The Martha’s Vineyard chapter of the NAACP is by nature a forward-thinking organization, and on Sunday, during the 30th annual Martin Luther King Jr. membership event, it honored the next generation of leaders.
Held at the Portuguese-American Club, the event drew more than 40 people for a luncheon, awards ceremony and keynote speech by Doris Dumas, the first woman president of the Greater New Haven chapter of the NAACP. Vineyarders Tony Lombardi, Olivia Jacobs and Jared Livingston were honored for their ongoing service to the Island, national and global community.
“Good things happen when people come together and get to know people who are different,” said master of ceremonies Joyce Rickson.
“The theme of this membership event is really the intergenerational gathering,” said branch first vice president Richard Shepard. Mr. Shepard spoke of the need for younger people to be active in their local NAACPs . Many, he said, have not had the same interracial experiences as their parents and grandparents, and so ask “Why should I come?”
Mrs. Dumas provided an answer in her keynote speech, noting that “We have come a long way, but we still have a long way to go.” Every day, she said, the NAACP is flooded with calls for help fighting discrimination and racism. Despite the increasing presence of African-Americans in government, including, Mrs. Dumas said, the mayor of her hometown New Haven, the struggle for equality is not yet over.
“We cannot get comfortable with being ’the first of’ and ’the only,’” Mrs. Dumas said. She encouraged the audience to work together, citing a verse from Ecclesiastes:
“Two are better than one, because they have a good return for their labor. If either of them falls down, one can help the other up. But pity anyone who falls and has no one to help them up.”
“We can do great things individually, but together we are a force to be reckoned with.” she said. “We can’t talk about it, we must be about it.”
The awards ceremony focused on three individuals who were doing much more than talking about change. Mr. Lombardi is the director of the Teen Center at the YMCA. He worked at the regional high school for nearly 30 years, and was a cofounder of Camp Safe Haven, a camp for children with HIV and AIDs.
“I see all of you out there, and I know that each and every one of you could receive this award,” said Mr. Lombardi. Service, he said, was both spiritual and emotional currency, and had been instrumental in Mr. Lombardi’s own life as he recovered from heroin addiction decades ago. It was a way for him to give back, he said, and as vital to his life as buying groceries.
Mr. Lombardi said that the current generation of youth growing up on the Vineyard is an inspiration in “carrying the torch of service,” a fact underscored when Olivia Jacobs and Jared Livingston received their awards, both juniors at the high school.
“She’s done so much,” Ms. Rickson said of Olivia. “She exudes so much purpose and meaning in her life.”
Last summer, Olivia traveled to Ghana to teach English and math to elementary-schoolers through the Global Leadership Adventures program, initiating her own fundraising efforts to pay for the cost of the trip. On the Island, she is an elementary-school tutor, runs an ice cream social at Windemere, and is a teacher’s assistant in a special education classroom.
Jared is a co-creator and founder of the Elder Tech program at the YMCA. The Elder Tech program partners high school students with senior citizens to help them learn about and work with social media devices. Jared also works for environmental causes, and participates in regular beach cleanups. He is a Minnesinger as well as a member of a student-run a cappella group at the high school.
“Jared is an affable young man who exudes quiet confidence,” Ms. Rickson said.
The NAACP committee had reached out to the high school guidance department for help selecting the day’s honorees. “I certainly felt quite rewarded in being able to recognize them,” Ms. Rickson said.
A surprise award was announced at the end of the program, as vice president Carrie Tankard presented Barbara Linton with the committee service award. Mrs. Linton thanked her husband and fellow committee members and her husband for all of their help
“We’re a team,” she said.
Comments (1)
Comments
Comment policy »