 Good afternoon, and welcome to the 18th annual Unsung Hero Awards. My name is Linda Brooks-Burton, and I'm the branch manager at the Bayview-Watton branch in Bayview Hunters Point, and it is my honor to see all of you here and welcome you to our awards program once again. As always, we have an inspiring and entertaining program in store for you, followed by a wonderful reception. But first, I would like to invite the Public Relations Director of the San Francisco Public Library to the stage to say a few words before we begin our program. Please welcome Marcia Schneider. Thank you very much, Linda. It's my honor to be here to extend, to add my warm welcome to all of you for being here. I appreciate it. I think it's just really quite remarkable that this program is in its 18th year. And I know that Linda will be thanking many, many people who are responsible for this program, but what she doesn't do is thank herself, and I'd like to thank her and the entire African-American interest community, Stuart Shaw, Loretta Dowell, Shannetta Jackson, Alex Alexander, Linda Brooks-Burton. Please thank them for putting this together. Last year, the City Librarian was here for the first time. It was his first year at San Francisco Public Library, and he spent weeks talking about what a wonderful program this is. I've been here many times over the years and already know what a wonderful program it is, but I'm just really happy to be here again this year. And finally, I'd like to thank the friends of the San Francisco Public Library who fund this event every year. Again, welcome. Thank you for coming. Okay. Thank you, Marcia. This year's theme, as you can see by the backdrop, is celebrating community, a tribute to Black fraternal, social, and civic institutions. This particular theme was chosen because this year marks the 100th anniversary of the founding of the first continuous collegiate Black Greek fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha. Established in an age when racial segregation and disenfranchisement plagued African-Americans, the rise of civic organizations such as the National Council of Negro Women, the Prince Hall Masons, the Eastern Stars, and the Urban League, and of course the NAACP bore witness to the fact that despite hardships, African-Americans refused to ascent to a status of inferiority. As the 20th century progressed, Black social organizations like Jack and Jill rose to reflect the middle class aspirations of many African-Americans and more recently civic groups such as the Lynx, the Rainbow Push Coalition, and 100 Black men have emerged to address the community's economic and political challenges. While the Black Church has served as a rock in a weary land, African-American fraternal, social, and civic organizations have also aided the community in its efforts to draw sweet honey from the rock of our American experience. To begin our program, we will stand and sing the Negro National Anthem and then the praise and sign dancers will take the stage. Please help me welcome Vivian Miller, who will lead us in song. Good afternoon. As you know, my name is Vivian Miller. This is Tatiana. You helped me with your name. Dajenay Torrance. Dajenay Torrance. And I had a few extra copies of the song because there's only one verse printed here. So I wanted to give it out so that everyone possible could sing along with us. And she asked me for a copy of it. And I said, well, it's for the adults. And she said, well, I know the song. So we're going to have her sing with us today. Okay. You ready? Thank you very much. My name is Everett Alexander, and I am on the African-American Interest Committee here at the library. And wow, when they said 18 years that they've been doing this program for 18 years, it's amazing to me because one of the things that's very important to realize is that even though we're honoring heroes here who come up on stage, the only reason this program has been going for so long, for so strong is because of support from the community, from you. So thank you very much for 18 years of making this happen. Now it's my privilege to introduce your emcee for today. Veronica Dangerfield is a longtime supporter of the San Francisco Library. She's been the emcee for the unsung heroes for over 10 years. Now she's written and performed a one-woman show, unidentified, and performed it here at the San Francisco Public Library with amazing reviews. Veronica has successfully brought her stand-up comedy to the corporate world and has made several presentations on marketing, financial literacy, and having fun at work. We need more of that here, having fun at work. She has supported her community this year by leading a successful fundraising team to support Strides Against Breast Cancer. She's organized two blood drives and Veronica works today as a business development officer for Cal State Nine Credit Union. She's a writer, performer, and an award-winning speaker, and she's the mother of three and a champion for heroes everywhere. Please help me welcome your emcee for today, Veronica Dangerfield. Oh, cousins, welcome to the family reunion. So today we are going to, the young people were singing something about having a fire in the heart. Well, we need to let the officials know not to bring the fire trucks, because there's going to be a fire in the San Francisco Library today. And cousins, you know what our favorite word is? Our favorite word is ashay. I need you to practice saying ashay. Because when you hear something and it's the truth, I don't want you to sit there and be quiet. This is a black congregation and you know we ain't quiet very much. Now ashay, can I hear ashay in the house? And they said that children would lead him. Did you see that little girl? Was she the cutest thing? And the praise dancers, every time I hear the praise dancers, I am just so energized with the young people of our community. So are they from SR Martin? Hands together for SR Martin. All right. So cousins, I would like you to take a second to look at your other cousins that are sitting around you and give them a warm hearted good morning, good afternoon, welcome them. We are all one. That's right. We are all lifting up together. So don't be sitting up there like you don't know nobody. There you go. There you go. We got some steam in this train and we're going to head down the track. Are y'all ready? A few can touch the magic strings and noisy fame is proud to win them, alas for those who never sing but die with all the music in them. That's from Oliver Wendell Holmes. But I know a man who is not going to die with the music within him because he reaches out to our community, to our children and gives them the gift of music. Because you guys think that music is just a sound? Oh no, no, no. Music is an emotion. A music can change your whole physiological being. So Mr. Barati, Terry Barati, he's been teaching the youth and baby hunters point for over 20 years. No, not yet. Not yet. I ain't finished bragging about you yet. I got a few more things to say. Terry, it's going to take me a few minutes. Give a sister a rope, okay? He is the director of the Dundan Cifo Angola, a Congolese drumming and capiola troupe. Excuse me for mispronouncing that. He teaches capiola, Brazilian martial arts, and a dance form with the Congolese drumming. He's worked at the Bayview Opera House, the Whitney Young Child Development Center, Mills College, and the San Francisco Unified School District. Cousins, you're a bit silent. Oh, shade of that action. Don't make me have to come out there and whoop on y'all. He is inspirational to the youth. He teaches self-awareness and is passionate about preserving black history and our culture. He works in the community as a volunteer. Now how many of you are working in our community as a volunteer? Terry has shown up and he has raised his hand and said, present. He has very little compensation with his focus on African-American youth as the future of tomorrow. But today, Terry, may we give you our love, give you our support, and let you know how wonderful you are and how much we appreciate everything you do for our community. Come on up now, brother, and come get your award. Okay, in Congolese, I say thank you, matando. It's kind of different for me because I'm used to performing. You know, I don't see people got a long history of being on this stage right here. So talking is, you know, kind of different, I'm used to sweating. Anyway, this is an honor for me, it's really an honor for me, that I'm still healthy and enough to do what I've been doing for a long time and I can, you know, get an acceptance of approval from my community, that's the highest honor, you know, when you can get respect from your own, that's one of the greatest things you can do. I want to first give a libation to some people who are not with us anymore. I was going to bring my cup, but I was rushing out and, you know, we always forget something, but brother Azaleh Oteem, who's not with us, and he was a writer, a performer, a scholar, he spoke four different languages, which he basically was self-taught and he traveled all over the world, and he really helped my young people as far as like going to Agent Commit, which is called Egypt, and went to the Pyramids and then came back and told them the knowledge that they kept and held high, and brother Dante Salisbury, who was the first star of our group back in 1984, he's no longer with us, and two, my stepson, Sharon Brown, who was the first cup with a kid in the United States, and I'd like to also thank all the grandparents and the parents and the aunties and