About Dr. Avis Hardaman
Hello, I am Avis Elaine Hardaman, a resident of South Oak Cliff for more than 50 years.
I went to Oliver Wendell Holmes Junior High School and South Oak Cliff High School.
To pursue a career in the music industry, I moved to Houston, TX., in 1976, after the
death of my father, Rev. Joshua H. Hardaman. I was baptized at the Allen Chapel
Missionary Baptist Church, by Pastor J. R. Allen, where my father was his Assistant
Pastor for many years. In 1975, I decided to pursue a career outside of the church. At
that time, I was dubbed as “Lady Avis” by a regional music promoter by the name of
Wayne Money.
After my father’s death in 1976, I moved to Houston, TX., to pursue a career in
the music industry. After 2 years, I moved to Washington, DC., to continue to pursue
my musical career. While in Washington, DC., I gained valuable singing experience by
performing at notable jazz venues, such as Fisherman’s Wharf and other local venues,
such as “The Pigfoot Club” and other Juke Joints. After about 5 years of performing at
local DC venues, I returned to Dallas in 1983. After the death of my mother in 1984, I
had an epiphany, and experienced a new spiritual re-birth in 1984. From 1984 to the
present (2025), I have been involved in community affairs and Kingdom business.
In 2015, I enrolled in Dallas’ HBCU Paul Quinn College and graduated from there
in 2019. Immediately upon graduation, I shipped off to Spain to participate in a cultural
immersion program that lasted for 4 weeks. We spent time in Quenca, Madrid, and
Barcelona. While we were in Madrid, I had the pleasurable opportunity to sing there.
Singing in Madrid was the experience of a lifetime.
Upon returning to the United States in August 2019, I enrolled in the
Perkins Theology School of SMU, where I studied for 2 semesters. I realized that
Perkins was not the school for me, so in 2020, I withdrew and continued with my
community work.
After withdrawing from Perkins, we organized the musical concert series, “Men
and Women in Blue Praise Break and Commendation Galas, where we honored and
commended the police men and women, firefighters, first responders and community
servants who went above and beyond the call of duty in service to the communities of
Dallas. The first policeman we honored was Sgt. Donald Boyce, who was commended
for the care and love he showed to an infant who had been involved in a serious
automobile accident near downtown Dallas. His service was recognized in newspapers
and on social media. Also, we honored Dallas’ first black firefighter, Kenneth Parker,
posthumously. We gave these MWIB Praise Break Commendations Galas twice per
year. Then, the dreaded Covid-19 hit the world in 2020, and everything slowed to a
grinding halt for several years.
In 2022, I took my first teaching job as a first-grade teacher. It was then
that I was bitten by the teaching bug and realized that I am meant to be a teacher, and I
continue teaching to this day. However, when I was asked to run for Dallas City
Council, District 4, I see that the time involved is a whole commitment. Running to
represent District 4 is a commitment that is all consuming, so I have placed teaching on
the back burner for the time being.