First Annotation

www.stfrancis.edu-Toni Townsend Moody 1995

Reginald F. Lewis was an African American born to a working class family on December 7, 1942, in East Baltimore. He was born during a time when no one had heard of Martin Luther King, Jr., or civil rights, or integration. Blacks at that time could not try on clothes or shop at many downtown stores. they couldn't eat in certain restaurants or go to certain movie theaters. From his youth Lewis was known for his drive and desire for excellence. The strong work ethic from his mother and grandfather coupled with his life-long hunger for wealth and personal glory fueled his success on the playing field, in the classroom, and in the boardroom. In High School he earned four varsity letters in baseball, three in football where he was the starting quarterback and two varsity letters in basketball. He attended Harvard Law School and became a successful corporate lawyer before remaking himself into a financier and buyer of corporations.