Staten Island Jazz Festival 35 Honorees
Reverend Dr. Carolina
Reverend Dr. Carolina serves as Senior Pastor at First Central Baptist Church and CEO of Dior Consultants LLC, a full-service business, staff, and board training development corporation. He is an Adjunct Professor at St. John’s University in the School of Education and HJ International Graduate School for Peace and Public Leadership. He also served as Executive Director of the Central Family Life Center, the most prominent Black and Brown Nonprofit in the Borough of Staten Island. Reverend Dr. Carolina developed corporate, public, and private relationships as the former Executive Director of the Central Family Life Center on Staten Island. He oversaw and administered strategies to ensure the operation and sustainability of the Central Family Life Center. Reverend Dr. Carolina was previously appointed as a Commissioner of Human Rights in 2015 by Mayor Bill de Blasio and is the recipient of the 2017 New York City Council MLK Community Award and various other awards and recognitions. He served on the Civil Complaint Review Board for New York City until February 2023. He founded The Staten Island Black History Town Hall Meeting and served as lead advocate in bringing the nationally recognized Eagle Academy to Staten Island. Reverend Dr. Carolina organized the only Cure Violence Initiative on Staten Island, True 2 Life, and has grown the nonprofit community partnership connecting Staten Island with the other boroughs.
Reverend Dr. Carolina holds a master’s degree in educational administration leadership from Temple University and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership/Management from the University of Phoenix. Reverend Dr. Carolina is married to the lovely Josenia Ruiz-Carolina and is the father of four wonderful children: Dior Isaiah, DeLisa Mona, Demetrius Solomon II, and Demetri Rafael Carolina.
Reverend Dr. Agnes M. McBeth
The Rev. Dr. Agnes M. McBeth has served as the Assistant Pastor of the historic St. Philips Baptist Church of Staten Island since May of 2007. In the church’s 154-year history, she is the first woman to hold this office.
Dr. Agnes was licensed to preach the gospel in October 1999 and ordained to Christian Ministry in June, 2001. This budding Biblicist and liberation theologian is a sought-after preacher and conference facilitator with a long commitment to community service. She is the former Youth Pastor of the Christian Faith Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church of Brooklyn; past President of the Young Adult Ministry & creator/editor of the quarterly newsletter for the New York Missionary Baptist Association; a past member of the Port Richmond Anti-Violence Task Force, Staten Island Clergy Leadership, Staten Island United Ministerial Alliance, former Project Coordinator to the Ministry of Education at The Riverside Church of New York, and former Director of Veterans Affairs, Faith-Based Initiatives and Grants Administration for the U.S. House of Representatives, to name a few. Dr. Agnes is the current Chair of the Advisory Board of The Children’s Village, Inc. (Staten Island Promise), a low-security residential facility which reintroduces probationary teen girls back into society. In addition to her advocacy work, she is a featured author of the theological publication, The Living Pulpit.
Dr. Agnes currently serves as a member of the Executive Board of American Baptist Churches Metro NY, where she is also a member of the Board’s Church Finance Sub-Committee. In addition, she is the Education and Community Liaison for the Richmond County District Attorney, Michael E. McMahon. Dr. Agnes is also a Certified Professional Life Coach.
Having earned her Doctor of Ministry and Master of Divinity degrees from the New York Theological Seminary of New York, Dr. Agnes additionally holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government and Public Administration with a specialization in Urban Affairs from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, New York.
Dr. Agnes is married to John McBeth, an ordained deacon, and devoted Staten Island community activist/advocate. They are the proud parents of Kaila, Malcolm, and Alexandria.
Bishop LaVerne D. Owens-Larkins
Hailing from Birmingham, Alabama, Bishop Owens-Larkins has a remarkable career spanning three decades on Wall Street at the New York Stock Exchange. As an alumna of St. John's University with a degree in Business Management, she's a licensed Certified Temperament Counselor and holds a master’s degree in clinical Pastoral Counseling. Beyond her professional achievements, Bishop Owens-Larkins is a dedicated volunteer chaplain, serving institutions like the Sisters of Charity, Silver Lake Nursing Home, S.I. Richmond Center, and the Office of Children and Family Services. She's also a licensed Chaplain with the International Federation of Christian Chaplains, emphasizing her commitment to spiritual support.
