THANK YOU DR. KING

I grew up in the segregated South. My elementary school and junior high school were not integrated. There seemed to be two parts to our town. I remember “colored” bathrooms at the gas stations.

In the 1960s, my world began to open up to bigger realities, beyond playing sandlot ball in the neighborhood and swimming at DeLeon Springs and friends at school.

My dad and my mom began to meet with other people in our community. Dad integrated our Boy Scout Troop at church. Mom joined with others to build a preschool on the other side of town.

I started watching the news in addition to the cartoons and cowboy shows on TV. My world and awareness expanded.

I remember going to Bethel AME Church to hear a civil rights speaker. I remember hearing and seeing Dr. Martin Luther King’s speeches.

As we celebrate Dr. King’s birthday, I am grateful for the dream that one day our world can live together the way God intends.

So many people have challenged me, guided me, taught me, stretched me, opened my eyes, included me in the difficult work of bringing this dream into reality.