1
25
FEB 2023
2 GIANT AWARDS 40TH ANNIVERSARY 3
MESSAGE FROM GRAND RAPIDS COMMUNITY COLLEGE
PRESIDENT CHARLES LEPPER
Good evening,
I am honored to welcome you to the 40th anniversary celebration of the GIANT Awards.
This is a night for us to celebrate, recognize and thank those who have worked so hard to
make our community a better place. For four decades, Grand Rapids Community College
has proudly hosted this commemoration.
Tonight’s gathering is extra special as we look all the way back to the start of the GIANT
Awards in 1983, when Dr. Patricia Pulliam and Cedric Ward first set out to honor members
of the African American community who have made a difference.
These 40 years have been a time of dramatic change in our nation and community, and
even our college, which was still Grand Rapids Junior College in 1983.
But during those decades, the GIANT Awards have remained. They are an opportunity to
share stories and pass them down to the younger generations, like prized heirlooms.
The people we honor each year have made meaningful contributions to our community
in a variety of areas: justice, education, religion, medicine, humanities, business and labor,
among others. These honorees are difference-makers in our community, and we are proud
to recognize them, their achievements and their legacies.
Tonight, we salute 40 years of these gatherings. We focus on history and respect the people
who came before us, as well as those leading and serving today.
Let us also remember that our community’s story continues to be written. The progress
made today is built on the solid foundation of the first GIANTs. Every year we add stories of
people who follow, and we prepare for those who will be celebrated decades from now.
Sincerely,
Charles Lepper, Ph.D.
President, Grand Rapids Community College
4 5
Helen Claytor
Helen Claytor was the first African American to serve as president
of the YWCA in Grand Rapids and the first to lead an integrated
chapter. She became the first African American president of the
national organization in 1967.
She served on the Grand Rapids chapter of the Michigan
Commission on Civil Rights and helped establish the Michigan Fair
Employment Practices Commission. She also served on the Michigan
Youth Commission. She was one of five Grand Rapids residents
appointed to study race relations, which resulted in the city’s Human
Relations Commission, now the Office of Equity and Engagement.
She was a member of the National Women’s Advisory Committee to
the Office of Economic Opportunity, the National Women’s Advisory
Commission on Civil Rights, and the White House Conference on
Children and Youth.
Claytor, who graduated cum laude from the University of
Minnesota, received an Honorary Doctor of Humanities from Eastern
Michigan University and an Honorary Doctor of Public Service from
Western Michigan University. She was inducted into the Michigan
Women’s Hall of Fame in 1985. A statue of her, installed in 2014,
stands on Grand Rapids Community College’s Dr. Juan R. Olivarez
Student Plaza.
Paul Phillips
Paul Phillips became executive director of the Grand Rapids Urban
League in 1947 and served in that position until his death in 1976.
He won a position on the City Charter Revision Commission in 1951,
and, in 1962, he was the first African American to win a seat on
the Grand Rapids Board of Education. He became vice chairman on
minority affairs for President Ford in 1975 and also served on the
Michigan Mental Health Society’s board as a member and president.
He earned his bachelor’s degree from Marquette University in
Milwaukee, where he ran track. He received his master’s and
doctoral degrees in sociology from Fisk University. He received an
Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from what was then Grand
Valley State College in 1972. The recreation center at the Boys &
Girls Club of Grand Rapids is named for him.
1983 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
For 40 years, the GIANT Awards
have recognized the contribuons
and leadership of African Americans in
Grand Rapids. The milestone is a great
opportunity to pause and reect upon
the people we’ve honored – so far.
The truth is we’re just geng started.
The GIANT Awards started in
February 1983 with a banquet in
G Building of what was then Grand Rapids Junior College. Dr. Patricia Pulliam
and Cedric Ward established the event to recognize and honor members of
the African American community for their notable contribuons to West
Michigan and beyond.
Awards were named aer leaders as a perpetual memorial, creang an annual
recognion of their service, and an opportunity to once again remind people
of today that they stand on the shoulders of those who came before them –
and to be the ones to inspire the generaons to come.
During these four decades, we’ve honored leaders in elds of jusce, medical
service, humanies, business, community service, educaon, religious life and
labor. We’ve saluted acvists, humanitarians, and trailblazers.
And every year we are reminded once again of people such as Hae Beverly,
William Glenn, Milo Brown, Walter Coe, and Phyllis Sco, sharing their stories
of bravery, determinaon, sacrice and service.
In addion, each year a GIANT Among Giants is named. They are the jewels
in our crown that shine the brightest. Some, such as 1983 honoree Helen
Claytor, are known around the country for their impact. Others are recognized
for lifemes of service here in West Michigan. All of them have made a
dierence in the lives of more people than they realize.
Proceeds from the annual commemoraon have supported scholarships for
African American students, focusing on the value of educaon and helping the
next generaons of GIANT Award honorees.
The scholarships are an important part of the GIANT Awards. As we look back
at the leaders of yesterday and salute the leaders of today, we light the torch
that will be passed to the GIANTs of the future. We’ve come so far, but there
is much more to be done.
FORTY
YEARS
OF GIANT
AWARDS
6 7
1985 / 1986 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
1984 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
The Right Rev. John M. Burgess
Born in Grand Rapids, John M. Burgess became the first African
American to preside as bishop over an Episcopal diocese in the
United States.
He completed bachelor’s and master’s degrees at the University
of Michigan before earning his Master of Divinity from Episcopal
Theological School in Cambridge, Mass., in 1934. He then returned
to his home parish of St. Philip’s Episcopal, where he ministered
to the working class congregations through the Depression and
World War II. He served as Howard University’s Episcopal chaplain
from 1946 to 1956. In 1951, he became the first black canon at the
National Cathedral in Washington, D.C., where he spoke on human
and civil rights.
He became archdeacon of missions and parishes in Boston in
1956. He was known for his efforts to revitalize urban ministry,
confront racism in schools, support prison reform and improve the
diocese’s efficiency. He became bishop suffragan of the Diocese of
Massachusetts in 1962 and bishop coadjutor in 1970.
After his retirement in 1975, he taught pastoral theology at the
Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and Yale Divinity School. He received
honorary degrees from the University of Michigan; Northeastern
University; the University of Massachusetts; and Boston,
Assumption, Trinity and St. Augustine’s colleges.
Joseph H. McMillan
Joseph H. McMillan’s career spanned from elementary teaching to
higher education administration.
He was the first male African American elementary teacher in Grand
Rapids Public Schools – where he was known as “Dr. Mac” – and,
later, the first African American principal. He then became one of
the first African American officials at Michigan State University,
serving as assistant vice president for human relations and director
of equal opportunity programs. He then was named assistant
provost for academic affairs and minority affairs at the University of
Louisville in Kentucky. While at U of L, he served as chairman of the
Black Family in America Conference for 34 years and collaborated
with local organizations on the Rising 5th Graders and Street
Academy programs for young African American males. He retired as
Professor Emeritus in early childhood education.
In 1992, he received the Marcus Foster Distinguished Educator
Award from the National Association of Black School Educators.
Donna Carter
Donna Carter has touched countless students through her work in
teacher training and curriculum writing.
While a teacher and administrator in Grand Rapids Public Schools,
she worked with the Michigan Reading Association. She later served
as president of the Association for Supervision and Curriculum
Development. Her career has taken around the nation, including
to school districts in Minnesota and South Carolina, and she has
worked with K-12 students, college students, children with reading
disabilities, and incarcerated teens.
She is currently founder and board president of GateWay Boarding
Academy, a Maryland school that serves at-risk adolescent males.
Roy Roberts
Roy Roberts started as a General Motors management trainee
in 1977 and retired 25 years later as the automaker’s “$100
Billion Man.”
