By Dale Avery
I have spoken on numerous occasions about the 100 Black Men of Central Illinois. Many of you who will hear this message may have heard or know about the work we do in the Bloomington/Normal Community. For those of you that don’t know, we are a non-profit organization with the mission of improving the quality of life in the communities where we live. Our chapter accomplishes this by focusing our work and efforts around 4 key pillars – Mentoring, Education, Health and Wellness, and Economic Empowerment.
The Central Illinois Chapter is eleven years old and we are very proud of the successes in the community since our inception. We have mentored hundreds of kids, given away thousands of dollars in scholarships, hosted health forums and conducted events to enhance student and adult economic knowledge.
Each year the 100 Black Men of America hosts a national conference. This year’s conference, recently held in Atlanta, was the thirty year anniversary of this outstanding event. Nationally, there are one hundred and sixteen chapters with over ten thousand members. Our local chapter was honored at the conference in numerous ways. First, we were awarded one of the highest honors for a chapter, the Mentee of the Year. This award was a result of our strong focus on the organization’s pillar to mentor thousands of young people every year. Our local mentee, Markus Brooks, won this award because of his work in the class room, as well as his volunteer efforts in the community. He was honored at the event, gave the invocation at various sessions and participated in panel discussions.
Second, along with Markus, we took two students teams from Bloomington/Normal to participate in the State Farm African American History Challenge and the Dollars and $ense programs. Our history team gave a great effort but was defeated in the first round by the team who won the championship. Our Dollars and $ense team won second place and only lost by a narrow half point margin. The African American History Challenge team included Christian Baker and Radiance Campbell and the Dollars and $ense team was made up of Alexys Ogorek and Stacie Harms, all from Normal Community High School.
Last of all, I was extremely blessed by being recognized with the Wimberly Award for Service. I am still in shock having been selected out of ten thousand plus members. As I said in my acceptance comments, I was granted this honor because of the gifts and strengths I received from our Heavenly Father, the morals instilled by my parents, the support of my wife and children, and fellow local chapter members that have carried out our vision.
When you hear about the 100 Black Men of Central Illinois, I hope you remember who we are and what we do. We are committed to our work in this community. A big thanks to many of you who support us financially and behind the scenes. Our efforts and yours will only serve to enhance the Bloomington/Normal community!
Dale Avery, CPCU, is the assistant vice president – Enterprise Services at State Farm® Corporate Headquarters in Bloomington, Ill.
Avery began his career with State Farm in 1982 as a personal lines underwriter in Lincoln, Nebraska and assumed his current position in 2006. Avery, a native of Missouri, received his bachelor’s degree from Central Missouri State University. He earned his CPCU in 1991.
Dale resides in Bloomington with his wife, Laura and their two daughters; Megan and Jenna.
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