IN MEMORIAM
“When I look back over more than six decades in the fraternity, I prefer to chronicle service rather than ‘positions’ I have held. While positions have a pur- pose, simply holding them does not lend itself to measuring our service to our communities. I like to focus on the service I have rendered to the fraternity, especially the areas in which the fraternity’s lead- ership found my skill sets useful. Fortunately, I have been able to assist the leadership at every level of the fraternity, especially where my writing skills and institutional knowledge of the fraternity proved to be an asset. These opportuni- ties have been magnified because Polemarchs at each level of the fraternity have pulled me aside to assist them in reviewing documents, writing, and advising where deemed appropriate.”
Earl T. Tildon 1936-2023 96 th ELDER WATSON DIGGS AWARDEE Government Executive and Community Activist
A member of the Tildon was a trusted advisor and counsel for numerous Grand Pole- march administrations. The 96th Elder Watson Diggs Awardee, entered the Chapter Invisible on August 26, 2023. Born in Washington, DC, on January 27, 1936, to Thomas Stockham and Winter Park (FL) Alumni, Earl T. Julia Louisa Tildon, he attended public schools, graduating from Dunbar High School in 1953, where he sang in the acapella choir, was a member of the cross-country team and cadet corps, and was a pitcher for the baseball team. During his high school years, Tildon also played baseball with the
Kelly Miller Recreation Department team under the tutelage of Reginald “kiYi” Ballard, who taught him the nuances of pitching. Tildon was a star pitcher and pitched successfully in the city championship game. After graduating from Dunbar, he attended Central State College (later University) in Wilberforce, OH, where Tildon earned a B.S. in business adminis- tration in June 1959. While at Central State, he was initiated into Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity in April 1955 via the Delta Zeta Chapter. Starting in the late 1950s and into the 1960s, Tildon was a community activist and member of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), where
he served as a negotia- tor in Washington, DC, seeking equal rights in department stores, restau- rants, hotels, and other public accommodations. He accomplished these achievements with fellow negotiators from the Southern Christian Lead- ership Conference (SCLC), Rev. Walter E. Fauntroy (Alpha Gamma 1952), the NAACP, Rev. Edward Hales; Urban League, Ster- ling Tucker; and others. This experience sparked a lifetime passion for civil rights for his people that continued until his death. After 31 years in civil service with the Depart- ment of Defense and the Federal Emergency Man- agement Agency (FEMA and its DOD predecessor
agencies), he retired from
his government career in 1991. During his career in government, Tildon served in numerous management capacities, including Super- visory Statistician with the Per Diem Travel and Transportation Allowance Committee, where he was responsible for military housing, per diem and cost of living allowances for the
70 THE JOURNAL ♦ FALL 2023
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