If you visit Morehead City, North Carolina, you may encounter writer Eleanora E. Tate--five feet, five and three-fourths inches tall, with dark skin like actress Whoopi Goldberg, and bifocals--driving her old car, enjoying a festival with her husband, fishing, or just enjoying the view of her pond in her back yard at the edge of town. Coming up on her fiftieth birthday, Tate is taking some time to savor her accomplishments and to set new goals. Tate has devoted most of her adult life to the presentation of African Americans with positive images of themselves, and to helping children of all backgrounds feel good about themselves.

With her photographer husband Zack E. Hamlett III, Tate has used her talents as a journalist to publicize stories and events that bring pride to the Black community in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to Horry County, South Carolina, and beyond. In her...