NEWS RELEASE
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (Sept. 28) — Benard Simelton, president of the Alabama NAACP, was inducted into the Alabama NAACP Hall of Honor during the organization’s State Conference Convention Freedom Awards Banquet. The event took place on Sept. 28 in Huntsville.
Simelton, now in his 15th year as president, has been credited with significantly growing the organization’s budget from $30,000 to over $300,000 annually. He also established a permanent office and hired the NAACP’s first executive director and office administrator in Alabama.
Simelton served on the National NAACP Board of Directors for six years and holds positions on numerous boards across Alabama. He previously served as president of the Huntsville-Madison-Limestone Counties Community Action Partnership.
Simelton has earned several NAACP honors, including the Regional Director’s Award, National Chairman’s Citation, and the Regional Kelly M. Alexander Award. Under his leadership, the Alabama NAACP State Conference won a National Advocacy Award for voter turnout in the 2017 special election.
In 2017, the San Francisco Housing Development Corporation recognized Simelton for his advocacy efforts.