{"id":9092,"date":"2023-07-27T14:08:32","date_gmt":"2023-07-27T14:08:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/?p=9092"},"modified":"2023-07-27T14:08:32","modified_gmt":"2023-07-27T14:08:32","slug":"weldon-douthitt-lucas-county-commissioners-honor-a-toledo-icon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/2023\/07\/27\/weldon-douthitt-lucas-county-commissioners-honor-a-toledo-icon\/","title":{"rendered":"Weldon Douthitt: Lucas County Commissioners Honor A Toledo Icon"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Weldon Douthitt addresses crowd<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Published in The Truth in the February 26, 2020 issue<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n

Describing the honoree as \u201ca personal friend of all of us,\u201d former State Rep. Michael Ashford had the final say during a Lucas County Commissioners\u2019 Black History Month celebration. On February 18, 2020, the Commissioners honored the 86-year-old Weldon Douthitt for his contributions to the community in a number of different areas \u2013 social services, politics, community organizing and a lifelong commitment to helping others.<\/p>\n

Douthitt, who has spent decades with the Economic Opportunity Planning Association (EOPA), now Pathway, working with housing issues in underserved neighborhoods as project director for the agency\u2019s Home Rehabilitation department, was just recently in a home that needed work done.<\/p>\n

\u201cLast week, imagine this 86-year-old man in a 70-year-old senior\u2019s basement, dealing with frozen pipes,\u201d said Ashford of Douthitt\u2019s continuing involvement with improving housing problems.<\/p>\n

Douthitt arrived in Toledo in 1954, noted Commissioner Pete Gerken as he kicked off the tributes to his long-time acquaintance. \u201cHe came here in 1954 and was a skilled-trades mentor with EOPA\/Pathway since [that agency\u2019s] inception. He left a mark on a community, on people and on housing stock. He is an iconic figure in the African-American community.\u201d<\/p>\n

For many Toledoans, especially those who follow local politics, Douthitt\u2019s name will be forever entwined with that of his long-time best friend \u2013 former Mayor Jack Ford. For years, Ford was the very public face of local politics \u2013 elected, first, to City Council, then to the Ohio General Assembly, mayor, Toledo Board of Education and, again, to City Council. For just as many years, Douthitt provided the backing and support for the Ford campaigns \u2013 making the tactical decisions and doing the leg work to get the candidate elected.<\/p>\n

Ashford spoke of the threesome he formed with the Ford-Douthitt duo after he entered politics. \u201cIn that threesome, Jack wasn\u2019t in charge; and I wasn\u2019t in charge. Weldon was in charge and told us each and every day what we needed to do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jessica Ford, the Lucas County deputy administrator and Jack Ford\u2019s daughter, has known Douthitt all of her life \u2026 as a member of the family, more than just her father\u2019s advisor and friend.<\/p>\n

\u201cWeldon is the true definition of grass roots,\u201d said Jessica Ford on Tuesday. \u201cHis community organizing during the Civil Rights movement \u2013 is a legacy no one will be able to replace. Without Weldon, you don\u2019t have Jack. Weldon spent hours doing whatever was necessary and he understood how important it was to have folks at the table.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWeldon gives because it\u2018s the right thing to do,\u201d said Ashford introducing his friend.<\/p>\n

Douthitt spoke of the honor and pleasure he has had over the years connecting with such a large variety of people in the community \u2013 the friendships he has formed and the appreciation he has had for friends and family.<\/p>\n

Politics, social action, community organizing, mentoring younger generations \u2013 Douthitt has accomplished a lot and given a lot and he has no plans to ease up yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe good Lord willing, I will be 87 years old in March,\u201d he noted as he described how much\u00a0 everyone close to him in his life \u2013 family and friends \u2013 have meant to him.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Published in The Truth in the February 26, 2020 issue Describing the honoree as \u201ca personal friend of all of us,\u201d former State Rep. Michael Ashford had the final say during a Lucas County Commissioners\u2019 Black History Month celebration. On February 18, 2020, the Commissioners honored the 86-year-old Weldon Douthitt for his contributions to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[],"wf_post_folders":[185],"class_list":["post-9092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-headline"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9092","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9092"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9092\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9093,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9092\/revisions\/9093"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9092"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9092"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9092"},{"taxonomy":"wf_post_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/wordpress.thetruthtoledo.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_post_folders?post=9092"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}