Big Fibbers/YoungTales 2016

The library channel is promoting the Big Fibbers Storytelling Festival with this video. Have you seen it? We should have news soon about a different larger venue for the Big Fibbers Finale on the evening of March 19. I hope we can gather the largest Rome storytelling crowd ever there. But other than that this video is correct.

----------------

We are also still seeking sponsors to help us finance the Big Fibbers Festival and YoungTales Clubs. If your business or civic club would like to help this wonderful project please contact me. Ads are also available in our festival program.

And a big thank you to the sponsors who have already stepped up:

Berry College (Charter School of Education)

Sara Hightower Regional Library

The Greater Rome Convention & Visitors Bureau

The Northwest Georgia Credit Union

And also thanks to our participating schools:

Armuchee Elementary (Floyd County)

Berry College Elementary

Elm Street Elementary (Rome City)

Naomi Elementary (Walker County)

North Heights Elementary (Rome City)

West End Elementary (Rome City) 

Gleaning Facebook: Maximum Liberty Is In the Middle (42 Comments!)

I see so much of this foolishness. People happy to accept "their" medicare and "their" social security, but electing doctrinaire right-wing zealots who strangle government programs of all types except for those that benefit the rich. We are all socialists to one degree or another. Unbridled socialism and unbridled capitalism are equally tyrannical. Maximum liberty is somewhere in the middle.

Rob Friar
I've always felt that a combination of the good bits of every form of government, make up the best form

Sam Burnham
I'd say that judging from the condition of radio stations, bailed out corporations, our transportation infrastructure, our public schools, and some of our municipal water systems, we might ought to think twice about what we let the Feds control.

Judy Manning
I accept "My Social Security" because I paid for it for more than 50 years.

Terrell Shaw
Yes, you did. And you and I also pay our part for many other things We the People have covenanted together to have - roads, safe, clean water, parks, safety nets for the poor and infirm, the best military in the world, etc., etc. Those are all things we provide for one another as a society. They are not "given" to us by big banks, big pharma, big insurance, big oil, etc. Now a strong free enterprise system helps to finance those things, but not without progressive taxation and strong democratic regulation.

Judy Manning
I have never objected to my tax money going for everything you mention from roads to the military. I do, however, object to "Big Government" dipping into those funds and using them for their own pet projects that do not benefit American citizens. I also resent paying government run agencies that are so poorly run that the left hand never knows what the right hand is doing. If I ran a business the way government runs this country, I would have been bankrupt years ago. When there is no accountability and no integrity in any enterprise it is detrimental to anyone associated with it. As for big banks, big pharma, big insurance, big oil, etc. It is big government that allows them to lobby and make large contributions to campaigns in order to turn votes in their favor.

Don Henderson
Any program payed for by an agreed upon tax, is socialism. As in a social program. Military and government being the two largest examples of social programs.

Sam Burnham
And Bernie Madoff started his own Social Security system. It didn't end well for him.

Don Henderson
If these people despise humanity so much, why don't they move to Russia, there, no one cares about you.

Sam Burnham
You got me! I'm conservative because I despise humanity. I guess it was a good charade while it lasted.

Don Henderson
What other reason is there? Good thing this isn't a Christian nation, otherwise, we'd be helping our fellow man without complaint.

Raymond Atkins
At all levels of government we all pay taxes for goods and services that don't benefit us personally. The real issue is how much each of us pays, and who sets those rates. I pay more real dollar taxes than GE Corporation. If I can't have their rate, and I can't because I don't have a lobbyist buying down my tax burden, then they should pay mine.

Raymond Atkins
And please don't anyone say trickle down...

Sam Burnham
Trickle down. We got one group thinking money trickles down through industry, another that thinks it trickles down through government and no matter who's in charge, the money never quite reaches the bottom of the filter.

Sam Burnham
Because greed is greed, no matter if you're elected or not.

Terrell Shaw
But We the People have some control over the greed of our elected officials, but no practical control over greed of big oil, big pharma, big insurance, etc. etc.

Sam Burnham
If only that was true. It was true with Burwell Creek because power was local and we could reach it. With an over-centralized behemoth making decisions, our power is nil.

Terrell Shaw
This will drive my (much-beloved) friends on the right nuts but... I believe in "squeeze-down" not "trickle-down". Unbridled capitalists keep their profits and any crumbs that fall to average folk are mighty meager and accidental. But the huge growth of the middle class in the twentieth century shows that when strong capitalism is tempered by strong unions and progressive taxation and labor/safety/environmental regulation, all boats really can rise. And that squeeze really turns out to be a loving hug in the long run, because, instead of being squeezed dry, the corporations will be healthy and happy bunches of stockholders and employees mostly living pretty comfortably.

Sam Burnham
I believe in not stealing from people more than is necessary to operate on constitutionally mandated levels of state and federal governing and having an educated populace that realizes the benefits of small business, small banks, and community outweigh any benefit that could come from mega corps, mega banks, and anonymity.

