On April 15 in 1947, Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball. We were informed that his widow (he died in 1972), Rachel Robinson, 101, would be in attendance at Citi Field to celebrate Jackie Robinson Day on April 15 of this year in the second Black Legacy Game.
Many Americans are fully aware of Robinson’s achievements on and off the field, but might not know much about his widow. Born Rachel Annette Isum on July 19, 1922, she is a former professor and registered nurse. Since Jackie’s death, she has been tirelessly committed to keeping her husband’s legacy active through the Jackie Robinson Foundation. Like her husband, Rachel is the recipient of a trove of awards, including the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award in 2007 and the Buck O’Neil Lifetime Achievement Award in 2017.
AmNews Editorial from April 19,1947
She met Jackie in 1941 when they were students at UCLA. Four years later, she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in nursing. They had three children: Jackie, Jr. (1946–71) and Sharon, born in 1950, and David, born in 1952.
In 1959, she earned her master’s degree in psychiatric nursing from New York University and later worked in the Albert Einstein College of Medicine’s Department of Social and Community Psychiatry for five years. Subsequently, she became an assistant professor at Yale School of Nursing and later director of nursing at the Connecticut Mental Health Center. In 1973, she dedicated her life to the Jackie Robinson Foundation, which has provided educational and leadership opportunities for minority students. Along with Lee Daniels, she co-authored “Jackie Robinson: An Intimate Portrait.”
Rachel Robinson was not about to rest on Jackie’s or her own laurels. We were at Citi Field this April 15 with hopes of being in her immediate presence as she has been for so many Americans.
I don`t hear earlier about this celebration