:21):
So now you're on that seat, I'm on the other side,
I'm not doing well.
I'm a coach, I'm not handlingthis well.
Talk about that first day.
Well, I was scared to deathbecause I thought, you know, my
viewers at Channel 4 were alwaysso kind and that was my family,
and I thought, here I've madethis change.
Did I make the right choice?
Are people going to appreciateme making this choice?
(24:43):
And that first day it reallydid look like a flower shop.
It was, and I have allergies.
Oh, my goodness.
So I'm sneezing.
My eyes are watery.
I can't even tell you how manybouquets of flowers there were.
It was so gratifying thatpeople were happy because I had
(25:08):
to be off the air for like six.
I was off the air for eightmonths and the people were happy
to see me back on the air andthat they were setting me up for
success at this new station.
It was I said this is my city,this is my home, these are my
people, these are people.
Speaker 2 (25:27):
My people.
You know, what advice would yougive to young people who want
to break into this industry?
Speaker 1 (25:32):
Oh goodness, I used to say don't do it Run, don't do
it Run, don't walk away.
But the industry has grown insuch a way that it presents so
many options.
With social media, all thecable stations, all the internet
stations, podcasts.
(25:53):
Young people today have so manyoptions and I would say, first
of all, believe, believe inyourself, believe that if this
is something that you reallywant to do, even if you think
you want to be a lawyer, butthen, all of a sudden, you hear
your voice, I'm ready.
You're going to say, oh no, thisis what I want to do.
(26:13):
Believe that you can do it andbelieve that there are people
out there who will help you doit.
And then also be strong.
Be strong, understand that it'sgoing to be tough.
This is a tough business to getinto.
There are going to be peoplewho will try to discourage you.
(26:33):
I had a vice president of newsover at Channel 4 who told me
and I was wearing the short afrothen and told me that they
needed to change my look if Iwas ever going to make it, that
I needed to do something with myhair and with my teeth, that I
needed to look more like JanePauley, who was a blue-eyed
blonde who was doing the morningnews on NBC.
I said, well, I don't know howthat's going to happen.
(26:54):
I don't know how that's goingto happen, but, yeah, be strong
and understand that there aregoing to be a lot of bumps in
the road.
And then, thirdly, I would saybe kind.
Be kind to other people,because those are the people
you're going to need and want,at your side, at your back,
along the way, leading the way,but also be kind to yourself.
(27:16):
There are going to be some uglymoments.
There are going to be some uglymoments.
There are going to be sometimes when you don't believe in
yourself.
There are going to be timeswhen you fail and you just want
to stay down.
You don't want to get back up.
Be kind, give yourself graceand understand that it's not an
easy path.
But if it's what you reallywant to do, even if you mess up,
(27:36):
be kind to yourself and knowokay, I'll get it next time,
I'll get it right next time.
That's a good word.
Speaker 2 (27:43):
You've had quite a few experiences, stories,
experiences.
Can you tell us about some ofthose most memorable stories or
experiences you've had?
Speaker 1 (27:51):
It's been a blessing, Coach.
I have had an opportunity withthis career to go places.
I never thought a little nappyhead girl from Point Dexter
Village would ever get to go.
I remember when I was anchoringthat six o'clock one day I was
getting ready to go off on theset to do the six o'clock, my
news director said do you have avalid passport?
And I said yeah.
(28:12):
She said okay.
When I got off the air she saidI'm sending you to London.
I thought London, Ohio, why isshe sending me to London?
She was sending me and aphotographer to London to cover
the death of Princess Diana.
She wanted a local presence inLondon to cover the death of
Princess Diana.
So here I am, my photographer,Mike Limley, who I just had
(28:33):
lunch with the other day, andwe're in London covering that
huge funeral.
In 1998, February 98, I spent amonth, four weeks, in Nagano,
Japan, covering the WinterOlympics, and that was
incredible.
To be in another country,another culture.
That was.
(28:54):
I was doing like three, I thinkthree live shots a day, and
that was absolutely amazing.
And then one of my greatestexperiences, though, was thanks
to John Kasich, who was acongressman at the time.
He asked me if I wanted to cometo Washington the next day.
I said, okay.
He said we got somethingspecial going on in Congress.
I said, okay, cool, I got tostand on the floor of the House
(29:20):
of Representatives in ournation's capital, just yards
away from a podium where NelsonMandela, who had just been
released from a South Africanprison after, like decades, just
been released weeks before, wasaddressing a joint session of
Congress.
