Appell Center to show four films for Black History Month: One has ties to York

Lena Tzivekis, York Daily Record
Updated ·3 min read

To celebrate Black History Month, the Appell Center for the Performing Arts has collaborated with four prominent York County community members, showcasing a series of films highlighting the triumphs and challenges faced by African American individuals.

The films being presented include:

  • "Hidden Figures" on Sunday, Feb. 4 – selected by Helen Tafesse

  • "Queen and Slim" on Friday, Feb. 9 – selected by Rich Craighead

  • "Selma" on Sunday Feb. 18 – selected by Samantha Dorm

  • "A Man Called Adam" on Friday, Feb. 23 – selected by Jeff Kirkland

Prior to the screening of each film, the curator will explain why he or she chose to share the film with the York community, and how it has significantly impacted their lives. One of these films has a significant tie to York County.

Samantha Dorm, adviser to the Friends of Lebanon Cemetery Board, has recently learned that Lois Lambert Reeves, a York woman, was connected in several ways to the 1965 march at Selma, Alabama, and will discuss Reeves' role in the Civil Rights Movement in Selma.

Although Reeves herself did not physically march, she was instrumental in providing resources to students and other freedom marchers.

Lois Lambert Reeves attended William Penn Senior High School, and by the time she graduated in 1935, her poetry had been published in the school and local newspapers.
Lois Lambert Reeves attended William Penn Senior High School, and by the time she graduated in 1935, her poetry had been published in the school and local newspapers.

Lois Lambert Reeves

Reeves was originally born in Pittsburgh in 1917, and her family moved to York when she was very young. "Her mother (Ettie Lambert) was instrumental in desegregating elementary schools in York," said Dorm.

Reeves attended William Penn Senior High School, and by the time she graduated in 1935, her poetry had been published in the school and local newspapers. She was also involved in the Phillys Wheatley club, a sub-committee that worked to improve the rights of African American women, including the right to vote.

She was a member of the Crispus Attucks Literacy Society and later became an assistant director. Her husband, William Ivan Reeves, was a minister, which involved traveling to various states, which ultimately led the Reeves family to Alabama in 1958.

While there, Reeves became the director of the YMCA and YWCA at Tuskegee Institute, which did not participate in the civil rights movement for various reasons. However, Reeves and Dean of Women, Hattie Kelly, decided to form their own support system for students who were interested in participating in the movement anyway.

After being connected to Reeves' daughter, Khadija "Cookie" Reeves, she learned even more about the mission. The system Reeves and Kelly started was considered another underground railroad, which supported Tuskegee students, freedom riders and marchers to gather resources for peaceful protest amid the civil rights movement.

According to Dorm, Reeves and Kelly ensured everyone passing through Tuskegee "had a safe place to sleep, a meal, and three dollars to move on to their next destination."

'A snowball effect' of discoveries

Since announcing the preview of the film, Dorm said it has had a "snowball effect," with people in and out of York contacting her with more connections to the Selma march and the Civil Rights Movement.

"The things that are coming out of this are amazing," she said.

Recently, Dorm came across an audio file from May 27, 1960, in Tennessee by the Highlander Folks School, which served as an incubator for many of the important ideas that shaped 20th century social movements. "Lois Reeves was leading the meeting, and the first person to give their committee report was Rosa Parks."

To Dorm's surprise, it was Reeves who chaired the meeting. She was among the notable figures of the Civil Rights movement. Some of the most notable justice advocates of the last century attended Highlander as teachers, students or collaborators, including Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr.

Dorm will present the history of Lois Lambert Reeves on Sunday, Feb. 18 at 3 p.m. at the Appell Center, before the screening the Oscar-nominated film.

The Appell Center has announced that through the generous support of the Racial Equity Fund, offered through the York County Community Foundation, admission to all four films will be free. Guests who have already purchased tickets are asked to contact the box office at 717-846-1111.

This article originally appeared on York Daily Record: Appell Center to show 4 films for Black History Month