In Celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day and Black History Month, the Gwinnett Chamber salutes the Rho Kappa Lambda Chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and the RKL Education Foundation, Inc. The Gwinnett Chamber knows the power of working together and the success that it can bring to a community. By uniting as one voice and one community, the people and organizations of Gwinnett have created a solid award-winning environment that excels on all fronts. It is because of organizations like Rho Kappa Lambda Chapter of the Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and the RKL Education Foundation, Inc. and their achievements that have made a winning environment for Gwinnett. Join the Gwinnett Chamber as we come together as one voice and one community to continue to put the “win� in Gwinnett.
For more information visit www.gwinnettchamber.org or call 770.232.3000.
Welcome Greetings Friends and Supporters of RKL, It is my pleasure to welcome you to the 3rd Annual Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Unity Breakfast of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Rho Kappa Lambda Chapter in partnership with our non-profit arm, the RKL Education Foundation, Inc. Through our Foundation we are able to provide academic scholarships to assist worthy college bound seniors to defray the cost of pursuing higher education. In addition to providing scholarships to several students in Gwinnett, we have managed to ease the transition of many more through the ranks of academia by offering various enrichment programs to better prepare our youth in their pursuit of a brighter future. Our chapter just celebrated 13 years of service in the Gwinnett community this year. Over that span of time we have provided various initiatives in the areas of Financial Literacy, Education, Health & Wellness, Political Awareness and very dear to our spirit, youth mentoring. It’s our passion and commitment to improve our collective circumstance that fuels our outreach. In alignment with one of our national programs, which expanded its scope three years ago from “Go-to-High School Go-to-College” to “From High Chair to Higher Education” seeing the need to engage our young earlier in their development. This shift in focus validated the foresight of RKL as we had already piloted a mentoring program targeted at middle school aged kids. The opportunity has allowed us to develop other mentoring programs such as the Future Men of Distinction enrichment program in partnership with Hopewell Baptist Church. We welcome opportunities to collaborate with other like-minded organizations. Adopt-A-Family and Adopt-A-Road are some of our local initiatives. One of our more innovative undertakings for which the Chapter has been recognized, is as a founding partner of the Gwinnett Parents Coalition to Dismantle the School to Prison Pipeline (Gwinnett STOPP) alongside the NAACP Gwinnett Branch and the ACLU of Georgia. We consider ourselves ‘Servants of All’ and believe united we can overcome the challenge of the day. With your continued support, we look forward to future opportunities to harness our talents for the betterment of Gwinnett and Greater Atlanta at large. Sincerely, Aaron L. Ruffin, President Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Rho Kappa Lambda Chapter
Program Invocation Special Presentation by God’s Grace Dancers Welcome Brother Andre Neblett Diversity Awards Presentation Brother Aaron Ruffin & Brother Baron Griffin Musical Selection Ivan Barksdale (FMOD Mentee)
Introduction of Speaker Brother Lorenzo Gonzalez Keynote Speaker - Pastor Aaron D. Rushing Rev. Dr. MLK Jr. Litany Future Men of Distinction & Guest Closing / Special Acknowledgements Brother Aaron Ruffin
Keynote Speaker
Pastor Aaron Rushing Aaron D. Rushing is the founder and Senior Pastor of Freedom Christian Ministry in Lawrenceville, Georgia. While serving as a deacon, he accepted the call of God to minister the Word and assist the body of Christ come to an understanding of the freedom God has called for their life. A humble yet powerful spiritual leader and Man of God, Pastor Aaron Rushing is a constant advocate for spreading the Word about God’s love and mercy to all those who have ears to hear. Licensed in 1996 and ordained in 2000 as a minister of the Gospel, Pastor Aaron Rushing fervently serves the Lord. Pastor Rushing holds a Master of Arts in Biblical and Theological Studies from Luther Rice Seminary, Lithonia, GA, a Bachelor of Arts degree in Business Administration and Accounting from Winston-Salem State University, WinstonSalem, NC and a Certification in Biblical Counseling from Christian Research and Development in Philadelphia, PA. These personal studies in theology, accounting and finance have stirred his interest in an ongoing study of God’s Word as it relates to financial stewardship. A native of North Carolina, Pastor Aaron D. Rushing has over twenty five years of experience serving in ministry within the local church. His various ministry experiences include directing a Minister’s In-Training Program, teaching financial stewardship classes, providing pre-marital, marital, and financial counseling to lay members, serving as a member of the missions ministry and serving as a youth leader. He has also participated in short-term mission trips to Africa. Pastor Aaron D. Rushing and his wife Assistant Pastor Sherri H. Rushing of thirty years colabor in ministry. They are the proud parents of Zachary, Natasha and Evan Rushing. They possess the Aquila and Priscilla Spirit which serves as inspiration to members of the church community to work together as teachers and preachers of the gospel. Pastor Aaron Rushing is a loving leader, teacher, preacher and servant of the Lord.
