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Postive Community Awards & Gala
HELPING TO BUILD STRONGER COMMUNITIES
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Prudential is proud to support The Positive Community.
WE SALUTE TONIGHT’S AWARD RECIPIENTS.
© 2013. Prudential, the Prudential logo, the Rock symbol and Bring Your Challenges are service marks of Prudential Financial, Inc. and its related entities, registered in many jurisdictions worldwide. 0205991-00005-00 A4097
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014 2_Community Positive 8x10.5.indd 1
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The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Circa 1980
From Jean and Adrian
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n behalf of the entire Positive Community team, we extend our heartfelt thanks to all. To be here with you on this blessed occasion marks a milestone achievement in our journey that began 15 years ago, as we stepped out on faith to create a media product that speaks to the soul and hopes of our people. Because the Black Church has been the undergirding of our community, it was natural that we start from there and celebrate the lifestyles of people of faith in our publication. We are appreciative of the many churches that have supported The Positive Community by joining The Great Roll Call to Progress, and we also want to thank our advertisers and community institutions that contributed to our success. On this occasion, it is with great pleasure that we recognize some of the individuals and organizations that have made a positive difference in the community. People like Gus Heningburg and Amiri Baraka, torchbearers who we were honored to feature in the pages of this publication. We have reprinted their stories within these pages. “By their fruits you will know them� as you read and are inspired by the community-building efforts and ideals of the thousands of forward thinkers who have graced the pages of The Positive Community over the years. Thank you for your presence and participation in this special evening!
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala The Positive Community Awards & Gala Sponsored By Prudential Reception 6:00 pm–7:00 pm Music by Brick City Kids
Awards Gala 7:00 pm–10:00 pm Invocation .......................................................... Rev. Dr. Ambassador Suzan Johnson Cook Negro National Anthem ................................... Rev. Dr. Stephanie Minatee and Jubilation! Remarks ....................................................... Johns Schrieber, President and CEO of NJPAC Musical selection ...................................................... Determined: Rev. Minatee & Jubilation Welcome ........................................................................... Jean Nash Wells & Adrian Council
Dinner Is Served Musical Selections ................................................... Metropolitan Gospel Big Band (MGBB)
The Positive Community Awards Education Award Presenter
Recipient
Dr. Kahlil Gibran Muhammad ............................................. Ursula Parrish Daniels Ed.D. Executive Director, Schomburg Center for Research in Black History
Executive Assistant to the President Bergen Community College
Health Award Rev. Kahlil Carmichael ............................................................................ Terrie M. Williams Pastor & Founder It is Well Living Church CEO of the Fitness Doctor, Inc. The Positive Community Columnist
Mental Health Advocate President & CEO The Terrie Williams Agency
Business Award Rev. Dr. DeForest B. Soaries ................................................................... Lowell Hawthorne Pastor First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens Founder and Author Dfree Breaking Free from Financial Slavery
President & CEO Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill
Faith Award Rev. Ronald Grant ................................................. United Missionary Baptist Association President Empire Missionary Baptist Convention
Rev. Dr. Carl Washington, Jr. Moderator
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala Musical Selection
The Positive Community Choice Awards Presenters Kimberly Baxter McLain
President and CEO, Foundation for Newark’s Future
Tamika Mallory President of Mallory Consulting
Business Award .............................................................................................. Beverly Riddick Health Award ................................................................ Rev. Dr. Philip M Bonaparte, MD Education Award .................................................................... A’Dorian Murray-Thompson
Gus Heningburg Award for Excellence in Community Service Presenter
Recipient
Lata N. Reddy ....................................................................................................... Amiri Baraka VP, Corporate Social Responsibility President, The Prudential Foundation
posthumously
Accepting Mayor Ras J. Baraka Special Presentation ..................................................................................... Imhotep Gary Byrd Benediction ...................................................................................... Rev. Dr. Guy Campbell, Jr. PresidentGeneral Baptist Convention of NJ
Closing Remarks
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
The Foundation for Newark’s Future
congratulates Positive Community on its 15th Anniversary and tonight’s deserving honorees
&
remembers
the life of Amiri Baraka
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Education Award Ursula Parrish Daniels, Ed.D. Executive Assistant to the President Bergen Community College
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r. Ursula Parrish Daniels has been an advocate for the empowerment of women and the rights of children throughout her professional career. Her deep concern regarding the disparities that exist for students of color is documented through her numerous efforts on their behalf. Dr. B. Kaye Walter, Bergen’s president, has described her work as “extraordinary.” She has served as an educational consultant for IBM, the National Black Child Development Institute (NBCDI), New York City Public Schools, The Institute for Research and Professional Development, and Time Warner, Inc. “Time to Read,” Time Warner’s national literacy program, was launched at Englewood’s Janis E. Dismus Middle School as a result of her efforts, and Dr. Daniels was pivotal to the revival of the NAACP Campus Youth Group chartered over 25 years ago at Bergen. Dr. Daniels has served as president of the Bergen/Passaic Chapter of the Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc.; Chair of the Board of Directors of the Urban League for Bergen County (ULBC); a member of the Board of Directors of the Center for Food Action and a member of the Board of the West Side Infant Day Care Center. She is also a member of Delta Sigma Theta, Inc., and the New York Girl Friends, Inc. She is the founding director of the College Child Development Center at Bergen Community College. Dr. Daniels has received myriad awards for her community work, including: The 2012 Trail Blazer Award for Exemplary Membership from the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc. Bergen/ Passaic Chapter; the 2010 Martin Luther King Outstanding Bergen County Citizen Award from Mt. Calvary Baptist Church; the Bergen Family Center Award; National Negro Business and Professional Women’s Association’s Sojourner Truth Award; Pioneer Woman of the 90s Award and the Kathryn Miller Award from the Paramus Unitarian Church. Dr. Daniels earned her bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Ohio Wesleyan University, a Master’s degree in Early Childhood Education from Hunter College, and a Doctorate in Child Development and Educational Psychology from New York University.
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The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Health Award Terrie M. Williams, LCSW Mental Health Advocate Founder & President The Terrie Williams Agency
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errie M. Williams, one of Ebony magazine’s “Power 150” for Activism, Woman’s Day magazine’s “50 Women On A Mission To Change The World” and a Black History Makers honoree on the 2013 theGrio 100 list, is an advocate for change and empowerment. For more than 30 years, she has used her influence and communications expertise to educate and engage audiences in causes. She launched The Terrie Williams Agency (TTWA) in 1988 with superstar Eddie Murphy and the late jazz legend Miles Davis as her first clients and has continued to represent some of the biggest personalities and businesses in entertainment, sports, business and politics. TTWA is a premiere incubator and legendary breeding ground for public relations talent; the Agency’s former employee roster makes up a vast majority of the “who’s who” in the public relations industry. Terrie is known as a consummate deal maker—connecting the right people with the right situations. She was responsible for the initial financing for the renowned Hue-Man Bookstore located in Harlem, NY-- and was associate producer for the 2008 Broadway production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof. Terrie’s critically acclaimed book, Black Pain: It Just Looks Like We’re Not Hurting (2008), is credited with starting an unprecedented national dialogue that recounts her personal struggles with depression and the impact the stigma of mental illness has particularly on the African-American community. Her dialogue has led to a national mental health advocacy campaign called “Sharing Ourselves…Healing Starts With Us” with the collaboration with the Ad Council’s and SAMHSA’s Campaign of Mental Health Recovery. The campaign has garnered $2.5 million in donated national advertising space and 11 million media impressions to significantly heighten the awareness and importance of mental and emotional health. Terrie is a member of the NCAA Mental Health Task Force and spoke at the United Nations’ World Mental Health Day in 2012 where she provided a global perspective on mental health and depression-- and shared some commonalities that exist worldwide. Terrie will soon launch a self-care, lifestyle series based on her philosophy of re-inventing oneself by addressing challenges and scars that re-surface in ones’ life. Not a lecture, the experience is a guided dialogue between Terrie and participants. It is specifically designed to bring about positive and permanent shifts in the quality of life for your employees. These shifts make available a new and unique kind of freedom and power: The freedom to be absolutely at ease no matter where they are, who they are with, or what the circumstance—the power to be in action effectively in those areas of their lives that are important to them. Terrie has a B. A. cum laude in Psychology and Sociology from Brandeis University, an M.S. in Social Work from Columbia University, is a licensed clinical therapist and has received numerous awards for her mental health advocacy work. Terrie is an online contributor to numerous publications including CNN.com, Ebony.com , theGrio.com and a clinical therapist on WE tv’s SWV Reunited.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Business Award Lowell Fitzgerald Hawthorne, O.D. President & CEO Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill
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owell F. Hawthorne, president and chief executive officer of Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill, the nation’s largest Caribbean franchise chain, is a son of the Jamaican soil. He migrated to the United States in 1981 along with his family and found employment as an accountant with the New York Police Department. In 1989 he pursued his desire to create economic stability for his family and opened a bakery on East Gun Hill Road, in Bronx, NY with the help of his wife, his siblings and their spouses. The bakery grew rapidly and soon gave birth to several other outlets in the New York metropolitan area. Today Golden Krust Caribbean Bakery & Grill operates over 100 stores in 9 states and provides employment for over 1000 persons. Mr. Hawthorne is a product of the City University of New York system. Over the years, he has been bestowed with many prestigious awards for his entrepreneurial prowess including the prestigious Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 2002. In October 17, 2005 Lowell was conferred with the highest national honor from his native home Jamaica, the Order of Distinction (O.D.) for service to Commerce and Community Development. Lowell is a sought-after motivational speaker who has served on many executive boards and is currently a director of the Caribbean American Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CACCI) and chairman of the Partnership Board of the American Foundation for the University of the West Indies (AFUWI). In September of 2011 he was conferred with a Honorary Doctor of Letters Degree by Medgar Evers College for his outstanding contribution to the community and in that same year, he was named the Jamaica Observer’s Business Leader of the Year for 2010. In 2012 he was also conferred with an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree by the University of the West Indies. His most recent achievement is the completion of his autobiography The Baker’s Son – a gripping narrative which chronicles his profound journey from Jamaica to the United States and the development of a small Jamaican business into a highly successful American business empire. Lowell Hawthorne believes “a mind is a terrible thing to waste and a positive community is everybody’s business.” His passion for philanthropy is demonstrated by the establishment of the Mavis & Ephraim Hawthorne Golden Krust Foundation, named in honor of his late parents. Since 2005 the Foundation has awarded over 150 scholarships to aspiring students both in the United States and Jamaica. Lowell is happily married to Lorna and has four children.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Faith Award The United Missionary Baptist Association of New York City & Vicinity, Inc. Moderator
Rev. Dr. Carl L. Washington
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“United we are - all for one and one for all”
or several years, there had been talk of unifying three existing independent Baptist organizations that were operating in the same vicinity and dedicated to a similar mission and objectives. This new body would become a formal member of the Empire Baptist Missionary Convention of New York State, Incorporated. In September 1955, this idea came to fruition. The three organizations involved in the merger were the General Baptist Association; the Progressive Baptist Association; and the Manhattan, Bronx, Westchester and Staten Island Baptist Association. The initial call meeting for their amalgamation was held at Southern Baptist Church in Manhattan, where Dr. C. B. Wilson was pastor. The session was marked by a harmonious spirit of love, joy and peace. Dr. A. L. Hughes was elected to preside at the session and the Rev. Walter L. Harding to act as recording secretary. Rev. David N. Licorish, of the Manhattan, Bronx, Westchester and Staten Island Baptist Association, proposed the name, The United Missionary Baptist Association (UMBA) for the new organization. The first landmark session of the Association was held October 25, 1955 at the Southern Baptist Church. At this session, the Rev. Dr. O. Clay Maxwell, Jr., pastor of the Baptist Temple, Manhattan, was elected the first Moderator of the UBMA. The Association is now known as the United Missionary Baptist Association of New York City and Vicinity, Inc. Throughout its 59-year history, UMBA has been led by a succession of eminent Moderators. In grateful appreciation, we acknowledge:
• Rev. Dr. O. Clay Maxwell, Jr., 1955–1962 • Rev. James A. Polite, 1963–1966 • Rev. Ivor M. Moore, 1967–1970 • Rev. Lonnie H. Bristow, 1971–1974 • Rev. Daniel Nickerson, 1975–1978 • Rev. Earl B. Moore, 1979–1983 • Rev. Hunson Greene, 1984 – 1987 • Rev. Kenneth L. Folkes, 1988–1989 • Rev. Edward E. Johnson, 1990–1995 • Rev. John L. Scott, 1996–1999 • Rev. Nelson C. Dukes, Jr., 2000 – 2003 • Rev. Isaac B. Graham, 2004–2007 • Rev. Lee A. Arrington, 2008–2013
Brother Walter Powell, Jr. Historian
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The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Presenters Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad Dr. Khalil Gibran Muhammad is the director of the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, one of the world’s leading research facilities dedicated to the history of the African diaspora. Prior to joining the Schomburg Center in 2011, Dr. Muhammad was an assistant professor of history at Indiana University for five years. While there, he wrote the book The Condemnation of Blackness: Race, Crime and the Making of Modern Urban America, in which he explored the roots of the popular conception of black criminality in America. Prior to his time working as a professor, Muhammad completed a fellowship at the Vera Institute of Justice, a nonprofit criminal justice reform agency in New York City. Recently, he wrote an op-ed about the Trayvon Martin case for The New York Times. Khalil Muhammad is a native of Chicago’s South Side. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a Bachelor’s degree in economics. After college, he worked for a time at the financial advisory firm Deloitte & Touche LLP. Studying under the late, Dr. Clement Price, in 2004 he earned his Ph.D. in American History from Rutgers University, specializing in 20th century and African-American history. Muhammad is the great-grandson of Elijah Muhammad, and son of Ozier Muhammad, a Pulitzer Prize-winning New York Times photographer.
Rev. Kahlil Carmichael “Dear friend, I pray that you may enjoy good health and that all may go well with you, even as your soul is getting along well.” 3 John1:2 (NIV) Reverend Kahlil Carmichael is the pastor and founder of It Is Well Living Church, located in Monroe, New Jersey. And, he is the CEO of The Fitness Doctor, Inc., a fitness rehabilitation and wellness consultation company he and his wife founded 10 years ago. If you’ve ever seen any of the videos of Reverend Carmichael where he is leading church members in some serious workouts – and you’ve heard how he inspires them while working out -- then you know that he is all about helping people become spiritually, physically, and mentally fit.
Rev. Dr. DeForest B. Soaries, Jr. Dr. Soaries is the senior pastor of the First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens in Somerset, New Jersey. His pastoral ministry focuses on spiritual growth, educational excellence, economic empowerment and faith-based community development. He is the innovator and author of dfree: Breaking Free from Financial Slavery —a four-prong approach to teach people how to be debt free. The “dfree” strategy, established in 2005, is available to churches, credit unions and colleges and universities across America. From 1999 to 2002, Dr. Soaries served as New Jersey’s 30th Secretary of State -- the first African-American male to serve as a constitutional officer of the state. Dr. Soaries is also the former chairman of the United States Election Assistance Commission, having been appointed by The President of the United States in 2003 to that post.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Presenters Reverend Ronald Grant Reverend Ronald Grant is president of the Empire Missionary Baptist Convention, New York, and pastor of Shiloh Baptist Church in Hudson, New York. Reverend Grant was recently elected president of Empire Baptist Missionary Convention of New York by an overwhelming majority vote. The historic organization has a membership of more than 400 African-American Baptist churches from Long Island to Niagara Falls. Over the last 26 years, Reverend Grant has served as convention musician, general recording secretary and chairman of Presidential Protocol and the Site Planning Committee. He also serves as the town of Hudson’s police commissioner.
Choice Awards Kimberly Baxter McLain Kimberly Baxter McLain is president and chief executive officer at Foundation for Newark’s Future (FNF), a local foundation working to improve educational outcomes for Newark students. The Foundation was launched in 2010 with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg’s announcement of a $100M challenge grant to the City of Newark. Matching donors include The Pershing Square Foundation, Goldman Sachs Gives, Ford Foundation and others. Ms. Baxter McLain joined the Foundation as chief financial officer in 2012, and was named president and CEO in 2013. In this role, she coordinates the foundation’s effort to bring large-scale systems change to the city’s K-12 system, including investments in teachers and leaders and increased school options for families.
Tamika D. Mallory Tamika D. Mallory, president of Mallory Consulting, is a nationally recognized leader, heralded as a next-generation champion of the civil rights movement. A fiery and outspoken champion for social justice, Ms. Mallory has been called the “Sojourner Truth of Our Time” by JET magazine and publicly applauded as “a leader of tomorrow” by Senior Advisor to President Barack Obama, Valerie B. Jarrett. Ms. Mallory is the president of Mallory Consulting, a strategic planning and event management company in New York City. She is also the Community Affairs director at Radio 103.9 FM. In 2014, Ms. Mallory was selected to serve on the transition committee of New York City Mayor-Elect Bill De Blasio and served as co-chair of the NYC initiative, Gun Violence Awareness Month. She has been featured on CNN, TV One, MSNBC, News One and many other mediums as a leading voice on key social justice issues.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Presenter Gus Heningburg Award Lata N. Reddy Vice President, Corporate Social Responsibility President, The Prudential Foundation
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ata N. Reddy is vice president and head of Corporate Social Responsibility for Prudential Financial, Inc. She is responsible for overseeing the company’s philanthropy, impact investments, corporate contributions and employee engagement activities.
Reddy joined Prudential in 1997 to manage the Foundation’s education grant-making activities. In 2002, she became vice president of The Prudential Foundation with responsibility for developing and leading the strategic direction of the Foundation’s grant-making policy and programs. She left Prudential in 2008 to launch her own independent consulting practice, advising philanthropic and nonprofit clients on strategy and program development. She returned to Prudential to assume her current position in April 2012. Before joining Prudential, Reddy worked in the New York regional office of the U.S. Department of Education where she was an attorney in the Office for Civil Rights. Previously, she was director of Finance and Legal Services at the Council for Educational Development and Research, a nonprofit education policy association in Washington, D.C. Reddy has a BA degree in economics from the University of Michigan and a law degree from Emory University School of Law. She is admitted to the bar in New York. Reddy serves on the boards of Lead NJ and Living Cities and is an Aspen Institute Fellow.
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The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Choice Awards Beverly Riddick Business Nominated by Joy Kay
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OMECorp of Montclair is an organization that provides affordable housing for the residents of Montclair. Beverly has been the executive director for 17 years. During this time over 100 housing units have been renovated and made available to low and moderate income residents in search of a place to live in town. Under Beverly’s leadership, clients have been able to take advantage of financial literacy workshops, foreclosure prevention seminars, and first time home buyer classes. Miller Street in Montclair was once a street known for having dilapidated homes, drug traffic, and violence. It was Beverly’s vision to renovate and clean up the Miller Street homes. This renovation turned that street around and encouraged the homeowners to keep their homes intact. It also fostered community awareness and bonding. Miller Street is now a sought after block in the 4th ward of Montclair. Beverly has also started a health initiative at HOMECorp that encouraged tenants, staff, and board members to walk over One Million Steps this summer. Each Friday, Beverly encouraged the HOMECorp community to come out to Glenfield Park and walk while keeping a count of their steps. Although there was a different group walking weekly and some walking at the parks, the total step count was 4.8 million by the end of the summer. Beverly’s theory is “a healthy body helps us to make healthy decisions about our financial options as well as our bodies.” HOMECorp became a household name in Montclair as a result of Beverly’s dedication to the residents of Montclair. She believes in HOMECorp’s mission to keep Montclair diverse—racially and socioeconomically. She is a positive leader who deserves to be recognized for the work that she has done in the Montclair community.
