CULTURE  //  Legacy

Arkansas Black Hall of Fame to Honor Six
at the 31st Annual Induction Ceremony in October 2025

​The Arkansas Black Hall of Fame (ABHOF) held its official press conference on Tuesday, September 2, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. at the Statehouse Convention Center Rotunda, located at 101 E. Markham Street in Little Rock, announcing the 2025 inductees. The conference took place in an area of the Statehouse Convention Center Rotunda dedicated to an Arkansas Black Hall of Fame Exhibit entitled "A Legacy of Excellence," which is a cultural showcase honoring African Americans with Arkansas roots who have made lasting contributions to the state, the nation, and the world.


A CELEBRATION OF LEGACY
The upcoming exhibit builds upon the Hall of Fame’s three-decade mission of recognizing excellence across fields such as education, medicine, the arts, business, civic leadership, and philanthropy. By bringing together artifacts, stories, and historical perspectives, the exhibit aims to both preserve and amplify the voices of Arkansans who have broken barriers and paved the way for future generations.

“These inductees embody excellence, resilience, leadership, and service,” said Charles Stewart, ABHOF Chairman. “They represent the best of Arkansas and the impact African Americans with Arkansas roots continue to have across the globe. Our ceremony is more than a night of recognition; it is a reminder of the legacy we inherit and the future we are building.

The Arkansas Black Hall of Fame (ABHOF) will celebrate its 2025 class of inductees during the 31st Annual Induction Ceremony and Show on Saturday, October 11, 2025, at 7 p.m. at the Robinson Center Performance Hall in Little Rock.
​
Presented by Linda and Rush Harding, the evening will spotlight six remarkable Arkansans whose achievements, leadership, and service continue to shape the state, the nation, and the world. Tickets are now available at ticketmaster.com and arblackhalloffame.org.


GIVING BACK TO ARKANSAS
Proceeds from the event benefit the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame Foundation’s annual grants program. In 2025, the Foundation awarded $55,000 to 20 nonprofit organizations statewide. Since 2010, ABHOF has distributed more than $1 million in grants and community investments, positively impacting residents in 71 of Arkansas’ 75 counties.

​
ABOUT THE ARKANSAS BLACK HALL OF FAME FOUNDATION
The Arkansas Black Hall of Fame Foundation strives to create an environment where future generations of African American achievers with Arkansas roots can thrive. 

Since its founding, the foundation has worked to provide visibility and recognition for the remarkable achievements of African Americans connected to the state. Through its annual Induction Ceremony, grants program, and cultural initiatives.

ABHOF continues to inspire pride, correct historical omissions, invest in underserved communities across Arkansas, and remind the world that Black history is a vital part of American history. Its book, Seeds of Genius: 25 Years of the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame, chronicles the first quarter-century of honorees and is available at ARBlackHallofFame.org.

---

- Event Date: Saturday, October 11, 2025
- Location: Robinson Center Performance Hall, Little Rock
- Tickets: ticketmaster.com | arblackhalloffame.org

2025 Inductees
​

• Linda Pondexter Chesterfield of Hope – Revered Former State Senator and Education Icon
• Cleon Aurelius Flowers, Sr., M.D. of Stamps (posthumous) – Pioneering Physician, Mentor, Civic and Social Leader
• Garbo and Archie Hearne III, M.D. of El Dorado and Little Rock – Trailblazing Art Curators and Visionary Entrepreneurs
• Hon. Marion A. Humphrey, Sr. (ret.) of Pine Bluff – Legendary Jurist, Pastor, Civic and Social Leader
• Charlie Nelms, Ed.D. of Crawfordsville – Towering Higher Education Leader, Author and Philanthropist
• Latriece Watkins of McGehee – Business Executive Extraordinaire, Chief Merchandising Officer, Walmart U.S.

