More than 220 Langley Federal Credit Union employees and family members volunteered at 15 nonprofit organizations on Martin Luther King Jr. Day in honor of the civil rights leader’s legacy of service. Volunteers completed a variety of service projects across Hampton Roads, as well as in Richmond and Raleigh, North Carolina. Included in the volunteer work was sorting 707 pounds of food and distributing 2,397 pounds of food serving 43 families at THRIVE Peninsula in Newport News and packing and preparing 1,080 boxes of food totaling 34,560 pounds at the Virginia Peninsula Foodbank, providing 28,800 meals for seniors experiencing food insecurity. Jerome Fowlkes is Langley’s chief impact officer and chairman of the Langley for Families Foundation.
Jessie Stokes, right, was the winner of Langley Federal Credit Union’s 2025 New Car Giveaway. Stokes received the keys to her new vehicle in January from Tori Eleonora, Langley vice president of operations.
Hassan Janjua, CISSP, AIGP, PMP, ITIL, has been appointed chief information officer, and Sheila White, CPA, has been appointed director of finance for the City of Newport News. As chief information officer, Janjua will play a key role in developing and implementing the city’s Technology Infrastructure Readiness Plan, ensuring Newport News is prepared to meet evolving technology demands.
As director of finance, White will guide budgeting, financial reporting, internal controls, investment and pension oversight and long-term financial planning, while ensuring compliance with all local, state and federal requirements.
Beth Moore has been elected chair and treasurer of the 2026 Newport News Public Art Foundation (NNPAF) board of directors. Other members of the NNPAF executive committee include Adam Creekmur, vice chair; Diana LoVecchio, secretary; Mike Doucette, chair of fundraising: Irving B. “Chip” Goldstein; and Karen Turner Ward, Ph.D. Other board members include John C. Allen, III; Eric Bailey; Flora Chioros; Anne Noland Edwards; William “Bill” Grace; Holly Koons; Akshar Patel, chair of temporary art; Harold L. Roach, Jr.; and Katie SheehanSmith. John R. Eley III serves as ex-officio and Bobby Freeman is founding chair emeritus. The board brings a broad range of experience in civic engagement, business, law, education and the arts, including deep institutional knowledge and curatorial expertise. NNPAF plays a critical role in guiding its strategic direction, stewardship of its growing public art collection and commitment to engaging the Newport News community through accessible, high-quality public art.
Honored as the 58th annual Peninsula humanitarians by the Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities (VCIC) for significant contributions to the promotion of respect and understanding among people of diverse racial, ethnic and religious backgrounds were Dr. John C. Finn, associate professor of geography and chair of the Department of Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology at Christopher Newport University; Honorable James A. Gray, mayor of the City of Hampton since 2024, following years of distinguished public service, including his tenure on the Hampton City Council with a 37-year career in local government; Hakima Muhammad, a lifelong advocate for education, mentorship and social justice, with more than 30 years, in creating programs to empower at risk youth; Dr. Patricia Wessler, a family physician, educator and global humanitarian whose career focuses on advancing health equity and serving marginalized communities; Dr. Donna E. Woods, an executive leadership coach and Ford Next Generation Learning community coach whose four-decade career in education includes roles as a teacher, counselor, assistant principal, principal and executive director of school leadership.
State and city officials participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony in January of the opening of Christopher Newport University’s (CNU) new 83,000-square-foot state-of-the-art Science and Engineering Research Center (SERC), followed by a tour that included advanced research labs, makerspaces, robotic assembly areas, a cybersecurity and networking lab and a two-story drone lab for flight testing. The building brings together the university’s science, engineering and research programs under one roof, providing students with modern workspaces to collaborate across disciplines and tackle real-world problems. The building is equipped with research, teaching and laboratory spaces to prepare students for careers in STEM fields, including physics, computer science, information science, cybersecurity, engineering, kinesiology and neuroscience. Participating in the ribbon-cutting were, left to right, Jeff Howell, Whiting-Turner Construction; Shelly Simonds, delegate, Virginia General Assembly; Jennifer Dunn, vice president, communications, Newport News Shipbuilding; William G. Kelly, president, CNU; Christy Morton, rector, board of visitors, CNU; Ralph Northam, former Virginia governor; Mike Mullin, delegate, Virginia General Assembly; Dr. Quentin Kidd, provost and executive vice president; Dr. Nicole Guajardo, vice provost of academic success and engagement, CNU; Dr. Chip Filer, vice president for facilities and campus operations, CNU; Michelle Campbell, director of capital outlay management, CNU; and Randy Holmes, senior principal and president, Glave and Holmes Architecture.
Peninsula Catholic High School was selected to represent the Commonwealth of Virginia at the U.S. Governor’s Cup Robotics Tournament, a prestigious national competition in February at DAR Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C. The team was chosen from 173 Virginia teams that applied for the honor. As only one FIRST® Tech Challenge (FTC) team from each U.S. state, this achievement represents a significant recognition of the students’ dedication, technical skill and commitment to STEM excellence. The Governor’s Cup is a premier FTC competition, bringing together the nation’s top student robotics teams to showcase engineering, programming, teamwork and innovation. Teams design, build and program robots to compete in head-to-head matches while also being evaluated on communication, technical documentation and real-world problem-solving skills.
