Voting Rights Act

It was quite a day for two small town local officials as I attended the signing of the renewal of the Voting Rights Act with Mayor James Perkins Jr. of Selma, Alabama. It was my first visit to the South Lawn of the White House and I have to say it was an experience of a lifetime. The guests at the ceremony was a virtual who's who of the Civil Rights community and I felt honored to be in their presence. Julian Bond, Jesse Jackson, the King family, Rev. Joseph Lowery were just a few of the notables.
Dozens of members of Congress also attended and included Hilary Clinton, Oren Hatch, Ted Kennedy and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. It was quite inspiring when the military band started to play and they announced, "Please welcome the President of the United States".
The oddest moment had to be when I looked behind me and saw Don King, the famous boxing promoter. His hair was straight up in the air and he had a huge necklace of the American Flag around his neck.
I got to speak to Ted Kennedy and talked about West Virginia and the Kennedy legacy in our state. He was very cordial and spoke kindly of our beautiful state.
My good friend, Mayor James Perkins of Selma, Alabama was recognized by President Bush during his remarks. James is a true national leader and is someone who is making a real difference in Selma. I had the opportunity to be in Selma on Monday and Tuesday of this week and we unveiled the Inclusive Community sign at the Selma City Hall. This was especially memorable for me, as Mayor Perkins helped unveil the Inclusive Community sign in Clarksburg last week. Mayor Perkins is a very deep thinker and someone who has a true vision of reconcilitaiton for Selma. Mayor Perkins joined Don Borut, NLC's Executive Director and Bill Barnes of NLC, and myself for lunch at the City Club in DC.

Just before lunch, we had a quick meeting with some visitors to the National League of Cities from Europe. We had an interesting discussion about some common issues facing the United States and Europe.

Not a bad day in DC for a small town boy from West Virginia!!!!

Volunteer Conference

Yesterday I was honored to be the keynote speaker at the West Virginia Volunteer Conference and was joined by two amazing young ladies. Kate Turner and Valerie Guido from Liberty High School drove down to Charleston with me and spoke about their work with the Civil Rights Team Project. There were about three hundred delegates at the session in the Little Theater in the Charleston Civic Center and I saw quite a few people that I have worked with over the years.

My speech focused on involving youth in the community through volunteerism. Kate and Valerie did a great job of explaining how they have embraced the concept of volunteering along with a very busy high school schedule. I think many in the audience were surprised at how many community activities they were involved in.

One touching moment came after the speech when a lady came up to the students and told them a story about a lady that worked for the Department of Education, who worked with the Civil Rights Team Project and how broken hearted she was when the program was disbanded. The lady died last year still disappointed over the actions of the State School Board. As she related the story to Kate and Valerie, she became very emotional and said that these young girls were a tribute to the memory of this lady.

I am always amazed when I have the opportunity to spend time with young people. These young adults have so much more on their minds and a broader view of the world. They are inheriting a world that is less secure and more prone to problems, yet their spirit is enlightening. They believe that they can make a difference.

There are days when you know you are on the right track and yesterday was certainly one of those days.