It is the intent of The Harriet Wilson Project to promote, preserve, and seek recognition of Harriet Wilson's book Our Nig or Sketches from the life of a Free Black for its historical significance, and to provide a fitting memorial in her honor.

Incorporated as a non-profit organization in April 2003, The Harriet Wilson Project, was formed by a group of civic minded citizens of different ethnicities who came together to raise awareness, celebrate, and honor the life and accomplishments of Harriet Wilson, a pre-Civil War black author from Milford, New Hampshire.

Nancy Amato, State & Local Public Affairs Coordinator: The public affairs coordinator consults and negotiates with local and state officials to promote the goals and objectives of the Harriet Wilson Project.
Nancy Amato is now serving her third year as a Milford Selectman and her first as Chairman of the Board of Selectmen and. She is only the fourth woman in Milford 's history to have been so elected. As such, she is involved in every aspect of town governing including community safety, planning, public works, recreation, health benefits, human services and resources. She has been a Girl Scout Leader and Milford Garden Club president. She serves on the Board of Directors of the Boys & Girls Club of the Souhegan Valley and the Milford Area Players (a community theatre group) and is also part owner of Alene Candles, Inc., a private label candle manufacturing facility located in Milford , New Hampshire and Putnam , Connecticut . Amatoand her husband were presented with the Humanitarian Award from the Greater Nashua Division of the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation in the summer of 2003.

Mabelle C. Barnette, Community Information Coordinator: The community information coordinator oversees the Harriet Wilson Project as it relates to interaction with non-profit organizations, charitable organizations and historical institutions.
Mabelle C. Barnette an African American Historical and Genealogy Society member, has been active in local politics, government and community programs for many years. She was featured in the book, A Communion of the Spirits: African-American Quilters, Preservers, and Their Stories by Roland Freeman (Rutledge Hill Press, Nashville, TN, 1996). Ms. Barnette attended MIT night school, studying Computer Sciences and attended University of Massachusetts , CPCS, where she received a degree in Human Services. She attended Simmons School of Social Work completing the program for New Professionals and B.A. Social Workers. Ms. Barnette went on to serve for 29 ½ years as a specialist in child abuse cases.



JerriAnne Boggis, Project Director: The project director manages and coordinates all activities of the organization to obtain optimum efficiency and economy of the Harriet Wilson Project (HWP).
JerriAnne Boggis received her M.A. in Writing & Communications from Rivier College in Nashua , NH and a B.A. in Business Management from New Hampshire College in Manchester . Ms. Boggis has been responsible for identifying, creating, orchestrating, and marketing events for private and public organizations. She has worked with Harper Collins best-selling author, Thomas Moore and Armenian Jazz pianist, David Azarian. She was responsible for contract negotiation, business financing, as well as acting as the liaison between the artist, the publisher, the agent and the public. She collaborated with area artists to produce The Puzzle Project that was recently featured as part of the Peace and Social Justice Series at Rivier College . She conceived, developed and produced several Black History Month Educational Programs for BPWHA including: The African American Myth (1995), Celebrating African-American Women (1994), A Musical Montage (1993), and A Jazz Extravaganza (1992).

Gloria Henry, Administrator and Archivist: The Administrator will work closely with the project director to manage and oversee the necessary administrative operations of the Harriet Wilson Project.
A retired history teacher, Gloria Henry received her B.A. in Secondary Education and History from the College of Great Falls, MT and was one of the original founding members of the NOW chapter in Montana. She has worked in consumer banking and managed projects of approximately $75 million worth of commercial and residential mortgages. Leaving corporate life in the late 1990s, Henry has devoted her time to child welfare advocacy and ensuring the prevention of child abuse and neglect.

