Maria Fearing Fund to sponsor gala honoring the late Drs. Darius and Vera Swann

The work of the longtime missionaries, educators and civil rights advocates will be celebrated Sept. 28 at Radcliffe Presbyterian Church in Atlanta

by the Maria Nearing Fund | Special to Presbyterian News Service

The Rev. Dr. Darius and Vera Swann, center, front row, with members of the Swann family and friends from Burke Presbyterian Church in northern Virginia (Courtesy of the family)

At noon Eastern Time on Saturday, September 28, the Maria Fearing Fund will honor the late Drs. Darius and Vera Swann.

The Swanns were longtime Presbyterian missionaries, educators and civil rights advocates. The Fund will recognize the Swanns for their stellar work as community and global leaders and especially for founding the Maria Fearing Fund.

The gala, which honors the life, ministry, and cofounding of the Maria Fearing Fund by the Swanns, will be held at Radcliffe Presbyterian Church, 286 Hamilton E. Holmes Drive NW in Atlanta.

Friends and supporters are invited, as organizers are requesting your presence and gifts at this complimentary luncheon and endowment fund fundraiser honoring the Swanns. Please RSVP by September 18 at either of the following: email dlwallacesr@comcast.net or call or text 404-695-8465. The Maria Fearing Fund is a 501(c)3 tax deductible organization.

Darius L. Swann was born into a Presbyterian family in Amelia, Virginia. He graduated from Johnson C. Smith University with B.A. and B.D. degrees, a master’s degree from Columbia University and a doctorate from the University of Hawaii.

Vera Poe Swann was born in Cheraw, South Carolina, and joined the Presbyterian Church while studying for a bachelor’s degree at Johnson C. Smith University. Later she earned a Master of Arts degree from Columbia University and was awarded a doctorate from Interdenominational Theological Center. She taught secondary school as well as at the community college level. After teaching in High Point, North Carolina, she married the Reverend Darius L. Swann.

Darius and Vera Swann served the Presbyterian Church as the first African-American missionaries to a non-African country. (Contributed photo)

Prior to their marriage, Darius served as an educational missionary to China during a period of revolutionary upheaval in that country. Looking for opportunities to be involved as a missionary couple, the Swanns were appointed by the Presbyterian Church as missionaries to India, where they served for 11 years. While in India, Darius pioneered the use of indigenous forms of drama, dance and music through the Christian Drama Program. Vera taught Bible at Ewing Christian College. She helped organize the Jamna Christian Basic School and a home for vagrant boys in the same city. She also worked with Darius to establish the Christian Drama Program to train teachers in northern India.

In the U.S., Darius Swann taught at Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary, George Mason University, and the Interdenominational Theological Center (ITC), retiring from ITC with the honor of Professor Emeritus in 1993. While teaching at Johnson C. Smith Theological Seminary in the mid-1960s, he was involved with other faculty members leading students in marches for civil rights and voter education drives. With Vera, they became plaintiffs in a landmark Supreme Court case, Swann v. Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education, decided unanimously in 1971. The groundbreaking decision opened the way for busing as a tool for desegregating the public schools.

He authored five books and co-authored two books. In Presbyterian circles, he is noted for writing “All-Black Governing Bodies: The History and Contributions of All-Black Governing Bodies. In addition, he wrote six plays and choral readings.

Vera Poe Swann worked as a leader in women’s ministry in the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). She also worked in nonchurch-related institutions. She taught at Castle High School in Kancohe, Hawaii, and the Alexandria campus of Northern Virginia Community College. She served as director of the Southern African Student Program for the Robert R. Morton Institute and was a national observer of the first elections in South Africa. She wrote two books.