In 1992, she initiated a yearly turkey give-away, an enduring tradition. Moreover, Bishop Owens-Larkins, along with her Outreach Team, has been providing meals, toys, and compassion to the less fortunate, seniors, and the disabled, on Christmas Day since 1991. Bishop Owens-Larkins inspires and uplifts all those she encounters on her remarkable journey.
Her contributions have earned her numerous awards as a woman of influence. She made history by becoming one of the first women Bishops in the Worldwide Fellowship of Independent Christian Churches (WFICC) and currently serves as the Director of Global Missions.
In 2019, former State Senator Diane Savino recognized her with a "Women of Distinction" Award. Bishop Larkins also leads initiatives that unite churches and communities, emphasizing healing and unity.
As the Executive Pastor of Mt. Sinai United Christian Church under the guidance of Bishop Dr. Victor A. Brown, Bishop Owens-Larkins continues to exemplify unwavering dedication to God and community. She's a mentor in the Urban Hope Literacy Program at PS 31 and cherishes her family. A beacon of faith and compassion, Bishop Owens-Larkins inspires and uplifts all those she encounters on her remarkable journey.
Reverend Dr. Alfred Correa
Dr. Alfred Correa is the Senior Pastor of the Brighton Heights Reformed Church and has served as the Senior Minister for 8 years. He has been a Minister of Word and Sacrament with the Reformed Church in America for 15 years and has been in ministry for 28 years. Dr. Correa contributed to the program design of the first Youth Build Program on Staten Island and Served as the Clinician and Wellness Specialist.
Dr. Correa is a Board-Certified Clinical Chaplain and Pastoral Counselor, a professional Chaplain Trainer, and Clinical Pastoral Education Diplomate Training Supervisor. He is sought after nationally to develop and train first responders, crisis, and trauma care chaplains. He has worked in Government since 2000 in various capacities. He worked in the Narcotics Bureau Alternative to Incarceration Programs, was Court Analyst for Domestic Violence Courts and for New York State Detention Juvenile Justice. Dr. Correa has also served for over a decade as an adjunct professor at New York Theological Seminary (NYTS), where he taught Pastoral Care, and at the Alliance Graduate School of Counseling where he taught the Social Sciences.
Currently Dr. Correa is tasked with building the MTA Office of the Chaplains, where he is serving as the Chief of Chaplain Services. He is developing pastoral care for the six agencies of MTA and training first responders to address crisis management and trauma that takes place within the transportation system in New York.
Dr. Correa holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology, a master’s in professional studies, and completed a double Master with Fordham University, the NYTS Master of Social Work and Master of Divinity Program. He also holds a Doctor of Ministry in Pastoral Care and Mental Health Counseling.
Reverend Dr. Terry Troia
Reverend Dr. Terry Troia has been at the helm of Project Hospitality since 1985, first serving as our Executive Director and currently as President and CEO. A Reformed Church in America minister, she is also the pastor of the Reformed Church of Huguenot Park in Staten Island. Reverend Troia has served on several city and state-wide boards including the NYC Commission
on Economic Opportunity, the NYC Commission on AIDS, the NYC Temporary Commission on Day Laborer Job Sites, the NYC Committee to End Homelessness, the NYC Task Force for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning (LGBTQ) Runaway and Homeless Youth, NYC Inter-Agency Task Force on Youth Violence, and NYC HIV Housing Workgroup. Currently she serves on the Mayors Clergy Advisory Council, the NYPD Training Advisory Council, the NYC Council Gun Violence Task Force, the New York State Interfaith Immigration Network, the NYC Supportive Housing Task Force, and is Co Chair of Tackling Youth Substance Abuse Initiative. Reverend Troia serves on the board of directors of the Supportive housing Network of New York, Homeless Services United, Coordinated Behavioral Care, El Centro del Inmigrante, a local day laborer organization and on the Staten Island Family Health Care Coalition and the Staten Island Inter-Religious Leadership, a network of local religious leaders committed to upholding the biblical charism of hospitality and justice. She is a member of New Brighton Coalition of Concerned Citizens, Port Richmond Proud, and the Staten Island Immigrant Council. Since Hurricane Sandy hit the shores of Staten Island in October of 2012, Reverend Troia has been at the forefront of the relief efforts. She is currently serving as President of The Staten Island Community and Interfaith Long Term Recovery Organization.