The Butler

 

This is Mr. Eugene Allen and he was also a Deacon and Trustee of  my church, The Great First Baptist Church of Mount Pleasant Plains here in D.C.  This is who the movie The Butler is based on.

Trustee Eugene Allen, who endured a harsh and segregated upbringing in his native Virginia and went on to work for eight presidents as a White House butler.  He died March 3, 2010 of renal failure at Washington Adventist Hospital in Takoma Park. He was 90.

Mr. Allen and his wife, Helene, were profiled in a Washington Post story in 2008 that explored the history of blacks in the White House. The couple were excited about the possibility of Barack Obama's historic election and their opportunity to vote for him. Helene, however, died on the eve of the election, and Mr. Allen went to vote alone. The couple had been married for 65 years.

Afterward, Mr. Allen, who had been living quietly in a simple house off Georgia Avenue NW in the District, experienced a fame that he had only witnessed beforehand. He received a VIP invitation to Obama's swearing-in, where a Marine guard escorted him to his seat. Eyes watering, he watched the first black man take the oath of office of the presidency.

I just want to share these facts with you and hope you get a change to go out and see the movie.  We of the Great First Baptist Church, are very proud of his accomplishments and to have know him as a friend.

The Slow Quilter (Felicia)