uncles that believed in what we were doing and the community that embraced us and followed and gave us chances to perform. I want to thank the churches who allowed us to come into the pulpit and share with them, and, you know, God willing, you know, I'm going to be doing this for another 20 or so years, you know? I'm 53, so I figure I still got another 20 years in the circle, okay? And I want to thank all the young people who tolerated me, because, you know, I'll go hard, you know, I don't go easy, and so I want to thank them when I see them grow, and I see these mature young men, young women, doing their part, working in the community themselves, being good parents, and just being good people. It makes it all worthwhile. I don't volunteer anymore. I mean, I do get paid for what I'm doing. So, just having to make that clear. In case you want me to do something, you know, I might have to ask you a feat. I want to acknowledge my oldest son in the group, what I mean by that, he's my eldest nephew, and he's now the director of the Safe Haven program out in the Bayview district, and his brother, Malish Senefru, right there. Just raise your hand, bro. I mean, continuing. You know, he's going to take the torch and go ahead and take it further, because we need young people younger now to deal with this different generation. And Yoko Pocongo, right over there, my other nephew who's working with the seniors out here in the Western Edition, and also teaching capoeira, fine drummers, so it was Brother Malik, my family, my mother, my sister, my niece, my grand-niece, cousins. My mother's 94. That's something to say I share about. So, that's one of the greatest accomplishments, and I hope God will bless me that I can accomplish that, too. So, all I can say, really, is thank you for, you know, it's nice to have recognition for what you try to do. Thank you very much. Matando. And you know he brought his mother. Is that the coolest thing in the world? I'd like to give you a round of applause, because you did a fine job on that man. I tell you, folks, it ain't easy being a parent. I've got a four-year-old, a six-year-old, and a 17-year-old. Yeah, I have both short and long-term memory loss. I tell you, it's a hard, tough job. But one thing I do is I do support the economy. I have stock in Clairall, because my hair is completely white at the end of each day. Okay, I'd like to talk about Miss Mary and Davis Field, and I'd like to start with a poem by Ella Willer Wilcox. She whose heart is full of tenderness and truth, who loves mankind more than she loves herself, and cannot find room in her heart for hate. Maybe another Christ. We may all be the savers of this world if we believe. The divinity which dwells within us and worship it and nail our grosser selves, our tempers, our greeds, and our unworthy aims upon the cross. She who giveth love to all. She pays kindness for unkindness, smiles for frowns. She lends new courage to each fainting heart, and strengthens hope and scatters joy abroad. She too can be a redeemer. Mrs. Fields worked as a nurse for 27 years at the VA hospital. Now, working at a hospital is hard enough, but a VA hospital is a tough, tough job. I shaded that somebody out here understands me. Alrighty, she's retired, and she came back to work. The definitive word in that cousins is came back. She left work, and she came back. I don't know if I would do that, but anyway. To work in her community as an RN in 1999 at the Bayviews Hunters Point Adult Day Care Center, Mrs. Fields is committed to her community, and she represents the needs of those who cannot speak out. She's deeply concerned about the health issues affecting African-American. And you know what our health issues are, high blood pressure, diabetes, AIDS, HIV. She don't have a hard time finding health issues in our community. Yet, she works tirelessly to make a difference in how people utilize health services. Mrs. Fields has never asked for recognition, because she is a very humble person. She visits seniors from her job on her own time and on weekends to make sure that they have the medication and the food that's to eat. She gives selflessly, and we have all benefited from her curing and commitment. For being a nice, great steward of her community, please put your hands together and welcome Miss Mary and Davis Phillips. Yay, Miss Phillips! Thank you all. It is indeed an honor to have been chosen for this award, and I want to thank Dr. George Davis for recommending me and the committee for choosing me to be one of the honorees. As a child growing up in Georgia, my parents raised my six siblings and myself to be caring people, because it was the right thing to do. And I do, all I do, because that's the way I was raised, to always help whenever I could. And I'm not going to take up a whole lot of time, because I know there are others on the program. But my lovely daughter, Crystal, who's in the audience, recently wrote a tribute to me. I went to my high school reunion down in Georgia, and she wrote a very lovely tribute to her mother. And I quote, If I can be as good an example to my children one day as my mother has been to me, it'll be all worthwhile. And that's what it's all about. Thank you. Cousins, success is not measured by what a man accomplishes, but by the opposition that he has encountered and the courage in which he maintains the struggle against overwhelming odds. That was by Charles Lindbergh. And you can become the star of the hour if you make the minutes count. And that's when I'm going to introduce Mr. Jerome J.J. Parsons. He has been affiliated with Bay Area Radio for close to 30 years. 30 years, cousins. That's my whole entire life. Y'all know him, right? Not only that, but he's been affiliated with communication. So he has been a representative out there where we have not been much represented, and he has been telling the good news about the black community. He's been the general manager of K-Poo since 2001. I love to say that word, K-Poo. He was born and raised in San Francisco, western edition, so he's homegrown, y'all. I shade it at. He grew up listening to radio personalities and DJs and became passionate about becoming an announcer. So you can become what you say you want to become, because he did it. And if he did it, anybody can do it. Not saying that you're not a great performer, Mr. Parsons, but dreams can come true and encourage all your children. In this nomination, he's called the self-sacrificing director of K-Poo and perhaps the most knowledgeable proponent of black music and its legacy in the Bay Area. Arshay. Alright then. Every day, this fantastic radio station keeps the tradition alive, and JJ seems to be doing it on a shoestring. Okay, how many of y'all had to do anything on a shoestring? I should be hearing some Arshays out there. Alrighty. He is an unknown cultural hero of our city and ought to be recognized as such, but what I'd like to do is recognize him today as a wonderful, awesome contributor that he is. Please, Mr. Parsons, come down and accept your award as an unsung hero. No more. Come on. Come on, cousins, give him some love. I believe she said it all. Someone said short speeches are the best. I would like to thank the San Francisco Public Library, friends of the Public Library, of course K-Poo Radio, without that I wouldn't be here. My mother who is in the audience this afternoon. And I would also like to thank Mr. Thomas Welch, Thomas Welch who actually nominated me for this award, and I thank you very much and I do appreciate it. Thank you very much. I love it when people thank their mothers because being a mother is a very hard job. Now I'm going to tell you a joke here. I hope you think it's funny. And if y'all don't think it's funny, y'all can just walk on. But being a good parent is something you really don't want to be too good at because you know what? Junior boy will be sitting on your teeth, sitting on your couch, 60 years old, saving up for gold toothless with a Social Security check. Now I don't want to go to no tough love classes at Kaiser when I'm 90. I want the children to leave. I love you guys. I really do. I love you guys. And now I'm going to have to talk about Miss Carol Lugo. Yes, Ralph Waldo Emerson said to laugh often and much, to win the respect of intelligent people and affection of children, to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends, to appreciate beauty cousins, to find the best in others, to leave the world a bit better, whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or redeemed social condition, to know even one life has breath easier because you live. This is to have succeeded. And Carol Lugo is a success story, y'all. Now let me tell you about her. You can hardly wait to hear this. She has won a 14 children. Fourteen! I got three and I'm having a nervous breakdown. Fourteen children. She was born in Cape Town, South Africa. That means she had to travel 24 hours on an airplane just to get to San Francisco. She and her husband has been residents of Bayview's Hunters Point since 1980, where they raised their only child, Marina. She has been an activist in community affairs for the past ten years and has worked diligently for the AIDS Walk in San Francisco. There you go. She's diligently for the AIDS Walk in San Francisco. This is a labor of love for her because her beloved brother passed away due to the disease three years ago. God bless his soul. An avid fundraiser, Miss Lugo has been recognized as raising the most money for the AIDS Walk by a single person. Ah, shame! Woo-hoo! Miss Lugo, I would bark for you, but they say