One Hundred Black Men 30th Annual Benefit

On the heels of the White House Bipartisan Meeting on Health Reform, the One Hundred Black Men, Inc. of New York City saluted health care industry leaders at its 30th Annual Benefit Gala, whose theme was, “Restoring Health & Building Bridges.”

NBC4 anchor and reporter DeMarco Morgan served as Master of Ceremonies for the benefit awards dinner held Thursday, February 25, at the New York Hilton Grand Ballroom, which honored:

• Dr. John Agwunobi, Senior Vice President & President, Walmart Health & Wellness with the Distinguished Service Award;
• Dr. Kenneth Olden, Ph.D., M.S., B.S., Founding Dean, School of Public Health, City University of New York, Hunter College with the Distinguished Physician Community Service Award; and
• Mark Wagar, President, Empire BlueCross BlueShield with the Corporate Citizen Award.

In addition to the honorees, Errol Pierre, a sales manager at Empire BlueCrossBlueShield was saluted as Mentor of the Year.

“I am delighted to recognize the importance of restoring health to our community by honoring

three truly visionary and influential leaders at our 30th annual benefit gala, Dr. John Agwunonbi,  Dr. Kenneth Olden, and Mark Wagar, ” said OHBMNY president Philip L. Banks Jr.

“Tonight we shine a spotlight on the health issues in our community. As we celebrate more than four decades of achievement, One Hundred Black Men, Inc. is delighted to award the accomplishments of these outstanding men,” Mr. Banks added.

Paul Busby was Gala Chairman and the benefit committee members were:  Philip Banks, Terrence Banks, Horace Barker, David P. Brand, Will Brown, Rudy Ceres, Mark Getachew, Fitzgerald Miller, R. Donahue Peebles, Craig Simmons, Hilton O. Smith and Howard Watts.

“I’m deeply appreciative of and would also like to thank all of our contributors and sponsors whose continued generosity will assist One Hundred Black Men to reach our communities and develop programs like the Eagle Academy Schools, our mentoring and scholarships,” said Mr. Busby.

“I would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Craig Simmons, Glenis Frank, the members of our Gala Committee, and other volunteers who devoted their precious time to coordinating this Gala,” Mr. Busby concluded.

One Hundred Black Men, Inc. of New York City wishes to thank its partners for their support of the 30^th Annual Benefit:

Diamond: Bloomberg, LP, News Corporation; Walmart

Platinum: Empire BlueCross BlueShield

Bronze: Con Edison, CUNY, Democrats for Education Reform, New York Life Insurance

Patron: Coke Enterprises, Continuum Health Partners, Entergy, Macy’s, Miller Coors,

The Mount Sinai Medical Center, NYSE Euronext, Patrolmen’s Benevolent Association, Pepsi, Turner Construction, United Federation of Teachers, UPS, US Army

Contributors: TD Bank, Turner Construction, Uptown Magazine, Williams Capital

Photos; (top to bottom) David Brand with students from the OHBM-sponsored Eagle Academy for Young Men and OHBM Member David Brand, Honoree Dr. Kenneth Olden, Dinner chair Paul Busby.