{"value"=>"<p>Dating from 1938 to 1988, this series contains materials related to McLaurin's personal life, which is arranged by topic into Correspondence; Friends and Family; Edward Waters College; Events; and Clippings.</p> <p>Correspondence is dated from 1952 to 1988, and contains social and personal letters unrelated to McLaurin's professional work. The series holds correspondence with his family members, holiday greeting cards, condolences after Margaret McLaurin's death in 1983, letters of recommendations for friends, and correspondence concerning property.</p> <p>Friends and Family files are dated from 1938 to 1986, and hold many items McLaurin kept after his wife, Margaret McLaurin, died in 1983. Materials include her wedding book, clippings she collected, notes about her position at the Victory Day Care Center, and a carefully curated list of correspondents that varied year to year. Also of note is a partially filled baby milestone book for Benjamin, Jr. Recollections, poetry, and other writings done by his friends are present. The personal journals and stories by Rae Brandstein, founder of the National Committee for Rural Schools and entirely unrelated to that work, are also included here.</p> <p>The Edward Waters College files, which date from 1955 to 1980, document McLaurin's active participation in the college's alumni associations and the Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity. These files include event planning materials, meeting minutes, flyers, and clippings related to the college.</p> <p>Events files, dated from 1947 to 1988, contain conferences proceedings and notes, invitations, speech drafts, and extensive vacation planning documentation. Of particular note among the speaking invitations is one from Morehouse College, where McLaurin's son, Benjamin Jr., attended. Materials related to the organization of a 1975 testimonial luncheon hosted by the Reunion of Old Timers in honor of McLaurin's lifetime community service work, including guest lists, invitations, venue arrangement, and publicity materials, are also held here.</p> <p>McLaurin was a keen follower of the news, and collected clippings relevant to his interests. The clippings are tangentially related to his service commitments. McLaurin kept news clippings about outstanding achievements by Black students, tracked news about voter intimidation in the South in the years directly following <em>Brown v. Board of Education</em>, local strikes and union contracts, and clippings about himself.</p>"}