I'm too dignified for that. She also makes a personal effort to collect clothes for her village as she joins there annually. She's a member of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church and work in the food pantry every Saturday, y'all. While we out there shopping, Miss Lugo is in the food pantry. Give her a hand and welcome her please. I'm honored to be up here. Our Lady of Lourdes Church is behind my back 100%. I have my mom and dad and two of my brothers in the audience and they are leaving for Africa. They are leaving for Africa tomorrow morning, a 24-hour flight. I am from the Bayview Hunters Point community. No one is talking about AIDS today and that's true. People don't mention the AIDS HIV virus anymore. You don't hear them talk about it. Everybody thinks that the HIV AIDS epidemic is a thing of the past. You're very mistaken. It's a very deadly disease in this day and age. My brother Peter is the reason why I have dedicated my life to raise this money so that we can find a cure for this dreadful disease. HIV AIDS have caused my brother his life and the emotional burden on my family. I am also inspired by the people who support me, especially my church. My church, Our Lady of Lourdes. Thank you. And now, cousins, we have another wonderful, delightful surprise. We have Ms. Vivian Miller who is going to come up and sing a song for you. So please give her a warm hand. I'm so honored to be here. I was here last year and I listened to the stories. It's just such a humbling experience. I was to see how people are committed and dedicated to the community to each other and to ensuring that our children grow up to be the kind of people that God would have them to be. This song, I was looking at the, oh, it's gone. During the Operation Push movement in the 70s, I heard the song. Of course, we grew up with it, but I heard this rendition of it and it just touched my soul. So I ask that you pray with me and for those of you who know it and would like to sing along, please do. Come by our my love, come by our, come by our my love, my love, come by our, come by our, come on by here my love. Come by here, come by, somebody need your Jesus. Come by here, somebody need your Jesus. Come by here, come by, because we can't do nothing, master, until you come by here, until you come by here. We, we, we can't do nothing until you come by here, come on, somebody's waiting, Jesus, come by here. And so we beseech you, master, at this time to come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on, come on. Wow, Vivian, that was amazing and that's talent. Give her another. My name is Veronica Dangerfield and I'm Rodney's only black child. He was in the U.S. Air Force, so I was raised communist. But I didn't, I didn't get back to the United States until I was 10 years old. And if I had got back before then, I think I could have sang like that. But all the thing I learned in Japan was musicals. And that's just not quite as inspirational. You know, success is a little like wrestling a gorilla. You don't quit when you're tired. You quit when the gorilla is tired. Aw, Shay Cousins. Anybody wrestle any gorillas here lately? You know, in the Bible it says, when two or more gather together in my name, but when there's two or more black women together together, I have to say, watch out. So I'd like to now honor the Golden Gate section of the National Council of Negro Women. The National Council of Negro Women, Incorporated, NCNW, is a nonprofit membership organization founded in 1935 by Mary McLoone Bethune, a child of slave parents. She was a distinguished educator and government consultant with a mission to lead, develop and advocate for women of African descent as they supported their families in the communities. NCNW addresses issues of human welfare, rights through public education and community service and advocacy. NCNW reaches nearly 4 million women through 39 national affiliate organizations and more than 240 sections nationwide. Did I hear not, Shay Cousins? And I wasn't sure about that. The Golden Gate section of the National Council of Negro Women has participated in the Unsung Hero Award since its inception in 1989. We thank you so much for that. Aw, Shay, the members have done everything from disseminating the nomination forms to sitting on the nomination committees and to hosting the reception given at the end of the program every year. And if you haven't been to the reception, I'm telling you there's some good food there. I'm talking some good Southern home cooking. When we learned that the National Black History theme this year was celebrating black organizations, it seemed only appropriate that the organization that has been faithful to this program every year should receive special recognition. To accept their award is the current president of the Golden Gate section of the NCNW, Catherine Bradford. Please come up, Ms. Bradford. Thank you so much. And from Ms. Linda Burton, I understand this is the first year that they have honored an organization and what an honor it is for the Golden Gate section of the National Council of Negro Women to receive this award. So just as historical as the organization is, this too will go down in history as the first recipient of the organization award from the main library of San Francisco, the unsung heroes. You know they say an organization is only as great as its members and as officers. So I would like to introduce my right, well this is my right arm, this is my left arm, this is my first vice, Ms. Catherine Summers, my second vice, Ms. Cookie Adams. So on behalf of all of the great women of the Golden Gate section, I accept this beautiful, handsome plaque with great pride. And we shall continue to work in the spirit of our founder, Mary MacLeod Bethune, and our president emerita, Dr. Dorothy Height, in making a difference in the lives of women, their families, and the community. We have enjoyed so very much working with the committee here at the library, the unsung heroes. We will continue to do so in the future with joy and happiness as we have in the past. So to all of the members of the committee, we thank you very much and we accept this with all of the humility, love and pride that we can muster. Thank you very much. Aren't they absolutely beautiful? I'll tell you. You know I don't ever worry about my birthdays because I'm a black woman and I got a lot of exceptional people ahead of me that still look gorgeous no matter how many years go by. So let's give a hand for the vicious wine. It just gets better and better, folks. This morning when I woke up, I knew something wonderful was going to happen. Something absolutely wonderful and this is it. And this is a surprise award for Miss Marion Pavis. Miss Pavis! Miss Pavis! She doesn't even know. She's back there and shocked you guys. Come on down, Miss Pavis. Since 1997, Miss Pavis has been volunteering with the Unsung Heroes Program serving in various capacities for wherever she's needed. For nine years, she has contributed to making sure our unsung heroes are not unsung and duly recognized. So this year, we want to make sure that she is duly recognized. She's so beautiful. All right. Miss Pavis has been involved with the library. Since 1987, she's presently served on the Council of Neighborhood Libraries and was an original member when Hope Hayes was COB. She advocates for her neighborhood branch, the Bayview Anna E. Walden. In the house, whenever Linda, the branch manager, or the staff tells Miss Pavis that she is needed, she drops everything and she simply comes to serve. She also delivers book donations from the Bayview branch for the Friends Book Library Cell every month. She has stuck with the CNL through thick and thin including her own stroke, her son's illness, and subsequent death and the ups and downs of the CNL. You know, not even death can stop Miss Pavis. Give her a noshay for that. And I'm not even finished bragging about Miss Pavis. A few years back, she was instrumental in helping the branch acquire new carpet. So the library has better self-esteem now. New carpet. After that, she's a new gate. We can always count on Miss Pavis to come to the aid of the Bayview branch whenever necessary. She's an avid volunteer in her community. She is the mother of five. She's the grandmother of nine. And she's the great-grandmother of three. I got tired just saying that, y'all. She has been a blessing to her family. She has been a blessing to her friend. She's been a blessing to San Francisco Public Library. And she is a blessing to you today. Please welcome Miss Pavis. Thank you so much. This is such a surprise. I didn't know it was coming. I just don't know what to say. But thank you. Thank you. Don't you love a good surprise? I don't know if she enjoyed that surprise as much as we did, but she sure deserves it. Give her one more hand. Please help me welcome Hanaleeka Jones from the sorority. Is Hanaleeka here? Come on down. Give her a warm welcome. Good afternoon. My name is Hanaleeka Jones, and I will do a brief presentation about the sororities, mainly Delta Sigma Theta sorority incorporated, which is a sorority that I am a member of. And I'm just going to give you a brief history of our sorority, and then also some of the reasons why I was attracted to Delta Sigma Theta in particular. But then also to uplift other sororities and fraternities throughout the nation. Delta Sigma Theta was founded on January the 13th, 1913 by 22 collegiate women at Howard University. These students wanted to use their collective strength to promote academic excellence and to provide assistance