ARKANSAS BLACK HALL of FAME Induction 2015
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ARKANSAS BLACK HALL OF FAME HonoreeInduction20 15 PRESS ANNOUNCEMENT MS. LUENELL BATSON 2015 Honoree MS. LUENELL BATSON Comedian/Actor/Writer Luenell, who uses only her first name, was born on March 12, 1959, in Tollette, Arkansas, as Luenell Batson. She is one of eight children and was raised in Northern California where she attended Castro Valley High School. Luenell is a comedian, actor and writer who began her career in the 1990s appearing regularly on “Soul Beat TV” on Oakland, California, cable station KSBT. She has been active in the film industry since 1993 and has acted in numerous films, including Borat: Cultural Learning of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan and The Rock in the 1990s. In 2012 Luenell made appearances in three number-one feature films – Think Like a Man, Hotel Transylvaniaand Taken 2. Most recently, Luenell has made television appearances on episodes of “The Middle” and “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” as well as stand-up appearances on “Snoop Dog’s Bad Girls of Comedy” on SHOWTIME and “Stand-up In Stilettos” on the Television Guide Network. Ms. Luenell Batson CORTEZ KENNEDY 2015 Honoree CORTEZ KENNEDY Defensive Tackle – Seattle Seahawks Cortez Kennedy was born on August 23, 1968, in Osceola, Arkansas, but grew up in Wilson, Arkansas. After graduating from Rivercrest High School in Wilson, where he helped lead his team to the 3-A State Championship in 1985, Kennedy attended Northwest Mississippi Community College. He then won a football scholarship to the University of Miami where he received All-American honors in 1989. In 1990, Kennedy was the third overall selection in the National Football League (NFL) draft. Drafted by the Seattle Seahawks, he played his entire eleven-season career with that team (1990 – 2000). As an NFL player, Kennedy was a powerhouse and his achievements are numerous, including eight Pro Bowl selections; three First-team All-Pro and two Second-team All- Pro selections; NFL Defensive Player of the Year in 1992; NFL 1990s All-Decade Team and he is an inductee into both the Seattle Seahawks’ and Miami Hurricanes’ Ring of Honor. Kennedy was also inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame and the University of Miami’s Sports Hall of Fame. In 2012, Kennedy was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Cortez Kennedy BISHOP D. L. LINDSEY 2015 Honoree BISHOP D. L. LINDSEY Bishop Donne Lee Lindsey, Sr. was born in Bluff City, Arkansas, April 17, 1924. Bishop Lindsey has been married to Irma Moore Lindsey since September 1, 1946. They have three children, Donna (Larry), DeJuana, and Donnie II (Eleanor). The Lindsey’s have four grandchildren, Valerie, Donnie III, Warren and Nia, two great grandchildren, Lindsey (deceased) and Kayla. Bishop Lindsey’s education is comprised of a B.A. degree from Little Rock’s Arkansas Baptist College, graduate work at Fisk University and at Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University). He holds an honorary doctorate degree from Arkansas Baptist College and from Shorter College. Bishop Lindsey was called into ministry in 1944. He served at England Church Of God In Christ (COGIC) in England, Arkansas from 1951-1958. His second pastorate began in 1959 at Revelation COGIC in Carlisle, Arkansas before organizing Emmanuel Mission in North Little Rock in 1972. He served as Jurisdictional Sunday School Superintendent from 1967 until he was appointed as First Administrative Assistant to the Jurisdictional Bishop in 1973. In 1974 he was appointed to the Office of Bishop of the Second Jurisdiction of Arkansas until his retirement in 2009. In 1975 he received the pastorate of Calvary Temple Church (later renamed New Calvary Temple) in North Little Rock, Arkansas. Nationally, he has served on the Judiciary Board, National Housing Board and as Chairman of the Board for Saint’s Academy in Lexington, Mississippi. He served as Senior Pastor of New Calvary Temple COGIC for more than 38 years and currently serves as senior pastor of The Worship Center COGIC an( outreach mission of New Calvary Temple). In addition to serving now as Prelate Emeritus for Arkansas Second Ecclesiastical Jurisdiction, he has also served as Interim Prelate of Arkansas First, Fourth and Fifth Fellowship Jurisdictions. This Bishop has served the entire state of Arkansas for the Church Of God In Christ. Professionally, Bishop Lindsey has served as Principal of George Washington Carter in Allport, Arkansas. He became owner of Lindsey’s Barbecue in 1956, later he expanded it to Lindsey’s Hospitality House in North Little Rock. He is also CEO of Lindsey’s Enterprises which further expands his vision to help individuals in need. In the community, Bishop Lindsey has served on numerous committees and boards, to mention a few, he currently serves on the Board of Directors of Centennial Bank, the North Little Rock Boys and Girls