E X E C U T I V E D I R E C T O R ’ S M E S S A G E J o h n F . K y n e s - H i l l s b o r o u g h C o u n t y B a r A s s o c i a t i o n continued from page 12
In 2019 , BALS assisted more than 16,000 individuals and families on a wide range of complex legal matters .
Organizers say the goal of the three-year capital campaign is to raise funds to sustain and grow current BALS programs and to fund other special programs like its Veterans Medical-Legal Partnership Initiative .
If the campaign kickoff event in January is any indication , the Justice Works ! campaign is off to a fast start .
Hosted by Tampa ’ s own Thaddeus Bullard ( aka WWE Superstar Titus O ’ Neil ) and incoming BALS Board Chair , Yohance Pettis , the virtual event raised $ 140,000 toward the overall goal of $ 1.5 million .
During the virtual event , the former college roommates shared powerful client stories and drove home the overriding theme of the night : When justice works , our community wins .
To learn more or join the Justice Works ! campaign , visit : bals . org / justiceworks .
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Huge congratulations are in order for two Tampa legal legends .
The HCBA ’ s Diversity & Inclusion Committee recently presented Judge E . J . Salcines and Delano Stewart with Justice & Diversity Lifetime Achievement Awards for their significant contributions to diversity and equal justice in Tampa ’ s legal community .
The awards were presented at the HCBA ’ s Diversity Membership Luncheon in January , which was held virtually this year ( photos on page 35 ).
Judge Salcines , born in West Tampa in 1938 to immigrants from Spain , is widely admired for his steadfast professionalism and inspiring leadership during his legal career that spanned almost 55 years .
Among his many achievements , Salcines served as an elected prosecuting attorney for 16 years , first as Hillsborough County Solicitor and then as State Attorney . During that time , he hired the first African American , first disabled , and first female assistant state attorneys .
Later , he was appointed judge of the Second District Court of Appeal , serving 10 years until age-mandated retirement .
Tampa native Del Stewart was born in 1935 , and he earned his bachelor ’ s degree from Morehouse College in Atlanta , and later his law degree from Howard University in Washington , D . C .
Upon graduation in 1964 , Stewart returned to Tampa and entered private law practice . Stewart had a stellar career as a criminal and civil trial attorney , and after 50 years of practice , he retired in 2015 .
Among his many accomplishments , Stewart was the first African American Assistant Public Defender for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit ; he was the first attorney to head an integrated law firm ; and he played a critical role in helping to quell the 1967 riots in Tampa that ensued after the shooting of Martin Chambers , an African American teenager , by a white police officer .
Additionally , Stewart was the first African American elected to the HCBA Board of Directors .
Judge Salcines and Stewart both personify the high ideals and deep struggles associated with advancing diversity and inclusion in Tampa ’ s legal community and the community as a whole , and this noteworthy recognition by the HCBA is certainly well deserved . n
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Heather Long , Andrew Van Dam , Alyssa Fowers and Leslie Shapiro , “ The covid-19 recession is the most unequal in modern U . S . history ,” Washington Post ( Sept . 30 , 2020 ), available at https :// www . washingtonpost . com / graphics / 2020 / business / coronavirus-recession-equality / ( last visited March 1 , 2021 ).
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