Speakers invited to the Center for Energy Education’s Community Service Program Thursday shared their thoughts on the day’s theme — a day which was also set aside to honor the work of the late civil rights leader — Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Before the speakers took front and center, they and the audience were treated to a song by children from the Weldon Elementary Global Academy, a welcome by Congressman Don Davis via video feed, recitation of King’s I Have a Dream speech by Reverend Cornelius Young which captured the inflections and timbre of King’s original speech, and the singing of Lift Every Voice and Sing by C4EE board member Michael Williams.
In his welcome address Davis thanked the center for the opportunity to continue to reflect on King’s dream and his vision for the country. “Part of that was making sure that we have a good environment and that we were going to continue to protect our environment.”
Davis said, “I know for certain that Martin Luther King would greatly appreciate the spirit in which we’re working at this program today.”
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District Attorney Kim Gourier Scott said, “I realize that I’m a realization of the dream.”
As the first Black elected district attorney in this prosecutorial district, Scott said, “I’m proud to be in this community. I realize this position isn’t about me. This position is about you. This position is about serving the people that have elected me to be in this position. This position is about how we can work together in partnership to make our community a better place.”
Reflecting on an MLK project her 9-year-old had to do for school, Scott said her son told her, “Dreaming ain’t easy.”
She told the audience her son was correct. “Dreaming ain’t easy, but MLK dared to dream and we as we sit in this room are the realization of that dream.”
But, Scott said, “The dream isn’t done. If we dare to continue to dream, we can make our community a better place, a safer place, a more accessible place for everyone that looks like me, that looks like you and everyone that doesn’t look like us. We have to work hand in hand to do that and we do that by communication and collaboration because when we wake up in the morning the Lord puts breath in all of our bodies.”
Lakeisha Flood-Scott of ECU North Hospital said her perspective of community service as a healthcare professional comes from providing patient care daily to community members of all ethnic backgrounds. “The staff at ECU North serves the community with compassion, empathy and grace. The reward for our emergency department team is knowing that they are able to help those in need.”
Michael Scott, a C4EE board member, discussed the service provided by the center. “This approach is what’s been adopted by the Center for Energy Education, its board of directors and energy leaders now that the center has been more widely recognized.”
Mr. Scott said the center’s mission is not just about teaching people about energy, “It’s teaching people in small rural communities about how broad service can be including education about solar or renewable energies.”
He said the center has about 25 volunteers who regularly come out to help with its management and running of events. “We hope we’re continuing to further the mission of the center by being servants to this community and the other communities we serve.”
Rev. Joshua Pair of Patillo Chapel Missionary Baptist Church said community service for him means giving others opportunities to be the best that they can be.
Pair and his wife bought the old Pepsi bottling plant in Littleton to rent out office buildings so others can have the opportunity to start a business. “We’re helping Black and also whites. I think we should be fair to everyone. It’s been about all of us. When we can work together, come together, love each other and have compassion for one another and do what is right, I think the world will be a much better place.”
Pair recalled the words of a 1963 King speech in which he said, “As we walk we must make the pledge that we shall always march ahead.”
Pair said even 60 years later the Black community still deals with police brutality and racism. “We have to continue to make a stand.”
State Representative Michael Wray said, “If we all continue to open our eyes it will be a better community.”
Wray commended the center for its outreach and educating the public. “The dream is still alive,” he said, “But we have to lead by example.”
He said community service can be as simple as helping out with a ball team where a parent might not be involved.
He encouraged those to become leaders and not people who criticize others. “I love our community, I love our state. That’s what it’s about.”
He told C4EE Executive Director Mozine Lowe that she has built a legacy at the former Halifax County Airport. “You are truly a beacon in our community because when you have these children here and give them hope to go to college, you give them opportunities.”