Dwight C. Jones

2012 Honoree - Mayor of Richmond, Va.

As the elected mayor of Richmond, Va., and senior pastor of one of the city’s largest churches, First Baptist Church of South Richmond, Dwight C. Jones adheres to the U.S. Constitution’s language regarding the separation of church and state.

At the same time, Jones sees his dual role in politics and religion as the result of his being a "child of civil rights." The ministry for him represents a link to social justice, he said, referring to the civil rights struggles of the 1950s and 1960s that often were led by men of the cloth.

After graduating from Virginia Union University with a bachelor’s degree in sociology and a master of divinity degree, Jones earned a doctoral degree in divinity at United Theological Seminary in Dayton, Ohio. His mission to promote change and progress began at the community level. In 1975, he founded the South Richmond Senior Center and the Imani Intergenerational Community Development Corp., which focuses on affordable housing, business development and workforce initiatives. Jones said helping to rebuild the Hull Street business corridor and providing affordable housing in the Imani Mews complex in South Richmond "was huge for me."

Jones' civic and social outreach stretched into the political realm when he joined the Richmond City School Board in 1979 and, in 1994, became a member of the Virginia State Legislature serving the 70th District.

Today, Jones' focus is on building a better Richmond.  He believes that the capital of Virginia is poised to become a tier-one city.  In his first term, Jones led the construction of four new schools and a new justice center, and secured a bid for an international cycling championship, Union Cycling International, which will bring 500,000 people to the city in 2015.

Jones, 63, who grew up in Philadelphia as the youngest son of a minister, said many of the Christian values espoused by his "strict" father remain with him, such as hard work, honesty and faith. "I think that in his strictness he provided a good trajectory for my life," he said. "Any person who is fortunate enough to find their passion will excel in life.  I found mine in serving others."

Jones imparts these words of wisdom: "How we develop our young people, the next generation of leaders, lies at the core of that we do."