NAACP-NHC 2025 FREEDOM FUND SOUVENIR JOURNAL

2025 FREEDOM FUND GALA




2025 FREEDOM FUND GALA

A BLACK TIE AFFAIR ING: om RIS reed NT & ncing F ILIE , Adva RES uity ng Eq i efend D SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 13, 2025 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM THE HOTEL BALLAST 301 NORTH WATER STREET Wilmington, NC 28401 GUEST SPEAKER The Right Reverend W. Darin Moore Presiding Bishop, Eastern NC Episcopal District Cape Fear Conference The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church

2025 FREEDOM FUND GALA

New Hanover County Branch

LeRon T. Montgomery, President Brenda Roberts Fong, First Vice-President Spero Pekatos, Second Vice President Sandra Oglesby, Secretary Leni Fleming, Assistant Secretary Cynthia Pershia, Treasurer September 13, 2025 5202 ,31 rebme tpeS Dear Freedom Fighters, Honored Guest, and Community Members, ,srebmeM ytinummoC dna ,tseuG deronoH ,srethgiF modeerF raeD On behalf of the NAACP New Hanover County Branch, it is with deep gratitude and great pride that I welcome you to our 2025 Freedom Fund Banquet. Tonight, we gather under the powerful theme: “Resilient and Rising: Defending Equity, Advancing Freedom.” This theme reflects the enduring spirit of our community and our unwavering commitment to justice, equality, and civil rights. .sthgir livic dna ,ytilauqe ,ecitsuj ot tnemtimmoc gnirevawnu ruo dna ytinummoc ruo fo tirips gnirudne eht stcelfer emeht sihT ”.modeerF gnicnavdA ,ytiuqE gnidnefeD :gnisiR dna tneiliseR“ :emeht lufrewop eht rednu rehtag ew ,thginoT .teuqnaB dnuF modeerF 5202 ruo ot uoy emoclew I taht edirp taerg dna edutitarg peed htiw si ti ,hcnarB ytnuoC revonaH weN PCAAN eht fo flaheb nO This evening is not only a celebration of progress, but also a call to continued action. We honor our ancestors whose sacrifices laid the foundation for the freedoms we now defend. We recognize the work yet to be done-and we recommit ourselves to the fight. .thgif eht ot sevlesruo timmocer ew dna-enod eb ot tey krow eht ezingocer eW .dnefed won ew smodeerf eht rof noitadnuof eht dial secifircas esohw srotsecna ruo ronoh eW .noitca deunitnoc ot llac a osla tub ,ssergorp fo noitarbelec a ylno ton si gnineve sihT I want to extend heartfelt thanks to Rev. Nathaniel Johnson and Mrs. Waltrina Barnett for their tireless dedication and leadership in making tonight’s event possible. Your passion, organization, and vision have brought this evening to life, and we are deeply appreciative of your service. .ecivres ruoy fo evitaicerppa ylpeed era ew dna ,efil ot gnineve siht thguorb evah noisiv dna ,noitazinagro ,noissap ruoY .elbissop tneve s’thginot gnikam ni pihsredael dna noitacided sselerit rieht rof ttenraB anirtlaW .srM dna nosnhoJ leinahtaN .veR ot sknaht tleftraeh dnetxe ot tnaw I To al our guests, supporters, sponsors, and members - thank you. Your presence and contributions fuel our mission and strengthen our movement. .tnemevom ruo nehtgnerts dna noissim ruo leuf snoitubirtnoc dna ecneserp ruoY .uoy knaht - srebmem dna ,srosnops ,sretroppus ,stseug ruo la oT Let us leave tonight renewed in our purpose, united in our goals, and committed to building a future where freedom, justice, and equity are not just ideals - but realities for all. .lla rof seitilaer tub - slaedi tsuj ton era ytiuqe dna ,ecitsuj ,modeerf erehw erutuf a gnidliub ot dettimmoc dna ,slaog ruo ni detinu ,esoprup ruo ni dewener thginot evael su teL With resilience and rising hope, ,epoh gnisir dna ecneiliser htiW LeRon T. Montgomery, President, NAACP New Hanover County ytnuoC revonaH weN PCAAN ,tnediserP ,yremogtnoM .T noReL

