Early Childhood Math Development Foundation, Inc.
a 501(c)3 Not For Profit Corporation
Early Childhood Math Development Foundation, Inc.,
Malford Norman Buster, Sr.,
Early Childhood Math Development Foundation, Inc.
Why I formed the foundation
Malford N. Buster, Sr.
I formed the Early Childhood Math Development Foundation, Inc. because I was influenced and inspired by actors Mr. and Mrs. Davis, always lovingly referred to together as Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee.
More importantly, I formed the foundation for my children, and grandchildren.
Malford N. Buster, Sr. expressed his thoughts condolences to the Davis Family June 14, 2014
Ruby Dee Born: October 27, 1922, Cleveland Ohio
Died: June 11, 2014, New Rochelle, New York
Actor, Author, and Civil Rights Activists
Ruby Dee: Acclaimed actress and author, Ruby Dee graced the stage and screen for more than fifty years. Dee was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame. With Davis, she was inducted into the NAACP Image Award Hall of Fame, awarded the Silver Circle Award by the Academy of Television Arts and Science, the Marian Anderson Award, and the Screen Actors Guild’s Lifetime Achievement Award. Dee and Davis were recipients of the John F. Kennedy Center Honors. Ruby Dee a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
My expression and thoughts are an expression of love and a reminder of where I came from and how the Davis family impacted my life.
Malford Norman Buster, Sr.
To Nora Davis Day, daughter of Actress Ruby Dee
Your parents lived a life that mattered.
A poem to Nora Davis Day and for all to read…
What Will Matter?
By Michael Josephson
Ready or not, some day it will all come to an end.
There will be no more sunrises, no minutes, hours or days.
All the things you collected, whether treasured or forgotten
will pass to someone else.
Your wealth, fame and temporal power will shrivel to irrelevance.
It will not matter what you owned or what you were owed.
Your grudges, resentments, frustrations
and jealousies will finally disappear.
So too, your hopes, ambitions, plans and to-do lists will expire.
The wins and losses that once seemed so important will fade away.
It won't matter where you came from
or what side of the tracks you lived on at the end.
It won't matter whether you were beautiful or brilliant.
Even your gender and skin color will be irrelevant.
So what will matter?
How will the value of your days be measured?
What will matter is not what you bought
but what you built, not what you got but what you gave.
What will matter is not your success
but your significance.
What will matter is not what you learned
but what you taught.
What will matter is every act of integrity,
compassion, courage, or sacrifice
that enriched, empowered or encouraged others
to emulate your example.
What will matter is not your competence
but your character.
What will matter is not how many people you knew,
but how many will feel a lasting loss when you're gone.
What will matter is not your memories
but the memories that live in those who loved you.
What will matter is how long you will be remembered,
by whom and for what.
Living a life that matters doesn't happen by accident.
It's not a matter of circumstance but of choice.
Choose to live a life that matters.
To Nora Davis Day, daughter of Ossie Davis and Ruby Dee:
Your parents lived a life that mattered
Nora, your parents taught me to reach for the stars. Your patents taught me to live a life that matters.
I love you and your family always…
Malford
"...and I was invited inside..."
Written by Malford N. Buster, Sr.
To Nora Davis Day June 14, 2014:
Six grade Graham Elementary School, Mount Vernon, New York 1961: I arrived in New York to live, up from the segregated south on the back of the bus.
I walked you home from school to Cooley Place. As a southern gentleman, of course, I carried your books.
I was an eleven-year-old street kid, single parent home, up from the segregated south on the back of the bus. You know, the sign said, colored to the back.
When my walk with you to your home after school, our walk concluded at your front door. There were your parents at the front door. Mr. Davis was tall and his baritone voice seemed to be that of a giant. I was only eleven.
To my surprise, your parents would invite me inside. Inside the Davis home, I first noticed the piano.
Your house was a home. The piano was grand and you, your brother and sister took music lessons. I decided then that someday I would have a grand piano.
Your parents asked me, what I want to be in life. What talents did I have? They would ask me, as if everyone has talents. I was only a street kid up from the segregated south, what was I expected to know? I had no talents.
I remember an occasion when I was invited to stay for dinner at the Davis house. They asked me if I thought about going into the theater business someday. I will always remember that day. We were at your New Rochelle home. Once again, I thought to myself, what do I know, I am only a street kid, you know, "up from the segregated south", what do I know? Then I was twelve years old, a young man; only want to carry daughter's books and hold daughter's hand. The Davis matriarch and patriarch engaged me in conversation when I was a little boy to think about the future and to prepare early for a life that will matter.
I remember when your parents invited me to attend your African dance lesson in Harlem and I had the opportunity to attend your dance performance at Town Hall Theater in New York City.
You and your family are a part of my youth that I treasure always. The times we shared starting at Graham school in Mount Vernon, New York were the best of times. The Davis family house is still home, and you are kind enough to invite me inside; you remember where I came from; a street kid, you know the rest...
Nora, your parents taught me to reach for the stars. I will never forget them.
...a street kid, up from the segregated south, "and I was invited inside..."
Malford
“What Will Matter”
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