Robert P. Best

I've been given a gift and I get to determine what to do with it," said Best, who retired this month but will stay on as a consultant at least until June."I'm pumped."

She is thinking about art, travel, time with her husband and time away from the worst wintry weather.

"I am planning.What is it that I want?What will bring about joy?"she said.

In 1970, Best, then a program director for the Urban League of Rochester, became the first black woman to serve on the City School Board.Through most of the 1970s on WHEC-TV Channel 10, she worked as a reporter, a news anchor and a talk show host , and even helped solve a major crime.

In 1980, she moved to the Greater Rochester Metro Chamber of Commerce as vice president of communications, one of the first black female managers at the Chamber.
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When the Chamber and the IMC merged to become the Rochester Business Alliance two years ago, Best served as a bridge between the organizations, said Sandy Parker, chief executive officer or the RBA.
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Best "would look at issues from the perspective of how a decision would impact our members and how it would be perceived by the public," Parker said.
...
Best, who will be 62 in March, is a native of Norfolk, Va.She and her husband, Robert P. Best, arrived in Rochester in 1965 when he began his job as a research engineer at Eastman Kodak Co.He has been retired for about seven years.

Best ran a development program at the Urban League.She worked for more than a year as a reporter at the Democrat and Chronicle.She also was part owner of a public relations business.In 1970, she was elected to the school board, serving a year as board vice president after a legal battle over her city residency status.

During her eight years at WHEC-TV , from 1972 to 1980 , she delivered daily news reports, won awards for her work and, for a time, hosted a daily talk show called Rochester Today.

In 1978, she helped recover a Picasso painting stolen from the Memorial Art Gallery.The man who had stolen the painting contacted her and asked her to act as the go-between in negotiations for payments with the gallery.When Best went to meet the man, an FBI agent posed as her cameraman.

She made the move to the Chamber as part of a search for new directions in her career.

"When you decide what you want to do and you feel it in your gut and you are firm, something magical happens," she said."That's how things have always been in my life."

Best, the mother of two daughters, said she encountered no resistance because of gender or race at the Chamber.

"Maybe I was too naïve to see it or it was never in front of my face," she said.
...
In her retirement, Best, an accomplished watercolorist, hopes to immerse herself in art, perhaps by living for a time in Paris or Italy.She also says she wants to continue to share what she has learned.

"When you learn something, you should give it out," Best said.

On June 1, top media executives, business leaders and elected officials in Rochester were at George Eastman House to honor Best.
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At WHEC-TV (Channel 10), Best was the first female black reporter, anchor and talk show host.

She may not have been the most courageous reporter, but through her work as a journalist, Best helped the FBI to recover a Picasso painting stolen from Memorial Art Gallery.

She may not have been the best politician in Rochester's history, but she was the first black woman to serve on the school board.

She may not have been the best business leader in town, but among the best she was.

As Greater Rochester Metro Chamber of Commerce vice president of communications, she was the first black female manager at the Chamber.

As she retires as vice president of communications for the Rochester Business Alliance after more than 25 years in the spotlight of politics, television and business, Best is leaving behind another legacy.

This mother of two daughters, and wife to retired Eastman Kodak Co. engineer Robert P. Best, will help future journalists attending colleges and universities in the Rochester area via the scholarship established in her name by RABJ.As she said at the ceremony, the success of any venture is in good communication.

I've been given a gift and I get to determine what to do with it," said Best, who retired this month but will stay on as a consultant at least until June."I'm pumped."

She is thinking about art, travel, time with her husband and time away from the worst wintry weather.

"I am planning.What is it that I want?What will bring about joy?"she said.

In 1970, Best, then a program director for the Urban League of Rochester, became the first black woman to serve on the City School Board.Through most of the 1970s on WHEC-TV Channel 10, she worked as a reporter, a news anchor and a talk show host - and even helped solve a major crime.

