Gov. McAuliffe To Deliver Address at 31st Annual MLK Leaders' Breakfast
January 09, 2015
Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe will deliver the keynote address as Old Dominion University celebrates its 31st annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Leaders' Breakfast, presented in conjunction with the Urban League of Hampton Roads, Inc.
The event will be held at 7:30 a.m. on Monday, Jan. 19 at Old Dominion University's Ted Constant Convocation Center. Registration begins at 7 a.m., in the lobby and 45th Street VIP entrance of the Ted.
An estimated 700 guests are expected, but tickets are still available. RSVP with the Urban League of Hampton Roads at www.ulhr.org or by calling 757-627-0864. The event costs $30 for individuals and table sponsorships are still available. Call the Urban League for more information.
Entitled "Empowerment through Education, Engagement and Entrepreneurship," the breakfast also features an address by Maurice Jones, Secretary of Commerce and Trade for the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Jones, who was appointed Secretary of Commerce and Trade by McAuliffe in January 2014, will introduce the Governor. Previously, Jones served as Deputy Secretary for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development from April 2012 through January 2014. Prior to HUD, Jones was President of Pilot Media, the largest print and digital organization in Hampton Roads, Virginia.
Wilbert "Wil" James, an ODU graduate and president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, serves as honorary chair of this year's Dr. MLK, Jr. Community Leaders' Breakfast and will deliver a greeting. Old Dominion University President John R. Broderick, Vice Chair of the Urban League Board of Directors, will speak at the breakfast as well.
Norfolk Mayor Paul Fraim will also deliver greetings, and Lasalle Blanks of WVEC-TV will serve as emcee.
The event will include the presentation of the 2015 Community Leaders' Awards by Edith White, President and CEO of the Urban League of Hampton Roads, and leaders of the institutions of higher education in Hampton Roads, including ODU President John R. Broderick, Norfolk State University President Eddie Moore, Eastern Virginia Medical School President Richard Homan and Edna Baehre-Kolovani, President of Tidewater Community College.
Award recipients include Robert Ayers, executive director of human affairs (retired) for the City of Newport News; Bruce Hacker, President and CEO of INTER-OP.Net, Inc.; Gilbert Bland, chairman of the Giljoy Group; Barbara Hamm Lee, executive producer and host of WHRO's "Another View"; Eric Fox, first vice president, Financial Service Incorporated, Norfolk; and Deborah Stearns, senior vice president of Jones Lang LaSalle.
Maurice Jones will introduce McAuliffe following a video presentation, "Empowerment through Education, Engagement and Entrepreneurship."
A long-time entrepreneur himself, McAuliffe has economic development as his single biggest priority and has aggressively focused on building a new Virginia economy.
The event will conclude with a musical selection by Old Dominion University's F. Ludwig Diehn Chorale, and a benediction by Priest Manoj K. Nainwal of Hindu Temple of Hampton Roads.