I had been inside Duke University's East Campus student union before -- but this was my first visit with my own ancestors' portraits hanging in honor on these wood-paneled walls.
"I wasn't expecting it but I think I got a chill when I walked in and saw the portraits," I told Duke President Vincent Price as we stood together in what now will be known as the Wall Center.
The building now renamed in honor of George and George-Frank Wall.
"It is striking," Price replied. "We are in our centennial year; especially reckoning with our history; the history of the South. The history of Duke University reflects that. And George Wall's life reflects that."
George Wall was my great-great-grandfather, and his legacy at Duke outlives the university. He was born into slavery, emancipated at 14, and hired as a servant by Trinity College president Braxton Craven.
When Trinity moved to Durham in 1892, George Wall moved with it as Duke's first custodian. Ten years later, George purchased the first plot of land just north of campus. He and his wife built the first home in what became a Black Durham working-class haven -- quickly nicknamed Walltown.
"I applaud Duke University for making this significant step," said my cousin, Talib Graves-Manns as we walked through Walltown. Graves-Manns founded and headquartered a private equity fund in Durham aimed in part at re-investing in Walltown.
"The first thing that came to my mind was like, I'm glad that folks are paying attention," Graves-Manns said about the renaming. "I'm glad that this is not another overlooked story of people's contribution to making something great."
The contributions of Wall's son, George-Frank, lasted even longer than his father's at Duke. He served over a half-century as a custodian. He was not a wealthy man when he died in 1953, but left $100 to Duke for a scholarship fund, 10 years before the school began admitting Black students.
"I feel like oftentimes the people that universities and institutions recognize are not the hard-working blue-collar individuals," said Mario Moore, the Detroit-based painter who created the portraits.
Moore depicted George-Frank in a suit and holding his broom -- a nod to the dignity of labor often hidden in America's most elite spaces.
"You will be able to look at these paintings and understand, even if it's a small fraction, something about (George and George-Frank). But also something about the hard work that they did."
Duke's leadership said the renaming also stands as a testament to all of its frontline essential workers: the cafeteria workers, the groundskeepers, and all the others. Many of whom were born and raised in Durham -- including Walltown.
"Today, many Duke employees call Durham home. And the university proudly, though not always perfectly, embraces its multi-faceted role and responsibility as a neighbor, partner and anchor institution," said Duke Community Affairs Vice-President Stelfanie Williams, who helped facilitate the conversations between the Wall descendants and the university about the name change.
At the renaming ceremony, my family gathered in the Wall Center for an event timed to coincide with Duke's 100th anniversary. These ancestors came filled with gratitude the school is recognizing the history amid the acknowledgment that there is still reckoning left to do.
"Let's use this as a springboard for the next century. Because Duke was built on the labor of so many of your ancestors and other members of Walltown and the Wall family," said NBA Commissioner Adam Silver who serves as chair of Duke's Board of Trustees.
My cousin Vanessa Wall-Smart ended on this note, "This recognition happened in God's time; in due time; and I really believe it's about time."