A public charitable 501©(3) nonprofit organization
Development Team and Officers
Donald Elisha Sheppard, Ph.D. was elected Chairman of the Board of Trustees for the National Association for the Preservation of African-American History & Culture, Inc. on August 1, 2015.
Dr. Sheppard is Pastor of Watson Temple Institutional Church of God in Christ, and teaches art at Montford Middle School in Tallahassee, Florida. Since his appointment, Pastor Sheppard and the congregation have purchased four neighboring properties and completed a $1.5 million church addition to the sanctuary in December 2006. Pastor Sheppard is a part of Bishop Willie J. Matheney's State Jurisdictional staff and serves as the Florida Auxiliaries in Ministry (FAIM) Chairman for the Western Florida Jurisdiction of the Church of God in Christ.
In 2013, he earned the Doctor of Philosophy in Art Education from Florida State University. Professionally, he was employed for nine years at Homes and Land Publishing Corporation in Tallahassee where he served as Design Artist, Team Leader, Employee Assistants Chairman, and Employee of the Month. He taught Griffin Middle School for 15 years, before transferring to Montford.
Standing by Pastor Sheppard's side is his beautiful and devoted wife, Sarah Rivers Sheppard. They were married November 26, 1988, and have one daughter, Donarah.
Delaitre J. Hollinger is Executive Director/CEO of The National Association for the Preservation of African-American & Culture, Inc., a non-profit organization dedicated to the protection of historical properties and preservation advocacy. Professionally, he was employed with The Florida Senate where he served as District Legislative Aide to Senator Geraldine F. Thompson. He presently works with the Tallahassee Urban League, Inc., where he was founding Curator and Associate Director of the Taylor House Museum of Historic Frenchtown. Due to his efforts, the 123-year-old Taylor House was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015. On January 8, 2016, Hollinger was appointed to the Utility Citizens Advisory Committee by Tallahassee City Manager Rick Fernandez.
Hollinger was Student Body President, Black Student Union President, Black Male Achievers President, and Student Organizations Council Chairman for Tallahassee Community College. He has also served in various capacities as a Community Reporter, and a Legislative Intern. He has been recognized with the prestigious Cherry Hall Alexander African-American History Calendar, and the NAACP Citizen's Award among numerous other honors. He has published two books, including "And This Too Shall Pass - The Story of Aquilina C. Howell," (2012-Bookstand Publishing) and "STAND UP!: 75 Young Activists Who Rock the World and How You Can Too!," (2013-Publishing Syndicate) which received both an IndieFab Book Award, as well as a Nautilus Book Award for Young Adult Non-Fiction.
Cherry Ann Hall Alexander began her journey with Tallahassee Community College in 1970. While attending TCC, she worked as a student assistant in administration, later in the library and the first African-American switchboard operator at TCC. After graduating from TCC, Cherry graduated from Florida State University with a B. S. and M.L.S. degrees. After graduation, Cherry worked at FSU as a LTA I and II, Librarian and Dept. Head at the State Library, Legislative Analyst in the Florida House of Representatives, Librarian with Jacksonville Public Libraries, and Dept. Chair/Director with Florida Community College at Jacksonville. She returned to TCC as Director of Library Service, retiring in 2009. Cherry is the founder of the Cherry Hall Alexander African-American History Calendar and has a TCC scholarship named in her honor.