Obituary: The Honorable Carrie P. Meek, U.S Congresswoman Retired
November 29, 2021
by Meek Media
Carrie “the Congresswoman” Pittman Meek, 95, of Miami Florida, passed away on November 28th, 2021 at her home in Miami after a long illness.
Born to Willie and Carrie Pittman in Tallahassee, Florida on April 29, 1926, Congresswoman Meek was raised during the turbulent Jim Crow era. She broke many racial, gender, and educational barriers to earn a B.S. in Biology and Physical Education from Florida A&M University in 1946. A member of the esteemed Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Meek went on to earn a Master of Science in Public Health and Physical Education after being forced to attend school out-of-state due to racial barriers.
Upon graduation, she accepted a position at Bethune Cookman College as an instructor and became the institution’s first female basketball coach. In 1958, she returned to Florida A&M as an instructor in Health and Physical Education; a position she held until 1961. Meek continued her teaching career at Miami Dade Community College as the first Black professor, associate dean, and assistant to the Vice President from 1961 – 1979.
In 1979, Meek began her trailblazing political career representing Florida’s 17th Congressional district as a Democratic Florida State House Representative. From 1983 to 1993, she served as the first African American woman in the Florida State Senate and went on become a United States Congresswoman. One of the first Black members from Florida elected to Congress since the Reconstruction Era, Meek was as a member of the powerful Appropriations Committee and worked to secure $100 million in aid to rebuild Dade County as the area recovered from Hurricane Andrew.
Congresswoman Meek officially retired in 2002 and shifted her focus to the Carrie Meek Foundation, which she founded in November 2001, to provide the Miami-Dade community with much needed resources, opportunities, and jobs. Meek spearheaded the Foundation’s daily operations until 2015 when she stepped down due to declining health.
In recognition of her numerous contributions, Carrie Meek was awarded Honorary Doctor of Law degrees from the University of Miami, Florida A&M, Barry University Florida Atlantic University and Rollins College. Among her many honors, she was inducted into Florida A&M University’s Sports Hall of Fame and honored with the co-naming of its James N. Eaton Sr. Southeastern Regional Black Archives Research Center and Museum in Tallahassee, Florida. Additional distinctions include the renaming of Broward County’s Nova Southeastern College’s Outstanding Education Leadership Achievement scholarship and Miami’s NW 27th Blvd in her honor.
Left to continue her work and carry on her legacy are her children: Lucia Davis-Raiford, Sheila Davis Kinui (Mike), Kendrick B. Meek (Arshi); grandchildren: Ayo Raiford Barrett, Maggie Aldophe, Ryan C Aldophe, Amber F. Kinui, Carrie Y. Kinui, Lauren Meek, Kendrick Meek, Jr.; great-grandchildren: Alana Barrett, Carissa Barrett, Anya Bonhomme, Bryce Lim, Chloe Raiford, Aidan Barrett. Woven into the tapestry of her life were special nieces and nephews: Juanita Pittman Bivins, Betty J. Pittman, Samuel Pittman, Jr. (Shirley), Cynthia G. Gilliam, Dr. Vincent June, Carmen V. Terry, Dorothy Ottman. Left to mourn her and sit in the shade under the trees in the forest she planted are a host of family members, dear cherished friends, and a beloved community.