THOMAS CANNON, AN ORDINARY AND THANKFUL MAN WHO GAVE >$156,000.00 – A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES}
I celebrate ACHIEVEMENT EVERY DAY! When I discover role models, I do not see skin color, age, religion, sex, attractiveness (ok, I like beautiful ladies), or other nonessentials. I love learning from inspirational people who inspire me to DROP MY EXCUSES and DO IT! Role models who stretch my ambitions and make me reach for the impossible.
There is dignity in achievement and success—in becoming a great factor in civilization.” Carter G. Woodson.
I hope you will share these short articles; perhaps a few people will be curious to learn more.
Disclaimer: Good Day, Readers. WealthBuildingPowers blog is a financial literacy/competency blog and does not provide specific investment recommendations.
Contributed By Agnes Powers
THOMAS CANNON, WE ALL CAN GIVE BACK! – A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES}
Cannon was born on August 3, 1925, to Eliza Cannon. Along with his mother and three siblings, Cannon moved to Chase City, Virginia after the death of Cannon’s father, a Holiness minister, to live with his grandmother in a shack with no running water or electricity. He received his primary education at Chase City Graded School and attended the Thyne Institute. Both schools were segregated and Thyne required that students pay for tuition, book costs, and other expenses. As Cannon’s family could not afford these expenses, Cannon dropped out in the seventh grade and began working a series of odd jobs to support his family.[8] During this time he would make occasional visits to see his brother in Richmond, where he met Princetta (who was eleven at the time), who would eventually become his wife.
Around the early 1940s Cannon began working on a construction crew at Camp Pickett, where he dug ditches and served as a water boy. When he turned seventeen Cannon had his mother sign enlistment papers so he could join the United States Navy and serve during World War II. While in the Navy Cannon learned Morse code, which enabled him to serve as a signalman – a position that was not frequently held by black American soldiers during that time period. In 1944 he was sent to attend gunnery school, during which time his military unit was ordered to load a munitions ship that exploded, killing 322 soldiers. During his service Cannon was twice transferred to different ships, each of which was involved in accidents shortly after his transfer. Cannon would later credit these three incidents, along with several incidents where he narrowly escaped harm, as influential in his philanthropy, stating “Such escapes made me believe that I was being preserved for something”.
After he returned from duty Cannon enrolled in the eighth grade in order to finish his schooling and received a high school equivalency degree. He also married his childhood friend Princetta and went on to attend Hampton University, where he graduated with a degree in fine arts in 1954. Prior to joining the US Postal Service in 1957, Cannon briefly served as an art consultant to Richmond schools. In the 1990s Cannon began serving as the full-time caretaker of Princetta, whose health began to decline in the beginning of the decade. This put a large financial strain on the family’s finances and in 1995 a local Richmond developer began a benefit fund to raise money to provide the Cannons with a new home and help with Princetta’s medical care.
In his later life Cannon developed colon cancer and he died on July 2, 2005.
Philanthropy
Cannon first began donating money in 1972 and he frequently chose people that he had heard about in the news. In 1974 he sent a donation of $50 to each United States governor in honor of the United States Bicentennial and received letters from many of them, including future President Ronald Reagan. Cannon continued to send in donations to people he saw or read about in the news, accompanying each donation with a letter, poem, and a “hug coupon”. Typical recipients of Cannon’s philanthropy were people who had been featured in the news for having experienced hardship or for performing acts of heroism, generosity, or nobility. Most recipients were not independently wealthy, although Cannon would reward wealthy persons that he felt displayed good qualities. Over his lifetime Cannon is believed to have given away an estimated $156,000.”
Awards and honors
- Humanitarian Award from the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities (1978)[16]
- America’s Award (1997)[17]
- Strong Men & Women in Virginia History from the Library of Virginia (2016)[18]
TO READ THE ARTICLE, CLICK BELOW:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Cannon_(philanthropist)
https://edu.lva.virginia.gov/changemakers/items/show/234
WHAT SUBJECTS DO YOU WANT TO READ NEXT? WHAT QUESTIONS CAN I ANSWER? UNTIL NEXT TIME!
LET’S ACHIEVE YOUR FINANCIAL FREEDOM!
BECAUSE I CARE!
