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August/September 2025 | maconmagazine.com 85 You can get involved or donate to the 100 Black Men of Macon/Middle Georgia by visiting 100blackmenofmmg.com Mercer University, and became a member of 100 Black Men in 2022. One of the younger members, after working for the district attorney's office, he is now program director for school-based programs for the Boys and Girls Clubs of Central Georgia. "The best thing about the 100 [Black Men] is the community support from local government, community-based organizations. We've had the backing from every entity in the community," Onyekeuluje said, who spoke while "up in the mountains" at Camp Sidney Dew in late June. There have been many successes pointed out among the young men that the Macon-Middle Georgia chapter has nurtured. Among them is Danny Glover, whose college education at Tennessee State University was financed by the 100 Black Men. Glover, who grew up on the south side of Macon, recently announced he is running for Congress in Georgia's 2nd Congressional District, a seat that has been held by Sanford Bishop since 1993. Another Macon native who has benefited greatly from the group is musician Gavin Rushing. As a teenager, Rushing attended Berklee College of Music in Boston and earned his bachelor's degree. Rushing, who is trained in the classics, also plays organ, drums, and guitar. His repertoire includes gospel, jazz R&B, and funk. Rushing, who performed a concert for Macon's 100 Black Men chapter in July at the Douglass Theatre, has become worldly. He is currently pursuing a Master of Fine Arts at Berklee's campus in Valencia, Spain. And according to Pitts, who used to sponsor the Ebony Fashion Fair that benefitted the United Negro College Fund, what does the 100 Black Men of Macon-Middle Georgia have planned for the 30th anniversary of the chapter in 2026? For the Brothership, a trip to the mothership. A journey to New York City, where it all began. "Without question, what is most impressive to me is that we had a group of men come together to provide opportunities for young men." earned master's degrees and completed doctorates. Although the 100 Black Men get some support from public and private entities, the members of the organization donate their own personal funds, and also raise money to support their efforts. One example from the Macon chapter is an annual charity golf tournament honoring the late Head Start Director Jimmy Samuels. Garrett Williams, current president of the Macon- Middle Georgia 100 Black Men chapter, is also the CEO of Central Georgia Council of Boy Scouts of America. In recent years, the group has adopted Bruce Elementary School on Houston Avenue and has started Cub Scout and Boy Scouts Troop 100. In the summer, some deserving Cub and Boy Scouts get to go camping. Late June of this year, some of the scouts from Bruce Elementary went to Camp Sidney Dew, located in the northwest corner of the state near Rome. Nmandi Onyekeuluje, Dan Morgan, and Sabir Muhammad directed the scouts at the camp, during which four students who graduated from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts received their "Arrows of Light" in a ceremony while at the camp. Onyekeuluje moved to Macon in 2013, attended ABOVE 2024 induction/ pinning ceremony added six new members, including 5 Under 40 Young Leader Darius Maynard.