King Crush Thursday - The Interviews

EP 69 REUBEN JONES

Reuben Jones is the Executive Director of Frontline Dads, a non-profit organization that focuses empowering youth and social justice advocacy. He is a mentor, father, poet, activist and entrepreneur. Reuben Jones has won numerous awards over the years including KYW's "Gamechanger" award,  and the Presidential Service Award from Barack Obama.
 
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EP 67 REV DR ALYN E WALLER

Reverend Dr. Alyn E. Waller  is the Senior Pastor of the Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. A highly sought-after revivalist, vocalist, and lecturer, Dr. Waller is a true visionary of the church and the community who serves humanity far beyond the restraints of traditionalism. His partner in marriage and ministry is Dr. Ellyn Jo Waller, the leader of Enon’s Women’s Ministry and a devoted mother to their two daughters, Elynn Morgan and Eryka Lynn.
Since 1994, God’s anointing on Dr. Waller’s pastorate at Enon has been evidenced with unprecedented spiritual and numerical growth. In July 2006, Enon became “one church in two locations” with the development of a new church campus, which includes a 5000-seat sanctuary, a chapel, a computer lab, classrooms, a Family Life Center (for banquets, a summer sports camp and ministry events), and a “big backyard” for the youth ministry to participate in competitive team sports. To serve a congregation of over 15,000 members, Enon holds three weekend worship services (with internet live-streaming), multiple prayer opportunities, and three weekly Bible studies at Enon and Center City Philadelphia. Dr. Waller draws on his love for people to shape God’s vision for Enon, “A Place Where People Encounter God,” through over 75 innovative ministries. Enon regularly hosts various community awareness events and health and wellness initiatives that offer AIDS testing and other critical health screenings.
Dr. Waller’s outreach extends far beyond the walls of Enon through local community activism and radio, television, and social media commentary. Internationally, he serves as the President of the Lott Carey Global Christian Missional Community and, through Enon, has established church locations throughout South Africa. Also, Dr. Waller has preached in South Korea to over 100,000 persons and has presented at an Oxford University roundtable on religious theory.
The heart of Dr. Waller’s ministry can be felt through his musical gifts. In 2004, Dr. Waller released his CD, “With His Permission” and has supported various Enon CD music projects. In 2015, Enon and Pastor Waller founded the Enon Music Group record label and released, “Dr. Alyn E. Waller Presents Enon Tabernacle The Experience.” Additionally, Dr. Waller has opened for Mary Mary, the Clark Sisters, and Fred Hammond, and has headlined the “Celebration of Gospel” at the Mann Music Center (Philadelphia).
A native of Cleveland, Ohio, Dr. Waller earned a B.S. in Music Business from Ohio University, an M.Div. from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; a D.Min. in Ministry to Marriage and Family from Palmer Theological Seminary, and an honorary doctorate from Lincoln University. Dr. Waller served previously as Minister of Music at Canaan Missionary Baptist Church (Louisville, KY) and Senior Pastor of the First Baptist Church of Donora (PA). He is the author of Enjoy Your Journey: Our Quest for a Deeper Relationship with Christ (2006) and Hope for the Journey: Believing God is Enough When the Road Gets Rough (2011).
See the Video Interview HERE

EP 152 DR DARREN LIPSCOMB, ESQ

Dr. Darren Lipscomb, Esq. is a community activist and the Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management at Community College of Philadelphia. He has over a decade of experience in education. The West Philadelphia native is also a product of the Philadelphia School District and an alumnus of Walter Biddle Saul High School of Agricultural Sciences.
Dr. Lipscomb has served as the Senior Vice President for Programming for the Philadelphia chapter of the nationally renowned Minds Matter college preparatory mentorship program and as past-Chairman for the Mayor's Commission on African American Males. He has also served as an intelligence analyst in the Pennsylvania Army National Guard during which he supported Hurricane Katrina relief efforts in Louisiana in 2005 and deployed to Iraq in 2009. He currently serves as a board member for the Philadelphia Parks Alliance and as Polemarch of the Philadelphia Alumni Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. Further, he is actively engaged with the Chapter's mentorship program for boys and young men in the Greater Philadelphia region.
Dr. Lipscomb holds a doctorate in Higher Education Leadership, Juris Doctor, Master's degree in Counselor Education and Bachelor's degree in Marketing.
See the video interview HERE.

