Paula A. Mccoy Franklin, "MAMA YAA"

Paula Adrian McCoy, affectionately known as “MAMA YAA,” took her final bow on Friday, May 15th, 2020, passing suddenly due to complications from surgery. 

The youngest child of the late William C. McCoy of South Carolina and Margretta M. McCoy (Richardson) of Paget, Bermuda, Paula was born, January 15th, 1948, in Buffalo, NY, joining her sister, the later Cheryl M. McCoy. 

As a child, Paula required a bit more attention. Born with bones malformed in her foot, she wore a brace and later needed speech therapy as a toddler to assist with communicating. Early on, the McCoy Family moved to Orange, NJ, where Paula attended Cleveland Street Elementary School, but at age eight, the tragic death of her mother changed her life leaving her and Cheryl without their female protector. To give their father time to grieve, they returned to Buffalo to live with a great aunt for a couple of years before returning to NJ to reunite with their father. 

In the 60’s, their father moved the family to a home he purchased in Montclair, NJ. Paula attended and graduated from Montclair High School in 1966. She was an active member of the student body and a JV/Varsity cheerleader. It was there she met her first husband, David Johnson (Class of ‘65). Paula and David married and moved to Syracuse, NY, where David was attending Syracuse University, and in October 1967, they welcomed their only daughter, Tiffani D. Johnson.

While motherhood and married life was important to Paula, pursuing her educational endeavors were as well. In the early 70’s, Paula, returned home to pursue her degree at Montclair State College. It was during her time there she had an opportunity to travel to Ghana, West Africa for the first time. She was so moved by the experience that, upon her return, she made an unprecedented decision to enroll in an exchange program in Ghana studying dance. 

In the fall of 1972, Paula and her daughter headed to Ghana where she enrolled as a student at the University of Ghana at Legon. Paula spent the next ten months immersing herself in the culture while caring for her daughter. In 1973, they returned to the States and Paula completed her degree, graduating with a BA from MSU in 1974, and ready to embark on a lifelong  journey of positively impacting those she came in contact with through music and dance.

Paula lived a full life accomplishing many things. In 1973, she received a federal grant to form a dance company. The first of its kind, The Afro Ballet Ensemble, sponsored by the Montclair Public Library, traveled throughout the area performing traditional Ghanaian dances. This would be the first of several companies she formed over the years, including Hedzole African Movement, Spirit of Umoja Dancers, and Pyramyd Dance Company. 

Her choreographic talents throughout her career, often known for elaborate, all-inclusive productions with a wide array of talent—dancers, singers, poets and actors from different genres and cultures—have left an impression on many who have witnessed them . She has choreographed stage plays at Rutgers University, Montclair State College and Theatre of Universal Images. She also organized Cotillions for the Junior Matrons of Morristown and The Leagues. Furthermore, the number of places where she has taught or performed at over the years well exceed a hundered, such as: Montclair BOE, The Ohio State University, Syracuse University, Pace University, Educational Center for the Arts in CT, Frog Hollow Day Care Center, Paterson Public Schools, Plainfield Public Schools, Essex CC, Bergen CC, World Fest in CT, John F. Kennedy School in Newark and the Valley Settlement House in West Orange to name a few. 

Paula has held a multitude of teaching residencies teaching dance and drum to students of all ages. She has impacted hundreds of lives over the past five decades through residencies with New Jersey Performing Arts Center, NYC Housing Authority, Alvin Ailey, Newark School for the Arts, Bates College in Maine, Connecticut Ballet in New Haven (CT), Montclair YWCA, Ironbound Community Center in Newark and Usafari Dance Company in Toronto, Canada, to name a few.  She spent the latter part of her years as a permanent staff member with Newark Public Schools as a dance teacher, retiring in 2012. 

Her enjoyment of the arts is also reflected in the acting roles she has had, appearing in such productions as Urgh: A Music War, the Off-Off Broadway production of Malou’s Daughters, a reproduction of Aint Supposed to Die a Natural Death and In Development.  She also appeared in several movies as an extra, and lent her vocal talents on the CD Call and Response. 

Education was important to her and she never stopped learning and teaching. She integrated the arts with math, science and history when teaching, utilizing different art forms to expose her audiences to the beauty of what the African Ancestors created. The fusion of her experience traveling to over 18 countries, coupled with the broadening of her vocabulary, is something she used when teaching and performing. She took it a step further and used this knowledge to complete her research as a Geraldine R. Dodge Teaching Fellow on ways to assist children with special needs. . 

Paula was famously known for her big, bold smile which could light up any room. She made a connection with everyone she met, finding commonality learning about their culture and language. She loved her culture and had an undeniable respect for other people’s culture. She was a unique individual who will be missed by many. 

Paula’s legacy lives on through the love of her life, her only daughter, Tiffani D. Barnes (Johnson) whom she has had the pleasure of sharing her life with, son-in-law Renard Barnes and grandchildren Naima Barnes, Nia Richardson (Barnes) and husband Charodd, Aliya Barnes and Renard A.M. Barnes. She is survived by her third husband James Franklin, sister-in-law, Monica Franklin and first husband, David Johnson (Ella). Cousins Ali Aljuwani, Cassandra , Timothy and Larry Athill. She is preceded in death by her second husband Dr. Pasmore Kuranchie and her sister Cheryl McCoy.