Esther O'Kedas, 95, a woman of faith

WHEN Esther Agnes Beatrice Armstead started at William Penn High School for Girls in the late 1920s, she discovered that black girls were automatically enrolled in the home- economics course.

Esther wanted the academic program. School officials tried to convince her that she belonged in home economics, but she persisted.

Finally, she was taken to the principal's office, where she was tested to see if she qualified for academics. She passed easily, and a reluctant school administration allowed her to take the academic courses. Only three other black girls were in the program.

"Esther experienced prejudice and attempts to eliminate her, but she refused to become discouraged," her family wrote in an obituary. "She learned and matured from the experiences, and graduated in June of 1931."

Esther, called Bea by her family, became a devoted and much-honored Catholic after converting to the faith at an early age.

She died Oct. 6. She was 95 and lived in South Philadelphia.

Esther's favorite subject in high school was Latin, and she became a big fan of Shakespeare. She could recite passages from "Julius Caesar," as well as poetry and Scripture, well into her 90s.

Shortly after graduating high school, she married Leroy O'Kedas. In August 1952, Leroy died suddenly a few weeks after she gave birth to their 12th child.

Esther was born in St. Petersburg, Fla., the third of the four daughters of Mary "Molly" and the Rev. Lossie "Louis" Armstead.

She came to Philadelphia as a child and attended St. Peter Claver School at 12th and Lombard before enrolling at William Penn High, on North Broad Street.

"Attending St. Peter Claver had opened Esther's heart to Catholicism as a child, and it was at this time that she decided to dedicate her adult life to the faith," her family wrote.

As a parishioner at St. Peter Claver, she became a member of the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin Mary, of which she was elected prefect.

Her children attended the school. Esther actively supported the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament at the school and rarely missed a parent-teacher meeting. She made herself available for whatever the school or the sisters needed.

She was also active at the St. Simon Mission with the Franciscan Sisters of the Atonement on 9th Street near Lombard where she served as a Brownies troop leader.

Esther was the first black woman to gain membership in the Catholic Daughters of America in the Philadelphia Archdiocese.

As a widow, Esther overcame her grief by concentrating on raising her children.

"She taught them to be God-fearing, law-abiding, honest, articulate, productive and contributing members of society," her family wrote.

Esther worked for many years with the School District of Philadelphia as part of the cleaning staff at Hawthorne Elementary and Bartlett Junior High, now the Palumbo School. She retired at 68.

The 1955 murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till in Mississippi for daring to speak with a white girl shocked the nation and inspired Esther O'Kedas to join the NAACP, along with her sister, Gladys, and she became active in the civil-rights movement.

She received the Humanitarian Award from the Chapel of the Four Chaplains, a foundation that aims to impart the principles of selfless service to humanity without regard to race, creed, ethnicity, or religious beliefs.

Esther was the matriarch of an extended family. Her home on Christian Street in South Philadelphia was always the center of activity for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter and Kwanzaa festivals.

She is survived by a son, LeRoy O'Kedas; five daughters, Emily O'Kedas Herder, Leona O'Kedas, Juanita O'Kedas Perkins-Qui, Ramona O'Kedas Washington and Rita O'Kedas; and more than 70 grandchildren and great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by six daughters, Dolores, Esther, Aurelia, Olive, Helen and Bernadette.

Services: Funeral Mass 10:30 a.m. at the Shrine of St. Rita of Cascia, Broad and Ellsworth streets. Friends may call at 8:30 a.m. Burial will be in Holy Cross Cemetery, Yeadon. *