Bill Darling exemplifies service, leadership, and unwavering commitment to advancing diversity, access, and opportunity for youth in South St. Petersburg. For more than a decade, he has transformed youth golf as a board member and dedicated volunteer with The First Tee, contributing over 5,500 service hours to introduce hundreds of minority and underserved young people to the game—and to its core values of integrity, respect, and perseverance.

He also helped establish The First Tee Mentoring Center at Twin Brooks Golf Course, which provides tutoring, academic support, and life-skills development for local children.

Bill’s community impact has been recognized through numerous honors, including the Tampa Bay Lightning Community Hero Award, the City of St. Petersburg Good Neighbor Award, the Jordan Park Nostalgia Association. and recognition from the American Red Cross.

Dr. Byron Anthony Green-Calisch is a seasoned leader with 13 years of expertise in developing and implementing impactful Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives. He holds a Doctorate of Education from North Carolina State University. His educational and research background centers in the intersection of Adult Education and D.E.I (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion).

As the Executive Vice President of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, & Accessibility at PRX, he spearheaded a comprehensive DEI strategy, resulting in a notable 20% increase in employee engagement. In addition to his role at PRX, he serves as the Founder of Green Phoenix Solutions Coaching and Consulting, providing executive coaching and bespoke DEI strategies for clients in various sectors. Dr. Green-Calisch also analyzes organizational equity, develops DEI strategies, and facilitates training programs.

Dr. Green-Calisch has recently joined forces with Representative Michele Rayner to start a social justice center called Justice Over Everything. This organization centers intersectionality in its support of community members. It operates at the Individual level providing support to those who have been caught in the legal system, builds coalitions to further impact, and systemically to ensure we address the root cause of our issues.

Thomas “Jet” Jackson was a legendary figure in St. Petersburg’s Black history — an athlete, community builder, and cultural anchor whose influence still reverberates across generations. Known for his speed on the football field and his strength as a leader off it, Jet Jackson dedicated his life to uplifting youth, creating safe spaces, and preserving the cultural identity of South St. Petersburg during and after segregation.

He is widely credited as one of the early forces behind the founding of St. Petersburg’s MLK Parade, helping organize the event that would become a cultural mainstay for the city.

He created and led youth recreation programs that kept generations of Black children engaged, disciplined, and safe during times of systemic exclusion.

Honored with the renaming of Wildwood Rec Center, now officially the Thomas “Jet” Jackson Recreation Center, solidifying his impact as a cornerstone of community history.

Became a bridge between City Hall and the Black community, pushing for resources and visibility in historically neglected neighborhoods.

Joseph E. Savage, a sanitation worker, spearheaded a movement leading 211-300 of his fellow workers to walk off their jobs in May 1968.

The strike for better pay and working conditions lasted 116 days during which racial tensions exploded in various ways. A civil emergency was declared.

The strike is seen as a milestone in local civil rights history. The black community united over the issue and learned how to negotiate with the city. The city council passed a law allowing the workers to form a union that was established in 1970, and the Community Alliance was born.

The man, Joseph E. Savage, was much more than a sanitation worker. He was more than a man of courage who despite his fears during the strike never gave up.

He was a church-going man and a singer widely known throughout Tampa Bay. He was a deacon, president of the male chorus, a member of the gospel chorus and vice-president of the No. 1 choir at Galilee Missionary Baptist Church.

In 2006, the city honored Savage by naming its sanitation headquarters at 2001 28th St. N, the Joseph E. Savage Complex. The man known for smoking cigars probably never considered himself a hero, but there are many people in this city who do.

He was a History teacher at Largo High School for 23 years

He was also a Minority Recruiter for Pinellas County Schools for 10 years. During this time he had the highest number of African American teachers to receive contracts to teach in Pinellas County.

After retirement in 2003, he Founded Bridging the Achievement Gap; an after school tutorial program  to help minority students earn a diploma.

He has received numerous awards both Nationally and Locally,  just to name a few;

National Education Association “ Martin Luther King Memorial Award” 

Shaft of Light Award – Bethune - Cookman’s highest honor for a graduate

The Magnificent Alumnus Award

Nominated for Who’s Who in American Colleges and Universities

He received a proclamation  from Pinellas County Commission on Dr. M.L. King Day of Service

He received a Proclamation from the City of Largo during Black History Month

He received the “Key to the County” – celebrating 50 years of service to the community as well as to the county. 

YMCA of the Suncoast “Volunteer of the Year” for Youth Development

Servant leadership defines the life and work of Rev. Dr. Kenneth F. Irby. 

He currently serves as the City of St. Petersburg’s first Faith & Community Justice Liaison and is the former 30th pastor of the 131-year-old Historic Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church. In all he does, Rev. Irby champions justice for all and intentional equity in both ministry and civic life, driven by a deep love for God and humanity.

Rev. Irby is the co-founder and president of Men & Women In the Making, an innovative role-modeling and academic enrichment initiative serving BIPOC youth. His commitment to community impact has earned him numerous honors, including the 2025 St. Petersburg Chapter of the National Black Nurses Association Community Impact Award, the Greater Haitian American Leadership Council Community Impact Award, the NAACP President’s Award (2024), and the NCNW Outstanding Community Leadership Award (2023).

He previously managed the City of St. Petersburg’s Not My Child Safe Summer Campaign and played a key role in launching the Cohort of Champions during his eight-year tenure as Director of Community Intervention and Juvenile Outreach with the St. Petersburg Police Department. Rev. Irby also served 13 years as an Episcopal Officer, leading the Sons of Allen Men’s Ministry and becoming the first Media Ministry Director for Florida and the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, earning the Bishop’s Award from the West Coast Annual Conference.

In addition to his ministry and civic leadership, Rev. Irby is an independent visual consultant and diversity trainer. He is a former senior faculty member and group leader at The Poynter Institute for Media Studies, where he founded the internationally recognized Photojournalism Program in 1995 and later co-created the nationally recognized Write Field Wraparound Program in partnership with the Tampa Bay Rays and local organizations.

Affectionately known as Rev. Kenny, he has traveled globally advocating for justice ministry, dialogue across difference, and the amplification of marginalized voices. His distinguished career includes receiving the NPPA Sprague Award for lifetime achievement, serving as chair of the Pulitzer Prize photojournalism juries, and judging the Hearst Collegiate Journalism Awards.

Rev. Irby currently serves as Vice Chair of Cross & Anvil Human Services and as a board member of the National Press Photographers Foundation. In 2025, he completed six years on the Trustee Board of the Foundation for a Healthy St. Petersburg, including two terms as Vice Chair, earning the Hexagon Award.

Rev. Kenny and his wife Karen, married for 41 years, are the proud parents of four adult daughters and grandparents to six. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Photojournalism from Boston University, a graduate certificate in Multicultural Management from the University of Missouri, and an Honorary Doctor of Divinity.