The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021 - 34

" I can remember going to my
front door, and I just had a
strange feeling... " -ONZLEE WARE
Onzlee Ware was born as the next-toyoungest
of four siblings in Greensboro,
North Carolina, in 1954 - the year of the
Supreme Court's Brown v. Board of Education
landmark decision to desegregate schools. He
was six when the Greensboro Four began
lunch counter sit-ins at the F. W. Woolworth
Company store. The protestors were gradually
joined by dozens and then hundreds, including
Ware's mother. In fourth grade, Ware was sent
to a previously all-white school that was being
integrated.
Those experiences exposed Ware to a
diverse group of people and gave him a close
education on race relations in America as they
evolved through the tumultuous 1960s. In high
school, a teacher suggested Ware become a
lawyer, which pushed him in that direction.
He attended North Carolina Agricultural
and Technical University, where he joined a
fraternity. And then: " I got with a crowd. I was
green. And I got my head in a lot deeper than
I thought it would ever go, " Ware said.
As a result, he started using drugs. In
1975, Ware was arrested and charged with
possession of heroin and marijuana. He traded
information to get the charges dismissed. A
year later, Ware's identity as an informant was
revealed in a federal court proceeding. What
happened next changed his life forever.
" I can remember going to my front door,
and I just had a strange feeling, " Ware said. " I
went to the door and somebody said, 'Onzlee.'
I didn't say anything, but soon as he said that,
I heard a little voice in the back of my head
say 'Close the door.' I simultaneously closed
the door and heard a shot rang out. Had I not
closed that door, I think I would've died. "
His girlfriend and future wife was upstairs
in the house and ran down, saving his life.
Ware later lost his left leg from the wound.
He remembers lying in bed and knowing he'd
have to face his mother.
" I was raised by my mother, and I knew that
what I was doing was wrong, " Ware said. After
the shooting, " I was embarrassed and ashamed
because I thought I had embarrassed my mom
and the family. The first time she saw me in the
hospital, I just broke down and cried and said,
'Mom, I'm sorry.' "
Top:
From left, Negro League baseball player Larry
LaGrande, Del. William Fralin and Del. Onzlee Ware
at the General Assembly.
Middle:
Ware in the House of Delegates.
Bottom:
Ware worked with families as a delegate, then
worked with juveniles and parents as a judge in
Roanoke Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court.
34 SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021
TheRoanoker.com
COURTESY OF ONZLEE WARE

http://www.TheRoanoker.com

The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021

The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021 - 1
The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021 - Cover2
The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021 - 3
The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021 - 4
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The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021 - Cover3
The Roanoker - Sept/October 2021 - Cover4
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