The Links honor the past, look to future

By Denice Thibodeau

Published: November 8, 2008

The guest speaker at the 55th anniversary luncheon of The Links, Inc., Danville Chapter, wasted no time in drawing cheers from the crowd of about 450 guests in attendance.

“We thank God for allowing us to live in this moment in time,” Gwendolyn Boyd said, referring to the election of Barack Obama as the country’s next president. “Now we can tell our children and grandchildren about making history. Give God glory for the victory He won.”

Boyd holds a master’s in engineering from Yale University, is the executive assistant to the chief of staff at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, is a well-known advocate for equality and encouraging black Americans to seek careers in science and engineering and is an ordained minister.

She talked of the challenges the groups’ ancestors faced and sacrifices they made to make life in the United States better for all black Americans — and with fewer resources than people now have.

“They believed God could do anything but fail,” Boyd said. “They did more with less than we have access to today and did it without government assistance and handouts.”

She warned the group not to become complacent.

“Now is not the time for those of us who think we’ve made it to be amnesia victims,” Boyd said, stressing that the coming challenges need to be met with dignity, and ignorance needs to be combated with knowledge.

“Knowledge is powerful,” she said. “It will be used to change the status quo.”

The Links, Inc., Danville Chapter, was formed in 1953 to respond to the needs of Danville’s black community. Since 1976, they have partnered with the United Negro College Fund to raise money for scholarships. Contributions raised at this year’s luncheon totaled more than $10,000.

Proceeds from the luncheon support their scholarship fund as well as the local chapter of the NAACP, the Voters’ league, the Danville Life Saving Crew, the YWCA and programs that promote education, health, cultural enrichment and civic involvement.

Contact Denice Thibodeau at or (434) 791-7985.