Who We Are
The Foundation was the result of a dream of three alumni, Dr. Mildred Baxter-Davis, Louis C. Coleman and Cecelia Jackson Wilson. In the 1960s they began to reminisce about their high school years. After watching Second Ward being torn down, their dream was to create a permanent foundation.
The first annual meeting was held in 1980 and a few years later the Foundation purchased a permanent home on Beatties Ford Road. They dedicated their energies to collecting the photos, trophies, yearbooks, newspapers and any other memorabilia to tell the history of the school and all the neighborhoods that once had students going to Second Ward.
The Foundation has members who are alumni from the 1920s through today. Membership is not limited to Second Ward graduates and we have family members and friends from the community and public eligible to join the Foundation.
We were part of the City of Charlotte's planning process to create a new community where Second Ward once stood.
This Master Plan is coming to life as The Brooklyn Village and we envision the restoration of the neighborhood. It will link us all - past and present.
Our Mission
For more that 43 years, the Foundation has held annual meetings and reunions, created a number of history exhibits, collected the stories and images from the school and neighborhood and shared this school's legacy through film, exhibits, books and multi-media projects.
We have been grateful to receive funds from the Charlotte Arts & Science Council.
We support our work through the sale of products we create, special fundraising efforts with friends and alumni, and through a wide variety of project grants.