“Be free in your thoughts and in your actions that’s the best advice I could give and treat people the way you want to be treated.” (Malachi Beyah)
Malachi Beyah was strategically chosen as the 2022 Grand Master of the Martin Luther King Jr. parade in Jacksonville, FL for his dedication to the African American community and more. He led the parade, standing front and center wearing sunglasses, a warm black coat, blue jean pants, and a black pullover shirt in modesty during the opening and throughout the entire entourage, including all participating locales, vendors, or more, amid the historical commemoration of the eloquent marching MLK parade. Most folks that know Mr. Malachi calls him (Bo). He may have gotten his nickname from his great-granddaddy, Samuel Wesley. Malachi Beyah is the oldest of eight siblings. Camden County, GA, is where he was born and raised until about 18 years old when he moved to Jacksonville, FL.
Position in the Kitchen asked, “What makes you unique?”
Malachi Beyah says, “To be quite frank with you, I didn’t know I was unique. I try to be myself, I’m human just like everyone else. I basically love people and of course, whenever I can I would assist people.”
(PITK): “What’s the hardest decision you ever had to make?”
(M.B): “The hardest decision I had to make probably was returning to college after my first year. I didn’t feel college was actually for me and I left. Of course, I had some coaches who kind of influenced me to come back. This was Edward Waters College back in the day.”
(PITK): “Who was one of the coaches that inspired you to come back?”
(M.B.): “Clifford Jack Paul probably was one of the most instrumental coaches. He was my high school coach. Actually, he took the job in Jacksonville at Edward Waters. After my first year here at Edward Waters, he left and went to Texas Southern. I was supposed to transfer to Texas Southern and ride with some of the assistant coaches to Texas. I missed the ride. I was working during that summer the day they came by my house in Camden County to pick me up and I never left so I ended up coming back to Edward Waters in Jacksonville, FL.”
Mr. Beyah included that the decision was a little unsettling, and he (Malachi) didn’t put forth the effort even though his coach was disappointed. Since then and beyond, Mr. Malachi Beyah has learned the importance of discipline, which he shares has a lot to do with your mindset. In a lot of instances, applying discipline is necessary. It’s the rejection of the flesh, the desires of the flesh, mental and physical. Also, his life has been impacted by discipline. After you assess the necessities of life and live as long as he lives, you may see what’s essential in life. Malachi noted that being responsible for vital things is a way to apply discipline.
Trying to balance life and living within your means & capabilities would contribute to the success of Mr. Beyah’s life as the most significant factor that helped him succeed. The truth is that money is a necessity related to living in this country. It’s tied to the very essence of life. It’s connected to all and everything you need in this life. We live in a capitalistic society where the money provides the things you need to survive. Investing is essential, especially if you can do it. The old saying used to say, “You have to save for a rainy day!” Some folks may have the potential to take investing to another level. For the most part, we all should have some reserves resulting from investing, whether investing in a savings account or taking it to a better level of understanding in the realm of investing. Malachi continued how he supported his time. Time is the most precious gift a human being has because when you leave this earth, you will leave here with no more time. He shares that he tries to split his time as much as possible. Number one: he’s working and running a company that provides a livelihood for more than himself. He also spends some time with family or with the people close to him. In addition, Malachi Beyah uses some of that time to take care of himself. Number two: how you eat has a lot to do with your health. In a confident posture, Mr. Bo verbalized how he used to be athletic and physical but admits he hasn’t been doing as much as he probably should be. He was a football player. His college scholarship was a result of playing football.
Malachi also played basketball in high school at Ralph Joseph Bunche High. Dr. Bunch is/was known as the first black Nobel Peace Prize winner.
Position in the Kitchen: “What legacy are you leaving behind?
Malachi Beyah: “Well, I guess my legacy is probably I’m a giving person. People know me as being straightforward and honest. That’s probably going to be my legacy.”
PITK: “What is your biggest accomplishment?”
M.B.: “Sustaining a business for over 30 years.”
PITK: “Would you say that you’re consistent?”
M.B.: “Yeah, consistent. The life itself! Success equates to being consistent, consistent, consistent.”
PITK: “Consistent in doing what exactly/specifically?”
M.B.: “In preparation, in planning, consistent in getting back up after/if/when you’ve failed.”
