Basketball legend and entrepreneur Earvin "Magic" Johnson, CEO of Magic Johnson Enterprises, will present former Minnesota Viking Cris Carter and his brother John Carter of Carter Brothers, LLC with the National Urban League's inaugural Entrepreneurship Award. The award will be presented at the League's Annual Equal Opportunity Awards Dinner on November 15, 2007. The National Urban League will also honor Eli Lilly and Company and Fannie Mae's Chief Diversity Officer Stacey D. Stewart.
"I'm honored to join the National Urban League, Sodexho and the Bank of America in congratulating Cris and John Carter of Carter Bros. LLC on receiving the first ever Equal Opportunity Award for Entrepreneurship," said Earvin "Magic" Johnson, CEO of Magic Johnson Enterprises and majority owner of SodexhoMAGIC . "The advancement of minority-owned businesses and economic empowerment are issues I hold close – this award is a testament to the hard work of these entrepreneurs and the National Urban League."
In 2001, NFL star Cris Carter founded Carter Brothers in Atlanta, Georgia, with his brother John, a former senior executive with a national construction company where he managed portfolio of more than $4.5 billion. Since then, the firm has become one of the country's largest electronic security and fire/life safety firms and listed in Fortune's Top 500 list and Black Enterprise magazine's Top 100 issue.
The annual Equal Opportunity (EOD) Awards Dinner honors individuals and corporations who perpetuate the principle of equal opportunity and exhibit leadership qualities that result in notable contributions to the cause of equal rights.
"The individuals and organizations honored at EOD set the example for all of us in their commitment to the greater community," said National Urban League President and CEO Marc Morial. "This year's recipients display exceptional leadership encouraging minority empowerment in all aspects of society."
In 2005, pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly teamed up with the NUL to fund a multi-year initiative to improve health-care quality for African-Americans nationwide and in 2006 was inducted into the League's Million Dollar Hall of Fame.
Since its creation in 1979, the Fannie Mae Foundation, which is closing at year's end, has awarded more than $1 billion in grants to nonprofits, including $34.5 million in 2006 alone. It has also served as one of the first sponsors of the League's Economic Empowerment Tour.
The dinner will be co-chaired by Liam E. McGee, president of Global Consumer & Small Business Banking at Bank of America Corporation, and by George Clavel, president and CEO of Sodexho, Inc. Russ Mitchell, news anchor for CBS' The Early Show, and Soledad O'Brien, anchor and special correspondent for CNN, will emcee the event. The dinner will include:
- "Earvin 'Magic" Johnson will present the inaugural Entrepreneurship Award to Cris and John Carter of the Carter Brothers for demonstrating extraordinary commitment and dedication to economic empowerment.
- "John Hofmeister, Chairman of the Board of the National Urban League and President of Shell Oil Company, will present Eli Lilly with the Corporate Leadership Award for its support of the League's health platform by helping to create the "Remarkable: That's You" health and wellness program.
- "Maudine R. Cooper, President, Greater Washington Urban League will present Stacey Stewart, Chief Diversity Officer, Office of Diversity and Inclusion and Senior Vice President, Office of Community & Charitable Giving at Fannie Mae, with the NUL Leadership Award for her role in developing programs that provided technical knowledge and financial resources to help communities acquire their own homes.
In addition, the National Urban League will induct its 2007 One Million and Five Million Dollar Hall of Fame Class which recognizes organizations that have contributed $1 million or more to advance the work of the League. This year's $1 Million Dollar Hall of Fame award will be presented to Unilever and the $5 Million Dollar Hall of Fame award will be presented to Comcast, Microsoft and Shell Oil Company.
In 1956, the National Urban League held its first Equal Opportunity Day dinner, giving awards to U.S. Department of Labor Secretary James P. Mitchell and Jacob S. Potofsky, president of the Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America. Since then, Muhammad Ali, Hillary Rodham and William Jefferson Clinton, Iman, Quincy Jones and Spike Lee, among others, have been honorees.
The EOD dinner will be held at the New York Marriott Marquis, which is located 1535 Broadway, at W. 46th St. in Times Square. Media availability begins at 6:00 p.m., followed by a reception at 6:30 p.m. and dinner at 7:30 p.m. For ticket information, call 212-675-9474.
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