A networking group has been revived that will spur Black professionals to help the Quad Cities community, help themselves in the business world and “be a force for good.”
That’s the goal of Mark Holloway, president of the Emerging Black Professionals of the Quad Cities. Mr. Holloway’s group hosted a networking event called “A Touch of Class” on Thursday, May 2, that urged people to get involved in community activities.
“The question is ‘How can we get involved and make the Quad Cities our home?’ … There are a lot of great people doing great things here, but we are often disjointed,” he said to a group of about 30 people at the Hilton Garden Inn, Bettendorf.
He hopes the meeting will be a first step in bringing people together to be members of service groups, coaches, mentors, help each other get better jobs and many other activities.
“Since we’ve been planted here, let’s grow. Let’s make this place our home. … When we have a group of people, it makes us stronger,” Mr. Holloway added.
Many attending the networking meeting heard that message and agreed.
“This has been all about making connections. It’s about putting the pieces together to make a better community,” said Sesame Teague of Rock Island, who attended the meeting.
Sponsors of the event included UnityPoint Health-Trinity, Impact Life, IHMVCU, Green State Credit Union, Hy-Vee and the Isle Casino and Hotel Bettendorf.
The event was the first for the revived Emerging Black Professionals of the Quad Cities. That organization began in 2002 as a way to get Black professionals in the region more involved in community activities. After a few years, the group’s members became busy with jobs and many other activities, and the group eventually disbanded.
But Mr. Holloway recently looked back at some of the goals of the group and decided to revive it because “there is still a need for this group.”
Some of those goals of getting involved in the community were addressed during the recent networking event’s keynote speech by the Rev. Dwight Ford, who is executive director of Project NOW, an author and an ordained Baptist minister.
He told the crowd to “bloom where you have been planted.” That is to grow, flourish and help others in the place you are, instead of wishing to be in another place or circumstance.
He added that he has been in many situations where he has seen people unhappy with their situation. They only become happy when they get a different job or change in their lives and need to move to a new community. Rev. Ford called it the “saddest story” to see people waste their time wanting to be in a different place, and then promising to get more involved with community activities once they make the move.
“If you are not doing it here, it’s going to be hard for me to believe you will do it there,” he said.
Rev. Ford urged the crowd to take action, get involved in the community and avoid the sin of not caring because “indifference is the sin that makes angels cry.”
He also urged the participants to be there for other people in need. He illustrated this point with a story about an elderly woman who was shopping in an area store and became ill. A store employee took her outside in the hope the fresh air would make her feel better. When that didn’t work, he took the women’s cellphone and offered to phone a friend or family member. The woman told him: Don’t bother, there’s nobody left to call.
Rev. Ford told the crowd to always be on the other end of the phone for a friend in need. That’s the way to help the community and accomplish great things.
Following the meeting, Mr. Holloway said Rev. Ford’s speech and other presentations made during the meeting were powerful and left a lasting impression on people in the audience.
“I had a couple speak to me afterwards. The husband said they had been considering leaving the Quad Cities, but have now decided to remain in the area and try to make their mark in this arena,” he added.
“This is just the beginning of great things. … We want to be a force for good,” said Mr. Holloway.
The Emerging Black Professionals plans to partner with other organizations to begin offering professional development and social development opportunities as a part of its ongoing missions to develop a strong Black business community.
He added that the group will have more networking events, and some youth activities this summer. “This organization will continue to grow rapidly. The best is yet to come,” Mr. Holloway said.