After graduating from high school, he worked on the assembly
line of Lear Siegler Corp. while earning a bachelor’s degree in
business administration from Western Michigan University. He later
completed the Harvard Business School’s Executive Development
Program and studied international business in Switzerland. He rose
through GM to become group vice president for North American
vehicle sales, services and marketing. His $100 billion enterprise was
larger than many Fortune 500 companies.
After retiring, he was asked to serve as the emergency manager
for Detroit Public Schools. During his two and a half years in that
position, he reduced a $327 million deficit to $76 million and put
in place strategies to ensure financial stewardship and promote
efficiency.
In 2000, he launched M-Xchange.com and co-founded Reliant
Equity Investors in 2001. He is now a partner in Bagley Development
Group. He has received honorary doctorate degrees from Florida
A&M, Northwood and Grand Valley State universities and Paine
College. He received an American Success Award in 1989 and was
named Black Enterprise magazine’s Executive of the Year in 1996.
He received the Automotive Hall of Fame’s Distinguished Service
Citation in 1998 and Michigan Chronicle’s Legacy in Motion Lifetime
Achievement Award in 2014.
8 9
1989 / 1990 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
1987 / 1988 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
Roger Wilkins
Roger Wilkins was an attorney, civil rights activist, Pulitzer Prize-
winning writer and professor.
He came to Grand Rapids at age 11 to live with his mother, Helen
Claytor, recipient of the first Giant Among Giants Award in 1983.
After graduating from Creston High School, he earned bachelor’s
and law degrees from the University of Michigan.
He worked as a lawyer in Ohio before joining the United States
Agency for International Development. He became a senior aide to
President Kennedy and then joined President Lyndon B. Johnson’s
administration as director of the federal Community Relations
Service and later became assistant attorney general – at the time
one of the highest-ranking African Americans to ever serve in the
executive branch.
After a stint with the Ford Foundation, he left government and
became an editorial writer for The Washington Post, where he
contributed to the newspaper’s 1973 Pulitzer Prize for coverage
of the Watergate scandal. He joined The New York Times editorial
board in 1974. Until his retirement in 2007, he was a professor of
history and American culture at George Mason University.
Cedric Ward
The arts and social justice were the twin passions of Cedric Ward.
His theatrical debut at the age of 13 in a Circle Theater production
of “Little Foxes” was the start of four decades of directing,
performing and volunteering. He and his wife, Sandy, established
Circle Theater’s first children’s company, and he wrote and
directed its first production, “Hansel and Gretel.” He founded the
Robeson Players in the 1980s to provide theatrical opportunities to
African Americans and co-founded the Grand Rapids Symphony’s
“Symphony with Soul” concert.
He and Pat Pulliam, publisher of the Grand Rapids Times, created
the Giants Awards, and the Junior Giants Cedric Ward Leadership
Scholarship is named in his honor. The Cedric and Sandy Ward
Leadership Award goes annually to a Grand Rapids Community
College student.
He was honored by the Arts Council of Greater Grand Rapids for
his leadership and received the Dr. MaLinda P. Sapp Legacy Award
posthumously from the Grand Rapids Symphony.
W. Wilberforce Plummer
W. Wilberforce Plummer was generous with his skills and his time.
He donated his dental services every summer to an organization in
Haiti and was involved in many governmental and nonprofit panels.
After graduating from a Detroit high school, he attended West
Virginia State College, where he was part of the Army’s specialized
training program. He completed his training and his dental degree
at Meharry Medical School in Nashville, Tenn., in 1947. When he
returned from active duty in Panama, he moved to Grand Rapids
and joined the Air Force Reserve.
He served on the city’s Board of Housing Appeals, Community
Health Services, the Kent County Council on Alcoholism and the
state Public Health Advisory Council. He was also an active member
of Citizens for Representative Government, American Civil Liberties
Union, Planned Parenthood, Opera Grand Rapids, Big Brothers, and
the NAACP. He was board chairman of the United Church of Christ’s
Michigan Conference and a member of the national board for
Homeland Ministries. As a member of National Council for Christians
for Social Action, he traveled with an interdenominational team to
South Africa to learn about U.S. corporate responses to apartheid.
Plummer received the A.J. Muste Peace and Justice Award from the
Institute for Global Education. The W.W. Plummer Humanitarian
Award is named in his honor.
The Rev. John V. Williams
The Rev. John V. Williams was called to serve as pastor of New Hope
Baptist Church in 1949. He was the sixth – and longest-serving –
pastor in the church’s 88-year-old history.
During his tenure, the church moved from Finney Avenue to
Caulfield Avenue SW and later into its current $1.5 million building
at 130 Delaware St. SW.
He established a hot lunch program at New Hope and was active in
the Progressive Voters League.
10 11
1993 / 1994 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
1991 / 1992 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
The Rev. W.L. Patterson
As senior pastor, the Rev. W.L. Patterson led True Light Baptist
Church and the Grand Rapids area through times of growth and
turmoil.
He was called to True Light in 1954 and served there for 41 years.
He led efforts to purchase the church’s current site at 900 Thomas
St. SE. He was one of the first ministers to hold services over radio,
served on the board of the Salvation Army’s Genesis House and was
a member of the Grand Rapids chapters of the Urban League and
NAACP. He formed the Ambassadors Club, which started as a Bible
study class and became a community service group, and founded
Kennedy Day Care Center. He ran Operation Faith, which helped
those dealing with substance abuse.
He was committed to social justice issues and participated in a 1963
silent march to protest the Birmingham church bombing that killed
four African American girls. Addressing the many white participants
that day, he said, “You have marched with us today, but please
march with us tomorrow because we need jobs and places to live
right here in Grand Rapids.”
Beverly A. Drake
Beverly Ann Drake was a champion to those in need and a mentor
to West Michigan community leaders.
She started her career in 1971 as an administrative aide for the
city of Grand Rapids and then worked for the Grand Rapids Area
Employment and Training Council. From 1985 to 2011, she served
as executive director of Area Community Services Employment and
Training, which creates economic opportunities for low-income,
elderly, disabled, unemployed and under-employed people.
She served on boards or committees for the NAACP, Urban League,
YWCA, YMCA, Project Rehab, the Dyers Ives Foundation, the
Michigan Community Action Agency and Community Rebuilders.
She was a founding member of the Coalition for Representative
Government, and Michigan Works!, where she served on the
directors council, established the Beverly A. Drake Essential Service
Awards in her honor. She was a member of the Grand Rapids
Community College Foundation’s board of directors for 27 years and
was named the college’s Distinguished Alumna in 1995.
Inter-Denominational
Ministerial Alliance
For generations, churches and the faith community have been
cornerstones of the African American community. Pastors are
leaders for their congregations, but also looked to by others for their
wisdom and influence.
The Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance brought together
leaders from many churches and faiths to work together to address
challenges faced by congregation members and the city as a whole.
Clergy for many faiths joined as one to advocate for shared values
of social justice for all, compassion for those in need, and serving as
voice for the underserved.
Myrna Granderson
Myrna Granderson worked hard to become a nurse and then
worked even harder to share the importance of health care
throughout the community.
She earned her associate degree in Nursing from Grand Rapids
Junior College, juggling her studies with raising eight children. She
served as health services manager at the Grand Rapids Job Corps
Center and started Harambee Nurses, a group that travels to Grand
Rapids schools with an interactive health presentation. She also was
a member of the Yellow Light Ensemble, a group of storytellers who
combine words and sound, and writes for the Grand Rapids Times.
She was named Grand Rapids Community College’s Distinguished
Alumna in 1992 and received the Salute to Women Award in 2013.
12 13
1997 / 1998 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
1995 / 1996 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
Paul Collins
Paul Collins realized at a young age that he was an artist. Since
then, he has used his talent to explore his ancestry, share cultures
from around the world and support organizations that help the
overlooked.
In 1969, he traveled to West Africa, where he spent two years
painting a series focused on Senegalese and Gambians. These
critically acclaimed paintings were exhibited around the world, and
many were featured in the 1972 film “Save the Children.” In 1972,
he was invited to live at the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota
to paint. His work as a liaison between the Sioux and the U.S.
government led to him being made a full brother in the tribe.
