Burroughs honored with county NAACP award
LeMoyne Community Center Executive Director Teresa Burroughs was presented with the 66th annual Washington County NAACP Human Rights Award during a star-studded banquet event this weekend.
Over 200 local leaders filled the DoubleTree Meadowlands ballroom to celebrate Burroughs on Friday night as she pledged to continue her mission of service to the greater Washington community.
Washington Chapter President David Gatling Sr. thanked Burroughs for her years of friendship and support, saying that she has become a role model for children across the county.
In her role leading the LeMoyne Center, Burroughs directs programming that feeds hundreds of food-insecure families across the county and provides enrichment for children.
Burroughs was named to the Washington County Community Foundation’s Community Pillars Class of 2024 and received the Pride in Washington Award from the Washington City Council the following year.
She has served on the South Fayette School Board for over two decades and is a deaconess at Friendship Baptist Church on Walnut Street.
Burroughs accepted the award on behalf of the center, saying that its ongoing success reflects the tireless support it receives from the community.
“Your dedication and passion make the work we do possible,” she said, noting how supporting vulnerable children is key to lifting entire families.
The center recently completed the first phase of a $350,000 expansion effort that will add three classrooms, kitchen space and other amenities. Construction of the second phase will begin in May, Burroughs said.
“More than 21,000 people in Washington County face food insecurity … as part of our mission, access to food is not a privilege, it is a human right,” Burroughs said, “I am committed to doing the work to make these promises real to the children and families we serve.”
Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission Executive Director Chad Dion Lassiter delivered the keynote address following Burroughs’ award ceremony, reminding the audience of the importance of building a “beloved community,” where common humanity and understanding are uplifted beyond the “seduction of a black-white binary.”
According to Lassiter, the beloved community framework focuses on creating lasting social change through the principles and practices of peacebuilding and nonviolence, inspired by the teachings of civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr.
The banquet also honored several local youth who earned bronze, silver and gold awards in the ACT-SO (Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics) Achievement Program, which will culminate at the annual NAACP event in Chicago later this year.
“Today, I’m inspired to keep going, to keep serving and to expand our footprint … to build a community where everyone has the opportunity to succeed,” Burroughs said.