Cornerstone Awards & Gala 2012

Event Overview

The Central Florida Urban League is hosting our inaugural Cornerstone Awards & Gala on Saturday, October 6, 2012 at the Hilton Orlando.

As our annual signature event, Cornerstone Gala will celebrate organizations and individuals that have made a significant contributions to the community within the four areas of empowerment that are the cornerstones of the Urban League;

Youth Development, Economic Empowerment, Workforce Development and Health Awareness.

Event Chairwoman

Yolanda Cade, National Managing Director of Public Relations for AAA

Honorary Co-Hosts

Tony Jenkins, Market President / Florida Blue

Glen Davis, Center-Forward / Orlando Magic

Keynote Speaker

Benjamin L. Crump is a principal with the Tallahassee firm of Parks & Crump, LLC. Having overcome very humble beginnings in rural North Carolina, Mr. Crump has quickly become one of the most recognizable and successful lawyers in America. He and his law partner, Daryl Parks, have provided legal representation and recovered large awards on behalf of their clients in some of the most high profile cases in the United States.

Mr. Crump is a frequent author and speaker. He has recently published an article entitled “The Police don’t shoot White Men in the Back, Representing Minority Victims in Police Brutality Cases.” Attorney Crump understands that the practice of law is a privilege that carries with it certain responsibilities and obligations to our society and to our democracy. He gives freely and unselfishly of his time and legal talent to represent the poor, the powerless, the defenseless and the oppressed among us. He strives through his work to fulfill the promise of equal justice for all.

He received his Bachelor’s degree in 1992 in Criminal Justice from Florida State University, where he served as two-term Black Student Union President, President of the Order of Omega and the inaugural President of the Burning Spear. He then earned his Juris Doctorate from the FSU College of Law in 1995 and will become the first African-American Chairman of the Law School Board of Directors for the 2009 administration.

2012 Lifetime Achievement Award

Bob Billingslea will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Cornerstone Gala for his service to our community. Bob recently retired as Vice President, Corporate Urban Affairs and Development at The Walt Disney Company.

Bob has received numerous awards for his service to the community including the National Service to Youth Award from the Boys & Girls Clubs of America and the Whitney M. Young Award for his contributions to founding and supporting the local Urban League Chapter. He was the first recipient of the NAACP’s Vernon Jarrett Legacy Award named in honor of the founder of their youth enrichment program: Afro Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) for his exceptional support and service to the program. He is also a recipient of the Trailblazers’ Award presented annually by the Central Florida-based Association to Preserve African American Society, History and Traditions, Inc. (P.A.S.T).