GM retiree and Hurricane Katrina volunteer
Harold L. Singleton, Sr. has lived a fulfilling life and has many accomplishments. So when the call went out from the Michigan Black Caucus for help during Hurricane Katrina he was one of the first persons to sign up.
A native of Texas, Singleton attended Tennessee State University an education major; he also played football. He next moved to Chicago, IL where he became a teacher, he taught elementary and high school, spending most of the 1960’s teaching and working with teenage help groups, which ultimately lead him to Sears YMCA where he became Executive Director of the YMCA, staying with the company for 19 years. Singleton went on to join Ben Gellar Chevy Dealers in 1967. A friend told Harold about employment with GM Oldsmobile, his experience at the Chevy dealership helped him land a job with GM in the marketing office. In 1971 Harold joined Minority Dealer Development and moved to Lansing; his position entailed finding minority owned business dealerships. After 5 years, Harold went to Washington D.C. on a special assignment; he spent 2 years working in the National Alliance for Businessmen working with historical black colleges on setting up industrial cluster programs which established relationship between businesses and historically black educational institutions.
Returning to Oldsmobile, Singleton worked in Pluman Resources, working on company-wide diversity until 1992. He next transferred to the cooperate office where he reviewed affirmative action. He retired in 2001.
He was on the Board of Directors of the Lansing MLK Commission and of Cristo Rey, Past President of the Greater Lansing Golf Association, Past Master of Capitol Lodge #8, and is a 33rd degree Mason. He is also a member of Kappa Alpha Psi.
Singleton is married to his high school sweetheart, they have two sons and a daughter.