PITK: “What do you do for a living?”
M.B.: “In terms of a living, I have a small service-oriented company.”
PITK: “What’s the name of your company?”
M.B.: “M & M Maintenance Plus”
Simultaneously, Malachi Beyah is currently 75 years young, so he certainly has some wisdom regarding relationships. Specifically, what a man and woman should look for in a potential mate. Honesty, saying what you mean and mean what you say, your word being your bond. Integrity, be sure about what you want to do. Therefore the qualities can’t just be physical. There have to be qualities related to character and desires regarding what people are looking for in their lives. Men should be responsible for the people who are in their care. He elaborated that man equates to the mind (man is mind). Growing up, Malachi’s first job working at Pulpwood in Camden County, GA, contributed to Mr. Bo becoming a man. He learned how to cut down oak trees, baiting/guiding the trees for them to prep to fall, then transformed or processed the wood into paper. It was all physical because Mr. Bo and the workers worked tirelessly. They loaded log trucks by hand during the summer before the lifting equipment became popular. Malachi mentioned that he saw black men in business all his life (that’s what they did). The black men had their trucks and equipment and started their businesses. Pulpwood was black-owned. Malachi Beyah will never forget how he worked for Mr. Harvey Way, a well-known black businessman who had his own horses. Malachi used to ride Mr. Harvey’s horses. Mr. Harvey’s whole/entire family had a ranch and/or farmland together in Camden County, GA. Working at Pulpwood had a lot to do with inspiring Mr. Beyah’s work ethic into eventually owning his own business because he saw black men as business owners early on. He also admires historical figures. He respects all those folks in the civil rights era that stood up and fought for Blacks and their human rights or more. He loves the Muhammad Ali’s, the Malcolm X’s, and Huey Newton. Malachi informs that he got a chance to meet Dr. Jawanza Kunjufu, Huey P. Newton, Bobby Seale, Ralph Abernathy, Farrakhan, and Jesse Jackson on his journey. Although Malachi hadn’t met Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Mr. Beyah attended the first march on Washington! Malachi remembers meeting and talking with Jose Williams (Dr. King’s Assistant and/or one of Dr. King’s leading men), including others under Dr. Martin Luther King. He met some pretty prominent people in the civil rights movement. Malachi considers himself a student and/or activist of the civil rights movement (he also had the opportunity to be in the presence of four other great men: James Farmer, James Forman, Whitney Young and Roy Wilkins to name a few). Mr. Bo also admires others who may not be/been in the limelight, such as staff members at schools, some of the parents who are trying to be active in their child(ren) lives, and pop warner coaches are important in children’s lives as well.
Position in the Kitchen: “Who have touched your life?”
Malachi Beyah: “I had my uncles and I had my momma!”
PITK: “What’s your uncle(s) name/how many uncle’s do/did you have?”
M.B.: “All of them have passed now. The Bullards were my uncles: William Bullard, Nathaniel Bullard, Samuel Lee Bullard, and David Bullard. All those were my uncle’s, my momma’s brothers.
PITK: “Would you say that they taught you how to be a man pretty much?”
M.B.: “I think being a man has a lot to do with his image. And that’s the image that I saw of men. I think men, it’s an old saying that says, “You have to see a man to be a man!” and I saw men all my life really.”
PITK: “Name a woman who influenced you the most?” M.B.: “My momma!. Willie Mae Bessent.” I believe the flesh dies but I don’t believe the spirit does. I believe the body is just a house for the spirit. I would try to please my momma by doing what’s right with the children and the people in my life sort of speak? PITK: “What put a smile on her face?” M.B.: “I remember the very first time she tried to dress me up in Elementary school and the shoes were too tight!” Lol PITK: LOL. “Did she make you wear them anyway?” M.B.: “Yeah, but I mean she always pushed us, you know.”
PITK: “What stood out the most about her?”
M.B.: “Number one: I was my momma’s first child, and I was not the child of her husband who gave me their name though (he gave me his name), and he was generally a good man. My daddy was a Moody, another guy. My momma was always standing in the gap for me. All my life, I could remember her doing extra to make sure I could participate, you know. And let me tell you this about my momma, my daddy (not my biological daddy) physically harmed my momma (she died of a broken heart). Let me put it like this: My daddy Arthur Bessent shot my momma. One year later, she shot and killed him. That’s the type of turmoil in families and what I understood about the black families. That turmoil never took place until the weekend on Fridays & Saturdays.
