(Photos by Courier photographer J.L. Martello)
Celebrating the valuable work of community leaders and advocates for youth and families, Nabhi Christian Ministries (NCM) of Pittsburgh honored two distinguished people at its annual NCM Awards dinner on Oct. 5 at the Rivers Club, Downtown, sponsored by Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, UPMC Life Changing Medicine and the New Pittsburgh Courier.
Dr. David G. Hall, MD, noted as one of the finest family physicians in Pittsburgh, was voted one of Pittsburgh’s Best Doctors by Best Doctors Inc. for four years in a row. Dr. Hall is the founding physician and Medical Director of East Liberty Family Health Care Center (ELFHCC) for the past 36 years.
ELFHCC was founded in 1982 in the basement of Eastminster Presbyterian Church in the heart of East Liberty. The faith-based center is dedicated to providing day-to-day, quality, whole-person health care to all, especially the poor, including the uninsured, underinsured and undeserved.
It now accommodates more than 40,000 patients each year in four locations; East Liberty, Lincoln-Lemington, Wilkinsburg and the Hill District.
“Dr. Hall’s work is impressive,” said the Rev. Jacque Fielder, pastor of Nabhi Christian Ministries and founder of the NCM Awards. “His contribution does significantly improve access to quality health care for all, including African American communities with higher percentages of poverty and chronic diseases. We are so pleased to honor Dr. Hall,” she said. “In addition, Dr. Hall provided a safe haven for teens and housed a local life skills-conflict resolution program in his center for young Black males during a time of rampant gang violence that endangered children and families and resulted in senseless deaths. His actions contributed to the success of Pittsburgh’s first gang peace rally held in Highland Park in 1996, which resulted in a public truce and cease-fire between five rival gangs, making him an ideal candidate for this award,” Ms. Fielder said.
Chief Darryl E. Jones, PhD, CFO, EFO, is the first African American appointed Chief of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire. Chief Jones is responsible for the leadership of over 650 uniformed personnel and all operations of the Bureau. Under his leadership, the Bureau expanded its Free Smoke Detector Program, initiated the Risk Watch safety program that teaches safety techniques to students grades K-6 as part of the health curriculum and refurbished its Company Inspection Program. One hundred percent of its personnel is certified to the Firefighter II level. Because of fire safety education, improved firefighter training, and upgrading of equipment and apparatus, the ISO rating for the City of Pittsburgh improved from a Class 4 fire department to a Class 1 fire department.
Chief Jones is an instructor for the National Fire Academy, the Pennsylvania State Fire Academy and Point Park University. Chief Jones has been a firefighter since 1986 and a chief officer since 1995.
“We are so proud of Chief Jones’ remarkable performance and leadership excellence in building strong communities through extraordinary degrees of risk and sacrifice in the heroic mission to protect life, property and the environment. He is an inspirational change agent,” Fielder said. “He is committed to the safety and training of Pittsburgh firefighters, as well as the citizens of Pittsburgh, making him another ideal candidate for this award.”
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