I got to stand there andbreathe the same air that this
(29:41):
man was breathing, and thenKasich made sure I got a chance
to meet him and shake his hand.
So it's just been those great,great moments.
And then just all the people notjust the big people, but all
the great people, folks who aredoing great work in this
community that I've had a chanceto meet and do things with.
(30:04):
I think about people like JerryHammond, City Council President
Jerry Hammond, who was one of mymentors, Ben Espy, Les Wright
these are the folks who helpedme when I didn't know what I was
doing.
These are the people who saidsit down, we're going to tell
you how to do this, and thecommunity out there.
And being able to try to helpcomfort a community during 9-11,
(30:25):
to try to help connect acommunity and inform a community
during the pandemic, just allthose to try to help people
understand what the murder ofGeorge Floyd really meant, to
try to help tell those storiesand it's the people stories that
(30:50):
really, really touch me andbeing able to connect with
people, to have somebody say,hey, thanks for coming out and
covering the cleanup of ourneighborhood or the fact that
we're building this newplayground at our church, or
thanks for coming to our schoolsand talking to our kids.
It's being able to meet peopleand if I can make a difference
(31:13):
by meeting these folks andtelling their stories, then
that's what I'm here for bymeeting these folks and telling
their stories, then that's whatI'm here for, amen, amen.
Speaker 2 (31:23):
You know what does it mean to you to be a trailblazer
for young Black women and womenof color in journalism and
community service as well.
Speaker 1 (31:27):
It means I'm old but I'm still cute and that's all
that matters.
No, we're talking about falloff the stool here.
Speaker 2 (31:39):
Kevin told me we're going to be like this.
Speaker 1 (31:44):
But it's funny because I just got a Lifetime
Achievement Award from theSociety for Professional
Journalists here in town and Ithought, wow, lifetime, that
means I have to be decades anddecades older than everybody
else in the room and I've beendoing this.
I've been doing this for 47years and, if I can, there
(32:11):
weren't anybody who not a lot ofpeople who look like me on TV,
so I couldn't say, gee, I wantto do that.
When I grow up To be able tohave a Yolanda Harris say she
told a news director, I want tobe Angela Pace, to have like a
Sierra, matt, barr, carrie,charles, all my local babies, to
(32:32):
have them say I watched yougrowing up.
To have other folks say youknow what?
I knew that I didn't reallywant to do TV.
But listening to you talk aboutcommunity service, I want to do
something to help my community.
Or I've heard you talk aboutyour college story and how hard
it was for you to get back intoschool and work three jobs to
(32:55):
finally get your degree.
I want to do that.
So I don't think of myself as atrailblazer.
I'd like to think of myself asencouragement and maybe hope, so
that all those other littlenappy head kids from Poindexter
Village or North Linden or theHilltop or the South Side they
(33:18):
can say, oh okay, well, if shecan do it and she told me I can
do it, so I can do it that feelsbetter than being a trailblazer
.
Trailblazer makes me sound likeDaniel Boone.
Right, you were warned.
(33:39):
You were warned about me, sodon't act surprised it's all
true.
Speaker 2 (33:43):
It's all true, it's all true.
Once they get you out thestudio, you know how Mama and
them used to say can't take younowhere, I lose my mind, you can
dress me up, but you can't takeme out.
As we come around the corner.
You know this is a legacypodcast I want you to share
about.
You mentioned this earlier,about your faith, you know, in a
(34:05):
praying grandmother.
Can you talk about how faithhas played a role in your life?
Speaker 1 (34:10):
My sisters and my brothers and I were first
dragged to church by mygrandmother.
My grandmother was just.
If you look in the dictionaryunder faith, you'll find a
picture of my grandmother, youknow, coming up from the South
and having to work in people'shouses cleaning houses and then
having to raise her daughter'sfive kids.
(34:30):
She is the epitome of faith,and so my sisters and I always,
and my brothers, epitome offaith, and so my sisters and I
always, and my brothers always,knew that we had to obey her and
that we had to follow her lead.
My grandmother would, when I wason the air and I was doing the
11 o'clock news, I would comehome and there'd be a message on
(34:53):
my answering machine from mygrandmother at least three
nights a week.
She'd say hey, baby, I watchedyou on the air tonight.
You look so pretty, I love whatyou had on.
Or she'd say, hey, baby, Iwatched you, you look tired, Are
you okay?
And then she would always endby saying I prayed you home Talk
.
