Humanitarianism embodied the life of Dorothy Webb Black, who played a foundational role in the creation and development of the Neighborhood Service Center (NSC) in Easton. According to the organization’s 50th anniversary history, the Neighborhood Service Center began in 1969 as an outgrowth of the Tri-County Community Action Agency. Black served as the agency’s first executive director and was described as the visionary leader who helped transform it from a small anti-poverty initiative into a major community resource for Talbot County families.
During a recent sit-down with Walter Black, Dorothy’s son, I learned of the incredible compassion his mother had for the community and the legacy she left. An article from the Star-Democrat in the 1970s reported that before the Neighborhood Service Center, “There are children in Easton who do not own a book; who do not get at least one balanced meal a day; who during summer days do nothing but while away their time.” In the summer of 1970, its first year of operation, the NSC’s Summer Youth Program provided meals, books for reading at home, field trips, social gatherings, storytelling, and swimming to 50 Talbot County racially diverse children, ages 4 to 18.
Dorothy Black saw to it that not only children, but her neighbors, had what they needed every day. During her tenure at NSC between 1969 and 1982, the agency expanded services for low-income families, children, and seniors to help them move out of poverty and achieve self-sufficiency.
“From an early age, my mother was a humanitarian – always helping people she came into contact with. She became active in the PTA in her early 20s when my brother started school. When I was a child, she got involved in the March of Dimes and the Red Cross. She sent me on my bicycle when I was age eight to collect money for both charities in Claiborne and McDaniel, where we lived. She later also raised money for Memorial Hospital,” Walter recalls.
In addition to volunteering to help her community, Dorothy always worked, first as a waitress and then as a domestic for different families in Talbot County. Dorothy’s benevolent spirit was just a part of her family’s life – whether it was using the family’s car to transport people who needed a ride or helping someone find a job.
“When I was in the first grade, my mother worked for the boarding house down in McDaniel at Wades Point. She would get food from the farm there and meet the Black school bus that picked up children in McDaniel and give the driver the food to take to the Colored School in St. Michaels so the children would have lunch,” Walter recalls.
After the passage of the Economic Opportunity Act of 1964, Dorothy saw an opportunity to organize a tri-county community action agency to provide social services to residents in need. Along with Lorraine Claggett, Kathleen Francis, Jessie Caldwell, and other local citizens, she helped establish the NSC, including launching early Head Start-style programming for children in Talbot County. She then became the first Executive Director of NSC in 1969. The mission of the organization was to improve the quality of life, both socially and economically, for low-income qualifying residents of Talbot County.
Dorothy’s legacy continued long after retirement when the agency renamed its youth center the “Dorothy Webb Black Youth Center.” The Talbot County NAACP established the Dorothy Webb Black Memorial Scholarship in her honor, as well as the Dorothy Black Community Award. Her work is closely connected to the broader history of African American civic leadership in Easton and communities such as “The Hill,” one of the nation’s oldest continuously existing free Black neighborhoods. Walter got his mother’s humanitarian and activist spirit, taking an active role in the NAACP in Maryland and the Civil Rights Movement.
He shares, “I don't know how to say no, and my mother didn't know how to say no. It's not easy saying no when you have it in your heart to help others, if it's a part of your DNA. My mother didn’t let ethnicity, political persuasion, or people’s economic status interfere with seeing their needs. She was totally dedicated to the mission of NSC – that was her heartbeat.”
Today, NSC’s food pantry and mobile food pantry serve an average of 400 households and 1300 individuals each month, reducing food insecurity among Talbot County’s neighbors. In addition, the agency provides emergency housing and utility assistance, energy assistance, income tax assistance, youth programs, a responsible fathers program, and computer classes to an ethnically diverse population.
“The Neighborhood Service Center serves as the safety net for those on the brink of, or already in, poverty in Talbot County. The majority of our clients are employed or retired. One unexpected medical or utility bill can tip the scale, leaving families or individuals hungry or homeless,” shares Andy Hollis, Executive Director of the NSC.
“I think the greatest legacy of Dorothy Black is that she never rested. There was always more to be done. There was always more need in the community, and she was always one of the first to step up to address it. We need to remember that when we think we're overwhelmed, or the wave of need is too big - those who came before us showed us the path, and we need to stay on it,” he adds.
The Neighborhood Service Center is located at 126 Port Street in Easton. The Dorothy W. Black Youth Center, located on the second floor of the building, provides an After-School and Summer Program for youth in kindergarten through grade seven. The Center is funded through local government funding, as well as private donations and state and federal funds. The Neighborhood Service Center accepts donations of furniture, clothing, household items, and food from residents, organizations, and businesses. Most recently, NSC has created a pop-up retail thrift store, “The Neighborhood Exchange,” at 25 East Dover Street in Easton, for residents to shop or donate home furnishings. For further information, visit nsctalbotmd.org or call Andy Hollis at 410-822-5015.
