Cordelia Lewis-Burks, current vice chair of the Indiana Democratic Party, has seen it all and has achieved her distinguished level of success because of her passion to serve those around her.
As a West Virginia native and a pastor’s daughter, Lewis-Burks would often witness residents seeking the opinion of her father through the means of politics. Lewis-Burks and her father often debated about the candidates.
“He and I would have debates at the dinner table about politics and we got into some great disputes,” said Lewis-Burks laughing.
She says politics simply runs in her blood.
After leaving West Virginia, she went to Chicago where she volunteered for Congressman William Dawson’s campaign, starting from the lowest level as a volunteer by making phone calls and mailing letters.
In 1959 she moved to Indiana where she worked as a clerk at the voting polls in addition to her full-time job.
Lewis-Burks worked at the former Central State Hospital for 20 years as a licensed practical nurse. After being offered an internship opportunity with a non-profit organization called the A. Philip Randolph Institute, she threw in the towel at the hospital.
“I went to my director at the hospital and it was very difficult to tell him that I had been given an opportunity with A. Philip Randolph as an intern with the Indiana AFL-CIO. I loved what I did (as a nurse). I was the first African-American to hold the position of staff representative,” she said.
Since then, she has been noted for her many positions within the Democratic Party such as campaign work for Bill Clinton’s 1996 presidential campaign as well as Barack Obama’s senatorial campaign in Illinois.
Lewis-Burks recalls a special moment with President Obama.
“The last time the president visited I got a call and they made arrangements for me to meet with him. He remembered when I worked for his campaign. He said, ‘Are you going to stick with me Cordelia?’ and I told him ‘I am like a tree planted by the water and I shall not be moved.’”
In 1989 Lewis-Burks served as the chief lobbyist in Indiana’s American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees International Union (AFSCME) where she traveled the nation working on campaigns.
“My interest in politics is to get good people elected to offices, people who saw their mission as pulling up those below them, not run for office,” was her response after she declined to run for a City-County Council at-large seat.
Former Gov. Frank O’Bannon asked if Lewis-Burks could fill the term of vice chair of the party and she accepted. In 2012 she planned on stepping down until U.S. Sen. Joe Donnelly asked if she would be interested in retaining the seat.
“My effort is that our community sees the importance of voting and how it sincerely impacts their everyday life. I remember my voting place at The Children’s Museum in 2008 where people were lined up in the streets at 5:30 in the morning to vote. I said ‘Oh my God my dream has come true.’ I wondered if this could happen all of the time,” she said as she expressed her concerns for the future. She fears for the younger generation in regards to the upcoming election.
Being the vice chairwoman, Lewis-Burks is automatically a member of the national committee. In recent news, Lewis-Burks has been elected to the National Executive Committee of the National Democratic Party in Washington, the only person from Indiana. She also sits on the Board of Directors at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.
John Zody, chair of the Indiana Democratic Party, says that Lewis-Burks has served as a huge resource for him.
“She’s family,” he said. “I’ve known her for 15 years and she’s always there to offer feedback. She’s just an extremely hard worker.”
“My mission wasn’t to elevate myself in the party, but the work I’ve done caused the elevation,” Lewis-Burks said, who has been formally retired since 2005.
She says if she had not been chief lobbyist for AFSCME in the 1980s, she wouldn’t have had the opportunities she has held in her later years. She says she loves when young people come to her and want to advance themselves politically.
“I always tell young people who are looking to fill higher political positions that the lowest level is where you have to start. Look for places where you can serve in community organizations,” said Lewis-Burks, who is one of the founding members of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women. “I know that you have to be invited into some of these organizations, but you have to share yourself with the community.”
When not immersing herself in politics, she enjoys working in her yard planting flowers, reading up on things happening in her local community and enjoying shows at the Indiana Repertory Theatre. With nine great-grandchildren and five grandchildren she keeps busy and likes to surround herself with her family.
