A community partnership group in East Baltimore will honor 15 East Baltimore residents, business, and community leaders at the Joe Manns Black Wall Street Awards for Community Impact.
East Baltimore Development, Inc (EBDI) is a combination of community, government, institutional, and philanthropic partners whose goal is to “revitalize, re-energize and rebuild the East Baltimore neighborhood,” according to its website. The awards event is EBDI’s final “Stay and Play” event of the year.
EBDI began Stay and Play events in 2019 to support minority- and women-owned businesses. Those businesses, in turn, have the chance to work on EBDI’s real estate projects, and acquaint prospective residents with the East Baltimore neighborhood, according to Afro.com.
“The goal of the Black Wall Street Awards is to recognize the impact that legacy and new residents and businesses have had on the community; to celebrate heroes of the community; and to publicly thank the individuals who have had a positive impact on the community,” reads the press release announcing the awards.
Joe Manns was a Black business owner in Baltimore, who owned a trophy shop. When Manns passed away, Doni Glover, owner of BmoreNews decided to honor his legacy with the Black Wall Street Awards. The awardees span the nation, and to date, Bmore News has honored more than 1,900 people in New York, Baltimore, Washington DC, Richmond, Atlanta, New Orleans, Birmingham, Las Vegas, and Tulsa. Tulsa is the location of the most famous Black Wall Street, and the site of the bombing and murders by white supremacists that resulted in its destruction 101 years ago.
This year’s honorees include:
- Zizwe Allete: Community advocate and instructor at the Historic East Baltimore Community Action Coalition Youth Opportunity Center, known as YO! Baltimore Eastside, a non-profit organization operated by the City of Baltimore and Johns Hopkins University to support education and job training for out-of-school youth.
- Catherine Benton-Jones: East Baltimore community leader; President of Change4Real, a resident-led development effort in Oldtown; President of Chick Webb Recreation Center; and Board member of several community-based nonprofit organizations, like East Baltimore Historical Library and Baltimore Children & Youth Fund.
- The late Lucille Gorham: Legacy resident, long-time community advocate and dedicated volunteer. She will be receiving this award posthumously.
- Chrystal Green: East Baltimore native, community advocate and Assistant Director for Community Engagement (specializing in East Baltimore community affairs) at Johns Hopkins University & Medicine.
- Angela LaPrade: Eager Park ambassador and volunteer and Director of Operations at Frontline Management Services, which manages cleaning, greening and safety initiatives for Eager Park.
- The late Leon Lyles: Owned Leon’s Produce, a legacy business impacted by EBDI’s relocation efforts.
- Harold Madison: East Baltimore community leader, having worked with organizations like the New South Clifton Park Community Association, East Baltimore Historical Library and countless others in the community.
- Leo Montgomery: Store Manager at Starbucks at 1812 Ashland Avenue—the fifth national Starbucks Opportunity Store that was established to create job opportunities for youth and support economic development in the community.
- Michael Preston: Community advocate and Director for Community Engagement (specializing in East Baltimore community affairs) at Johns Hopkins University & Medicine.
- Leon Purnell: East Baltimore community leader and Executive Director of the Men & Families Center, which aims to improve the quality of relationships between fathers and their children, thus enhancing the preservation of families in Baltimore City.
- Mihertu “Ted” Tadesse: Founder of Baltimore-based MBE Tadesse & Associates, which is focused on building new residential homes, remodeling vacant buildings and selling homes in the Baltimore market.
- Dionne Waldron-McNeal: Community advocate, financial literacy instructor and Vice President & Community Outreach Officer at Fulton Bank’s North Wolfe Street branch (covering the state of Maryland, Washington, DC and northern Virginia).
- Dale “Dee” Walker: Community advocate, volunteer and fundraiser; premier event planner and connector; and Director of Sales & Marketing at the Residence Inn by Marriott Baltimore at The Johns Hopkins Medical Campus.
- Aprille Weron: Community advocate, neighborhood representative and co-leader of the Midtown East Community Association.
- Brock Yetso: President & CEO of the Ulman Foundation. The Ulman House, which is a community of support for young adults, and their loved ones, impacted by cancer, is located within Eager Park.
The event takes place on Thursday, Dec. 14, from 5 to 10 p.m. It is open to the public and free to attend. The awards will be at 16 on the Park at Residence Inn by Marriott, 800 N. Wolfe St. in Baltimore. There will be a cash bar, food menu and music by DJ TNT.