Terrell Shaw
Those things we agree together by way of our constitutionally elected representatives is not stealing. Capitalists who for personal gain foul our tiny nest in space are stealing from my children and yours whether the foul is financial or environmental.

Terrell Shaw
"Those things is!!!" Really, Terrell the English major?!!! ;-0)

Sam Burnham
Terrell Shaw I knew what you meant! LOL

I agree with you on some points here but I'm always stunned by the number of people who complain about mega banks but do business with them. We can vote with our wallets.

Raymond Atkins
You really can't avoid the mega-banks or the mega anything elses. What they do and don't do affects everything else. And policy is made for them, not us.

But I am constantly amazed at the number of regular folks who, by virtue of who they vote for, act against their own best interests.

Sam Burnham
Bingo. Policy is made for them. By politicians of both parties. And we can't fix it.
That's a problem.

Sam Burnham
Well, some of us are self-reliant and don't want handouts.

Raymond Atkins
You couldn't get a big enough handout to matter, Sam. Exxon, Citicorp, and Walmart, on the other hand...

Raymond Atkins
"Conservative" doesn't mean what people believe it does.

Sam Burnham
If you want to talk modern conservatism you'll have to take that up with someone else. I'm not a big fan of it.

Raymond Atkins
But our congress claims it is.

Sam Burnham
A small part of it does. Then much of it claims to be "moderate" (whatever that is) and then many are wildly leftist, like Mr. Galbraith there.

And to be honest, I see Liberty as being in my interest.

Raymond Atkins
If by wildly leftist you mean an individual who puts humans ahead of money, I totally agree. That makes me one too, I guess.

Where the heck did liberty just come from?

Sam Burnham
It comes from how I choose my candidates, my own self-interest.
But here's the question, that same moment of truth that I faced with old GWB. If handouts for big oil, big pharma, big whatever are all the Republicans' fault, and Barack Obama started his reign with both houses of Congress controlled by his sycophants...why didn't the handouts end?

Raymond Atkins
The robber barons have been running the show since there was a show. I sometimes wonder if they even look to see who is president. Congress controls the purse, and Congress, with very few notable exceptions, is and has been bought and paid for.

Sam Burnham
So it's not just a one party problem. Apparently we agree on that.

Raymond Atkins
I haven't mentioned party in this entire string, Sam. It's a money thing. Who has it, who keeps it, and how the rich mislead the uninformed masses about where it really goes.

Sam Burnham
A problem easily fixed by decentralization of power.
But, for the life of me, I can't figure out why folks vote against their own self-interest.

Ann Gore
Terrell Shaw well said!

Weyland Billingsley
Moderation is hard to come by.

Larry Madden
Correct me if I am wrong, but I did not see one person mention the fact that ALL of the money that tells government uses to implement it's programs comes directly or indirectly from the PEOPLE. NO government has the ability to produce revenue except through taxation. Knocking big oil and big pharma is not the approach to take because if the PEOPLE did not use oil or drugs they would not exist. The only approach to take with Big Corp is to reform the tax system and close the loopholes that allow them to pay little or no taxes.
I just read in the newspaper an article describing how bad the infrastructure is in America! The highways, bridges and other public works are hundreds of billions of dollars behind fulfilling their needed repair. In the meantime we have been pouring hundreds of billions of dollars into in competently run countries all across the world.

CHARITY BEGINS AT HOME, PERIOD! 

Gleaning Facebook: The Secret Garden

Lillian Shaw is worth the price of admission for her second act song, "Hold On!" Last night's dress rehearsal was my last opportunity so I snuck around the building, in costume, so I could hear and see her during this showstopper. (Don't tell Brian Sikes!) If I had it to do again I'd have toted my IPhone and taken an illegal video to share. Oh, my! What a powerful performance. This from a totally unbiased observer --- her father.

Tim Dorsey

She is amazing...

Lillian Shaw
Thanks, Dad. Not biased at all.

Brian Sikes
I have to agree. Love working with the Shaw Clan! PS- I'm confiscating your phone later.

Chris Rouse Davidson
You may be biased, but I'm not, and you're right. Lillian is extraordinary.

Lillian Shaw

Thank you! That means a lot coming from you! :):)

Mandy Maloney
I heart Lillian Shaw. I want to be like her when I grow up.

Lillian Shaw
Ditto, girlfriend.

Chris D. Buhro Urda
Lillian Shaw amazing as always I love how the characters draw you in!!

Jennifer Kellogg
I'm just so glad to see a Sikes-Shaw match up again!! This time with more Sikeses and more Shaws in the same show! What a deal!!

Gleaning Facebook: Naked Man in the Road

 This story brings tears to my eyes.

Lord, grant me the wisdom and confidence and love to meet others where they are and to help bring peace.

From the Facebook of Timothy Huffman...

