2025 Housing Visionary Awards Gala

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NHC’s Annual Housing Visionary Awards Gala recognizes some of our most dedicated colleagues who are making a difference. The 2025 recipients of NHC’s Housing Visionary Award are Marc H. Morial, President and CEO, National Urban League and Renee Lewis Glover, Founder and Managing Member, The Catalyst Group, LLC and former CEO, Atlanta Housing Authority. NHC also will present The Honorable Mel Martinez, former U.S. Senator and former Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development with the Carl A.S. Coan, Sr., Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service. Marc, Renee, and Mel are distinguished leaders in housing and community development whose work has helped move our nation toward NHC’s goal of quality, affordable housing for all.

Honorees

Marc H. Morial, one of the few national leaders to possess “street smarts,” and “boardroom savvy,” is the transformative President and CEO of the National Urban League, the nation’s largest historic civil rights and urban advocacy organization. He served as the highly successful and popular Mayor of New Orleans as well as the President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. Marc previously was a Louisiana State Senator and was a lawyer in New Orleans with an active, high-profile practice. He is a leading voice on the national stage in the battle for jobs, education, housing, health, voting rights, equity, and entrepreneurship.

Marc is a published author; his leadership book, Gumbo Coalition: 10 Leadership Lessons That Help You Inspire, United, and Achieve has been widely acclaimed, and his column entitled To Be Equal, reaches hundreds of thousands. He is the host of the weekly syndicated television show, America’s Black Forum. A graduate of Georgetown University Law Center, and the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Economics and African American Studies, he has been recognized as one of the 100 most influential Black Americans by Ebony Magazine, one of the top 50 Non-Profit Leaders by the Non-Profit Times, one of the 100 Most Influential Black Lawyers in America and he has also been inducted into the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame in Atlanta, GA.

Marc and his father, the late Ernest “Dutch” Morial, are history makers as the first African American father/son mayors in the U.S. and were the subject of a Double Jeopardy question on the legendary Jeopardy television game show in the 1990s.

Renee Lewis Glover is a purpose-driven thought and business leader with special expertise in housing affordability.  She is known internationally for ushering in reforms at the Atlanta Housing Authority that helped to change the national conversation about public housing and economic development.  As its CEO for 19 years, Renee, working with private sector real estate development firms, transformed the public housing model into a master-planned, mixed-use, mixed-income community model.  During her tenure, Renee oversaw the transformation of the authority’s unsafe and dilapidated housing projects into more than 16 master planned, mixed-use, mixed-income residential communities.  These transformed communities leveraged each AHA dollar with at least $10 from the private sector and other public funding sources, resulting in approximately $3 billion of economic impact and an improved quality of life for more than 50,000 Atlanta residents.  Among other reforms, she negotiated comprehensive regulatory changes, privatized important business functions in a way that improved customer service and efficiency; and transformed the AHA from a chronically dysfunctional agency, on the verge of receivership, to become a financially strong, high performing, nationally recognized, mission-driven diversified real estate organization.  Renee is currently serving on a number of public, private and not-for-profit company boards.

Receiving the Carl A.S. Coan, Sr., Lifetime Achievement Award for Public Service

The Honorable Mel Martinez is a distinguished leader in business, government, and public service, with a career spanning finance, politics, and law. He most recently served as Chairman of the Southeast and Latin America for JPMorgan Chase & Co. (2010–2023), where he played a key role in strengthening the firm’s presence in these critical markets.

Prior to his work in the private sector, Martinez dedicated himself to public service at the highest levels of government. He was elected as the first Cuban American to serve in the United States Senate in 2005.  Representing the state of Florida, he served on key committees, including Armed Services, Foreign Relations, and Banking, Commerce & Urban Affairs. He was also the Ranking Member of the Sea Power Subcommittee, contributing to national security and defense policy.

From 2001 to 2004, Martinez served as the U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, where he led efforts to expand homeownership and address housing challenges nationwide. Before that, he was Mayor of Orange County, Florida (1998–2001), overseeing significant economic and community development initiatives. He also served as General Chairman of the Republican National Committee in 2008.

Beyond his government service, Martinez has been actively involved in corporate leadership, currently serving on the boards of NVR, Inc. and Marriott Vacations Worldwide Corp. He previously held directorships with Progress Energy and La-Z-Boy. His commitment to civic engagement is reflected in his roles with organizations such as the National Endowment for Democracy, the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition, and the Orlando Magic Youth Foundation.

Recognized for his contributions, Martinez has received numerous honors, including the Department of the Navy’s Distinguished Public Service Award, the Order of Malta Tuitio Fidei award, and the Ohtli Silver Medal from the Government of Mexico. His legal career began in Orlando, Florida, where he practiced law from 1973 to 1998.

A proud graduate of Florida State University (B.A., 1969; J.D., 1973), Martinez is also a published author. His memoir, A Sense of Belonging: From Castro’s Cuba to the U.S. Senate, One Man’s Pursuit of the American Dream (2008), chronicles his journey from Cuba to becoming a U.S. Senator.

He is married to Kathryn (Kitty) Martinez, and together they have three children and five grandchildren.

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