Marie Maynard Daly was born and raised in the Corona neighborhood of Queens, New York in 1921. Growing up, Daly was an avid reader and was fascinated in biology. One particular book that inspired her to pursue a career in science was Paul de Kruif's book "The Microbe Hunters." She was also inspired by her father who was interested in science. Her father had attended Cornell University with the intention of becoming a chemist, but was unable to complete his education due to a lack of funds.

Daly decided to pick up where her father left off. After graduating from an all-girls high school in New York, she enrolled in Queens College in Flushing, NY. She lived at home in order to save money and was able to graduate magna cum laude in 1942 with a degree in chemistry. After earning her degree, she was offered a fellowship to pursue graduate studies at New York University while working as a laboratory assistant at Queens College. She finished her master's degree in just one year.

Daly started tutoring chemistry students at Queens College for a year in order to save money. Then, she enrolled in the doctoral program at Columbia University in New York City. She did important research at the university and produced a dissertation entitled, "A Study of the Products Formed by the Action of Pancreatic Amylase on Corn Starch." With this, she earned her doctoral degree in 1947 after only three years in the program, becoming the first African-American woman to obtain a Ph.D. in chemistry in the United States.

After Columbia University, Daly taught for two years at Howard University in Washington, DC. She received a grant from the American Cancer Society to do postdoctoral research at the Rockefeller Institute in New York. During this time, she researched the composition and metabolism of cell nucleus components as well as other areas of biochemistry. She also began teaching at Columbia University. In 1955, she worked closely with Dr. Quentin B. Deming on the causes of heart attacks. Their work in this area was groundbreaking and as a result, she became a professor at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University in 1960 where she taught for the next 26 years.

Daly worked tirelessly to develop programs to increase enrollment of minority students in medical schools and graduate science programs. She was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa and was made a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In 1988, she established a scholarship fund for African-American science students at Queens College. Her work in the biochemistry field and her devotion to education made her a great American.

Moses Powell was born in 1941 in Norfolk, Virginia. As a child, his family moved to New York City. At an early age, Powell began training as a boxer, showing great skill at an early age. At the age of 13, Powell met martial arts instructor Florendo Visitacion, also known as “Professor Vee,” and began training in the martial arts. He became one of Visitacion’s best students, picking up the Vee-Jitsu Ryu/Vee-Jitsu Te system. He became so proficient in the style that as a green belt, Powell began instructing Third and Fourth Degree Black Belts.

By the age of 18, Powell became a Sensei and developed his own style of martial arts known as “Sanuces Ryu,” a form of jiu jitsu. This style was a combination of jiu jitsu, karate, boxing and stick fighting. It was designed as self-defense method with a focus on combat against multiple opponents. In 1965, he showcased his abilities at the 1965 World Fair in New York City.

In 1969, Powell was featured in a documentary called “SANUKUS,” which featured his style of fighting. By the early 1970s, he began travelling to Jamaica, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Panama in order to introduce his fighting style. In 1971, he also became the first martial artist to perform before the United Nations. He travelled to western Africa to do community work and training. The Republic of Benin awarded him the International Benin Award for his community efforts. In 1973, General Manuel Noriega asked Powell to be in charge of the Panamanian military hand-to-hand combat training.

In 1974, Powell performed at Madison Square Garden for the Aaron Banks Oriental World of Self-Defense demonstration. There, he performed his world famous “one-finger rollout.” The following year, Powell was featured in another documentary, “The Warrior Within,” as well as the movie “Gordon’s War.” It was at this time that Master Moses Powell created his Sanuces schools in New York, Pennsylvania and Connecticut. He then moved to Florida and established schools in Fort Lauderdale.

Powell continued his work through the 1980s to the 2000s instructing elite law enforcement units throughout the world. He helped to train members of the Drug Enforcement Agency, Federal Bureau of Investigation, and United States Secret Service. Powell also became involved in working with actors such as Wesley Snipes with martial arts moves in cinema and also helped in creating moves for video game characters. Powell died in 2005, but his pioneering legacy lives on. In 1977, he was inducted into the World Martial Arts Hall of Fame. He was one of the first African-American martial artists to be featured on the cover of “Official Karate Magazine.” His pioneering work made Powell a Great American.