Community Preservationists Honored at Whitesboro Black History Gala
Photo courtesy of Elorm Ocansey Ministries
AC JosepH Media
WHITESBORO – The second annual Whitesboro Black History Gala put on Saturday (April 18) proved to be an embracing of the roots African Americans have laid down in southern New Jersey.
The event was put on by the Whitesboro Historical Foundation and Whitesboro Historic Preservation Project at the Cape May Convention Hall.
Organizers said they hoped the gala would be a “declaration that the story of Whitesboro is not confined to the past but is actively being written in the present.” The most extensive historical presentation on Whitesboro ever assembled was displayed at the event, a sweeping, immersive exhibition chronicling the depth, brilliance, and enduring legacy of one of America’s most significant, Black-founded communities, organizers said.
“This gala is not merely a celebration; it is a divine summons, a clarion call echoing across generations,” Min. Elorm Ocansey, a supporting partner of the project, said in a statement. “We beckon leaders, visionaries, and architects of destiny from every corner of this state to come and sow into what we roclaim as the greatest revitalization of Black History since Kemet.
“We are outside, exercising all our rights and privileges as citizens of this great nation and residents of New Jersey, Cape May County, Middle Township, and Whitesboro.”
The 2026 Gala honored leaders in faith, labor, civil rights, arts, preservation, and community development. Many of the honorees are actively shaping the work on the ground, demonstrating that legacy is not only inherited, but built in real time.
“We don’t just celebrate this work, we live it,” said Felicia Simmons, recipient of the Samuel H. Vick Award and a leading force behind the initiative. “This gala reflects the labor, the vision, and the sacrifice of people committed to seeing Whitesboro not only preserved but fully realized.”
“The strength of Whitesboro has always been its people,” said Michelle Brown, longtime steward of the foundation.
Oriana Holmes-Price, 2026 Noah Cherry Award recipient, said the organizers are building something that honors our past while creating a future rooted in justice, liberation, and collective power.
The 2026 Aletha Gibbs Award was presented to Caring For Kids New Jersey, accepted by Anita Shelton, a daughter of Whitesboro, whose life’s work reflects compassion in motion.
Through her tireless advocacy for families and children, she nurtures not only lives but futures, planting seeds of hope that will bloom for generations.
The 2026 Booker T. Washington Award was conferred upon Mayor Ras J. Baraka, City of Newark, a visionary whose leadership transcends city limits and speaks to the conscience of a nation. A poet, activist, and architect of justice, he governs with courage, creativity, and an unrelenting commitment to the liberation of his people.
Also receiving the 2026 Booker T. Washington Award, the People’s Organization for Progress stands as a pillar of resistance and righteousness. For over four decades, they have marched, organized, and spoken truth to power, carrying forward the sacred charge that all power, indeed, belongs to the people.
The 2026 Congressman George H. White Award was given to Anthony Abrantes, Eastern Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters, a national force at the intersection of labor and civil rights.
Through his leadership, pathways once closed have been opened, voices once silenced have been amplified, and dignity has been restored to the work of countless men and women across this nation.
The 2026 Ernest Cherry Award honored Sharon Spencer, Whitesboro Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Recreation Center, a matriarch in the truest sense, whose quiet strength, steady presence, and unwavering care have built spaces of belonging for generations. Her life is a testimony that true leadership is not always loud but always lasting.
The 2026 Reverend J.W. Fishburn Award was bestowed upon the African Methodist Episcopal Church, accepted by Rev. Andrea Davis, Asbury AME Church, Wildwood/St. James AME Church, Ocean City.
The 2026 Noah Cherry Award was presented to Oriana Holmes-Price, South Jersey ROOTS, a leading voice of environmental justice and community empowerment.
The 2026 Outstanding Historic Preservation Award was given to Curtis Bashaw, Cape Resorts, whose visionary leadership has safeguarded the architectural soul of Cape May.
Also receiving the 2026 Outstanding Historic Preservation Award was Kay Harris, Asbury Park Museum, and Asbury Park Historical Society, stands as a devoted steward of history, art, and truth. Through her tireless work.
The 2026 Paul Lawrence Dunbar Award was awarded to Lynda Anderson-Towns, Macedonia Baptist Church, a guardian of memory and a keeper of story.
Also receiving the 2026 Paul Lawrence Dunbar Award was Dahshauyn Green-Staten, Whitesboro Historical Foundation for standing as a living bridge between culture and community. Through artistry, music, and service, he transforms history into movement, reminding us that legacy is not only preserved, but performed, felt, and lived.
The 2026 Samuel H. Vick Award was presented to Felicia Simmons, Proper Foundation, Wcc Historic Renovation Association Inc., a builder of communities and a force for transformation.
The 2026 Wiley H. Bates Award honored Assatta Mann-Colon, of the New Jersey Institute for Social Justice, a fearless advocate whose work echoes across the state as a call to justice.
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