In 1944 a freshman name Aurelius Buckner signed up to play football for Boise Junior College. Friends called the Boise native “Buck.” It surprised no one that Buck wanted to play football at BJC. He had lettered in football, basketball, and baseball at Boise High School.
Buckner also joined the BJC basketball team, and come spring of ’45, he joined the baseball team. Which makes Aurelius Buckner the first black player in each sport in the Boise college’s history. In both basketball seasons he played (BJC was a two-year school, thus the Junior in its name) Buckner was the team captain and led the hoopsters in scoring.
In September of 1950, Buckner married another BJC grad, Dorothy Johnson. He would go on to be an honored athletic referee, and a member of the Idaho Human Rights Commission, who would try his hand at politics in 1971, running unsuccessfully for a seat on the Boise City Council.
Dorothy Buckner was always active in community affairs, serving multiple times on the Idaho NAACP board. She became a designee in the NAACP Heritage Hall of Fame in 2003. Both of the Buckners passed away in 2003. Their daughter, Cherie Buckner-Webb became Idaho’s first African-American legislator when she was elected to represent District 19 in the Idaho House in 2010. She was elected to the Idaho Senate in 2012 and served there until retiring in 2020.
Buckner also joined the BJC basketball team, and come spring of ’45, he joined the baseball team. Which makes Aurelius Buckner the first black player in each sport in the Boise college’s history. In both basketball seasons he played (BJC was a two-year school, thus the Junior in its name) Buckner was the team captain and led the hoopsters in scoring.
In September of 1950, Buckner married another BJC grad, Dorothy Johnson. He would go on to be an honored athletic referee, and a member of the Idaho Human Rights Commission, who would try his hand at politics in 1971, running unsuccessfully for a seat on the Boise City Council.
Dorothy Buckner was always active in community affairs, serving multiple times on the Idaho NAACP board. She became a designee in the NAACP Heritage Hall of Fame in 2003. Both of the Buckners passed away in 2003. Their daughter, Cherie Buckner-Webb became Idaho’s first African-American legislator when she was elected to represent District 19 in the Idaho House in 2010. She was elected to the Idaho Senate in 2012 and served there until retiring in 2020.
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