Foundation honors local heroes during 20th anniversary celebration

THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE
praiseconnect.com
Foundation honors local heroes
during 20th anniversary celebration
December 18 - 24, 2013 Page D-5
Historical perspectives
Cultural Arts
— Kris
Johnson,
co-founder,
“The Learning Express.”
Scholarship — Dr. Darryl L. Taylor, director,
Cranbrook Schools Horizons-Upward
Bound
(HUB).
Community Enrichment —
Tyrone Davenport, COO,
Charles. H. Wright Museum
of African American History.
The Torch of Wisdom
Foundation, Inc., a 501c3
public charity, celebrated
its 20th anniversary and
signature Honoring Local
Heroes fundraiser with a
capacity crowd on November 8. The “Black, NoTie” affair was hosted and
sponsored by Les Stanford Cadillac in Dearborn
and raised over $10,000
for scholarships and other youth initiatives.
Only 30 years old, Kris
Johnson is the Cultural
Arts awardee, and he is
a highly accomplished
trumpeter,
composer,
arranger and educator.
Co-founder of the “Learning Express” along with
his mentor and former
high school band director Damien Crutcher and
fellow musician, Ozay
Moore.
accomplished on schedule and within budget.
“It is indeed a privilege to have Les Stanford Cadillac host our
fundraiser for the third
consecutive year to recognize local leaders, who,
like the Torch of Wisdom
Foundation, are committed and passionate about
making a difference in
our community,” said
foundation
president
Paulette Boggs, “and we
are very appreciative of
manager Mike Lowe and
the dealership’s generosity.”
The 2013 honorees
spoke about their commitment to provide service and support to the
community. In addition
to their extensive involvement in the community
and other organizations,
they all hold degrees from
Michigan universities.
Dr. Darryl L. Taylor, director of the Cranbrook
Schools Horizons Upward Bound (HUB) and
alumnus of HUB, is the
Scholarship award recipient. “My decision to become a career officer in
the Navy was influenced
by the dedication of my
Horizons Upward Bound
teachers who wanted to
make a difference, a philosophy I have adopted,”
said Taylor as he accepted
his award.
Since becoming director in 2010, he has
strengthened the HUB
program academically, responded to the changing
needs of today’s students,
who are the low-income,
first generation college
bound, and he submitted
a winning proposal to the
U.S. Department of Education for renewed federal
funding.
Dr. Taylor earned his
Doctorate of Dental Surgery and made a career as
an Assistant Dental Officer with the Navy, and had
many tours of duty in the
United States and abroad.
His last assignment was a
Dental Officer of the Marine Corps at the Pentagon
This program is a series of innovative workshops for students K-6
that use hip-hop and
jazz to teach elementary
students about science,
reading and math. Currently, he is the conductor of Detroit Symphony’s
Civic Jazz Orchestra,
which features some of
Detroit’s most promising
youth.
Additionally, he is a
full-time lecturer at Ohio
State University, teaching
jazz trumpet, arranging
and composition, and directs the Art Blakey Jazz
Combo. Johnson teamed
up with one of his teenaged students, Cameron
Johnson of the KDJ Trio,
and paid a trumpet-piano tribute to the Torch
of Wisdom Foundation at
the milestone event.
Tyrone Davenport of
the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American
History is the Community Enrichment awardee.
He encouraged attendees
to “find something to be
passionate about, whether it is a foundation, such
as the Torch of Wisdom
or the museum, but get
involved and make a commitment to help improve
the community.”
As the chief operating
officer since 2002, he is
responsible for the physical operations, including
facilities and security.
Before assuming his current position, Davenport
brought with him a stellar career in banking and
finance. He retired from
Bank One Corporation
as senior vice president
of Technology Risk Management in 2001 after 35
years of service.
Prior to his retirement,
he held numerous senior
management positions in
the technology field for
NBD Bank, First Chicago
NBD and Bank One. One
of his great accomplishments was project manager on the construction
of the 400,000 squarefoot construction of the
Technology Center in Belleville and the project was
The event also reflected upon the accomplishments of the Torch of
Wisdom Foundation and
recognized the visionaries, who were members
of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc., Southfield
Alumnae Chapter (SAC),
for laying the foundation
for what the organization
is today.
Presenting the awards
were board member Gloria N. Smith, event chair;
SAC member Cynthia
Rush and event co-chair;
and attorney Tiffany M.
