Marisha Stidom is a Brownwood native and has been married to Ronald Stidom for 15 years. She has a seven-year-old grandson named Malakai Thompson. Being born and raised in Brownwood, she loves this city wholeheartedly. Marisha has been employed at Superior Essex for over 37 years, a career that started in August of 1988. Being a woman of faith, Marisha is a long-term member of Mt. Zion Baptist Church where she serves as Church Secretary, Mission President as well as Finance Officer. Her faith is what has kept her strong and has gotten her through challenging times in life.

In 2008, Marisha received her bachelor’s degree from the University of Phoenix in management and in 2021, received a master’s degree in human service counseling from Houston Christian University. She has always had a passion for helping people.

For decades Marisha has been active in her community helping and giving back anyway she can. She’s served on United Way Board for several years, the Brownwood Chamber as a board member, President of ROC Organization, Civil Service Commission Member, Child Advisory Committee Member, the Boys & Girls Club, BMDD Board in addition to the Abilene Volleyball Officials Board. Most recently she joined the RF Hardin Board.

Having a passion for sports, particularly softball, as an adult, Marisha still enjoys playing adult softball and is a TASO sports official in which she has been officiating volleyball and basketball for approximately 20 years.

When asked why she continues to give back, she responded, “Working in my community gives me great joy.”

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This year marks the 100th Anniversary of Black History Month and Revitalizing Our Community (ROC) will be spotlighting amazing African Americans, who have made contributions to the community of Brownwood and Brown County.  Black History Month was created in 1926 in the United States, when historian Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History (ASNLH) announced the second week of February to be “Negro History Week”. This week was chosen because it coincided with the birthday of Abraham Lincoln on February 12 and that of Frederick Douglass on February 14, both of which Black communities had celebrated since the late 19th century

Black educators and Black United Students at Kent State University first proposed Black History Month in February 1969. The first celebration of Black History Month took place at Kent State a year later, from January 2 to February 28, 1970.

Six years later, Black History Month was being celebrated all across the country in educational institutions, when President Gerald Ford recognized Black History Month in 1976, during the celebration of the United States Bicentennial. He urged Americans to “seize the opportunity to honor the too-often neglected accompli