Benjamin Jealous, past President of the NAACP meets leaders of PEACE. From left to right: Rev. Kevin Jones (Co-president of PEACE, and Youth Minister of Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church), Father Paul Rasmus (Co-President of PEACE, St. Andrews Episcopal Church, Barbara Hatzfeld (PEACE Treasurer, First UU Congregation of the Palm Beaches), Benjamin Jealous (Past President NAACP) , Emily Small (Lead Organizer of PEACE)
On Thursday, January 16, 2014 PEACE Co-Presidents Father Paul Rasmus (St. Andrews Episcopal Church in Lake Worth) and Rev. Kevin Jones (Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church in West Palm Beach) accepted a Martin Luther King Jr. Award from Palm Beach State University on behalf of the PEACE organization. Members of affiliated congregations throughout the county attended. If you were unable to attend, you can view the Officers of the Board of Trustees of PEACE accepting the Award from Dr. Dennis P. Gallon, President of Palm Beach State College here. Co-President Fr. Paul Rasmus’ comments can be seen here. Co-President Rev. Kevin Jones’ comments can be seen here.
Benjamin T. Jealous, immediate past president of the NAACP spoke in the Duncan Theater after a somewhat chilly outdoor breakfast in the Martin Luther King, Jr Plaza of Palm Beach State College. Benjamin Jealous is credited with increasing the membership of the NAACP, so that it was the largest community-based nonpartisan voter registration operation in the country. He also brought environmental organizations into the fight to protect voting rights, and convinced well-known conservatives to join the NAACP to join in the cause of ending mass incarceration.
Bob Townsend and Rev. CJ McGregor (1st UU Congregation of the Palm Beaches) drank coffee to stay warm at the breakfast in MLK, Jr Plaza prior to the Awards ceremony.
PEACE was recognized for its ongoing justice work, as well as recent successful grassroots justice campaigns, which have resulted in:
- $1 million dollars for Affordable Housing in Palm Beach County, as well as a dedicated funding stream to begin in 2014;
- A Restorative Justice Program in West Palm Beach;
- A Wage Theft Docket in the 15th Judicial Court to process Wage Theft Claims in a timely fashion.
Palm Beach State College Provost, Dr. Maria M. Vallejo opened the program, and was followed by Dr. Barry Moore, Dean of Academic Affairs and Student Services. Musical contributions that captured the mood of the occasion were presented by The Palm Beach State College Troubadours, and Richie and Richard Belair. Dr. Irving Berkowitz, Dean of Academic Affairs at Palm Beach State College delivered a tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and moderated a student question and answer discussion with Benjamin Jealous following the awards program.
Three individual awards were given to:
- Nephtali Jean, an exceptional Palm Beach State College Student with a personal history of both dedicated community service and academic excellence.
- Estella Pyfrom, a former educator who funded and created a customized bus equipped with Wi-Fi and 17 computer stations to deliver technology to low-income neighborhoods; addressing the technology gap.
- George G. Gentile, a Palm Beach State College Alumnus who has led a life of exemplary community engagement.