"A mind is a terrible thing to waste."March 3, in celebration of its winning motto for 40 years, the United Negro College Fund (UNCF) hosted its first 'A Mind Is...' Gala. The event, held at New York City's Marriot Hotel, in the heart of Times Square, brought out such recognizable faces as Pharrell Williams, Lola Ogunnaike, Marc Morial, Jacque Reid and Grammy Award winning singer/songwriter Roberta Flack, who took the crowd down memory lane with the songs'The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face' and 'Killing Me Softly.'
The night commenced with a performance of 'Life Ev'ry Voice and Sing' by the Johnson C. Smith University Singers and introductions by the master of ceremonies, WNBC 4 New York anchor David Ushery. On hand to talk about the organization's 40 years of service was UNCF President and CEO Dr. Michael L. Lomax.
UNCF is the nation's largest minority education organization. With its aim to serve the youth, UNCF supports more than 60,000 students at over 900 colleges and universities across the country.
On the importance of the UNCF, Flack, 74, stated, "The UNCF does such good work. Historically. Can you imagine the years that they have put in to testify to that?"
Shortly after Flack's performance, the UNCF Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to former UNCF executive director Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., who spoke about the creation of the UNCF motto and its subsequent PSA campaign.