The 100 Black Men of West Texas: Mentorship, Legacy, and Community Impact

Josh Stephens: Thank you, London. A few weeks ago, as you guys know, not just a few weeks ago, all semester,
we've kind of gone to this new structure of testimonies on Monday, a specific message
on the teaching of Jesus on Tuesdays, and then singing songs of praise on Thursdays.
A few weeks ago I reached out to the BSU and said, "Hey, February is Black History Month
and we want to celebrate and join with BSU in celebrating Black History Month." And so
I asked, "Is there anyone you want to speak?" And not too long ago I got, "Hey, we've got
this guy that we want to speak." And some of you may recognize Reggie because we had
him come last year. I'm excited. If you know Reggie Dia l, really you don't have to do
much in Lubbock to see Reggie's involved in a lot of things, from business to being a
leader in the 100 Black Men of West Texas. He's got his hands everywhere around the city
of Lubbock and it's really awesome to see the way the Lord's using him to make a difference
in this community. I've known Reggie for almost 35 years, which may be shocking because he
has hair and I don't, but we're really excited and blessed to have a man of this kind of
character, but also a man who exemplifies God in the way that he views and treats people.
So let's show him a lot of love. Give it up for Mr. Reggie Dial.
Reggie Dial: How y'all doing this morning? He didn't have to tell y'all how many years we've been knowing
each other, but it's been quite a while. Again, I really appreciate the opportunity to come
and speak with you today. It's always good to see young people in the place of worship.
It's always good to see that. I'll be talking to you today about the 100 again. I'm the
current president of the 100 Black Men of West Texas, and I'll give you a little bit
of history of the 100 and how we got started, how the national organization got started
and how the local chapter got started and what we are doing here within this great city
of Lubbock. The overall concept of the 100 began in 1963 in New York City when a group
of concerned African American men began to meet and explore ways of improving conditions
within their community. These visionaries included businessmen and industry leaders
such as David Dinkins, Robert Magnum, Nathan Goldston, Livingston Wingate, Andrew Hatcher,
and Mr. Jackie Robertson. On October 2nd, 1986, representatives from the 100 Black Men
chapters converged in Washington, D.C. for a final meeting to establish a national organization.
During previous meetings, they determined a structure, governance, and model that would
provide the most effective physical and financial resources to support communities and chapters.
At the final gathering, the organization's name, the 100 Black Men of America, Inc.,
was unveiled and attendees elected four accomplished professional men from within their ranks to
serve as its first founding fathers, officers. Each of the four was selected based on the
demonstrated commitment to giving back in a holistic way that addressed the educational,
social, emotional, and cultural needs in the youth in our communities. They put their hands
to the plow and did the work necessary to establish the foundation for a network of
chapters in their infancy, which today is an international nonprofit organization that
has positively impacted more than 125,000 youth across the United States and abroad.
Throughout our history, the leadership of the 100 Black Men of America has been impeccable.
The men chosen as national leaders have all contributed to the growth and strength of
the organization. Their unique contributions have helped the 100 become one of the premier
mental organizations anywhere. Consider the impact each leader has made. On May 27, 1987,
in Atlanta, Georgia, this newly formed mentor organization held its first national conference
and introduced itself to the nation. Noted speakers included Alex P. Haley and the late
Manure H. Jackson. Several of our African American leaders in Lubbock seen the need
in our community, and the 100 Black Men of West Texas was established in 1994.
The goal of this group of men was to enhance the life of all people in our city with the
emphasis on African Americans. The 100 seeks to serve as a beacon of leadership by utilizing
our diverse talents to create environments where our children are motivated to achieve
and to empower our people. Power our people to become self-sufficient shareholders in
the economic and social fabric of communities that we serve.
