Quentin Liggins Obituary

Be loved husband, father, son, brother, nephew and friend, Quentin DeAngelo Liggins lived his 33 years of life rooted in Godly faith, love and community. In his own words he shared, "I thoroughly enjoy finding common connections and introducing people to one another in hopes that both of their lives will improve based upon the new relationship." It was this sense of connection and community by which Quentin lived and loved.

Quentin was born on the 20th day of September in 1988 to Monique Riley and Malcolm Liggins in Minneapolis, MN. Raised in Minneapolis, he was the oldest of his siblings. His formative years were spent in Minneapolis, where education and sports shaped him. Sports served as an outlet to develop his leadership and team-building skills and led him to attend DeLaSalle High School. While there, Quentin met his mentor, Brother Michael Collins, then the President of DeLaSalle High School. Quentin credited Brother Michael for saving his life. He helped Quentin to see the possibilities afforded to him with a quality education, supportive care and loving concern.

At DeLaSalle, Quentin was the epitome of a student-athlete, shining on and off the field. The three-year varsity player who served as quarterback part of his junior and senior year not only received the football team's prestigious Football Award, but he was also inducted into the National Honor Society. As an active alumnus and ambassador for DeLaSalle, Quentin often returned to speak at the school's fundraisers. Most notably, he was a trailblazer in advocacy efforts to build DeLaSalle's very own football stadium on the historic Nicollet Island which was constructed in 2007.

With an eagerness to learn, Quentin attended the College of Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, on a football scholarship and received a bachelor's degree in history in 2010. He was also part of the 2009 Patriot League championship team. When off the football field, you could find Quentin studying in the library, serving on the Black Student Association board, and being a Big Brother, Big Sister mentor. Immediately following undergrad, Quentin took to Wall St., where he worked for Goldman Sachs.

Brother Michael passed away while Quentin worked for Goldman Sachs, and Quentin was selected to speak at his funeral. He spoke in front of hundreds of attendees, including the Mayor of Minneapolis, Governor of Minnesota, and a United States Senator from the state. At that moment, Quentin knew he had to change his career path to work in education. So he packed up his bags and moved to Washington, DC, to begin service to public schools taking a 60 percent pay cut. It was there where Quentin's life calling began to make sense. He saw reflections of himself in the students he served and knew education was the right career choice. From 2012-2017, he held roles with the DC Promise Neighborhood Initiative and City Year. Quentin was also the associate director of storytelling and development at Leading Educators, where he managed fundraising and community outreach for the organization's teacher leadership programming throughout the Washington, DC region. In a continuous quest for learning, Quentin completed a master's degree in business administration from The George Washington University in 2016.

Quentin's desire to reconnect with his roots led him back to Tulsa in the summer of 2017 as part of The Broad Residency. He joined the staff at Tulsa Public Schools, where he had the privilege to lead the recruitment, selection, and school-based retention team. Quentin did not take this responsibility lightly. He often asked himself who he would want to teach in classrooms and schools if he had a child. He knew that families trusted the public school system to do what was best for their children, including ensuring rigorous instruction and visionary leadership.

Quentin helped launch an internal teacher prep program, Tulsa Teacher Corps. His leadership was critical in the design of all aspects of the program: curriculum, recruitment strategy, hiring and corps member relations. His leadership did not stop at the programmatic level but elevated into advocacy to members of our state's legislature. Quentin exhibited poise and a clear message when speaking to legislators on the critical need for the passage of House Bill 1990 and Senate Bill 217. His work on the ground in Tulsa and in the state Capitol building in Oklahoma City, resulted in the passage of the bills which created a first of its kind pathway for districts to recommend novice educators for certification in the state of Oklahoma.

This work proved evermore important as Quentin worked to recruit top-notch teachers. He was selected to represent Tulsa Public Schools in local print media and on local television stations including Tulsa World, KTUL News Channel 8, KJRH 2 News Oklahoma, News on 6. This resulted in favorable press and increased the positive public perception for Tulsa Public Schools.

For Quentin, it was not enough to just recruit quality teachers but to also celebrate them. This was one aspect of his work that he loved most. He led the district's five-month Teacher and Support Professional of the Year selection process. He set the guidelines for nominee selection, coordinated the semi-finalists and finalist selection committees and engaged community partners to honor the winners at Hip Hop 918 at the Guthrie Green.