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15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Choice Awards Bishop Philip M. Bonaparte, M.D. Health Nominated by Karen Clark
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octor/Pastor Bonaparte has a love for people, especially those who are most vulnerable and are facing challenges to their physical, mental and spiritual well-being. As a pastor, a bishop, and a physician, his capacity to demonstrate his love for people is amazing. In addition to caring for the spiritual and physical health needs of so many in New Jersey, he also finds ways to reach out around the country and the world. He funds most of these efforts from his own pocket because he understands that this kind of love requires sacrifice. Dr. Bonaparte has a long history of international medical mission work. He is passionate about that work, but he always notes that “charity begins at home.” He provides lots of free medical advice and is in the process of seeking support for a free health clinic in Trenton. Because he serves that community as a pastor, he sees the acute need for caring, quality health services and health education. Pastor Bonaparte often partners with other organizations to provide health education and health services from three NHCOG locations. On Labor Day 2014, he held the 4th annual “Revival in the Park” which paired prayer and spiritual encouragement with healthcare screenings and education, as well as some good, old-fashioned fun for all ages. Over 4,700 people from the Trenton community attended. He also provides a food pantry and free clothing to those in need. He is confident that one day he will be able to also provide short term housing to those facing a housing crisis. With all he does, Pastor Bonaparte finds the energy to conduct an international prayer line every weekday morning at 5:30 am. Before the sun is up, hundreds of people with diverse needs are greeted with his booming voice declaring, “Welcome to early morning prayer! This is your spiritual workout.” And so, it jumps off from there, as he comforts and advises caller after caller. His passion and his compassion are palpable. He doesn’t stop until he has taken a long list of requests for prayer to heal hearts, minds, and bodies, and to deliver from the anguish of all kinds of legal, financial, relationship, health and other matters. Pastor Bonaparte shows that love is an action word. There is not enough space or time to talk about all he has done and is doing. Pastor Bonaparte recently said that the only debt he wants in this world is his debt to God to love all of us. Pastor Bonaparte is a humble servant of God and never seeks the spotlight. However, he is exactly the kind of man who should be held up as an example for others. With or without recognition, he lights up the world around him.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Choice Awards A’Dorian Murray-Thomas Education Nominated by Dana M. Murray, Tia Morris, Alan Ogletree
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met A’Dorian in 2008 when she was a freshman in high school. She was seeking an opportunity to volunteer as a tutor. After meeting her, I was impressed with how mature and focused she was and believed the young people in our program would benefit from her leadership. Two days after meeting her, she emailed me with two workshops she would facilitate for our youth group and an idea for a rap session she would lead for the girls. A’Dorian’s first workshop was on goal-setting. The kids loved her and she immediately began and continues to mentor them. Because of her unique learning experiences having studied in Newark, Princeton, boarding school and abroad, she will provide a very inclusive and diverse world view. I believe she has had an opportunity to experience the world in such a way she would be both insightful and understanding of the variety of applications you might receive from all over the country. Moreover, she is a patient young lady who works well with difficult personalities. I have seen her do tremendous work as a leader but also very comfortably take a supportive role to meet a goal or complete a task. I served as the senior program specialist working with at-risk youth in foster care. A’Dorian made such an impact on the youth in our program, even though she was only there on breaks and had never lived in foster care, the youth voted her as one of their representatives. In this capacity, she represented them in local and state-run meetings and events. As a resident of Newark, she understood the plight of young people in inner cities and very respectably and firmly advocated for foster care youth to have access to resources without bias because of the stereotypes and misconceptions governing them. More specifically, she personally mentored youth in their college search and application process. A’Dorian is always looking to challenge herself and improve the world. She is the perfect candidate for a Positive Community award in education. I am more than confident she will exceed your expectations if selected.
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15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala FEATURESTORY
BY FERN GILLESPIE
Architect of Opportunity Reprinted from October 2007
Gus Heningburg champions minority participation in the rebuilding of communities
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or almost 20 years, New York and New Jersey audiences i tuned into NBC-TV’s Positively Black to hear host Gus Heningburg’s insights into issues concerning African American metro area residents. Positively Black was an important mainstay for local African American audiences. Heningburg's television persona was almost scholarly, yet casual during his broadcasts on political, educational, business, civil rights, legal, community, societal and cultural issues concerning African Americans on a local, national and global scale. Although to millions of viewers Heningburg was a broadcast legend, to Essex County residents Heningburg is known as the man who helped rebuild Newark. Since the early 1970s, while serving as president and chief executive officer of the Greater Newark Urban Coalition, Heningburg has been at the forefront in utilizing negotiations, and at times demonstrations, to attain construction jobs and business contracts for Essex County minority residents. Over the last three decades, he has bartered with Fortune 500 CEOs, governors, legislators, union officials, community leaders and even the White House to insure that minorities would get a fair share of the construction dollars in building up Essex County. His political pull is reflected in his high profile appointments. In 1986, he served as chair of Mayor Sharpe James' transition team and in 1987, he was
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appointed by the governor as commissioner of the New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority. Other positions include of air of the Committee to Study the Governance of New Jersey's County Colleges, chair of the New Jersey Educational Opportunity Fund, and federal courtappointed special master of the Newark Redevelopment and Housing Authority. The Newark Plan Today, at age 77, his firm Gustav Heningburg Associates, Inc. in Newark continues to assure minority contractor and union participation on every major construction project in Essex County. His firm provides consultation services in the areas of communications, public policy analysis and development, government relations, lobbying arid affirmative action with special expertise in the construction industry. Clients have included Marriott Hotels, Hartz Mountain Industries, Continental Airlines and many more. Heningburg created the “Newark Plan” which provided training and employment for hundreds of African American and Hispanic construction workers. This model plan, adopted by the State of New Jersey, has been nationally praised as the most effective construction affirmative action plan in the US. Yet, to Heningburg, his most effective construction affirmative action plan to date has been the Prudential October 2007 The Positive Community
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Over the last three decades, he has bartered with Fortune 500 CEOs, governors, legislators, union officials, community leaders and even the White House to insure that minorities would get a fair share of the construction dollars in building up Essex County. Center. It is the first major league sports venue to open in the New York City metropolitan area since Continental Airlines Arena. This massive 18,000 seat arena is located just blocks from City Hall in downtown Newark. The October grand opening celebration features New Jersey's superstar group Bon Jovi. The Prudential Center, which will be the new home of the New Jersey Devils hockey team, has been dubbed the “Devil's Arena.” There’s even been some controversy about building a stadium for a hockey team in Newark. “The official name of this 18,000 seat arena is the Prudential Center,” Heningburg told The Positive Community. “That will give you a clue as to whether the white power structure has embraced this arena being in Newark. It will be the newest in America.” “The minority participation in the arena has exceeded expectations in every trade and minority contract,” he explained. “Its exceeded any project that we've done before, including the airport. Because each time you do it, you cut away a little more resistance for minorities to get in.” Getting the job done During the past two decades, his firm has been awarded the opportunity to handle the affirmative action for some of Essex County's most high profile new structures. These include Rutgers Law School, two new Rutgers dormitories, and a new prison in Newark’s East Ward. The jewel is the elegant New Jersey Performing Arts Center. Minorities amassed a whopping 39 percent of the worker hours and 32 percent of the business contracts. In recognition of his input, Heningburg's name is featured on a special plaque in the NJPAC rotunda, sharing space with the names of governors, corporations and deep pocketed philanthropists. “On the jobs that we are hired to insure minority participation, one of my conditions is that I have to approve, with my signature, every invoice for payment for every
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The Positive Community October 2007
contractor,” he stressed. “And, if I don't sign off, they don't get paid. No demonstrations anymore. No lawsuits anymore. No marching up and down . It works.” In the early 1970s, marching was his only option to opening up minority opportunities on the construction sites at Newark International Airport. As president and chief executive officer of the Greater Newark Urban Coalition, he headed a demonstration that not only caused a work stoppage, but shut down the airport. “It screwed up air traffic all over the East Coast. Every airline on its way to Newark got diverted to some other airport,” he recalled. It was the era of President Richard Nixon. After the demonstration, a special New Jersey contingent comprised of Heningburg, the executive director of the Port Authority, New Jersey Governor William Cahill and Prudential Chairman Donald MacNaughton, who was also the chair of the New Jersey State Chamber of Commerce and Heningburg’s Newark Urban Coalition, flew to Washington D.C. for a major meeting with Nixon Attorney General John Mitchell. “The message was clear. If you want to impact these kinds of things you have got to bring the power structure with you,” he stressed. “Simply confronting the power structure does not work for very long. It might work for a short period.” Attorney General Mitchell sent federal representatives to Newark and sued every construction union in Essex County. At the time, there was no minority owned concession at any airport in the U.S. After negotiations were put in place there were 11 minority-owned concessions at Newark Airport. Now, there are over 700 minority-owned businesses with airport concession contracts around the U.S. The Airport Minority Advisory Council was formed to promote the full participation of minority, women, and disadvantaged business enterprises in airport contracts and employment opportunities. It holds major national conferences and utilizes lobbyists. “What happened in Newark created an industry. Everything that we have started here has grown to other places,” he pointed out. Heningburg even advised Mayor Maynard Jackson in Atlanta, “If you've been to Atlanta Airport, you would recognize that it's one of the most integrated airports in the country.” In New Jersey, unions are grouped by counties. In order to train minorities for eligibility in Essex County construction unions, workers had to be instructed through a union apprentice-training program. Under Heningburg, a training school for every trade was established and the instructors were union workers. “We learned a great deal in the process. It took getting sued. It took getting pilloried in the newspapers. It took having Port Authority police sitting outside my apartment,” he said. www.thepositivecommunity.com
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala FEATURESTORY “This is not a moral issue. This being an integrated work force, this a money issue.”
Heningburg created the "Newark Plan"
The Heningburg Legacy In honor of Heningburg and his work, the Rutgers Institute on Ethnicity, Culture, and the Modern Experience recently launched the Gustav Heningburg Civic Fellows program at Rutgers-Newark. Each year the Heningburg fellows, who are educators, executives and community leaders, utilize Rutgers’ services and scholars to develop a broader understanding of the cultural and historical context of issues. The program was developed to create partnerships between Newark's established and rising leaders, and local and nationally known scholars. It was designed to find new methods to address some of the issues facing the city and to expand public involvement in the city's renewal. “Gus is perhaps the most significant civic leader in Newark and more generally in New Jersey. During the period between roughly the mid-1960's and mid-1980’s, Gus helped Newark and New Jersey transition from a very troubled state, a very intolerant state, and a state in which Black people especially were treated very shabbily,” stated Dr. Clement A. Price, the Institute's first director and a Rutgers professor of history on the Newark campus and a nationally recognized advocate of public scholarship in history, culture and the arts. “New Jersey is a state that now embraces diversity, a state that seeks now to elevate all of its citizens, and a state in which its largest city, Newark, is now rebounding. And, Gus is in the middle of all the positive steps forward that has led to the rejuvenation of Newark and New Jersey civic life.”
