NAACP Freedom Fund Banquet
The Urgency of Now
Presented by NAACP Bremerton Unit 1134 and the Admiral Theatre Foundation
Saturday, September 20, 2025
Reception 5 PM | Program 6 PM
Tickets $90 (incl. dinner and fees)
To sponsor or donate a silent auction or dessert dash item, please click here to view and download documents.
NAACP Bremerton Unit 1134 and the Admiral Theatre Foundation proudly present the 2025 NAACP Freedom Fund Banquet / "The Urgency of Now." This is a community event in which we celebrate community leaders, provide a platform for NAACP advocacy areas of focus, community empowerment, ACT-SO, civil rights, political education, community networking, and community unity. This is the only fundraising event for your local NAACP Bremerton.
This year's festivities include live entertainment from Lady Vee and featured speakers including Dr. Carl B. Mack. This special event includes community awards, dinner, silent auction, dessert dash, 50/50 raffle, raise the paddle and more. If you'd like to provide a sponsorship to support this event, please contact Robert Harris at president@naacpbremerton.org. Sponsorship levels range from Diamond to Bronze.
ABOUT DR. CARL B. MACK
Dr. Carl B. Mack was born in Jackson, Miss. He is a graduate and Distinguished Engineering Fellow of Mississippi State University, where he received a Bachelor of Science degree in mechanical engineering. On May 8, 2010, he was awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree by Clarkson University.
On March 1, 2005, Mack was named as the fourth executive director of the National Society of Black Engineers (NSBE), one of the nation’s largest student-governed organizations. His presence at NSBE was immediately felt. In each of his first five years, the organization set records for membership, reaching 35,776 members in 2010, up from its previous high of 12,842 before his arrival. He has also been instrumental in increasing NSBE’s financial resources to record highs: helping expand the organization’s cash reserves from $3.5 million to $9.0 million; securing a largest-ever grant of $1 million from a NSBE sponsor; helping build NSBE’s top-level sponsorship to record levels; bringing in hundreds of thousands of dollars to strengthen NSBE’s IT infrastructure; pushing attendance at NSBE’s Annual Convention to nearly 10,000 attendees and working with NSBE’s National Executive Board to pay off the mortgage on NSBE’s new World Headquarters building, among other highlights. His extraordinary leadership has led to an increase in visibility for the organization, with appearances on CNN’s Lou Dobbs Tonight and ABC’s Good Morning America, and recognition in Ebony magazine as one of the Top 150 Black Leaders in America.
In July 2009, Adm. Gary Roughead, Chief of Naval Operations, presented Mack with the National Naval Officers Association’s top honor for work in the field of diversity: the Capt. Charles L. Tompkins Award. To help fill the pipeline to engineering careers with greater numbers of minorities, in the Summer of 2007, Mack founded NSBE’s Summer Engineering Experience for Kids (SEEK) Academy.
To date, he has secured approximately $3 million in funding for the program, which utilizes NSBE’s collegiate engineering members to expose African-American children as early as third grade to the world of engineering. SEEK now serves students in Washington, D.C., and Columbus, Ohio, with plans to expand to Oakland, Calif. and Chicago, Ill. In July 2010, Mack spearheaded the awarding of scholarships to 29 St. Lucian students to attend the Illinois Institute of Technology, in part by securing a $275,000 donation from the donor-advised fund of Goldman Sachs & Co.
Before joining NSBE, Mack worked as an engineer with METRO – King County in Seattle, Wash., and coordinated the county’s award-winning Minority Engineering Internship Program. He also served as president of the Seattle King County Branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). During his tenure, the branch won the 2004 Class 1-A Thalheimer Award as the top branch in the country.
Because of his significant contributions in the arena of civil rights, Mack was listed as one of the 25 Most Influential people in the greater Seattle area. Upon his departure from the Greater Seattle area, both the City of Seattle and the King County government named Feb. 12, 2005 Carl B. Mack Day. Mack is a Lifetime Member of NSBE and a Life Member of the NAACP. He also sits on the Minority Advisory Board of the Bagley College of Engineering at Mississippi State University and on the Board of Directors of SAE Foundation (Society of Automotive Engineers). Mack resides in Fort Washington, Md., with his sons, Joshua and Jonathan, and his wife, Jamiyo, a chemical engineer whom he met at NSBE’s 2000 Annual National Convention. He also has a daughter, LaShaundra Johnson, who resides in Jackson, Miss.
Dinner Menu
Dinner service includes your choice of beef, chicken, or a vegetarian entree with sides, salad and bread.
Beef
Beef Medallions with Mushroom Demi-Glace
Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Seasonal Vegetable Chefs Choice
Classic Caesar Salad
Fresh Rolls and Butter
Chicken
Chicken Picatta with lemon and garlic butter caper sauce
Garlic Mashed Potatoes & Gravy
Seasonal Vegetable Chefs Choice
Classic Caesar Salad
Fresh Rolls and Butter
Vegetarian
Eggplant Parmesan with Parmesan Cheese, Marinara, Mozzarella Cheese and Dried Basil
Roasted Small Red Halved Potatoes, Roasted Asparagus
Classic Caesar Salad
Fresh Rolls and Butter