Alumni Return to Celebrate 50 Years of Guilford ABC

Lori Harris, Kim Pompey Anglada, Valerie Price Cornelious, and Cheryl Harvey McPherson (L to R)

Delighted screams and long hugs punctuated alumni encounters at the Guilford ABC house on Saturday, October 19, 2024. More than 20 alumni of Guilford A Better Chance traveled from as far away as California and Maryland to celebrate with exuberant joy the 50th anniversary of the Guilford ABC program. Gathered around the kitchen island for an informal lunch, the long-ago graduates greeted former host family members with misty eyes. Several sat for interviews about their lives post-GABC.

Melissa Peters Chatman, GABC class of 2003. B.S. in Chemical Engineering from Tufts University; M.S. in Business from Fordham University, New York City.

“GABC was an incredible experience that taught me never to be uncomfortable in many places – I belong here, I felt always. It was a great education at Guilford High School, but there were many important intangibles, too. I met girls from different places, sharing different cultures. And GABC gave me a sense of independence, personal responsibility, being yourself.” Melissa is now in data analysis and program management at Walmart’s e-commerce division, “working to stay competitive with Amazon!” Married to husband Ryan, she is “Mommy” to Cameron, age five.

Valerie Price Cornelious, GABC class of 1977, B.S. Information Technology and M.S. in Technology Management from Golden Gate University in San Francisco.

“I was in the first group of Guilford ABC scholars, arriving at the house in 1974, and so excited to be here! Coming from the projects in New York City to small-town suburban Guilford meant freedom to me. Freedom to be outdoors, safe, with a focus on education. I felt under a microscope at first, but I graduated with honors!” Valerie has been a professional in Information Technology for 33 years. She started working in the field “on the old, giant IBM computer” and experienced the transformation to personal computers. Married 33 years to her husband, also an I.T. professional, they have two children, “both college grads” she said. “I appreciate Guilford even more now, but in a different way. The town was always very welcoming, peaceful, filled with serenity.”

Kim Pompey Anglada, class of 1978, B.A. Psychology, Cornell University; M.S.W. Social Work, Columbia University; and M.B.A., Kellogg School of Management-Northwestern University.

Kim describes her experience at GABC as “a sisterhood among scholars. We came from all over, came together and learned self-confidence. We dealt with struggles, being a family, academic excellence. We attacked our studies with ferocity and developed a work ethic,” she said. Kim has a passion for non-profit management – “I wanted to make a social impact,” she explained. She discovered her superior sales and marketing skills while studying at Northwestern and utilized her talents and education with fundraising at United Way and is now with the International Rescue Committee.

Delphinia Brown, class of 1997, B.A. Sociology and African Studies, Georgetown University.

“It was like a slumber party that never ended,” Delphinia described her years at the GABC house with laughter. “There were seven of us, ethnically diverse – from West Africa, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, the American South, and Jamaica. But the impact was we learned about giving back. There are a lot of caring adults here in Guilford. All these volunteers in the community were meeting our needs,” she said. A student of many languages, including Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and American Sign Language, Delphinia described a life of multi-disciplinary work with a focus on instructional design and management. “But most important was the experience I had at the Mercy Center, in a program called Common Ground. It helped me in becoming an adult, a thinking, very human person, a spiritual person with a purpose to serve.”

Nyazia Lindsey, now Ny’jal Lindsey, class of 2013; B.S. Culinary Management Johnson and Wales University, Providence, R.I.

“Guilford was a safe space for me. Nobody ever isolated me, everyone was welcoming. I had the freedom to be whoever I already was, a space to be a masculine girl and could be myself.” Ny’jal transitioned in 2018 though understood the need to do so back in 2012. “Eventually I was able to debunk any fears, and I feel it all started here.” Ny’jal has worked in all areas of the “back of the house” restaurant business and is now working at “the front of the house”—as Johnson and Wales provided in-depth study of the culinary industry. Ny’jal’s poem “Hypocrisy” was published by the Guilford Poetry Guild.

Chatice McCoy Yarborough, class of 1993; B.A. Political Science, University of Virginia, and Bridgette Bennett, class of 1996, B.A. English and Government, Georgetown University; and J.D., Barry University.

Chatice and Bridgette whooped with joy as they encountered each other in the kitchen of the Guilford ABC house on alums day. Falling into each other’s arms, the pair’s joyous reunion was witnessed by Art and Mary Hunt who were host parents to Chatice; Art also served on the GABC Board. Chatice reflected on “the risks we took as young girls in a majority culture. “My first few months were rough, “but a Guilford school psychologist helped her through to a happier time. That educator became her host family.

“You looked so beautiful. You were my hero! I remember your hairdo from the prom,” exclaimed Bridgette, standing nearby her long-ago GABC housemate. “GABC is why we have generous hearts. I was crying, wanting to thank GABC for all you did for us. The people at the high school rallied around, supportive during a hard freshman year,” she said, face aglow.

Chatice has been working with KTMG, a large business consulting firm in British Columbia, while Bridgette is the CEO and founding attorney at Bennett Law Firm in Groveland Florida. The firm focuses exclusively on Immigration & Business Law, with an emphasis on removal defense, waivers, and family and humanitarian cases.

Cheryl Harvey McPherson, class of 1977, B.S. Architecture, Princeton University; M.B.A. University of California-Berkeley.

“I finally felt challenged!” Cheryl expelled a sign of satisfaction as she described her experience at Guilford High School as a GABC scholar. “I was at the top of my class in another public school, but I had to really work to become tops at GHS! I came to ABC as a sophomore. It stretched me, opened up what I wanted to do,” she said, the words flowing quickly at remembering so long ago.

“With ABC, I set goals and learned to compete, to do whatever you want to. Even though I had a passion for architecture, I ended up working with worldwide business partners for most of my career at I.B.M.” Cheryl retired after 25 years in marketing at the giant corporation and is now a consultant to businesses.

The alumni were at the Guilford ABC house with a principal mission to meet the current scholars so they could share long-ago experiences they cherished and help these young women thrive as well. The current GABC scholars circulated among the alumni and reflected thoughtfully on their wisdom. “We see how much the program has changed, but we all had and are having similar experiences,” Tamojah, a GHS junior, summed up. “These are our bonds and our future.” t