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LDS Church, NAACP Join Forces to Combat Infant Mortality
Church’s $500,000 donation will help renovate NAACP Memphis Branch for MyBaby4Me meetings, other community functions
MyBaby4Me classes are held.
“Happy Juneteenth and Freedom Day. We embrace and cherish and believe in the truthfulness of the principle of freedom in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints, and it’s in that spirit that we join you today,” said Elder Matthew S. Holland, General Authority Seventy and first counselor in the Church’s North America Southeast Area presidency, during a press conference.
MyBaby4Me is one of several educational and humanitarian initiatives by the Church and NAACP to benefit the Black community and promote self-reliance.

In June 2021, the Church pledged $2 million a year for three years to help fund these types of projects.
Judge William H. Stephens, 88






Judge William Haynes Stephens, known as Bill, died peacefully on May 17, 2023, at age 88. A trailblazer in many regards, he will be remembered as a man who truly forged his own path through life.




firm for three years before leaving to start his own private practice in Sausalito.





















By Sydney Walker





MEMPHIS, Tennessee - In a ZIP code with one of the United States’ highest infant mortality rates, the MyBaby4Me program has been offering hope to dozens of new and expectant mothers and their families since November 2022.



















At the Memphis branch of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People on Monday, June 19 — the holiday of Juneteenth that commemorates the end of slavery in the U.S. — the NAACP and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints announced efforts to ensure the longevity and success of MyBaby4Me.


The Church is donating $500,000 to help renovate the NAACP Memphis Branch, where he objective of the renovation is to help create an inviting community gathering spot for MyBaby4Me meetings and other NAACP and community functions. Workers will also install a commercial kitchen to feed the women and children participating in the program.
Elder Holland said the Church’s involvement in the program is reflective of the Savior’s two great commandments — to love God and love others. “We are honored as a Church to be able to do this, and it’s a signal of our trust in these great leaders and what they’re doing and the proven program, MyBaby4Me,” he said.



“I am so excited about this day,” said Vickie Terry, executive director of the NAACP Memphis Branch, who first told Elder Holland about her concern for infant

Bill was born in New Orleans on March 2, 1935, to Myrtle Haynes and William Charles Stephens. During World War II, Bill moved to Sacramento, CA where he attended Sacramento High School, graduated at the age of 16 and enrolled at what was then San Jose State College, becoming the first in his family to attend college.
Bill graduated in 1956. Over the next eight years, Bill worked as an accountant and an assistant personnel officer for the California Department of Water Resources.
In 1964, Bill enrolled at Hastings Law School in San Francisco. Bill graduated from Hastings in 1967 and began his law career at the National Labor Relations Board before switching to become a deputy public defender for Contra Costa County.

In 1969, Bill joined the San Rafael law firm of Bagley & Bianchi, and moved to Mill Valley, the city he would reside in for the rest of his life. Bill worked happily for the












During his time as an attorney, Bill served as director of the Marin County Bar Association and director and president of the Marin County Legal Aid Society.



He would also hold positions in numerous community-focused organizations in Marin, serving as chairman of the Marin County Human Rights Commission, director of the Family Service Agency of Marin, and director of La Familia of Marin Inc., a community group for low-income, Spanish-speaking residents.



He offered additional legal counsel to the Marin City Community Services District as well as Opportunity Through Ownership, a small business development corporation promoting entrepreneurship among disadvantaged persons.

For over 30 years Bill mentored the youths of the Performing Stars’ enrichment program enhancing their academic performance and professional readiness to overcome social-economic