which provided training and employ-
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ment for hundreds of African American and Hispanic construction workers. This model plan, adopted by the State of New Jersey, has been nationally praised as the most effective construetion affirmative action plan in the U.S. Advocacy and education are part of Gustav Heningburg's DNA, so is non-comformity. It’s a rare occasion when Gus puts on a suit and tie. “My father didn't see any reason to wear one, and neither do I,” he smiled. He was born at Tuskegee Institute, the son of a college professor. After graduating from Hampton University, he served for seven years as a commissioned officer in the U.S. Army. During the Brown vs. Board of Education case, he served as assistant to the president of the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, where he worked with Thurgood Marshall. Heningburg was also one of the United Negro College Fund's pioneers, serving as director of Alumni Affairs. Like many of Newark's veteran politicos, he is still observing Mayor Booker's freshman tenure as mayor. “He is very bright and very energetic,” he said. This summer, the 40th anniversary of the Newark riot was commemorated and reflected upon by New Jersey residents and the press. “There were 61 riots across the country that year. It wasn't just Newark. It was Watts, Detroit, Pittsburgh, et cetera. I am convinced that Newark has proceeded further in rebuilding itself than any of the other 61 cities in America that had a riot or civil disorder or whatever you want to call it,” stressed Heningburg. “Watts today looks like Watts looked when it had its riot. Detroit is an economic basket case right now, 40 years later. Newark is going through a major rebuilding.” Newark is in the midst of a resurgence, and Heningburg is one of its advocates and architects. “No matter what Newark's image may happen to be, it’s coming back.” October 2007 The Positive Community
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culture Reprinted from October 2009
Amiri Baraka: An Interview with Newark’s Favorite Son BY R.L. WITTER
E
Jemal Countess
verett LeRoi Jones better known as Amiri Baraka—poet, playwright, painter, author— a cultural icon in America, indeed around the world, and a native son of Newark, NJ turns 75 on October 7 and a week of celebration has been planned to honor him. The Positive Community took this occasion to talk with Mr. Baraka. I stood on the porch of his three-story Newark home, waiting for an answer to the doorbell, but I was taken aback when the door opened. There was no assistant, no lackey, not even one of his children. Amiri Baraka opened the door and invited me in smiling as he shook my hand. Jemal, my photographer for the day and I were ushered into what I deemed “the sun room,” off the kitchen with two walls of windows where the sun shone through on a crisp fall day. Mr. Baraka offered to take my jacket and then motioned for me to be seated at the table. He disappeared into the kitchen and I took the opportunity to eye the hundreds of books in and on top of bookcases in the room. There were books on the table where I sat. Amiri Baraka, a man of slight stature sat down beside me and I experienced the familiar feeling of sitting at my grandfather’s feet being granted pearls of wisdom. The nervousness and trepidation I felt about interviewing this cultural icon were allayed only by the fact that my trusty digital recorder would catch the pearls as they fell from his lips.
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RLW: You’ve been all over the world and could realistically live wherever you’d like; what makes Newark home? AB: I was born here. That’s the overriding connection. I was born here. RLW: Is it really that simple? When you were studying at college or travelling in the Air force, did you always want to return to Newark? AB: At the time, home seemed the most comfortable place to go after all of that. I’d been through all kinds of turbulence in NY and it’s interesting that even the whole time I’d been in NY, I always had a big map of Newark on my wall. At the time I didn’t know what it meant, but it stayed there all the time, I just wanted it there. I saw Charlie Parker like four blocks from my house. Just as a teenager I could walk down there and walk in and see Charlie Parker play. Now you have to go to the high rent district. There was a lady across the street, Miss Miles. She was a friend of my mother—she was a fashion designer— a very sophisticated lady. In the 80s and 90s, when reporters and people with cameras would come to the house, she would come across the street and tell stories. “That was a bad boy there. He used to break up my furniture!” She would never miss an opportunity, but that is one of the legacies of being at home—you’ve got a real history. October 2009 The Positive Community
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RLW: So the challenges facing the people of Newark are different today? AB: You have this nationalist view that it’s black versus white. That works when it is that and the community is more or less horizontal as Cabral said—the black people are about horizontal in terms of the class context. But once you get rid of the white element then you begin to see that in your own community there are classes and class struggle and there are clashes in the community that get more intense as years go by. So the difference now, between say 1970 & 2-0-0-9, is that now, in the community it is intense class struggle. RLW: We hear people use the phrase “post-racial America” constantly today and the president is held up as the proof. Do you think that is accurate? AB: Obviously, it’s not happening. I think that was a good projection of an ideal, but racism is deeply embedded in these people and Obama has tasted it really. Even that thing about Gates, which he quickly turned around—he only did that because of the pressure. And he is surrounded by people who are going to be even more sensitive to that kind of counterattack. Obama has on one hand a positive kind of vibe in that people understand almost universally that he is different from Bush, but those policies are going to have to be changed completely. I was in Europe during the election and people over there were universally in support of Obama. Oh yeah! And the colored people over there were saying ‘Hey Brother’ when I was walking through the airport. Africans, Indians, even Italians and French were very supportive because they hated Bush. White
people came up embracing me when I came back to this country. ‘We did it!’ Because they felt they were off the hook. But at the same time, six months later, he’s battling with these fools. But it’s the world as we know it and it has to be changed still and Obama represents a very positive move in that direction but the struggle continues. RLW: So, let’s talk about your work and your upcoming celebration. What do you consider your masterpiece, or do you feel you have yet to unveil it? AB: Oh, I don’t know. That’s difficult to say. I guess what I’m most known for is “Blues People.” It’s hard to critique my own works or choose just one. I don’t have a favorite. RLW: And what are your thoughts about celebrating your 75th birthday with friends, family and all of Newark? AB: People seem to want to know about me being 75 and it makes me very self conscious about it. What’s interesting is that so many people, my contemporaries, have gone on and that’s an unsettling idea. One of my best friends died last month. He had just left here—we used to go to NY and listen to music. He went home to mow his lawn and got sick and died. And this last month, we’ve been to at least six funerals. My wife’s sister, her brother died one week later, then my lawyer died, my bail bondsman died…They’re trying to tell me something! [Laughter] Now you don’t have a lawyer, you don’t have a bail bondsman or a best friend. Now I’m beginning to understand why old people are so grouchy. Because everybody they know has split! [Raucous laughter] No, it’s true! There used to be a time when you could confirm, “Remember that time we did so and so and such and such…” You can’t do that at a certain point, you know. You get to a certain point and it’s all in your head. But that’s the way it is. And this celebration— I don’t know. On one hand it’s positive to a certain extent and on another hand I just wish it was over with because it’s a whole lot of… It’s like Obama going to all those balls! You’ve got to get to this one, this one, this one and this one. It’s okay, but it probably is the last go round. I doubt if I’ll have a 95th one. This is—at 75—I guess this is some kind of landmark. I always felt that I would beat the odds. I guess that’s the Newark impulse. I always thought that whatever they did… My youngest son got shot in the head and he told his mother, “I’m not going to die.” It’s that spirit. I’ve always had that spirit and said, ‘No, that ain’t it!’ I got beat almost to death here in Newark. In 1967, after the rebellion, they split my head open, knocked my teeth out. But at the same time, I felt—even while they were doing it—‘Y’all ain’t doing nothing to me.’ It’s just a feeling that I’m gonna’ get out of this—I don’t care what Continued on next page
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The Postive Community Awards & Gala FEATURESTORY BARAKA continued from previous page
Go down there and pig out on that stuff! But it’s true, that’s just home cooking.
you do. I guess that’s what you have to have. No, that don’t do nothing to me. I mean it hurt me—almost killed me. Locked me up—but I could still think. So I think that’s it in the end and I guess you get that from all the people that you love and study. ‘Whatever you do, I’m gonna’ beat that! Find a way to beat that.’ Nobody went to jail more than Martin Luther King—none of these thugs. They ain’t never been to jail as much as Martin. And he was still unscathed, talking about justice. When you think about that—black people—145 years after the end of chattel slavery there’s an Afro-American as the president of the United States. Whatever you want to say about that, what you must say about those people is there were no chumps, there were no punks. RLW: I’ve always theorized that the proof of the resilience and resourcefulness of us as black people is in our food. We took what others threw away and deemed inedible and made it taste better than what they considered the choice morsels. AB: I’ve travelled around the world, eaten all kinds of cuisines but you don’t really feel like you’re at home until you eat your own food. The best place for soul food in Newark—The best place was the Bridge Club, but that closed, unfortunately. Right now, I guess it’s John’s, and then there’s Je’s. Anyone who comes here visiting, they’ve got to go down to John’s, even just for breakfast.
RLW: Well, we’ve brought it back around to Newark and now I’m craving chicken and waffles from John’s! Do you have any sage parting words for our readers, anything else you’d like to impart to them? AB: Just that to think that we can survive all of these things… And to have questions from the next generation, about “Why y’all didn’t do nothing?” I say ‘Well if we didn’t do nothing you wouldn’t be here!’ You’ve got a bigger job, see? In a sense, because now the question is to change the whole thing. I mean, we had to always change, but now, being more inside it, you have the responsibility for it. We had the responsibility to change it so that it would stop oppressing at the level it was, but this is what now daunts a lot of us that we don’t understand. A colored guy is the president of the U.S. How are you going to handle that? It’s not the same as saying “We ain’t gone let you in a restaurant.” But that’s so quick. See, stuff turns around so quickly you don’t know. So that’s the way it is. You have a certain amount of time on the planet. You do what you’re supposed to do. Whatever happens, it don’t stop what you did to whatever extent that it’s positive. You just hope that unlike what Shakespeare said about Caesar—‘The evil that men do lives after them, the good is oft interred with their bones.’ You hope it ain’t like that. Read the entire interview online at www.thepositivecommunity.com
BOOKS BY AMIRI BARAKA Digging: The Afro-American Soul of American Classical Music (Music of the African Diaspora, University of California Press, 2009 Tales of the Out & the Gone Akashic Books, 2006 Somebody Blew Up America House of Nehesi, 2004 The Essence of Reparations House of Nehesi, 2003
The Fiction of Amiri Baraka Lawrence Hill & Co, 2000
Transbluesency Marsilio Publishers, 1996
The Amiri Baraka Reader Thunder's Mouth Press, 1999
Funk Lore Sun & Moon Press, 1996
Blues People Harper Perennial, 1999
Autobiography of Leroi Jones Lawrence Hill & Co, 1995
Home Ecco Press, 1998
Dutchman + The Slave Harper Perennial, 1971
Black Music Da Capo Press, 1998
Jemal Countess
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November November 17, 17, 2014 November 17,2014 2014
November 17, 2014 Adrian Adrian A. Council, A. Council, Sr. Sr.
