Hempstead celebration honors Mandela

Hempstead Town’s annual African-American History Month Celebration took place Tuesday with a theme of “Changing the World Through Education — Nelson Mandela.”

The program featured cultural entertainment and musical selections, as well as a keynote speech by the Rev. Patrick L. Daymond, pastor of the Memorial Presbyterian Church in Roosevelt, whom Murray called “a truly dynamic and inspirational speaker.”

The town also honored Roosevelt’s Doris Lolita Brown, a food and clothing pantry volunteer, for her community service. It also honored 24 town employees for 25 years each of service to residents of the nation’s largest township.

Barbara Jones, the first African-American woman elected to the Civil Service Employees Association Region 1 of Long Island, received the Rosa Parks Award.

“Ms. Jones embodies the legacy left to us by the great civil rights champion, Rosa Parks,” said Councilwoman Dorothy Goosby, the town board’s first elected African-American member. “African-Americans have left an indelible and profoundly positive imprint on all facets of our community and nation.”