to persons in need. The first public act performed by the founders of Delta Sigma Theta involved their participation in the women's suffrage march in Washington, D.C. in March of 1913. Delta Sigma Theta was then incorporated in 1930. Delta Sigma Theta incorporated is a private non-profit organization whose purpose is to provide assistance and support through established programs in local communities throughout the world. A sisterhood of more than 200,000 predominantly black college educated women. Thank you. The sorority currently has over 900 chapters located in the United States, England, Germany, Japan, the Virgin Islands, Bermuda, the Bahamas, and the Republic of Korea. The major programs of the sorority are based upon the organization's five-point thrusts of economic development, educational development, international awareness and involvement, physical and mental health, and political awareness and involvement. Our founders wanted to promote academic excellence, provide scholarships, support the underserved, educate and stimulate participation in the establishment of positive public policy and to highlight issues and provide solutions for problems in their communities. And it is for these reasons why I became a member of Delta Sigma Theta. I remember when I was a child, my parents, they instilled in me the values of giving back to your community. I remember when I was in high school, I was always involved in charities. On Thanksgiving Day, we would go to Glide Memorial and serve, and even now, my adulthood, I work at the University of California as a program director for a women's study which is focused on helping women with HIV and women who are at risk of HIV to continue to find methods and cures in prevention and then also HIV medications. When I think of Black fraternities and sororities and particularly Delta Sigma Theta, these are the values that have been instilled in me. And I want to leave with you with the thought there's a poem that I really admire and it's by Langston Hughes. And it's called The Negro Mother. When I think of Black sororities such as Delta Sigma Theta, Alpha Kappa Alpha, Zeta Phi Beta, and Sigma Gamma Rho, these were young college women and the foundations of fraternities and sororities were always to build communities and to help better the African American community. But when I think about these young individuals, during their time, they were unsung heroes. They were only 17, 18, 19, and they wanted to improve our community. And I don't think they knew that they would have the impact that they have had in our society 100 years later, 90 years later, 80 years later. But when I think of the poem by Langston Hughes entitled The Negro Mother, these women, they were Negro mothers. They were women before they were in sororities and I would like to share it with you. Children, I come back today to tell you a story of a long, dark way. A way that I had to climb and that I had to know in order that our race might live and grow. Look at my face. Dark as the night. Yet shining like the sun with love's pure light. I'm the one that they stole from the sands 300 years ago, back in Africa's land. I'm the dark girl who crossed the wide sea, carrying in my body the seed of the free. I'm the one who labored the fields, bringing the cotton and the corns to yield. Children sold from me. My husband sold too. No love, no safety, no respect was I due. 300 years ago in the deepest South, but God put a song and a prayer in my mouth. God put a dream like still in my soul. And now through my children, I'm reaching my goal. Now through my children, young and free, I realized the blessings denied to me. I couldn't read then. I could barely even write. I had nothing back there in those long, dark nights. Sometimes the road, it was hot with sun, but I had to keep on till my work was done. Oh yes, I had to keep on. There was no stopping from me. I was the seed of the coming free. I nourished the dream that nothing could smother deep in my breast the Negro mother. I had only hope then, but now do you dark ones up today? My dreams must come true. All you dark children in the world out there, remember my sweats, my pain, and my despair. Remember my years heavy with sorrow and make of those years a torch for tomorrow. Make of my past a roll to the light out of the darkness, the ignorance, the night. Lift high, my banners, out of the dust. Stand like free men supporting my trust. Believe in the right and let none push you back. Remember the whip of the slaver's track. Remember how the strong and struggle and strife still barred you way and denied you light. Oh, but march ever forward, breaking down bars. Look ever upward at the sun and the stars. Oh, my dark children, may my dreams and my prayers impale you up the great stairs. For I will be with you till no white brother dares keep down the children of the Negro mother. I shay. There goes the future. There is our future, and it is full of passion. Yes, she is, Hena Leaka is full of passion. One of my favorite parts when she said when I was young. Wasn't that yesterday? Now we're going to have Hank Roberts, who is the founder of Peacemakers, an organization that provides academic and developmental support to at-risk students in Oakland and East Palo Alto. Do I hear not she? And he was an unsung hero last year, but you know he's also an unsung hero eternally, by the way, by the way. So he's going to come up today and speak on fraternities. Please welcome him. Good afternoon. First giving on to God, who is truly the Alpha, the Omega, the first and the last and the beginning and the end. It's truly an honor for me to stand before you. It's a double honor, because last year, as she stated, I was an unsung hero, and now I'm returning to talk to you briefly about fraternities. By definition, a fraternity is actually a gathering of men for a common purpose. And if you look back historically, men have always gathered together, either for religious purposes, for business, or just for party or socialize. The first official fraternity in the United States was founded in 1776. It was called the Phi Beta Kappa fraternity on the campus of William and Mary's in Virginia. And ironically, 1776 was the same year that America gained its independence from Great Britain. However, this fraternity would only welcome whites. Their primary purpose was for socialization, partying, tutoring, and mentoring members that were on campus. But I can't stand here today and say very proudly that the Phi Beta Kappa now welcomes and opens the doors to everybody. Ashe? You know, I'm going to just share something that probably nobody in this room has experienced. Have you ever been on an elevator, or you walked on the elevator, like seven or eight Chinese people, and when you walked on the elevator, it was like really quiet. And then probably as you entered into the elevator, all of a sudden you heard this conversation, and you don't speak Chinese. So, you know, obviously what I've experienced was, are they talking about me, is it the way I dress, the way I smile, because I don't know Chinese. So it's a really, really kind of funny feeling. Can you imagine if you were to win a four-year scholarship to a college in Mexico, and the only Spanish you know is senior or seniorita. So now you're traveling abroad to this campus, and you have no abilities or no knowledge of how to speak Spanish. I mean, you can imagine how devastating this has got to be. And I don't believe that this is not necessarily something that would be unusual. But if you saw someone on that campus who spoke English, you'd probably want to bond with them, hang out with them, socialize with them, get to know them. And that's what you believed, because you finally have met someone who can speak English. I say all that to get to the black fraternities. You know, there was a time when blacks couldn't go to school, and so now they're free, the slavery's ended, 1865 blacks are now able to go to school and also to attend college. And initially only a few blacks were able to attend the white colleges. And there's no question about it, though slavery had ended, they still experienced racism, segregation, discrimination. So that really didn't go away just because slavery ended. And unfortunately there was no support system on the campus to really help them through these situations. So let's look at this situation now. Here you are, probably about five or six brothers on the campus, and you're going to a predominantly white school. You already experienced segregation, integration, alienation, all those other issues. The moment, I'm just looking ahead or far back, brother, the moment I would imagine myself being on that campus, if I saw a brother, I would run to him, rally around him, hook up with him, talk to him. I mean, I'd be so glad to see this brother because we have a common purpose. That is to deal with racism, to deal with segregation, discrimination, alienation, but then our other common purpose is to get an education. So that's going to create a need for us to come together. And that's exactly what happened in 1906. The first fraternity, Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity, was formed and created at Cornell University in New York. Ashe? And that was a very defining moment because, again, these brothers had no support system, but yet they rallied together and supported each other, both in terms of their education. They rallied together to fight to get grants so they would be able to go to college. They supported each other in terms of just somebody to talk to. And as a result of what happened