The first time Sidney Poitier walked into the room, I stopped talking.

NEW YORK — Sidney Poitier, the groundbreaking actor and enduring inspiration who transformed how Black people were portrayed on screen and became the first Black actor to win an Academy Award for best lead performance and the first to be a top box-office draw, has died. He was 94.

Rufus Samuel “Cokey’’ Coaxum, the father of Daytona Times columnist Jeroline McCarthy, passed away on Dec. 15 in New York. He was 102 years old.

Florida A&M University is mourning the passing Dr. Walter L. Smith, the university’s seventh president and president emeritus. Dr. Smith died in Tampa on Thursday, Nov. 25. He was 86.

Families and friends of Mrs. Teretha Kittles will celebrate her life at 2 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 27, at Shady Grove Primitive Baptist Church, 705 S. Caroline St., Daytona Beach.

Colin Powell has died from complications from COVID-19, his family members have confirmed.

Marc Bernier died Saturday of COVID-19 after a three-week battle. He was 65.

In coordination with the family of fallen Daytona Beach Police Department (DBPD) Officer Jason Raynor, events were scheduled for Sunday (Aug. 22) and Monday (Aug. 23), where respects will be paid to the officer.

Bobby Bowden, the folksy Hall of Fame coach who built Florida State into an unprecedented college football dynasty, has died. He was 91.

Actor Clarence Williams III, who starred as Lincoln Hayes on the countercultural ABC drama, “The Mod Squad” and as superstar Prince’s father in “Purple Rain,” has died. He was 81.

Paul Mooney, the longtime stand-up comedian and actor who frequently collaborated with fellow comic Richard Pryor, has died. He was 79.

PALM BEACH — As an intrepid student reporter whose dreams carried him all the way to an interview in the White House with President Barackb Obama, Damon Weaver found himself in the national spotlight at a young age. It was the Pahokee native's dream to tell the stories of others as a profess…

TALLAHASSEE – Joseph Hatchett, whose ground breaking career included becoming the first Black justice on the Florida Supreme Court, died Friday, April 30, at age 88, the Supreme Court announced on May 1.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — A chaotic 911 call. A convulsive 11 seconds of violence ending in the death of an Ohio teen. A historic verdict being broadcast in the police cruiser.