By Dianne Anderson
Reginald “Reggie” Webb was well revered for decades as a McDonald’s mogul, and not just for his personal wealth and business acumen.
For those who knew him, he brought more to the table than many people realize, and his vision lives on.
Bishop L. Kirk Sykes said Dr. Webb took up the mantle to speak out about the need for economic development, and to reach like-minded people about growing wealth in the Black community.
“As pastors, we have the pulpit. We lay down the foundation for our church members, that they need to participate in this not just for their sake, but for their children’s sake, it will continue to grow. I’m committed to seeing his vision through,” said Pastor Sykes of CrossWord Christian Church in Riverside.
Dr. Webb passed away on July 20. He was 76.
Bishop Sykes described Webb as a friend and a selfless man who wanted everyone to be empowered, and later, Webb became a member of his church.
Although Dr. Webb was affluent, Sykes said the vision for CEEM, Cooperative Economic Empowerment Movement, was to restore the community by recycling Black dollars.
“He was blessed in the financial arena, but wanted to give back, not just African Americans, but those who are downtrodden and those who needed a hand up. That’s why I loved and appreciated him,” he said.
Webb was a stalwart, he said, and always pressing the need for the Black community to support each other, and get children educated about financial responsibility.
Although recycling Black dollars is not a new concept, it was his heart.
“Not to keep wealth to himself but make sure that all those that wanted to go to the next level have an opportunity to do it through CEEM,” he said. “[His message] was to save that money, invest and leave a foundation for our children’s children, so our children don’t have to struggle the way we struggled.”
In the 1980s, Webb was one of just a handful of Black McDonald’s owners nationwide. He grew his small venture into a thriving family franchise spanning 16 Los Angeles and Inland Empire locations. In recent times, the enterprise sold the chain and started CEEM to teach the Black community about financial educational strategies.
In a relatively short time, CEEM has grown to include hundreds of members throughout the region.
Dr. Judy White recalls meeting Webb when she served as Superintendent of Moreno Valley Unified School District. In the early phases of CEEM development, she was tapped for Webb’s vision to champion his goals within the educational sphere.
She said his passion was to create a legacy to benefit the entire community.
While she understood all things about academics from preschool through college, she said Webb taught her things she didn’t know, like empowering community economics in education, and how to reach and teach others.
Everyone involved in the project wanted to grow and collaborate.
Some of her best memories in serving the CEEM board was when Webb asked her to identify educators in the Inland Empire, San Diego and San Bernardino County to honor them at the L.A. County Fair on stage for fighting for students of color. Many had never been recognized before.
It was clear to her that Dr. Webb was not just satisfied with his own success, but serving others in need. She said it takes someone special to pull from their personal resources for the betterment of the community.
“We always thought education was key, critical and important, but not if it doesn’t impact your economics,” she said. “It is personal, I changed as a human being. His presence brings out the best in you. I saw him as a pure soul.”
CEEM categories of outreach, called Pillars, held regular board meetings where nonprofits, faith-based, business and education partners came together. Annually, they pulled about 400 participants for a full house.
Jonathan Buffong, who also works with CEEM and the local Youth Action Project, counts Dr. Webb as a close friend and mentor of the past ten years, for himself and many other young Black men in the Inland Empire.
Early on, he said Webb was a unifying force for other Black franchise owners to learn best practices to grow their businesses. In those times, Blacks were purposely placed in locations where they wouldn’t succeed. He said Webb’s strategy also boosted McDonald’s stocks and owners became extremely successful.
Parity, today a term commonly used to indicate equity for the community, was a concept that began with Dr. Webb. In many ways, that blueprint for parity is now being carried forth to this generation.
Through Youth Action Partnership, Buffong worked the “Pathways to Parity” project, powered by CEEM with the help of Webb’s initial investment. That effort was to get workers into solid opportunities without college, particularly in cybersecurity, transportation and clean energy, where salaries easily reach $100-150,000 a year.
“Dr. Webb saw that and seeded $1 million to get started on that project. Then, we found funding from other places, but a lot of people don’t know that Dr. Webb is behind a lot of things,” he said.
Eliminating a hefty $23,000 community cost to host an annual celebration of Black graduates at CSUSB Coussoulis arena over the years was another major success. Today, those monies are now directed toward Black students in the form of scholarships. He thanks Dr. Webb and his daughter Kiana for working out that solution with President Tomás Morales.
Buffong said it’s just a few of many things that Dr. Webb brought to the table.
“When we declared racism as a civil right violation for both Riverside and San Bernardino counties, it was Reggie Webb that had a strong message that the county supervisors really respected,” Buffong said.
He had also had an enormous capacity for discipline, integrity in life and business, and was a man of his word. He also had boss communication skills.
“He had the business side to him, he would be behind the scenes on political figures, particularly for folks with African American best interests. He made sure they were taken care of,” he said.
Watching Dr. Webb’s high level of integrity and behind-the-scenes work demonstrated what it takes to be successful. It’s something that many young people in the community never experienced before.
“In some aspects, he was a father-like figure. We had not seen an example of how wealth could be transferred down to your kids. He was that first person for us and very accessible,” he said.
To learn more about CEEM, and Dr. Webb, see https://www.ceemcoop.com.
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