Club, and the North Little Rock Housing and Facilities Board. He has served on the Arkansas State Labor Board, and on the YMCA Board of Pulaski County as Urban Renewal Commissioner. He has served as the Coordinator of Citizens Participation in Model Cities Program and on the Governor’s Commission on School District Reorganization. Bishop Lindsey’s other accomplishments include being the first African American to serve on the North Little Rock City Council, the North Little Rock Chamber of Commerce and the North Little Rock Boys and Girls Club Board of Directors. Bishop D. L. Lindsey C. MICHAEL TIDWELL 2015 Honoree C. MICHAEL TIDWELL Dancer/Choreographer/Arts Educator C. Michael Tidwell grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, and attended Little Rock public schools. During his high school years, he moved to Chicago, where he graduated from high school and where dancing first got into his blood. Upon his return to Arkansas, he attended the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR). In his junior year he left college to pursue dance full time, and two weeks later he was touring in Hong Kong with the Buddy Simpson Dancers of Dallas. Since then, he has performed under the tutelage of great dance masters including Manolo Agullo, of Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo; Lorraine Cranford, founding director of Ballet Arkansas; Dot Callanan, University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR); Maureen Migden and Peter Fairweather of The Royal Ballet Academy; Luigi at the Dance Centre in New York; Gus Giordano of Giordano Dance Chicago; and Alvin Ailey of the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, New York. Tidwell also was a principal dancer with Ballet Arkansas for ten years. For many years he has served as teacher and dance department chair at Little Rock’s Parkview Arts/Science Magnet High School. Tidwell has a varied teaching career. In addition to his tenure at Parkview, he developed and implemented the dance program at Horace Mann Magnet Middle School and taught at UALR and Philander Smith College. In 1990, Tidwell founded the Tidwell Project Dance Ensemble, a dance performance company; and in 1994 he opened The Centre for the DansArts, Inc., a dance school founded to provide exposure to the arts to youth who might not otherwise have this experience. C. Michael Tidwell DR. MILDRED BARNES GRIGGS, ESQUIRE 2015 Honoree DR. MILDRED BARNES GRIGGS, ESQUIRE Educator/Pioneer Dr. Mildred Barnes Griggs is professor and Dean Emeritus at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, Illinois. She is a native of Marianna, Arkansas, and completed her undergraduate degree at Arkansas A.M. & N. in Pine Bluff, Arkansas, in May of 1963. She earned her graduate degrees from the University of Illinois in 1967 and 1970 respectively. Dr. Griggs had many roles at the University of Illinois that included teaching graduate and undergraduate classes and serving as Dean of the College of Education. After joining the faculty in 1970, she became the first African American to be promoted through the academic ranks of Assistant, Associate and Full Professor at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana. She was also the first female dean of a college at the university. In 1976, Dr. Griggs was named national president of the newly integrated American Home Economics Association. In addition to her academic accomplishments, she served as one of two University of Illinois Faculty Athletics Representatives to the Big Ten and the National Collegiate Athletic Association for twelve years. Upon her retirement from the University in 2000, Dr. Griggs earned a Doctor of Law degree from the College of Law at the University of Illinois and is currently licensed to practice law in Illinois and Arkansas. She is currently serving as a consultant at Eastern Arkansas Economic Council (EAEC) where she does outreach and advocacy for socially disadvantaged farmers in the Arkansas Delta. She works to help farmers gain access to USDA programs and funds that will enable them to be successful. Dr. Mildred Barnes Griggs, Esquire EDDIE REED, M.D. 2015 Honoree EDDIE REED, M.D. World Renowned Physician/Researcher/Scholar Born in Heth, Arkansas, Dr. Eddie Reed was the tenth of eighteen children in his family. He graduated from Hughes High School in 1971, then earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1975. Dr. Reed went on to attend Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, where he earned his Doctor of Medicine degree (M.D.) in 1979. He completed an internship and residency in internal medicine at Stanford University in Palo Alto, California, and a fellowship in medical oncology at the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Mary- land. Thereafter, Dr. Reed held many research and clinical positions at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Cancer Institute. He was the first African American to serve as Branch Chief at the National Cancer Institute.