New Hanover County Branch

New Hanover County Branch

LeRon T. Montgomery, President Brenda Roberts Fong, First Vice-President Spero Pekatos, Second Vice President Sandra Oglesby, Secretary Leni Fleming, Assistant Secretary Cynthia Pershia, Treasurer September 13, 2025 Greetings, On behalf of the New Hanover County Branch of the NAACP, it is my distinct honor to welcome you to our Annual Freedom Fund Banquet. As chair of this year’s event, I extend heartfelt gratitude to each of you for joining us on this powerful evening of fellowship, reflection, and recommitment to the work before us. Our theme, “Resilient and Rising: Defending Equity, Advancing Freedom,” is not only a declaration of who we are but also a charge for where we are going. We gather tonight not just to celebrate our progress but to recognize the ongoing struggles for justice and to strengthen our collective resolve. Together as leaders, organizations, and citizens, we stand united in ensuring that equity is defended and freedom is advanced for generations to come. The presence of distinguished guests, community leaders, devoted branch members, and dedicated citizens affirms that this work cannot be carried out alone. It requires all of us standing shoulder to shoulder, committed to creating a community where opportunity is not limited by race, where justice is not delayed, and where freedom is not denied. It is my hope that tonight reminds us of our shared strength, our unshakeable resilience, and our rising faith. Thank you for joining us in advancing the mission of the NAACP and for walking with us on this journey toward equity and freedom. With deep appreciation and solidarity, Rev. Nathaniel A. Johnson Chair, Freedom Fund Banquet New Hanover County Branch NAACP

New Hanover County Branch

New Hanover County Branch

LeRon T. Montgomery, President Brenda Roberts Fong, First Vice-President Spero Pekatos, Second Vice President Sandra Oglesby, Secretary Leni Fleming, Assistant Secretary Cynthia Pershia, Treasurer September 13, 2025 5202 ,31 rebmetpeS Dear Friends and Supporters of the New Hanover County NAACP, ,PCAAN ytnuoC revonaH weN eht fo sretroppuS dna sdneirF raeD It is my honor to welcome you tonight to the 2025 Freedom Fund Banquet. As Co-Chairman, I am deeply grateful for your presence at this historic gathering. .gnirehtag cirotsih siht ta ecneserp ruoy rof lufetarg ylpeed ma I ,namriahC-oC sA .teuqnaB dnuF modeerF 5202 eht ot thginot uoy emoclew ot ronoh ym si tI Since 1953, when the NAACP first introduced it as the ‘Fighting Fund for Freedom,’ this banquet has stood as more than a fundraiser; it has been a rallying point for the ongoing struggle for justice, equality, and civil rights. Tonight, under the theme “Resilient and Rising: Defending Equity, Advancing Freedom,” we pause to reflect on the sacrifices of the past, celebrate the progress we have made, and recommit ourselves to the fight that still lies before us. .su erofeb seil llits taht thgif eht ot sevlesruo timmocer dna ,edam evah ew ssergorp eht etarbelec ,tsap eht fo secifircas eht no tcelfer ot esuap ew ”,modeerF gnicnavdA ,ytiuqE gnidnefeD :gnisiR dna tneiliseR“ emeht eht rednu ,thginoT .sthgir livic dna ,ytilauqe ,ecitsuj rof elggurts gniogno eht rof tniop gniyllar a neeb sah ti ;resiardnuf a naht erom sa doots sah teuqnab siht ’,modeerF rof dnuF gnithgiF‘ eht sa ti decudortni tsrif PCAAN eht nehw ,3591 ecniS In addition, we honor those who continue to make a difference in our community. Ordinary people doing extraordinary work in the name of equity and freedom. Their dedication reminds us that the struggle is not behind us, but within us and ahead of us. .su fo daeha dna su nihtiw tub ,su dniheb ton si elggurts eht taht su sdnimer noitacided riehT .modeerf dna ytiuqe fo eman eht ni krow yranidroartxe gniod elpoep yranidrO .ytinummoc ruo ni ecnereffid a ekam ot eunitnoc ohw esoht ronoh ew ,noitidda nI Thank you for standing with the New Hanover County NAACP. We are grateful that you have invested in the mission and are a vital part of this ongoing journey toward justice. Together, we rise. .esir ew ,rehtegoT .ecitsuj drawot yenruoj gniogno siht fo trap lativ a era dna noissim eht ni detsevni evah uoy taht lufetarg era eW .PCAAN ytnuoC revonaH weN eht htiw gnidnats rof uoy knahT With gratitude and determination, ,noitanimreted dna edutitarg htiW Waltrina W. Barnett Co-Chairman, NAACP-NHC Freedom Fund Committee eettimmoC dnuF modeerF CHN-PCAAN ,namriahC-oC ttenraB .W anirtlaW

