Thank You, Mr. Witherspoon!

The Bowen Center bid farewell to its longtime Executive Director, William S. Witherspoon, Jr., who retired this summer, after 25 years at the helm of the Bowen Center, helping to make it one of Harlem’s leading community-based organizations dedicated to providing supportive behavioral health services.

A longtime member of the Coalition for Behavioral Health Agencies, which represents over 160 organizations in the State of New York, he has served on the group’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee for ten years. In these positions, Mr. Witherspoon has advocated for mental health issues, providing consultation to all levels of government regarding community needs, policy development, appropriate funding and effective program implementation. He is a ten-year member and has served as President of the Community Advisory Board of the Harlem Health Promotion Center, an affiliate of the Mailman School of Public Health at Columbia University, spearheading programs to reduce health disparities in Harlem and other communities in Northern Manhattan.

On Friday, November 3, 2017, a celebration for Mr. Witherspoon was held at the Bowen Center. Many of the individuals who worked alongside Mr. Witherspoon during his illustrious tenure we on hand to bid him a very fond farewell.

In honor of the occasion, Mr. Witherspoon was presented with several well-deserved accolades for his commitment to the mission of the Bowen Center, including a Proclamation from Borough President Gale Brewer and a Citation from New York City Councilmember Mark Levine.

Patricia C. Jordan, Chair Board of Directors, said: “Mr. Witherspoon’s leadership, dedication and commitment to excellence were instrumental to the Bowen Center’s growth during his remarkable tenure. We will certainly miss his steady hand as well as his humor, but we wish him all the best as he embarks on his next chapter.”