Bishop Leah Daughtry, a longtime civil rights organizer and political strategist, is set to headline the Hampton NAACP's 54th Annual Life Membership Awards Celebration on Sunday, October 18, 2026. The gathering runs from 3 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Hampton Roads Convention Center at 1610 Coliseum Drive in Hampton.
The celebration honors individuals and organizations that strengthen the NAACP's mission through sustained commitment and service, according to WAVY.com. This year's theme, “We the People: Empowering Voices, Inspiring Action,” frames an event that has become a fixture on Hampton's civic calendar.
Daughtry brings a résumé that spans faith, politics and publishing. The station's report describes her as president and CEO of On These Things, with decades of leadership as a civil rights organizer, political strategist, author and faith leader. She was also CEO of the 2008 and 2016 Democratic National Conventions, according to a Georgetown University Berkley Center profile, and she co-founded Black Church PAC while co-convening Power Rising.
A Book That Chronicles Black Women in Politics
Daughtry co-authored “For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Politics,” which chronicles the journeys of Black women in American politics and went on to win an NAACP Image Award, per the same account. The station notes that she has used her career to support the liberation of Black women and communities, and that she continues to shape conversations on civic engagement and empowerment.
Her faith-leadership credentials draw some differing descriptions elsewhere. The Berkley Center profile identifies her as presiding minister of The House of the Lord Churches, while Word In Black describes her as presiding prelate of The Church on the Mount, a Pentecostal Assembly her grandfather, Bishop Alonzo Daughtry, founded in 1929.
A Tradition Rooted at the Convention Center
A Tradition Rooted at the Convention Center The Hampton Roads Convention Center has repeatedly served as the backdrop for this milestone celebration. Members of the Hampton Sheriff's Office, including Sheriff B. J. Roberts, attended the branch's 46th Annual Life Membership Awards Banquet, according to the Virginia Sheriffs' Association. The New Journal and Guide reported that the 53rd celebration was held there, and WAVY reported the same venue for the 54th event.
Past editions give a sense of the celebration's scale and civic reach. At the 53rd Annual Life Membership Awards Celebration, held at the same convention center, 19 individuals and organizations received Life Membership Plaques, as reported by The New Journal and Guide. Rev. Dr. Dwight Jones delivered that year's keynote address, and Hampton NAACP branch president Gaylene Kanoyton presented the plaques.
That same celebration drew greetings from Congressman Bobby Scott and Hampton Mayor Jimmy Gray, underscoring the event's standing among local and federal officials. With Daughtry now confirmed as this year's headliner, the 54th celebration looks set to continue a recent pattern of drawing prominent voices to Hampton for an afternoon centered on civic engagement and community recognition.
