The last thing Bernal E. Smith II said to his wife, Towanda, was "I gotchu!"
It was a two-word slang response to her very playful reminder that he only had about a month left to get a new pair of...
Knowing he would be out of town for the home going of TSD Publisher Bernal E. Smith II, former Memphis Mayor Dr. Willie W. Herenton recorded remarks intended to be shown at Smith funeral. Herenton was a longtime mentor...
Even as we mourned, the TSD got ample coverage of the homegoing of our late publisher, Bernal E. Smith II. Special thanks to Tyrone P. Easley, Warren Roseborough and Gary S. Whitlow for capturing the event.
The ground-floor portion of the sanctuary at Mt. Vernon Baptist Church-Westwood swelled to capacity, yielding the overflow to ascending rows of seats. Such was the turnout for the homegoing of The New Tri-State Defender’s publisher, Bernal E. Smith II.
Mr....
Late 2010, Tammy Coleman received a devastating phone call from a close friend that forever changed her life.
“She told me she had two years to live,” said Coleman. “When she told me it was from breast cancer, I literally...
The 100 Black Men of Memphis chapter this week got a $20,000 boost from the Shelby County Board of Commissioners in the group’s effort to raise funds for the scholarship named in honor of Bernal E. Smith II, the...
To the second best man watching me from overhead (after God):
It’s been 130 days since you transitioned from work to reward. I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t the toughest four and a half months of my life. I’ve...
“You have to take responsibility for you, for creating the path to the future you desire. No one can do that for you. The choices you make, determine your fate.”
– Bernal Elery Smith II
October 22 will mark one...
The Best in Black Awards are TONIGHT! Who will win?
Check out this listing of the BIBA Finalists, and be sure to get your tickets for the Best In Black Awards here! And be sure to be at Clayborn Temple...
It's been a year.
On Oct. 22, 2017, Bernal E. Smith II, former publisher of The New Tri-State Defender, passed away unexpectedly at the age of 45. Since then, alongside the tears, there has been an outpouring of the very...