Oxford NAACP Chapter to host annual Freedom Fund Banquet
“(It’s) a great time to bring the community together and honor our young people, honor our leaders.”
The Oxford National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is hosting its annual Freedom Fund Banquet at 5 p.m. on Friday, May 8, at Miami University’s Shriver Center.
Rev. Vanessa Cummings, the vice president of the Oxford NAACP branch, said the celebration is “a great time to bring the community together and honor our young people, honor our leaders … and get a good message that inspires us and motivates us to continue doing the work that we’re doing.”
The event will include a 30-minute speech by Rev. LaCreta Rutledge Clark, an educator, author, community organizer and presiding elder for the Cincinnati district in the Ohio South Ohio Annual Conference of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church.
“She’s a scholar, preacher and transformational leadership expert,” Cummings said.
Cummings shared that Clark is in her 25th year as a full professor at Saginaw Valley State University.
Clark made history as the first African American to achieve the rank of full professor in the college of education, according to Cummings.
The speech will follow the theme of “We are One, Born and Raised by Diversity.”
The awards include the recognition of scholarship awardees, new life members and the presentation of the Community Service and Diversity Educator awards.
According to Cummings, the organization has provided scholarships through events like this for almost 35 years.
“(We have) probably awarded over $100,000 in scholarships in that time,” Cummings said.
The event includes a buffet meal and a cash bar.
All funds from the event will be used for branch operations and scholarships for graduating Talawanda High School students.
For additional information or to sponsor or donate, please email naacpoxfordohio@gmail.com.
