Dr. Ansel Augustine is the Assistant Director of African American Affairs for the USCCB Secretariat of Cultural Diversity in the Church at the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. He was the Director of the Office of Black Catholic Ministries for the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Previously he served as the Associate Director/Coordinator of Black Youth & Young Adult Ministry for the CYO Youth & Young Adult Ministry Office.

He received his Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and his Master of Pastoral Studies from Loyola University, New Orleans. He received his Certification in Youth Ministry from Xavier University of Louisiana's Institute for Black Catholic Studies. Dr. Augustine earned his D.Min from the Graduate Theological Foundation.

Dr. Augustine has served on several national boards including the National Catholic Young Adult Ministry Association (NCYAMA) and the National Federation for Catholic Youth Ministry (NFCYM). He also has worked in Campus Ministry at St. John's University in Queens, NY, Xavier University of Louisiana, and Loyola University New Orleans. He began his career in ministry over 20 years ago when he became the youth minister at his home parish of St. Peter Claver in the Treme area of New Orleans, which he helped to rebuild following hurricane Katrina.

Dr. Augustine is a highly sought after speaker and has given keynotes and workshops around the country. He has also written various pieces related to ministry.

Amy Auzenne, MSW, MACE is Director of the Office of Evangelization and Catechesis for the Archdiocese of Galveston Houston.  Amy began her career in ministry as a community social worker, where she worked with at-risk youth for six years before she began her work as a professional catechetical leader in 2003.

Amy has a bachelor's degree in American Studies from Mount Holyoke College (South Hadley, MA), a masters degree in social work from the University of Houston, and a masters degree in Catholic Education from the University of St. Thomas (Houston, TX). 

She and her husband Kelly Houston have been married for 25 years; they have four young adult / teenage children.  Amy and her family are parishioners at Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Houston, Texas.

Doris M. Barrow, III is the Catholic campus minister at Texas Southern University in the Office of Young Adult and Campus Ministry (Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston). He received his Bachelor of Arts in History from Grambling State University, an MBA from Webster University, and a Master of Arts in Theology from the University of Notre Dame.

Doris has 20 years of experience as a catechist parish Catechetical leader in the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, including systematic catechesis, sacramental preparation, RCIA, and youth ministry. He is an Instituted Acolyte and has a devotion to adoring the Blessed Sacrament.

He has worked with the USCCB on the Journeying Together initiative for Young Adults and Brother and Sisters, a gathering of campus ministers who work with college students at HBCUs (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) and minister to students of color.

His favorite prayer is the Holy Rosary and every Tuesday at 12 noon he leads the Sorrowful Mysteries dedicated to Combating the Sin of Racism. He was baptized on December 8th, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, which to him means that his life is intertwined with the Blessed Mother Mary (Our Lady). 

He is married to an amazing woman Stacy Monique.

His personal mission statement is “I am called to serve and lead with humility and love”.

Dr. F. DeKarlos Blackmon is the Vice Chancellor for Pastoral Services and Director of Diaconal Ministry for the Archdiocese of Louisville. DeKarlos previously served as the Supreme Knight, chief executive officer and chair of the board of the Knights of Peter Claver (2010-2016), and deputy president and president of the International Alliance of Catholic Knights (2013-2015, 2015-2017). He also served as a consultant to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops Subcommittee on African American Affairs during the drafting of the 2018 Pastoral Letter Against Racism, Open Wide Our Hearts: The Enduring Call to Love.​

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Having completed graduate studies in pastoral ministry, business, and education, DeKarlos has served as an educator, pastoral musician and liturgist, senior diocesan official, national leader, and international leader — all positions where he has demonstrated his concern about the dignity of every human person. Over the years, he has led or overseen offices of pro-life activities, marriage and family life, social concerns, Black ministry, Hispanic ministry, cultural ministries, restorative justice, missions and discipleship, and divine worship.

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DeKarlos holds paramount the responsibility to bring faith into the public square—standing arduously for the hard right as opposed to the easy wrong. DeKarlos presents workshops on catechesis, liturgy, pastoral ministry, Catholic education, and leadership throughout the country. A Knight Commander of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulcher of Jerusalem, DeKarlos is married to Dame Cammander Kanobia A. Russell-Blackmon, the chief communications officer for the Archdiocese of Louisville.

