Each February, America honors and celebrates many unsung heroes, as well as the well-known heroes of black history. A Harvard-trained historian, Carter G. Woodson, is credited for beginning Black History Month in 1925, which is also referred to as African American History Month. His hope was to raise awareness of contributions by African Americans to society with what was once a week-long event that encompassed the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. During the nation’s bicentennial in 1976, President Gerald Ford expanded the event to a month-long celebration, which every president since has proclaimed. President Ford encouraged Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accomplishments of black Americans in every area of endeavor throughout our history.”

Tallahassee partner Linda Bond Edwards share her life experiences and unique perspectives that have helped shape her into the successful attorney she is today.

Linda Bond Edwards grew up in a rural county near Memphis, Tennessee during the civil rights movement. “I have very vivid memories of the civil rights movement and it was truly an awesome experience as a young African American girl to grow up witnessing and experiencing everything that was happening,” she said. “My father worked in Memphis, and on the night Martin Luther King, Jr. was assassinated, I remember my grandmother crying as much for the death of Dr. King as she was for the safety of my father who had to go through all of the protests to get home.”

Linda says that the community in which she grew up was very active in fighting for civil rights. “My family owned property since the 1880s. My grandparents moved to our county in the 1930s and family and other community members housed white northerners and Freedom Riders who were coming to the South. My aunt hosted a Freedom School in her home, so it was all very real and personal to me,” she explained. “I come from a very proud tradition of people who understand the struggle for citizenship, freedom and civil rights,” she continued.

Education was paramount in Linda’s home. While neither of her parents attended college, they raised eight children and taught them the importance of education. “We all knew from the time we were small that we would go to college. It was just what we were taught,” she laughed. “Of the eight children in my family, six have degrees from college.” The other two attended, but although they didn’t graduate, they found other paths to success. “We were very blessed to grow up in a home where education was valued.”

Linda did not follow the typical path for her education. While most were encouraged to go into teaching or academia, she focused instead on business. “I always can tell how old people are when I tell them my first job was working as a manufacturing supervisor in a Sylvania plant that manufactured flash bulbs,” laughed Linda.

That job was her entre to corporate America because Sylvania was a part of GTE where she spent more than 10 years building a successful career in human resources. She later followed her heart and left her extremely successful career to go back to school to study law. Using her experience as a corporate director of human resources, Linda has built a strong practice representing both private and public employers in labor and employment matters for more than 20 years.

Giving back is important to Linda. While serving as president of the Tallahassee Women Lawyers, Linda developed a program to help at risk middle school girls uncover the possibilities their lives may hold. African-American Women lawyers would meet with the girls and mentor them about the legal profession and talk to them about the opportunities available. “It’s important to reach kids at that age when they begin to consider what they might want to do,” said Linda.

Getting together for the holidays is of utmost importance. “It’s not a time for a Hawaiian vacation,” she laughed. “My parents’ home has been the meeting place for Christmas dinner for most of my life. There can be as many as 40 people gathered which includes sisters, brothers, nieces, nephews, uncles, aunts, cousins, neighbors and friends. The family all comes together mainly for Christmas, but a few of us may get together for Thanksgiving. Because my siblings live in several states, (Florida, South Carolina, Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Georgia and Tennessee) the Thanksgiving mix will vary. Like traditional holiday menus, turkey and dressing are at the heart of the meal along with southern favorites of greens and macaroni and cheese.”

“Growing up on a farm, we always had fresh vegetables in the summer and would freeze and can vegetables to have them all year long. In the fall, we would have fresh pork and beef, so the only things we purchased were staples like flour and sugar,” Linda noted. “Of course, things have changed so much since then. Over Christmas, I was shredding cheese for the macaroni and asked my eight-year-old niece what was her favorite kind. I couldn’t help laughing when she told me ‘feta’! because I was well into adulthood before I had feta cheese.”

The more we are exposed to different experiences and cultures, the stronger we become. “At the heart of celebrations like African American History Month is an opportunity to help people recognize that it has taken all of us to make our country a great place to live,” said Linda. “The racial divide in our country is so troubling and unnecessary. The negative stereotypes of African Americans don’t represent who we are or what we have and will contribute. “By celebrating the contributions of those who have done positive and great things, the more we are likely to appreciate all of the contributions made across racial and ethnic lines.”

A large part of the firm’s culture is the emphasis on diversity and inclusion. “Our clients receive the highest quality service from legal teams that are representative of the increasingly diverse marketplace,” added Linda, a member of the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee. “It’s our job to look for ways to both continue recognizing diversity as a strength, and finding ways to ensure diversity and inclusion within the firm.