The Board of Directors
BECMA is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors consisting of no more than 15 voting Directors. The board is responsible for managing the strategic direction of the organization as well as providing an important check on the Executive Director. They review organizational matters at a high-level and ensure it is on track to meet its annual and strategic goals. Directors meet quarterly and discuss areas of opportunity for growth, organizational fiscal matters, public policy, and other items relevant to the overall mission. Directors also provide financial and operational support.
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Farrah Belizaire
Founder, LiteWork Events -
Terryl Calloway
CEO, Calloway Graphix, Printing, and Marketing Inc. -
Herby Duverné
President & CEO, Windwalker Group
Farrah Belizaire, a native of Brockton, MA, is a 2011 graduate of Boston University, where she earned her BS in Health Science and MS in Administrative Studies. She is an active member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. and Boston University’s Black Alumni Leadership Council.
In 2012 Farrah was inspired to launch her passion project, LiteWork Events. LiteWork Events is a social event brand connecting Boston’s urban young professionals. LiteWork creates spaces that bring out the city’s most culturally vibrant and upwardly mobile demographic, providing underrepresented groups an opportunity to find community and authentic relationship-building. Her efforts have been featured in the Boston Globe, the Bay State Banner and WCBV Channel 5. Past partners have included the Museum of Fine Arts, the Huntington Theatre Company, the W Hotel, the Lawn on D, Diageo and PASHA Entertainment.
Diversity and inclusion is also engrained in Farrah’s professional career. Farrah currently serves as Manager of Diversity and Inclusion in the Division of Graduate Medical Sciences at Boston University School of Medicine. In this role, Farrah is responsible for developing and implementing programs and strategies that promote diversity and inclusion as it relates to recruitment and retention of underrepresented students, which includes taking an active role in developing pipeline programs. In this role, she partners with national STEM networks, industry leaders and local stakeholders to increase diverse representation in the biomedical sciences.
Terryl is a Boston native who earned his B.S. in Business Administration from Northeastern University. In 1984 he founded Calloway Entertainment Incorporated (CE), a firm specializing in event planning and concert promotion.
Among the notable success of CE has been the production and promotion of more than 2,000 concerts and events given by performers such as Prince, Stevie Wonder, Anita Baker, Luther Vandross, Boyz II Men, and Destiny’s Child. CE also promoted the 29th Annual African American Student Union of the Harvard School of Business, The Color Purple (Play) and the Beantown Jazz Festival.
Mr. Calloway was the owner of the Gallery Night Club for five years and is currently the owner of Calloway Graphix, Printing and Marketing Inc., a professional printing and marketing firm with clients throughout New England.
For the past five years he has worked with the current owners of Slade’s Bar and Grill promoting highly successful regular and special events at the restaurant.
Herby is President and CEO of the Windwalker Group, a physical and cybersecurity firm. The company possesses a Defense Security Services secret clearance, operates in multiple states and currently holds contracts with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and several with the U.S. Department of Defense.
Before becoming an entrepreneur, Herby held the position as director of emergency management and deputy director of aviation security at the Massachusetts Port Authority (Massport), which oversees Logan International Airport. Before Massport, he served as the Regional Security Manager at State Street Corporation and also worked as a security professional and manager for several national retail corporations including Kmart and the TJX Companies.
Herby is the recipient of multiple awards and recognition such as the 2003 State Street’s William S. Edgerly Community Service Award, the 2005 Northeastern University’s Medallion Award, the 2005 YMCA’s Black Achievers Award, the 2016 Boston’s GK25 and the 2016 ILC’s Immigrant Entrepreneur of the Year Award for Business Growth. He earned both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees at Northeastern University. He and his wife, Claire reside in Woburn, MA and have three children Ashley, Jayden, and Ashden.
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Priscilla Flint-Banks
Vice President & Co-Founder, Black Economic Justice Institute (BEJI) -
Gary Vee
CEO, Evee Security Consulting Group -
Lamont Clemons, Treasurer
Executive Vice President, S-Cel-O Painting
Priscilla is the co-founder of the Black Economic Justice Institute, Inc. (BEJI), a nonprofit 501( c)3 tax-exempt organization with a goal to advocate and develop programs that address justice and economic opportunity for black and other people of color of Boston.
Ms. Banks was born and raised in Roxbury, Massachusetts. She was educated in the Boston Public Schools and attended Cambridge College in Cambridge, Massachusetts where she received a Master’s Degree in Education. Her career started in finance and she worked for several banks including Bank Boston and was the Payroll and General Services Manager for the City of Boston’s Treasury Department.
Ms. Banks is a licensed minister and an active member of the Bethlehem Baptist Church in Dorchester, Massachusetts. She is the author of the book, “I Look Back and Wonder How I Got Over.”
Most recently, Priscilla ran a grassroots campaign for Boston City Council At-Large, which highlighted issues of housing affordability, transportation, and city contracting with minority-owned businesses.
She currently resides in Roslindale, Massachusetts with her husband, Brother Lo Banks.