Napoleon Jones-Henderson, Art Director: The art director formulates, develops, and executes design concepts for the overall project graphics and the Harriet Wilson Art Project.
Napoleon Jones-Henderson attended the Sorbonne in Paris , received a B.A of Fine Arts from the Art Institute of Chicago and did his graduate studies at Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. He is a founding member of Africobra, one of the most important visual arts collectives to come out of the Chicago Black Arts Movement. He received the Mayor of Boston “Award of Recognition for Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit”; the Massachusetts State Senate “Omical Citation for Cultural Excellence”, and an “Award of Excellence” from the National Conference of Artists.

Jessica Hejtmanek, Education Coordinator: She has served in the role of Executive Director of the Milford Main Street Program Downtown Ongoing Improvement Team (DO-IT), a downtown revitalization program based in historic preservation, since June 2003. She has worked as Regional Planner for the Strafford Regional Planning Commission and prior to that, in the Department of Regional Development for the district level government of the Czech Republic. Jessica has a Masters Degree in Urban Development and Planning from the University of London (England), Bartlett School of Architecture, Development Planning Unit. The focus of her research was heritage planning. She holds a Bachelors degree in Art History from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst with a focus on architectural history.

Stasia B. Millett, Publicist and Grant Coordinator, The publicist initiates public relations strategies to promote awareness and understanding of the Harriet Wilson Project. The Grant Coordinator develops and conducts all grant funded programs for the Harriet Wilson Project.
Stasia B. Millett is the president of WordWeaver, a copywriting firm in Wilton , NH . She has a degree in Marketing and Public Relations from Endicott College in Beverly , MA and a solid 30-year background in corporate communications working for several Fortune 100 companies. She is a published and award-winning photographer and writer. Ms. Millett is currently president of the Friends of the (Wilton Public) Library and heads the publicity for the $1.2 million Wilton Library Restoration Project Capital Fund. Under the pen name Lyrion ApTower, she wrote and published Passwords and Passages , a collection of short stories, award-winning essays and poems.

Tami Sanders, National Public Affairs Coordinator: The national public affairs coordinator consults and negotiates with officials nationally to promote the goals and objectives of the Harriet Wilson Project.
has a BS in Human Services and Communications and has done extensive work towards a Masters in Community Economic Development. She has been a community organizer and advocate, as well as a Public Relations/Promotions and media person for both business and non-profit organizations. As a woman of Mi'kmaq, Cree and European heritage, she has worked as an advocate for other First Nations persons in many social services, educational and legal institutions. Sanders has also worked as a representative for a Native artist, and a consultant for Cultural Competence/Civil Rights issues.

Barbara A. White, Ph.D. Historian and Research Director: The historian/research director will oversee, supervise, collect, and evaluate all research information gathered for the Harriet Wilson Project.
Barbara A. White graduated from Cornell University and went to graduate school at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She received her Ph.D. in English and has written seven books about American women writers. Her latest book, The Beecher Sisters , will be published by Yale University Press in the fall of 2003. Ms. White is a founder of the contemporary women's movement. While doing research in Milford (NH) she discovered the true identity of the family Harriet Wilson lived with. Her article, “ ‘Our Nig' and the She-Devil: New Information about Harriet Wilson and the ‘Bellmont' Family,” appeared in American Literature in March 1993 and is reprinted as the Afterword to the most recent edition of Our Nig (ed. Gates, Vintage, 2002.).

Claudette Williams, Treasurer: The treasurer manages and oversees the Harriet Wilson Project finances.
Claudette Williams received her Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of Kansas . She was employed as an Adoption coordinator for Catholic Social Services by the Kansas Northeastern Archdiocese. Ms. Williams was a long-time employee of the Massachusetts Department of Social Services and New Hampshire 's Division of Children Youth and Family Services. She has served on several boards including both the Y.W.C.A. and Catholic Charities in Lincoln , Nebraska , and the Y.W.C.A. in Nashua , NH . Ms. Williams belongs to the Circle O Friends and the Outreach for Black Unity and is currently the president of the Business and Professional Women's Heritage Association. The latter annually awards student scholarships ranging from $250 to several thousand dollars.