Residents filled every seat and covered almost every inch of the walls in the Riverside City Council chambers Tuesday as they came together to celebrate longtime community leader Dell Roberts.
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“I want to thank everybody from the bottom of my heart,” Roberts said during the August 25 public meeting. “I’ve been in Riverside 81 years, and I came here when I was 9 years old, and I can truthfully say, unlike some others, I’ve never wanted to be [in] any other place.”
Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson proclaimed August 25 Dell Roberts Day to commemorate both his 90th birthday and his decades of work in the community. Dawson said she decided to hold this ceremony after a community member reached out to her office asking to celebrate Roberts’ lifelong achievements.
“That was not a hard decision to make,” Dawson said during the meeting. “We are really pleased to recognize Dell for his service to our community and also proclaim this day in his honor.”
Roberts has dedicated his life to service, working as an advocate for the city’s youth, African American communities, Eastside neighborhood and residents at-large for more than six decades.
During that time, he served on several advisory boards, was a teacher for Riverside Unified School District, supported the Black Student Union across Riverside, established an endowment for Riverside Community College District and has directed the Black History Month parade in the city since 1980.
He has also mentored numerous residents, some of whom went on to become public servants and civic leaders, including Los Angeles County Supervisor Holly Mitchell.
“I know he is somebody I can always count on,” Riverside Police Chief Larry Gonzalez said, adding that he felt like Roberts was also a mentor in his life. “I’m thankful that he’s always here for us and building those relations between the police department and the community, because if we lose the community, we lose the police department.”
Roberts also received several certificates from local politicians across the Inland Empire, including from State Senator Sabrina Cervantes, Assemblymember Leticia Castillo, Assemblymember Corey Jackson and the Riverside County Board of Supervisors.
“You can’t talk about the history of Riverside without talking about the history of Dell Roberts,” Supervisor Jose Medina said during the meeting.
The council voted last year to name Bordwell Park’s new gymnasium in honor of Roberts after he had advocated for the upgrades for decades. Work on the new facility is set to be completed in the coming months.
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