Diversity Community Service Award Recipient Pastor Richard B. Haynes Pastor Richard B. Haynes is a native of Gainesville, Georgia. The son of a Baptist Minister, he has been in service for the Lord basically all of his life. He has an enormous love for the Word of God and the people of God, and enthusiastically fulfills his call to serve the present age. Pastor Haynes’ daily walk exemplifies the words of his favorite hymn: “Lord I want to live for thee, every day and hour; let Thy spirit be with me in its saving power”. Pastor Haynes accepted the call to preach the gospel in 1981 under the pastorate of Doctor Winfred Hope at Ebenezer Baptist Church West, Athens, Georgia. Shortly after being ordained, he was called to Pastor Springfield Baptist Church, Comer, Georgia, where he served for eight years. For two of those eight years he also served as Pastor of Springfield Baptist Church, Lula, Georgia. In April1988, Pastor Haynes was called to pastor Salem Missionary Baptist Church in Lilburn, Georgia, where he continues to serve as Senior Pastor. Salem is recognized as one of the oldest and largest African American congregations in Gwinnett County. Under Pastor Haynes’ effective leadership, the membership at SMBC has increased from under 100 to over 4500 members, including approximately 40 Associates Ministers, and equally as many auxiliaries. He is past president of the Ninth District of the General Missionary Baptist Convention of Georgia, past Chaplain for the Gwinnett County Sheriff ’s Department, and past Director of the Statewide Minister’s Convention for the state of Georgia. In May 2003, he received a much deserved honorary doctorate from Antioch Baptist Bible College in Marietta, Georgia. In February, 2011 Dr. Haynes served as guest Chaplain at the capitol in Atlanta, Georgia, and in June, 2012, he was invited to serve as Chaplain for the day at the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington, D.C. In April 2012, he received the Civil Rights Leadership Award from the Governor of Georgia, in recognition for many years of dedicated service and accomplishments in the area of racial equality. Additionally, he serves on the Advisory Board for the Gwinnett County Board of Education, where he was instrumental in the recruitment of the first male African-American principal for Gwinnett County Public Schools. Pastor Richard Haynes resides in Lilburn, Georgia with his wife First Lady Beverly. They are the parents of three adult children, Sheena and Jayson (Quantrishia), and have three grandsons, Demetrious, Richard Benjamin and Jayson VaShon.
Social Action Award Recipient
Mrs. Beauty P. Baldwin
Mrs. Beauty Baldwin is a native of Baldwin County Georgia. She is graduate of Savannah State University with a B. S. degree in Mathematics. She also has a Masters degree in Vocational Education and Administration and Supervision from the University of Georgia and a Specialist degree in Administration and Supervision, also from UGA. Her educational experience includes teaching Mathematics in Schley, Muscogee and Gwinnett Counties in Georgia for 10 years. She served as Vocational Education teacher for four years, Assistant Principal at Central Gwinnett High (Lawrenceville, GA) for two years and Principal of Buford (Georgia) Middle School for four years. Mrs. Baldwin retired in June 1994 as Superintendent of Buford (Georgia) City Schools after 10 years of service. In 1997, she was called out of retirement to become Administrator of Hopewell Christian Academy, Norcross, Georgia. Mrs. Baldwin has participated in various local and state boards and organizations. She had been active with the following: • Georgia Association of Educational Leaders • Leadership Gwinnett (Founding Steering Committee Member) • Georgia Board of Medical Assistance (Appointed by Governor Joe Frank Harris) • Georgia Association of Educators • National Association of Educators • American Business Women Association (Education Committee Chair) • Big Brother/Big Sister Advisory Board • American Red Cross – Metro Atlanta Advisory Board • Gwinnett County Human Services Task Force • 550 Development Association • Gwinnett Foundation • Georgia Council on Adult Literacy • United Way – Chair of the Norcross Prototype “Getting Children Ready to Learn by Kindergarten” • Northeast Council of Boy Scouts of America • Gwinnett Rotary Club • Gwinnett County Board of Elections • Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce • Hopewell Baptist Church, Finance Committee Chair • Alpha Kappa Alpha (Upsilon Alpha Omega Chapter) • Human Relations Advisory Council for Gwinnett County Schools, Co-Chair • Gwinnett Childrens Shelter She is married to Deacon Lucious Baldwin and they have one daughter and son-in law Geri and Lorenzo and two grandchildren named Loren and Evan.