in 1906, another fraternity called Kappa Alpha Psi was created in 1911. And that same year, Omega Psi Phi was started. In 1914, Iodified Theta fraternity was started. And then finally Phi Beta Sigma was founded in 1914 at Howard University. And from all that I can gather, fraternities were stronger than the NAACP back in those days. They were strong advocates. They were fighters for discrimination that was going on, not only on the campus, but also in the communities. Ashe? A little bit about why I got involved with fraternities. Actually, I was the first to attend college in the history of my family and I was the first to become a Greek in the history of my family. And to be very honest with you, I really didn't know anything about fraternities or sororities. I could care less about what they were doing because I had no knowledge. It happened sort of in a coincidental way. My good friend was in the cafeteria and so this fraternity was going around recruiting people. So you sign your name and then you get invited to what they call a smoker. But that was actually a place where you get to learn more about the fraternity. So he signed my name up. I got the call. I had no idea. So we went to this meeting. And so they had several speakers and the speakers, one of the common things I heard them say was only the strong can survive to be an Omega. Only the strong can survive to be an Omega. And so I took that as a challenge. I was like, okay, it can't be that bad. So I decided to go ahead and pledge as they called it to see if I could really get into this fraternity called Omega. So the pledge for it went for about four months. You had to wash cars and a lot of those things like that. You had to do it in terms of showing your love for your brother. And then the final last week, they had something called Hail Week. And in that week, that's when you go through just some of the most toughest experiences that you could imagine. And I'm not at liberty to share that with you. But it was tough. The one thing you could not do was you could not live at home with your parents if you lived or you were going to school in town. So I really had to live in the fraternity house for that whole week. And so I left on a Friday. And believe it or not, I used to have a big Afro. I know you probably don't think so, but I really did. So that's why I saved my pictures, you know, so I can always look back and say, yeah, that was me. But anyway, I left on a Friday. And so I had to come back home the next Friday because I needed to get some more clothes. And so I had my pledge brothers with me. And all of us had to cut all of our hair off. Mustaches, beers, everything. And also we had to dress alike. So here you can imagine, seven guys dressed, you know, just alike, all with ball heads, all with dog collars around their neck walking. So we came into the house and my father, he was, it still is alive, but he's a man that has less than a sixth grade education. So when I walked in to get my clothes, he looked at me. He said, is that my son? I said, oh, yeah, that is me. He said, no, what you doing? What's going on? I said, well, then I'm pledging this fraternity in college. And I, you know, I just got to get some clothes. He said, I said, you know what, I don't know who those guys are, but you tell them to wait outside. I said, but they're my brothers. He said, I don't care who they are, they're waiting outside. So they had to wait outside because he wanted to talk to me. He said, listen son, he said, is this what I sent you to college to do? I said, well, what you mean? They said, you got a ball head, you're dressing like some folk I don't know. And you got a dog collar around your neck. He said, I used to think I wanted to go to college, but I tell you, if that's what y'all are doing college, I think I'm going to stay away. So it was really kind of comical. So anyway, I went through the process. I pledged and I finally became an Omega and it was just a joy and a treat. So what does it mean? How did I really benefit from becoming an Omega? And it's really interesting because after two years in the junior college, I transferred and went away to a four-year institution called Southern Illinois University in Carbondale. I didn't know absolutely nobody, had no clue, didn't know who, what or where or anything. But the one thing I didn't know, but there was a fraternity house called Omega Sapphire in Carbondale, Illinois on the campus. And so that's the first place that I went to. And I tell you, I had such a warm welcome. I spent the first week in the fraternity house. The brothers showed me so much love. They took me around the campus. They showed me where all the parties was and where everybody hang out. They helped me with my math because I wasn't that good in calculus. So it was just, I just realized the opportunity to have a chance to really see the actions of being an Omega Sapphire. So it was so warm. But also as a member of Omega's, I wasn't really discriminating. I was friends with all the other fraternity brothers. As a matter of fact, my roommate was Ivy Crockett. And if any of you know a little bit about history, at one time he was the fastest human that ran the Hunter Yardash. And we're still friends today. And he's a Kappa Alpha Psi. So after graduating from college, two years later I moved to California. And this will make sense. Just stay with me. I moved to California and I became employed as a pharmaceutical sales rep for a company. My responsibilities was to sell pharmaceuticals to hospitals like Stanford, UCSF, and military bases. And the particular product that I was selling was a product for arthritis, such as rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. And as you know, if you've ever talked to a doctor, you have to be very intellectual. And so it was very challenging. But however, I was able to communicate effectively enough to get them to understand at least what I was saying. But the long story short of this, as I went to the Presidio at one time, which is the army base down there by Golden Gate, big hospital, I mean, again, just a major challenge. So I'm supposed to go into this big hospital, talk to all the key people, and convince them that the product that I'm selling for arthritis is the best one and that that's the one they should use. Major challenge. So the first person I needed to talk to was the chief of rheumatology. And so I walked in and the nurse asked me to have a seat and she didn't later call me and I went back to talk to the rheumatologist. And he walked in and there was a black man who was the chief of rheumatology at the Presidio army base. And so we began to talk. And then another brother came in who was the assistant chief. And so then we all began to talk. And I noticed on the chief of rheumatology's finger was a ring that had like an acute shape to it. And that's the symbol of being an omega. And so I looked at the ring and I said, oh, that ring, what does that represent? And so he asked me a question that I can't share with you. I answered the question and he said, brother. I was like, oh man. So then we began to bond and he began to share with me exactly what I needed to say to sell this product, who I needed to talk to. And two years later, I was the number one salesman in the nation, the first sales rep in the industry and the first minority in the company to win this award. So the journey thus far has been extremely phenomenal to be a part of a fraternity. Today fraternities are doing a lot more than you can imagine. I mean, they're fighting educational, economical, political, as well as social injustice in America. They're bonding and partnering with organizations like the NAACP, United Negro Funds, Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Big Brothers of America. They're providing scholarships to underprivileged children and we're also supporting sickle cell anemia and the list goes on and on and on. And there are men in the fraternities from all walks of life. You have engineers, lawyers, doctors, professional athletes, ministers, entertainers, astronauts. I mean, the list is phenomenal. As a matter of fact, I'm just going to be really, really quick and brief. I think I have a few names that I can share with you. For example, WB Du Bois is in a fraternity. Dr. Charles Drew, Martin Luther King, Jr., Michael Jordan happened to be Omega, just in case you didn't know. Paul Roberson, Arthur Ashe, Bishop Eddie Long, Smoky Norfolk, Bill Cosby happens to be Omega. Let's see, Johnny Cochran, Tavis Smiley, Elvis Hayes, Thurgood Marshall, Penny Hardaway, Kenny Burrell, Donald Byrd, Cedric the Entertainer, Elihu Harris, John Singleton, Gail Sears, Ronald McNair, and the list goes on and on and on. I'm about to be told that I need to stop. But anyway, as I wrap up, and I could be long-winded as you can tell, as I wrap up, I do want to say that history is being made as well here today, because, as you recall, I was chosen as an unsung hero last year, and Donald Oliver was also selected as an unsung hero. He's the principal of a school in Hayward, and I have the mentoring and counseling program called Peacemakers. As a result of the Unsung Heroes African-American Community Awards program, we're now evolving into a fraternity, because remember, by definition, it's having a common purpose. So Mr. Oliver and I are meeting, and we're planning in January, to launch a partnership that will provide peacemakers to do service in the elementary school that he's the principal of. So I want to thank the Unsung Hero Awards Committee for giving us this opportunity. Thank you. I would like to now thank each and every one of you for coming. I'm doing this prematurely because you've been such a fabulous audience. Can you give yourselves a hand? Because, you know, we're black folks, so we get a little long-winded sometimes, but we really appreciate you coming. Let me hear an asshade for that. The most beautiful thing in the whole entire world is a young black man. Can I hear an asshade on that? We need to step up and get behind our brothers. 