Northern Virginia Urban League to Honor Community Leaders at Annual Awards Gala

Alexandria, VA, March 22, 2017 --(PR.com)-- The Northern Virginia Urban League (NVUL) will host its 27th Annual Community Service and Scholarship Awards Gala on Friday, April 28, 2017 at the Hilton McLean Tysons Corner, 7920 Jones Branch Drive, McLean, VA at 7:00 p.m. The theme is “Celebrating Champions in Our Community.”

The League’s Annual Awards Gala has become one of the most prestigious events recognizing community service, diversity, and scholarship in the metropolitan Washington, DC area. Over 600 guests are expected to attend the event. Highlights of the evening will include honoring several champions in the community for leadership and community service, awarding $50,000 in scholarships to minority high school seniors attending college in the fall, and acknowledging NVUL’s work in the areas of Education, Jobs, and Justice.

Distinguished honorees to be saluted include:

· Darrell Green (Former Washington Redskin and NFL Hall of Famer) - Champion of the Community, Man of the Year Award

Darrell Green is best known as a former cornerback with the Washington Redskins. During his record-setting 20-year career with the team he became known and lovingly referred to as “Mr. Redskin.” His on-field accomplishments include two Super Bowl victories, seven selections to the Pro Bowl, and four NFL Fastest Man competitions. In 1991, he was recognized as the World’s Fastest Athlete. Green is also well known for his work off the field as a mentor to many. As a proponent of education, service and moral development, he founded The Darrell Green Youth Life Foundation (DGYLF) in 1988 and continues to oversee its operations.

· The Honorable Robert “Bobby” C. Scott (Congressman - VA 3rd District) - Congressional Leadership Award

Congressman Bobby Scott is currently serving his twelfth term in Congress representing Virginia’s Third Congressional District. Congressman Scott has the distinction of being the first African-American elected to Congress from the Commonwealth of Virginia since Reconstruction. He currently serves as the Ranking Member on the Committee on Education and the Workforce.

· Mele Melton (Culturfied Foundation) - Emerging Leader Under 40 Award

Mele Melton is the founder of the Culturfied Foundation, dedicated to increasing cultural awareness and creating new and better opportunities for DC-area students to be exposed to other world cultures in a positive and life-enhancing way. The foundation offers cultural literacy programs to more than 3,000 students through partnerships with DC International School, United Nations Association of the National Capital Area, and Boys and Girls Clubs of Greater Washington, DC.

Leo A. Brooks, Sr., Leo A. Brooks, Jr., and Vincent K. Brooks - Leadership & Military Service Award -- Historic African-American family with father and two sons to attain rank of general in the U.S. Army

Brigadier General (Retired) Leo A. Brooks, Sr.
After a 30-year military career Leo A. Brooks, Sr. retired while serving as a major general in 1984 to accept an appointment as the Managing Director of the City of Philadelphia. His awards include the Distinguished Service Medal, the Defense Superior Service Medal, three Legions of Merit, the Bronze Star Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, the Joint Service Commendation Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal.

Brigadier General (Retired) Leo A. Brooks, Jr.
Leo A. Brooks, Jr. is Vice President, Defense, Space and Security, for The Boeing Company’s Government Operations in Washington, DC. In this capacity, he serves as the company’s senior corporate liaison with the Pentagon, NASA, and the Department of Homeland Security. Brooks joined the company in August 2006, after serving in the United States Army for 27 distinguished years and retiring as a brigadier general.

General Vincent K. Brooks
General Vincent K. Brooks is the Commander, United Nations Command/Combined Forces Command/United States Forces Korea. General Brooks previously served as the commander of U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC), with responsibility for all U.S. Army forces and activities in the strategically important Indo-Asia Pacific region assigned to the United States Pacific Command (USPACOM). General Brooks is a 1980 graduate of the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he was selected to serve in his senior year as the Cadet Brigade Commander or “First Captain” of the U.S. Corps of Cadets -- the top military leadership position a cadet at West Point can hold. He is the first African American to be selected for this position in West Point’s history.

The 27th Annual Community Service and Scholarship Awards Gala is a black-tie optional event. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with a VIP Reception followed by dinner and award presentations beginning at 7:00 p.m.

Major sponsors include: Alfred Street Baptist Church, Boeing, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, Jet Linx, RSM US LLP and Volkswagen. The media sponsor is: Comcast.

Sponsorship opportunities and tickets are available. For more information about the Northern Virginia Urban League and the 27th Annual Awards Gala, call 703-836-2858 or visit www.nvul.org.

The Northern Virginia Urban League (NVUL) is a non-profit, nonpartisan, multi-ethnic, social service organization. Our mission is to enable Northern Virginia minorities and other disadvantaged communities to secure economic self-reliance, parity, power, and civil rights through program services and effective advocacy. Established in 1990, NVUL is one of 94 affiliates of the National Urban League, the nation's oldest and largest community-based movement devoted to empowering African Americans and other underrepresented minorities to enter the economic and social mainstream.