Gary Evee, is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Evee Security Consulting Group. The vision of Evee Security Consulting Group is to be the most successful cybersecurity provider in securing organizations and companies from cyberattacks from bad actors. Evee Security’s mission is to enable clients to reduce risk by proactively developing a more secure and resilient cybersecurity environment.
Evee is a 25 year technology industry veteran. Most recently, he served as an executive inside of IBM’s Cybersecurity Business unit, during which time he led the sales, business development and go market for IBM’s mobile and financial services cybersecurity solutions. Before this, he was the Executive chief of staff for the General Manager of IBM Security, helping to lead the growth of IBM Security significantly faster than the overall security market to become the number one enterprise security provider in the world with almost $2B of annual revenue.
Evee has a proven track record of managing and scaling new enterprises globally. Evee also held several leadership positions during his 22 years at IBM in the area of sales, business development and operations. He has served as a technology and cybersecurity advisor to a number of Higher Education institutions including Bridgewater State University, Cambridge College, Massasoit Community College, and Johnson C. Smith, and Endicott College. He believes that collaboration between academia, industry, government and community is critical to driving innovation and creating pathways to opportunities for the underserved.
Evee was responsible for holding the very first Cybersecurity and Technology diversity conference in the Commonwealth. He has been a staunch voice and advocate for Diversity and Inclusion in the area of STEM. Evee holds a B.A in Political Science from Hampton University, Hampton VA. In addition to his services in the technology industry, he is also a member of the board of trustees for Dedham Savings Bank and MassInsight.
Lamont Clemons, a Springfield native, is a business leader in the region. Clemons is the Executive Vice President of S-Cel-O-Painting, his family’s 30 year old business. In this position, Clemons was involved with the opening of MGM Springfield, where his company was contracted for painting on site. He has also held positions at Dominion Power, Wachovia Securities, Capital One and American Express.
He is president of the Springfield Rotary Club, and has served as president of the McKnight Neighborhood Council, and assistant treasurer of the Greater Springfield YMCA. Clemons is credited with launching programs at the Dunbar Community Center, including one that teaches teens essential financial and business skills.
He holds a BS in Electrical Engineering, MBA in Finance, and an MS in Project Management.
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Carole Montgomery
Senior Manager, Gravestar Inc. -
Reginald Nunnally
President, NAACP – Blue Hills Branch -
Chiderah Okoye
Executive Director, Venly Institute
Carole is a Senior Manager at Gravestar, Inc., an Asset Management Company in Cambridge, Massachusetts where she has worked for more than 16 years managing their retail portfolios in Cambridge and suburban communities along the 128 corridor. Prior to her commercial real estate endeavors, Ms. Montgomery worked in the residential sector for 30+ years managing low, moderate and market rate housing throughout the City of Boston, Western Massachusetts, and for a short time in the Washington, DC Tri- State area.
Ms. Montgomery also assumed a leadership role in steering the reorganizing efforts of the historical Roxbury Multi Service Center, Inc. (RMSC), a 50+ year old organization that was formed to respond to social issues that affected the lives of African Americans in the Roxbury and N. Dorchester Neighborhoods. Ms. Montgomery lives in Dorchester and is the proud mother of 5 children and 6 grandchildren. Member of the Institute of RE Management, CPM Candidate. Board Member Mass Association of Mental Health (MAMH)
Reginald Nunnally (more commonly known as Reggie) has been involved in economic development for the past 27 years, initially as the Executive Director of the Grove Hall Neighborhood Development Corporation.
Governor Patrick appointed Reggie as the Executive Director of the Supplier Diversity Office for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 2009 and was responsible for the implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Technical Assistance Program. He was also appointed by Mayor Thomas M. Menino in 1996 as the first Executive Director for Boston’s Enhanced Enterprise Community for the City of Boston, responsible for processing over $44 million of federal funds for Empowerment Zone economic development projects. His career highlights include facilitating the process for financing the Mecca Mall in Grove Hall, the South End Health Center, Merengue Restaurant, and the Best Western Round House Hotel Suites and the Hampton Inn Hotel. Reggie was also the creator of Boston Connects Inc. microloan program geared for existing small neighborhood businesses and individuals aspiring to start or expand a business within Boston’s Empowerment Zone neighborhoods.
Reggie sits on a number of Boards and Advisory Committees. He is married to Kathlean Nunnally and has two adult children and a granddaughter.
Chiderah Okoye is the Executive Director of the Venly Institute, a Cambridge-based applied learning and certification organization that helps local businesses grow through social media, web-based applications, and cybersecurity best practices. Venly’s methodologies work to combine hi-touch delivery via a Chamber of Commerce supported Fellowship program with high-tech open-source systems to strengthen each community it serves.
Chiderah earned her B.S in Biomedical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University. She began her career in industrial controls with Rockwell Automation, the world’s largest automation company. She has been a long-time leader within the National Society of Black Engineers and served as the Boston chapter President from 2015 to 2018. She currently sits on the organization’s board as President Emeritus. Chiderah joined with leaders of Boston area diverse professional organizations to form the Affinity Leadership Consortium (ALC) and served as its founding Co-Chair. In recognition for her ongoing community-based efforts, Chiderah was selected by the World Economic Forum to join the Boston Hub of the Global Shapers in 2015 where she is still an active contributor.
