Thomas Semmons

Thomas Briscoe Semmons was born in Estill, Mississippi. His mother migrated to Chicago’s westside when he was two years old. Fast-forwarding to his adulthood with a family to support, he was employed as a postal worker, janitor for the Chicago Board of Education, and eventually ended up at the Cook County Sheriff’s Department as a correctional officer. There, he met the love of his life, Dena Joy Hurst, a diamond in the rough. They started as friends and found they had a lot in common, including reading, traveling, and trying new things.

Their first date was to see the play “Jesus Christ Super Star”. They also pursued the pleasures of cycling along Chicago’s lakefront, talking Chicago politics, and the plight of black people in America.

Looking for a brighter future, they quit their jobs at the county jail and returned to school. Thomas always dreamed of obtaining a college degree, so Dena encouraged him to go for it, so at forty-two years old, he pursued a degree in Corrections and Special Education. Upon graduating from Western Illinois University in 1981, he took another leap and moved with Dena to San Francisco, first teaching in the Oakland Public School District, while serving as a set designer, costumer, and occasionally performing onstage and touring throughout the U.S. and Canada with Inner City Cultural Center Bay Area where Dena was the Executive Director.

Thomas left the Oakland School District and began working with special needs adults, was a job developer and taught GED at a youth development center. Prior to relocating to Mississippi, he returned to working with prisoners as a GED instructor and a job developer for California Department of Correction.

He and Dena decided to move to Mississippi where he was hired to teach GED for Mississippi Department of Corrections Columbia and Pearl River Valley Community College. With a dedication to helping others, Thomas inspired many and garnered their love.

He and Dena have traveled through the Caribbean, Mexico, Asia, Central America, and their greatest bucket list location, Africa.

Dena and the family wish to extend their appreciation for the immense amount of support and words of comfort from Hattiesburg Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, family members spread across the U.S., friends at OLLI in Hattiesburg, plus an untold number of others who have called to express their love.