Rev. Howard Bryant Sr. &
Rev. Doris Glaspy Leadership Award
For those who have demonstrated outstanding
leadership in their community and beyond.
Rev. Howard Bryant Sr.
First Black Pastor of
Roseville Presbyterian Church (1973-1976)
Reverend Howard Bryant Sr. became the first black Pastor of Roseville Presbyterian Church in 1973, ministering to a multicultural congregation. In that same year he was elected to the Board of Directors of United Hospital in Newark. In 1974 he organized I.C.U.M. (Intercity Unified Ministry, which consisted of 6 Black churches in the Presbytery of Newark.
The following year, he was elected to the Personnel Committee of the Synod/Northeast and became a Charter Member of the Roseville Coalition, Newark New Jersey. From 1976-1985 He served as Associate Executive Council on Administrative Services, United Presbyterian Church, and in 1985 he was elected as Eastern Area Representative for the, Board of Pensions, which covered 10 states on the eastern seaboard (21 Presbyteries in NE, NJ and NY. In 1991 Rev. Bryant became a member of the Committee on Ministry in the Newark Presbytery, which afforded him the opportunity to travel for 22 days in the Middle East, Israel, Egypt and Jordan. Five years later he was elected to serve as Trustee of the Synod of Northeast. From 1993-1996 he served as Executive Director of the National Black Presbyterian Caucus, and later began the Protestant Ministry at Kean University Ecumenical Protestant Ministry, funded by Third Westminster/Synod of Northeast; he was designated as protestant campus chaplain. In 1996, he attended the California Negro Leadership Conference and worked on the Implementation of Poverty Program following the Watts riots. In 1998 Rev. Bryant was elected to the General Council of Elizabeth Presbytery and was elected as chairperson in June of 2001. He was given the “Edler G.Hawkins” award by NBPC in April 2000. In 2009 he was Installed as Moderator of Presbytery of Elizabeth, which was composed of 50 churches; 4 New Church Development Projects. 2011 he accepted the position of Internet Coordinator of the Circle of Elders (Retired African American Clergy and Lay persons of the Presbyterian Church. In 2013, he was elected to serve a 3-year term on the Board of Trustees of the Presbytery of Elizabeth, and in 2014 he was elected Membership Chairperson for the Union County Interfaith Coordinating Council. The following year, Rev. Bryant became a member of the New Jersey Clergy Coalition for Justice, and later that year he received the “Humanitarian of the Year” award from Community Access Unlimited, Elizabeth New Jersey.
Rev. Doris Glaspy
Pastor Emeritus, First Woman Pastor of
Roseville Presbyterian Church (1997 - 2015)
Reverend Doris Glaspy is an ordained Minister of Word and Sacrament. She and her husband, Jay joined Roseville Presbyterian Church in 1970. She received a Master of Divinity from New Brunswick Theological Seminary and a doctoral degree in urban ministry. In 1997, she was called as pastor by her home congregation as Roseville’s first female pastor to serve.
Reverend Glaspy’s service in the larger church includes representing the Newark Presbytery as Commissioner to the General Assembly, Moderator of Presbytery Mission, member of the Committee on Preparation for Ministry and member of the Committee on Ministry. On the Synod of the Northeast, she has served as Moderator of Mission and Outreach Advocacy, a member of the Personnel Committee and the Board of Trustees. She and husband Jay traveled to Brazil in 1997 with the Synod’s New Eyes Mission Program. In 2003, they were featured in Essence Magazine as one of the couples whose marriage has sustained the ages. Although retired from full time ministry, she continues to serve on the Commission on Ministry for the Presbytery. She did Supply preaching in the former Newark and Elizabeth Presbyteries. She serves as liaison to assigned churches for COM. assigned as Moderator (and assistant) for congregations as they seek a pastor. She is grateful to God for grace and strength and for the unwavering love and support of her husband Jay of 65 years. She and her husband have five children -- Cheryl, Stephanie, Jacqueline, Jay Jr. and Brian, eleven grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Roseville Trailblazer Award
Vivian Cox - Fraser
President & Chief Executive Officer
Urban League of Essex County
Vivian Cox Fraser is the President and Chief Executive Officer of the Urban League of Essex County (ULEC), one of the oldest and largest affiliates of the National Urban League.
Since becoming its President and CEO in 2004, Vivian Cox Fraser has led the Urban League of Essex County’s growth and transition from a social services agency to a comprehensive community development corporation.
For those who have gone above and beyond
nourishing, engaging and embracing
this community.
She had a distinguished corporate career in world-class organizations such as Prudential, Credit Suisse and CIGNA before joining the Urban League. Mrs. Fraser has successfully guided The League’s organizational progression -- establishing the Financial Opportunity Center, a job-creating social enterprise, affordable housing development and strategic community organizing. These programs play a vital role in its mission to promote economic empowerment as a key driver for social change.
Mrs. Fraser’s own personal history drives her commitment to advance economic and social justice for all. She was taught early on that education was critical to improving one’s future. Growing up in Washington, DC, she lived “first-hand” the disparities of location where geography determines access to resources that determine the future opportunities of so many urban youngsters. Recognizing that quality education paves the pathway to economic opportunity, she ensures that it is integrated into every program and service area at The League.
Mrs. Fraser is a graduate of Goucher College and Yale University, where she was a National Science Foundation Fellow. She earned her Master’s Degree in Economics. She is married and has three daughters.
She's a light in this community, trailblazing a better tomorrow for the enjoyment and benefit of everyone in the Greater Newark area.
Alice Blaney - Mary Garrett
Service Award
Honoring the work and ministries of historic members
of Roseville Presbyterian Church who have responded
to Christ’s call in nurturing our congregation & community.
Mary Pearce
Former Secretary, Roseville Presbyterian Church
A native of Montclair, New Jersey, Mary Pearce worked many years with the Teamsters Local 814-Moving & Storage Welfare and Pension Funds and later went on to work with theFederation of College teachers. In recognition of her contributions to the organization, she became its first Membership Department Coordinator. She was later offered a senior staff position with the National Professional Education Division of Coopers & Lybrand, one of the “Big 8” accounting firms. During her time at C&L, Ms. Pearce was invited by Messrs.
Norman Hill and Bayard Rustin, President and Chairman respectively of the A. Phillip Randolph Institute, to become the Institute’s new Administrative Director. Mary assisted in the planning and implementation of various Institute national programs and dedications, including the U.S. Post Office A. Philip Randolph Stamp Commemoration in NYC; she also coordinated the organization’s annual National Conference of 1000 trade unionists and civil rights activists held throughout the United States. Ms. Pearce later became the new administrator of the New York Society for Ethical Culture housed in the landmark facility at 64 th Street and Central Park in Manhattan. She was the first coordinator of the NYC APRI/Black Trade Unionist Leadership Committee’s Annual Awards Dinner. She is a recipient of the “Mary McLeod Bethune Achievement Award” in business for the NJ Sections of the NCNW and received the “Meeting Planner of the Year Award” from the National Coalition of Black Meeting Planners. She is the recipient of the “Pop and Jazz Artistry Zenith Award” for Career Achievement and Community Service. She has served on the Defense Fund Chair Women’s Concerns Team of the Synod of the Northeast; she has served as Deacon and Elder at Roseville, and she became the secretary at Roseville Presbyterian Church, where she has been a proud member for approximately 50 years. She retired December 2021 after having been employed for more than 18 years. She is the proud mother of one daughter, Cassandra L. McNair.