I love gospel music! Some of my favorite artist are...Tramaine Hawkins, Yolanda Adams, and Donnie McClurkin. Some of my favorite vocalist are Whitney Houston, Alicia Keys, and Mary J. Blige.
Television
As a contributing editor for WBBM-TV,CBS owned station, Rae won an Emmy Award for a series of first person reports on Living With AIDS.
She has been featured on Nightline, the Oprah Winfrey Show, Date Line, My Two Cents, BET, the Montel Williams Show and many other national television documentaries and news shows.
Books
Rae's anticipated life story, "Unprotected, A Memoir," will be released by Hyperion Publishers in 2009.
Heroes
Harriet Tubman, Sojourner Truth, Fannie Lou Hamer, and Jesse Jackson Sr.
Northeastern Illinois University
Chicago, IL
Graduated: 1991
Student status: Alumni
Degree: Bachelor's Degree
Major: Political Science
Minor: Communications
Clubs: President of Political Science Club
Greek:
Delta Sigma Theta
About me:
RAE LEWIS THORNTON
BIOGRAPHY
Educated, attractive, assertive and ambitious are just a few of the words used to describe Rae Lewis-Thornton. In 1986, during a routine blood drive visit at a Washington D.C. Red Cross, Rae received news of another word that would soon be used to describe her health and future. At the tender age of 23, Rae Lewis-Thornton was diagnosed HIV Positive.
Despite her present day status of having full-blown AIDS (ACQUIRED Immune-deficiency Syndrome), Rae Lewis-Thornton leads her own unending crusade to educate and challenge young and old audiences to take control of their own bodies, futures and health. Rae uses her life as an example that AIDS is a non-discriminatory disease. She challenges the most common myths and stereotypes surrounding who and how one can become infected with the HIV virus that most often results in AIDS and death. In doing this, she incorporates her own oratory skills, personal experiences and unyielding honesty to create and disseminate her critical and deadly message of her own day by day, personal destruction by AIDS.
Featured on the cover of the December 1994 Essence magazine as well as in numerous feature stories in Ebony and Emerge magazines, Chicago Tribune newspaper, Chicago Sun-Times newspaper, Washington Post, Dayton Daily News, and on several national television documentaries, news shows, and television specials. Rae was featured on NIGHTLINE WITH Ted Koppel in a news article entitled “Rae’s Story”. The Oprah Winfrey Show had her on to share her story. Rae uses all forms of media to convey her message. She served as a contributing editor for WBBM-TV, a CBS-owned and operated television station for an ongoing series of first person stories on living with AIDS. She received an Emmy Award for her series.
Prior to Rae’s motivational speaking career, she was on her way to a promising political organizing career. Having served as Senator Carol Mosley Braun’s 1992 Senatorial Campaign Advance Coordinator, Illinois State Youth Coordinator for the 1988 Dukakis Presidential Campaign and National Youth Director for Jesse Jackson’s 1984 and 1988 Presidential Campaigns, Rae was forced to retire in 1993 as a result of her health.
Rae Lewis-Thornton was licensed as a Baptist minister in July 2000 at Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church, in Chicago, Illinois by the Rev. Clay Evans. She received a Master of Divinity degree from McCormick Theological Seminary in June 2003 and was the recipient of the Arthur Hays Fellowship in Church History. Rae Lewis-Thornton is currently a PhD candidate at the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Northeastern Illinois University. Rae is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority. In November, Ebony Magazine named Rae Lewis-Thornton one of America’s 57 Most Intriguing people of 2002.
Who I'd like to meet: You, My Friend at one of my speakng engagments!
HELLO MY FRIEND,JUST CHECKIN IN ON U ,HOPIN THAT ALL IS WELL BABE!!!! MAY THE LORD ALWAYS KEEP U SAFE. ALSO MAY THE RAYS OF SUNSHINE,ALWAYS SHINE UPON SUCH A GREAT WOMAN NAME RAE LEWIS,MUCH LUV 4 U ALWAYS ,JODI IN NYC.
I am going to call you. I have been at home enjoying the few days of break that I have..lol I fly back to TX tomorrow [have a layover at midway :-P]. But I miss talking with you. I am glad that you enjoyed convention, my mom's friend brought us back lots of goodies. I pray all is well. God Bless. Talk to you soon.
Ms. Rae, I am forever changing my display name,but I think that I will keep this one...for now...lol!! I will keep you posted if i decide to change again;^). I am also glad that you made it back in one piece from Seattle...GET SOME REST!!!