Senator Linda Pondexter Chesterfield, (Ark., Retired) was born in Hope, Arkansas. She was a 1965 honors graduate from Henry Clay Yaeger High School, and was among the nation’s initial National Achievement finalists. Recruited by Hendrix College in Conway, Arkansas, she was one of two Black students who desegregated that campus in 1965; and she became the first Black graduate of the institution in 1969. Hired by the Little Rock School District, Chesterfield began her teaching career at Hall High School where she launched the first Black History Month observance for the predominantly white student body. She spent more than 30 years teaching in the Pulaski County Special School District and became the first Black woman elected as president of the Pulaski Association of Classroom Teachers and the Arkansas Education Association. She is the only Arkansan ever elected to the nine-member National Education Association (NEA) Executive Committee. Chesterfield was elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives in 2003 and served three terms. She served as chairman of several key House committees and co-sponsored the legislation that declared Juneteenth a state holiday. In 2010, she was elected to the Arkansas Senate, where she sponsored legislation for the two-cent sales tax for roads and bridges. She also twice served as the Assistant President Pro Tempore of the Senate under two different Republican Pro Tempores. Chesterfield’s mantra is “I’m just trying to matter.”

The late Cleon Aurelius Flowers, Sr., M.D. was born in 1913 in Stamps, Arkansas. He became a medical pioneer who was recognized nationally for his accomplishments. Perhaps his most recognized career achievement occurred in 1954 when he delivered the first Siamese twins not born in a hospital, which was such a phenomenon that it gained local, state, and national acclaim and was covered during the time in an edition of the iconic Jet Magazine. Dr. Flowers was a practicing physician who opened his first private practice in 1945 in the historic Mosaic Templar Building in Little Rock. In 1946, he purchased the building that was United Links Hospital in Little Rock, a medical facility devoted solely to the care of African American patients. Flowers operated that facility until 1950 when he became one of the first two Black doctors hired onto the staff of Pine Bluff’s Davis Hospital, the lead-in to Jefferson Regional Medical Center. The United Links building became the Flowers Professional Building and remained open for many years. He was a member in an extensive list of notable organizations, including the National Medical Association; Arkansas Medical, Dental, & Pharmaceutical Association; Southeast Arkansas Dental, & Pharmaceutical Association; and was a life-time member of the NAACP, to name a few. His brother William Harold Flowers, Esq., was inducted into the Arkansas Black Hall of Fame in 2004.

Archie Hearne, III, M.D. and Garbo Watson Hearne, for almost four decades have dedicated themselves to enriching the Central Arkansas community by providing quality healthcare and promoting Black culture. Dr. Hearne, a San Francisco native, an Arkansan by choice, and a practicing physician began serving rural and Central Arkansas in 1983 and soon met and married Garbo, an El Dorado native and Registered Nurse Practitioner. In 1988 with encouragement from friends and artists alike, they opened Pyramid Gallery at 12th and Fair Park. Quickly outgrowing the space, they relocated downtown in 1989 and added a custom frame shop and bookstore. That became Pyramid Gallery and Books, a crucial community space that hosted cultural and art events, as well as book signings. In 1997, a move to the Museum Center in the River Market District brought Pyramid Art, Books & Custom Framing and Hearne Fine Art. Here along with community activists, Pyramid got involved in promoting the annual pan-African Kwanzaa celebration. Having outgrown their respective professional spaces, they bought property in the historic Dunbar community and built a joint facility that opened in 2010, Pyramid Art Books and Custom Framing, Hearne Fine Art, and Hearne Family Practice as centers of wellness, education, and culture. Education, character, and integrity continue to be the building blocks of their legacy.