St Jude Hospital: The mission of St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital is to advance cures and means of prevention for pediatric catastrophic diseases through research and treatment. Consistent with the vision of our founder Danny Thomas, no child is denied treatment based on race, religion, or a family’s ability to pay.https://www.stjude.org/
Wounded Warrior Project: An American charity and veterans service organization that offers a variety of programs, services, and events for wounded veterans of the military https://www.woundedwarriorproject.org
Folds of Honor: Providing life-changing scholarships to the spouses and children of America’s fallen or disabled military. And now, our mission expands to the families of America’s first responders. On our watch, those who protect our freedoms and our families will know they are not forgotten. https://foldsofhonor.org
Wilson’s No-Kill Animal Shelter: A N0-Kill shelter that is a top-rated non-profit. They compassionately care for all their animals. https://wcnkas.org
Tunnel To Towers: Since 9/11, we have been helping America’s heroes by providing mortgage-free homes to Gold Star and fallen first responder families with young children and by building specially-adapted smart homes for catastrophically injured veterans and first responders. We are also committed to eradicating veteran homelessness and helping America to Never Forget September 11, 2001. https://dogood.t2t.org/give/320847/#!/donation/checkout
YOUR GREATNESS IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE; IT’S WHAT YOU GIVE!
TRUST ME – YOU WILL LIKE THE BELOW POPULAR BLOGS!
YOUR GREATNESS IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE; IT’s WHAT YOU GIVE!
YOUR GREATNESS IS NOT WHAT YOU HAVE; IT’S WHAT YOU GIVE!
A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES} – BADRINARAYANAN KOTHANDARAMAN, ENPHASE ENERGY, CEO
RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS– TEACHER RAYMOND NELSON CREATES GENTLEMEN’S CLUB TO TEACH LIFE LESSONS TO BOYS WHO HAVE NO DADS AT HOME
A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES} – MARIO HOOVER – 16 YEARS OLD!
A RAINBOW OF ROLE MODELS {WEDNESDAY SERIES} – LEGENDARY INVESTOR JOHN ROGERS JR
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2022/03/09/black-and-brown-role-models-series-legendary-investor-john-rogers-jr/
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS {SERIES} – ROBERT L. JOHNSON, FOUNDER BET – FEBRUARY 24, 2022
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS {SERIES} – JAMES AND JILEA HEMMINGS BECOME THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICANS OWNERS OF AN AUTONOMOUS GROCERY STORE – ON FEBRUARY 25, 2022
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2022/02/25/black-history-month-role-models-james-and-jilea-hemmings-become-first-african-americans-owners-of-an-autonomous-grocery-store-february-25-2022/
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS {SERIES} BILLIONAIRE ROBERT F. SMITH – FEBRUARY 23, 2022
BLACK HISTORY MONTH ROLE MODELS -REGINALD LEWIS – FEBRUARY 22, 2022
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2022/02/22/black-history-month-role-models-reginald-lewis-february-22-2022/
“WHAT WE BECOME DEPENDS ON WHAT OUR FATHERS TEACH US AT ODD MOMENTS, WHEN THEY AREN’T TRYING TO TEACH US”
https://wealthbuildingpowers.com/2021/11/03/what-we-become-depends-on-what-our-fathers-teach-us-at-odd-moments-when-they-arent-trying-to-teach-us/
WE NEED MORE STEM MAJORS AND LEGACIES LIKE MYLES JOHNSON!
WE NEED MORE STEM MAJORS AND LEGACIES LIKE MYLES JOHNSON!
DADS WHO RAISED ME TO BE MORE THAN I COULD BE!
DADS WHO RAISED ME TO BE MORE THAN I COULD BE!
CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY – “EDUCATION IS THE MOST POWERFUL WEAPON WITH WHICH YOU CAN CHANGE THE WORLD” NELSON MANDELLA
To Join Wealth Building Powers BLOG:
PLEASE SIGN UP TO FOLLOW ME BY PROVIDING YOUR EMAIL IN THE WORDPRESS BLOG PAGE SUBSCRIBE BOX!
Thank you to my followers and readers for your likes and comments. All comments, recommendations, and feedback are welcomed and utilized to improve this blog.
ABOUT ME
I am a proud nerd (as my beautiful wife and daughter have told me) investment and finance blogger with an N.C. State, Chemical Engineering, University Rutgers, MBA and Harvard University, Advanced Management education.
I left a corporate career because I desired to make a difference as a speaker and writer. I was blessed to be coached and mentored by strong women and men in my family and professional life. It is my time to serve and give back.
DISCLAIMER
I started my first business at ~13 years of age (a small but brilliantly created plant nursery). I am a successful investor in stocks, options, and real estate and am happy to share my finance and investment lessons. I am NOT a licensed financial advisor. Please do not construe my suggestions on this blog as recommendations for your situation. As an investor, you must establish your risk/loss tolerance. Investment in any asset involves risk, including complete loss.
Please seek your licensed CPA or fiduciary financial advisors for individual financial advice.
I write this weekly blog to make an impact by reaching an audience and demonstrating the need for financial literacy. I will help you get there.