In 1980, she moved to the Greater Rochester Metro Chamber of Commerce as vice president of communications, one of the first black female managers at the Chamber.
...
When the Chamber and the IMC merged to become the Rochester Business Alliance two years ago, Best served as a bridge between the organizations, said Sandy Parker, chief executive officer or the RBA.
...
Best "would look at issues from the perspective of how a decision would impact our members and how it would be perceived by the public," Parker said.
...
Best, who will be 62 in March, is a native of Norfolk, Va.She and her husband, Robert P. Best, arrived in Rochester in 1965 when he began his job as a research engineer at Eastman Kodak Co.He has been retired for about seven years.

Best ran a development program at the Urban League.She worked for more than a year as a reporter at the Democrat and Chronicle.She also was part owner of a public relations business.In 1970, she was elected to the school board, serving a year as board vice president after a legal battle over her city residency status.

During her eight years at WHEC-TV - from 1972 to 1980 - she delivered daily news reports, won awards for her work and, for a time, hosted a daily talk show called Rochester Today.

In 1978, she helped recover a Picasso painting stolen from the Memorial Art Gallery.The man who had stolen the painting contacted her and asked her to act as the go-between in negotiations for payments with the gallery.When Best went to meet the man, an FBI agent posed as her cameraman.

She made the move to the Chamber as part of a search for new directions in her career.

"When you decide what you want to do and you feel it in your gut and you are firm, something magical happens," she said."That's how things have always been in my life."

Best, the mother of two daughters, said she encountered no resistance because of gender or race at the Chamber.

"Maybe I was too naïve to see it or it was never in front of my face," she said.
...
In her retirement, Best, an accomplished watercolorist, hopes to immerse herself in art, perhaps by living for a time in Paris or Italy.She also says she wants to continue to share what she has learned.

"When you learn something, you should give it out," Best said.

I've been given a gift and I get to determine what to do with it," said Best, who retired this month but will stay on as a consultant at least until June."I'm pumped."She is thinking about art, travel, time with her husband and time away from the worst wintry weather."I am planning.What is it that I want?What will bring about joy?"she said.

In 1970, Best, then a program director for the Urban League of Rochester, became the first black woman to serve on the City School Board.Through most of the 1970s on WHEC-TV Channel 10, she worked as a reporter, a news anchor and a talk show host - and even helped solve a major crime.In 1980, she moved to the Greater Rochester Metro Chamber of Commerce as vice president of communications, one of the first black female managers at the Chamber.
...
"When the Chamber and the IMC merged to become the Rochester Business Alliance two years ago, Best served as a bridge between the organizations, said Sandy Parker, chief executive officer or the RBA.
...
Best "would look at issues from the perspective of how a decision would impact our members and how it would be perceived by the public," Parker said.
...
Best, who will be 62 in March, is a native of Norfolk, Va.She and her husband, Robert P. Best, arrived in Rochester in 1965 when he began his job as a research engineer at Eastman Kodak Co.He has been retired for about seven years.Best ran a development program at the Urban League.She worked for more than a year as a reporter at the Democrat and Chronicle.She also was part owner of a public relations business.In 1970, she was elected to the school board, serving a year as board vice president after a legal battle over her city residency status.During her eight years at WHEC-TV - from 1972 to 1980 - she delivered daily news reports, won awards for her work and, for a time, hosted a daily talk show called Rochester Today.In 1978, she helped recover a Picasso painting stolen from the Memorial Art Gallery.The man who had stolen the painting contacted her and asked her to act as the go-between in negotiations for payments with the gallery.When Best went to meet the man, an FBI agent posed as her cameraman.She made the move to the Chamber as part of a search for new directions in her career."When you decide what you want to do and you feel it in your gut and you are firm, something magical happens," she said."That's how things have always been in my life."Best, the mother of two daughters, said she encountered no resistance because of gender or race at the Chamber."Maybe I was too naïve to see it or it was never in front of my face," she said.
...
In her retirement, Best, an accomplished watercolorist, hopes to immerse herself in art, perhaps by living for a time in Paris or Italy.She also says she wants to continue to share what she has learned."When you learn something, you should give it out," Best said.