Realtor Sheena Baker, other leaders to be feted at Aurora’s 18th annual Heritage Dinner
The Aurora African American Heritage Advisory Board will host its 18th annual Heritage Dinner at 6 p.m. Friday, Feb. 23, at The Matrix Club, 808 S. Route 59 in Naperville.
It’s an evening focused on honoring the past, celebrating the present, and preparing for the future. The Heritage Dinner will feature entertainment, scholarship presentations to local high school seniors, and award presentations to community members.
Each year, the board presents its Leader of the Year Award to a trailblazing Black leader in the community.
The 2024 Leader of the Year Award will be bestowed upon Aurora-based Realtor and entrepreneur Sheena Baker, founder of the Sheena Baker Group.
After purchasing her first home at the age of 19, she obtained her real estate license in 2006 as she wanted everyone to experience the benefits of homeownership. Baker has been a real estate investor who owns multiple units as well as a homeownership advocate who hosts workshops to better prepare individuals and families for their homeownership journey. She is a full-time, full-service real estate agent who has helped hundreds of families receive the keys to their future. Sheena Baker is changing the narrative of homeownership in and for our community, while volunteering her time and talents on several boards of community organizations.
This year, the Leader of the Year Award is being renamed the Scheketa Hart-Burns Leader of the Year Award, in honor of the legacy of the late trailblazer who was a founding advisor of the Aurora African American Heritage Advisory Board.
Awards will also be presented to five other community members:
• The 2024 Lifetime Achievement Awards will be presented to longtime community advocate and volunteer Williams Burns and retired educator and civic leader Joy Bowling.
• The 2024 Nia (Purpose) Awards will be presented to Pastor James Berry of Harvest of Faith Church, public health advocate Dr. Alma Harrell, and community leader Nick Richard-Thompson.
Tickets are $100 and can be purchased at www.aurora-il.org/AAHABDinner2024.
Sponsorship opportunities are available.