Mrs. Dorothy Juanita Clerkley Lumpkin Cleaver

On January 18, 1924, the eleventh child of Reagan and Ocie Bell Lumpkin was born. On their parent’s one hundred-acre farm, Dorothy, soon canonized as “Dot”, enjoyed an idyllic childhood with a power team of fun-loving brothers and sisters. She was baptized at Brown Springs Baptist Church in Neches, near Palestine, Texas. A Baptist throughout her life, she felt at home at any house of worship from the West Coast to Huntsville, Alabama.

At Mound Prairie Elementary and Clemons High School, Dorothy was an honor student whose favorite subjects were math and English. Playing on the high school basketball team was one of her fondest memories. She and little sister, Tiney, became dynamite debaters, participating in the Interscholastic League winning contests at the incomparable Prairie View College. Oratorical contests and debate provided Dorothy with matchless experiences which initiated a love for learning and the precise and beautiful use of language.

Upon graduating from high school, Dorothy attended Mary Allen Junior College in Crockett, Texas. She then enrolled in Prairie View where she earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in home economics and education. Emuel Eugene Cleaver and Dorothy married in 1942. They had two daughters, Grace Juanita and Almitra Eugene.

In 1953, Dorothy began an illustrious teaching career in Lufkin, Texas. During her forty-three year career, she particularly enjoyed teaching reading in elementary school. Third grade was her passion: “They have learned how to read and count, still adore their teachers, and are primed to be imbued with a zest for learning.” Her professional years were also spent teaching in Wichita Falls, Texas, Huntsville, Alabama and Plano, Texas.

Summers provided opportunities for Dorothy to continue her own education in math and science institutes. She won stipends to five different colleges, including Morgan State University in Baltimore, Prairie View College, Bishop College in Dallas and Texas College in Tyler. At Fisk University, she taught and mentored students majoring in education, focusing specifically on skills for teaching reading. After taking classes at USC, she became a staunch mighty Trojan forever. Students and parents made concerted efforts to stay in contact with “Mrs. Cleaver,” because of the positive impact she had on their educational advancement and their drive to make contributions to their communities.

When her first grandchild was born, she became affectionately known as Mimi. After retiring, Dorothy migrated west as most of her siblings had done years before. Joining her sisters in Las Vegas, Tiney, Arnell, Claudia, and Mimi became the four Golden Girls, resuming the fun-filled days of their childhood together—supporting one another, laughing, shopping, exercising and generally enjoying their years of reunion. Dorothy volunteered in public schools and Senior Friends. The pursuit of hobbies made for a charmed retirement—reading, swimming, biking, gardening and giving grandmotherly attention to her five grand-children and nine great grand-children. Dorothy’s immediate family was her great inspiration and joy.

Dorothy is survived by her daughters, Grace Juanita Akbar and Almitra Eugene Cleaver-Mc Donald; four grand-children, Fantaye Akbar-McCann, Matu Anisa Cleaver-Kelso, Ogun Akbar, Chaka Akbar; nine great grand-children: Emuel Akbar, Maisha Akbar, Malik Akbar, Mekhi Akbar, Skylar Kelso, Amari Akbar, Micah McCann, Hassan Akbar, Aemuel Akbar; three sons-in-law, Rudy Mc Donald, Michael McCann and Neal Kelso; one daughter-in-law, Dana Roberson Akbar; her sister, Tiney Wilson; and numerous nieces and nephews, all deeply loved. In her final years, she was lovingly cared for by several amazing care-givers including her great-niece, Jackie Barnett and our friends Juliene “Julz” H. Owens, Mary Blount, the wonderful ladies at A Daughter’s Care, and the inimitable Juah Davis. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband in 1978, Emuel E. Cleaver, and in 1992, her cherished grandson, Hassan Etani Muhari Akbar.

Mimi leaves a legacy of hope, the promises fulfilled through the gift of education, the value of hard work, frugality and unconditional love.