The Honorable Marion A. Humphrey, Sr., a Pine Bluff native, whose own maternal grandfather was born into slavery in 1861, has served as the pastor of Allison Memorial Presbyterian Church in Little Rock, Arkansas, for 41 years and is a retired circuit court judge for Pulaski and Perry counties. Humphrey was elected to the position of 6th Division Circuit Judge in 1992, and served from January 1, 1993, until December 31, 2010. He had been elected as a Little Rock municipal judge in 1988 and served from 1989 to 1992. Prior to having served as municipal judge, Humphrey had been in private practice in Little Rock and Pine Bluff, Arkansas. He also served among other positions as a Little Rock Assistant City Attorney, an Arkansas Assistant Attorney General, the Arkansas State Director for Prison Fellowship, and Director of Prison Services, Prison Fellowship, Falls Church, Virginia. He served as a research assistant in the office of former Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm of New York, U. S. House of Representatives and as an intern in the office of former Senator J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, U. S. Senate, both in Washington, D. C. Humphrey is a member of a number of professional and civic organizations, including the Arkansas Judicial Council, the Arkansas Bar Association, the Pulaski County Bar Association, and the W. Harold Flowers Law Society, and is a life member of both the National Bar Association and the NAACP. He formerly served on boards of several organizations, including Arkansas Children’s Hospital; the Vera Lloyd Presbyterian Home; Lyon College; and Johnson C. Smith Seminary and the Interdenominational Theological Center. He is a former president of the Christian Ministerial Alliance in Little Rock and chaplain of the Judicial Council of the National Bar Association. He previously served on the Arkansas Supreme Court Committee on Criminal Practice.

Charlie Nelms, Ed.D. is a nationally recognized leader in higher education, a compelling storyteller, and a social justice activist. He was born and reared in Crawfordsville, Arkansas, in the Arkansas Delta region. Nelms graduated in 1969 from Arkansas Agricultural, Mechanical, & Normal College (AM&N now UAPB) with a Bachelor of Science degree in agronomy followed by earning his master’s and doctorate degrees from Indiana University (IU). His nearly 50-year affiliation with IU is highlighted by having been the first African American appointed as chancellor of an IU campus (Indiana University East) and vice president of the University System. Nelms has also served as chancellor at the University of Michigan-Flint and North Carolina Central University. He has received numerous national accolades and honors to include medals, fellowships, honorary degrees, and even the MLK Drum Major for Service Award presented by President Obama in 2012 for helping to address the most pressing needs in our nation. Nelms spent five years as a blogger and is a highly coveted guest speaker, panelist, and commentator at various events, on radio programs, and in podcasts. He is an author; and his memoir, From Cotton Fields to University Leadership: All Eyes on Charlie (IU Press, 2019) was featured during IU’s bicentennial celebrations in 2020. Nelms and his wife, Jeanetta Sherrod Nelms, are philanthropists who award more than 30 annual under-graduate scholarships annually.

Latriece Watkins, from McGehee, Arkansas, with the inspiration and nurturing of strong women in her family as her foundation, is the Executive Vice President and Chief Merchandising Officer and is among the top five executives for Walmart U.S., the biggest retailer in the world. She joined the company parttime in 1997 as an intern in real estate, where she became a senior director and learned about property rights. During her rise with the retailer, Latriece has served in a variety of key leadership roles within Sam’s Club, Walmart U.S. merchandising, Human Resources, and U.S. store operations. In her more than two decades with Walmart and because she has worked in so many different facets of the business, she brings a full-circle approach to her leadership, all while keeping their customers’ needs front and center. Since joining the Walmart family of executives, Latriece has held positions of increasing responsibility in operations and merchandising, including Vice President and Divisional Merchandise Manager of adult beverages. She was promoted to Senior Vice President and General Merchandise Manager of Snacks, Beverages and Adult Beverages in 2014. She has been featured in countless publications and has received numerous honors and recognitions, including having been named one of Mass Market Retailers Most Influential Women in Retail. Latriece has served as a board member for Live Nation Entertainment, among many other organizations; and she is active with many nonprofit entities. Watkins currently lives in the Bentonville, Arkansas, area.

source: ABHOF + The Design Group Marketing