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| Scholarship recipient Demetrius Latham, Jr. |
The 100 Black Men of Louisville held it’s 19th annual black tie gala last week to both celebrate the 2010 Kentucky Derby and award at least ten scholarships to college bound African American, young men and women. Each year, the black tie affair serves as a way to raise money for the awards and to publicly recognize the students.
Demetrius Latham, Jr., a scholarship recipient, said, “I’m one of the senior advisors of the program. I’ve been in it since my freshman year of high school.”
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| Latham discusses award and future plans. |
“I won by demonstrating a combination of community service, leadership, academics and sustained performance,” Latham said. “My teachers said my pragmatism, my ability to adapt to different situations that occur in my life and time management skills were also part of it. I received a full ride to University of Louisville and will be majoring in biochemistry. After that, I’ll go back to med school. I want to be a general surgeon with a fellowship as a trauma surgeon.”
He also feels a sense of duty to help his peers succeed.
“I gave a speech at the student medical association, which has a program called, ‘Moving Forward by Reaching Back.’ I’m responsible for tutoring kids that are younger or older and when I shadow with surgeons, I take someone along with me to encourage them to reach established goals in their life,” he said.
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| Singer Charlie Wilson. |
R&B recording artist Charlie Wilson was on hand at the gala to enterain and inspire. His voice was pitch-perfect and he sustained notes – and energy – like he was a 25 year-old who had never left the scene. “Uncle Charlie” effortlessly cycled through hits from his former group, the Gap Band, and sang all of his current chart-toppers, including a few from his “nephew” Snoop Dogg’s catalog. Wilson also offered a few words of inspiration to the scholarship recipients, testifying about his triumph over struggles with drugs and prostate cancer.
“We know a lot of these young men we’re helping are the first generation to go to school,” said Robert Jordan, the Louisville chapter president. “Many don’t have the option or haven’t had anyone in their family before talking to them about college or different career fields.”
Like the national organization, the 100 Black Men of Louisville chapter “is dedicated to improving African-American communities, particularly by increasing educational opportunities for young people,” Jordan said. –gerald radford
