Stamford's NAACP Fundraising Dinner March 28

February 23, 2008
STAMFORD - The Stamford NAACP Freedom Fund Dinner has been postponed because of the winter storm. The dinner will be held at 6 p.m. March 28 at the Knights of Columbus St. Augustine Council No. 41 at 453 Shippan Ave. Tickets are $100 and include a one-year NAACP membership. Guests may sponsor a 10-seat table at $5,000, $3,000 or $2,000. Sponsorships reserved for nonprofit groups cost $1,500. For information, call the NAACP Stamford branch at 898-3223.
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NAACP leader hopes to set chapter on right course
By Stephen P. Clark Staff Writer
February 21, 2008

STAMFORD - Jack Bryant didn't want to become president of the Stamford NAACP chapter, but after inheriting the job last month from his disgraced predecessor, Jere Eaton, he's convinced it was his destiny.

"God has a way of putting people in places that he wants them," Bryant said. "Here I am."

A 51-year-old Stamford native, Bryant has been with the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People for eight years, including three as chairman of the Youth and College Division, which he energized by establishing a popular youth choir.

Last year, he helped engineer the revival of the Stamford branch, which was inactive for months and fell below a charter-mandated minimum of 50 members. He was elected first vice president in June in a special election that capped the revival effort.

But as president, he faces his toughest task yet - unify a divided branch that has been staggered by unstable and ineffective leadership. Since 2003, the branch has had six presidents, two of whom were ousted by state or national leaders.

Eaton, who was elected in June, resigned last month after a controversy erupted over her job negotiations with a construction company that managed a work site where nooses were found.

"The branch has had some issues in the past," said Althea Watford, who replaced Bryant as first vice president. "But under the leadership of Jack, with the cooperation of the entire community, it's going to move forward in the direction it should go."

The branch is showing signs of progress.

At 6 p.m. tomorrow, it will host a Freedom Fund dinner, its biggest fundraiser of the year, at the Knights of Columbus St. Augustine Council No. 41 at 453 Shippan Ave.

State Rep. William Tong, D-Stamford, is the honorary chairman and Mary Jennings, director of literacy and social studies for the Board of Education, will be the keynote speaker.

Tickets cost $100, which includes annual membership. Organizers expect at least 200 people to attend. Although the dinner is supposed to be held annually, this will be the first since 2000.

"That's why this one is special," Bryant said. "It's the first one in a long time."

At 6 feet, 5 inches tall, Bryant is a towering presence with a laid-back personality and easy smile that puts people at ease.

A graduate of Westhill High School, Bryant earned an associate degree in business management and accounting from The Westchester Business Institute, and a certificate in Christian ministry from the New York Theological Seminary.

He is a lifelong member of Faith Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church, from which two other NAACP leaders emerged. Recently he was named national youth adviser for the Progressive National Baptist Convention, an association of Baptist churches around the world that focuses on civil rights and social justice.

Bryant said his faith will be central to his success as president.

"You have to be faith-tested to deal with a community of people with different personalities and agendas," he said. "And my faith in God helps me deal with a lot of situations."

The Rev. Tommie Jackson, pastor of Faith Tabernacle and an adviser to Eaton when she was president, said Bryant's commitment to justice and equal rights won't be enough to succeed.

"I think it's imperative that the branch itself rally around and support Jack in ways that they have not given support to the immediate past presidents in the past 10 years," Jackson said. "If the NAACP is going to be an active player and seen as a real stakeholder who really makes a difference in this community, then the persons who comprise the branch have to say, 'We're with you, Jack.' "

Bryant's two biggest challenges will be overcoming financial problems and "the historical dysfunctionality" of the branch, Jackson said. Bryant will have to collaborate with other organizations that have similar interests and goals, Jackson said.

State NAACP President Scot Esdaile said the Stamford branch has more promise than any of the other 14 branches in the state because of the number of potential corporate donors in the area.

"It has all of the key components of a powerful branch," Esdaile said. At its peak in the 1980s, the branch had more than 1,300 members and was the most powerful one in the state.

"I think Jack has the ability to bring it back to its former glory," Esdaile said.

This year, he will target education, voter registration, affordable housing, and relationships between law enforcement agencies and youths, Bryant said. He intends to expand the historical focus from tackling civil rights issues to developing programs.

"I think you have to give the community something to invest in," Bryant said. "If you have a product that people believe in, people will support you. I hope the programs and assistance will bring out those supporters and let them know that this is not the same branch that was dormant."

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