Lakeside School

Image: Governor Booth Gardner ’54 signing a document during T.J. Vassar’s term as chair of the Washington State Commission on African American Affairs. Courtesy of the Vassar family.

Governor Booth Gardner ’54 tapped me to chair the first Washington State Commission on African American Affairs. ... This body was designed to provide information to better serve African Americans in the state of Washington. James Kelly was selected to be our first executive director. He served this group well and moved from there to become President and CEO of the Metropolitan Urban League of Seattle. I was given a more pronounced statewide platform as Chair of the commission and I worked with activists and politicians statewide to increase employment opportunities for our state’s populations. — June 2, 2010, T.J. Vassar ’68 autobiography