Dallah, board member.
Other program participants were Gwendolyn
L. Powell and Leonora D.
Thompson,
foundation
incorporating members,
who gave greetings and
the occasion.
Sandra Lawson, vice
president,
introduced
the mistress of ceremony, Remonia Chapman,
the foundation’s 2011
Community Enrichment
honoree for her work
with Gift of Life – Detroit
MOTTEP Foundation.
Remarks and recognition were by Carolyn
Parnell Stansbury, immediate past foundation
president. Board member
Kevin Maples gave a special presentation to Les
Stanford Cadillac; closing remarks by Marcia
Griffin, president of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority,
Inc. (Southfield Alumnae
Chapter) and Paulette
Boggs, Torch of Wisdom
Foundation president.
Guests were entertained by and danced to
the music of the incomparable 313 Band of the
world renowned Baker’s
Keyboard Lounge of Detroit. The night ended
with a toast by Arlene
Hanton Young, past SAC
president and one of the
foundation’s incorporating members.
The Torch of Wisdom
Foundation’s mission is
to support scholarship,
cultural arts, and community enrichment.
It
seeks and provides funding to organizations that
promote these three main
thrusts.
To learn more about
the Torch of Wisdom
Foundation or to make
a donation, please visit
www.towfinc.org.
Focus: HOPE deliver special holiday
food to low-income seniors
Hundreds of volunteers served as “special
Santas” when they delivered holiday food packages to approximately 1,200
low-income senior citizens across metropolitan
Detroit as part of Focus:
HOPE’s annual “Share
with a Senior” event on
Saturday, December 14.
The seniors, who are
among the 38,000 participants in Focus: HOPE’s
food outreach program,
will receive fresh food and
ingredients for a holiday
meal, along with other
items to supplement their
monthly food box.
The special holiday
food included turkeys or
Cornish hens, potatoes,
onions, vegetables and
other items.
More than 300 volunteers, including individuals, couples and families,
participated in this allday effort.
“This special delivery
effort was a great way for
families to get involved
and give back to our venerable senior citizens.
“The volunteers that
make the deliveries are
truly humbled by the appreciation and gratitude
from the seniors,” said
William F. Jones, Jr., CEO
of Focus: HOPE.
“The generous donations we have received
from schools, businesses
and individuals allow us
to give back to seniors
who truly need our help.”
Among the donors to
the 2013 holiday program
are Ford Motor Company, Mercy High School
and Christ Church Cranbrook. Those who would
like to continue to donate
toward this special delivery or other deliveries to
senior citizens should
contact the food program
at 313.494.4600. Mon-
etary donations can be
made online at www.focushope.edu.
The volunteers not
only delivered the food
boxes, but spent a little
time interacting with the
seniors.
Many of the seniors
live alone and don’t have
regular
visitors,
said
Frank Kubik, director of
Focus: HOPE’s Commodity Supplemental Food
Program.
“This is an activity
that truly warms our volunteers’ hearts,” said Kubik.
“We assist these seniors throughout the
year, but the holidays can
be especially difficult and
lonely for them. It’s wonderful to see how a holiday meal and a little companionship brighten their
day.”
Bishop P.A. Brooks, member, COGIC National Board, and O’ Neil D. Swanson,
president/CEO, Swanson Funeral Homes, Inc., reminisced about African American history in Bishop Brooks’ office prior to being introduced to COGIC officials
at a special meeting.
A Man of Great Achievement
Harold R. Varner
Harold R. Varner, one
of Detroit’s premier architects, died December 14,
2013, at the age of 78.
A lifelong Detroit resident and graduate of Cass
Technical High School
and Lawrence Institute
of Technology, his commitment to the city, his
profession and his family
gave him iconic status,
both nationally and in Detroit’s African American
professional, political and
social community.
Perhaps best known
as the architect who designed the Charles H,
Wright Museum of African American history, Mr.
Varner was a fellow of the
American Institute of Architecture and a man of
many wide-ranging interests who loved life and all
it had to offer. He was also
the former board chairman of Highland Park’s
Carver Charter School;
one of the founders of the
Efficacy Volunteers Organization; honorary consul
to the West African Nation
of Cote D’ Ivoire; member
of the National Architectual Accreditation Licensing Board.
Long involved in poli-
tics, Mr. Varner was very
active in the mayoral
campaigns of Coleman A.
