VCU news

By Marcia Meredith

L. Douglas Wilder, the nation’s first-ever elected African-American governor, will be honored during a Jan. 20 reception and dinner commemorating the 10^th anniversary of his historic inauguration. The event will be hosted by Virginia Gov. James S. Gilmore III and VCU President Eugene P. Trani, Ph.D., at VCU’s Stuart C. Siegel Center, 1200 W. Broad St. Three former governors, two United States Senators and a Congressman are slated to attend the gala.

Among those speaking at the event are: Former Virginia governors George Allen (1994 - 1998); Gerald L. Baliles (1986 - 1990); former governor (1982 - 1986) and current U.S. Sen. Charles S. Robb; U.S. Sen. John Warner; U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott; Lt. Gov. John H. Hager; Attorney General Mark Earley; former Secretary of Education James W. Dyke, Jr.; Virginia Black Caucus chair Jerrauld Jones and Richmond City Mayor Tim Kaine.

Proceeds from the dinner will launch the L. Douglas Wilder Scholars Program. The statewide scholarship program is designed for exemplary students who choose to attend a college or university in Virginia. The program will be administered by VCU. An advisory board for the scholars program will be named the night of the anniversary dinner.

Sworn in as the nation’s first black governor on Jan. 13, 1990, Wilder served as Virginia’s 65^th chief executive for four years. At the time when the U.S. was in a recession, Financial World Magazine twice ranked Virginia as the nation’s best managed state in America during Wilder’s governorship. His term also was highlighted by a precedent-setting gun control law that restricts most handgun purchases to only one per month, following mandated citizen background checks and waiting periods -- the first law of its kind in the country.

Wilder’s first historic marker was when he was elected Virginia’s first black senator in 1969, a post he was elected to five consecutive terms. Also, from 1985 - 1989, Wilder served as Virginia’s first black lieutenant governor.

Born on Jan. 17, 1931, Wilder was raised in Richmond by his parents, Robert Judson Wilder, a son of slaves, and his mother Beulah Olive Richards who was born to freed African-Americans in Charles City County, Va.

Drafted in the United States Army in 1952, he served in the Korean War. Wilder earned a Bronze Star for heroism following his participation in the rescue of U.S. soldiers and the capturing of enemy troops.

Despite being banned from Virginia law schools – which at the time refused blacks admission – Wilder received a law degree in 1959 from Howard University School of Law in Washington, D.C. After passing the bar, he established a law firm which was one of the few minority owned businesses in Virginia.

Tickets to the event are still available. Price categories are: $1,250 for a Patron table; $2,500 for a Partner table and $5,000 for a Founding Partner table. Each table can seat up to 10 guests. Individual tickets can be purchased for $100. For more information, call (804) 828-1200.