Each February, Westchester County hosts a Trailblazer Awards celebration for Black History Month. The award recognizes outstanding citizens who have made substantial contributions to Westchester County. This annual event has been well attended and received by community leaders and major organizations throughout the county.

The 2009 program, "Trailblazers: Preserving our Legacy", was held Feb. 5, from 6-8 p.m. at Benzinger Hall at Manhattanville College in Purchase. The Trailblazers award program was sponsored by County Executive Andy Spano, the African American Advisory Board and the county Board of Legislators.

Welcoming addresses were given by Deputy County Executive Susan Tolchin, college President Richard Berman and Board of Legislators Chairman Bill Ryan. Barbara Edwards, chairman of the Westchester County African American Advisory Board (AAAB), spoke and several AAAB members participated: Diana Burruss and Julius Ford presented the awards; Ernest Prince was the master of ceremonies; and Reginald Bush introduced the video presentation.

The 2009 awardees join a growing and impressive list of highly distinguished honorees. This year’s awardees include a filmmaker, restauranteur, schools superintendent, lawyer and physician.

The Cab Calloway Award
Malcolm Lee, a screenwriter and film director, launched his career with “Morningside Prep,” a semi-autobiographical account of his experiences at predominately white prep schools and debuted on Showtime in 1997. He has since added five more films to his resume, most recently “Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins” and “Soul Men.” He lives in New Rochelle.

The Madame C. J. Walker Award
Sylvia Woods, the “Queen of Soul Food,” is the founder and owner of the world famous Sylvia’s Restaurant in Harlem. Her family-owned enterprise includes Sylvia’s Also Venue, Sylvia’s Catering Corp., a nationwide line of Sylvia’s food products, two cookbooks and ATOC, Inc., a real estate firm. The Woods family also operates a foundation that gives scholarships to local children. Mrs. Woods is so well known that her 80th birthday was made a New York holiday. She lives in Mt. Vernon

The Cecil H. Parker Award
Judith Johnson is the first woman and African American to serve as superintendent of the Peekskill schools. She has received wide recognition for her pioneering leadership reform initiatives and build a reputation for confronting pressing educational issues such as teacher quality, student achievement and parent involvement as well as improving the high school graduation rate.

The Dr. Valiere Alcena Award
Dr. Mary Lane Cobb, a Tarrytown resident, is a retired physician who operated a family practice in Tarrytown before going on to concentrate on women’s issues, first at the Margaret Sanger Research Bureau, then at the Westchester County Department of Health. She remains very involved with community health and wellness programs and has served as co-chair to the Westchester Women’s Health Partnership, where she has made awareness of HIV/AIDS a priority.

The Betty Shabazz Award
Melvin Burruss is a Peekskill resident and attorney for the New York Liquidation Bureau in New York City. As a producer and host of the award-winning local cable television law program, The Neighborhood Law Center, Inc.,” he educates residents about legal issues as well as their rights and responsibilities within the legal system. He is also president of the African American Men of Westchester.

Enjoy video moments from the 2007 Trailblazer Awards ceremony (04:00 min.). We also encourage you to visit Westchester TV to view additional videos on the Trailblazer awards (04:12 min.).