The way that we accomplish this mission is through mentoring, education, economic empowerment,
health and wellness, and leadership development. 100 Black Men of West Texas is committed to
the intellectual development of youth and economic empowerment of the African American
community based on the following precepts. Respect for family, spiritual justice, and
integrity. In 2010, we received the honor of being the number one chapter in the nation
for mentoring. A lot of honor was because of the great event that started by Pastor
Charles Hanks in which is our fishing derby. He had his first fishing derby in 1998 with
the purpose of the old proverb, "If you give a man a fish, he will eat for a day.
But if you teach him how to fish, he will eat for a lifetime." On his first fishing
derby, I believe that he had less than 50 people show up. But ever since then, the event
has grown to be where we average about 1,500 kids that will show up to our great event.
The best part about this event is it's free to the public. It has been recognized by the
Texas Game Board Association as the biggest free fishing derby in the state of Texas.
All they have to do is show up and have a good time. Another awesome event that we have
is our annual scholarship gala. Today's tough economic conditions have made it difficult
for all non-profit organizations to meet the needs of those that we serve. The 100 Black
Men of West Texas are in support of all local companies and individuals to fulfill that
mission. Last year, we had the honor of hosting our 29th annual scholarship gala. It was the
best one to date. We were able to award over $100,000 in scholarship money to young people,
especially to a young person who wants to further their education. These days and times,
the 100 is committed to making sure that we live in the best city in our nation. But in
order to make that happen, we have to work on our race relations within our city and in
become a melting pot that America is. We started a Be the Change campaign that focuses on those
relationships. Not only are we focusing on race relations, but we have also created a
partnership with our local police academy in the effort to recruit more minorities to
our local police department. Because representation is very important, and one of our mottos that
we go by is "What they see is what they will be." So we work every day to be the example
that the young people in our community. I truly appreciate you giving me the opportunity
to speak with you about the 100 and learn about our goals and values. And I would love
to continue this conversation with you men and women and figure out ways that we can
work together. We are so much stronger together than we are apart. I truly appreciate this
opportunity to talk with you today, but I'll end it, I'll just end it with a quick story
to show you how Lubbock is and how we're better together. In 2020, when we were going through
a lot of turmoil with the George Floyd and everything that was going on in 2020, I had
the opportunity and the privilege to talk about these situations on radios, TV, etc.,
etc. Well, one day I was at Cast Iron Grill. I think a lot of y'all are familiar with Cast
Iron Grill. They got great breakfast. I'm walking in and there was an older white couple
that was standing on the side of me and they kept, they just kept staring at me. I'm like,
"Why are they, like what did I do? Did I do something wrong?" They kept staring at me.
And as I was ordering my oatmeal, I ordered oatmeal all the time when my office was downtown,
the older, the older lady, she stopped me and she said, "Are you Reggie Dial?" I said,
"Yes, ma'am. Yes, ma'am, I am." She said, "I've been watching you on TV. I've been listening
to you on different radio shows and etc." She said, "Right now, I know we're not supposed
to because it was during the COVID time. So I just want to give you a big hug. Can I give
you a hug?" I said, "Yes, ma'am, you sure can." She said, "And honestly, that had been
a very stressful month of talking. I was honestly tired of talking about it, to be honest with
you. I was tired of talking about it. And at that moment, God sent me an angel to let
me know that everything is going to be okay." She just sit there and we said, honestly,
in the middle of a cast iron grill, weeping tears because it was a difficult time during
those situations. And that was so unexpected. Remember, we weren't supposed to be touching
each other during that time. And she just gave me a hug. We hugged for a good minute.
And till this day, I've never seen that young, I've never seen that lady again. But I really,
I hope that one day I can run across her again, just to say thank you. Because she didn't
realize how bad I needed that hug. And so that's just to show you the type of people
that we have in our great city of Lubbock, Texas. And so always be open-minded, always
be open-hearted to change, always be open-hearted to different perspectives. And just stay the
course. Again, I thank you and I appreciate this opportunity. And I've always wanted to
say this, you're now dismissed.
[APPLAUSE]