Dominion Honors Nine In 12th Annual Strong Men & Women Educational Series

January 23, 2002

RICHMOND, Va. – Nine prominent African-Americans renowned for their accomplishments and leadership will be honored today by Dominion as part of its 12th annual Strong Men & Women: Excellence in Leadership educational series.

Dominion will honor this year’s recipients at an awards ceremony at 7 p.m. at the Richmond Marriott Hotel.

Strong Men & Women highlights the accomplishments of African-American business, entertainment and political leaders and converts their stories into an educational series that is distributed during Black History Month to more than 12,000 schools across Dominion's service area in Virginia, northeastern North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania and West Virginia.

“Dominion is proud to recognize these outstanding role models,” said Edgar M. Roach Jr., president and chief executive officer. “By bringing these leaders to the forefront, we hope young people can see for themselves that success can be attained through persistence, hard work and integrity.”

The 2002 honorees are: 

  • The Honorable Ralph Campbell Jr. -- The State Auditor for North Carolina, Campbell is the first African-American in North Carolina to win a statewide, elected constitutional office. He also is a member of the Council of State of North Carolina. 
     
  • Edwin L. Edwards Sr. -- Edwards is one of the first African-Americans to own a television station in the top 20 market. 
     
  • Admiral Samuel L. Gravely Jr. (Ret.) -- Gravely is the first African-American admiral and the first African-American to command a U.S. fleet. 
     
  • Dr. Gregory T. Hinton -- Hinton is a professor of law at Fairmont State College in Fairmont, W.Va., and former mayor of that city. 
     
  • Elaine R. Jones -- Jones is president and director-counsel of the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund Inc., the nation’s oldest law firm fighting for equal rights and justice for people of color, women and the poor.
      
  • The Honorable Jerrauld C. Jones -- Jones is a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and the first African-American clerk of the Supreme Court of Virginia. 
     
  • Jewell Jackson McCabe -- McCabe is the founder and chairman of the National Coalition of 100 Black Women, a leadership forum that engages professional black women in a network to meet their career needs and the needs of their communities, and to facilitate their access to mainstream America. 
     
  • The Honorable Louis Stokes -- Stokes was the first African-American elected to Congress from the state of Ohio and the first African-American to retire from the House of Representatives, having completed 30 years of service. 
     
  • Melissa Ward -- Ward was the first African-American female captain in commercial aviation. She is one of only eight female African-American pilots at United Airlines, and one of only 12 nationwide.

African-American high school students also participated in the Strong Men & Women program. In September, seniors were invited to write essays about an African-American leader featured in the Strong Men & Women series. Winners receive a $750 U.S. Savings Bond and their schools receive a $1,000 cash award.

This year’s essay winners are: 

  • Dominique Brown
    Dinwiddie High School, Dinwiddie, Va.
     
  • Joyván Malbon
    Lake Taylor High School, Norfolk, Va.
     
  • Diamond White
    Hayfield High School, Alexandria, Va.
     
  • Kristle R. Goodwyn
    Weldon High School, Weldon, N.C.

Information about Strong Men & Women can be found on the Internet at www.dom.com, keyword “strong.”

Dominion is one of the nation’s largest producers of energy, with a production capability of more than 3 trillion British thermal unit of energy per day. Dominion serves nearly 4 million retail natural gas and electric customers in five states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company’s Web site at www.dom.com.

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Editor's note: Biographies of the honorees and copies of the winning essays will be available at the awards ceremony. Photographs will be available after Jan. 24. B-roll, sound bites and media kits will be on hand for television stations.


 

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Media: Daisy Pridgen, 804-771-6115