Thelma Terry Plaque Dedication

The Unveiling of the Thelma Terry Plaque ceremony was held at Virginia Avenue Park on Saturday, September 27, 2014 in front of the Thelma Terry Building at 2200 Virginia Avenue in Santa Monica.

Plaque attached to the front of the Thelma Terry Building on September 27, 2014



Thelma Terry was a remarkable woman and athlete in our community, born in 1907. She played basketball at Santa Monica High School and also in 1932 and 1933 at Santa Monica College. She used her love of sports to create recreation programs for the youth of Santa Monica. She advised 9 clubs, including ceramics, for teenagers at Memorial Park as the Recreation Director. She inspired other park facilities in the City to adopt similar programs. In the 1950s she helped 20 girls organize a drill team. They referred to themselves as "The Terryettes." Mrs. Terry passed in 1979 leaving a tremendous legacy to Santa Monica youth.

Carolyne Edwards and Mayor Pam O'Connor

 



The plaque was funded by the Quinn Research Center, founded by Carolyne and Bill Edwards. Carolyne is the niece of Dr. Alfred T. Quinn, a noted Black educator and leader in the Santa Monica Bay region. The Quinn Research Center funds educational resources that promote study, research, and preservation of Black Family History and Culture in the Santa Monica Bay Area.

The ceremony began at 1:15pm with the Santa Monica Police Explorers Color Guard. Vienna Hayes with the Calvary Baptist Church sang two spirituals.

Speakers for the event:

• Elizabeth Cruz, Chair, Virginia Avenue Park Advisory Board
• Sabrina Fields, Vice Chair, VAPAB
• Carolyne Edwards, Founder, Quinn Research Center
• Commendation presented by Mayor Pam O'Connor, City of Santa Monica

The unveiling was followed by the Dancing Divas performing Step Dance Performance and final statements by Elizabeth Cruz.

 

Oscar Wilde in California



Oscar Wilde came to America on a $5,000 commission from opera company owner, Richard D'Oyly Carte, to promote Gilbert and Sullivan's "Patience; or Bunthorne's Bride." The work was a satire on the aesthetic movement. Wilde developed celebrity status during the tour, with his colorful look, appearing in velvet waistcoats and britches with long hair. This publicity stunt catapulted Wilde to world-renowned fame. He introduced the ideas behind the Aesthetic Movement to San Francisco during his visit.

It is reported that Wilde enjoyed his time in California in 1882 most during his visit to the United States and was especially impressed with San Francisco.

Selected Bibliography of resources about Oscar Wilde's visit to the United States and information on the Aesthetic Movement:

• Oscar Wilde and His Circle

         The world's largest collection of manuscripts and archival material relating to Oscar
          Wilde are available at The Clark Library at UCLA. The collection includes 90,000   
           books and 21,000 letters and manuscripts by and about Oscar Wilde.
          Clark Library collection

• Gay Bears: The Hidden History of the Berkeley Campus

         Oscar Wilde 1854-1900
         Excerpts from The Berkelyan during Oscar Wilde's visit to the University of California
           in 1882.
          Gay Bears

• "Wilde about California: On his 1882 trip to San Francisco, the Irishman pronounced the city 'where I belong' "

         May 5, 2013 article in the Los Angeles Times by Roy Morris Jr. LA Times article

• Topics in Chronicling America - Oscar Wilde: Author and Asthete

         Library of Congress timeline and sample articles with links
          LC timeline and articles

• At the Santa Monica Public Library

         Oscar Wilde Discovers America 1882 by Lloyd Lewis and Henry Justin Smith 
         921 WILDE, OSCAR

         Declaring His Genius: Oscar Wilde in North America by Roy Morris, Jr.
         921 WILDE, OSCAR

        The Aesthetic Movement : prelude to Art Nouveau by Elizabeth Aslin
        709.03A