Daniel Cardinal DiNardo served as the metropolitan archbishop of Galveston-Houston from 2006 to 2025. During that time he was pastor to its 2 million-plus Catholics (and the 7.8 million people within the Archdiocese) and 435 priests in 146 parishes and 54 schools spread over 8,880 square miles. On Jan. 20, 2025, Pope Francis accepted  Cardinal DiNardo's resignation and appointed Bishop Joe S. Vásquez of Austin as his successor.​

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Born in Steubenville, Ohio, and raised with three siblings in Castle Shannon near Pittsburgh, Cardinal DiNardo attended St. Anne grade school and the Jesuit-run Bishop's Latin school before enrolling in St. Paul Seminary and Duquesne University in Pittsburgh. He received his master's degree in philosophy from the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. and degrees of Sacred Theology from both the Pontifical Gregorian University and the Patristic Institute Augustinianum in Rome.​

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He was ordained to the priesthood for the Diocese of Pittsburgh on July 16, 1977 and served as parish pastor, seminary professor, spiritual director and in the chancery. From 1984 to 1991, he worked in Rome as a staff member for the Congregation for Bishops, as director of Villa Stritch (the house for American clergy), and as adjunct professor at the Pontifical North American College. In 1991 he returned to Pittsburgh, serving as pastor to several parishes and again in the chancery.

He was appointed coadjutor bishop of Sioux City, Iowa and ordained there as a bishop in October 1997. As his Episcopal motto he adopted: Ave Crux Spes Unica, meaning "Hail the Cross, Our Only Hope." He succeeded retiring Bishop Lawrence Donald Soens of Sioux City in November of 1998.

He was named coadjutor bishop (later coadjutor archbishop) of Galveston-Houston in January 2004 and succeeded Archbishop Joseph Fiorenza on February 28, 2006. On June 29, 2006, he received the pallium from Pope Benedict XVI. He was elevated to the College of Cardinals in November of 2007 at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. He was designated the titular Church of Sant'Eusebio in Rome. 

As a member of the Sacred College, he served as a Cardinal-Elector in the Papal Conclave of 2013, which saw the election of Pope Francis to the See of Peter. ​

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In November of the same year, he was elected by his brother bishops as the Vice-President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) for a three-year term. Cardinal DiNardo served as President of the USCCB from Nov. 2016 - Nov. 2019.

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He was a member of the Pontifical Council for Culture, the Pontifical Council for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People, the Pontifical Council for the Economy, and is on the Board of Trustees of The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.

W. Keith Eason is a singer, songwriter, church music clinician, and consultant. Keith is a native Houstonian educated in the Houston and Galena Park Independent School Districts. Keith is a Houston Baptist University (now Houston Christian University) graduate with a Vocal Performance degree. He has received many honors in many years of singing:
• Selected Best Male Vocalist (People’s Workshop) 1988
• First Place Winner (National Association Teachers of Singing) 1989
• Sang for former President Bill Clinton -1999
• Sang for former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in 1999
• Sang the National Anthem for The Houston Rockets 2004

Keith serves as Minister of Music at The Fort Bend Church in Sugar Land, Texas, where he has served since 2008. He directs the Mass Choir, Church Choir, Chorale, and Male Chorus. The Fort Bend Male Chorus is recognized as one of the “prominent” and one of the largest men’s choirs in the city. The Fort Bend Male Chorus has sung the National Anthem in Sugar Land for the local Skeeter’s Baseball Team and shared the stage with many national gospel artists, including Brian Courtney Wilson, Vickie Winans, Marvin Sapp, and Vanessa Bell Armstrong.

Keith is a member of the Gospel Music Workshop of America (GMWA) and the National Convention of Gospel Choirs and Choruses (NCGCC), where he serves as a Music Assistant to the Mass Choir and the NCGCC Men’s Chorale. Keith has been blessed to present original compositions and new arrangements to both conventions at each convention yearly. He is presently writing a book with a working title, “History of Gospel Music: The Houston Edition.”

Helen Gobert is a retired educator after 38 years of service in the Houston Independent School District. She has been a member of St. Francis Xavier Catholic Church for the past 40+ years. At SFX she serves as an Extraordinary Minister, is on the St. Francis Xavier Scholarship Committee, and works to beautify the church grounds.

 Ms. Gobert’s greatest roles are that of mother of two daughters and grandmother of six- two girls and four boys.

