Virginia Norfleet, the Founder and Executive Director of the Haverstraw African American Connection (HAAC), has dedicated her career to educating the public about African American history in Haverstraw. The HAAC, a 501(c)(3) organization established in 2008, works to bring this history to schools, libraries, colleges, and community groups across Rockland County. Her mission is “to promote awareness, acceptance, and appreciation of the past while engaging with and improving the present.”
Norfleet’s research has uncovered connections between Rockland’s pre-Revolutionary families and African American history. This work has led to collaborations with institutions such as the Rockland Holocaust Museum and Center for Tolerance and Education. The museum now features an exhibit on American slavery in the region. Under her leadership, a drug-ridden area on Clinton Street was transformed into the Haverstraw African American Memorial Park with assistance from community volunteers.
As a notable resident of Haverstraw, Norfleet has been instrumental in preserving the history of one of Hudson Valley’s oldest slaveholding communities. In recognition of her efforts to bring African American history to local students and residents, she was inducted into the Rockland County Civil Rights Hall of Fame in 2019 and honored by the Town of Haverstraw during Black History Month in 2021.
Growing up as the youngest of nine siblings in a poor section of Haverstraw during the 1960s, Norfleet faced economic challenges but overcame them through determination. She became a successful real estate entrepreneur and civil rights leader. At age 19, she left community college where she had a basketball scholarship to pursue homeownership—a decision that helped her learn trades like electrical work, HVAC, and plumbing.
Norfleet is recognized for her commitment to promoting African American history, education, and empowerment within her community.
