Florez Sledge, mom of singing sisters

THE YOUNG MAN had tears in his eyes when he told the family that if it hadn't been for the influence of Florez Sledge when he was at a dangerous crossroad in his adolescence, he would be in prison.

He met the woman he called "Grandmom" in Phoenix, Ariz., when he was 12, he said. She took him in and showed him a better way than the path he was traveling.

"If it wasn't for Grandmom, I'd be in jail," he said.

Florez Sledge was "Mom" and "Grandmom" to so many people in her life in Philadelphia and in the past dozen years in Phoenix.

As described by her daughter Kathy Lightfoot, one of the women who comprise the famous Philadelphia-based Sister Sledge singing group, Florez rescued many other lost souls.

There was, in another instance, the Philadelphia woman who was suffering through a painful divorce when she was fortunate enough to come under Mom's influence.

"She now has her real-estate license and is doing well," Kathy said. "She told us Mom changed her life."

Florez Sledge, who managed her famous daughters' singing career for years while emphasizing the importance of family above everything else, died May 17 in Phoenix. She was 77.

The 1979 Grammy-winning song "We Are Family" was the sisters' story. It was written for them.

We are family

I got all my sisters with me

We are family

Get up everybody and sing.

The four singing sisters, Debra, Joan, Kim and Kathy, harmonized as kids skipping rope and playing jacks on the sidewalks of North Philadelphia before they were discovered and given record contracts.

Mom, who herself had a background in show business, never pushed them, declining the role of "backstage mother."

In fact, her priority was to see to it that all of her daughters graduated from Temple University, and she embraced the values she cherished of honesty and integrity and spiritual compassion.

"She taught us that what was most important was who we are," Kathy said. "That we have each other."

Everyone can see we're together

As we walk on by . . .

Florez was born in Youngstown, Ohio, the oldest daughter of Viola Beatix Hairston, who sang with the Lyric Opera Co., and James Carl Williams.

At 16, Florez decided to flee the small-town ambience of Youngstown for the romance of New York City. It was the time of the Harlem Renaissance and she wanted to be part of it.

She performed as a singer and dancer on some of the popular stages of the day, including the legendary Club Harlem.

She met and married Edwin Sledge, one of the first African-Americans to perform on Broadway. Their first daughter, Norma Carol, was born before the couple decided to settle in Philadelphia.

The four singing daughters were born here, but the marriage didn't last. Florez was faced with raising five girls as a single mom. She saw to it that all five graduated college.

Florez studied real-estate law at Temple and proved to have a keen business sense, which she also employed as the manager of Sister Sledge.

"She was very wise," Kathy said. "She was a good business person."

But of equal importance was the impact she had on people's lives.

"People delighted in her," Kathy said. "She loved life."

After she moved to Phoenix, Florez was always trying to get friends to join her. "She should have gotten a commission from the state for getting so many people to move there," Kathy said.

Along with meeting record-company executives, agents and the other chores of running a successful entertainment enterprise, Florez always had time for others, including her real grandkids.

"She was a fun grandmother," Kathy said.

She had a knack for making such unpleasant tasks as homework a joy.

She had what she called a "homework club," bringing the grandkids, who eventually numbered 15, to her home to do homework. "She wasn't strict, but she was firm," Kathy said.

In 1993, Florez was honored by the Philadelphia chapter of Links Inc. as one of four African-American women "who have led extraordinary lives."

"She did it and she did it good," Kathy summed up.

Living life is fun and we've just begun

To get our share of the world's delights . . .

Here's what we call our golden rule

Have faith in you and the things you do . . .

Besides Kathy, Florez is survived by her four other daughters, Carol S. Blackmon, Debra S. DeBruine, Joan, and Kim S. Allen; three sisters, Geraldine Kennedy, Norma Wiggins and Marian Williams; a brother, Kenneth Williams, and 15 grandchildren.

Services: 10 a.m. tomorrow at Salem Baptist Church of Jenkintown, 610 Summit Ave., Jenkintown. Burial will be in Ivy Hill Cemetery, Easton Road and Woolston Avenue.

A memorial service will be held June 2 at the River of Life Church in Phoenix. *