Uncrowned Community Builders

My Story:
My story begins in Alabama. Born into a loving family in the city of Birmingham on October 9, 1917, I was raised by maternal Uncle Charlie Banks, his wife Inez and maternal grandmother Carrier Banks. Uncle Charlie worked for Highland Hospital in Birmingham and was a Deacon in the Church. Aunt Inez was a teacher in the public school system and a Sunday school teacher. Under the arch of their live, I learned essential biblical lessons that have served me my entire life.

As a deacon in the church, Uncle Charlie taught by example the meaning of servant hood and leadership in church ministry. He was a great baseball player and boxer. My relatives taught me what it means to be loved and how to treat others with respect. Some of my most enjoyable childhood memories in Alabama were spending the summers in Brighton, Alabama. My maternal great-uncle George Marshman owned and worked his farm in Brighton. I loved riding my great-uncleâ??s mule and horses.

In May 1929, I left Alabama to join my mother and stepfather in Buffalo, NY. I arrived on a Saturday and the next day I was in Sunday worship service at First Shiloh Church. Reverend E. J. Echols, Sr. was the presiding Pastor at the time. I attended Shiloh faithfully for the last 80 years.

In 1972 Rev. Echols, Jr. recruited and appointed me as the official church photographer. Since that time I have recorded the ministry milestones of First Shiloh. Along the way, many doors of opportunity opened up in the Buffalo Black community in WNY. Countless friends and family members have cherished memories in photographs of wedding and family reunions. God's grace gave me a wonderful gift to bring joy into the lives of others. A freelance professional photographer is an exciting and truly rewarding calling. As a servant of Jesus Christ, the privilege of capturing the pictorial historical record of First Shilohâ??s ministries in Buffalo was a fantastic honor.

As a child in Buffalo, I attended School #32 and Masten Park High School. I later attended Burgard Vocational High School and received a certificate for specialized training in machine shop. God blessed me with a great passion for sports. In school, I played baseball, basketball, ran cross-country and swam for the school swim team. The Bible teaches that "to whom much is given, much is required." So as I grew into adulthood, I reached out to young children in Buffalo and coached little league baseball in my community for several years.

To earn money, I began working at the age of 10. I worked for Harold Robinson, the first black pharmacist in Buffalo at Jacobson's Drugs on Michigan Avenue. Other jobs included Greyhound Bus as a baggage handler and a bell hop at the Fairfax Hotel. One day Mr. Gibson, the comptroller for General Motors was so pleased with the way I kept his car clean and waxed that he offered me a job at the Chevrolet Plant. I started there as a sweeper because at that time, some at the plant did not believe that blacks could do more sophisticated work. After one year, I earned the right to work on metal tool machinery. I became a skilled tradesman at Chevy and retired after 37 years of service. One especially rewarding job was working for Assistant U.S. Attorney C. Donald O'Connor who also became a dear friend.

I married my first wife, Geraldine Gillard, now deceased. Out of that union was born five children, John, Jr., Elaine, Betty, Barbara and Diane. In the 1940s I answered the call to protect my country and my family, so I joined the U.S. Marine Corps. After basic training I received the rank of Private 1st Class. I served with the 532 Platoon, Company A during World War II. I was honorably discharged after the war and returned home.

God is good all the time, so in the 1980s into my life God sent a wonderful woman named Grace. In 1982 Grace and I were married at Shiloh. Rev. Echols and Rev. Presley presided over the wedding ceremony. In August 2003 I lost my wife of 21 years. Grace truly enriched my life with her passion for living and extra-ordinary desire to touch the lives of others for Christ's sake. We lived our dreams of traveling and walking the beaches of the world together at sunset.

Many years after my children were grown; I was blessed with my grandson, Johnathan. He is now a husband and father of two children. He serves the Buffalo community as a Buffalo Police Officer. My grandson and I did have a chance to reflect on all the times that we spent togetherâ?¦the times that we went to Crystal Breach, Fantasy Island, Braves basketball games, the circus, cub scouts and so on. Going to Crystal Beach and Fantasy Island always meant that I was taking at least 2 or more of Johnathan's friends or cousins with us because with Jonathan being an only child it would not be much fun without them, which was always an adventure for me. I also taught Johnathan how to ride a bike. I recall running up and down Goulding Street countless times holding onto the side of that bike hollering "pedal, pedal, youâ??ve got to pedal!" Johnathan now tells me that was one of the most joyful days of his life, when he realized that I was no longer holding onto the side of the bike and the sound of my voice hollering "pedal, youâ??ve got to pedal" became more and more faint because at that point he realized he was doing it himself and he had just gained his first sense of independence. Johnathan said that the challenges of riding a bike was a lot like his life challenges, in that , I had always been there with him, supporting him, and running alongside until I was able to let go and he could do it on his own.

I know that God love me because he showered me with blessings every day of my life.

Mr. Tobias died on August 29, 2009. He is buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery, Buffalo, NY.