She is a member of Sisters In the Spirit of Houston, Knights of Peter Claver and Ladies Auxiliary, and a 55-year member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.  Sharing her time, talents, and resources with these different communities has been a joy and my way of giving back to others.

Fr. Ken is the oldest child of the late Dr. James Hamilton and Mrs. Barbara Crowe-Hamilton. Aleta Hamilton Miller and Jessica Hamilton Meyer are his two sisters; his brothers are David [RIP]and Detective Gerald Hamilton. He comes from a family of proud heritage (as we all do) based in towns in Mississippi, such as the all black Mound Bayou and also West Point (MS). His immediate ancestors were everything from farmers, to civil rights workers, to preachers, to entrepreneurs, to griots...storytellers.

Fr. Ken is a Divine Word Missionary (or “SVD”), a Roman Catholic community of over 7,000 men--Brothers and priests—working in around 70 countries throughout the world. They also work with their two sister communities: the Sister Servants of the Holy Spirit (active and contemplative). He was also ordained to the presbyterate in December of 1982. He has ministered since then around the country, particularly in the US South and West.

Ken went through schools in the north and the south in the United States, including Chicago, Mound Bayou (Mississippi), Lansing and Detroit (Michigan). He joined the “SVD” at Divine Word College in Epworth, Iowa and has been with them in their work in the black Catholic communities in the United States. He is a revivalist of over 40 years and has led revivals, workshops, and retreats across the country in hundreds of parishes and cities.

In 1992 he and Frs. Charles and Chester Smith were led to form the Bowman-Francis ministry team, a name which honors three memorable black Catholics: Fr. John Bowman, SVD, Bishop Joseph Francis, SVD, and Sister Thea Bowman, the “Mother of Black Catholicism.” Many other persons (such as Brother Jim Fisher, SVD) have also inspired and led them to work in youth ministry, preaching and retreat ministry, AIDS ministry, prison ministry, liturgy workshops, Ubuntu Educational Ministry, conferences, etc.

The Bowman-Francis team has designed and led “Rite of Passage” programs, “Ambassadors of the Word” youth pilgrimage programs, the Sankofa national black youth retreat, Gyname (now the National Black Catholic Men’s Conferences), Kapona Dada women’s spirituality groups, Christ-Kwanzaa and other Afri-centric ministries. To contribute to this ministry, Fr. Ken completed a doctoral degree in History of Religions and Cultures with an emphasis on colonialism and religious expression around the African diaspora. He has been a lecturer and adjunct professor and preaches regularly in a number of African American parishes in the Bay Area (California) and around the country.

"Efran Menny is a Houston-based educator and Black Catholic writer whose work centers on advocacy for Black Americans in and outside the Church. He is passionate about data-driven instruction, equity for special populations, and teacher empowerment. His writing calls the Catholic Church to become more culturally and racially inclusive of the Black American experience—liturgically, structurally, and spiritually.

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Efran’s commentary has appeared in The Catholic Worker, U.S. Catholic, National Catholic Reporter, and Where Peter Is, with Black Catholic Messenger serving as his most cherished publishing home. Whether writing on race or faith, his work reflects a deep commitment to justice and human dignity.

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Outside of his professional life, Efran enjoys spending time with his wife and two sons, cherishing family time as a grounding and joyful part of his life."

Mr. Ashley Morris, Th.M. is the Director of Black Catholic Affairs of the Atlanta archdiocesan Office of Intercultural Ministries. Prior to this appointment he served as the Associate Director of the Office of Intercultural Ministries and as an Assistant Campus Minister of Lyke House: The Catholic Center at Atlanta University Center (AUC). He received a Bachelor’s Degree in Mass Media Arts, Concentrating in Radio, TV and Film from Clark Atlanta University in 2005, and a Masters of Pastoral Theology from the Institute of Black Catholic Studies (IBCS) of Xavier University of Louisiana (New Orleans) in 2014.
 
Ashley previously served as a consultant on the Subcommittee of African American Affairs and the Bishops Working Group on Youth and Young Adult Ministry of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, as well as the Multicultural Ad Hoc Committee of the National Federation of Catholic Youth Ministers (NFCYM). He has given presentations and facilitated conversations on intercultural competency development, Black Catholic history, ministerial discernment and racism. He has taught courses on intercultural competency, young adult ministry and contributed articles published by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and other Catholic organizations.
 
Ashley and his wife, LaSheka, are parishioners of the historic Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Atlanta and have one 6-year-old daughter.

