"Sage"
Rev. "Mother" Clara Althia Moore Woodson

Clara Althia Moore Woodson, wife of Edwin, mother of six, grandmother of seventeen, is a native Brooklynite who earned her B.A, M.A, and M.S degrees from Brooklyn College. She also earned an M. Div. at New Brunswick Theological Seminary. For 47 years she devoted herself to the "complete" education of children, first as a classroom teacher, then in a variety of guidance and administrative positions for the Board of Education. In 1992 she was ordained, only the second African -American woman to be ordained in the RCA. She serves as assistant pastor in the Flatbush Reformed Church in Brooklyn. It is said of her, "Clara seeks truth, not judgment. She sees people, not color, not ethnicity, not gender. She greets everyone with a smile and a hug. When you walk away from Clara you always feel better, no matter the circumstances of your visit." She is truly a wise woman --a sage. Her granddaughter Laureece summed up Mother Clara best in a poem.

Clara "Gram" Woodson
by Laureece A. Woodson

She touches everyone she meets.
She is always doing good deeds --but meekly and discreet.

With years of experience, she's always got a story to tell.
You rarely see her angry, and never hear her yell.

She's affected hundreds of lives in almost every way.
Family, colleagues, students and parents all have good things to say.

She listens and she gives sound advice, but let's people reach their own solutions.
Yet she never scorns or asks, "Now how could you reach that conclusion?"

She's all that I aspire to be, and many things I am.
You all know her as Clara, Reverend, or Mrs. Woodson,
But unlike any other, she's my special Gram!

If ever I could sum up her faith, her beauty, and the warmth of her soul,
I'd share that joy with everyone, for it would be the world's greatest mold!

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