PITK: “Was your daddy addicted to alcohol?”
M.B.: “They weren’t really addicted to alcohol, but they drank. Arthur Bessent was a first-class auto mechanic. He was summoned by General Motors to Detroit, Michigan, at one time to show. He knew what he was doing (he was sharp). That’s one aspect of the man and people. But there’s always that other aspect that probably came from slavery and that we still haven’t eradicated yet. They drank on the weekends and fought on the weekends. This is just the strife that is/was in families.
PITK: “Would you call it toxic and/or dysfunction?”
M.B.: “Yeah, it was totally dysfunctional, but that’s what I was raised up in, that’s what I saw (fighting). That was probably the biggest thing I had to deal with in my life was my anger. Being able to assess what had happened to me and all of my sisters and brothers.”
PITK: “How old were you when that happened when your father shot your mother? “M.B.: ” I was 18/19 years old. To the point of that happening on the weekends and all throughout our lives that’s what went on. It’s sorta conditioning that takes place with children that people don’t know that takes place.”
Malachi gained from his experience(s) in the past as he became a father: how if you let children see what you do, they may feel that they can do what they see you do. You have to separate children from adults. Children have to be children. Some people may not understand that the real growth of a child is being socialized, educated, informed and/or misinformed. You never allow children to sit in the company of people (listening to grown people). Mr. Bo was generally able to hear the conversations of grown folk because of the home he was living in at that time. He heard fighting and cussing. He was determined to shield his children overall from seeing him and/or other adults speak hard to loved ones because Mr. Bo believed it was improper for children. Malachi Beyah could have become a victim of his environment growing up but sought activism and human development avenues. Human development doesn’t necessarily change the core of who you are. It will only remind you of who you are. He recalls and states that he can be just as hot as he is as cold, but he doesn’t (live) in that place. Consequently, when asked, “Name 3 words that your children would most likely describe you as?” Mr. Bo smiled confidently and replied, “Probably strong, provider, and loving!”
Position in the Kitchen: “What makes you loving?” Malachi Beyah: “Love is a verb, and a verb is a word that shows action, so love is what I do. I provide. I take care.”
Malachi Beyah is a force to be reckoned with! Listen, he is wise, strong, firm & tender, yet gentle as a dove. Thank you for your service as a community activist and for impacting generations. We love you and respect your diligence in all things.
Stay tuned! Below is a copy of a portion of an article(s) that Malachi Beyah was featured in. One article is titled “Residents recognized man who made them feel secure!” by the Florida Times Union in 1988, Article titled, “Uniting For Youth” on October 17, 1992 and perhaps other acknowledgements. Enjoy!
NOTES:
In-person/face-to-face consented interview with Mr. Malachi Beyah on 4/28/2022
Article #8 (Honoring You: Malachi Beyah) written & created by Zoe/Position in the Kitchen **re-posted/published on 6/11/22
PITK (abbreviated for Position in the Kitchen)
M.B. (abbreviated for Malachi Beyah)
Photo Credit with Malachi standing outside in front of Prime Osborne in Jax, FL, including Martin Luther King Jr. sign (A day for celebration) ***Courtesy of the Dr. Martin Luther King Memorial Foundation***
Florida Times Union Newspaper
Position in the Kitchen originally published on 3/27/22 before website restoration
Photo Credit: Zoe/Position in the Kitchen
Photo Credit & Newspaper Articles: The Florida Times-Union Newspaper
Photo Credit: T.B.
Photo Credit: Cre8jax
Photo Credit: Malachi Beyah
FL Times Union staff writers: Jessie-Lynne Kerr (Article, “”Residents recognized man who made them feel secure!”) & Dennis Hamilton Jr. (Imperial Estates apartments article, **unknown article title**)
**Words and/or phrases (verbal pauses, repeated sentences/phrases, etc) may have been removed or more from the interview with Malachi Beyah to maintain the flow of the article, etc.**
Zoe/Position in the Kitchen on behalf of Malachi Beyah
Malachi Beyah on First Coast News
Malachi Beyah on First Coast News
Jacksonville Civil Rights icon dies, some colleagues promise to keep wor…
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