His art has shined a spotlight on special causes. He created a
commemorative poster in honor of the opening of the Gerald R.
Ford Presidential Museum. His series of paintings focused on the
Special Olympics is permanently exhibited at the John F. Kennedy
Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C. He was
commissioned by Coretta Scott King to create the center’s highest
honor, the Martin Luther King Jr. Nonviolent Peace Prize Medal and
also created the Challenger 7 space shuttle logo commemorating
the first U.S. woman in space.
He has been a member of executive boards for the Kennedy Center
and the Martin Luther King Jr. Center for Nonviolent Social Change
in Atlanta. He joined President Ford and state Sen. Glenn Steil to
raise funding to restore the Seidman Youth Center.
Bishop William Abney
Bishop William Abney shepherded Bethel Pentecostal Church
through decades of growth while working to provide education
and housing options.
He was elected pastor of Bethel in 1961, when the church was on
Eastern Avenue. In just five years, the congregation outgrew the site
and moved to Madison Avenue. After two decades of growth and
expansions, Bethel Pentecostal Church became Bethel Pentecostal
Church Abundant Life Center and constructed new facilities on
Lake Drive SE.
In 1997, he established and served as president of William C. Abney
Academy on Fulton Street. A charter school authorized by Grand
Valley State University, it initially served kindergarten through eighth
grade before the middle school closed in 2017. A renowned gospel
singer, he also was president of Vision Corp., which worked to
address inner-city housing needs.
He retired from Bethel in 2006.
Patricia and Yergan Pulliam
Patricia Pulliam has made two careers shining a light on minority
issues and concerns: first as a Grand Rapids Community College
educator and later as a newspaper publisher.
She began at what was then Grand Rapids Junior College in the
early 1970s as a language arts instructor and advisor to the Black
Students Union. She later became chair of the Council for Minority
Concerns, an advisory group to GRJC President Richard Calkins that
worked to attract, support and retain minority students. The council
organized conflict resolution workshops, an annual banquet for
minority high school seniors and their parents, and a loan fund to
help African American, Hispanic and Native American students.
After a referendum passed in 1991 that created the independent
Grand Rapids Community College, she became executive vice
president and vice president for instruction and administration. She
capped her 30-year college career by serving as interim president
in 1998 – the first woman and the first African American to lead
GRCC. She received an inaugural Salute to Women Award in 1999.
Working with Cedric Ward, she created the Giants Awards in 1983,
which honors exceptional service and achievements by African
Americans.
Patricia and Yergan Pulliam purchased The Grand Rapids Times in
1986. Founded in 1957, it is the oldest existing weekly publication
targeting the black community in Grand Rapids. Patricia Pulliam is
active as both publisher and editor.
Benjamin H. Logan II
Benjamin H. Logan II was first elected as 61st District Court judge in
1988, after serving 16 years as a defense attorney. Not only did he
speak out on issues important to African Americans, he encouraged
people to run for public office and acted as a mentor to many in
Grand Rapids’ legal community.
He volunteered with the Grand Rapids Bar Association and
founded the local chapter of the Floyd Skinner Bar Association,
which supports African American lawyers. He is credited with
reinvigorating the local NAACP chapter. He was active in the
National Bar Association and was inducted into its Hall of Fame
in 2013.
He retired from the bench in 2014.
14 15
2001 / 2002 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
1999 / 2000 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
The Rev. Charlie Jones
The Rev. Charlie Jones turned a family tragedy into a community-
wide example of grace and forgiveness.
He first came to Grand Rapids in 1951 and worked as an auto body
reconditioner. He worked as director of Gospel Temple Missionary
Baptist Church’s choir before beginning his 36-year preaching career
at Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church in 1976.
In 2000, his brother Willie Jones, 66, was abducted from a bowling
alley, beaten and fatally stabbed. He not only forgave the four
teenagers found responsible but ministered to their families. It was
only after his death in 2015 that his family learned about some
of the ways he had helped others – paying rents, providing bail,
reaching out to victims of violence, and visiting the incarcerated.
Nina Lewis-Sleet
Nina Lewis-Sleet, the first African American appointed to the Grand
Rapids Board of Education, once walked out of a 1970 meeting after
telling her colleagues that they were ignoring issues facing needy
and minority children.
Education and community were her twin passions. She worked as a
secretary at Henry Park School and as a mentor and counselor for
30 years with Grand Rapids Community College. She coordinated
the Giants Awards for about 20 years.
Her nephew, Christopher Paul Curtis, mentions her, her two
children and her father in his 1999 Newbery Medal winning novel
Bud, Not Buddy.
Stephen R. Drew
Stephen R. Drew is a founding partner in the law firm of Drew,
Cooper & Anding, practicing in civil rights, personal injury, sexual
harassment, sexual abuse, police misconduct and employment law
cases. His office represented 122 of the 132 plaintiffs who sued Dr.
Larry Nassar, Michigan State University and USA Gymnastics.
He has served as president of the Grand Rapids Bar Association and
Floyd Skinner Bar Association and on the Michigan Trial Lawyers
Association’s executive board.
He is a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers and the
American Bar Association’s College of Labor and Employment
Lawyers. He received the Champion of Justice Award by the
Michigan Bar Association and has been listed in its Register of
Preeminent Lawyers since 1997. He and his wife, Clarice Smith Drew,
were awarded the Hazel R. Lewis Presidential Award by the Greater
Grand Rapids NAACP in 2019.
Faite Mack Sr.
Faite Mack Sr. broke through barriers while building a legacy at
Grand Valley State University.
He was a founding faculty member of GVSU’s College of Education
and was the first African American promoted to the full rank of
professor. He published three books and created a commercial
school readiness test for children, while serving as a consultant to
many school districts and educational agencies.
A trip to Thailand as a keynote speaker for the U.S. Department of
Education was life-changing for him. Shocked at the poverty and
constant danger of child trafficking to orphaned and abandoned
kids, he became president of the Education for Humanity
International Foundation, which provides uniforms, shoes and
medical assistance so they can stay in school.
He retired from his 40-year teaching career in 2017 and was named
Professor Emeritus of Leadership and Learning in 2018. GVSU’s
Dr. Faite Mack and Dr. Thomas Jackson African American Teacher
Education Scholarship is named for him.
16 17
2005 / 2006 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
2003 / 2004 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
Ella Mary Sims
Community activist Ella Mary Sims advocated for education, housing
and resources to help the less fortunate.
When her 10 children were young adults, she earned a bachelor’s
degree from Aquinas College, where she became the director of
minority student affairs. She worked with the NAACP and the
Michigan League of Human Services and was the first woman of
color to write a column for The Grand Rapids Press.
In the 1950s, she fought for federal funding for public housing,
leading to the construction of Campau Commons. She helped
establish the YWCA’s Women’s Resource Center in 1973. As a
member of the Salvation Army’s advisory board, she helped plan
and raise funds for the Ray and Joan Kroc Community Center.
She received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Aquinas
in 2001.
Leona Spencer
Following her father’s death, Leona Spencer and her family
struggled with poverty. She knew she wanted to become a social
worker so she could help others in that situation.
She did that in her role as the Kent County Department of Social
Services’ supervisor for volunteer services. Her efforts continued
even after her retirement in the mid-1980s. She helped found the
Sarah Allen Family Neighborhood Center, which housed mentoring,
shoe and boot, and food pantry programs. She also was president
emeritus of Grand Rapids’ Concerned Citizens Council.
She was named Grand Valley State University’s Distinguished
Alumna in 1987 and received the Governor’s Service Award.
The Rev. Lyman S. Parks
The Rev. Lyman S. Parks, pastor of First Community AME Church,
achieved a series of “firsts” for Grand Rapids.
