Image via Winston Bodrick

 

By: Chelsea Frazilus, Staff Writer 

 

Morehouse College is an institution known for transforming Black boys into men and servant leaders who facilitate change while influencing future generations. The epitome of a true “Man of Morehouse” is exemplified within 2014 Morehouse alumnus Winston Bodrick, Principal at Ambry Development Group, who now serves on the Board of Advisors for The Greater Boston Food Bank (GBFB). 

 

GBFB is the largest hunger relief organization in New England and one of the largest food banks in the nation. 

 

This organization feeds individuals within 190 towns across Eastern Massachusetts through 600 food distribution programs and partners, who have been able to allocate 90 million meals per  year with the mission of ending hunger. 

 

Through working on the Board of Advisors for GBFB, Bodrick hopes that his experiences as an Atlanta native and HBCU grad will allow him to initiate diverse discussions on ways to tackle the harsh reality of hunger to eradicate this issue. 

 

Bodrick’s upbringing as a son of a pastor and a career educator instilled the importance of centering community within every action and endeavor of his. 

 

“Community wellbeing, economic stability, thinking about major issues that affect all people- when you talk about public health, food insecurity, education- these are things that are always on the top of my agenda in my personal life that I try to weave in professionally, as best as I can because that’s what I truly care about,” Bodrick said. 

 

He explains that service is a lifestyle or framework of thinking because once an individual observes the world through this specific lens, it is difficult to turn a blind eye to poverty, flaws within the education system, and the many challenges that the public health industry is facing. 

 

“For me, the first part is a decentering of self. The tenets of recognizing that this is bigger than just you allows you to see people in all facets of life and have the strong desire to do as much as you can to alleviate those things,” Bodrick said. 

 

He currently serves as the Vice President of the Greater Boston Morehouse College Alumni Association, a role that he has dedicated himself to for the past six years. 

 

While attending Morehouse, he was a two-sport athlete in baseball and football, joined the Psi Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Incorporated, as well as the Morehouse Sociological Association, and participated in the Morehouse Pan-African Global Experience study abroad program. 

 

Once attaining his Bachelor’s degree, Bodrick pursued higher education through earning a Master’s degree from Dartmouth College and a Juris Doctor from Boston College Law School. 

 

Bodrick also provides insight into his experience as an undergraduate student at Morehouse College. He shared that his academic, social, and professional skills were fostered and supported immensely which molded him into the man that he is today. 

 

“Morehouse instilled in me how to be a leader. They place a significant emphasis on leadership development, how to be a critical thinker, to be socially, culturally, and civically engaged, [and] to carry the banner of social responsibility as it pertains to addressing social issues that affect communities like ours and communities at large,” he explained. 

 

Similarly, this space’s work in the cultivation of Black men, provides this demographic of students with tools to navigate the world and society professionally, personally, and socially, that other spaces would be unable to offer. 

 

Bodrick charges students to take initiative over their collegiate experience through learning and accepting who they are as individuals so that they can foster genuine relationships with those who are similarly aligned. 

 

He emphasizes the importance of giving yourself grace for not knowing who or what you want to be at this moment. 

 

As a student, Bodrick planned on pursuing a career in academia, but life experiences allowed him to realize that law was a more appropriate pursuit due to a change of interests and passion to address the many issues that mean the most to him. 

 

“For students who may not know what they want to do yet, you do not have to have it all figured out in undergrad. Life is a long journey, you learn as you continue to grow. The more experiences you have, the more you’re exposed to. Make adjustments and pursue what you want” Bodrick said. 

 

It is also pivotal to take a “why not” approach to opportunities and organizations as you never know what you may gain or the people you may meet. 

 

“Whenever you get the chance to take the mantle and lead, don’t be afraid, embrace it. Even if you are afraid, embrace it,” he said.

 

His final words of advice to students: build a strong network, seek mentorship, invest in continuous learning, embrace leadership opportunities, and always give back. 

 

Copy Edited: Auzzy Byrdsell, Editor-in-Chief