The Freedom Fund Banquet, an annual fundraiser sponsored by the Gloucester Chapter of the NAACP and held on Saturday, March 21 at the Fine Arts Museum of Gloucester, was packed with people in support of the chapter’s multi-pronged mission of ensuring the political, educational, social and economic equality of rights for all people and eliminating race-based discrimination.

Guest speaker for the evening was retired Portsmouth Circuit Court Judge Johnny E. Morrison, who recalled a visit to Gloucester years ago when he handled an election recount. This time around, he said to the diverse crowd, “I’m blessed to see people from all walks of life, neighbourhoods, and probably different religions and backgrounds. I see how America should be and can be—the true spirit of America, of Virginia, and of your home town.”

Morrison spoke of a difficult childhood, with seven children in the home who “tried to stay out of trouble.”

“I was told I wasn’t going to make it because I wasn’t white,” he said. “But I was too hardheaded to accept that.”

An honor graduate of Norcom High School in Portsmouth, Morrison attended Washington and Lee University on an academic scholarship and later earned his Juris Doctor from the Washington and Lee University School of Law.

According to the banquet booklet, his career began with the Legal Aid Society of Roanoke Valley, and it progressed steadily until he was elected to serve as the commonwealth’s attorney for the City of Portsmouth, the first African American to serve in that position in a Virginia city, then became the first African American appointed to serve as a judge in Portsmouth Circuit Court, where he went on to serve multiple terms as the chief judge of the Third Judicial District. He has received many awards and honors from civic and professional organizations.

Morrison briefly mentioned “what’s wrong in D.C.” and said, “You’ve got to be a religious person if you’re black in America. You should be a religious person if you’re white in America.”

Corporate profits are at an all-time high, with some CEOs compensated in excess of $100 million, said Morrison, contending that oligarchs and billionaires “can’t understand how we feel when the price of gas goes up.” He said politicians want to get rid of SNAP and Medicaid, and some even want to get rid of Medicare, “and now they’re asking for $200 billion to help fight this war.”

“Never before has there been a time when people need to be more resolute,” he said. “We in America, black and white and Hispanic, need to come together. We sink together and rise together, stand together or fall together … We will always be our brother’s keeper.”

Sheba Williams, founder and executive director of the nonprofit organization Nolef Turns, also spoke. A cosmetologist, barber, and master instructor by profession, Williams became actively involved in community service projects and realized that many people had something in common with her—a felony conviction.

Williams said she was wrongfully convicted of embezzlement, and she founded her nonprofit to change the Virginia Constitution’s provision that disenfranchises people convicted of felonies and to “join 40 other states to say that you are more than the worst day of your life.” That constitutional amendment is on the ballot for this fall. Williams said she has been active in helping to get same-day registration and is continuing to spread the message about the importance of voting.

“We have an opportunity to say what our state looks like for everybody,” she said. “I hope you vote ‘Yes’ on the constitutional amendment.”

The final speaker, Shirley Fallin, is a leader on the Middle Peninsula-Northern Neck Behavioral Health Recovery Response Team. The team provides counseling, peer support, case management, and recovery-oriented programs for individuals. Fallin said she goes to jails throughout the region and talks to inmates, advocating on their behalf. While some people don’t want to make the effort to change, and continue to make bad decisions, others try, she said, and she sees lives transformed.

“We’re here to teach people how to deal with problems by walking next to them,” she said. “We don’t tell them how to live life. We show them how we live ours and how you can live yours. We try to eliminate the ‘nos.’”

Following the speakers’ remarks, awards were given to four people.

Marion Randall, a Gloucester native and lifelong educator who has a “deep belief in the power of education to change lives,” received the Irene Morgan 2026 Freedom Fighter Award.

Pamela Garner, a retired U.S. Air Force Lieutenant Colonel and the first black female squadron commander in the Virginia Air National Guard, as well as the current chair of the Gloucester County Democratic Committee, received the T.C. Walker 2026 Trailblazer Award.

Donna Green Osborne, a Gloucester native and federal retiree, who has shown a commitment to preserving Gloucester’s African American history through involvement in a number of organizations, received the Woodville 2026 Legacy Award.

Velma Benns, a retired Deputy Chief U.S. Probation Officer in the Eastern District of Virginia who now lives in Gloucester and serves as chair of the Criminal Justice Committee of the Gloucester Branch of the NAACP, was given the G. Nelson Carter Sr. 2026 Leadership Award.

Mildred Byrd of Hayes served as mistress of ceremonies, often breaking out in song, performing “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ’Round” and encouraging audience members to join in.

Pamela Griffin-Armstead, president of the Gloucester NAACP, delivered a welcoming address, saying that “now more than ever, we need to stay connected and committed, and we need to stand up against injustice in all its forms.”

Also participating in the evening were the Rev. E. Randolph Graham, who gave the invocation and blessing; the Holy Commotion Musical Trio, which performed a variety of songs and instrumental pieces; Kara Willoughby, winner of the chapter’s oratorical competition, who read her essay, “Why Does the ‘Fierce Urgency of Now’ Demand Action from Today’s Generation?”; Kathy Phillips, who gave closing remarks; and Deacon Robert Jones, who gave the benediction.