In 1968, he was the first African American elected to the City
Commission, representing the Third Ward. In 1971, his fellow
commissioners chose him to fill the vacant position of mayor; he
was the first African American appointed to the job. In 1973, he
defeated 10 other candidates to become the first African American
elected mayor of Grand Rapids. He is credited with helping the
city through great social change and racial tensions. One of his
major achievements while in office was leading the renovation and
revitalization of downtown.
A statue of him outside City Hall was dedicated in 2013, and the
Grand Rapids Public Schools’ administration building is named
for him.
Dr. Edward A. Jones
Dr. Edward A. Jones started his medical practice in Grand Rapids in
1959. He was a doctor in Grand Rapids for 45 years, serving on the
staff of St. Mary’s, Blodgett and Butterworth hospitals.
He co-founded Freedom Homes and served on the boards of Clark
Retirement Home, the Grand Rapids Community Foundation and
Opera Grand Rapids. He was a member of the Urban League,
NAACP, the Kent County Medical Society and the American
College of Physicians.
18 19
2009 / 2010 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
2007 / 2008 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
Nolan Groce
Nolan Groce’s keen business mind brought him success as the
president of L&G Industrial Products, a supplier of office furniture
components. He also used it to help his community.
He and his wife, Julia, funded the College Kids, a four-week summer
camp that allowed elementary school students to explore higher
education. He also mentored teens through the Kent County
Youth Companion Program. He led a capital campaign that raised
$200,000 for renovations to his church, First Community AME. He
also helped the church work through federal regulations so Allen
Manor apartment complex could be built for low-income seniors.
Cornerstone University’s Nolan Groce Business Leadership Award is
named in his honor.
Mary A. Edmond
While Mary A. Edmond has retired from the Grand Rapids Public
Schools, she hasn’t stopped teaching. Her classroom has just gotten
bigger, encompassing almost everyone she meets.
She worked for years as GRPS’ director of multicultural education
and gender equity. Her current passion is black history, especially
West Michigan’s Underground Railroad sites. She was key to efforts
to get historical recognition for Civil War veteran Isaac Bailey, a
former slave who is buried at Oak Hill Cemetery. The National Park
Service has recognized Bailey to its National Underground Railroad
Network to Freedom program.
She was president of the Michigan Freedom Trail Commission, which
successfully lobbied for a law that preserves buildings or places
monuments at significant Underground Railroad sites.
She also has been active in the Michigan Black History Network and
the Grand Rapids Sister City International committee.
Elias Lumpkins Jr.
Elias Lumpkins Jr. served others as an educator and a city official.
He earned degrees from Grand Rapids Junior College and Michigan
State and Wayne State universities and went into teaching, working
at Henry and Campau elementary schools. He then became
principal of South Middle School and then shifted his focus to
higher education. He worked at what was then Calvin College
before becoming GRJC’s director of special services in 1978. He
subsequently became the college’s director of financial aid and then
dean of student services. During his time at GRJC, he worked with
Cedric Ward to develop a diversity program that eventually became
the Woodrick Institute for the Study of Racism and Diversity. A
former member of the GRCC Foundation board, he was named a
Distinguished Alumnus in 1977 and received the college’s Excellence
in Education Award in 2001.
He first joined the City Commission in 2006, when he was
appointed to the vacant 3rd Ward seat. He was then elected to the
seat, eventually retiring in 2015. He was credited with successfully
mediating a dispute between Meijer Inc. and residents that led to a
new store being built at 28th Street and Kalamazoo Avenue. Mayor
George Heartwell gave him a Champion of Diversity Award in 2013,
and he received the Helen Jackson Claytor Civil Rights Award
in 2018.
Don Williams Sr.
Don Williams Sr. has focused his career and his retirement on
helping the next generations.
He joined Grand Valley State University in 1985 as director of the
Minority Business Education Center and was appointed dean of
minority affairs four years later. He established several programs to
address the needs of minority students majoring in business, science,
mathematics and education. His office also sponsored the King-
Chavez-Parks College Day for area students in sixth through 12th
grades and Start Now!, a college preparatory program for Holland
students.
He retired in 2001 so he could spend more time working with the
Concerned Citizens Council, a coalition of civic, religious, legal and
professional organizations trying to build a Grand Rapids youth
center. He has been a member of the Grand Rapids Rotary Club, the
Economic Club of Greater Grand Rapids, the Minority Affairs Council
for Michigan Universities, the West Michigan Coalition for African
American Men, and the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce.
GVSU’s Don Williams Sr. Dean Emeritus Multicultural Business
Education Scholarship is named in his honor.
20 21
2013 / 2014 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
2011 / 2012 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
Ingrid Scott-Weekly
Working for the city of Grand Rapids, Ingrid Scott-Weekly made
lasting changes to how it does business.
She moved to the city after obtaining her law degree from the
University of California to work for Legal Aid of West Michigan.
She then worked in administration for Grand Rapids Public Schools,
Grand Rapids Junior College and Grand Valley State University.
In 1989, she became the city’s equal opportunity director. Under her
leadership, equal business opportunity policies for construction and
purchasing were approved and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce
and the Michigan Alliance Against Hate Crimes were established.
She considered bringing a Rosa Parks statue to downtown as one
of her most memorable achievements.
She retired as the city’s managing director of Administrative
Services in 2012.
Jeery J. Kimbrel
In 2020, a fire destroyed the business that Jeffery J. Kimbrel had
spent almost four decades building as well as the social club he
started in 2002.
But that catastrophe didn’t keep him from doing what he has
strived to do every day: help others. Weeks after the fire, he and
friends were organizing Easter cards and treats for Clark Retirement
Community residents.
Shortly after arriving in Grand Rapids, the Detroit native was
laid off from his job. An opportunity to make money painting a
friend’s rental properties led him to start Painting by Jeff in 1984.
Community service has always been part of his business plan, and
he has organized and volunteered at street fairs, holiday events,
after-school tutoring, and school supply and food basket giveaways.
Many of his fellow volunteers come from The Sophisticated
Gentlemen Club – later renamed The Sophisticated Gentlemen Club
and Ladies Auxiliary.
Since the fire, the club has used a relatively undamaged part of the
Eastern Avenue building, but that’s about to change. In August,
the Grand Rapids Planning Commission approved a permit that will
allow the club to relocate to another building on the property, which
should soon mean it’s business – and community service – as usual,
for the group and Jeffery Kimbrel.
Reuben Smartt
Known as the “Traveling Disciple,” Reuben Smartt had enough
experiences to last a dozen lifetimes.
He was a World War II veteran, one of the first African Americans to
serve in the Marines. He and the other men in the Montford Point
Marines later received the Congressional Gold Medal.
A talented athlete, he came to Grand Rapids to play shortstop with
the Black Sox, a Grand Rapids-based Negro League team. He got as
far as the Cleveland Indians’ Triple-A team.
He then chose to pursue teaching, earning a master’s degree from
Michigan State University. He was a teacher and principal at South
Middle School for almost three decades. He also mentored youth
through the Upward Bound and Running Start programs he directed
and coached an inner-city baseball team.
Dr. Marvin L. Sapp
Dr. Marvin L. Sapp has shared the word of God in sermon and
in song.
He started singing in church at the age of 4 and has never stopped.
He started recording with the group Commissioned and transitioned
to a solo career in 1996. “Thirsty,” released in 2007, is his best-
selling album, with more than a million copies sold. With the release
of “Here I Am” in 2010, he became the all-time highest charting
gospel artist in Billboard’s history. He was named BET’s Best Gospel
Artist in 2008 and 2010 and won a GMA Dove Award in 2011 for
Contemporary Gospel Recorded Song of the Year (“The Best
in Me”).
He was senior pastor of Lighthouse Full Life Center Church in
Grand Rapids, which he and his late wife, MaLinda, founded. He
now serves as senior pastor of The Chosen Vessel in Fort Worth,
Texas. He has an honorary Doctor of Divinity degree from Aenon
Bible College and an honorary Doctor of Ministry from Friends
International Christian University.
