Sharonda Coleman-Singleton

People

Sharonda ColemanSingleton

Outcome

unknown

Reverend Sharonda Coleman-Singleton (1969 – June 17, 2015) was an assistant pastor at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, a speech and language pathologist, and the head girls' track and field coach at Goose Creek High School who was assassinated along with eight other congregants during a Wednesday night Bible study session by white supremacist Dylann Roof. At 45 years old, she was a mother of three who touched the lives of students and colleagues throughout the Charleston area. Her son Chris Singleton, a Charleston Southern University baseball player, inspired the world the day after her death by declaring on the baseball field: "Love is always stronger than hate." Sharonda Coleman-Singleton was born in Newark, New Jersey, and graduated from Vailsburg High School in 1987. She attended South Carolina State University in Orangeburg, where she ran track and field. She later returned to New Jersey to earn her master's degree in communication sciences and disorders. Coleman-Singleton worked as a speech and language pathologist at Goose Creek High School, in a Charleston suburb, since 2007. She also served as the school's head girls' track and field coach, drawing on her own experience as a collegiate athlete. The Berkeley County School District described her as someone "who touched the lives of students and colleagues alike." Beyond her work in education, Coleman-Singleton served as an assistant pastor at Emanuel AME Church, where she was an active member of the congregation. She dedicated herself to ministry alongside her professional career. She was a mother of three children: Christopher, Carmyn, and Caleb. Her eldest son, Chris Singleton, was a sophomore baseball player at Charleston Southern University at the time of the tragedy. On June 17, 2015, Coleman-Singleton attended the Wednesday night Bible study at Emanuel AME Church when Dylann Roof opened fire. She was among the nine worshippers killed. Her funeral was held on June 25, 2015, at Emanuel AME Church alongside the funeral of Ethel Lee Lance, attended by political figures and civil rights leaders. The day after his mother's murder, Chris Singleton stood on the baseball field at Charleston Southern University and delivered a message that resonated worldwide: "Love is always stronger than hate." Those words are now engraved on a memorial outside the Sharonda Coleman-Singleton Baseball Complex at Charleston Southern University, dedicated in her memory. Nine palmetto trees representing the nine victims stand at the memorial. Chris Singleton has continued his mother's legacy of love and forgiveness, becoming a speaker and author sharing her message.