OPINION
The Chronicle I
Ernest H. Pitt
Publisher Emeritus
1974-2015
617 N. Liberty Street cc%'br^
336-722-8624 I 41 \
www.wschronicle.com $
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Elaine Pitt Business Manager
Donna Rogers Managing Editor
wali D. Pitt Digital Manager
Our Mission
The Chronicle is dedicated to serving the
residents of Winston-Salem and Forsyth County
by giving voice to the voiceless, speaking truth
to power, standing for integrity and
encouraging open communication and
lively debate throughout the community.
Keep helping
community
after MLK Jr.
Day service
The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday sparked
numerous service events to honor Dr. King.
For the first time, Winston-Salem city workers
donated some of their time during working hours to
help 12 organizations, for instance. And for the sev
enth year, local colleges united to provide an oppor
tunity for students to volunteer to help elementary
school students learn about the values Dr. King
espoused as a required project for the holiday.
.The day of service to honor Dr. King has become
popular. People volunteer to work on projects that
help people in various ways. Most of the organiza
tions that benefit are nonprofits. It's nice for the non
profits to get help during this time, but they need
help year-round.
The elementary school students who learned
about Dr. King's values and the Civil Rights
Movement need to know that they can keep reading
the books and learning the values after the holiday
event. The 12 organizations the city workers helped
wouldn't mind if more came to continue helping
after the holiday. The day of service should be the
beginning of volunteer service, especially in these
times of change for many nonprofits.
For instance, the United Way, a major source of
money for nonprofit programs, has changed its focus
in allocating grants to nonprofit organizations.
Organizations such as the Urban League and
Salvation Army are losing large sums of money from
the year before because of this change. It's not that
the programs being funded have changed; the United
Way's funding formula has. So, the programs are
still deserving of help.
The nonprofits now have to find a way to make
up the lost funding and gain new funding to stay
ahead. One nonprofit leader lamented recently that
her organization has no person designated to raise
money, so with cuts in grants, the organization has to
begin determining how to replace those funds. The
organization could use a volunteer who knows about
raising money.
We remember the man Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
during the time to honor his birthday, but his legacy
transcends that time. Lest we forget that Dr. King
was a volunteer, also. He was a pastor of a church
who volunteered time to fight for freedom and jus
tice. Let's keep working now that it's after the holi
day to really honor him.
Photo by Tevin Stinsoo
Winston-Salem Human Relations Director Wanda
AUen-Abraha explains that Martin Luther King Jr.
Helping Hands Day, "basically, is to provide a
venue for city employees to have hands-on experi
ences with community service and giving back to the
community in the spirit of Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr. So, our goal is to encourage city employees to
make a tangible effort and make a tangible differ
ence in the very community that we serve."
( . I
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Thank you,
sponsors of
Peace Toys
Exchange program
To the Editor:
On Saturday, Dec. 19 from noon
to 4 p.m? hundreds of boys, girls and
their parents came to exchange vio
lent toys for peace toys at the Peace
Toys for War Toys Exchange. Peace
toys exchanged included computers,
basketballs, footballs, bikes, gift
cards, cash prizes, bike helmets and
remote control cars. I would like to
thank God for the following sponsors:
Winston-Salem Recreation and
Parks Department, Winston-Salem
Federal Credit Union, Carolina
Cruiser Motorcycle Club, Buffalo
Soldiers MC Winston-Salem Chapter,
Coy M. Martin Jr., Venable Tax
Service, Neil Batchlor and Wayne
Belcher Sr. and family, William Penn,
Keith and John Byrd, Bow-Tie Boyz
and Girlz Automobile Club, Cooks
Flea Market Inc., Terrance and
Fentress Geralds, Bill Jackson Sr.,
and Bill Jackson Jr., R. J. Clark, John
Miles, Cheryl D. Scales, Winston
Salem Sanitation Department, Johnny
Taylor, Glory of God Church, Union
Baptist Church's Men's Ministry,
Union Chapel Baptist Church's
Men's Ministry, 2012 Class of Prince
Hall Masons, 2015 Class of Prince
Hall Masons, Kevin Thompson, Ben
Creamer of State Farm Insurance Co.,
ED Stars of the Enrichment Center,
Paul Harrell, Schwinn Bike and
Fitness, DNNVA, D. HJ. Bag and D.
J. Count it Up, Winston-Salem Police
Department, Winston-Salem Fire
Department. Jamie Wilkes Trophies
and Awards, Phi Beta Sigma
Fraternity Inc. (Delta Sigma
Chapter), Sigma Beta Club, Shawn
Hawkins, Delta Sigma Theta Sorority
Inc., Council Member D.D. Adams,
Donald "Sarge" Naylor, Winston
Salem Fairground Annex and Wanda
Reid.
Ben Piggott,
visionary for the
Peace Toys for War ToyS
Exchange
Winston-Salem
Submitted photo
The Winston-Salem
Recreation and Parks
Department was a spon
sor of the Peace Toys
for War Toys Exchange.
Personnel are shown
here.
Eh*. King inspired me to keep going in life
The Chronicle asked
Doima people how Dr. Martin
Luther King Jr. affected their
Rogers lives. I want to add my voice
Something to the conversation.
? I was in the second grade
To Talk in Columbia, S.C., when Dr.
About King was lolled on April 4,
1968 at age 39. Days later,
1 IUJ s^uuu-giauc icatuci,
Miss Wheeler, brought in a
television to let us see his funeral during class.
I really didn't know who Dr. King was then. I learned
more about him as I grew older. He inspired me to keep
trying to reach
my goals. My first meaningful
My first , ? f
meaningful introduction to
irsr wS Dr- King was when I
when I nad to had to read "Letter from
read "Letter from n. . . t?*i a.
a Birmingham a Birmingham Jail." -
Jail" as part of an
English class in
high school. I marveled at how eloquent he was. I was des
tined to be a journalist, so English was an important sub
ject for me. I felt like he was someone I needed to know
more about.
Over the vearx I did learn mnrp ahruit Dr Kino
through his books and other writings and through movies.
I learned that he studied the tactics of Mahatma Gandhi,
who practiced non-violence as he led a victorious move
ment to gain freedom for India from British rule.
Dr. King brought non-violent tactics to the Civil
Rights Movement in the United States and was victorious,
too. I learned that Dr. King had to lead a movement that
had several divisions that often clashed, but the movement
continued to make gains.
But most of all I learned that he was a man that did not
quit, until he was killed. He kept taking the movement to
higher levels.
I am still learning about Dr. King.
I advocate reading and learning for everyone, especial
ly young people. I hope the MLK Jr. holiday will spark
new adventures and goals for young people so that they
will be victorious leaders in their lives and the lives of oth
ers.
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