22 23
2017 / 2018 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
2015 / 2016 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
Larry Johnson
Larry Johnson started his career making streets safer. Now he does
the same for schools.
He served in the police departments of Benton Harbor, Lansing and
Grand Rapids, receiving a Meritorious Service Award from the GRPD.
He joined Grand Rapids Public Schools in 1997 as executive
director of public safety and school security. Now assistant to the
superintendent and executive director of public safety, he oversees
15 special police officers and 25 security officers. He is also in charge
of the district’s management information systems and oversees
risk management, Freedom of Information Act requests, Family
Educational Rights and Privacy Act compliance and other internal
investigations.
Ellen James
Ellen James has advocated for the marginalized and for increasing
educational opportunities through many roles with many
organizations.
Her public service includes 30 years with Grand Rapids’ Equal
Opportunity Department and 25 years as a founding member of
Grand Rapids Community College’s board of trustees. She is also a
founding member of the Coalition for Representative Government,
which has helped add diversity to the city, school board and judicial
positions. She is also involved with Kent County Black Elected
Officials, Grand Rapids Police Department advisory committees, the
Grand Rapids Community Foundation African American Heritage
Club and the NAACP. She serves on the GRCC Foundation’s board,
and the Ellen M. James Trailblazer Scholarship is named in her honor.
Grand Rapids Magazine selected her as one of its “Top 10 Leaders
With a Mission,” and she was the first recipient of the National
Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives’ Nelson Mandela
Presidential Award. She also has received the Michigan Women’s
Foundation Women of Courage and the YWCA Tribute to Women
Advocacy awards.
The Rev. Dr. Clifton Rhodes Jr.
The Rev. Dr. Clifton Rhodes Jr. spent 45 of his 55 years in ministry at
one place: Messiah Missionary Baptist Church, Grand Rapids’ oldest
African American Baptist church.
Under his leadership, Messiah Missionary increased its outreach
to the underserved in the area. Church members organized health
fairs and screenings, neighborhood improvement programs, job
training and resume workshops, a food pantry, counseling services,
mentoring and scholarship programs, and school supply and holiday
toy collections. The Rev. Dr. Rhodes is credited for his advocacy for
African American children in schools and his partnership with police
to combat street violence.
He was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as
Lou Gehrig’s disease in 2013 and had to step down from his ministry
in 2017.
Teresa Weatherall Neal
A product of Grand Rapids Public Schools, Teresa Weatherall Neal
rose to lead – and transform – the district.
Her employment with GRPS started as a student worker. She then
worked as an administrative assistant, coordinator of compliance
and assistant superintendent before becoming superintendent in
2012. Her GRPS Transformation Plan is credited with increasing
the district’s graduation rates and reducing absenteeism. She also
implemented professional development focused on equity and
inclusion, school choices, and building-community partnerships.
Under her leadership, enrollment increased for the first time in
20 years.
Since retiring in 2019, she has served as chair of the Grand Rapids
Promise Zone Authority, which allows eligible high school seniors to
attend Grand Rapids Community College for free.
She was named GRCC’s Distinguished Alumna in 2019. In 2022,
she received the Edward J. Frey Distinguished Achievement Award
from Junior Achievement of the Michigan Great Lakes and the
Equity Champion Award from the Grand Rapids African American
Health Institute.
24 25
2022 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
2019 / 2020 GIANTS AMONG GIANTS
Bishop Dennis J. McMurray
When other churches said “no,” Bishop Dennis J. McMurray
said “yes.”
The family of Patrick Lyoya, who was fatally shot during a traffic
stop in April, was running into obstacles finding a funeral location
because of the political turmoil and national attention surrounding
his death. Bishop McMurray presided over the service at Renaissance
Church of God in Christ because a family was hurting and
needed comfort.
He was Renaissance’s founder and senior pastor for 30 years and
served on the boards of many organizations, including Spectrum
Health, Bethany Christian Services, Kent County Community Mental
Health, the Michigan Community Corrections Board and the
Michigan Clergy Task Force.
Grand Valley State University’s Seidman School of Business named
him Alumni of the Year in 2007. He and his wife, Dr. E. Jean
McMurray, established scholarships at GVSU and Grand Rapids
Community and Muskegon Community colleges.
Michael B. Johnson Sr.
Michael B. Johnson Sr. helped countless families through difficult
times, through his mortuaries and through his community service.
He became the owner of Brown’s Funeral Home, Grand Rapids’
oldest African American-owned funeral parlor, in 1985. In 2008,
he purchased Toombs Funeral Home in Muskegon Heights. He and
his businesses contributed to many children’s activities and regularly
sponsored the Feeding America food trucks. He was instrumental in
the creation of the Milo M. Brown Scholarship.
Among his many accolades are the Athena Award, Wayne State
University’s Richard M. Kelly Memorial Award, the Network
Magazine Achiever Award, the Interdenominational Ministerial
Alliance Business Achievement Award and the Chamber of
Commerce Achievement Award.
He retired from business in 2018.
The Rev. Nathaniel Moody
The Rev. Nathaniel Moody works to lift up Grand Rapids through
his ministry and his civic service.
The pastor at Brown-Hutcherson Ministries, he was a member of
the Grand Rapids Board of Education from 2013 to 2017 and has
represented the 3rd Ward on the City Commission since 2018.
He has also served on the Grand Rapids Police Department’s
advisory committee, the Children’s Advocacy Council, the
Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance, the Grand Rapids Area
Association of Pastors and the Grand Rapids Community College
Foundation’s board of directors.
He has received the Celebration of Soul Marvin and MaLinda Sapp
Legacy Award, Bethany Christian Services’ Leadership Award, the
United Methodist Community Achievement Award, and the Whitney
M. Young Jr. Service Award from the Boy Scouts of America.
26
WALTER
COE PUBLIC
SERVICE
AWARD
In 1922, the rst African American police
ocer, Walter Coe, was hired. Captain Coe
rose through the ranks making sergeant
in two years; lieutenant in ten years;
and earned the rank of captain in 1950,
commanding his Special Invesgaon
Division within the detecve bureau.
Because of his concern for the city’s
youth, he took an acve role in the Youth
Commonwealth Program. He was an
advocate for those less fortunate than
himself. Walter W. Coe suered a fatal
heart aack while serving in the police
department’s detecve bureau in 1957.
EUGENE
BROWNING
MEDICAL
SERVICE
AWARD
Dr. Browning began his medical pracce
in Grand Rapids in 1905. His educaonal
background included the Detroit College of
Medicine, the University of Chicago, and
internaonally, the University of Vienna. His
commitment to the community and its
health needs established Dr. Browning as a
pioneer of the present day well-baby clinics.
He operated a weekly well-baby clinic
at First Community A.M.E. Church. His
services were given regardless of ability
to pay.
PAST HONOREES
2022 Shellie Cole-Mickens
2020 Ovell R. Barbee, Jr.
2019 Mari Beth Johnson-Jelks
2018 Christina Y. Johnson
2017 Frederick S. Brown
2016 Senita R. Lenear
2015 Floyd Wilson, Jr.
2014 LeMark Payne
2013 LTC. Shawn A. Harris
2012 Anita Christopher
2011 Larry Barnes
2010 Michael Remo
2009 Grand Rapids Public Schools
Department of Public Safety
2008 Dareather Greer
2007 Lt. Ralph James Mason
2006 Sonya Hughes
2005 Richard Clanton
2004 Mary E. Williams
2003 Clemma Gwendolyn Brown
2002 Concerned Citizen Council
2001 Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity,
Grand Rapids Chapter
2000 Harriet Ann Singleton
1999 Delton A. Heard
1998 Mayor Clyde Preston
William Hardiman, III
1997 Kent County Deputy
Leroy McIntosh, Sr.
