Men of Success, Beaufort County Community College’s minority male mentoring group, hosted a Black History Month Black Tie Gala on Feb. 24.

The evening brought Alvin Powell, president of the Beaufort County Police Activities League; Dr. Daniel Wilson, associate dean at Nash Community College; and BCCC graduate Daniel Garza Salazar to campus to speak about the keys to success. The event raised funds for Men of Success to provide scholarships for minority males at BCCC.

Powell spoke about the need for black professionals to reach a hand back to help others excel in the fields in which they have attained success. He also mentioned that lack of physical fitness is starting to be an obstacle for black men hoping to go into law enforcement.

Wilson spoke about the need for students to continue their education. Wilson was responsible for starting the Men of Success group at BCCC during his tenure as director of admissions at the college.

When faced with adversity, Salazar kept plowing forward. The BCCC alumnus has gone on to study public relations at Campbell University. His ineligibility for certain kinds of financial aid has meant that he and his family run a landscaping business in the summer to pay for a large part of his tuition at the college.

BCCC Men of Success is led by Bishop James McIntyre, who serves as the program advisor and, also, pastor for Cornerstone Family Worship Center. The MOS success coaches, tutors and mentors are either current students, such as Maurice Griffin, Gerardo Alvarez-Gallegos and Jeffrey Egerton, or BCCC alumni such as Terry Graham. They represent some of the best that BCCC has to offer. Griffin and Alvarez are both members of the Student Government Association, with Alvarez serving as president. Graham is the owner of a local business, EZ Janitorial Services.

Each member of the core team focuses on a different subject for success: Griffin on positive relationships, Egerton on economic opportunity, Alvarez on social interaction, Graham on academic achievement and McIntyre on positive choices.

McIntyre said the goal of the group is to have positive relationships with students, which earns the right to be heard. If they can be heard, they have the opportunity to make a positive difference.

“What persuaded me to get involved was the passion from the group of men who wanted to see successful change in the lives of other men, both young and old, in addition to the disturbing news about minority male dropout rates and math scores across the nation,” he said. Relationship building is important because while some barriers at college can be removed, “there are barriers that happen at home and in the community that need addressing, also.”

Men of Success meets on the BCCC campus every Thursday from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and is open to all minority male attending the college.