While excelling professionally, Quentin challenged himself, again, academically. In 2019, he obtained his Master of Education in Urban Education and Leadership from The Broad Center. In 2020, Quentin began pursuing a doctorate in Educational Administration, Curriculum & Supervision from the University of Oklahoma with the hopes of leading a public school system one day. His academic aptitude led him to be inducted into Kappa Delta Pi - the international honor society for education - after obtaining a 4.0-grade point average his first year in the program.

Although his professional and academic accomplishments are notable, without a doubt, it was Quentin's wife and daughter who he was most proud of. Darla and Quentin's love story began in March 2016 with a serendipitous encounter that changed both of their lives forever. The spark that ignited their love kept burning through their shared love of God, celebrating milestones with friends, worshiping at church, laughter, and traveling. Quentin and Darla bought their home in 2018, making Quentin a proud 4th generation North Tulsan.

Quentin and Darla entered into holy matrimony on June 23, 2019, in Tulsa, OK. Intent on establishing a direction for their union, Quentin and Darla wrote their family vision and mission statement: "The Liggins Family is a unified team encouraging and supporting each other to create an equitable and just world. We use our unique gifts to advance the Kingdom of God during our time on earth." This testament guided everything they did as a family and within the community.

Day in and day out, Quentin upheld Ephesians 5:25 as his guiding scripture to love and honor Darla, "Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her." Then, on November 1, 2020, they welcomed the most significant manifestation of their love, Savannah Pearl.

Fatherhood for Quentin was an indescribable joy. He happily served during the night shift feedings and cared for Savannah as only a "girl dad" would. Storytime and flying like an airplane became staple "Daddy n' Me" times. Savannah will always be able to see how much her father loves her through photos and videos.

Darla and Quentin were able to share what is known as Lyle Love following Quentin's initiation into Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. on November 11, 2019, by way of the Alpha Tau Lambda Chapter in Tulsa, OK. He was instrumental in helping the Oklahoma District, during the pandemic, with their 2020 virtual convention as the Oklahoma District convention chairman. In addition, he served Alpha Tau Lambda as Secretary and 2nd Vice President and website designer. In December 2021, the chapter awarded him the most distinguished award: Brother of the Year.

In addition to his fraternity service, Quentin was an active Reading Partner volunteer at Hawthorne Elementary school. He also sat on boards of institutions that sought to improve the lives of the area residents. He was a proud Trustee at Metropolitan Baptist Church and a MetCares Foundation Board Member. "Quentin was one of the most brilliant, intentional, kind, and loving people we could ever hope to know. If you knew him from his work on our board, his leadership as a senior manager at the Tulsa Public Schools or his service in the community, you knew Quentin left an indelible impact on everyone and everything he came into contact with," said Dr. Ray Owens, Quentin's mentor and pastor of Metropolitan Baptist Church.

Quentin was also a member of the economic development committee of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Centennial Commission, a game announcer for Booker T. Washington high school football games on 97.1 The Sports Animal radio and a frequent volunteer in the talent recruitment and retention efforts of young, black professionals for the Tulsa community.

Just as Quentin, Darla, and Savannah began to blossom as a family, Quentin fell ill in May 2021. For nine months, in his "Jesus year" of life, Quentin courageously fought the fight against an aggressive form of brain cancer. Yet, where some may have given up, Quentin held on to his faith and believed in God for healing. Not surprising, though, as Quentin shared in a 2016 interview, "My faith is a big part of who I am, and I know I would not be where I am without my belief in something greater than myself." In addition to his faith, the love and support of his church family, friends near and far, helped to shepherd The Liggins through this unimaginable season.

On Wednesday, March 2, 2022, God brought Quentin to his eternal home with his wife by his side. He was preceded in death by his grandparents Rayfield Riley, Mary Hernandez, Richard Liggins, Helen Liggins; great grandparents Alonzo and Pearl Riley, John and Antonia Hernandez and Albert and Katherine Liggins; brother Malcolm Liggins, Jr; uncles Philip Riley and Noel Scott and cousin Brittany Clardy.

We loved Quentin dearly. His family, friends, and all who knew him will miss him greatly. He leaves to celebrate his life, wife Darla Liggins, and daughter, Savannah Pearl Liggins (OK). Parents Monique Riley (MN), Malcolm and Renee Liggins (OK), and Darrell Pratt (MN), siblings Derral Pratt (AZ), Briana Liggins (AZ), Morgan Liggins (MN), Diamond Liggins (OK), Jaden Liggins (OK), and a host of family and friends.

Services will be Saturday March 12, 2022 at 12Noon at Metropolitan Baptist Church in Tulsa.

Visitation will be Saturday Morning at Metropolitan Baptist Church from 10AM - 1145AM.