1996 Lt. James Farris
1995 Officer Marla Freeman
1994 Clyde A. Poag
1993 Dennis Booker
1992 Eugene Davis
1991 Donald Williams, Sr.
1990 Leroy Edmond
1989 Elias Lumpkins, Jr.
1988 Alberta Gray
1987 Baxter Community Center
1986 Albert Willis
1985 Detective Harriet Hill
1984 Officer Harry Bolden
1983 Officer Maurice Barnes
PAST HONOREES
2022 Not Awarded
2020 Clarence Teddy Henderson
2019 Jason Slaikeu M.D., MBA
2018 Dr. Valencia L. Agnew
2017 Dr. TaLawnda Bragg
2016 Herman C. Sullivan, M.D.
2015 Larry Arnold Brewer, PA-C
2014 Candace Smith-King, M.D.
2013 Lennox Forrest, Ph.D.
2012 Cle J. Jackson
2011 Ludie Weddle, R.D.
2010 Paul Doyle
2009 Lisa Lowery, M.D.
2008 West Michigan Medical Society
2007 KMMNBNA
(Kalamazoo-Muskegon Michigan
National Black Nurses Assoc.)
2006 Shahidah M. ElAmin
2005 Dr. Tracy Blount
2004 Khan J. Nedd, M.D.
2003 Denice M. Logan, D.O.
2002 Joseph Daniels, M.D.
2001 Jimmie Lassic, D.D.S.
2000 Brenda Daniels
1999 Sheila VanLowe, M.D.
1998 Earnestine Tolbert, R.N.
1997 Janet M. Stafford, D.O.
1996 Andre V. Jubert, M.D., FACS
1995 Helen Brent, M.P.A., R.N.
1994 Veneese V. Chandler
1993 Laura Moody, R.N.
1992 Mary C. Thomas
1991 Lorine Smith
1990 Joyce Hassen, R.N.
1989 Birthale Lambert, R.N., M.S.N.
1988 Dorsey Ligon, M.D.
1987 Harambe Black Nurses of
Grand Rapids
1986 Ralph Mathis, M.D.
1985 Sarah Glover, L.P.N.
1984 Edward Jones, M.D.
1983 Robert Claytor, M.D.
27
28
W.W.
PLUMMER
HUMANITARIAN
AWARD
Known for his long history of service as a
denst and as a member of a variety of
organizaons, Dr. Plummer donates
services each summer to the Foundaon
Pedodonque, Port-Au-Prince, Hai. He
is acve with the A.C.L.U., N.A.A.C.P., Big
Brothers, Opera Grand Rapids, Community
Health Services, the Kent County Council
on Alcoholism, and a number
of other organizaons.
ETHEL COE
HUMANITIES
AWARD
Ethel Coe was a vocalist who also
enjoyed acng. She is remembered
for her performances in local Civic
Theatre producons of Member of
the Wedding and Raisin. She was
also acve at the X.Y.Z. Center and
with V.I.S.T.A.
PAST HONOREES
2022 Nikeidra Battle-Debarge
2020 Eddie T.L. Tadlock
2019 LaSandra A. Gaddy
2018 Renee Williams
2017 Veverly Austin
2016 Roy Ford (posthumously)
2015 Dallas Lenear
2014 Shannon L. Wilson
2013 Johngerlyn “Jonse” Young
2012 Darius L. Quinn
2011 Reverend Tony Campbell
2010 Not Awarded
2009 Christopher Macon
2008 Yvonne L. Mathis
2007 Jason L. Paulateer
2006 Clifton Charles, Jr.
2005 Linda S. Likely
2004 Melvin Atkins
2003 Maxine Cage-Meek
2002 Jeffery J. Kimbrel
2001 Eve Manley
2000 Harrison David Jones (Asadada)
1999 Charles R. Lewis, Sr.
1998 Janice M. Hanley
1997 Betty S. Burton
1996 Vernita Ware-Perry
1995 The Youth Companion
Program Volunteers
1994 Reverend Robert Dean
1993 Carolyn Tate
1992 Hazel Buford
1991 Margaret Sellers
1990 Mattie Holliman
1989 Melvin Tardy
1988 Ellen James
1987 Ted Rasberry
1986 Eugene Proctor
1985 Silver Charms
1984 Reuben Smartt
1983 Leona Spencer
PAST HONOREES
2022 Henry Sapp
2020 Eddie L. Stephens, Jr.
2019 Lisa M. Knight
2018 Not Awarded
2017 Edith Evans Hyde
2016 Clarice Smith Drew
2015 Lawrence N. Redd, Ph.D.
2014 Not Awarded
2013 Not Awarded
2012 Dr. Malinda P. Sapp
(posthumously)
2011 Melita Travis Johnson
2010 Vanessa Allen
2009 Dr. James R. Sawyer
2008 Cassonya Carter Pugh
2007 Gladys Long
2006 Debra L. Perry
2005 Catherine Barrow-Williams
2004 Lois Smith Owens
2003 Cheryl LaMar
2002 Lyman S. Parks, Jr. and
Glenda F. Pittman-Parks
2001 Larry D. Manley, Sr.
2000 Bonita Roberts-Harvey
1999 Elder Marvin L. Sapp
1998 Eugenia D. Marve
1997 Veruynca C. Williams
1996 Ethel Footman Smothers
1995 Jon McDonald
1994 Catherine Large
1993 Jerome Benton
1992 Charsie Sawyer
1991 Frank Grant
1990 Duane Davis
1989 Ernestine Harris
1988 Alma Perry (posthumously)
1987 WKWM Radio
1986 Jimmy Carr
1985 Robert Gill
1984 Robeson Players/Cedric Ward
Randolph Brown
1983 Paul Collins
29
30
MILO BROWN
BUSINESS
AWARD
Milo Brown opened his rst funeral home
in Grand Rapids in 1925. He was a charter
member and ocer in various civic and
social acvies including the N.A.A.C.P.,
Urban League, Chamber of Commerce,
Beer Business Bureau, North Star Lodge
#5, F. & AM, and Victory Lodge of Elks
#1029.
PHYLLIS
SCOTT
ACTIVIST
AWARD
Phyllis Sco worked acvely in the
interest of youth in our city. She
believed in improving one’s heritage.
She organized parents to work with
schools to meet the educaonal
needs of children. She voiced her
opinions whenever she felt the need
to do so. Whether the stance was a
popular or unpopular one, she stood
rmly behind her convicons.
PAST HONOREES
2022 Daryl D. Reece
2020 Crystal T. Hardley
2019 Troy Yarbrough
2018 Wayne D. Wilson
2017 New Life Counseling Services
and Si Marsh
2016 Skot Welch
2015 Keli Christopher, Ph.D.
2014 Mildred Norris
Norris Beauty Salon
2013 Ophelia Graves (Graves Deli and
O’s Hats & Accessories)
2012 James Edward McClain
2011 Sandmann’s
2010 Jeremiah White, Jr.
2009 Jarvis Beene, Sr.
2008 Jimmie L. Taylor, Sr.
2007 Isaac V. Norris
2006 Not Awarded
2005 Daniel C. Oglesby
2004 Brian Harris
2003 Darel E. Ross
2002 Johnnie Myles
2001 Hawkins & Company, C.P.A.
2000 Sherman D. Gillespie
1999 Bernice Brown
1998 Endia Weekly
1997 John L. White
1996 Leo Michael Burns
1995 Eugene Grady
1994 Lee N. Howard (posthumously)
1993 Moses B. Holmes
1992 James Price (Lady Love)
1991 First Choice Restaurant
1990 The Madison Square
Co-Operative, Inc.