50% of black young men do not graduate from high school. That is embarrassing and crazy. So when you see a bunch of black men that come together as brothers, and to do something wonderful, you give them your heart and your soul because they need it. So why don't you give your hearts and souls to the stepping knights? Because they're some wonderful, beautiful brothers. Come on, come on, cousins now. Come on. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. We are the stepping knights of the Mount Zion Baptist Church here in San Francisco, where the Reverend Edwin H. Watkins is our pastor. We are some young black men that have come out to praise Lord in our own way. And I guess you can say we're a fraternity too because we have a common purpose and that's to uplift the name of Jesus. So we are a fraternity. We do have one brother that is a fraternity and he's with the Iodified Theta, which was in 1963, and he went to Morgan State. And we've just come to help you celebrate the unsung heroes. And this is to all the unsung heroes. This ministry goes to you to celebrate you and to thank you. God bless you. That was absolutely inspirational. Give those gentlemen another round. I have never seen anything more beautiful or motivating, but let me tell you one thing. I was a little nervous for the little guy when they was doing the dipping. If that was my child, my heart was populating, okay, because there was some big men up there, but thank God they knew what they was doing. Thank you, gentlemen. You did a wonderful job. Bear with me, cousins, as I quote Martin Luther King, he said, everybody can be great because anybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve. You don't have to make your subjects and verb agreed to serve. You only need a heart full of grace. I said, you only need, cousins, a heart full of grace. Can I hear in our shade for that? And a soul generated by love. Let me tell you about the soul generated by love. The man has fire in his heart. Mr. Larry Moody. Go ahead and give him an applause. In 1990, Mr. Moody founded the Community Partners for School, which is a youth peer mentoring organization in the Ravenwood School District, designed to assist youth with behavior issues. Well, Mr. Moody, I haven't met a youth without behavior issues, so you must be very busy. Mr. Moody is the Director of Science of Hope Ministry, whose purpose is to provide support for foster care children who are falling through the cracks of our society from abuse, poverty, and addicted parents. Ah, shade to that. Because no child should fall through the cracks, because no child. As the Urban Planning Director of Menlo Presbyterian Church, Mr. Moody has rallied well over 100 mentors to serve the 100 foster care youth as well as the families. Through the Wildflower Organization, Mr. Moody has been able to develop a network of support for low-income families by connecting them with successful business people and college interns. But wait a minute. The man does not sleep, because every year since 1999, Mr. Moody organizes specifically men to clean up the East Palo Alto neighborhood by sweeping and removing trash from the streets at least twice a year. Ah, shade. Because your streets in your community have to have high self-esteem for you to have high self-esteem. That's right. Mr. Moody was instrumental in relocating families to the Mid Peninsula and collecting donations after Hurricane Katrina. In fact, he founded a 65,000-square-foot warehouse which was donated to house the people. Wow. Mr. Moody is a founding member of the Youth Consortium, which is a body of volunteers committed to the development of youth through sports and education. And that's only a partial list. I think the man must be cloned. What do you think? Because that not one man could do this. He was nominated by Mr. Hank Roberts, who started the fraternity of unsung heroes, and he stayed. Mr. Moody is a quiet storm. And just like the Nike commercial, what they say in Nike. Just do it. Mr. Moody, come on down and just do your unsung. I say, everyone, first good honor to God, who's the author of my story and my journey. Brother Hank Roberts, who nominated me for this award, it's interesting. I really just met Hank about four or five months ago. But through Kevin Lambert, who's here with us this afternoon, and others, they've been saying for like two years, hey, man, you got to meet Hank. You got to meet Hank, you know, because you and Hank are kindred souls together. And so as Hank shared with us this afternoon, I find out he's not only my brother in Christ, but he's also my fraternity brother. I bring you greetings from the beautiful city of East Palo Alto, where God is definitely demonstrating His mercy and grace daily on our community. I wish to thank the San Francisco Library and the Unsung Heroes Committee for this acknowledgement. You know, I wish to thank my sons. No, stand, stand, stand. Please indulge me. It's my son Larry Jr. in the back in the red, my son Tyler in the stripes, my twins Cameron and Isaiah. I want to thank you publicly. I want to thank you for sharing your dad with the community. These are four young men who will make a tremendous contribution to our society. Despite all the giggles, I love you deeply. Thank you. You know, you talked about all the things that we're involved in, and you know, I just thank God for His grace and His mercy, because there was a time where I had no willingness to contribute to community. I was destroying community, right? And I just thank God for sending a person my way back on January 20th, 1990, about 1.32 an afternoon to tell me that through Christ, I can do all things. His name is Mr. Emanuel Irvin. He's not here with us physically, but he's certainly here in spirit. He sent me a poem today. And like many of the awardees today, I'm sure we all struggled with thanking so many people for the opportunities we have to serve. But he said, he said, Larry and Lisa, we are so godly proud of both of you. God has truly prepared you for now. Continue to walk in the spirit. Continue to walk in the spirit of the Lord and allow God to use you. Eyes have not seen nor ears heard the good things that God has in store for you. Now, God has called me to serve, but it's my wife, Lisa, who allows me to serve. That's my rib right there. And she's a cold laborer in everything that I do. But more importantly, she sits at the feet of Jesus for our family. I want to thank my brother, my friend, my mentor, Gail Ortega, who's here. He's the head of Multicultural Affairs at Menlo College. But aside from that, he's just been a dear advocate for community and he has walked with me this last year in such a way and has shown me my own community in a way that I've never seen it before. He's shown me the beauty that exists within and he's allowed me to encourage others in our community of East Palo Alto that God has a plan for that community. He's going to take the fullest things of the world to confound the wise. Our community was always viewed as the murder capital of the U.S., a place where no good fruit could bear. And I'm here to tell you right now, watch out for East Palo Alto. Just watch out for what we do on the peninsula. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Come on, keep on giving him a little bit more love. He deserves it. You know what Miss Crystal White says? She says, do it today. Do the right thing and do it today. Do it with no hope or return or promise of reward. Do it with a smile and a cheerful attitude. Do it and someday there will come a day that will be a payday for all of your yesterdays. You spent focus on the current day. That will not only give value to today, but will make each future day outshine each yesterday. And what more could you ask for of a day? Miss Crystal White, if there was a song for her, it would be I'm Every Woman. But if I could sing, I would be belting out the song right now. But y'all need to be doing some mashing that I'm not singing. My husband keeps saying, honey, you can sing. But what does he know? Miss White is a married mother of three who volunteers on a daily basis at Dr. George Washington Carve Academic Elementary School in Bayview's Hunter Point. For a tour of her children attend. Now I'm telling you she's Every Woman. She directs traffic in the absence of the crossing guards. I think the police need to call her because they might need some help. She helps out in the main office in order to make sure the workflow is easier for the principal and the staff. She makes sure all of the children feel wanted by giving hugs and praises and making sure they have a productive day. She was nominated by Jill Hudson who says, you are guaranteed to see Crystal greet you with a sunshine smile and an upbeat good morning. And if you're down, she is charged with positive energy. Can I hear and I'll shade it at Cousins? Because y'all ain't falling to sleep on Veronica Dangerfield today. She has a letter Children's Ministry at New Providence Baptist Church and is presently the vocal leader at Cornerstone Baptist Church where she sets a tone for the morning worship. She might have to