By Jessica Able, Record Staff Writer
The 30th annual African American Catholic Leadership Awards Dinner, held March 11, recognized Catholic leaders in the African American community, both on the local and national level.
About 600 people attended the silent auction and banquet — hosted by the Archdiocese of Louisville’s Office of Multicultural Ministry — at the Galt House Hotel in downtown Louisville.
Kevin E. Lofton, the chief executive officer of Catholic Health Initiatives in Englewood, Colo., delivered the evening’s keynote address.
Lofton noted the evening’s theme — “Still I Rise” — is the title of a poem composed by Maya Angelou. He described her poem as “some of the most powerful words ever uttered.”
Lofton, who lived in Louisville before moving to Colorado and attended St. Martin de Porres Church, repeatedly highlighted the “importance of relationships, discovery and collaboration” and compared those things to building a bridge.
He said his work as a health care executive is geared to helping people focus on
their physical and mental health, but he said, “we must also focus on strengthening our spiritual self and building a bridge to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.”
When one thinks about bridges, one typically thinks about connecting roads or towns, he said. What we really need to be thinking about is how can we connect people, he said.
“How can we bring people together of a common good for a common interest for the betterment of our communities?” he said.
“In the case of the archdiocese here tonight — (it’s) connecting with honorees and, most importantly, connecting scholarship dollars to people in need,” he said.
During the last 30 years, Lofton noted, more than 200 youth have been assisted by the Office of Multicultural Ministry through the Rodriq McCravy Scholarship Awards.
“It’s tough out there and our young people need help from the village elders so that they too, will rise,” Lofton said.
He said the Office of Multicultural Ministry has been “busy building bridges for the past three decades.”
“In those 30 years, we have witnessed the untiring and passionate commitment of parish adult leaders who have graciously shared their God-given talents and gifts in building bridges to foster relationships with people from all walks of life and all types of communities,” he said.
Following the keynote address, 18 people were honored for leadership roles in the Archdiocese of Louisville and beyond.
Four people received the highest honor presented by the Office of Multicultural Ministry — the Acacia Award. The 2017 Acacia Award winners are:
– Sister of Loretto Pauline Albin, a retired educator who served at the former Christ the King School in West Louisville.
– Tanya Beauchamp, a registered nurse and a health and wellness educator.
– Msgr. Edward Branch, a priest of the Archdiocese of Atlanta and formerly a priest of the Archdiocese of Louisville.
– Steve Crump, a reporter for WBTV in Charlotte, N.C., and a documentary film maker, who in the past belonged to the former St. Peter Claver Church in Louisville.
Belonda Hays of St. Monica Church in Bardstown, Ky., and Marvina Lewis of Immaculate Heart of Mary Church, received the Genevieve Boone Award.
Eight other individuals received the African American Catholic Adult Leadership Award. They are: Bennie Alexander, St. Ignatius Martyr Church; Victoria Cox, St. Martin de Porres; Raven Drake, St. Monica; Mary Holder, St. Augustine Church; Sarah Railey Smith, Holy Rosary Church in Springfield, Ky.; Rita Shoulders, St. Martin de Porres; Dr. Geneva Stark, St. Ignatius Martyr; and Jeffrey Walker, St. Martin de Porres.
Four young people received the Rodriq McCravy Scholarhip Award, which grants scholarship money for recipients to use for high school and college. The high school recipients are: Camiryn Stepteau, Christ the King Church, and Jacob Thompson, Immaculate Heart of Mary Church.
The college awards were presented to: Alexis Watkins, Immaculate Heart of Mary, and Lakynn Hodgens, Holy Rosary in Springfield.
