February 3: Joyce Washington

After serving as a catastrophe team leader for Allstate Corporation – where she worked for 42 years - Joyce Washington retired and immediately turned her energy towards Social Justice Advocacy. Even in her corporate position, she was a champion for diversity, inclusion, and equality.

In her role as a Social Justice Advocate, her mission is to help eradicate systemic and institutional racism and represent people with “no voice,” people of the global majority, the working poor, low-income families, and individuals.

As a certified Racial Justice Facilitator with the “Racial Justice from the H.E.A.R.T.” organization, she leads workshops on implicit bias in today’s race relations. Her audiences typically consist of individuals seeking to understand different racial perspectives and embrace and acknowledge the true history of our country. Participants include other community activists, seminary students, teachers, social workers, church groups, and social services groups from many non-profit agencies.

Joyce is the chairperson for the Weakley County Reconciliation Project (WCRP), whose mission is to engage communities in courageous conversations on race matters. In addition, Joyce is chairperson of the Martin Housing Authority, serving low-income families and individuals. She is a member of Delta Sigma Thea Sorority, Inc and serves as the recording secretary. She has a master’s degree in Business Administration and a master’s degree in Strategic Communication. And most recently, she has been assisting with the Weakley County Tornado Recovery Team.

Joyce has three grown children and seven grandchildren. She grew up in Northwest Tennessee and returned to the area in 2007. She uses her mother-wit and God-given passion to “Do the right thing. Not the popular thing.”