We Lost a Great African American Man, by the name of Dempsey J. Travis. On Thursday July 2, 2009 at the age of 89 . A Man that i respected and admired as a father figure role-model. No disrespect to my dad, Theodore R. Jackson Sr. R.I.P. . When i first heard about Dempsey J. Travis , i was about 25 yrs. old , I read Mr. Travis Book, and different articles about him. I even heard some people say that he was the owner of all the big buildings on the South Side of Chicago . LOL LOL,. Man was i excited to here this about a black Man !!. He was an Author, activist, entrepreneur, historian and self-made multi-millionaire. See when i was about 12 yrs. old , I didn’t have a father at home . At that time I was looking for information about, getting a job, and how I can help my family get through hard times . When i was a young man my mother used to say, son be patient and keep doing what you do, it’s going to work out one-day . Boy was she right ! At that time I work for a man name Austin Taylor, a real-estate developer who own court-way buildings in Chicago. He was like a father to me at the age of 16 . First I was cleaning and mopping hallways in his buildings. Then He taught me different trades like painting ,carpentry,electrical,roofing and rehab work . I’m very grateful today for this Man. Now I’m a member of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades. See Mr. Taylor work very hard, not smart . I mean, we did all the work in the buildings without any help or contractors for many years and that took a toll on his health. Later he died in his 70’s with no money in 1996. When I became a developer I picked up those same habits, some were good some were bad . The point I’m trying to make here is, Motivation,Information,and Experience is the best teaching . Today I try to learn from other people’s mistakes.
I bought Dempsey Travis book in 2000 . ” Real Estate is the Gold in Your Future”. After reading this book, I was like ” I GOT IT ! ” I bought a beautiful two flat building, and a house in the chatham community. Just Imagine if i had a father at home and this book at the age of 12 . Thank you for the info Mr. Travis . You will be Miss !! Teddy Jackson
We offer our sincere condolences to the Travis family …. T vision production
Mr. Travis has authored 25 best selling books including An Autobiography of Black Chicago, An Autobiography of Black Politics, Real Estate is the Gold in Your Future, and, Harold: The People’s Mayor, to name a few titles. He was financial editor for Dollars and Sense Magazine for several years, and was also a contributing writer for Ebony Magazine and Black Scholars.
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