get up here and sing, I'm Every Woman. She also teaches and mentors the young ladies at Cornerstone to be productive citizens. Please help me welcome Crystal White. Come on out, Crystal. I am nothing without the help of the Lord. I do what I do because of God's strength. I am not only the secretary at Dr. George Washington Carver. I only try to give the children what they don't get sometimes and that's love. It's a hug or to let them know that their day is going to be all right. That's what I do. I was sent there on a mission. I would like to thank my husband, Minister Damian White, for your support today. And if it wasn't for my mother, Deborah Griffin, I would not be standing here at all. I would like to thank my church family, Michelle. I would like to thank my mother-in-law. Last but not least, Jilly Jilly. That's my Jilly Jilly. Jill nominated me. And I would like to thank you, Jill. You know, we go way back and I just want... I always tell you this, but I love you publicly. And I would also like to thank the Unsung Hero Committee. Thank you. I think that was one of the first for the Unsung Heroes. She thanked her mother-in-law. I would like to thank the... I can't even talk anymore. I've been talking too much, cousin, too, too much. Gratitude. Make a prayer acknowledging yourself as a vehicle of light. Giving thanks for the good that has come that day and an affirmation of intent to live in harmony with all your relations. That's by Dayani Yahu. And now I'd like to talk about Van Cedric Williams. He... Is there any gentleman here that is with the Young Gentleman's Club with Van Cedric? Can you stand up, gentlemen? You see how beautiful these men are? This is our future, you guys. This is our future. He organized these young men into a Young Gentleman's Club. The purpose of this club is to model for the men in our community leadership skills. Because these are the gentlemen that are going to take us in to the next century. We got to love our youth. And look how gorgeous they are. This gentleman club consists of approximately 14 boys who attend Gloria R. Davis Middle School in Bayview-Sonner's Point, where Mr. Williams has been a social studies teacher since 2000. While developing these skills, the young men have been exposed to many things, including museums and restaurants, where they are taught proper etiquette by Mr. Williams. Now, proper etiquette is important, y'all. When you go out into the world and you're sitting up with the Bill Gates, you got to know which fork to use. Absolutely. Ashe. As a part of the developing community commitment, the boys have visited elders at the Bayview Adult Daycare Center. And while teaching social studies, he's also completing his master's in education at San Francisco State University. Ashe. Ashe, the more education. Ashe. His credits, his achievement to the elders in our community who paved the way for him. So this is a Renaissance man because he doesn't stop at the youth, but he goes all the way to the elders, too. So when Mr. Williams comes up here, you give him much love because he deserves it. Come on down. Come on down, Mr. Williams. I just want to thank all of you in the room for showing up and giving love to all the recipients today. That is a beautiful thing. This is beauty. This is beauty. You know, so I want to give it that shout out to them. Number two, I'm sitting here in a chair and I'm looking up, and that has my heart so much because without all of them, the NAACP, and all the folks who we don't know about who got out there and pitched in 10 cent, went out and folded up some stuff, went out and picked up some stuff, that touches my heart. And it took me a long time to figure that out because, you know, growing up, we don't get that education that we really need. That's the education. And yesterday, I was at this conference, this African Studies Conference, and they were talking about the story called the Story of Sandita, or Sanjata. And in that, the history of Africa have these storytellers, the griots. But more than the griots, there's the... Oh, man. The jollies, the jollies are the ones. And the word for jolly is blood. History is in your blood. So when they speak their story, it's in the blood. The history is in you right now, each and every one of us. We have history and we need to share that history on an everyday basis. And in sharing that history, we say to our young kids, we love you. Now take that story and move on. So I want to say that. I definitely want to thank the young men because they sparked definitely a light in my heart. As I'm teaching history, you know, I see myself in every young man that comes through the seventh grade. I try to fix the things that I didn't get when I was in the seventh grade because I can't blame nobody. It's no blame, you know? I have a chance to give what I didn't get. So I want to make sure to put that love and that message out so you give what you didn't get. It's not about what you didn't get. You can just give it and fill that space. And these young men allow me to fill that space every single day. And I'm really, really blessed because I tell the kids, I come up to my job and I say, I love this job. I ask your parents how many times they come up to their work and say they love their job. You know what I'm saying? I love being a teacher. I love getting on you. I love, you know, doing too much. I love it. You know? And so that's what I do. Just basically straight love. Love for my people, love for the young kids. And I just want to be a bridge. A bridge from the past to the new. And just pass that information. And a couple parents that just really gave it, Miss Williams, Miss Hudson, Dr. Gillian, I'm really blessed because they've taken me in, like an African family. They've opened their arms up to me and said, hey, Mr. Williams, we respect you. We like you. We love you. You're part of our family. And I'm very happy. I'm very happy to be a part of their family as well. So thank you very, very much. Keep it going for them cousins. Now, it is my great, great, great pleasure to talk about Miss Adrienne Williams. Okay? Are y'all ready? This is the last one. Y'all did great. The last, hang in there, cousins. Hang in there. You know, Miss Williams, I know she was talking to herself. Although I've never met her, I know this about her. She said it was easy, it was easy to settle for average rather than strive for achievement. Cousins, can I hear her now? Shea. It was easier to be saturated with complacency than stirred with compassion. But not Miss Williams. She was stirred with compassion. It's easier to question than to conquer. How many of you know that? But not Miss Williams. She's up there doing it. It's easier to rationalize your disappointment than to realize your dreams. And it's also easier to belch the baloney than bring home the bacon. But no, I'm not Miss Williams! Trying to make sure y'all still up and stuff. Miss Williams is a volunteer director of the Village Project in the western edition. She has brought a free summer lunch program and reading enrichment to the children of the western edition. Ache. Because you know what, when you hungry you can earn. And in the summertime when you don't go to school you still need to eat. Miss Williams understands this and she answered that problem. The Village Project has partnered with the San Francisco Police Department and other community-based organizations to bring positive, did you hear my cousins? Positive opportunities to the children of the western edition. Miss Williams brought the summer lunch program with her. Going door-to-door in the neighborhood to make sure families in the western edition knew about this free program. I don't know how comfortable you guys are with going door-to-door. But in the community that I left I wouldn't be so comfortable about that. But Miss Williams stepped up to the plate. She stepped, I shade to that cousins! Thank you! Now children are here, and alright little children! Children shall lead you! In her nomination she was described as positive, committed, and a bright light in the face of adversary. And her contribution towards creating positive opportunity with her positive attitude and her great uplifting spirit for some of the city's most isolated and undeserved children. She deserves recognition for her encouragement. Miss Williams, we want to just welcome you and embrace you and give you a big unsung heroes hug. Come on up and get it! First of all, I thought I was back at school. I mean, so many people have been on this stage that brought back some memories, and I think I know Hank. I was one of the first black women pharmaceutical reps here, so I wanted to catch him to see. But all things aside I did the village project because my pastor who is an exceptional teacher always each Sunday pound into our spirit that we should be a doer of the word and not just a hearer of the word. And I also realized that a lot of the kids depend on that free lunch at school as a major meal. So when I saw an opportunity to bring that summer lunch program to the kids in the western edition naively I thought that I could just feed them. But no, they wanted a little bit more so I said, okay, once a week I'll take you on a field trip. But no, they wanted a little bit more. So I said, I'll tell you what, we're going to start reading. Now I believe that reading I grew up in Monroe, Louisiana to an extremely poor family. I worked two jobs. Hard for me to believe she only made three dollars a day. But because I read and because she read and she was very creative and trust me we had no funding this summer so I had