LITTLE ROCK, Ark — Six well-known members of the community will be inducted into the prestigious Arkansas Black Hall of Fame at its annual induction gala on Saturday, October 14, in Little Rock.
This year's inductees include Mr. Harvey Wiley Sr., Judge Joyce Williams Warren, Reverend Jerry Black, Dr. Rhonda Henry-Tillman, and the late Mr. James Leary. Each will be recognized for their individual achievements and contributions to our nation and the world.
In honor of the upcoming event, THV11 News Anchor Jurnee Taylor profiled one of the recipients prior to the event.
Dr. Rhonda Henry-Tillman is a world-renowned surgeon who leads a team of breast cancer specialists at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute.
From her humble beginnings to a lifetime dedicated to helping women beat breast cancer, Dr. Henry-Tillman has remained grounded and humble despite her global recognition.
“I'm living my legacy now," she said. "And you are looking at who you know who I am.”
Born on an Air Force base in Blytheville, Rhonda Shirletta Henry was the middle child of six siblings. By age 16, she longed for a change of pace and moved to California to live with her Aunt and Uncle.
“So my first aspiration was like, like California, because I knew I had my uncle there. And maybe I could go there and do something. I knew my cousin was a producer," she explained. "So you think, oh, maybe I can be a movie star, you know, but you never like know, some things you just don't know."
However, her family had other ideas— starting with her finding a job. She tried her hand at a dry cleaning business but soon found the environment unpleasantly hot. Next, she worked for a grocery store.
That was the moment when she realized what financial independence felt like. She even considered it for a career, but her aunt had something more lucrative and challenging in mind for her niece.
“I was like, so excited because I had this job and it was paying, at the time, more than minimum wage, and you got all these benefits health insurance," Henry-Tillman described. "And I just thought, oh, this is going to be my career. She was like, oh, no, you need to go to school."
Eventually, she enrolled in courses for pre-med. After graduating in 1992, her residency program placed her in familiar surroundings— somewhere she never expected to be again.
“I matched here and I'm glad that they chose me. And you know, as I always say, God’s grace just puts you where he wants you to be. And so I came back here," she said. "I think that over the years, you know, that has helped me. I met my husband here, had my children here. I've built my career here."
She said that out of all of her accomplishments, the title of wife and mom are what she enjoys best. But overall, she admitted that her loving aunt’s advice and counsel had been right.
From working at dry cleaners and grocery stores to becoming a leader in medicine— Dr. Rhonda Henry-Tillman would go on to become the Division Chief of Breast Surgical Oncology at the UAMS Winthrop P. Rockefeller Cancer Institute and Executive Vice Chair for The Department of Surgery at the UAMS College Of Medicine.
As for her newest accolade in the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame, she feels emotional to have achieved something so close to home.
“Oh, man, how amazing. Amazing. It brings tears to my eyes, you know? Because when I left Arkansas, I never thought I had the vision. Like you asked me, if I go back and look at myself, this is not where I saw myself. I had made a choice that I was going to go to California and do all these things,” she explained.
Those “things” included multiple years serving as one of the best doctors in America, and receiving the prestigious Muriel Balsam Kohn Chair in Breast Surgical Oncology at UAMS.
Her career has even taken her to Congo where she has trained upcoming surgeons. But lest you believe she’s satisfied with the accomplishments many never achieve in an entire lifetime— Dr. Henry-Tillman said she has no plans to slow down now.
“I'm not done. You know, I still, we still have a lot to do,” she added.
If you would like to attend this year's Arkansas Black Hall of Fame induction ceremony, you can purchase a ticket here.