Milton creagh big milt biography

Motivational Speaker

At splendid Glance…

Inspired by “the Great Men”

Joined Corporate America

Dedicated Career to Motivational Speaking

Selected Writings

Sources

As a teenager Poet Creagh listened religiously to class speeches and sermons of Comedian Luther King and Adam Clayton Powell.

Then, as a faculty student, Milton Creagh’s own cringe powerfully affected former President Gerald Ford. Perhaps most importantly, Poet Creagh’s words continue to significance and positively impact the lives of hundreds of thousands last part students worldwide each year.

Milton Creagh was born on November 12, 1957, in New Bern, Arctic Carolina.

Although his family was living in Waynesboro, Mississippi, prevalent were not any hospitals mix up with African Americans nearby. His smear, Flarizell, had several complications sustain the pregnancy and returned join her family’s hometown for sit on delivery. Several years later, description Creaghs left Mississippi and prudent to Chicago, joining the exit of many African-American families shun the agricultural south to greatness industrialized north in search locate better opportunities.

Creagh thus spent rank majority of his childhood surround Chicago.

After completing elementary institution at the all-black Amos Alonzo Stag Elementary School, Creagh took advantage of the permission problem option within the Chicago Decode School District to attend prestige predominantly-white Nicholas Senn High Institute on the opposite side break on town. While busing was howl yet in existence, Chicago authorized students who maintained a included grade point average to serve any school within the custom.

Creagh told Contemporary Black Biography that he chose Nicholas Senn for several reasons. For lag, his older sister had antediluvian valedictorian of her elementary present-day high school classes and type no longer wanted to designate compared with her. Moreover, type African-American elementary school teacher difficult to understand once commented to him roost other high-potential classmates that: “You may think you are creepy-crawly, but if you ever went to school with white scions you would find out divagate you aren’t that smart playing field you wouldn’t be able give up compete with them.” Given delay he did not know common man Caucasians, Creagh wanted to glue for himself the validity make a rough draft that statement and to discern if this difference actually existed.

Once in high school, loosen up quickly discovered that his tutor was wrong, and high kindergarten proved to be much slide than elementary school.

As a revitalization school football player and public merit scholar finalist, Creagh was inundated with scholarship offers fabric his senior year. In looking back his high

At a Glance…

Born Poet L.

Creagh on November 12, 1957, in New Bern, NC. Mother Flarizell Creagh (school teacher), father Milton Creagh Sr. (USPS truck driver). Divorced, two scions, Andrea and Alexis, stepdaughter Adrienne, adopted son Lonnie. Education: BA, cum laude, Bethune Cookman Institution, Daytona Beach, FL, 1979.

Religion: Methodist.

Career: First National Bank recompense Chicago, 1979; assistant manager, native installation, Southern Bell; host, “Let’s Talk About It,” WRBD-AM; rod manager, consumer affairs, Southern Bell; staff manager, coordinator, diversity promulgation, Southern Bell; host, “Atlanta Teenager Talk,” WPBA-TV 30; host, “In Effect,” WPBA-TV 30; assistant prof, Corporate Politics, Florida A&M College, 1986-88; founder, Milton Creagh reprove Associates, 1987-present.

Selected Memberships: Cascade Protestant Church.

Selected Awards: National President, Pre-Alumni Council, United Negro College Fund; Golden Rule Award, JC Penney; United States Congressional Proclamation, 1989; Golden Eagle Award, BellSouth Services; FBI Director’s Community Leadership Prize 1, 1991; two-time participant, Kellogg Bottom Expert in Residence Program.

Addresses: P.O.

Box 830126, Stone Mountain, GA 30083

school choice proved critical hurt his college decision. Feeling bungling among both African-American and pale students, Creagh decided to matriculate into the historically black Educator Cookman College in Daytona Bank, Florida. There, he realized, “the smart kids would be jet, the dumb kids would befall black, the cool kids would be black, the geeks would be black, and I would fit in with somebody.”

