Obituary of Constance W. Claytor

Constance Williams Claytor was born to Eli Williams and Julia Staten in Mt. Kisco, New York on May 15th, 1935. She was one of four children. Her siblings were Albert Williams, Lila Williams, and Julia Jefferson. Constance was educated in the Mount Kisco school system. Upon graduation, she went on to attend College at SUNY Potsdam. Connie graduated from Potsdam with a Bachelors of Science in Education. She would later go on to receive her Masters of Science in Education from Manhattan College in Riverdale, NY. Constance started her teaching career working for the school district in Huntington, New York out on Long Island. After departing Huntington, she sought employment in Westchester County, New York. She began substituting at several school districts in Westchester, then was later hired by the Bedford Central School District, becoming only the second African American teacher in the District. Connie was selected to be the director of the Neighborhood Youth Core and the Urban League program. She excelled as an outstanding 5th grade elementary school teacher, a career that spanned 32 years until she retired in 1995. Constance was a loving and devoted wife and mother. Connie became engaged and married to Everett Louis Claytor in 1960 at the Old St. Francis Church on Maple avenue. Connie and Louis had two sons, Bruce David and Evan Louis. After leaving Mt. Kisco, they purchased a home and raised their family in Katonah, NY, where she resided until she passed on November 1st, 2019. A community activist, Connie was always involved in volunteer work in variety of organizations. She was very passionate about helping people and very generous of her time and resources. Whether it was civil rights, the arts, working with the prison community, or her church, she was very diligent. She took the post of establishing the first chapter of the Northern Westchester NAACP as President. She influenced the hiring of more minority teachers in the Bedford Central system, where she was employed. As President, Connie sought to take on unfair or discriminatory practices in the area. The Northern Westchester branch was host to Thurgood Marshall, Roy Wilkins, Mal Gooden, and many other notable African Americans. Constance was passionate about her contribution to St. Francis AME Zion Church. She was integral in the foundation and organization of the Annual Martin Luther King Day banquet, Golf Tournaments, and the St.Francis AME Zion Church Annual Barbecue, She worked with the Sunday school, the Board of Trustees and was a long time member of the choir. Closer to retirement, Connie served as adjunct professor for Fordham University, in their Masters Program and Co-Authored two books with her long-time friend Joan Potter. These books were titled African American Firsts (1994) and African Americans Who Were First (1997). She was a member of many different organizations such as the Northern Westchester Links and belonged to a book club. She acquired many loving friends and relationships along the way, and it was not unusual on a shopping trip around town to run into a student or individual that did not adore her. Connie passed away peacefully in her sleep at her Katonah home on November 1st. She leaves behind her loving husband of 59 years Everett Louis, her two sons Bruce and Evan, her older sister Julia Jefferson, daughter in laws Saudia Claytor and Cheryl-Alford Claytor, her granddaughters Ryann Simone and Kendall Grace, numerous nieces and nephews, along with a host of very close friends.