1989 Terri Weekley
1988 Wilson Tate and Frank Thomas
1987 Johnny Burton
1986 E.J. Mathis and Edward Jackson
1985 Julia & Nolan Groce
1984 Rosa Ledbetter
William Jobe (posthumously)
1983 Milo Brown
PAST HONOREES
2022 Grand C.I.T.Y. Sports, Inc.
2020 Misti L. Stanton
2019 Cole Williams
2018 Rhondo Cooper
2017 Daniel Williams
2016 Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,
Incorporated Theta Chi Omega
Chapter’s Ivylette/
Rosette Program
2015 Dianne Green-Smith, Ph.D.
2014 Brian Douglass Cloyd
2013 Mary Harden Johnson
2012 Anneshia Freeman
2011 T.A. El Amin
2010 Arlen Dean Gaddy
2009 Minnie Farris (posthumously)
2008 Vanessa Greene
2007 Wendy Lewis Jackson
2006 Temprance Mayfield-Mann
2005 Marguerite A. Morgan
2004 Lydia Lee
2003 Not Awarded
2002 Gerald Brown (posthumously)
2001 Emily Bayard
2000 Reverend David G. May
1999 Armand M. Robinson
1998 Mary J. Copeland
1997 Harriet S. Jones
1996 Charles L. Assenco
1995 The Grand Rapids Black
Professionals Association,
Reverend Donnell Smith
1994 Willie Thurman, Sr.
1993 Walter Mathis
1992 Paul Mayhue
1991 Olivia Margo Anderson
1990 Daniel L. Groce
1989 Thomas Jackson
John Hair
1988 Walter Brame
1987 Coalition for Representative
Government
1986 Ora Belle Motley & Raymond
Tardy (posthumously)
1985 Mary Edmond
1984 N.A.A.C.P.
Noah Seifullah
1983 Carl Smith
31
32
WILLIAM
GLENN
TRAILBLAZER
AWARD
Mr. Glenn made his voice heard for the
cause of civil liberes. In 1941 he was one
of the rst African American employees
in a Grand Rapids war producon factory.
He played an acve role in geng all
Grand Rapids war producon plants open
to hiring African Americans, in planning
the Campau Housing Project, and in
demanding the city take a stand against
dilapidated housing. In 1972, he was
honored by the A.C.L.U. for his lifelong
acon to the basic intent of the Bill
of Rights.
RAYMOND
TARDY
COMMUNITY
SERVICE
AWARD
Raymond Tardy’s interests focused on
the concerns of the low income cizenry.
He organized G.A.P. from which the
Kent Community Acon Program
evolved. He encouraged numbers of
programs that are sll in existence and
have become separate agencies. He was
also acve in eorts to obtain suitable
housing for low income families and in
eorts to encourage others to aain the
educaonal goals needed to elevate
their lifestyles.
PAST HONOREES
2022 Jermale Eddie
2020 Judge Christina Elmore
2019 Victoria Ann Upton
(posthumously)
2018 Bill Manns
2017 Montford Point Marines (Bishop
Darvis Beene, Frederick Johnson,
Bobby E. Jones, David T. King,
and Cpl. Reuben Smartt)
(posthumously)
2016 Francine B. Gaston
2015 Beverly Grant
George Grant, Jr., Ph.D.
2014 Eddie M. Rucker
2013 Teresa Weatherall Neal
2012 City of Grand Rapids Rosa Parks
Sculpture Committee
2011 Ron Snead
2010 Lauri S. Parks
2009 Charles “Sparky” McEwen
2008 Wesley Jones
2007 Tyrone Bynum
2006 Wayne Boatwright
2005 Harriet Burns
2004 James H. Eaddy
2003 Patrick Johnson
2002 Patricia E. Newby
2001 Calvin Jeter
2000 Curtis Graves
1999 Eugene Craig Chivis
1998 Doretha Ardoin
1997 Christopher D. Sain, Sr.
1996 Clifford McClain
1995 Rondy Brown
1994 Virginia M. Love, M.D.
1993 Mary Thomasson
1992 First Community A.M.E. Church
1991 Jesse Warren
1990 Sergeant Percy Brown
1989 Grand Rapids Study Class
1988 Katherine Miles
1987 Ethel Barnett Coe
1986 Hazel Grant
1985 Teasther Smith
1984 Reverend Lyman S. Parks
1983 William Glenn
PAST HONOREES
2022 Raynard Ross
2020 Angela D. Nelson
2019 India Manns
2018 Gertrude G. Croom
2017 Darel Ross II
2016 Wayman Britt
2015 Reverend Joseph D. Jones
2014 Jonathan Jelks
2013 Sarah Brooks
2012 Jennifer Moss Hawkins
2011 United Methodist
Community House
2010 Chana’ Yvette Edmond-Verley
2009 Bill Joseph
2008 Reverend Chico Daniels
2007 Mary K. Butler
2006 Faye Richardson
2005 John C. Smith
2004 Grand Rapids Reach, Inc.
2003 Dorothy Irvin
2002 Will Moody Brown
2001 Ellen W. Brown
2000 Messiah Baptist Missionary
Church African American
Male Conference
1999 Pauline L. Blakely
1998 Wilhelmina Wright
1997 Shirley A. Allen
1996 Leroy Tucker
Robert Eubanks
1995 Billie Pharms
1994 American Legion Crispus
Attucks Post 59
1993 Delta Sigma Theta Sorority
1992 Improved Benevolent Protective
Order of Elks of the World
1991 Grand Rapids Club of the
National Association of Negro
Business & Professional Women’s
Club, Inc.
1990 Michael Johnson
1989 Shirley Perkins
1988 John Bankston
1987 Charles and Lorna Wade
1986 Yvonne Sims
1985 Beverly Drake
1984 Ta-Wa-Si and Urban League
1983 Dr. Julius Franks, J.E. Adams,
Joseph Lee, Sam Triplett,
Ella Sims
33
34
H.C. TOLIVER
RELIGOUS
LIFE AWARD
Reverend Toliver moved to Grand Rapids in
1937. He was Pastor of True Light Bapst
Church. He was reless in his eorts to
help people obtain employment. To those
who could repay, he lent money. For those
who were unable to repay, he gave money.
If you needed help, he was always there to
eat with you, weep with you, and pray with
you. The community knew that he was
there and that no one had to be alone.
HATTIE
BEVERLY
EDUCATION
AWARD
Hae Beverly was a pioneer for African
Americans in educaon in Grand
Rapids. She was hired as a teacher
at Congress School in 1899 and was
assigned in 1913 to Henry School
where she remained for a number of
years. She assumed her posion in spite
of the protest surrounding the hiring of
an African American to teach there. The
opposion is reported in arcles in the
Grand Rapids Herald (1899). Her case
was one of the several incidents that
led to Booker T. Washington coming to
Grand Rapids to bring about a beer
understanding of the races.
PAST HONOREES
2022 Julian S. Newman
2020 James Lee Abney, Sr.
2019 Bishop Dennis J. McMurray and
Dr. E. Jean Lackey-McMurray
2018 Lois Jene Thomas
2017 Brenda Brame
2016 Carolyn Allen
2015 New Hope Baptist Church
2014 Dr. Jermone Glenn
2013 Reverend Kyle A. Ray
2012 Pastor James C. Stokes
2011 The Sensational Gospel Tones
2010 Reverend David R. Jarrett, Sr.
2009 Robert Upton
2008 Reverend Zannie M. Mitchell and
Grand Rapids Urban Young Life
2007 Reverend James B. White, Sr.
2006 Pastor Kenneth W. Hoskins
2005 Charles “Willie” Butler
(posthumously)
