During May, 2019 meeting the following were selected to serve as officers of the Coalition for 3 years.
-Rev. Sonya Redd, President
-Rabbi Eli Garfinkel, 1st Vice President
-Pastor George Montanari, 2nd Vice President
-Maulana Syed Rizwan Rizvi, 3rd Vice President
-Phyllis Beal-Secretart
-Ms. Ardman Singh, Assistant Secretary
Following are the duties of the President, Vice President, Secretary and Assistant Secretary.
President
-Rev. Sonya Redd, President
-Rabbi Eli Garfinkel, 1st Vice President
-Pastor George Montanari, 2nd Vice President
-Maulana Syed Rizwan Rizvi, 3rd Vice President
-Phyllis Beal-Secretart
-Ms. Ardman Singh, Assistant Secretary
Following are the duties of the President, Vice President, Secretary and Assistant Secretary.
President
- The President shall preside at all meetings of the Coalition
- The President shall serve as administrative officer of the Coalition.
- The President shall recommend chairs of Committees
- The Vice-President shall assume the duties of the President in his/her absence and perform duties assigned by the President.
- The Secretary shall keep the Minutes and attendance records of the council and Committees.
- The Secretary shall also handle all correspondence.
- The Assistant Secretary shall assume the duties of the Secretary in his/her absence
President:
Rev. Sonya Redd is the initiator and architect of the NJ State ACT-SO Program. Rev. Redd began the development of the State Program in late 1988 and 1989 and served as its chairperson through 1995. Because of the increasing demand of her ministerial responsibilities, she resigned as NJ ACT-SO Chairperson. However; she remained connected to the program by serving as a judge in the area of Oratory and Dramatics during local competitions. Also, in 1996 she began serving on the National ACT-SO Core Team and continues to service in that capacity. She returned to serving as the NJ ACT-SO Chairperson in 2016.
Rev. Redd is a life member of the NAACP having joined the New Brunswick Area Branch of the NAACP in 1984 and currently serves on its Executive Committee and also as the Membership Chairperson. She formerly served as the New Brunswick NAACP Branch President, the NJ NAACP State 3rd Vice President and many other positions within the organization.
Rev. Redd formerly served for 23 years as Associate Minister, Youth Pastor, then Assistant Pastor of Galilee Missionary Baptist Church in Newark through February of 2019. In addition, while at Galilee she served as, Director of Christian Education, Overseer of the Evangelism Ministries and Overseer of the Women’s Ministry. She has recently transitioned her membership back to First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens, Somerset, NJ.
During her corporate career, she worked 20 years in the Mortgage Banking Industry in various levels of management and 20 years in the Chemical Industry in the area of Account Management/Customer Service. Rev. Redd is currently a member of the Somerset County Democratic Black Caucus. She also formerly served on the Educational Committee of BIC (Black Issues Convention).
Her Educational background includes New Brunswick Theological Seminary, where she pursued her Masters of Divinity, Bloomfield College for Women, Business Administration and Glassboro State College. God has blessed her to be the mother of two children and the grandmother of five.
Rev. Redd says part of her ministry will always involve working to positively affect youth and young adults. She believes God has given everyone gift(s) and talents. It is the responsibility of adults to motivate, encourage, and support our youth in helping them to discover and enhance their gifts/talents and realize their full potential.
Rev. Sonya Redd is the initiator and architect of the NJ State ACT-SO Program. Rev. Redd began the development of the State Program in late 1988 and 1989 and served as its chairperson through 1995. Because of the increasing demand of her ministerial responsibilities, she resigned as NJ ACT-SO Chairperson. However; she remained connected to the program by serving as a judge in the area of Oratory and Dramatics during local competitions. Also, in 1996 she began serving on the National ACT-SO Core Team and continues to service in that capacity. She returned to serving as the NJ ACT-SO Chairperson in 2016.
Rev. Redd is a life member of the NAACP having joined the New Brunswick Area Branch of the NAACP in 1984 and currently serves on its Executive Committee and also as the Membership Chairperson. She formerly served as the New Brunswick NAACP Branch President, the NJ NAACP State 3rd Vice President and many other positions within the organization.
Rev. Redd formerly served for 23 years as Associate Minister, Youth Pastor, then Assistant Pastor of Galilee Missionary Baptist Church in Newark through February of 2019. In addition, while at Galilee she served as, Director of Christian Education, Overseer of the Evangelism Ministries and Overseer of the Women’s Ministry. She has recently transitioned her membership back to First Baptist Church of Lincoln Gardens, Somerset, NJ.
During her corporate career, she worked 20 years in the Mortgage Banking Industry in various levels of management and 20 years in the Chemical Industry in the area of Account Management/Customer Service. Rev. Redd is currently a member of the Somerset County Democratic Black Caucus. She also formerly served on the Educational Committee of BIC (Black Issues Convention).
Her Educational background includes New Brunswick Theological Seminary, where she pursued her Masters of Divinity, Bloomfield College for Women, Business Administration and Glassboro State College. God has blessed her to be the mother of two children and the grandmother of five.
Rev. Redd says part of her ministry will always involve working to positively affect youth and young adults. She believes God has given everyone gift(s) and talents. It is the responsibility of adults to motivate, encourage, and support our youth in helping them to discover and enhance their gifts/talents and realize their full potential.
1st Vice President
Rabbi Eli L. Garfinkel received his B.A. in Slavic Languages and Literatures at Indiana University in 1993 and was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1999. Since ordination, he has served as an assistant rabbi in Toronto and Cincinnati. In 2005, he became the spiritual leader of Temple Beth El in Somerset, New Jersey, where he has started an annual Jewish film festival, organized communal seders, and taught popular adult education course. He is the author three books and the developer of several mobile apps. Rabbi Garfinkel lives in Somerset, New Jersey, with his wife, Naomi Lasky, and their twins, Sari and Josh.
Rabbi Eli L. Garfinkel received his B.A. in Slavic Languages and Literatures at Indiana University in 1993 and was ordained by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1999. Since ordination, he has served as an assistant rabbi in Toronto and Cincinnati. In 2005, he became the spiritual leader of Temple Beth El in Somerset, New Jersey, where he has started an annual Jewish film festival, organized communal seders, and taught popular adult education course. He is the author three books and the developer of several mobile apps. Rabbi Garfinkel lives in Somerset, New Jersey, with his wife, Naomi Lasky, and their twins, Sari and Josh.
Pastor George Montanari,
2nd Vice President
2nd Vice President
Syed Rizwan Rizvi
3rd Vice President
3rd Vice President
Secretary:
Phyllis Beal
Phyllis Beal
Assistant Secretary:
Ardman Singh
Ardman Singh
