One of the Broward League’s past presidents, Priscilla Hawk, passed away in May, and hers is an inspiring story worth sharing.
Priscilla, the first Black women to be president of the Broward League, was born in 1942 in Waynesboro, GA., the second eldest of 14 children. She married and moved to Newark, NJ, where she earned an associate’s degree in business computer programming. She retired in 1990 from a New Jersey company that made navigation systems for missiles and the Space Shuttle.
Priscilla was a lifetime member of the League of Women Voters, first joining the League in 1976 in Newark where she served as president from 1982-1984. She remained a member in Newark until she moved to Broward County in 1990, where she joined the Broward County League.
In the Broward League, Priscilla continued her League leadership. She served on the Board of Directors from 1992–1999 and was President from 1999-2001.
Priscilla was laser focused on children’s issues. She worked hard to get a successful referendum on the 2000 ballot for a special independent taxing district to fund the Children’s Services Council of Broward County. The CSC became so vital that this special taxing district was reauthorized by the voters in 2014.
After her term as President, Priscilla chaired the Broward League’s social policy/children’s issue committee. She was instrumental in bringing to light the need for a pediatric pathologist in the county to help determine why infant mortality in Blacks was twice the rate compared to whites in the late 1990s.
In addition to her active participation in the Broward League, Priscilla also served as chair of the Florida League’s children’s issues committee and was a project coordinator/community dialogue facilitator for the US League.
Priscilla was inducted into the Broward County Women’s Hall of Fame in 2004.
Past Broward League President Carol Smith attended the memorial for Priscilla and shared our League’s appreciation for Priscilla’s service and leadership.