DAME MARGARET OF DuSABLE’S COURT
A TRIBUTE TO THE LATE DR. MARGARET TAYLOR GOSS BURROUGHS

By Helen L. Burleson, Doctor of Public Administration

There she stood in all her splendor
Uniquely garbed, slight and slender.
Intricate head gear, proudly wrapped
Upon her hair with its natural nap.

An Original, a style all her own,
As is deserving, became well known.
She had long –range vision,
Unobtrusively fulfilling her mission.

They gossiped, obstructed, thought it couldn’t be done.
Despite their envy and deterrents, determinedly, she won.
A meager grassroots operation,
Humble beginnings, at its inception.

The faithful, the believers, the Dreamers
Quietly moved the earth, excluding the screamers.
Always a willing servant, exalting the Lord,
Uniting His people, as befits His reward.

Seeing a void in the recordings of man,
Directed a self-perpetuating caravan.
God made us all in His reflected glory,
She corrected the myths in the recounting of His story.

The American of African descent so long enslaved,
Obscurity, benign neglect, denied what he gave.
His blood and sweat have nourished this earth.
Honesty obliges us to acknowledge his worth.

The little old coach house bulged at the seam.
Move forward, reach upward, expand the dream!
Started in 1961 at 3806 South Michigan, in Chicago, steeped with Black pride,
A place where Pullman porters had relaxed and imbibed.

A GREAT PEOPLE have great needs-
A larger showcase to display their deeds!
The Community – though, somewhat reluctant,
Petitioned the City fathers to a certain extent.

Can’t stop a landslide when impetus gathers,
Jump aboard, grab a line, NOW TIME is matters!
Throwing out the life line,
She allowed each to define
The role he’ll play in his contribution to mankind.
Altruistically, relinquishing the platform to one at a time.
Though not seeking the spotlight,
The aura around her ‘twas bright.

She’s done more than her share
To promote love, because she cared
She labored long and birthed a Colossus of a baby
In 1973, in Washington Park, to be inherited by Eternity.

As her child grows and reaches majority,
Compelling us to insure a viable entity.
We must always remember the one who delivered,
Margaret Taylor Goss Burroughs, on whose shoulders it centered.

By the POWERS VESTED IN US, we, your people exhort
And elevate you, Dame Margaret of DuSable’s court.


DAME