New Hanover County Branch

2025 FREEDOM FUND BANQUET

PROGRAM WELCOME Rev. Nathaniel A. Johnson, Chairman, 2025 Freedom Fund Banquet teuqnaB dnuF modeerF 5202 ,namriahC ,nosnhoJ .A leinahtaN .veR EMOCLEW INTRODUCTION OF THE MISTRESS OF CEREMONY YNOMEREC FO SSERTSIM EHT FO NOITCUDORTNI Waltrina W. Barnett, Co-Chairman, 2025 Freedom Fund Banquet teuqnaB dnuF modeerF 5202 ,namriahC-oC ,ttenraB .W anirtlaW LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING “The Negro National Anthem” ”mehtnA lanoitaN orgeN ehT“ GNIS DNA ECIOV YREVE TFIL RECOGNITION OF SPONSORS & SPECIAL GUESTS Rev. Dr. Mary C. Nixon noxiN .C yraM .rD .veR STSEUG LAICEPS & SROSNOPS FO NOITINGOCER PRESENTATION TO AWARD WINNERS Brian Wylie Natalie Hinton Stalling Awards Committee eettimmoC sdrawA gnillatS notniH eilataN eilyW nairB SRENNIW DRAWA OT NOITATNESERP Rev. Jermaine B. Armour ruomrA .B eniamreJ .veR THE BLESSING OF THE FOOD DOOF EHT FO GNISSELB EHT Dinner is Served devreS si renniD LeRon T. Montgomery, President, NHC-NAACP PCAAN-CHN ,tnediserP ,yremogtnoM .T noReL THE INTRODUCTION OF THE SPEAKER REKAEPS EHT FO NOITCUDORTNI EHT 2025 FREEDOM FUND BANQUET SPEAKER Bishop W. Darin Moore, Presiding Bishop, Eastern NC Episcopal District tcirtsiD lapocsipE CN nretsaE ,pohsiB gnidiserP ,erooM niraD .W pohsiB REKAEPS TEUQNAB DNUF MODEERF 5202 Deborah Dicks Maxwell, NC State NAACP President tnediserP PCAAN etatS CN ,llewxaM skciD harobeD LeRon T. Montgomery yremogtnoM .T noReL LAEPPA PIHSREBMEM CLOSING REMARKS Natalie Hinton Stalling gnillatS notniH eilataN MEMBERSHIP APPEAL SKRAMER GNISOLC

2025 FREEDOM FUND BANQUET

LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING

Often called “The Black National Anthem,” “Lift Every Voice and Sing” was written as a poem in 1900 by NAACP leader James Weldon Johnson, with music composed by his brother John Rosamond Johnson. It was first performed by 500 children at Jacksonville’s segregated Stanton School, where James Weldon Johnson was principal, to celebrate President Lincoln’s birthday. Lift every voice and sing, 'Til earth and heaven ring, Ring with the harmonies of Liberty; Let our rejoicing rise High as the list'ning skies, Let it resound loud as the rolling sea. Sing a song full of the faith that the dark past has taught us, Sing a song full of the hope that the present has brought us; Facing the rising sun of our new day begun, Let us march on 'til victory is won. Stony the road we trod, Bitter the chastening rod, Felt in the days when hope unborn had died; Yet with a steady beat, Have not our weary feet Come to the place for which our fathers sighed? We have come over a way that with tears has been watered, We have come, treading our path through the blood of the slaughtered, Out from the gloomy past, 'Til now we stand at last Where the white gleam of our bright star is cast. God of our weary years, God of our silent tears, Thou who has brought us thus far on the way; Thou who has by Thy might Led us into the light, Keep us forever in the path, we pray. Lest our feet stray from the places, our God, where we met Thee, our hearts drunk with the wine of the world, we forget Thee; Shadowed beneath Thy hand, May we forever stand, True to our God, True to our native land.

LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING

2025 FREEDOM FUND GALA

MISTRESS OF CEREMONY DR. KRISTA C. HOLLAND DNALLOH .C ATSIRK .RD Dr. Krista Crawford Holland was born and raised in Burlington, North Carolina. She is in the second class of NC Teaching Fellows Scholars, and earned a BS in Middle Grades Education, with concentrations in English Language Arts and Social Studies from UNC-Greensboro. She also became a member of the Omicron Eta Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. in the spring of 1990. She taught in Guilford County Schools and Champaign Unit 4 Schools District in Champaign, Illinois. She has a Masters in Higher Education Administration from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She served as a Middle Grades English Language Arts Consultant for the NC Department of Public Instruction focused on supporting low-performing schools in the northeastern part of the state. Her interests in serving as a school leader were piqued, and she was appointed to her first administrative assignment, Assistant Principal at Bradley Creek Elementary School in New Hanover County. She earned a Master’s in School Administration from UNC-W, and served as a school and district leader in New Hanover County Schools for over 20 years. She served as principal of J.C. Roe Pre-K Center, and as the district’s first Director of Preschool Programs. She stepped away from the district for a year, and returned to serve as an Assistant Principal at Bellamy Elementary and Noble Middle Schools before being named principal at the former Gregory School of Science, Mathematics, and Technology. Her last assignment in the district was principal at Anderson Elementary School, where she was named the 2018-2019 NHCS Principal of the Year. During her tenure at Anderson, Dr. Holland returned to school once again, and earned her doctorate in Educational Leadership from High Point University. She also served as president of the New Hanover County Principals and Assistant Principals Association. She retired in June 2022, after serving 30 years in public education. She was not very good at retirement, and in March 2023, she began working at NC State University’s Friday Institute for Educational Innovation as a Professional Learning Scholar, where she designs and implements training in best instructional practices for teachers and school leaders. When she is not working with educators, she is very active in her sorority, The Wilmington (NC) Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and she is the co-chair of The Delta Foundation of the Cape Fear, the chapter’s non-profit entity. She enjoys reading, gardening, and exercising. She has been married to Derek Holland for 27 years, and they have one son, Xavier Jordan, a May 2024 ECU graduate who works and lives in Tampa, Florida. The Holland family are members of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church.

2025 FREEDOM FUND GALA

2025 FREEDOM FUND GALA

KEYNOTE SPEAKER THE RT. REV. W. DARIN MOORE EROOM NIRAD .W .VER .TR EHT Presiding Bishop, Eastern NC Episcopal District|Cape Fear Conference Bishop W. Darin Moore is a native of Mt. Vernon, NY and began his college education at Livingstone College, graduating from Purchase College, in Purchase, NY with a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology. Theological studies were done at Yale University Divinity School obtaining the M.Div. from United Theological Seminary. He received his Doctor of Ministry Degree from UTS, as well as an honorary Doctorate from Livingstone College in Salisbury, North Carolina. Pastoral assignments for Bishop Moore have included Clarksville and Morning Star AME Zion Churches, Monroe, NC; Mt. Olivet AME Zion Church, Greensboro, NC; and Jones Tabernacle AME Zion Church, Indianapolis, IN. While in Greensboro, he served on the Commission for the Greensboro Coliseum and the County Commission on Children and Youth. In Indianapolis, Bishop Moore served two terms as President of the Board of Directors for the Greater Indianapolis Church Federation and was the Presiding Elder of the Indianapolis District for the AME Zion Church. He became the pastor of his home church, Greater Centennial AME Zion Church in 1993 and served faithfully until his election as a Bishop. In July, 2012 Bishop Moore was elevated to the episcopacy from Greater Centennial A.M.E. Zion Church, Mt. Vernon, NY as the 99th bishop in succession. During his tenure as pastor of Greater Centennial the congregation grew from a few hundred to more than 6,500 members. Bishop Moore was elected President of the Mount Vernon Board of Education. Additionally, he served as President of the United Black Clergy of Westchester, the Founding Chairperson for Save Our Seed Ministries, and a member of the Westchester County African American Advisory Board. He is Founder and the past President of the Greater Centennial Community Development Corporation and past President of Greater Centennial Homes where he led in the construction of the James Varick Homes for 1st time home buyers, construction of the Zion Court Apartments, and a $12 million substantial renovation of Greater Centennial Homes. Twice, he has been selected as the Morning Preacher for the Hampton Ministers’ Conference, an annual gathering of more than 10,000 ministers and musicians from around the country, he has been inducted into both the Morehouse College MLK Board of Preachers and the inaugural class of the Bishop Alfred G. Dunston College of Preachers at Livingstone College. Bishop Moore’s sermons have been published in The African American Pulpit Forum and the Balm in Gilead Journal. He is the author/editor of two books. Bishop Moore is a Past Chair of the National Council of Churches, USA, Chair of the Hood Theological Seminary Board of Trustees, Vice Chairman of the Livingstone College Board of Trustees, and a member of the World Methodist Council. He also serves as Chairman of the Restructuring Commission and the Connectional Budget Board of the AME Zion Church. Bishop Moore is the Presiding Bishop of the Eastern North Carolina Episcopal District, which includes the Albemarle, Cape Fear, Central North Carolina, North Carolina, and Virgin Islands Conferences. A loving husband to Devieta C. Moore, devoted father to Daron (Elaina), Dana (Kevin), and Dion. He and his wife are proud grandparents of five, Jayli, Creed, Kevin, Carter, and Dailyn. Bishop Moore uses as his theme: “It’s our OUTREACH that validates our UP REACH!”

2025 FREEDOM FUND GALA

2025

FREEDOM FUND S EE R O N O H RESILIENT AND RISING: Defending Equity, Advancing Freedom

2025



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