to be as creative as possible. But I reflected back on my mom who though we were poor mom would grease us down and line us up and take us to the library. And that was our treat. So in the summer there were nine of us and each summer the older kids would compete to see how many books we could read during the summer. And consequently to this day I believe that reading helped me to supersede my life of poverty and I ended up winning 17 scholarships in going to Northwestern University and I'm just so privileged to be here today when you're talking about sororities and fraternities because when I got to Northwestern I was this little colored girl from Monroe didn't know a thing scared to death and we charted the Thetaffa chapter of Delta Sigma Theta at Northwestern so to be here is just more than I can believe and I want to thank you guys so much but that isn't the reason I'm out here the reason I'm out here I have a daughter my only child who lives in the western edition and I have the most perfect sometimes most perfect grandbaby of the world and I think of all those little kids who are in you know I was reading the article I'm currently my passion is to do everything I can to protect the little people from the violence that we create in our communities and I was looking at I'm working on the Task Force of Ron Dellums on crime prevention and I was looking at an article the other day that said can't remember the numbers but an outrageous number of our little youngsters are involved are incarcerated in the juvenile justice system but then two I also think of the little bitty people in our neighborhoods because of that violence they're more liberated than their homes they cannot go out to play for fear of a stray bullet so I decided and I have the most perfect boss who has let me do this I decided that I was going to give all that I could give this summer to entertain those kids who could not get into any enrichment programs and it broke my heart because I did literally have to go knock on the doors and I felt like a little black pipe with all these children following me around but to bring them to the summer lunch program and this award and the awards that the mayor gave me all these other people does not equate to the smile on those little people's faces when I took them to the library and just looking at them being enthralled by just a simple story so I wanted to set an example because it doesn't take funding all the time it doesn't take money all the time what it takes and we all have this is a little bit of time and so I I want to set an example that we as the elders of this village we have a responsibility I feel that I have a responsibility to these kids and I want more and more people to follow my example really it takes so little to make them happy you know we had nothing in our marketing and sales I was able to get us some resources you hear me but I think the most important thing as with my grandbaby is sharing that time so I want to encourage this community and the parents in this community to let's join forces and let's lift our children come to this village it takes a whole village to raise our children and I'm putting that responsibility there for all of us it's our responsibility to take care of our own thank you guys thank you to the committee that was wonderful when I was younger my father was in the military I lived in Japan until I was 10 and when I got to Texas I had a language problem because nobody in Texas spoke English one of the saving races for me was that since I didn't know American culture I wasn't familiar with black English I wasn't familiar with the norms of my culture I was ostracized and guess who I ended up at I ended up at the library I ended up reading my way to success now it made me further ostracized but I learned to live with that so you know if you want to see the world and you need a passport you don't have to go to the federal government to get it you can come to your local library and you can be a Taiwanese you can be you can live a thousand years ago or you can live a thousand years into the future and that's all you have to do is pick up a book now I don't do drugs folks you might think I have something to do with some kind of I don't I do books yeah me and my husband fight about something in the bed and it's the books because he has to throw them out to get in but anyway I wanted to end on a high note my uncle my uncle Travis fell off his tractor the other day it was pretty bad and he's looking at his wife Ethel in 1926 I made you get married in a cloth flower bag but you stayed with me and 20 years later we had four children and you worked so hard to educate each one of them and I couldn't keep a job but you stayed with me all the time and you worked like a slave Ethel and now here I am at the end of my life and I only have one thing to say to you I think you're bad luck I didn't see that coming did you so we had Terry we had Mariam we had Jerome JJ we had Carol we had Larry we had Crystal we had Van Cedric we had Adrian we had Mariam and we had the Golden Gate section of the National Council of Negro Women these people unlike my uncle take responsibility for their community God bless each and every one of you it has been an honor and a privilege to be your emcee today because I love you all and on Thanksgiving since my ovens broke I'll be knocking on your door don't act like you don't know me thank you so we made it through how's everybody feeling hungry huh, hungry we have a nice reception in the Latino room right behind the auditorium here so I hope to see everybody there if the heroes that are here though when we were dismissed if the heroes would come up and take a group picture we would like to have that on our website and just a few other housekeeping things I want to thank our media folks that are here today Eric back there on the camera who has videotaped the whole thing and Joan Lefkowitz who's been taking pictures and I hope those pictures will be up on the website too thank you Joan for coming and doing that for us and of course Veronica Dangerfield she was wonderful I'd also like to thank my co-members of the African American Interest Committee that helps put on this program every year and that's Chanetta Jackson here and Loretta Dow thank you and then in the back there I'd like to thank the volunteers Penny Paves her mother Miriam Paves who we awarded thank you so much and of course I'd like to thank all of you for supporting this program year after year look for the nomination forms next year nominate somebody in your community that you know is deserving of such an award you know we have many heroes I'm sure a few sitting right here and yes I've heard a name already and we need to honor them and it's a small thing we do but I think it means a lot to everybody and so I appreciate you all coming out one last thing we couldn't do this without the support of the friends who helped to sponsor the program John Templeton who is a board member of the Friends and Foundation of the San Francisco Public Library to come up he's also a black California historian teacher educator and he just wants to say a few words on the behalf of the friends first I want to congratulate all of the honorees I have been very inspired by just listening to the accomplishments that you have done two days ago I was over at the suicide presbyterian church and we were looking at statistics on the performance of students in San Francisco Unified and the scary thing was that for African American students in San Francisco Unified their mathematics scores were lower than disabled students around the rest of the state so as admirable and as inspiring as everything that we've done so far one thing I want to leave you with today is we got to do more we have to do more and these people show us that we can do so much more than we've done so far I just want to leave by telling you a little bit about the friends the friends is the organization that is the fundraising arm of the library we raise the money for this particular room here and we just had the 10th anniversary of the African American Center which was funded by $500,000 that was raised in the black community here in the Bay Area um doing more also extends to us um far too often our library resources are here and we're waiting for the young people to come in to find them and one of the things that we've done in the last couple years is made sure that we have some dedicated funds to the Arthur Coleman endowment to make sure that we provide specific library services to the African American community now Dr. Coleman who's no longer with us went out and got money from bus drivers and barbershops and nickels and dimes to make sure that we can have an African American Center we're now rebuilding the western edition branch library we've got Bayview on tap and now this generation is going to be called on to raise up the resources to make sure that our young people have the opportunity to travel and to go around the world by reading and looking online so we encourage you to get involved with the friends of the library and to connect with your branch librarians and make sure that you know our young people don't miss out from the bright future ahead of them so we encourage you to keep coming to the library and bring some friends and you know enjoy the reception thank you John alright you are dismissed thank you so much and food right and the heroes have just come up for a second let's take a group picture and we'll meet everybody else in the Latino room eat eat eat lots of food thank you bring your plaques and your flowers up