Corporate Social Responsibility Award Recipient Mr. Rory Johnson
Is a native of Joliet, Illinois , He graduate from Providence Catholic High School in 1975, where in April 2011 he was inducted in the Hall of Fame for his outstanding Track record. He attended Illinois Benedictine College, majored in Psychology, where he was All American and NCAA National Long Jump Champion in 1979, to this day he still holds that record at IBC. Rory moved to Gwinnett County in 1987 where he married his girlfriend of 7 years. Rory and Gwen have been married for almost 26 yrs. They have two sons, Brandon (25) and Renoldo (24) and he’s a proud grandpa of 9 month old ReQuan. Rory has been the Executive Director of the Lawrenceville Boys and Girls Club for 14 years. Recently he was promoted to Senior Executive Director over two other clubs alone with the Lawrenceville club. Mr. Johnson and his staff have made a tremendous improvement in their community. In fact the Lawrenceville Club has become the number one club in the Metro Atlanta Area. It’s not just the after school program that has everyone’s attention, however, the club has become a home away from home for more than 700 youth, from the ages of 6 to 18, (300) of them being teenagers he serves yearly, which makes his club one of the largest and most diversified clubs in the area. Rory’s outstanding achievements have been recognized and have allowed the club to be awarded several grants. He’s opened his doors to the community as well, bringing in such programs as; Youth & Adult GED classes, Diamond in the Rough for girls, Money Matters, Junior Achievement, The 100 Black Men of North Metro Atlanta Mentoring Program, Karate, UPS Road Code Program, Toastmasters and so many other great programs. He has recently teamed up with Central Gwinnett High School, GGC College and the surrounding Middle Schools to kick off his Homework and Tutoring program. He also recently received the Susan Robbie Moore Community Service Award, awarded to him by the Gwinnett County School System and The United Ebony Society of Gwinnett County Inc. “Mr. J”, as he’s known by at the club, his work just doesn’t stop there; he can be found throughout community assisting people in any way possible. He has been actively involved with The United Ebony Society for several years. He’s a spokes person for the United Way, and if severing his immediate community were not enough, he and his wife are heavily involved in their church mission’s work, where they travel around the world doing the work of missionaries. Rory’s past time love is bass fishing, in which he is an honorary member of the Rob Benders Bass Club for his lifetime commitment for over 20 years.
Rho Kappa Lambda Rho Kappa Lambda, one of the youngest alumni chapters in the Atlanta Metropolitan area, was formally founded in 2000. The chapter’s dedication to serving the Gwinnett community is evidenced through its fundraising efforts (the generating of more than $25,000 in scholarships for local high school youth), the establishment of a college-alumni relationship with North Georgia State University (Tau Rho Chapter), and the establishment of its 501(c) (3) RKL Education Foundation, Inc. which funds and promotes a variety of educational and philanthropic events for the community. www.rhokappalambda.org
Alpha Phi Alpha Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., a non-profit service organization, is the first and oldest intercollegiate Greek-Letter fraternity established for African-Americans. Founded December 4, 1906 on the campus of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, Alpha proudly boasts of having initiated over 100,000 college-trained men. With individuals operating in over 700 college and graduate chapters around the world, Alpha Phi Alpha continues to forge ahead with innovative programs on Teenage Pregnancy Prevention, Tutoring Programs, Leadership Development Institute for High School Students and a National Alliance with the Boy Scouts of America. In 1998, the fraternity was authorized by the United States Congress to establish a foundation, The Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Foundation, to manage the fundraising and design of a memorial to Dr. King. The memorial was completed and dedicated in late summer of 2011 and currently open to the public. In addition, the Fraternity has historically supported the NAACP, the Urban League, the United Negro College Fund, and the numerous scholarship and educational initiatives of its self-governing chapters.
RKL Education Foundation, Inc The RKL Education Foundation, Inc. is a 501(C) (3) nonprofit organization based in GwinnettCounty, GA. RKLEF was established in May 14, 2002 by nine men interested in consolidating their efforts in mentoring and the uplifting of humanity through charitable, educational, and social activities. The foundation has helped young men and women, ages 12-21 years, who are seeking to be leaders and attend college. We also provide educational, motivational and skill building tools on issues of responsibility, relationships, teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases. In addition to helping the youth, RKLEF also helps in creating economic development within the community and provides viable opportunities for positive change. The foundation is based upon three primary values: Manly Deeds, Scholarship and Love for all mankind.
Future Men of Distinction Future Men of Distinction is a mentoring program established by Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc. Rho Kappa Lambda Chapter in Gwinnett County, GA. The program’s focus is to aid and uplift the young men in the Gwinnett community by executing a curriculum based on our national education program High Chair to Higher EducationŠ, which instills the positive growth and respect all men should possess. Our Goal: Provide positive guidance and leadership, in the transformation, from young men to young adults. Our Objective: To show our young men how to walk with pride, respect themselves and everyone around them, and be the leaders and mentors of tomorrow. The program focuses on four (4) areas of development of our Future Men of Distinction, which includes Academic Development, Leadership Development, Personal Development, and Social Development. Sessions will be held Saturday mornings from 10am to 12 noon at the Hopewell Baptist Church 182 Hunter Street Norcross, Georgia 30071 For complete schedule of weekends contact fmd@rhokappalambda.org
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