Content from our friends over at North Dallas Gazette
Friday, May 30, 2008 , Updated
Minority Business Hall of Fame holds induction ceremony
The Minority Business Hall of Fame and Museum, a nonprofit organization, held its 3rd Annual Induction Ceremony, Thursday, April 24, at the Stonebriar Country Club in Frisco, Texas. This year’s ceremony honored six new members to the Minority Business Hall of Fame. The Minority Business Hall of Fame and Museum was founded in 2004, through the collaborative labors of John F. Robinson, president of the National Minority Business Council Inc. in New York; Don McKneely, president and publisher of the Business News Group; and Carol Daugherty Foster, the former editor of MBN USA. Since its conception the Minority Business Hall of Fame and Museum has shed light onto the achievements of pioneering individuals and institutions that have contributed to the global development of minority owned businesses.
The inductions began with the late Dorothy Brothers, whose son Tony Brothers, daughter Sharon Parker and husband Raymond Jones proudly accepted the posthumous induction in her place. Brothers was a senior vice president and national director of Supplier Diversity Development Group at Bank of America, where her efforts lead to increased spending with minority and women-owned businesses from $11 million in 1990, to over $400 million in 1999; for which Bank of America received over 70 awards. Also recognized was Nathan Conyers, the second longest tenured African American auto dealer in the nation, who, in his 38 years in the industry, instrumented the formation of organizations, which assist in the development of minority auto dealers. Carmen Munoz, a determined business woman, was inducted in honor of her many board positions and responsibilities at Focus Hope Enterprise, that have allowed her to cater to minority business owners, especially women in particular. Dr. Alfred E. Osborne Jr. was recognized for his contributions as director of the Harold and Pauline Price Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, where he has shown a commitment to the growth and development of minority businesses.
Gerald F. Diez Sr., a first generation United States citizen born to a Spanish immigrant, was honored for employing over 600 minority workers and maintaining a customer base that includes General Motors, Ford, Chrysler and Johnson Controls Inc; strengthening the weight of minorities in our global economy. Professor Steven Rogers, of the Kellogg Business School was also inducted into the Minority Business Hall of Fame. Rogers is the Gordon and Llura Gund Family Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Kellogg Business School where he teaches in many Kellogg executive programs including the National Minority Supplier Development Council’s Advanced Management Education Program, where he inspires growth and direction in future minority business leaders.
These six amazing individuals, now immortalized through their own decisions, will be constant reminders in the Minority Business Hall of Fame, of exactly how an individual can pave the way for the entire community. Through integral work and fiendish determination, these 2008 inductees have expanded our horizons, not to mention their own. When someone is honored in the Minority Business Hall of Fame, it’s not only for their own extraordinary efforts to better themselves, but also for the exemplary efforts put forth to better the community, and the opportunities for minority business owners. The Minority Business Hall of Fame exists in Texas and New York, and aims to honor pioneers of minority business and inspire future generations of entrepreneurs. For more information on the Minority Business Hall of Fame and Museum visit www.mbhf.org.
Pegasus News content partner - North Dallas Gazette
