Lifetime achievement award winner isn't done giving back | Shining Light Awards
Twenty-five years ago, Reginald Turner Jr. was tapped as a rising star in Michigan’s legal community. Like many of Turner’s colleagues, he wanted to be known as one of the best attorneys in the state. But back then, Turner also said he wanted to be a lawyer “who has made a positive difference in the community.”
At age 59, Turner has received many accolades for his legal and civic work, but he says there's more to do.
“I certainly would say that I’m not done doing what I can to serve our community and to serve the nation,” says Turner, who is a member of the executive board of Clark Hill PLC in Detroit. It is because of Turner’s continual commitment to service that he will receive the Neal Shine Award for Exemplary Regional Leadership, an honor reserved for standout Michiganders with lifelong roles in supporting regional cooperation and progress. The award is part of the annual Shining Light Awards, presented by the Detroit Free Press and the Metropolitan Affairs Coalition.
Turner was nominated for the award by Gene Gargaro, who received the honor in 2017.
“I would say within the definition of leadership would be risk, judgment, initiative, creative thinking, generous listening and hard work; and Reggie has all of those qualities,” said Gargaro, who is the chairman of the Detroit Institute of Arts board. One of the major leadership examples that Gargaro cites was the lead role Turner played as a board member in the DIA’s successful tri-county millage campaign in 2012, which saved the institution from devastating budget cuts, and gave Macomb, Oakland and Wayne County residents free admission to the DIA.
“Reggie is respected by county leadership and is a real doer," Gargaro said. “When he sets his sights on something, it gets done.”
For Turner, the goal hit home.
“I went on field trips to the DIA in grade school, and to walk into the Rivera Court — it’s one of the most beautiful rooms in the world,” Turner said. “The city of Detroit raised me and I always thought it was important to support its wonderful institutions.”
But the DIA's challenges continued. Nearly a year after the millage vote, the museum’s art was at risk of liquidation to creditors in the city of Detroit's historic bankruptcy. A deal known as the grand bargain ultimately saved the DIA's art and decreased the cuts pensioners faced — and the bankruptcy gave the city a fresh financial start.
“The idea of losing all the artwork during the bankruptcy is something we could not imagine,” Turner said. “That period tested the souls of Detroiters and we got through it and are now much better off."
Even when Turner references the city’s challenges and hardships, there is a calm, evenness to his tone. And it is that quality that caught the attention of Nettie Seabrooks more than 20 years ago when Turner was supporting Dennis Archer’s mayoral campaign.
"He exudes integrity and he’s not one of those people who talks to hear himself talking. Reggie is always very thoughtful and measured,” said Seabrooks, who held high-level positions within Archer’s administration, including deputy mayor. It was Seabrooks who brought Reggie to the attention of the DIA’s board.
“Who does not know Reggie Turner in the city of Detroit?” DIA director, president and CEO Salvador Salort-Pons playfully asked. “Reggie is one of those leaders in the community who is a point of reference for everyone. And he really is a generous man, not only with his time, but with his network.”
Salort-Pons describes how the DIA is working closely with Turner to become more representative of all the communities it serves, including having more diversity on its board of directors. In Turner, Salort-Pons says the DIA has an ally who is particularly skilled at bringing people together.
“Reggie has his connections and diplomacy, and then he also has a rare ability and that’s empathy,” Salort-Pons said. “I think he understands leadership as a service and he is a tremendous leader in that regard; he’s always helping, always serving. … I’m very happy he’s getting this award and I think it’s good for the community because he represents the kind of values that we should try to uphold.”
When pressed to talk about being chosen for the award, Turner said it is especially gratifying to receive an honor named after Neal Shine, whom Turner got to know when his wife, Marcia, was a senior sales director for Detroit Newspapers.
“Neal Shine was a man for the people in every way,” Turner said. “He believed it was his duty to serve, and he had open arms and an open mind for anyone who wanted to do something constructive in the community.”
Being “constructive in the community” is also a description that can be applied to Turner. His roles span a range of arenas, including chairman of the Detroit Public Safety Foundation; vice chairman of the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan; trustee of the Hudson-Webber Foundation; past president of the National Bar Association and the State Bar of Michigan and past chair of the United Way for Southeastern Michigan.
Turner explains that his experiences have, in large part, been a mentorship with some of the most respected leaders in the region. As mentors, Turner cites a "Who's Who" of Detroit's political, business and legal communities: Judge Damon Keith; Michigan constitutional lawyer and champion for labor Ted Sachs; J. Thomas Lenga, former CEO of Clark Hill PLC; labor and employment law attorney Mary Ellen Gurewitz; Fred Gray, an attorney for Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr.; labor activist the Rev. Horace Sheffield Jr., and educator Lavonne Sheffield Hudson.Turner also named Archer, Gargaro, Seabrooks, former Detroit Police Chief Ike McKinnon, retired Masco Corp. chairman and CEO Richard Manoogian, Comerica Inc. Chairman Ralph Babb and former DTE Energy CEO Tony Early.
“I have learned so much from the guidance of very successful individuals who took time to talk to me about life, careers, politics, success, religion and community,” said Turner, who also serves on the board of directors for Comerica and Masco.
If the lessons learned from mentors are not enough motivation, Turner can bring it back home, literally. He is inspired by the success of his family, including his wife, Marcia, who is now a vice president for Fox Sports Detroit; his oldest daughter Nia, who is a financial analyst for Fox Sports in Los Angeles; and his youngest daughter, Imani, a senior at Xavier University in Louisiana. The wisdom passed down from his father, a former deputy chief of police in Detroit whose name Turner proudly carries, and mother, Anne, who retired from the Detroit Public Library is also always present.
“A number of principles that guide my professional service and service in the community are all pretty basic,” said Turner, a graduate of Cass Tech, Wayne State and University of Michigan Law School. “Like the saying goes, all I needed to know about getting along with people I learned in kindergarten. I was brought up with a belief that we are all in this together and it is appropriate to treat everyone with dignity and respect…”
If you go
What: Shining Light Regional Cooperation Awards breakfast to celebrate the 2019 honorees
When: 7 a.m.-9:30 a.m., Thursday, Oct. 10
Where: Mint at Michigan First Conference Center, 27000 Evergreen Road, Lathrup Village (note, this is a new venue for the annual event)
Tickets: $65; can be purchased at shininglightawards.com
The inspiration behind the awards
The Shining Light Regional Cooperation Awards salute the contributions of lifelong, unsung and rising change-makers who are working to better the region. The awards are sponsored by the Free Press and the Metropolitan Affairs Coalition, a group of business, labor and government leaders working for change in the region. The awards are named for three leaders in their own right. Learn about past winners of the awards at shininglightawards.com/honorees.
Neal Shine: The Neal Shine Award for Exemplary Regional Leadership is named for the late publisher of the Free Press, who worked to build stronger ties among metro Detroit communities during his 45 years at the newspaper. Shine started at the Free Press as a copyboy in 1950. His roles at the Free Press include reporter, editor, managing editor and publisher.
Eleanor Josaitis: The Eleanor Josaitis Unsung Hero Award is named for the late co-founder of Focus: HOPE, which formed in the aftermath of the city's 1967 civil disturbance. The civic and human rights organization aims to help our region overcome racism, poverty and injustice.
Dave Bing: The Dave Bing Future Leader Award is named for the founder of the Bing Group, former Detroit mayor, former NBA basketball player and founder of the Bing Youth Institute, which empowers youths to reach their full potential.