SAN DIEGO (KGTV) — Marie Widman Memorial Park, located in the heart of Encanto's Black Arts and Culture District, is traditionally a place for community gatherings and celebrations. However, on an ordinary day, there are often no families or children playing in the park, and many in the community feel it has been neglected.
Furthermore, the memory of Marie Widman, the park's namesake, seems to have faded over time, according to Encanto residents ABC 10News spoke to.
"There are pieces of history, San Diego's African American history, all over the place. Buildings, scholarships, and awards and things like that," Wendy McKinney from the San Diego History Center says. "And their name is all over it but we don't see it together, it's not cohesive, it's not collected."
Despite Widman's name being on the sign, the park lacks plaques, statues or any other markers that tell her story.
Local resident Dr. Kathleen Harmon, who refers to herself as "Queen Mother," has lived in the area for 68 years and has been a significant figure in San Diego's Black community, fighting for civil rights, equality, and recognition. Just blocks from the park, a street sign bears her name, symbolizing her own enduring legacy.
WATCH: Encanto residents call for improvements to Marie Widman Park; they say it has great potential to be a thriving space for the community
Dr. Harmon fondly recalls her close friend Marie Widman, with whom she led many civil rights battles. Along with the late Councilman and Reverend George Stevens, Harmon was instrumental in renaming the park in honor of Widman. "Marie was like myself. She was a strong activist. She was on the planning board with me, she was on all of the commissions I was on, we worked together, we were just fighters together," Harmon says.
As a realtor, Widman played a crucial role in helping Black San Diegans find housing during a time when redlining restricted where they could live. Widman also championed the conversion of public land into parks in southeastern San Diego, which is a testament to her lasting, yet often overlooked, legacy.
Dr. Harmon laments the lack of recognition: "It's so shameful, that people like myself, we die and nothing is left behind in our legacy. Here I am, I've got to tell her story."
Local historian and genealogist Yvette Porter-Moore's research into Widman's life began with simple curiosity about the name on the park sign. Porter-Moore discovered that Widman was an African American powerhouse involved in various boards and commissions. "Everybody has a story, and everybody has a piece of the history, and so all of that just coming together, I've learned a lot of things. I've learned how each of us is connected to one another," Porter-Moore shares.
The "Missing Pieces" project at the San Diego History Center aims to digitally preserve stories like Widman's, ensuring they are accessible to everyone. Despite the park being renamed in 1994, Dr. Harmon believes the work to honor her friend's memory is far from complete. "Today I am still fighting. There's nothing here. We have no benches; look, you have to interview me on the sidewalk. There should be benches, and the park should be developed as a park. All it is is just land," Harmon declares.
The San Diego African American Museum of Fine Artoversees the San Diego Black Arts and Culture District.
This story was initially reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
