Out & About: NAACP human rights banquet calls for justice, equality

Shirley McMarlin
Monday, April 8, 2019 1:30 a.m. | Monday, April 8, 2019 1:30 a.m.

Kim Stepinsky | For the Tribune-Review

From left: Denise Holmes, event co-chair, Terrell Thomas, keynote speaker, American Civil Liberties Union, and Ruth Tolbert, event co-chair and branch president, gather for a photo April 6 during the Greensburg-Jeannette NAACP 2019 Annual Human Rights Banquet at the Greensburg Country Club.

Kim Stepinsky | For the Tribune-Review

Sister Lois Sculco (left), 2019 Community Service Award recipient, and Ruth Woods, 2019 Branch Merit Award recipient, pose April 6 for a photo during the Greensburg-Jeannette NAACP 2019 Annual Human Rights Banquet at the Greensburg Country Club.

Kim Stepinsky | For the Tribune-Review

N’Dia Smith (left) of Derry, 2019 College Graduate Honoree Award recipient, and Delilah Henry, a senior at Hempfield Area High School and the 2019 Student Honoree WIN Scholarship Award recipient, pose for a photo April 6 during the Greensburg-Jeannette NAACP 2019 Annual Human Rights Banquet at the Greensburg Country Club.

Kim Stepinsky | For the Tribune-Review

NAACP Youth Council Special Recognition recipients Zen Scott-Mighty (left), a sophomore at Greensburg Salem High School, and Olivia Meadows, an eighth-grade student at Latrobe Junior High School, pose for a photo April 6 during the Greensburg-Jeannette NAACP 2019 Annual Human Rights Banquet at the Greensburg Country Club.

Kim Stepinsky | For the Tribune-Review

Tonuia Smith (left) and Norma Skillings, both of Greensburg, pose for a photo April 6 during the Greensburg-Jeannette NAACP 2019 Annual Human Rights Banquet at the Greensburg Country Club.

“Moving Forward Together for Justice and Equality” was the theme of the annual Greensburg-Jeannette NAACP Human Rights Banquet, held April 6 in the Greensburg Country Club.

“We are living in a time that challenges all of us,” branch President Ruth Tolbert said in program remarks, adding that local NAACP branch members are “steadfast in our resolve and immovable from our objective” of standing for political, educational, social and economic equality for all, along with the elimination of racial discrimination and hatred.

The annual event recognizes people from different stages of life and spheres of influence who uphold those ideals.

This year’s honorees: Community Service Award, Sister Lois Sculco of the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill; Branch Merit Award, Ruth Woods; College Graduate Award, N’Dia Smith, a recent graduate of Howard University; Women in NAACP Scholarship Award, Delilah Henry, a Hempfield Area High School senior; and NAACP Youth Council Special Recognition, Zen Scott-Mighty, a Greensburg-Salem High School sophomore, and Olivia Meadows, a Greater Latrobe Junior High eighth-grader.

Speaker was Terrell Thomas, a senior field organizer for the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania’s Smart Justice Campaign in Allegheny County.

The Rev. Roy Aiken provided invocation and benediction, while Gabrielle Skillings served as emcee. Denise Holmes co-chaired the event with Tolbert.

Seen: Adrienne Russell, Jerry and Norma Skillings, Jim Galik and Jean Slusser, Terri Bundridge, Carlotta Paige, Althea Wright, Marilyn Fox Lewis, Ron and Carlene Williams, Ernest and Evelyn Horton, Troy Ross, Sheila Confer, Ann Emmerling, Tracy Scott-Mighty, Diane Meadows, Barbara Ferrier, Laneka Hainesworth, Imogene Cathey and Debra Mason.