RIVIERA BEACH, FL – Though former longtime Judge Edward Rodgers passed away early Saturday, his legacy will be on significant display this Saturday at a Farm Share food giveaway.
That’s because the giveaway is the first community outreach project by the Judge Edward Rodgers Center for Community Development, located at 251 W. 11 St., which is the site of the former Riviera Beach Maritime Academy. The center’s formal ribbon-cutting ceremony is scheduled for December 15—and was to include remarks from its namesake.
“It’s a loss, a big one,” said Alfred J. Fields, president of the Alpha Educational Foundation, which will operate the facility. “There’s a reason why we named this center for him. Almost until the very day he died, we were meeting with him to update him on the work we were doing in his name. And he had great ideas. Still.”
The Foundation is the nonprofit arm of the Palm Beach County chapter of the national Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity. Judge Rodgers had been an Alpha for nearly 70 years and was still, at age 91, actively participating in the local chapter’s work.
That work at the Center includes:
- Farm Share food giveaway. The giveaway will be held from 8 a.m. to 12 noon this Saturday, October 27 at the Judge Rodgers Center. Volunteers and needy families can still participate.
- Career Fair. In partnership with the Marine Industries Association of PBC, the career fair will be held November 28 at the Center. The focus is on jobs connected to the Port of Palm Beach and the Riviera Beach Marina—both just blocks from the Center.
- Center ribbon-cutting and the Black & Gold Ball. Both events will be held on December 15 and both are connected to Judge Rodgers: one in honor of his community focus, the other to raise funds to support that vision, Mr. Fields said. Sponsorships are still available, including those in specific honor of the Judge.
Judge Rodgers, who was the first Black prosecutor and judge in Palm Beach County, among other firsts, will also be on significant display on Saturday at another event: his funeral.