The Pearl of East Texas

We hear the word hero applied in many situations, because individuals have determined that another's actions, whether small or significant, occurred at a time and under circumstances when action needed to be taken, and one or more individuals took that action. It could have been the saving of a life, the extinguishing of a fire, the telephone call at the right time, showing bravery when others thought all was lost, the rise of an individual to stand up against the denial of his or her constitutional rights, or the leadership of a civil rights movement that changed a nation. Whether man or woman, each of us has a hero or heroine inside, regardless of whether heroic qualities are demonstrated within our lifetimes. And then there are those individuals who exhibit those qualities, rise and have impact irrespective of their environment and the circumstances in which they live. Such was the case of Mattie Pearl Albright. Born in the early part of the 20th century, Mattie grew up in the Jim Crow era in Shreveport, Louisiana, transitioned to Los Angeles, California during the early 1940s and World War II, and reluctantly moved with her husband William to the East Texas city of Berryville. In each location, she was a standout, whether at her segregated high school in Shreveport, starting and managing one of the few credit unions established for blacks in Los Angeles, or being an avid volunteer, serving on the city council and founding two chambers of commerce in East Texas. She achieved all of this while raising and nurturing a family. This book tells her remarkable and extraordinary story of love, charity, compassion, and leadership.