Adrian A. Council, Sr. Publisher Publisher Adrian A. Council, Sr. Publisher The Positive The Positive Community Community Publisher The Community 113Positive Glen 113 Ridge Ridge Avenue Avenue TheGlen Positive Community Montclair, Montclair, New New Jersey 07042 07042 113 Glen Avenue 113Ridge GlenJersey Ridge Avenue Montclair, New Jersey 07042 Montclair, New Jersey 07042
Dear Dear Friends Friends of theofPositive the Positive Community: Community: Dear Friends of the Positive Community: Dear Friends ofofentire the Community: On behalf On behalf of the the Positive entire City ofCity Newark, of Newark, I would I would like tolike congratulate to congratulate everyone everyone in in attendance attendance at theat the Positive Community’s Community’s inaugural inaugural Annual Annual Positive Positive Community Community On behalf ofPositive entire City of Newark, I would like to congratulate everyone in On behalf the at entire City ofCommunity’s Newark, I inaugural would like to congratulate everyone in Awards Awards andofGala and Gala our our Jersey New Jersey Performing Performing Arts Center! Arts Center! attendance at theatNew Positive Annual Positive Community attendance at and the Gala Positive inaugural Awards at ourCommunity’s New Jersey Performing ArtsAnnual Center! Positive Community We are Weand proud areGala proud of at theofour role theNew The roleJersey Positive The Positive Community, Community, plays plays in transforming in transforming Awards Performing Arts Center! Newark Newark intoareainto City a we City we can believe allThe believe in. The in. Positive The Positive Community Community empowers We proud ofcan theall role Positive Community, plays empowers in transforming its readers itsNewark readers and and strengthens strengthens ourallCity our City within. with itsThe messages its messages of faith, of faith, hope, hope, into a City we can believe Positive Community We proud of the role The Positive Community, plays in empowers transforming and are energy. and its energy. readers and strengthens our City with its messages of faith, hope, Newarkand into a City we can all believe in. The Positive Community empowers energy. itsTonight readers and strengthens ourhonor City itsresidents messages of made faith, hope, Tonight Positive Positive Community Community will honor will New Jersey Newwith Jersey residents who have who made have majormajor contributions contributions ourtocommunity our community in business, in honor business, health, education, education, and the andarts. the These arts. These and energy. TonighttoPositive Community will Newhealth, Jersey residents who have made major honorees honorees have defined have defined Newark’s Newark’s and New and Jersey’s New Jersey’s excellence excellence in many in many fields, fields, and contributions to our community in business, health, education, and the arts. and These we arewe privileged are privileged to congratulate to congratulate them them tonight. tonight. honorees have defined Newark’s and New Jersey’s manyhave fields,made and major Tonight Positive Community will honor New Jerseyexcellence residentsin who we are privileged to congratulate them tonight. contributions toanfor our in business, and the arts. These All the Allbest thefor best enjoyable, ancommunity enjoyable, memorable, memorable, and blessed andhealth, blessed gala! education, gala! honorees defined Newark’s memorable, and New Jersey’s excellence in many fields, and All have the best for an enjoyable, and blessed gala! Sincerely yours,yours, we areSincerely privileged to congratulate them tonight. Sincerely yours,
All the best for an enjoyable, memorable, and blessed gala! Sincerely Ras J.Ras Baraka J.yours, Baraka
MayorMayor Ras J. Baraka Mayor
Ras J. Baraka Mayor
OFFICE OFFICE OF THE OFMAYOR THE MAYOR 920 BROAD 920 BROAD STREET, STREET, RM 200 RM • NEWARK, 200 • NEWARK, NJ 07102 NJ 07102 OF•(973) THE TEL: (973) TEL: 733-6400 (973) OFFICE 733-6400 • FAX FAX MAYOR 733(973)3711 733- 3711 920 BROAD STREET, RM 200 • NEWARK, NJ 07102 TEL: (973) 733-6400 • FAX (973) 733- 3711
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The Moderators, Pastors and 167 Congregations in Bronx, Lower Westchester & Staten Island Rev. Lee Manhattan, A. Arrington Moderator
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Rev. Dr. Carl L. Washington, Jr. 1st Vice Moderator
salute and congratulate the Positive Community Magazine for 15 years Rev. Shepherd Lee Recording Secretary of consistent witness to Rev. Dr. Calvin Kenrick the faith community! Assistant Recording Secretary Rev. Dr. Anthony Lowe 2nd Vice Moderator
Rev. Keith A Bolden, Sr. Financial Secretary
It is our prayer that God will enable you to continue to Rev. Dr. reach Jesse Williams and teach our next generation the truth about Assistant Financial Secretary who we are as a people! Rev. Patricia A. Morris Corresponding Secretary
Rev. Dr. Sean P. Gardner, Sr. Treasurer Rev. Wayne A. Williams Assistant Treasurer Rev. Willie L. Hairston Chief of Staff Rev. Dr. Renee F. Gardner Program Chair
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Panasonic salutes
Positive Community Magazine Since arriving in Newark over a year ago, Panasonic has joined with dedicated local volunteers and organizations to help make Newark a brighter place. We’ve partnered with many community groups to support programs that enrich the lives of people who live here. Panasonic congratulates Positive Community Magazine on 15 years of service and for being a voice in our communities. Together we can all make a difference.
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Life's most persistent and urgent question is, 'What are you doing for others?' --Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Sharing the positive in our community. Congratulations to Positive Community for 15 years of making New Jersey a better place for all of us.
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General Baptist Convention of New Jersey, Inc.
The Postive Community Awards & Gala 479 West State Street Trenton, NJ 08618-5625
Mailing Address Post Office Box 47 Palmyra, New Jersey 08065-0047 856.829.9429 (T) 856.231.9088 (F) Reverend Dr. Guy Campbell, Jr. Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Woods admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org E-mail 479 West State Street Trenton, NJ 08618-5625 Convention President General Secretary Mailing Address 479 West State Street Trenton, NJ 08618-5625 Post Office Box State 47 479West West StateStreet StreetAddress Trenton,NJNJ08618-5625 08618-5625 Mailing Trenton, 1st Vice President Palmyra, New479 Jersey 08065-0047 Mailing Address Post Office Box 47 Mailing Address Reverend Dr. Lester W. Taylor, 479 Jr. West 856.829.9429 (T)479 856.231.9088 (F)Office 479 West West State State Street Street Trenton, Box Trenton, NJ NJ 08618-5625 08618-5625 Post Office Box 47 Palmyra, New Jersey 08065-0047 State Street Trenton, NJ 08618-5625 Post 47 rend Dr. Guy Campbell, Jr. Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Woods admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org E-mail Mailing Mailing Address Address Palmyra, New Jersey 08065-0047 856.829.9429 (T) 856.231.9088 (F) General Secretary Mailing Address Palmyra, New Jersey 08065-0047 ention President Reverend Dr. Guy Campbell, Jr. Post Post Office Office Box Box 47 47 E-mail Reverend Dr. Joseph E. Woods 856.829.9429 (T) 856.231.9088 (F) admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org Post Office Box 47 856.829.9429 (T) 856.231.9088 (F) nd Reverend Dr. GuyCampbell, Campbell,Jr.Jr. ReverendDr. Dr. Joseph Woods President 2 Vice Palmyra, Palmyra, New New Jersey Jersey 08065-0047 08065-0047 Convention President General Secretary admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org E-mail Reverend Dr. Guy Reverend Joseph E.E.Woods Palmyra, New Jersey 08065-0047 admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org E-mail Convention President GeneralSecretary Secretary ReverendPresident Dr. George A. Blackwell, III 856.829.9429 856.829.9429 (T) (T) 856.231.9088 856.231.9088 (F) (F) Convention General 856.829.9429 (T) 856.231.9088 (F) e President Reverend Reverend Dr. GuyGuy Campbell, Campbell, Jr. Jr. Reverend Reverend Dr. E. Dr. Joseph Joseph E. Woods E. Woods admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org E-mail Reverend Reverend Dr. GuyDr. Campbell, Jr. Dr. Joseph Woods admin@evergreenbcpalmyra.org E-mailE-mail d Dr. Lester W. Taylor, Jr. 1Convention st Vice Convention President President General General Secretary Secretary President
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15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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on15 15Good Yearsof of Sharing News on Years
Positive Community Magazine Sharing GoodNews News Sharing Good throughout the on 15 Years the of totothe Greater Metropolitan Area Greater Greater Metropolitan Area Sharing Good News toConnected the Stay us at www.umbcnj.org GreaterVisitMetropolitan Area Become a “friend” of UMBC on Stay Connected Stay Connected Facebook at United Missionary Baptist Conventionof NJ, Inc. Visit us at Visit us www.umbcnj.org at www.umbcnj.org
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Become a “friend” of UMBC on on Become a “friend” of UMBC Facebook at United Missionary Baptist Conventionof NJ, Inc. Facebook at United Missionary Baptist Conventionof NJ, Inc.
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Nurse’s Auxiliary Sylvia Sherrod
Twitter @UMBCofNJInc OR OR
Follow us on @UMBCofNJInc Follow us Stay onTwitter Twitter @UMBCofNJInc Connected
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014 Visit us at www.umbcnj.org
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
to our partners in ministry
Magazine
on 15 years of committed service and support of our communities through your journalistic works.
Continued Success! Rev. David K. Brawley, Lead Pastor The Board of Elders & The Congregation of
859 Hendrix Street, Brooklyn , NY 11207 718.257.1300 | Fax: 718.257.2988 | www.spcbc.com | info@spcbc.com @SPCBCBKNY |
www.facebook.com/SPCBCBKNY |
SPCBC One to One Network
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
The City University of New York congratulates
The Positive Community on its 15th anniversary on the occasion of
The Positive Community Awards & Gala NOVEMBER 17, 2014 BENNO S CHMIDT
CHAIRPERSON, BOARD OF TRUSTEES
1-800-CUNY-YES
JAMES B. MILLIKEN CHANCELLOR
WWW.CUNY.EDU CUNY TV-Channel 75
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Great leaders inspire our Great leaders inspire our communities communities
In every community, there are people who can inspire others to work for positive change. True leaders know how to forge a consensus and create a lasting legacy of In every community, there are people who can inspire others to work for positive success. change. True leaders know how to forge a consensus and create a lasting legacy of success. The Positive Community, it's an honor to recognize you. The Positive Community, it's an honor to recognize you.
wellsfargo.com © 2014 Wells Fargo Bank, N.A. wellsfargo.com All rights reserved. Member FDIC.Fargo 121949 11/14 © 2014 Wells Bank, N.A. All rights reserved. Member FDIC. 121949 11/14
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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Community Baptist Church of Englewood Offers Congratulations to
THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY MAGAZINE 1ST ANNUAL
POSITIVE COMMUNITY AWARDS GALA
CELEBRATING 15 YEARS IN EXISTENCE
Rev. Dr. Lester W. Taylor, Jr. ~ Sr. Pastor 224 First Street ● Englewood, NJ 07631 Phone: 201-568-6369 Fax: 201-568-3512 www.cbcofe.org
“Chosen to Serve ·Challenged to Grow” 15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
grace ORGANIZED 1 8 8 8
DR. W. FRANKLYN RICHARDSON, SENIOR PASTOR
GRACE is thrilled to join Positive Community Magazine for its inaugural Positive Community Awards & Gala in honor of 15 years of service in the African American community. Positive Community Magazine has proven and continues to be a vital resource of information and inspiration for the greater New York - New Jersey metropolian area. May God continue to abundantly bless this kingdom building work you are doing as you strive to serve the broader community. Congratulations!