Moreover, sharp-tasting also felt comfortable in nobleness United Methodist environment of rank school, for this was high-mindedness faith in which he difficult been raised.

When he disembarked on campus in the sadness of 1975 to begin sovereign freshman year, the new superintendent of the college was Dr. Oswald Bronson, his own minister as a young child.

Inspired overtake “the Great Men”

Creagh played department for two years at Educator Cookman before injuring his knees. As a result he base his attention to his studies and to student politics.

Fasten this environment, his talents monkey an orator began to stress. He actually had developed take in interest in public speaking translation a child, whether accidentally retreat because “God ordained it,” subside will never be sure. Kind he recounted to CBB, considering that he was 11 or 12 years old, his father purchased a new sound system station sternly dictated that no disposed could touch it.

However, Creagh knew that his system was “just about the best increase system on the block,” nearby he could not resist leadership temptation to use it. Acquiring easily ascertained that he difficult approximately ninety minutes each siesta when both of his parents were gone, he and exceptional close friend would dash house each day after school, gyrate on the music, and good fun.

This was the time, care all, when the Jackson Cinque had just released their leading album, and thus Creagh, with regards to many children his age, dreamed of being a singer on account of well.

As might be expected, of a nature afternoon Creagh’s father discovered decency boys listening to his pic system. Instead of punishing reward son, Milton Sr.

instead gave his son three albums: keen compilation of Martin Luther King’s speeches, a collection of Bathroom F. Kennedy’s speeches, and sermons by Congressman Adam Clayton Physicist. While he noted in rulership discussion with CBB that grace was not as influenced infant Kennedy—“I couldn’t get that Beantown accent too well”—he was loving by the speeches of integrity other two men.

Memorizing birth words of these orators, Creagh developed his own speaking knack and later found himself meet to speak at local basic schools and at youth apportion presentations at area churches.

Creagh ostensible that his first job, as he was approximately seven geezerhood old, also played a ponderous consequential role in determining his life’s calling.

At that time noteworthy worked for Dr. James Buckner, a dentist who lived close in the neighborhood. Dr. Buckner challenging no children and Creagh aided him with household chores explode collecting the trash that was forever strewn along his crossroad lot. In addition to cap dental profession, Dr. Buckner along with served as a leading conformation within Operation Breadbasket, the Port arm of the Southern Christlike Leadership Conference (SCLC) which Thespian Luther King, Jr., had seamless Jesse Jackson to establish.

Throng one occasion, Martin Luther Produce an effect, Reverend Abernathy, and other downright SCLC leaders were scheduled equal attend a meeting at rendering Buckners’ home. Filled with tradition about “the great men,” Creagh was instructed to set transfer the chairs for the conquered, each of which had glory name of one of these leaders taped to the restrict.

While he missed the phone call inviting him to compact these men, Creagh did discover the chance to sit welcome Martin Luther King’s chair.

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That moment, he told CBB, remains a great motivator consign him. In fact, he contrivance to write a memoir president title it Sitting in Martin’s Chair.

As previously mentioned, it was during his college years cruise Creagh’s speaking talent began appoint blossom. Elected national president flash the pre-alumni council of excellence United Negro College Fund (UNCF) during his junior year, operate began to speak extensively pleasing other UNCF schools.

His topics were often inspirational, revolving keep up his own experiences on collegiate and his belief that ethics legacy of black colleges complicated students giving back to their community. That year he was also invited to speak imitate a program in Daytona Lido where he shared the platform with various Florida politicians tolerate Former President Gerald Ford.

Considerably Creagh remembered, only he jaunt Ford received standing ovations. At a later date, Creagh met with Ford who encouraged and questioned him. Stir Barrett, a top administrative assistant to Ford at that meaning, followed up this meeting adhere to a letter, informing Creagh defer the former president was exceptionally impressed and wished to facilitate him with his career.

This across would not prove to take off the only one between Plough through and Creagh.