Father Reginald Wayne Samuels was born the youngest of six children to Weaver and Edith Samuels in the small rural town of Washington, Georgia, on October 4, 1966. Life growing up in the Samuels family centered on church, Sunday worship and Wednesday evening bible study. After graduating in 1988, with a degree in Economics from the University of Georgia in Athens, he worked in the buying office for a major retail corporation in Atlanta. As he progressed in his career, Reginald moved to Houston in 1997.
 
In his new home in Houston, Reginald explored different churches.  It was at St. Cyril of Alexandria that he discovered the beauty of Catholic liturgy and at Easter 1999, he converted to the Catholic Faith.  After prayer, discernment and the mentorship of Fr. Mario Arroyo, Reginald entered St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston in August 2003, at the age of 36. On May 30, 2009, Fr. Reginald was ordained to the Catholic Priesthood by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo. His first assignment was as parochial vicar at St. Laurence Catholic Church in Sugar Land.
 
In February of 2012, Fr. Reginald was appointed Pastor of St. Hyacinth Catholic Church in Deer Park, Texas by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo.  Additional assignments within the Archdiocese of Galveston- Houston include appointments by Cardinal Daniel DiNardo as the Ecumenical and Interreligious Officer for the archdiocese in August 2009, and Vicar for Catholics of African Descent of the Archdiocese of Galveston Houston in January 2019.
 
In November 2024, Fr. Reginald was appointed Pastor of St. Laurence Catholic Church in Sugar Land.

Howard W. Roberts is a member in good standing at Historic St. Francis Xavier in Baltimore Maryland, the oldest Black Catholic Church Community in the United States. Mr. Roberts spent 35 years in service with Catholic Charities, Catholic Schools as an educator, youth minister, community center director and curriculum specialist in an employment academy for homeless men. He retired in 2022 as the Program Coordinator of Urban Youth Ministry programs for the Archdiocese of Baltimore.

Howard’s start with art and environment came by chance and grew initially at his home parish as a member of the Art and Environment committee and eventually at Churches, Conferences and Congresses throughout the country.

Africentric Design, LLC

was born of a desire to communicate the essence of African art and culture to capture a memorable moment in time, through the transformation of conventions, meetings convocations, religious ceremonies and celebrations of all kinds with the rich art and fabric of the mother continent.

ADI had its genesis in the desire to create an ambiance reflective of our common beginnings in the environments wherein people live, play, and work. Embracing tenets of Feng Shui, Africentric Design uses natural elements such as wood and metal in conjunction with textiles and fabrics to further enhance any communal space.

For additional information on what we do and how we can do it for you … please feel free contact us via our web page at www.africentricdesign.com

Cherie Wade is a dedicated and passionate servant leader with over eight years of experience as a Middle School and Early Adolescents Catechist, and currently serves as the Youth Minister at St. Mary of the Purification Catholic Church. A proud native of Texas, Cherie attended Texas Southern University and converted to Catholicism in 2013, a journey that deepened her commitment to faith and community.

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As a mother to a college sophomore at the University of Houston, Cherie understands the challenges and triumphs of guiding young people through transformative stages of life. Her love for reading and continuous learning fuels her ability to connect with youth and inspire them in their faith journeys.

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Cherie finds great joy in being of service to the youth of our Archdiocese, bringing energy, compassion, and a strong spiritual foundation to every encounter. Her mission is to nurture and empower the next generation of Catholic leaders through faith, education, and love.

Evelyn Wagner Wright, a retired educator, leader and administrator of organizational development and instructional technology, is serving as chairperson of the 2025 Unity Explosion Region X Conference. She has completed graduate studies at universities in Texas and California and graduated from the Learning Forward Academy (National Staff Development Council) in Vancouver, BC, Canada as an acclaimed professional development leader. She has provided learning opportunities for more than 50,000 adults throughout the United States and internationally. As a certified conference planner, she has planned and presented at conferences with audiences with up to 9,000 in attendance.

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Although she is retired, Evelyn continues to be an active model and advocate for education and personal, professional and spiritual development in her community. She has mentored many young people, and she is the extraordinarily proud mother of two daughters, Adrienne Senakwé and Cortney Ayana and son-in-law Medrick; grandmother of Tajeve Amet and Mark, Mason and Carson; and great grandmother of Aliyah and Maxwell.