On October 30, 2022, Roosevelt Williams III, CEO of Young Black & N' Business (YB&NB) and his YB&NB Team received the Peacemaker Award of the San Diego Coastal Rotary Club in front of their mural at the intersection of Euclid and Imperial Avenues which they have dubbed “The Four Corners of Love.” The Peacemaker Award is designed to regularly honor distinguished and hard working San Diego community members or organizations throughout the year who have made a significant difference in promoting, creating, or facilitating peace initiatives and transforming or preventing conflict while exemplifying the Rotary ideal of Service Above Self. The Peacemaker Award recognition also helps promote awareness of peace & conflict resolution and conflict prevention initiatives to better understand what is happening on the ground and who are the leaders working on the front lines.
Roosevelt Williams III's grassroots efforts and commitment to help build goodwill and peace, as well as unique accomplishments through economic development actions as the CEO of Young Black & 'N Business to bring people together to help them develop or connect to economic opportunities that build positive peace in San Diego are very noble efforts. Congratulations Roosevelt as he and his YBNB team are now welcomed into a growing select group of Peacemakers worthy of special recognition.
YBNB is a community organization devoted to serving and motivating the overlooked and the underserved majority working together as one to be healthy, happy and successful. They support people to empower themselves through business development programming, entrepreneurship education and events, as well as charitable events while inspiring others to be their best selves to prosper and share the wealth as they promote their motto: "IF IT IS TO BE, IT IS UP TO US!”
Roosevelt is also currently working as a Community Development Specialist for the City of San Diego and is appointed as one of the lead movers and shakers overseeing the Promise Zones Initiative to help revive under resourced areas throughout San Diego in particular around Southeast San Diego. In order to get to this level, Roosevelt learned a lot from his great-granddad as a kid growing up in Valencia Park in San Diego. He learned a trade — cobblery — and a whole lot more. Matthew Cook Sr. taught his great-grandson honor, integrity, “how to make your name a good name,” Williams said. He taught him how to look a person in the eye, how to work, how to save money, how to maintain a home. He even taught the youngster etiquette, like how to behave at the dinner table. His great-grandfather worked two, sometimes three jobs. He worked at North Island naval base and as a cobbler. Roosevelt picked up the trade and started Sole Cobbler repair shop, which he ran for a while before turning his attention to YB&NB full time.
Today, Roosevelt, 36, wants to pass on all that he learned to entrepreneurs through the business organization he founded. Roosevelt, the CEO and president of YB&NB, provides instruction and inspiration to business people through the organization’s events, programs and digital magazine. He said he looks to elders, like his great-grandfather, for leadership skills. “He told me it’s not about me; it’s about we.”
YBNB will be hosting their annual Black & Gold Gala event on December 4th at Sycuan this year. More details can be found at: https://mailchi.mp/2108bfc5d40b/young-black-n-business-upcoming-events?fbclid=IwAR1W9RcWLEpK3FNDOTf5p2AzFA_ozbofCOMGTuZjP63yNxLCidtMbonigUU
YBNB Website: https://www.joinybnb.com/
