CEDAR FALLS - Work continues on a series of oral histories by prominent blacks in the community.

The project started two years ago, said co-producer Joyce Chen, an associate professor of communication studies at the University of Northern Iowa.

"African-American Voices of the Cedar Valley" is a series of videotaped interviews with local community leaders conducted by David Jackson of Cedar Falls.

Jackson is a visiting assistant professor at the University of Tennessee but a native of Des Moines who grew up in Cedar Rapids. He received his undergraduate degree from UNI and a doctorate from the University of Iowa. He specializes in African-American studies.

"The big thing is to raise awareness of local leaders and to recognize and accept their contributions to the community," Jackson said. "Not only to the black community, but the Waterloo community, the Iowa community."

The oral histories can be seen locally throughout February on Mediacom local programming channels. The programs also will be shown in Iowa City and Cedar Rapids.

An initial set of interviews conducted in previous years will be shown again along with several new ones, including the following:

- Elra Johnson, who turned 100 in January 2006 and was involved politically during the Mississippi Freedom Summer of 1964

- J. Russell Lowe, an educator in Waterloo and chairman of the Waterloo Community Development Board and National Cattle Congress Board who died in 2007

- Rachel Patterson, co-founder of Pilgrim Rest Baptist Church

- Walter Gray, owner of Gray's Barber Shop

- Ruthie O'Neal, a native of Mississippi and the Purple Lady, who decorates her yard with purple items

The initial interviews that will be aired again include the following:

- Ruth Anderson, first black on the Black Hawk County Board of Supervisors

- Vi Norman, humanitarian and former Harlem Globetrotter

- Betty Jean Furgerson, former Waterloo School Board member, Waterloo Human Rights Commission director and member of the Iowa Board of Regents

- Anna Mae Weems, first black woman state work force center director and community activist

- Bennie Moore, Rath Packing Co. retiree and native of Buxton

- Willie Mae Wright, former member of the Waterloo City Council

- Mary Spencer, longtime teacher in Waterloo

- Randolph Dean, historian, Mount Carmel Baptist Church

- Monroe Stevens, Rath retiree, union officer, political activist

- Millie Saffold, private home cleaner, whose husband worked at Deere Foundry

Interviews still in production include the following:

- Dorothy Sallis, probation officer

- James Estes on the history of Antioch Baptist Church and his years working at Rath

- Lou Porter, KBBG radio

- Michael Muhammad, KBOL radio

Future plans include making the interviews available on DVD, Jackson said. A Web site may also be developed this summer.

"Through the interviewees' life experiences we can learn more about the history of the Cedar Valley and the struggles of people that came before us," Jackson said. "This project also seeks to educate our younger generations about the African-American leadership in the area and to create a new sense of self worth so they will be inspired to be productive citizens by following the example of these local heroes."

Other organizations and individuals assisting the project are the African-American Historical and Cultural Museum of Waterloo, Humanities Iowa, the Barbara A. Woodard Foundation, the UNI communication studies department and broadcast engineer Ken Pashke, Mediacom, Cedar Falls Utilities and Waterloo cable public access and University of Iowa Television.

Contact Pat Kinney at (319) 291-1484 or pat.kinney@wcfcourier.com.