Distinguished Leaders Honored By True Insight

By Journalist Dr. Ms. Jones

MONTGOMERY – On Wednesday, April 17th True Insight held it’s Night of Honor at The Spruce Lodge. It was held to honor distinguished leaders. This year’s event honored Transformative Leader Bishop John Williams, School Board President of The Middletown Enlarged City School District.

“The Pillar of Compassion Award… that means the world to me because one of the things that my father said to me, the late great Bishop Leon Williams, [who] pastored for many years… He told me when I first started pastoring back, I think it was 2006 when I was pastoring in Harlem…‘John, you cannot pastor if you don’t love the people. You have to love people.’ And so that’s the one thing that has always led us is to love people to be moved by compassion in anything that we do,” said Williams who is Bishop of Faith Alive Ministries alongside his wife Co-Pastor ShaRonda Williams.

Edward Lawson JD, MBA was also honored with an award at the event. He has over 25 years of experience in working with nonprofits, government, and faith-based organizations.

He has served on The Newburgh Enlarged City School Board. He is currently President of Family and Community Engagement Services Inc. (FACES), a minority-owned strategic consulting firm. He is also Executive Director of the Vin Baker Bouncing Back Foundation.

“I’m truly humbled and honored to receive such a distinguished award. I’m grateful… This is my ministry and it is what I do night and day and otherwise because it is what God’s purposed in my life… So, when God is forming me and telling me who I’m supposed to be and what my purpose is, he’s telling me that he wants me to be the transformative leader. He wants me to be someone that can help someone, learn about who they are… I am someone who can help someone. That’s one of the greatest assets of a leader is to be a servant,” said Lawson who is an Adjunct Professor at SUNY New Paltz where he teaches a course called Black and Latino Leadership.

The City of Newburgh’s Mayor Torrance Harvey has led Newburgh for six years. He has steered Newburgh through growth and development, a 50% decrease in crime (the largest decrease in crime in the state of New York), a decreased tax rate, and has invested $200 million in infrastructure upgrades. He has met several times with The White House to talk about the Lead Line Replacement Program. He has been teaching History in Newburgh Enlarged City School District for 25 years. He was also esteemed with an award.

“We make our living by what we get. We make our life by what we give… Martin King said ‘Whatever you do, strive to do it so well that the living, the dead, and the yet to be born, cannot do it any better… As we face these unpredictable times in the future, with faith that man and God will assist us in all ways. There is an air of expectancy of a Morehouse man… It is also expected that when he bears the insignia of a Morehouse graduate, then he will do exceptionally well,’” said Harvey who is a Morehouse Man and a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Incorporated.

True Insight was founded in 2008 by Donald Fryer and Scott Young. The mission is to help high school students avoid the school to prison pipeline and navigate mainstream society through after school programming.

“These people are very outstanding in the community and all of them are educators and doing valuable work in the community. That’s why they stood out to me,” said Fryer who is also the CEO of True Insight.

Pastor Jesse Howard is one of the board members. It was his idea to have the event and use it as a fundraiser for the organization.

“We’re looking to get children that are at risk, most of all that are in the school system, partnering with… the educational system to bring those students into our program and have them succeed in their education,” said Howard.

Kyle Conway emceed the program. Speakers and participants included Jorge Vega, Scott Young, Jerry Roger, Mario Stewart, Pastor Jesse Howard, and Pastor Tyrone Carter.

Journalist Ms. Jones