“I guess it’s just in my blood.” Mrs. Carrie B. Stewart said to me when asked why she embarked on a community service career. A natural-born changemaker, Mrs. Stewart was born in Kentucky in 1928 to a religious family. 

The first in her family to graduate college, later becoming both professor and public school teacher, Stewart says she “would never give up on making sure children have the right start.” This sentiment never wavered throughout her life. Even after leaving teaching to raise her four children, she refused to give up on her passion. Living on Gates Avenue in 1956, later returning to Clinton Avenue in 1974, at a time when the city was rapidly changing, she committed herself to positively contributing to the community her children would grow up in. The trees shading the neighborhood today are one testament to Mrs. Stewart’s legacy. Still dubbed “her trees” by the area’s veterans, Stewart endeavored on a beautification campaign that permanently altered the fabric of the neighborhood. She fought through obstinate neighbors, and ineffective bureaucracy to create the best place possible for the next generation’s children. 

Her work in this vein didn’t cease at beautification, however. Striving toward systemic change, she established the Clinton Avenue and Wallabout Neighborhood Block Association and is a prominent member of the historic Emmanuel Baptist Church. Joining the congregation in 1957 when it had a majority of white church members, she oversaw the establishment of the first Gospel Chorus and was instrumental in appointing the first Black Pastor, the late Dr. H. Edward Whitaker.

Carrie B. Stewart has become an icon of fighting for principles, the future, and equity. She is a prime example of the inspirational figures that make our communities special and should be considered a definitive community hero.