And I prayed you into yourgarage and I prayed you upstairs
(35:15):
.
Oh no-transcript in me and makeme have faith in myself and in
(35:36):
God than anybody did before andanybody has since, because I
know I tell people all the time,I know she's up there, she's
going to pray me into heavenWith all my faults.
She's going to pray me intoheaven.
Speaker 2 (35:53):
Look at you now.
You never heard this sayingthat you are truly epitome of
this our ancestors and wildestdreams.
When you think about that point, disability experience and the
things that your grandmother andmother and it's just a wildest
dream.
This is really happening to mygranddaughter.
Speaker 1 (36:11):
Coach.
That's why I don't take it forgranted.
I'm not doing this just for me.
It's been great and I'm veryproud of what I've accomplished,
but I'm standing on shoulders.
I'm standing on shoulders.
There are people out there whoI wouldn't be sitting here
talking to you if it wasn't forall those folks, who not just
people in the business, peoplelike Amos Lynch and Ann Walker,
(36:35):
liz Evans, not just those folks,but all those other folks who
came north, stayed here, workedhard so that this next
generation and the generationsafter would have it better.
I can't betray that.
I can't not honor that.
Are you kidding that?
I can't not honor that?
Are you kidding?
(36:56):
I am where I am because allthose people, many of whom I was
blessed to get to know on apersonal level- but even more so
all those folks that I nevermet.
So their legacy is my legacy.
Speaker 2 (37:12):
You are truly a.
This is a podcast about ballers.
You are truly a.
This is a podcast about ballers.
Speaker 1 (37:31):
You're truly a baller and you know, for us, a baller
is building a lifelong legacy.
Think about that word legacy.
What does that word?
First of all, what does thatword legacy mean to you done
something or are doing something, or are somebody that somebody
will remember, hopefully for allthe right reasons?
It's a gift, even if you don'thave a will and testament.
(37:51):
It's what you leave behind forfriends, family, your community,
people you will never, everknow.
It's what you leave behind andif you're doing the right thing,
it's all good and it's allhelpful and it is a thing of
(38:15):
beauty.
It's something that will.
If somebody says, oh, I rememberCoach Brown, they're going to
say I remember how he helped medo that's part of your legacy.
That's part of your legacy andI think we all are in a position
to leave a legacy.
To leave a legacy.
(38:39):
What I would want to leavebehind is again to tell people
this little nappy head girl fromPoindexter Village got an
opportunity, not just throughher own hard work and
perseverance, but standing onthe shoulders of others and
through the love and support andprayers of so many people who
cared about her and folks whotook a chance folks who took a
(39:01):
chance on her.
She got a chance to live out herdreams and what she wants is
for all those other little nappyhead kids and other kids, even
if you're not nappy headed forall those other kids, kids with
dreams, to have dreams and to beable to realize those dreams.
Speaker 2 (39:20):
Well, this has been great.
I want to thank you for being aguest on Be A Baller podcast.
You are a true legend andencourager to so many young
women of color in broadcasting,and you are truly one of our
queens.
You got the crown.
You got the crown.
You got the crown, you got thecrown.
You got the crown, and I'm soglad that you decided to become
(39:41):
a broadcaster.
Instead of that Ben Crumplawyer, you're a civil rights
lawyer.
You would have been good atthat too.
Now you would have got it done.
Now you would have got it done.
But we're so glad that we wereable to see your face and I
think it was just a blessinggrowing up in Columbus.
When I came to Columbus seeingyou and Jerry Rebich, just
seeing you every night, that wassuch an encouragement, I'm sure
(40:04):
, to me as an adult and I knowit was to some young people- and
I certainly hope so.
Speaker 1 (40:08):
Jerry Rebich is one of my favorite people and I
think we're both very proud ofthe fact that there are a lot of
young people and youngjournalists out there who said
that's what I want to do.
Speaker 2 (40:19):
So thank you to our listening audience for your
continued support of Be A Ballerpodcast.
I'm Coach Tim Brown, continuingto be a baller and building a
lifelong legacy.
Speaker 3 (40:29):
If you've enjoyed this episode, please share it
with family and friends.
The Be A Baller podcast isavailable on all major podcast
platforms.
This podcast was created byCoach Tim Brown and recorded and
edited by the video productionclass of Worthington Christian
High School.
Be sure to come back next weekas we continue to discuss on how
to build a lifelong legacy.
(40:50):
Until then, don't forget to bea baller.
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