WORCESTER—Local community leaders gathered at the AC Marriott in Worcester on Friday to celebrate “Honoring Black Excellence” and to present two Black Excellence Awards to Deborah Hall, chief executive officer of the YWCA of Central Massachusetts, and David Connell, the president and chief executive officer of the YMCA of Central Massachusetts.
The event, hosted by the Black Excellence Committee, featured keynote speakers, award presentations, and powerful stories from Hall, Connell, and other members of the community.
Hall is the first Black CEO of the YWCA, and Connell the first Black president and CEO of the YMCA. They have both made history, so this event shed light on all they have done for Worcester’s community of color. They have shown endless efforts in strengthening the community. Hall, with her experience of working with domestic, race, and gender violence, along with being the founder of the Worcester Black History Project, and Connell with his history of working with nonprofit organization management.
Hall and Connell were each presented the Black Excellence Award, and Mayor Joseph Petty surprised everyone and gave them each a key to the city.
“This award is a celebration,” said Hall, “but it is also a charge, a call to keep showing up, to keep making space, and to keep making history.”
Her words emphasized the importance of moving forward. The recognition, she noted, is not just about her past accomplishments, but what she can continue to do moving forward.
“Tonight we celebrate the legacy,” echoed Connell. “We celebrate the fact that black excellence is about achievement, but it’s also about endurance. It’s about carrying forward the dream of those who came before us.”
“Don’t just celebrate black excellence,” said Hall. “Invest in it, mentor it, hire it, fund it, amplify it, protect it.”
Connell added that he accepted the award not only with gratitude, but responsibility.
“The responsibility to lead with integrity, to serve with compassion, and to ensure that black excellence is not an exception, but an expectation,” he said.
Keynote speaker Reverend Dr. Debora Jackson had everyone in the audience on the edge of their seats as she spoke on behalf of the community.
“I thought about the words black excellence and my original thought was that the phrase was unnecessarily redundant,” said Jackson.
Her speech revolved around there being no need to say ‘black excellence’ but rather just “excellent.”
“The truth is that social cultural constructs like black excellence, as inspiring as they sound, can unintentionally reinforce the very systems we long to dismantle,” continued Jackson. “See they say, you are excellent, but only when you measure up to a standard set outside of yourself.”
The Black Excellence Committee has a number of sponsors including the YWCA, the YMCA, The Hanover Insurance Group Foundation, UMass Memorial Health, Worcester Youth Center, Bay State Bank, American Antiquarian Society, NAACP, and more. With the help from these sponsors and the community, the Black Excellence Committee raised over $65,000. After necessary expenses, they were able to split the costs and give $15,000 to each honoree.
The entirety of the event was filled with thanks, support and culture. The message of the night was clear: Black excellence is not just about honoring past accomplishments, but inspiring the upcoming generation to continue doing the work.
Jenna Foley is a communication and multimedia journalism student at Worcester State University, focusing on telling impactful stories through different forms of media. She can be reached at jfoley17@worcester.edu