Young and Dennis Archer,
and he enjoyed membership in The Association,
The Cabinet and Sigma Pi
Phi Fraternity.
Married for 53 years,
Mr. Varner’s memory is
cherished by his wife,
Nancy; daughters, Kimberly Varner Tandy, who
like her father, is an architect; son-in-law, William Tandy; Stacy Varner
Jackson, M.D.; five grandchildren, two sisters and
a brother.
Viewing will take place
on Sunday, December 22,
at Swanson Funeral Home
on McNichols from noon
to 4 p.m. A celebratory
service will be held at the
Charles H. Wright Museum of African American
History on Monday, December 23, at 11 a.m.
In Loving Memory
and to this union two children were born, Velma Lenore and Charles Jr. both
very successful. Charles
Jr. preceded him in death.
Mr. Davis married twice
more. In 1983 he met
the love of his life, Maggie
Maxwell. They married in
2003 and remained devoted to one another until
his death.
A Time to Work
Charles Davis
Charles Davis was born
September 5, 1933 to Benjamin H. Davis and Edna
Odell Nall in Titusville, Alabama, the middle child of
three brothers. The family moved to Royal Oak
Township, Michigan at an
early age.
A Time To Seek Knowledge
A graduate of Lincoln
High School in Ferndale
in 1950. Mr. Davis received a track scholarship
to attend Wayne State
University.
He earned
his degree in public administration from Wayne
in 1957. While there, he
pledged Kappa Alpha Psi,
Fraternity, Inc. and maintained his membership
for the remainder of his
life.
In May 2003 the Detroit
Alumni Chapter of Kappa
Alpha Psi honored Mr.
Davis as a true legend.
He did graduate work at
Wayne State and the University of Michigan in real
estate law and Real Estate
Appraising. He had an opportunity to study abroad
at the prestigious Oxford
University in London, England.
A Time to Love
Mr. Davis married Barbara Blackburn in 1952
Charles Davis started
his career with the State
of Michigan as a “rightof-way agent,” purchasing
the land to build the I-94
freeway. His career took
him San Francisco, Alaska and Los Angeles. After
serving for several years
with the Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD), in Washington DC, he returned to
Detroit and began a career
which remains one of his
most cherished legacies.
In June, 1971, Mr. Davis was appointed by his
mentor, Robert (Bob) E.
McCabe, to a vice-presidency of Detroit Renaissance, a group of industrial, finance and business
leaders assisting in rebuilding of Detroit’s downtown area. Mr. Davis was
instrumental in the development and completion of
many projects including
the construction of the
Renaissance Center, Hart
Plaza and the restoration
of the Music Hall.
Mr. Davis served as
executive director of the
Downtown Development
Authority (DDA) from
its inception to July 11,
1978. During his tenure he was successful in
preparing a development
plan for the Trolley Plaza
Apartment Complex and
Wayne County Community College Downtown
Campus.
On August 11, 1978, Mr.
Davis was appointed by
Mayor Coleman A. Young
as director of the Detroit
Building Authority, where
he served 16 years. He
was reappointed by Mayor
Dennis Archer and served
until his retirement June
6, 1995. Under his leadership the skyline of Detroit changed, including
the building of Joe Louis
Arena, Cobo Hall Convention Center, Chene Park
Amphitheatre, the Detroit
Police Department’s 12th
precinct, Detroit Receiving Hospital, St. Aubin
Marina, the refurbishing
of Tiger Stadium, Eastern
Market and the construction of McDonald Square
Housing Project.
A Time to Mourn
On the morning of December 4, 2013, Charles
Davis lost his battle with
cancer. Left to cherish his
memory are his wife, Maggie; two daughters Velma
Lenore Davis Calhoun and
Jeanette Little; two stepchildren, Wandah Kay and
Cedric Darrell Johnso);
one daughter -in-law, Venita Davis; seven grandchildren, Mariah Scaife, Chelsea and Chalese
Davis, Louis Calhoun
II, Kiera Gray Johnson,
Jeanne and Jerel Lane;
six great-grandchildren;
two brothers, Benjamin
III and Waverly Sr.; special family friends Erma
Kelker, Pennie Millender,
Bobbie Riley, Roddie Perry, and Evelyn Hansen;
as well as, a host of other
relatives and friends.
The memorial service
was held December 15,
2013 at the Dossin Great
Lakes Museum on Belle
Isle.

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