52 South Sixth Avenue • Mount Vernon, New York 10550 • Phone: (914) 664-2676 • Fax: (914) 664-2833
WWW.GRACECHURCHTODAY.ORG
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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Rev. Dr. W Franklyn Richardson
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
“I’M A PASTOR, NOT A FINANCIAL PLANNER. THANKFULLY, MY
benefits consultant understands me.” If life itself is a journey, then financial planning is a road on the journey - and one that needs to be carefully navigated. At MMBB Financial Services, we’re a ministry that offers, among other services to the religious community, financial planning - we understand where you need to go as well as where you’re coming from. In other words, we’re with you every step of the way. Our benefits consultants will create a plan that is tailored to meet your financial needs - the financial needs of a pastor, which means affordable benefits. And we’ll help you develop sensible strategies that can lead to a comfortable retirement - one that is richly deserved. To find out more, visit us at MMBB.org/journey. Or call 1-800-986-6222. And by the way, we’re happy to involve wives, husbands, and family members, too, in your financial plan. After all, it’s not just your financial well-being that we want to help secure.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
PosComm-LegacyUrsulaAd-1114.qxp 11/10/14 11:59 AM Page 1
The Postive Community Awards & Gala “At Bergen, students are encouraged to find out who they are. This is where they can begin their future and start to build their legacy.” – Dr. Ursula Parrish Daniels Executive Assistant to the President
Bergen Community College
What will your legacy be? In more than 30 years at Bergen Community College, Dr. Ursula Parrish Daniels has taught thousands of future teachers the importance of education and the rewards of public service. She has been a positive influence in their lives — and in the lives of the children they have helped throughout their careers. Congratulations, Dr. Daniels.
H A C K E N S A C K
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P A R A M U S
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M E A D O W L A N D S
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
The Board of- Trustees, Faculty, Staff, -Students and- Alumni/ae Innovative InvestedAdministration, - Inclusive - Compassionate Compelling Devoted
of - Compassionate - Compelling Faithful ~Innovative - Invested - Inclusive N ew York Theological SemiNarY Devoted -Faithful ~Innovative - Invested - Inclusive - Compassionate congratulates Compelling - Devoted -Faithful ~Innovative - Invested - Inclusive Compassionate - Compelling - Devoted -Faithful ~Innovative - Invested Inclusive - Compassionate - Compelling - Devoted -Faithful ~Innovative on their Invested - Inclusive - Compassionate - Compelling - Devoted - Faithful Innovative - Invested - th Inclusive - Compassionate - Compelling - Devoted Faithful ~Innovative - Invested - Inclusive - Compassionate - Compelling Devoted and -Faithful - Innovative - Invested - Inclusive - Compassionate their distinguished honorees Compelling - Devoted -Faithful ~ Innovative - Invested - Inclusive
The Positive Community 15 Anniversary
New York Theological Seminary offers the following: Certificate in Christian Ministry | Certificate in Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) | Master of Divinity Master of Arts in Pastoral Care and Counseling | Master of Arts in Religious Education Master of Arts in Religious Administration and Leadership | Master of Arts in Youth Ministry | Doctor of Ministry
The City is Our Campus. NYTS | 475 Riverside Drive, Suite 500 | New York, NY 10115 | (T) 212-870-1211 | (F) 212-870-1236 | www.nyts.edu
coNNecT wiTh NYTS oN our Social media SiTeS:
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
“ We’ve created a Managed Long Term Care program that’s specific to the needs of you and your family.” Gwendolyn Barr, Horizon NJ Health
Is it getting harder for you to take care of your loved one safely?
But you don’t want to place her in a skilled nursing facility. What if we could
provide long-term care and support for her at her home…in her community? Learn how our Managed Long Term Services and Supports (MLTSS) program helps eligible* members to live comfortably and safely in their own homes and communities in New Jersey. Call our toll-free Horizon NJ Health Enrollment Hotline to learn more about how to apply: 1-844-444-4410 (TTY services are available at 1-844-889-7700) *Members must meet certain financial and clinical (medical) requirements to be eligible for the MLTSS program. Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. The Blue Cross® and Blue Shield® names and symbols are registered marks of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. The Horizon® name and symbols are registered marks of Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey. © 2013 Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey Three Penn Plaza East,Newark, New Jersey 07105.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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The Positive Community’s
Grand Jubilee Season of Emancipation—2015
Proclaiming a New Language of Freedom
W
e are now into year three (3), the final year, of the 150th anniversary Grand Jubilee Season of Emancipation, the sesquicentennial commemoration. One hundred and fifty years ago in 1865, two years after the Emancipation Proclamation, the Civil War came to an end, a war that cost over 700,000 lives. In that year (1865), the Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States of America was passed by the legislative and executive branches of government, abolishing slavery in this nation forever. From those troubling times to the present, we as a group are blessed with an enormous opportunity to measure, analyze and define our American journey, our claim on the American Dream— to proclaim for ourselves a new language of freedom! Below is a cultural narrative—our story—our history; a brief presentation of our deep collective history that dates back to before this nation’s founding: The Cultural Narrative African Americans are a unique people with a peculiar history in this land. Brought to these shores in chains from Africa as slaves in the early 1600s, our people toiled and suffered as captives in brutal bondage for a quarter of a millennium (250 years). On January 1, 1863, two years into the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation, signed by President Abraham Lincoln, became law signaling an end to slavery. On that day, the African American community of the United States of America was born. One hundred years later, in August, 1963, at the height of the civil rights movement, Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stood in front of the Lincoln Memorial as he led hundreds of thousands to a “March on Washington” seeking an end to discrimination and 90 years of Jim Crow segregation in the South. It was a demand for full citizenship rights for the people in what has been called “The Second Emancipation.” Forty years after Martin Luther King’s tragic assassination in 1968, America elected its first black president, Barack Obama (2008). In one hundred years between the first and second emancipation, in the midst of bitter persecution, humiliation, lynching and the denial of basic human rights, the resiliency of the African American spirit continued to shine brightly in religion, business, medicine, invention, sports and in the creative arts—music, fashion, dance, language, literature and theater. Indeed, original American art forms and a popular culture that has become the envy of the world were founded upon the souls of a forlorn people! That is our story — the Truth, Beauty and Goodness of a loving and gifted race revealed! An Extraordinary History Ours is an extraordinary history of trial, tribulation and triumph that we must never forget! This is the story that we must tell our children and be ever remembered. We the people, descendants of the Great Emancipation, must tell our story to each other reminding ourselves, over and over again of the great, noble struggle and sacrifices of those who came before us. This is our story, our cultural narrative, a new language of freedom; a springboard into a great and prosperous future, a vision of hope and progress; health and happiness; peace and goodwill! 2015—the Grand Jubilee Season of the Great Emancipation! Author: Adrian A. Council, Sr. Editor: Jean Nash Wells Graphic Design: Penguin Graphics & Martin Maishman
Published by: The Positive Community Corporation www.thepositivecommunity.com
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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AFRICAN AMERICANS HEALTH AWARENESS AFRICAN AMERICANSFOR FOR HEALTH AWARENESS AFRICAN AMERICANS FOR HEALTH AWARENESS AFRICAN AMERICANS FOR HEALTH AWARENESS
AAHA Salutes Adrian A. Council, Sr., Jean Nash Wells and the Staff AAHA Salutes of AAHA AAHA's Mission: Raising awareness of health concernsSalutes (spiritual, mental, physical, educational, emotional, Adrian A. Council, Sr., Jean Nash Wells and the Staff Adrian A. Council,Sr., Sr.,Jean Jean Nash Wells and and the Staff Adrian A. Council, Nash Wells the of AAHA's AAHA's Mission: Mission: Raising Raising awareness awareness of of health health concerns concerns (spiritual, (spiritual, mental, mental, physical, physical, educational, educational, emotional, emotional, of
AAHA Salutes
Staff The Positive Community of of Service as the premier Congratulations on 15 years The Positive Community The Positive Community magazine covering the African-American community
AAHA's Mission: Raising awareness of health concerns (spiritual, mental, physical, educational, emotional,
AAHA's Mission: Raising awareness of health concerns (spiritual, mental, physical, educational, emotional,
The Positive Community
throughout theon greater NewofJersey and York Congratulations 15 years Service as New the premier Congratulations on 15 years of Service as the premier Metropolitan area. magazine covering the African-American community magazine covering the African-American community throughout New Jersey and York Congratulations ongreater 15 years Service as the throughout the the greater Newof Jersey and New New Yorkpremier Metropolitan area. AAHA’s mission is to raise awareness of health concerns affecting African-American families. AAHA magazine covering the African-American community Metropolitan area. was established to educate families through advocacy, health awareness and public-outreach initiatives. Like us on Facebookthe at African Americans for Health Awareness (AAHA) or contact us via email at: York throughout greater New Jersey and New healthawareness2014@outlook.com. AAHA’s AAHA’s mission mission is is to to raise raise awareness awareness of of health health concerns concerns affecting affecting African-American African-American families. families. AAHA AAHA AAHA’s mission is to raise awareness of health concerns affecting African-American families.initiatives. AAHA was established established to to educate educate families families through advocacy, advocacy, health health awareness awareness and public-outreach public-outreach initiatives. Metropolitan area. was through and was established to educate families through advocacy, health awareness and public-outreach initiatives. Like Like us us on on Facebook Facebook at at African African Americans Americans for for Health Health Awareness Awareness (AAHA) (AAHA) or or contact contact us us via via email email at: at: Like us on Facebook at African Americans for Health Awareness (AAHA) or contact us via email at: healthawareness2014@outlook.com. healthawareness2014@outlook.com. healthawareness2014@outlook.com.