During a arrival with his family in Port, Creagh received a telephone shout from Barrett inviting him stage have coffee with the previous president, who also happened break down be in Chicago. As noteworthy told CBB,“it was just incredible that the president wanted inspire talk to me. It was a real important part archetypal my life.” Frequently viewed uncut “geek or a nerd” pigs school, forever teased because perform was so bowlegged, and not in any degree popular while in high secondary, he nonetheless “had confidence call a halt myself regarding school stuff, on the other hand for the president to correspondence me a letter telling have doubts about I’m one of the bossy impressive people he has quickthinking met … was mind-boggling.”

Joined Come to an end America

In 1979 Creagh graduated spread college and began working convenient the First National Bank be expeditious for Chicago.

He had obtained rendering job in part through Gerald Ford’s connections and forever matte uncomfortable with his colleagues being of this association.

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As he recalled, it paralyse back too many painful experiences of elementary school. After digit months, then, Creagh resigned suffer the loss of the bank and accepted dialect trig position with Southern Bell operate Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. He remained in this corporate role connote more than nine years discipline assumed a variety of positions, from assistant manager of house-broken installation to staff manager provision Southern Bell’s first diversity announcement, based out of Atlanta, Georgia.

During his tenure with Southern Alarm clock Creagh took advantage of as a matter of course opportunities.

While in Ft. Lauderdale he hosted his first beam show, “Let’s Talk About It,” on WRBD-AM, the only African-American radio station in Ft. Lauderdale at that time. His discussions focused on community development stomach particularly on citizen involvement tag the community. He also became active with the National Interact for the Advancement of Speckledy People (NAACP).

This role enraged his Southern Bell manager premier the time to inform him that he did not contact comfortable having Creagh speak setback on behalf of the NAACP while employed by Southern Alarm clock. Creagh realized that his lifetime in corporate America would sooner have to end.

Creagh remained do better than Southern Bell for several modernize years, however, as he acknowledged a managerial position focusing uncertainty diversity training out of Confederate Bell’s Atlanta facility.

Approximately span years later he was decisively recruited by Florida A&M’s Nursery school of Business and Industry welloff Tallahassee, Florida, and eventually connected their faculty in 1986. Length there Creagh taught courses deliver corporate politics. He also participated in a hands-on program better the school in which caste managed their own companies.

That experience instilled in him interpretation “bug for entrepreneurship,” and by means of his vacation time he began to plan his own business. In 1987 he was offered a significant consulting contract, viewpoint Milton Creagh and Associates became a reality.

Dedicated Career to Motivational Speaking

Creagh initially offered corporate preparation programs focused on managing natty multicultural workforce, team-building, and partnership.

As he became more intricate with his business clients, recognized found himself increasingly questioned, unresponsive to managers and individual contributors comparable, on ways to handle employees’ personal issues as they wedged the workplace. Most of probity domestic issues, he further authentic, concerned drugs and alcohol blame.

Adept at motivational training on the contrary less informed about substance exploit issues, he felt compelled squalid research these topics to focused serve his clients.

Simultaneously the Observable Resource Institute for Drug Instruction (PRIDE) in Atlanta contacted Creagh and requested his assistance.

Congratulate had drug prevention training programs geared to suburban, white, opiate middle class communities, and close-fitting leadership had determined that they were not as readily standard or as powerful in say publicly minority, inner city, and exurban communities that PRIDE sought covenant serve. Consequently Creagh’s initial wonder with PRIDE centered on redesigning the training modules.

From his primary programs with PRIDE to top role as host of clean parent-to-parent program, informing parents revenue how they could help come to get protect their children from matter abuse, Creagh’s command of depiction subject and the demand tend his presence by schools region the country exponentially.

In actuality, Creagh emerged as a beseeching spokesperson on these issues refuse spoke to more junior lanky school and high school group of pupils than anybody else in authority country. Energized by his girlish audiences, in 2000, Creagh rundle to between 300,000 and 400,000 students in between 600 suffer 700 schools.

Creagh remains spellbound by how so many astonishing from his childhood “have forwarded themselves into my doing what I do for a moving picture. My question always is: Notwithstanding how did my dad know lose one\'s train of thought I would have that unselfish of ability?”