In February 2017 Chiderah was appointed by Governor Charlie Baker to serve on the then newly commissioned Black Advisory Commission for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
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Teri Williams, Board Chair
President & COO, OneUnited Bank -
Charran Fisher
President, Fisher Contracting Corporation -
Keith Chaney
President/Owner, City Sealcoating, Inc.
Teri is President and Chief Operating Officer and serves on the Board of Director of OneUnited Bank, the largest Black-owned bank in the U.S, with headquarters in Boston. She is responsible for implementation of the Bank’s strategic initiatives, as well as the day to day operations of the bank. Under her leadership, OneUnited Bank has consolidated the local names and product offerings of four (4) Black-owned banks to create a powerful national brand supported by innovative products and services.
Ms. Williams holds an M.B.A. with honors from Harvard Graduate School of Business and a B.A. with distinctions in Economics from Brown University. She served as Treasurer of Dimock Community Health Center in Roxbury, Massachusetts for over 5 years.
Ms. Williams is the author of I Got Bank! What My Granddad Taught Me About Money (Beckham Publishing) a financial literacy book for urban youth. Ms. Williams has received numerous notations and awards for her contribution to urban communities including from the Urban League, NAACP, and the National Black MBA Association.
Ms. Williams is married and has two children, one recent graduate of Brown University and one in college at Boston College.
As a 1997 graduate of University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Charran Fisher earned her BA in English and Journalism with a minor in African American studies. She started Fisher Contracting in 1998 after working part-time in the field and recognizing a need for women and minorities in construction. Fisher Contracting has historically provided carpentry, demolition, dismantling, interior renovation, abatement, site remediation and asset recovery services to owners, developers, municipalities and state and federal agencies both as a prime and as a subcontractor.
In 2011, Charran was recognized by the Small Business Administration as the Minority Business Person of the Year for the entire New England Region. In 2017, Charran received a Diversity recognition award while working on the Encore Casino project for exceeding goals for minority and women participation. Most recently, Charran Fisher and Fisher Contracting were selected as the M/WBE partner by Gilbane Building Company in 2019 for the Worcester Red Sox project and in October 2020 was the recipient of the Minority Business of the Year award from the Chamber of Commerce.
Charran is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. She also serves on the Board of Directors for The Associated Subcontractors of Massachusetts in addition to The Boys & Girls Club of Worcester.
Keith is a business leader who strives to drive business results through an innovative and collaborative approach. The sole mission at City Sealcoating is to provide our customers with comprehensive asphalt maintenance services. This includes leveraging our many years in the industry, to the benefit of our customers, allowing them to make informed decisions regarding their parking lots. We see your parking lot as an investment and take steps, supported by data and our experience, to beautify and protect thus extending the life of the asphalt.
In 2017 Keith had the opportunity to purchase a company, City Sealcoating, Inc. City Sealcoating had been servicing the Merrimack Valley for 10 years, but Keith had a vision to expand the company to service all of New England. He used the knowledge and relationships he made working at the state and as a V.P. at State Street Bank to become a preferred vendor on the MA Asphalt Maintenance TRD02 Contract. City Sealcoating is a trusted company servicing government, commercial and residential customers. Since purchasing the company in 2017 Keith has grown the business 300% by focusing on solid workmanship, effective operations and exceptional customer service. City Sealcoating offers a full range of asphalt maintenance services including sealcoating, crack sealing, line striping, asphalt repairs, paving and snow plowing.
Keith lives in North Andover with his wife and two children. He is an active member of his community but also believes in volunteering his time all around the Merrimack Valley area. He is a member of the Lawrence Leads Program, which is part of the Lawrence Partnership, and is an active member of the Merrimack Valley Chamber of Commerce. City Sealcoating Inc. hosts an intern annually from Lawrence Public High School and has had the opportunity to aid Lawrence residents through the gas explosion crisis and COVID-19. Recently City Sealcoating, Inc. has been involved in the Business Equity Initiative (B.E.I) program through the Boston Foundation. Keith is a former member of the Board of Trustees at Roxbury Community College and is now serving as a Board Member on the Alliance for Business Leadership. Keith has been an invited speaker and moderator at many events to share his inspiring story and is passionate about giving back to his community.
In Memorium
Elizabeth “Beth” Williams
(1963-2021)
Beth was a BECMA Board Member and served on the Policy Committee. She passed away on April 21, 2021, at the age of 57. We are grateful for the significant impact Beth had on the civic, business, and social fabric of Boston and Massachusetts.
“I too see business as a means to improve a community. If people have jobs or access and training for them, the desperation and need to perpetuate many of the social problems in our community, I believe, would slowly begin to diminish.”
Beth Williams
The Bay State Banner, May 7, 2014
