President Broderick to Receive Dr. Hugo A. Owens Sr. Humanitarian Award
January 05, 2017
John R. Broderick
Old Dominion University President John R. Broderick will receive the Dr. Hugo A. Owens Sr. Humanitarian Award at the 13th annual Martin Luther King Scholarship Breakfast Saturday, Jan. 7, hosted by the Epsilon Nu Lambda chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity.
At the event, at The Edmonds Center in Portsmouth, President Broderick will be honored for his commitment to diversity and inclusiveness during his nearly 25 years at Old Dominion.
Hugo A. Owens Jr. of Epsilon Nu Lambda, son of the man for whom the award is named, said this year's honorees - President Broderick and Quniana Futrell, adjunct professor at Tidewater Community College - reflect his father's longtime commitment to education in Hampton Roads.
Owens Jr. said the scholarship breakfast was organized in memory of Dr. King, a brother of Alpha Phi Alpha. After his father died in 2008, the chapter members decided to honor individuals from the region with a humanitarian award named after Dr. Owens, a dentist who founded the Epsilon Nu Lambda chapter.
Hugo Owens Sr. served on Old Dominion University's Board of Visitors and was its first African-American rector, from 1992 to 1993. His long association with Old Dominion makes the award special for President Broderick.
"I was always so impressed with both his wisdom and humility," he said. "I don't believe he realized how many lives he favorably touched through service, advocacy and medicine. It is a great honor to have my name associated with his. I have been fortunate to continue my relationship with his family through his son, Hugo, another great person."
The Martin Luther King Scholarship Breakfast has been hosted by the Epsilon Nu Lambda Chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha since 2005. Previous winners of the award include U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott and Rev. Joe B. Fleming.
The guest speaker for the breakfast will be Makola M. Abdullah, president of Virginia State University.
The Epsilon Nu Lambda Chapter was established in 1953 in Portsmouth. Since its start, the members have been at the forefront of community service, civic engagement and advancing the fraternity's aims of "manly deeds, scholarship and love of all mankind."
Alpha Phi Alpha was deeply involved in the civil rights movement, answering the call to action of Martin Luther King.
Owens Sr. worked with King during what was termed the "Prayer Pilgrimage" years. He was a lead plaintiff and paid the filing fees to sue the City of Portsmouth to desegregate the city's libraries, parks, golf courses and cemetery.
He also organized a local Selma Sympathy March after the confrontation on the Edmund Pettis Bridge in Selma. "According to The Washington Post, it was the largest sympathy march of its kind in the nation," his son said.
The Dr. Hugo A. Owens Sr. Humanitarian Award is given to citizens who "exemplify the qualities and commitment to the community as Dr. Owens did."