Mark Elzy is proud to be the president of 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit Inc., a group of “concerned African American men whose goal is to improve the quality of life in the African American community through their collective resources, abilities and experiences.”
And when Elzy, an operations manager in the Federal Business Division at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, explains why he makes time to serve his community, the 59-year-old Detroiter points to one man that he has been mighty proud of his entire life — his father, the late Gene Elzy.
This is the same Gene Elzy (July 28, 1932-Nov. 30, 2013) who entertained Detroit music fans for more than 45 years after graduating from Detroit’s Northwestern High School and serving his country in the U.S. Air Force, where he was an Armed Forces Radio disc jockey.
Gene Elzy’s radio shows, heard on WCHD-FM (105.9), WJR-AM (760) and WDET-FM (101.9), spanned a period of time when Detroit was a major music mecca and one of the largest radio markets in the country.
But away from radio microphones and the exclusive interviews that Gene Elzy conducted with some of the biggest names in music, including Stevie Wonder and Lena Horne, he also could be heard and seen at places that supported Detroit youths and people in need. This included frequent visits to Detroit schools, where Gene Elzy made students aware of careers in broadcasting.
Along with Elzy’s support of local charities, like Homes For Black Children and the Ronnie Milsap Foundation, which was founded in Detroit by the legendary singer and pianist Milsap, and attorney Gary Spicer, to help blind and visually-impaired individuals through college scholarships, eye disease research funding and job retraining programs.
“I was fortunate enough to have had an outstanding role model,” Mark Elzy said about his father on the afternoon of July 27, which would have been a day before Gene Elzy’s 94th birthday. “I watched how my father navigated life and one of the things that was extremely important to him was recognizing how fortunate he was to be in a position to influence others.
“Sometimes, that was through music education. But a lot of times it was just through the way he carried himself and the way he ‘walked the walk and talked the talk.’ And service was always a major part of the pattern that he set.”
As Mark Elzy spoke, “service” was certainly at the top of his mind because he and 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit were preparing to present the free Man Up! For Better Health Fair in partnership with Central City Health on Saturday, Aug. 1, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the headquarters of Developing K.I.D.S., at 24230 W. McNichols Road off Telegraph.
And just as Gene Ely’s radio programs featured a vast musical menu including “the jazzy side of blues and the bluesy side of jazz,” the same thing can be said about the organizers of a health fair who chose to serve up health screenings with music; cooking demonstrations; face painting; a run, walk and ride through a scenic neighborhood with the bike ride led by the GraceRiders — a bicycle ministry from Greater Grace Temple — and much more.
“We know statistically that Black men don’t engage with medical professionals at the same level as women. Men in general don’t, but particularly Black men, and there are a number of reasons for those health disparities, including structural racism, and the cost and access to care,” said Mark Elzy, who is in his first year as president of 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit, one of more than 100 chapters affiliated with 100 Black Men of America Inc. around the world.
“There are all of those sort of factors and then, of course, as we were reminded of multiple times particularly during the pandemic, there is a mistrust of the medical community within the Black community. And that helps us to understand why Black men don’t engage in a relationship with a health care provider as frequently.
“So through the health fair, we want to introduce members of our community to a healthier lifestyle and meet each person where they are. For people who want screenings, we wanted to make those available. But for people who just want to find ways to become more active or want to learn how to cook healthier meals, we wanted to provide demonstrations that people can perform on their own afterwards through fitness and other health applications.”
A 1984 graduate of Detroit’s Cass Technical High School, Elzy, at one point of the conversation when his teen years came up, playfully uttered the words “second to none,” as some Cass Technicians are known to say.
But the same amount of pride could be heard in Elzy’s voice a few minutes later when he described the robust list of creative fitness classes that will be conducted at the health fair courtesy of Motown In Motion, a program of The Miracles Foundation, which also has a partnership with 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit. A sampling of the classes includes “Cardio Drum,” “Line Dance Fitness,” “Detroit Bop,” “Detroit Jit,” “Tai Chi & Qi Gong,” “Jump Rope Fitness” and “Soul Steps.”
In between all of the health fair’s activities and information exchanges, Elzy is also hopeful that conversations will be had that will ultimately increase his organization’s membership.
“For the last couple of weeks, most of my conversations have been about health and wellness, but for 100 Men to continue to do all of the work that we want to do in our community, we need more soldiers,” Elzy said. “We are always looking for people to help us out in our mentoring space. Our mentoring program is called “Project Success” and it is our flagship program where we work with grades seven through graduation of high school, and some of those relationships continue on. We have even had students that have gone to college with the help of scholarships they obtained through The 100 come back after graduation to join us as members.”
And for those “soldiers” that step forward to join 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit, Elzy says a grand prize awaits that money cannot buy.
“I tell people all the time that I will never hit the lottery or win at the casino — that’s not how my luck works,” said Elzy, who also is forever grateful to retired Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan executive William Toples for introducing him to The 100. “My luck is being able to serve and it’s all because of the people that have enabled me to get to this point. So, for sure, I have been blessed and it goes all the way back to my upbringing.”
Committed to service, mentorship and leadership
What: 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit (President: Mark Elzy)
Mission: “To improve the quality of life in the African American community through their collective resources, abilities and experiences.”
Primary areas of focus: Health and wellness, education and mentoring through the organization’s flagship program “Project Success.”
Recent programs: The free Man Up! For Better Health Fair presented in partnership with Central City Health on Saturday, Aug. 1 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the headquarters of Developing K.I.D.S. located at 24230 W. McNichols Road off Telegraph.
Learn more: Please visit 100blackmendetroit.org or go to 100 Black Men of Greater Detroit’s Facebook and Instagram pages.
Scott Talley is a native Detroiter, a proud product of Detroit Public Schools and a lifelong lover of Detroit culture in its diverse forms. In his second tour with the Free Press, which he grew up reading as a child, he is excited and humbled to cover the city’s neighborhoods and the many interesting people who define its various communities. Contact him at stalley@freepress.com or follow him on Twitter @STalleyfreep. Read more of Scott’s stories at www.freep.com/mosaic/detroit-is/. Please help us grow great community-focused journalism by becoming a subscriber.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: This son of a radio legend makes his own good vibes by serving Detroit
Reporting by Scott Talley, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Scott Talley, Detroit Free Press | USA TODAY Network