2004 Reverend Jerry Bishop
2003 Reverend Marvin Williams
2002 Reverend Bruce E. Garmon, Sr.
2001 Renaissance Church of God
In Christ
2000 Reverend Charles H. Hudson, Sr.
1999 Pastor Jessie M. White
1998 Reverend Dozie Cox
1997 Elder James Holloway
1996 Reverend Leonard Gant
1995 Reverend Nathaniel Moody
1994 Reverend Maurice Jones
1993 Reverend Willie Applewhite
1992 Reverend Charlie Jones
1991 Reverend Jesse Cotton
1990 Reverend and Mrs.
Richmond Jones
1989 Reverend John Bryant
1988 Reverend Clifton Rhodes, Jr.
1987 Reverend H.V. Hutcherson
1986 Mrs. Lillian Gill
1985 Reverend Erskin Robertson
1984 Reverend W.L. Patterson
1983 Reverend John. V. Williams
Reverend William Abney
PAST HONOREES
2022 Lorenzo Bradshaw
2020 Jerry F. McComb
2019 Not Awarded
2018 Carolyn J. Evans
2017 Dr. Mattie P. Hampton
2016 Dr. Nkechy Ekere Ezeh
2015 Diane J. McMillan
2014 Cornell Bailey
2013 Dr. Shirley Johnson
2012 Sharon Satterfield
2011 Donna Poag
2010 Bernice Elizabeth Graves
2009 Margaret Elizabeth Lewis
(posthumously)
Vertlee and Mary Trice
2008 Dr. Randal Maurice Jelks
2007 Doris Ward
2006 Robert B. Hurd
2005 Colleen Tyson
2004 Ruth Jones
2003 Ruth A. Lumpkins
2002 Charles E. Cannon
2001 Charles Sturdivant
2000 Dr. Faite R-P. Mack
1999 L. Helen Johnson
1998 Audrey L. Mayfield
1997 Sidney Bailey, III
1996 Arneada Smith Alexander
Cheryl Chambers
1995 Dorothy Jo Butler
1994 Eddie West
1993 Jacob Robinson
1992 Lola Davis
1991 Anita Watson-Phillips
1990 Shirley West
1989 Frances Gill
1988 Patricia Pulliam, The Sarah
Allen Neighborhood
Advisory Committee
1987 Loretta Harris
1986 Lottie Brown
1985 Mary Hardin
1984 Linda Johnson
1983 John Dow
35
36
MARTHA
REYNOLDS
LABOR
AWARD
Mrs. Reynolds was an internaonal
representave of the United Auto
Workers. She was a vital force in labor
and community aairs in Grand Rapids.
Martha was commied to the union’s
Fair Employment Pracces program and
the Community Services department. An
acve parcipant in local polics, she was
involved in the elecon of Lyman Parks
to the City Commission. She was a long-
serving member of the N.A.A.C.P. and a
member of C.O.R.E. Martha was commied
to her church, First Community A.M.E.,
and dedicated to the many socially acve
projects that were generated from there.
PAST HONOREES
2022 Kevin L. Clemens
2020 Larry Donston
2019 Carrie L. Jackson
2018 Deborah A. McMillan
(posthumously)
2017 Ken C. Godwin
2016 RiChard Jackson
2015 Not Awarded
2014 Kathy Jackson
2013 Not Awarded
2012 Gerald Kariem
2011 Essie Bunn
2010 H. William Dungey
2009 Not Awarded
2008 Bennette Gay
2007 Orin S. Holder
2006 Janice Hilliard
2005 Kathi Harris
2004 John Hyatt
2003 Sandra K. Smith
2002 Robert Betts
2001 Willie D. Jones
(posthumously)
2000 Joyce A. Walker
1999 Carrie McCaleb
1998 Lonnie McCaleb
1997 Rocky Love
1996 Not Awarded
1995 Friley Johnson
1994 Aurelia Weatherford Crawford
1992 Debra Nixon
1991 John Snead
1990 Joseph Crump
1989 Esther Turner
1988 Clarence Coleman
1987 Willie Suber
1986 Bobby Jones
1985 Clifford Summers
Loree Glover (posthumously)
1984 Georgia McGhee
37
FLOYD
SKINNER
JUSTICE
AWARD
Floyd Skinner, a graduate of
the University of Michigan
Law School, began his pracce
in Grand Rapids in 1928. He
fought to gain employment
for African Americans in white
collar jobs at City Hall. He
remained a strong voice of
advocacy for human rights and a
seeker of jusce unl his death
in 1962.
PAST HONOREES
2022 Adam C. Sturdivant
2020 Michelle Smith-Lowe
2019 Not Awarded
2018 Huemartin Robinson II
2017 Henry L. Saverson
2016 Kimberly A. Coleman
2015 Reverend Michelle
Loyd-Paige, Ph.D.
2014 Not Awarded
2013 Anita Hitchcock
2012 Kenyatta Lumumba
London Brame
2011 Stacy McGinnis
2010 Tracey W. Brame
2009 Ronald B. Jimmerson, Sr.
2008 Leontyne “Tina” Partee
(posthumously)
2007 Larry Woods
2006 LaRissa D. Hollingsworth
2005 Deborah Clanton
2004 Larry Johnson
2003 Patrick Miles, Jr.
2002 Valerie Pierre Simmons
2001 Dale A. Weekley, Sr.
2000 Hazel R. Lewis
1999 Tommy G. House
1998 John R. Beason
1997 The Floyd Skinner Bar Association
1996 Ingrid Scott-Weekley
1995 Toni Spencer-Beatty
Ronald Love
1994 Michael J. Robinson
1993 Donald Reid
1992 Robert Brent
1991 Russel Johnson
1990 Justice Moore
1989 The Honorable Benjamin Gibson
1988 Stephen Drew
1987 Joe Davis (posthumously)
John Allen Johnson
1986 Benjamin H. Logan, II
1985 Alphonse Lewis
1984 Bobbie Butler
1983 The Honorable John Letts
40th Anniversary Sponsors
DIAMOND SPONSORS
Grand Rapids Community College Foundation
Lake Michigan Credit Union
Steelcase
PLATINUM SPONSOR
Grand Rapids Community College
GOLD SPONSORS
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan
Calvin University
Dean Transportation
Doug and Maria DeVos Foundation
Drew Cooper & Anding
Eastern Floral
Experience Grand Rapids
Fifth Third Bank
Grand Rapids-Kent County Convention/
Arena Authority Community Inclusion Group
Meijer
Mercantile Bank
Wege Foundation
SILVER SPONSORS
Ferris State University
Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation Hospital
BRONZE SPONSORS
Brown’s Funeral Home
Corewell Health
Grand Rapids Community Foundation
Grand Valley State University
Marc Veenstra State Farm Insurance
GIANT 40TH ANNIVERSARY COMMITTEE
Vanessa Greene
Larry Johnson
Tempy Mann
Dr. Kathryn Mullins
Dr. Juan Olivarez
Darius Quinn
Faye Richardson-Green
Dave Selmon
Misti Stanton
Erin Van Egmond
Shannon Wilson
The GIANT Awards are a
celebration of the leaders
of yesterday and today.
But the awards also inspire
and empower the next
generations of GIANTs
through education.
Proceeds from the annual
event support three
scholarships.
Milo M. Brown Memorial Scholarship
The scholarships are presented as perpetual memorials to Mr. Brown. At least
one male and one female African American student will receive this award,
which was established in 1987. The recipients are GRCC students returning as
full-time sophomores for the following fall semester.
Junior GIANT Scholarships
Two scholarships are named after the GIANT Awards co-founders, honoring
them for their decades of service and efforts to support students who will can
one day become leaders in our community. The scholarships were established
in 2017.
The Cedric Ward Kent Intermediate School District High School Leadership
Scholarship is for high school students within the Kent Intermediate
School District.
The Dr. Patricia Pulliam College Leadership Scholarship is for college students.
Students are honored for community involvement and impact, academic
and/or athletic accomplishments, and who demonstrate the essence of a
Junior GIANT.
Each recipient will receive a $1,000 scholarship to college or technical school
of their choice.
Essence of a Junior GIANT
Demonstrated leadership profile
Community involvement and impact
Academic and/or athletic accomplishments
Academic achievement or progress
EMPOWERING
THE NEXT
GENERATIONS
OF GIANTS
40
147864 02/23
GRAND RAPIDS
COMMUNITY COLLEGE
143 BOSTWICK AVENUE NE
GRAND RAPIDS, MI 49503
(616) 234-4000
GRCC.EDU
