Dr. Sebi (Alfredo Bowman) November 26, 1933 - August 6, 2016

"He is a cosmic celestial star," said Annette Thomas, a co-founder of Dr. Sebi's Usha Research Institute and now the owner of Greenleaf Herbal Solutions. We exchanged text messages about Dr. Sebi's passing a few hours after his daughter Saama reported his death on Instagram.

I trust Sebi had a peaceful crossing over.

I met him in Washington, D.C. in the early 1980s, when I produced public affairs features for radio station WHUR-FM, and just a few years after Sebi's transition from Alfredo Bowman the steam engineer to Dr. Sebi the herbalist. When I saw him for the first time at the Community Warehouse in D.C., Dr. Sebi stood tall, slender, statuesque, much like a Maasai tribesman. When he spoke, English words flowed clearly and robustly from his Yul Brynner-sounding voice, even though his first language was Spanish.

Words about natural and unnatural foods and his analogies of human and animal physiology, especially gorillas and polar bears, pulsated throughout the room. Anyone who has witnessed a Dr. Sebi lecture more than once knows firsthand how Dr. Sebi, without fail, will compare the food of a gorilla with the food of a polar bear. I can hear him now.

We will pick up the torch and carry on in Dr. Sebi's name. Much work is still needed to teach an alkaline and tasty way to eat and live well. Come back stronger and even wiser Sebi. Thank you for the healing. Thank you for the knowledge. And yes, “herbs are for the healing of the nation.”

First published April 11, 2017