Fort Worth Black Chamber wins ‘Chamber of Year’ award in honor of late Devoyd Jennings

The Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber was named “Chamber of the Year” across the state by the Texas Association of African American Chambers of Commerce.

The award was presented on Sept. 14 in honor of Devoyd Jennings, the late Fort Worth Black Chamber president and CEO. The award was also named after Jennings, who died in 2021 after leading the organization for more than three decades.

“Out of 30 Black chambers in the state of Texas, we are honored to be the first recipient of the Devoyd Jennings Chamber of the Year Award,” said Michelle Green-Ford, president and CEO of Fort Worth’s Black Chamber, in a release. “We are especially grateful because it is named for one of our most esteemed leaders.”

This was the first year the the Texas association named a chamber of the year at its 35th annual conference, held in Pflugerville.

Texas association President Charles O’Neal applauded the Fort Worth Black Chamber’s achievements in economic development initiatives, membership growth and increase in corporate sponsorships over the past year in a release.

Other North Texas residents recognized at the conference include Jeff Postell, owner of construction management company Post L Group; Tonya Veasey, community activist and owner of Open Channels Group; and Jill Darden, owner of the Fort Worth Black News.

Established in the 1920s, the Texas Association of African American Chambers of Commerce is one of oldest Black business leagues in the United States. It first opened to help Black business owners participate in mainstream commerce while being denied membership in local chambers of commerce.