By Terry Allen
Texas Metro News
https://texasmetronews.com
Big Mama, Lucille “Big Mama” Allen, was born in 1906 and lived through times when promises were often made to our communities but not always kept. She understood struggle, sacrifice, family, faith, and the power of a person’s word. Big Mama taught us that a handshake, a commitment, and your actions had to line up because your name and your legacy were attached to everything you did.
Big Mama said, “Words without deeds have no meaning.”
Today, as we listen to political races, community conversations, and leadership promises, her wisdom feels louder than ever. We hear speeches filled with claims of accomplishments, visions of change, and promises of what will happen next. But Big Mama would ask a simple question: “Where is the work?”
Leadership cannot live in words alone. Real leadership leaves footprints. It shows up in communities, in service, in results, and in the lives changed along the way.
This past Father’s Day, I witnessed what happens when words become deeds. For 25 years, City Men Cook has never just been about food — it has been about fathers, mentors, families, and community. Local men did more than prepare dishes; they delivered recipes, shared family stories, honored traditions, and created community impact alongside the women who showed up to celebrate, support, and strengthen the village.
At that moment, commitments became action. Promises became proof. With more than 1,300 attendees and over 125,000 media impressions, the community cane to Gilley;s and they saw what happens when people stop talking about change and start serving it.
Celebrity Taster Antoinette Love captured that spirit in her powerful video, “Living My Purpose.” Her story reflected the heart of Big Mama’s message — purpose must be signed, sealed, and delivered through action. Her words became a testimony, and that testimony became a movement we proudly shared on the City Men Cook platform.
We are living in a time where too often the noise of personal attacks becomes louder than conversations about real solutions. Words can divide, distract, and discourage — but deeds build. Big Mama reminded us that you cannot just “talk the talk,” you must “walk the walk.”
The responsibility does not belong only to those seeking office. It belongs to us. Our votes represent our voices, our values, and our vision for the future. Voting is not just an individual act; it is a collective responsibility. We must take more than ourselves to the polls — we must take our families, our neighbors, our young people, and our communities.
Big Mama’s generation fought for access to the ballot. Our generation must protect its purpose.
Because at the end of the day, history will not remember the loudest words.
History remembers the work.
Terry Allen is an NABJ award-winning Journalist, DEI expert, PR professional, and – Vice President at FocusPR, founder of the charity City Men Cook, and Dallas Chapter President of NBPRS.org
