who we are

Voices For Our Fathers Legacy Foundation was organized in 2014 by descendants of the 625 men unethically and immorally treated in the United States Public Health Service Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male at Tuskegee and Macon County, Alabama 1932 - 1972. The organization is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that connects descendants across generations, provides annual scholarships to descendants, participates in the Research Project: “The Untold Story”, offers support and guidance to the Tuskegee University National Center for Bioethics in Research and Health Care, while pursuing all other strategic plans. 

the importance of our foundation

Voices for Our Fathers Legacy Foundation is a necessary change to the narrative of the United States Public Health Service Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male at Tuskegee and Macon County, Alabama 1932 - 1972 about 625 African American men who were subjected to inhuman and unethical healthcare and treatment in rural Macon County, Alabama for forty years. They cannot remain being remembered only as poor, uneducated, uninformed guinea pigs. The United States Public Health Service Study of Untreated Syphilis in the Negro Male at Tuskegee and Macon County, Alabama 1932 - 1972 had tremendous ramifications on the small Macon County community and African Americans communities around the Nation. In today’s culture we are witnessing growing disparities in health care amongst those in most need and enduring social injustices. It is incumbent upon the Foundation to become an agent that will promote and advocate for ethical treatment in health care. It is also important that the Foundation move forward with purposeful actions while remembering their suffering and sacrifices.

Listen to the Sound of My Heart

 By Leo Ware

Having a vision for the Crest and a heavy heart, the symbols that appear in this Crest are those that I gathered over many years.  If you notice the date and time, the idea and the vision came to me in the Kellogg Center which appear at the bottom right of the Crest.  The tools and plow belonged to my father and were passed to me, they are part of the collections that were transported from Alabama to my home in Orlando Florida.  The idea of the plow, I was going to make a mailbox stand at my home in Orlando Florida.  The heart symbol is a candy dish that my Aunt Emma Ware gave to me, which is in my living room on a table in Orlando Florida.  The Bible was also given to me by Aunt Emma which includes a passage that fit the incidents that have occurred in the study.  It was on an index card that stated “A bruised reed He (God) will not break, and a smoldering wick He (God) will not snuff out, till He leads justice to victory.  In his name the nations will get their hope.” Matthews 12:20-21.  I used this passage in a lot of correspondence with the documents that I sent to the Courts of Alabama about the case and to other Senators, Judges, Congress Representatives, Ministers, my family Petition.  The numbers in the Center of the Cross-represent the men that were in the Study, the? mark is there because in documents there was a conflict of these numbers.  My thought also, was it did not reflect the women and children that might have been affected.  There is no clear total.  The white doves represent love in spite of it all, let your love shine, go Green, save the environment for our future generation.  The cemetery picture was taken years ago, from where that picture was taken you could observe the sunset and also Charlie Pollards headstone.  The P, I designed for the Pollard Family Reunion Crest, years ago which was conceived at the Family Reunion in 1998 in Washington DC.  The vision for this are that there are a lot of Pollard family members that were in the study.  Why not people of color made in God’s image.  That and other things that you notice were a vision that I arrived at which I thought would make this identifying mark.  With all these symbols, I think it was Gods will that this Crest be done.

The song that is narrated for the Crest was also incidental.  I was visiting in Columbia South Carolina and attended an Alumni Concert of Booker T Washington High School with Beverly Brooks (Voices for Our Father Legacy Foundation member) and her Godmother Ms. Jean Hopkins that sings on this choir.  The song which is an old Negro Spiritual (Go Down Moses) which was rearranged & directed by Dr. Carl Wells, Minister of Second Calvary Church in Columba SC was being sung.  I said “that is the song for the meaning of the Crest”, Dr. Wells left the concert early because he had another engagement and so did Beverly and I, we ran into him in the parking lot and I told him what I was trying to do, he sent me the song with his blessing (look at Gods favor).  I then traveled to Cleveland, Ohio to visit my sister Nadine Tolbert and my brother Lee Edward Ware who are also descendants of the Study and my brother had a friend that had a studio and a voice for recording and he agreed to record and narrate the song (for a fee) for the meaning of the Crest.  Gods Will! 

This is the story of the Crest and the song. 

This story was meant to be told…