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The community mourns yet another great icon, Jennifer Vaughn Blakely has passed. Since 2010 Ms. Vaughn-Blakely has chaired The Group. The highly respected Riverside-based group is a grassroots public policy organization to bring together diverse groups to address issues affecting African Americans. She and The Group were instrumental in drafting Riverside’s ethics reform code and its later expansion to cover government staff as well as elected officials.
An Inland Empire trailblazer, Ms. Vaughn-Blakely was the historical “first” in many areas of local government in Riverside and San Bernardino counties, including becoming City of Fontana’s first Black Assistant City Manager in the early ‘80s.
“Another one of our community Angeles has transitioned to be with the LORD,” Terrance Stone, CEO of Young Visionaries stated. “Mrs Jennifer Vaughn-Blakely was the queen of organizational capacity building in the Inland Empire amongst other things. She mentored my professional career and helped me to navigate success. You will be missed.”
Memorial services shall be posted soon as they are announced.
