Frank E. Bolden

WASHINGTON - LeRoy Homer, the Black airline pilot who crashed United Airlines Flight #93 in the woods of Pennsylvania rather than have it hijacked by terrorists last September 11, civil rights legend Rev. Joseph E. Lowery, advertising executive James Farmer and veteran journalist Frank E. Bolden were honored recently by the National Newspaper Publishers Association, a federation of more than 200 Black newspapers with a readership exceeding 15 million.

Homer, a graduate of the Air Force Academy, was honored posthumously as national newsmaker of the year at a luncheon held at Howard University. Homer’s wife, Melodie, traveled from New Jersey to accept the award in a rare public appearance.

“Although painful to live with, it is not surprising to me that my husband, Leroy, would lose his life defending his airplane, fighting for the lives of those on board as well as those on the ground,” she told the audience. “Leroy was a loving husband, a wonderful father and an expert pilot. He was dedicated to his family, to his friends and to his community. He was an exceptional human being and a person I am very proud of. I thank you all for this award and accept it on his behalf.”

Lowery, chairman of the Black Leadership Forum and former president, board chair and co-founder of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, was presented the NorthStar Community Service Award.

Farmer, a longtime friend of the Black press and a vice president for General Motors Acceptance Corporation (GMAC), was presented one of NNPA’s Lifetime Achievement Awards. The other recipient was Frank E. Bolden, a reporter, editor and war correspondent for the “Pittsburgh Courier.” He was one of the first African Americans credentialed by the War Department to cover World War II.

NNPA President John Jake Oliver Jr. expressed appreciation to those who received awards as well as businesses that have shown extraordinary support to African American newspapers.
“As we celebrate the 175th anniversary of the Black press, I would like to take a moment to say thank you to our principle partners – Coca-Cola, Office Depot and Philip Morris and our gold sponsor, Lockheed Martin,” Oliver said. “Their presence here shows that they support the communities and households that our publications reach.”

Other sponsors for the National Newsmaker of the Year award were: the American Legacy Foundation, AOL Time-Warner, the Army, AT&T, Brown & Williamson, General Motors, PG&E, PhRMA and UPS.

The Congressional Black Caucus hosted a reception for publishers on Capitol Hill. The publishers also met with top officials of the Democratic and Republican national committees.

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormons) hosted a special showing of the Mark E. Mitchell Collection of African American History on display at the church’s Washington, D.C., Temple Visitors’ Center. The collection, believed to be one of the largest and most valuable in the United States, includes an original issue of “Freedom’s Journal,” the nation’s first Black newspaper; a signed first edition of Phillis Wheatley’s first book of poems; original letters from Frederick Douglass, W.E. B. DuBois, Paul Robeson, Jackie Robinson, Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, Booker T. Washington and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as well as other artifacts.