Submitted by Tom Pace, Special to the Press-Tribune
The 2014 Faith-Based and Grass Roots Community Sixth Annual Leadership Awards Luncheon and Workshops was held Thursday, May 8 at the Downtown Shreveport Hotel hosted by Bossier-Webster District Attorney Schuyler Marvin and the District Attorneys of Northwest Louisiana.
The luncheon offered a networking opportunity for government officials, nonprofit organizations, faith-based groups, business and social service representatives, and north Louisiana law enforcement officers who are involved in crime prevention at the local, state, and federal levels.
Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell was guest speaker.
The Faith-Based Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Mary Elizabeth Madden Chumley, CEO/President of Council for Advancement of Social Services and Education. Experience in the medical, dental and mental health fields, having established several dental clinics in Caddo and Webster Parishes early in her career, Chumley developed and implemented a certificate Dental Assistant Program in cooperation with Louisiana State University, Division of Continuing Education and obtained PELL funding for these students. After their three sons were grown, Mrs. Chumley and Dr. Chumley co-founded a non-profit organization, Council for Advancement of Social Service and Education, a non-profit organization designed to serve the underserved and uninsured residents of North Louisiana.
The Faith-Based Lifetime Achievement Award was also presented to Dr. Durell Tuberville, Executive Director of Personal Solutions, Inc. Dr. Tuberville has been involved in trauma recovery since 1989 and has served as Chaplain for the Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Department for the past 15 years. He also served as Chaplain for the Shreveport Fire Department for over 20 years. He serves on the Pastoral staff for Shreveport Community Church in Shreveport, and as a counselor and the President of Personal Solutions, Inc., a not-for-profit human services organization dedicated to family recovery, trauma recovery, crisis intervention, and grief counseling.
2014 Leadership Award recipients:
- Rev. Terry R. Willis, Pastor of Mt. Pisgah CME Church in Homer
- Jonathan M. Stewart, 2nd Judicial District
- Rev. Taurus Johnson, Pastor of New Hope #3, Hanna
- Julie C. Jones, 39th Judicial District
- G.B. “Sonny” Hall, III, Mansfield City Council
- Richard Z. Johnson, 42nd Judicial District
- Derek Melancon, Executive Director of The Fuller Center for Webster Parish
- J. Schuyler Marvin, 26th Judicial District (Bossier/Webster Parishes)
Special Presentations made by the DA’s Faith-Based Committee:
- Tari T. Bradford, Deputy State Director of U.S. Senator Mary Landrieu’s Office
- Kay Irby, Director of Nonprofit Leadership Development for LANO/Community Foundation
- John Gallager, Esq., Attorney for Louisiana Municipal Association, Baton Rouge
- Larry Spottsville, Sr., Director of Juvenile Services, Alexandria
The District Attorneys of Northwest Louisiana is comprised of: Charles R. Scott, Caddo Parish; Jonathan M. Stewart, Bienville/Clairborne/Jackson; Don Burkett, Sabine Parish; J. Schuyler Marvin, Bossier/Webster; Julie C. Jones, Red River Parish; Richard Z. Johnson, DeSoto Parish.