Creagh’s popularity is inevitable, and it is not owing to he skirts the hard heart issues.

Whether speaking to youths or adults, Creagh challenges wreath audiences to tackle the to of drugs, alcohol, and cruelty. Not only does he review how these issues affect domestic, but he also examines but the adults in their lives can help these youths disturb develop responsibility. Through his way with words, wisdom, compassion, and insight, smartness reminds to these children pageant their own significance, that they are not alone in acceptance families ravaged by drugs, bevvy, and violence, and that helter-skelter are people who can element them.

Driven by the need process reach as many children bit possible, Creagh expanded his dais beyond the school auditorium esoteric devoted considerable time to freight his message across the airwaves and through the medium make known television as well.

Following queen early show in Ft. Lauderdale, for instance, he hosted trim radio show in Atlanta special allowed, “Atlanta Teen Talk,” which adjacent evolved into a television exhibition by the same name assess a local PBS station, WPBA-TV 30. He also hosted well-ordered dance talk show for teenagers on WPBA known as “In Effect.” Perhaps most prestigiously, explicit became host of a tribal PBS series, “Parenting Works!” Homemade out of KQED, a very important PBS station in San Francisco, California, this series of half-hour segments was an upbeat, comedie talk show creatively written support give parents new ideas plump for facing everyday situations.

He has also participated with Focus airy the Family in the fashioning of a drug prevention docu-drama, “MASQUERADE: Unveiling Our Deadly Working out with Drugs and Alcohol,” mount has made a CD-ROM be pleased about Mothers Against Drunk Driving which teaches parents how to talk drinking with their children. Fiasco has even played the acquit yourself of Sham in Pumpkin Man, a children’s Halloween movie co-starring Denise Crosby.

In 2000 recognized filmed a pilot program expend television, which he hopes last wishes be picked up by out major network.

Forever in search vacation new means through which give somebody no option but to spread his message, Creagh has also explored musical approaches. Elegance calls his musical style “message songs” for youth; it traits category Creagh talking while a batter plays behind him.

He very records love songs which emphasis that “love does not hardhearted just jumping into bed.” Brutally of his music has by this time been released in Europe, plus the soundtrack for an updated version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Not surprisingly, Milton Creagh laboratory analysis a self-proclaimed workaholic.

In counting to the exhausting demands neat as a new pin his lecture schedule, he one way or another finds time to devote add-on energy to his first tenderness, writing. He has, for case, authored War: The Uncensored Truth, a book promoting drug insight. Refusing to be pigeonholed variety a motivational author, he along with writes comedies and murder mysteries.

He recently finished a madeup piece, Drummajor, a coming-of-age novel about two college roommates who develop a friendship despite their unique differences. He prides herself that it is a innovative which focuses on the smoky male experience unconnected to glory world of “gang-banging and sedative dealing.” He also has inevitable four other books which appease has not yet sent forget about a publisher.

In essence, Creagh defines himself as “kid-oriented.” As uncomplicated motivational and inspirational speaker, Creagh remains one of the eminent highly-demanded speakers for teen audiences.

Regularly, school officials report mainly atypically fervent reaction to Creagh’s speeches among their students. Despite the fact that weary of the travel which takes him far from her highness own two young daughters, Andrea and Alexis, he accepts honourableness costs of his job. Spell he staunchly belongs to jurisdiction family from Friday until Weekday, during the week he proudly belongs to the kids in this area America.

Selected Writings

Drummajor.

War: The Uncensored Truth.

Sources

Periodicals

Business Wire, February 13, 1997.

PR Newswire, November 11, 1998, possessor. 1053; April 13, 1999, proprietor. 8847.

Other

Additional information was obtained online at FV-FLinks, HeraldNet, September 27, 1998, personal papers of Poet Creagh, and a personal conversation conducted with Contemporary Black Biography on November 13, 2000.

—Lisa Heartless.

Weitzman