EP 151 PHILIP CUNNINGHAM

Meet Philip Cunningham a visionary leader dedicated to the mission of Jamaa Health. With a passion for eliminating healthcare disparities and fostering equitable access to care, Philip co-founded Jamaa Health, the groundbreaking platform that is revolutionizing the healthcare landscape.
Driven by a deep commitment to helping as many people as possible, Philip spearheads the strategy, growth, and go-to-market initiatives at Jamaa Health. His expertise in blending corporate and non-profit experience empowers him to create a platform that connects patients with a vast network of black healthcare professionals, thereby building the largest database of its kind in the world.
Philip's remarkable career journey showcases his ability to take on challenging projects and build exceptional teams. As the principal and lead consultant at the Academy of Professional Engagement, he has honed his skills in driving team performance and facilitating transformative culture change. With his extensive experience as the Director of Consulting at Mayerson Academy, Philip established a department that delivered best-in-class adult learning experiences to diverse teams and organizations.
In addition to his invaluable contributions at Jamaa Health, Philip's strategic marketing consultancy background boasts impressive accomplishments. He has successfully led teams, launched products, and developed campaigns generating over $490M in revenue, collaborating with esteemed partners and clients such as Google, Microsoft, and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Philip holds a Bachelor's degree in Marketing and a Master's of Business Administration in Finance and International Business, providing him with a strong foundation for driving Jamaa Health's success. Beyond his professional endeavors, he advocates for causes and organizations that support the community, exemplified by his support of an endowed scholarship at Lourdes University and his dedication to running a book club at the Marion Correctional Institute.
As a devoted father and husband, Philip's personal commitment to Jamaa Health stems from his belief that every individual deserves unbiased and qualified healthcare. Through his visionary leadership, Jamaa Health continues to make strides in eliminating healthcare disparities and ensuring that patients can find the care they need with trusted black physicians and healthcare providers.
 
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EP 150 DYMIERE FINCH

Dymiere Finch is a vibrant, young (28) executive hailing from Columbus, OH who holds several positions with the National Center for Urban Solutions (NCUS). Dymiere is the Executive Director over the state of Pennsylvania for NCUS, The African American Male Wellness Agency, and is also the Co-Coordinator for The Black Men’s Wellness Day. While overseeing these tasks, he is making changes in the black community throughout Pennsylvania.
 
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EP 149 BRENT JOHNSTONE

 Brent Johnstone: Fathers Read 365 (FR365)’s mission is to encourage fathers and/or caregivers to read daily with children in a variety of settings to develop literacy from birth. FR365 provides an early intervention method structured to increase the amount of books read and given away to preschoolers through kindergarten and create a culture of literacy. 
Since 2017, FR365 founders Brent Johnstone and Akeiff Staples have centered their work around four pillars: performing active readings and training parents to do the same at home; distributing free children’s books at events; encouraging family and community engagement; and producing original content to inform communities about the importance of literacy at a young age. Their efforts promote caregiver-child literacy activities, with an emphasis on fathers, as essential contributors to a child’s language, literacy, and cognitive development through holistic training that models active-reading strategies, provides caregivers the opportunity to practice and refine active-reading techniques, and provides families access to age-appropriate and culturally relevant reading materials. 
FathersRead365 was cofounded by Akeiff Staples and Brent Johnstone in 2017 after their history of work with youth in juvenile detention centers, social services, and schools illuminated a striking inability to function at grade level for reading and literacy. Having first met while attending Temple University and playing football, they decided to join forces in 2017 to focus their efforts at the earliest stages of child development (birth to 5 years old) and create a movement promoting the importance of reading to children daily. This video gives you a taste of what a reading experience is like when 
For the past five years, FathersRead365 has read to over 7,000 children in Philadelphia across over 300 classrooms, and distributed over 60,000 books.
 
See the Interview Video HERE

EP 148 NHLANHLA MAVUNDLA

Nhlanhla Mavundla @nhlanhla_mav A young man from South Africa. Studied Psychology and is currently  working in South Korea. “I am passionate about issues of black consciousness and making a difference in others lives.”
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EP 147 WAYNE BARNETT

 Wayne Barnett- Head, External Affairs, Cordia 
Mr. Barnett is responsible for development and supporting Cordia’s thermal district and distributed energy Infrastructure businesses across North America and advancing the company’s interests. He leads initiatives that build and execute brand awareness, strengthen marketing and communications, raise corporate visibility, foster strategic partnerships, and expand relationships with policy makers, energy infrastructure industry leaders, and other influencers and stakeholders.
 
Mr. Barnett has over 23 years of experience in the energy infrastructure and finance sectors including taxable and tax-exempt capital markets, public finance banking, integrated facility management (IFM),
demand side energy efficiency, thermal district, combined heat & power (CHP), Microgrid and distributed energy. Most recently, Mr. Barnett had similar responsibilities for developing and implementing the business development strategy for Facility Management and Energy Services in Aramark’s Higher Education division and Constellation, An Exelon Company’s Energy Service Company (ESCO) business in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions, with an emphasis on Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York, Connecticut, Rhode Island, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Vermont. Mr. Barnett’s previous experience includes A Vice President for NW Financial Group within their financial advisory and underwriting business where he worked on refunding and new money issuance of approximately $1.2 billion of taxable and tax-exempt bonds for the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission. An Institutional Fixed-Income Sales Associate with Wells Fargo & Company’s Institutional Brokerage and Corporate Trust divisions with sales coverage responsibility for middle-market corporations and government clients including, state, local municipalities and authorities. Fixed-Income trader for SunTrust Bank Corporation where he was a member of a trading team with responsibility for trading in excess $20 billion of US Government, Municipal, Mortgage-Backed Securities, Government Agency, Money Market, and Corporate bonds. Wayne began his career as an Analyst in the global funding group with Bank of America Corporation. As an analyst, he provided analytical support in managing balance sheet liquidity and distribution of the bank’s own debt instruments to middle market corporations, money managers, and government clients in furtherance of the organization’s funding needs.
See the Video Interview HERE