Clara McBride "Mother" Hale

Clara McBride Hale (April 1, 1905 – December 18, 1992), also known as Mother Hale, was a prominent African-American social activist and child care worker who created a sanctuary for drug-addicted and AIDS-infected infants and their mothers in New York City, as problems associated with drug abuse exploded in the Harlem community where she lived.

As a namesake: untapped cities Nov. 2014 - "Harlem's Mother Clara Hale bus depot opens with mural by Shinque Smith"

biography

From The Black Past - Remembered and Reclaimed

Clara McBride Hale, founder of Hale House, a nationally recognized facility for the care of addicted children, was born on April 1, 1905 in Elizabeth City, North Carolina and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. When Hale was a youngster, her family experienced tragedy.  Her father died, forcing her mother to take in lodgers to support her four children.  After from high school Clara McBride married Thomas Hale and moved to New York City. Together they had two children, Nathan and Lorraine, and adopted Kenneth. Thomas died, leaving Hale to support her family as a domestic.  

While raising her children in Harlem, Hale developed a deep sympathy for abandoned and neglected children.  In the 1940s, she began providing short-term and long-term care for community children in her home. She also found permanent homes for homeless children and taught parents essential parenting skills. In 1960, she became a licensed foster parent, providing care for hundreds of children in her home. Hale’s success as a foster parent earned her the affectionate nickname of “Mother Hale.”

In 1969, at the age of 64, Hale became the foster parent of an infant addicted to cocaine.  She responded to needs of other children with this affliction by founding a groundbreaking foster care program in Harlem, Hale House. The respite care program also provided training to drug-addicted mothers on how to improve the health of their chemically dependent babies. Hale's unique program required mothers to live in Hale House with their children and attend a drug rehabilitation program. In the 1980s, Hale expanded Hale House services to include care for infants stricken with HIV and those who had lost parents to AIDS.

By 1991, Hale House cared for approximately 1,000 infants and toddlers. During her distinguished career, Hale received numerous honors and awards for her community service. She received an honorary doctorate from John Jay College of Criminal Justice and public service awards from the National Mother’s Day Committee and the Truman Award for Public Service. In 1985, during his State of the Union Address, President Ronald Reagan referred to Hale as an “American hero” for her commitment to at-risk children.

Clara McBride Hale died on December 18, 1992 in New York City.

She eventually helped over 1,000 drug addicted babies and young children who were born addicted to drugs, children born with HIV, and children whose parents had died of AIDS.

Sources:

• http://www.halehouse.org; Ron Alexander, “Chronicle,” New York Times, 26 Aug. 1994: 4; Diane Camper, “Mother Hale's Lasting Gift,” New York Times, 24 Dec. 1992: A16. Contributor: Mentor, Madalyn. Berea College

It was simple, she said; "hold them, rock them, love them and tell them how great they are."

Black History

Hale was honored with over 370 awards and 15 honorary degrees in her lifetime.

From "Clara McBride Hale." 123HelpMe.com. 17 Jan 2011

Clara McBride Hale

Black History Month is a great time to celebrate out history, achievements, and accomplishments. February should not be the only time but it is certainly a good time to start. Many blacks have done extraordinary things. I admired Clara McBride Hale. She works with crack-addicted and HIV-positive babies. Clara McBride Hale was born in Elizabeth City, North Carolina. She has suffered lots in her lifetime. She became an orphan at 16, and a widow at the age of 27. She only had her children, and she kept them close. She “adopted” a third child, and raised him as her own. She became affectionately known as Mother Hale to all in the neighborhood. She began staying at home and caring for the neighborhood kids charging only $2 per week. She later became a licensed foster parent. Hale House was started when Clara’s daughter, Lorraine noticed a crack-addict mother with a newborn. She directed her to her mother’s house, and this baby was the first of thousands of children to reap the love, support, devotion, and care from the arms of Mother Hale. Hale House is America’s first and best known child care agency to gain worldwide recognition when Ronald Reagan introduced Mother Hale as he gave his 1986 State of Union Address. She was called an American hero, and was appointed to the National Drug-Free America Task Force. Many of the children come to Hale House from prisons, police stations and hospitals. They get their funding mostly from private donations and times do get very rough. Hale House is still in operation today. It has become a national role model for children without families. It is a great place to keep these children to keep them out of alleys, garbage cans, and many places where mothers abandon their newborn children. Sadly, Mother Hale passed away in 1993. In her honor, a life-sized statue was built for her in Harlem. Her dream and devotion lives on in the lives of the children she has helped raise and the many that will continue to benefit from Hale House.

From Hale House Center - About Mother Hale

Mother Hale passed away on December 18, 1992 at the age of 87. According to Rev. Dr. James A. Forbes, Jr., Senior Minister at Riverside Church where she and her family were members, “She left instructions that there be no sad funerals.” Her funeral took place on Wednesday, December 23rd and it was a service filled with music, singing and rejoicing. Over 2000 people mourned her passing and celebrated her life that day including “Mayor David Dinkins, US Senator Alfonse D’Amato, former Manhattan Borough President Percy Sutton, US Representative Charles Rangel, Adam Clayton Powell IV, Manhattan Borough President Ruth Messinger, the Reverend Al Sharpton, Dr. Calvin O. Butts, Yoko Ono and her son, Sean Lennon.” *This roster shows the scope of respect this extraordinary woman had gained in the world for her work to positively influence so many children, their families and the entire Harlem community.

Mother Hale believed, unconditionally, that all children, from all walks of life and circumstances, need and deserve love. With this love they will not only survive, but will overcome the hardships into which they are born.

Source: Marlene Aig, The Associated Press, 12/24/92 – The Daily Gazette

• Residence: (1910 — Age: 5) Wilmington Ward 1, New Hanover, North Carolina
• Residence: (1930 — Age: 25) Manhattan, New York, New York
  • Updated from Ancestry Genealogy via Thomas Hale by SmartCopy: May 10 2015, 20:20:21 UTC

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• Find A Grave Memorial# 6902694, The My Hero Project - Clara Hale, "Clara Hale." Encyclopedia of World Biography. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 11 May. 2015 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>, Wikipedia