Stanislaus County Black business, community leaders honored at NAACP event
The Modesto/Stanislaus Chapter of the NAACP last week presented an event, African American Professional Mixer: Blacks on the Move, to celebrate the contributions of African American leaders in business and the community in Modesto and Stanislaus County.
“The event was an opportunity to honor African American leaders in multiple professions while giving other Black business owners a chance to network with key decision makers in the county,” said Wendy Byrd, president of Modesto/Stanislaus Branch of the NAACP.
Byrd said community leaders are usually recognized at the Freedom Fund annual celebration but that was canceled due to COVID-19. So, they were included in this event.
The honorees were:
- Margaret James – business analyst for the City of Modesto, retiring after 19 years of public service
- Judge Dawna Reeves – first African American Superior Court Judge
- Judge Marcus Mumford – first African American male and second African American Superior Court Judge
- John Ervin III – businessman, job creator and community leader
- Kay McKenzie Parker – new NAACP legal redress committee chair and civil rights attorney
- Rhodesia Ransom – district director for Rep. Josh Harder, appointed in March
- Dr. Lenita Williamson – orthopedic surgeon, retiring after 25 years serving the community
- Dr. Stephen Noble – cardio-thoracic surgeon, role model working with youth
- Ed Fitzpatrick, posthumous – businessman, NAACP leader and community service
The honorees were awarded certificates from Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors, Congressman Josh Harder (D-Turlock) and the local chapter of the NAACP.
Terry Johnson, chairperson of the NAACP labor and industry committee, said in addition to recognizing the honorees, the goal of the event was to create a network of Black-owned businesses, as well as cultivate more opportunities for new businesses.
“New businesses coming to Modesto make it better for everyone,” said Johnson.
African Americans make up about 3.5% of the county’s population. About 2.5% of businesses are Black-owned, according to April Potter, research director at Opportunity Stanislaus.
Byrd said, “African American businesses in Stanislaus County are grossly underrepresented. We hope that by highlighting examples of high achieving Black professionals, it will inspire others to pursue their dreams.”
Reeves took the opportunity to thank Byrd for being a “community connector.”
“It’s nice to see the community come together for equity and inclusion,” said Reeves.
Mumford, who was sworn in as the first African American male judge in the county the day after the mixer, expressed gratitude to Reeves and Ricardo Cordova for their mentoring and discussed the importance of being role models for Black youth.
“As an honoree, it’s imperative to stay connected to the community and to keep doing the necessary work,” said Rhodesia Ransom.
Margaret James, who retired from the City of Modesto on May 11, was surprised and delighted to be an honoree.
She said, “I really enjoyed assisting small and large business owners through government permitting processes as they developed and expanded their investments in Modesto and created community job opportunities.”
This year’s event was hosted by former councilman, Brad Hawn, and the NAACP plans to host network-building events regularly.
This story was produced with financial support from The Stanislaus County Office of Education and the Stanislaus Community Foundation, along with the GroundTruth Project’s Report for America initiative. The Modesto Bee maintains full editorial control of this work. To help fund The Bee’s children’s health and economic development reporters with Report for America, go to bitly.com/ModbeeRFA.
This story was originally published May 21, 2021 at 7:01 AM.