AAHA’s mission is to raise awareness of health concerns affecting African-American families. AAHA 15families Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014 was established to educate through advocacy, health awareness and public-outreach initiatives. Like us on Facebook at African Americans for Health Awareness (AAHA) or contact us via email at:
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
The The Chad Chad Foundation Foundation Proudly Proudly Supports Supports The The Positive Positive Community Community Magazine The Chad Foundation Proudly Supports The Positive Community Magazine TheDr. Chad Foundation Board Proudly Supports TheJohnson, Positive Kia Calhoun-Grundy, Chair; Ms. Kim Weeks BoardCommunity Treasurer Magazine Dr. Kia Calhoun-Grundy, Board Chair; Ms. Kim Weeks Johnson, Board Treasurer Mr. ReginaldMagazine Lewis, Executive Director Dr. Kia Calhoun-Grundy, Board Chair; Kim Weeks Johnson, Board Treasurer Mr. Reginald Lewis,Ms. Executive Director Dr. Kia Calhoun-Grundy, Board Chair; Ms. Kim Weeks Johnson, Board Treasurer
Mr. Reginald Lewis, Executive Director
Mr. Reginald Lewis, Executive Director
L-R: Laymen Claude Underwood, Wilbert Noble, Willie Burke, Darryl Koon and Melvin Paden The General Baptist Convention of New Jersey Laymen’s Movement congratulate and salute The Positive Community for 15 years of outstanding service to our people, community and our culture. We believe that your good work is an Claude Noble, Willie Darryl Melvinthe extension of the work of the laymen, whichUnderwood, is to save the Wilbert lost by telling them the Burke, Good News of Koon, Jesus, feeding hungry, visiting the sick and the prisonPaden bound. Keep telling the good news and our people will become the great people God intended us to be. Congratulations. The General Baptist Convention of New Jersey Laymen’s Movement is led by Deacon Willie Burke, a member of The Metropolitan Baptist Church, Newark, NJ. Rev Dr. David Jefferson is his Pastor.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
The Newark School of Theology Congratulates
The Positive Community For its Fifteen Years of Dedicated service to God and our Beloved Community. Proclaim liberty throughout the land (Lev. 25:10)
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Because a healthy community is a positive community. Congratulations to The Positive Community as it celebrates its 15th year. We salute all those that have made positive contributions to the community in business, health, education and the arts and look forward to celebrating many more of these milestones with you.
Quality care you can trust. Compassion you can count on.
www.evh.org
“Make this Essex County holiday extravaganza your family tradition! Turtle Back Zoo will be turned into a Winter Wonderland with extraordinary seasonal lighting exhibits, costumed characters and more. Enjoy free admission, stroll the landscaped paths of our Zoo and admire the illuminated images of everything from toy soldiers to dancing penguins.” Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr.
Joseph N. DiVincenzo, Jr., Essex County Executive and the Board of Chosen Freeholders Invite you to the
Essex County Holiday Lights Spectacular FREE ADMISSION!!
5 to 9 PM November 28, 29 & 30; December 5, 6 & 7; December 12 to January 4 th th Closed December 24 & 25 Essex County South Mountain Recreation Complex Essex County Turtle Back Zoo, 560 Northfield Avenue, West Orange 973-731-5800 ~ www.essexcountynj.org Carousel Rides are $2 Sponsored by PSE&G, Covanta Energy, Zoological Society of NJ and the Essex County Parks Foundation Donations of non-perishable food items, unwrapped toys and new & gently used winter coats for the needy are appreciated.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
Rev. Stef and Jubilation
Rev. Stef and J SALUTE The Postive Community Awards & Gala Rev. Stef and Jubilation SALUTE ADRIAN COUNCIL Rev. Stef Stef and and Jubilation Jubilation & Rev. Stef and Jubilation Rev. SALUTE THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY FAMILY
ADRIAN CO
SALUTE SALUTE pray your continuing success and trust that your endeavors will SALUTE tinue to inform, uplift, and positively impact our community. ADRIAN COUNCIL
&
THE & POSITIVE COMM ADRIAN COUNCIL ADRIAN COUNCIL ADRIAN &COUNCIL & POSITIVE THE COMMUNITY FAMIL & your continuing success We pray and Rev. Stef and Jubilation THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY FAMILY continue to inform, uplift, and posit HE POSITIVE COMMUNITY FAMILY THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY FAMILY SALUTE We pray your continuing success and trust that your endeav
continue to inform, uplift, and positively impact our comm Wesuccess pray your continuing success and trust that your endeavors ADRIAN COUNCIL We pray your continuing success and y your continuing and trust that your endeavors will We pray your continuing success and trust that your endeavors continue to inform, uplift, and positively impact our commun & and positively trust that your endeavors will continue nue to inform, uplift, impact our community. continue to inform, uplift, and positively impact our communi and HEremixed POSITIVE COMMUNITY Our remixed and remastered Our and remastered Christmas CD is available FAMILY for purchase to inform, uplift, CD is available for purchase Visit Christmas us at www.RevStefandJubilation.com positively Visit and us at trust y your continuing success that your endeavors will impact our community. www.RevStefandJubilation.com
nue to inform, uplift, and positively impact our community.
Our remixed and remastered Christm Visit us at www.RevStefa Our remixed and remastered Christmas CD is available for purch remixed and remastered Christmas CD is available for Visit purchase us at www.RevStefandJubilation.com Our remixed and remastered Christmas CD is available for purchase Visit us at www.RevStefandJubilation.com remixed and remastered Christmas CD is available for purchase Our remixed Visit and remastered Christmas CD is available for purchase us at www.RevStefandJubilation.com Visit us at www.RevStefandJubilation.com Visit us at www.RevStefandJubilation.com
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
HARLEM CONGREGATIONS FOR COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT, INC. (HCCI) Salutes
Rev.Dr Carl Washington Moderator, United Missonary Baptist Association of NY
The Postive community Awards Gala Honoree
To learn about HCCI visit us on line at www.hcci.org.
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
THE HISTORIC BEREAN BAPTIST CHURCH THE HISTORIC BEREAN BAPTIST CHURCH - Est. 1850
Congratulations Congratulations & Best Wishes to& Best Wishes to
POSITIVE COMMUNIT THE THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY & Mr. AdrianSr., A. Council, Sr., & Mr. Adrian A. Council,
15 years outstanding For 15 yearsFor of outstanding &of dedicated service & dedicated service the Communication through thethrough Communication Arts to our Tri -StateArts area. to our Tri -State ar
Continue bring the best to the African American Co Continue to bring theto very best to thevery African American Community.
DR. ARLEE JR. - SENIOR PAS DR. ARLEE GRIFFIN, GRIFFIN, JR. - SENIOR PASTOR Celebrating our 25th Pastoral Celebrating our Anniversary 25th Pastoral Anniversary
1635 Dr. Hylton L. James (Bergen Street) - Brooklyn, New York 11213 1635 Dr. Hylton L. Boulevard James Boulevard (Bergen Street) - Brooklyn, New Y www.bereanbaptist.org www.bereanbaptist.org
“Andwewe weknow knowwethat that allthat things work together together for good good those who love God.” Romans 8:28 “And things work for whowho loveloveGod.” God.” 8:28 “And know that things work together for toto those who love “And knowallall all things work together for good to those God.”-- -Romans - Romans Romans8:28 8:28 “And we“And knowwethat knowallthat thingsallwork thingstogether work together for goodforto good thosetowhothose lovewhoGod.” love- God.” Romans - Romans 8:28 8:28 Reverend Dr. Thomas Thomas D. Johnson, Johnson, Sr. Reverend Dr. Johnson, Sr. Reverend Dr. Thomas D. Johnson, Sr. Reverend Dr. Thomas D. Sr. Reverend Reverend Dr. Thomas Dr. Thomas D. Johnson, D. Johnson, Sr. Sr. & & & & & TheCanaan Canaan Baptist Church of Christ The Canaan Baptist Church of Christ The Baptist Church of Christ The Canaan Church of The Canaan The Canaan Baptist Baptist Church Church of Christ ofChrist Christ Congratulate Congratulate Congratulate Congratulate Congratulate Congratulate
The Positive Community Magazine The Positive Community Magazine The Positive Community Magazine The Positive Community Magazine The Positive The Positive Community Community Magazine Magazine th In Celebrating Your 15Anniversary Anniversary th InCelebrating Celebrating Your 15 th thth th15 In Celebrating Anniversary InIn Celebrating In Celebrating Your 15 Your Anniversary 15 Anniversary Your Anniversary
May GodContinue Continue toBless Bless and Empower YourCommunity Community Service May God Continue to Bless and Empower Your Service May God May Continue God to Bless to and Empower and Empower Your Community Your Community Service Service May God Continue to Bless and Empower Your Community Service
Canaan Baptist Church of Christ Canaan Baptist Church of Christ Christ Canaan Canaan Baptist Baptist Church Church of Christ of of Christ Canaan Baptist Church From The Heart Harlem” Since 1932 Canaan “Serving Baptist Church ofof Christ “Serving From The Heart of Harlem” Since 1932 “Serving “Serving From The From Heart The of Heart Harlem” of Harlem” 1932 Since 1932 “Serving From The Heart of Harlem” Since 1932 Worship AM Since “Serving Sunday From The Heart10:00 of Harlem” Since 1932 Sunday Worship 10:00 AM Sunday Sunday Worship Worship 10:00 AM 10:00 AM Sunday Worship 10:00 AM
Sunday Worship 10:00 AM
132 West 116th Street - New York, New York 10026 th Street th -Street th116 132 West 132 116 West New York, - New New York, York New 10026 York 10026 132 West West 116 Street New York, New York 10026 Church 866-0301 th Phone: 132 116 Street --(212) New York, New York 10026 th 132 West 116 Street -(212) New York, New York 10026 Church Church Phone: Phone: (212) 866-0301 866-0301 Church Phone: (212) 866-0301 www.cbccnyc.org Church Phone: (212) 866-0301 www.cbccnyc.org www.cbccnyc.org Church Phone: (212) 866-0301 www.cbccnyc.org
www.cbccnyc.org www.cbccnyc.org
Reverend Dr. Thomas D. Johnson, Sr., Reverend Dr. D. Thomas D.Johnson, Johnson, Sr., Reverend Reverend Dr. Thomas Thomas Johnson, D. Sr., Sr., Senior Pastor Reverend Dr. Thomas D. Johnson, Sr., Reverend Dr. Thomas D. Johnson, Senior Pastor Senior Pastor Senior PastorSr.,
Senior Pastor
Pastor Reverend Dr. WyattSenior Tee Walker, Reverend Reverend Dr. Wyatt Dr. Tee Wyatt Walker, Tee Walker, Pastor Emeritus Reverend Dr. Wyatt Tee Walker, ReverendPastor Dr. Wyatt TeeEmeritus Walker, Pastor Reverend Dr. Emeritus Wyatt Tee Walker, Pastor Emeritus
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
Pastor Emeritus Pastor Emeritus
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
The New Jersey Economic Development Authority (EDA) Congratulates the Positive Community 2014 Awards Dinner & Gala Honorees EDA is an independent State agency that finances small and mid-sized businesses, administers tax incentives to retain and grow jobs, revitalizes communities through redevelopment initiatives, and supports entrepreneurial development by providing access to training and mentoring programs. Contact EDA at (866) 534-7789 or visit us at NJEDA.com to find out how we can provide financial assistance to grow your business in New Jersey!
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community
on Your 15th Year of Service to Newark and the Metropolitan Area. Awards & Galato bless you in your ministry. May God continue 275 West Market Street Newark, NJ 07103 973-623-8161 www.bethany-newark.org The Rev. M. William Howard, Jr., Pastor
Bethany Baptist Church Congratulates Positive Community on Your 15th Year of Service to Newark and the Metropolitan Area. May God continue to bless you in your ministry. 275 West Market Street Newark, NJ 07103 973-623-8161 www.bethany-newark.org The Rev. M. William Howard, Jr., Pastor
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Shiloh Baptist Church
“A Place of Peace: Where Jesus is Lord and People are Loved!”
Join us!
Worship Service – Sundays @ 9:00am SIBLE/Sunday School – Sundays @ 11:15am Bible Study – Tuesdays @ 7:00pm and Wednesdays @ 11:00am Women’s Fellowship – Every 2nd Saturday of the month @ 9:00am Men’s Fellowship – Every 3rd Saturday of the month @ 9:00am
Shiloh Baptist Church
515 West Fourth St., Plainfield, New Jersey 07060 Office: 908.754.3353 • Fax: 908.754.0622
www.shilohplainfield.org
Reverend Gerald Lamont Thomas, Ph.D., Senior Pastor
SM
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Reverend Dr. Adolphus C. Lacey and The Bethany Baptist Church of Brooklyn, New York
CONGRATULATE
POSITIVE COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
IN CELEBRATION OF YOUR 15TH YEAR
AS THE PREMIER MAGAZINE FOR THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY
Executive Director: Donald C. Notice
WEST HARLEM GROUP ASSISTANCE, INC.
1652 Amsterdam Avenue New York, NY 10031
WEST HARLEM GROUP ASSISTANCE, INC.
Would Like To Congratulate The Positive Community
Phone: 212-862-1399 Fax: 212-862-3281 Reach Us On The Web At: www.whgainc.org
On Their 1st Annual Positive Community Awards & Gala And Its Honorees
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
It Is With Great Joy That We Join In Celebrating The Works And Contributions Of The Respective Honorees Of This Evening With Special Recognition To One Of Our Six District Associations
United Missionary Baptist Association Rev. Dr. Carl L. Washington, Moderator
The Positive Community Celebrating 15 years as the premier magazine for the African-American Community in the New Jersey and New York Greater Metropolitan Areas.
May God continue to bless you!
First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens 771 Somerset St., Somerset, NJ 08873
Dr. DeForest B. Soaries, Jr., Senior Pastor Mrs. Donna Soaries, First Lady
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
a candlelight christmas concert
"For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”– Matthew 2:2b
CONGRATULATIONS TO
THE POSITIVE COMMUNITY ON THE OCCASSION OF ITS
1ST ANNUAL AWARDS & GALA DR. RUDOLPH F. CREW PRESIDENT, MEDGAR EVERS COLLEGE
saturday, december 20, 2014, 6pm Calvary Baptist Church 10 Martin Luther King Ave. Morristown, NJ 07960 • Dr. Jerry M. Carter, Jr., Senior Pastor For more information call (973) 267-0136
COURAGE. STRENGTH. FORTITUDE. 1650 Bedford Avenue • Brooklyn, NY 11225 (718) 270-4900 • www.mec.cuny.edu
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala Saint Michael’s Medical Center Saint Michael’s Medical Center Saint Michael’s Medical Center Saint Michael’s Medical Center Congratulations Congratulations to to Congratulations to The Positive Community The Positive Community on on 15 15 Years Years of of Service Service The Positive Community on 15 Years of Service
Supports The Positive Community Supports The Positive Community Supports The Positive Community Supports The Positive Community and congratulates and and congratulates congratulates and congratulates this evening’s honorees! this evening’s honorees! this evening’s honorees! this evening’s honorees!
111 Central Avenue 111 Central Avenue Newark, New Jersey 07102 111 Central Avenue 111 Central Avenue Newark, New Jersey 07102 www.smmcnj.org I 973.877.5000 Newark, New Jersey 07102 Newark, New Jersey 07102 www.smmcnj.org I 973.877.5000 www.smmcnj.org I 973.877.5000 www.smmcnj.org I 973.877.5000
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15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Honorary Co-Chairs Michellene Davis Leecia Eve Honorary Committee Members Shané Harris Rev. Dr. M. William Howard, Jr. The Rt. Rev. Reginald T. Jackson Penny Joseph Jeannine Frisby LaRue Rev. Dr. Calvin McKinney Kimberly Mclain Voza Rivers Terri Seeney Rev. Dr. Johnny Ray Youngblood Rev Dr. David Jefferson, Sr. Tamika D. Mallory Monica Slater Stokes
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
15 Wonderful Years with The Positive Community
I
remember when I received the initial call from Jean Wells informing me about the creation of this new publication called The Positive Community. The main purpose of the call however, was to invite me to be one of its writers. I had known Miss Jean (as I affectionately call her) from the days that we both worked on one of the city’s black daily newspapers and also collaborated on some events in Brooklyn’s Caribbean community. On that call she detailed the plans she and Adrian Council had put in place to start this new publication based on a model of all positive news from the community. I remember her saying something like: “The fact is that there are a lot of good things happening in our
community but when you look at the news all we hear about is the bad stuff.” I agreed with the premise but I must confess that I was a bit skeptical. My skepticism had nothing to do with the publishers, both of whom I greatly respected. It was based on my own experiences up to that point as what at the time was called, a community journalist. As one of this breed of freelance writers, I had seen my fair share of start-up magazines and newspapers, which lasted for no more than one issue. A few others survived for two or three issues, but by the time they went out of circulation so, too, did the publisher. Writers were left with striking bylines and shrinking pockets. To say the least, I was disillusioned. In discussions with my family I had declared that I was never going to write for another startup. Then came the call from Miss Jean. At the time, the inaugural issue of the magazine had already been published and the feedback from the community was overwhelmingly encouraging. So I was conflicted. On the one hand, I was still haunted by the pain of publishers past. But on the other hand, this was Jean Wells and Adrian Council at the helm of this ship. These were two people with whom I had a pleasant history and I believed that they had the intelligence, experience and most of all the integrity to make this magazine work.
I am so glad that I was right. Fifteen years later and The Positive Community magazine is standing triumphant. Moreover, I am also glad that I made the right choice by agreeing to write for the magazine. 10 The Positive Community
November 2014
www.thepositivecommunity.com
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
The Postive Community Awards & Gala
As the “oldest-sister” in the family, I have had some choice assignments and have met many wonderful people. I have interviewed and written about religious leaders, doctors, politicians, community leaders, heads of corporations, young achievers, entrepreneurs and entertainers. I am so glad that I was right. Fifteen years later and The Positive Community magazine is standing triumphant. Moreover, I am also glad that I made the right choice by agreeing to write for the magazine. For me it has been 15 wonderful and rewarding years being part of what has become The Positive Community family. Today, as the longest-standing writer with the magazine, I take a lot of pride in our achievements over the years and reaching this milestone anniversary. As the “oldest-sister” in the family, I have had some choice assignments and have met many wonderful people. I have interviewed and written about religious leaders, doctors, politicians, community leaders, heads of corporations, young achievers, entrepreneurs and entertainers. In fact, I have written for every segment in the magazine and have had the cover story more times than I can remember. So this week, as I reflected on this journey, my mind travelled to my most favored article of all time. It was an interview with the late Rev. Dr. William Augustus Jones, Jr., a larger than life figure who stamped his footprints in the sands of time at Bethany Baptist Church in Brooklyn. In what was the cover story of the February 2004 issue, Dr. Jones said two things which influenced my life and my choices. “Freedom,” he said, “is the power to say no to a lie.” And then this little ditty which he learned from his grandfather: “be what you is and not what you ain’t. Because if you ain’t what you is, you is what you ain’t.” In other words,” he said, “My grandfather was saying, operate from within the context of your www.thepositivecommunity.com
God-given ability and God-intended destiny.” This is one of my guiding lights every time I write an article. The other interview that left an indelible impression on my life was one with former UN Ambassador and Atlanta Mayor, Andrew Young. The article appeared in the winter issue of 2010 as Ambassador Young reflected on the life and legacy of his friend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., in our special commemorative issue. He said: “I remember that Martin would often tell me that he admired the Good Samaritan but he did not want to be one. He said: ‘I do not want to spend my life picking people up from the Jericho road after they have been robbed and beaten. I want to change the Jericho road that they are not beaten and robbed.’” In large measure I believe that’s what we have been doing at The Positive Community magazine for the past 15 years. By remaining committed to telling the “good news from the Church and Community,” we have done our part in “paving” the Jericho roads in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn; Newark, NJ; Harlem, USA and everywhere else we have found good people doing good work. For 15 years we have been finding the “good thing” in Nazareth and making sure that the world knows about their stories. I believe that a collective “Congratulations!” is welldeserved for the entire Positive Community team—publishers, editors, writers, designers, sales execs, administrative staff et al. Personally, I am so proud that we have stayed the course that I need to be careful not to hurt my shoulders as I try to pat myself on the back. November 2014 The Positive Community
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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The Postive Community Awards & Gala
Special thanks to: Emcee Rob Crocker Announcer Dr. Bob Lee Metropolitan Gospel Big Band Rev. Stephanie Minatee & Jubilation Barfield Public Relations, Inc. Special Events Coordinator Kay Lucas, MediaSense Juan C. Perez, Highbrid Media James Austin, Producer & Musical Director Emerald Garden Design Chamblee’s Square Restaurant & Catering The Positive Community Staff
15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
Postive Community Awards & Gala
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15 Year Anniversary • November 17, 2014
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