It’s Sunday afternoon and I’m driving on Thurman Ave, on my way home from FedEx making copies. As I drive north, the traffic is sorta strange. Cars pulled off at weird angles or creeping very slowly. As I drive on, I see why.

There is a man standing naked in the middle of the street.

He is tall, maybe 6’4”, though he is cringing in a way that makes it hard to see what his full height is. And he isn’t completely naked. A few shirts and perhaps a jacket lay in a crumpled heap about 50 feet away. His shoes are still on, and his pants and boxers are around his ankles.

As I sit in my car at the stop sign, my brain struggles to figure out what is happening. What am I supposed to do? The man seems to be yelling, though not to anyone in particular. A car drives past him slowly, driver gawking. That doesn’t seem like what I’m supposed to do. Thankfully, my home is a left turn, so I don’t have to drive past him. I look left. I could just go home. I consider it, given that I have no idea what I would do if I tried to help.

I drive forward and park at the curb, about 40 feet away from him.

As I watch, I consider calling 911. As I have that thought, I notice a man walking a massive dog with a sweet aviator hat (the man, not the dog) on the phone about 75 feet away from the naked man. He must be calling 911.

I get out of the car. It’s cold out, though not as cold as yesterday. *Not the worst day of winter to be in the street naked,* I think. The man turns to look at me, eyes wild, and says some things I can’t understand. I wonder if I should be afraid. *Nah, I can tell he isn’t armed,* I think to myself sardonically. Also, I don’t think he can charge me with his pants around his ankles. I think I’m safe. Time for words.

“Hello, sir? Can I help you with anything?” I feel stupid saying it, but nothing better comes to mind, so I go with it.

“I’m looking for GOD and the MAN and…” I don’t understand anything else. Maybe he is muttering nonsense. Maybe he isn’t talking loud enough for the 30 feet between us. Now I have even less idea what to say. He keeps talking, sometimes at me, sometimes not. I stand there, car running, door open, just looking. For some strange reason, I’m thrown off by the hair on his butt. He is pretty hairless on the rest of his body, but his butt has curly little hairs.

“SO?!?” he yells at me. I realize I’m staring.

Now the naked man notices the caller with the dog, and starts moving sidelong away from him, past me. I have failed to engage him. He continues to talk aloud. Maybe I hear him say something about “trying to kill me.” He kicks off his shoes and pants and continues down the street in his socks, which are quickly blackened by the icy sludge melting in the street. In his hands I see a clutched lighter. The clearest thing I have thought since this began: *A lighter and a pair of socks.*

I stand next to my car. I consider walking after the naked man, but since he seems to be moving away from us intentionally, I consider that a bad idea. Maybe I should go home. A woman drives past me in her car, pulling over slightly with her window down.

“He is not ok,” she says to me in an intense voice.

“I know, we’ve called 911.”

*At least I hope we have. He could hurt himself.* The dog walker comes up to me. Let’s make sure I just told that woman the truth.

“You call?” I ask him.

“911,” he responds.

“Well, at least we know he isn’t armed,” I say, making my dry joke aloud.

“I don’t think that will make much difference,” the man responds.

I look at his face. I don’t know what he means. Does he mean, ‘He’s crazy, he could hurt someone even if he doesn’t have a weapon.’ He could also mean—my blood runs cold as I think of it—‘It doesn’t matter if he doesn’t have a weapon, he’s black, the cops might kill him anyway.’

Fuck.

Suddenly my mind is teeming. Hands up, don’t shoot. Michael Brown’s body on the concrete. Kelly Thomas, a mentally ill homeless man, beat to death by the police officers. This man is in danger.

I turn back to see where the naked man has gone. He’s made it about a block. I can’t see him, but I can see the traffic behaving oddly, so I can guess his whereabouts. I consider running after him. *Bad idea. He’ll run.* I get back in my car. *How do I keep the police from killing a raving naked black man?* I have no idea. Calm him down, maybe?

I flip my car around. Half a block away, I’m stuck in a line of traffic. Two young walkers point and laugh. As my car idles forward, the two cars in front of me moving very slowly, I struggle with what I’m going to do.

*I’m a communicator. I can talk this guy down.*

*But he’s talking crazy. How do I talk to someone who is talking crazy?*

And then I remember an experience from years ago, when a friend of mine had a stress induced seizure-related breakdown in class. She was talking incoherently, quickly, over and over. When people had tried to talk to her, she wouldn’t respond. So I had awkwardly sat with her as she talked, just listening. After about three minutes, I noticed that she had more or less started back over again on a previous topic, so as she muttered something, I muttered what she had said last time. I had done my best to keep my mutterings the same stream of consciousness from the cycle before. We went back and forth in this way for some time, mutually if only with vague coherence, articulating her thoughts and worries. Eventually, I asked her if she knew that she was in class. She had said yes. I asked her if she knew if she was having a break down. She had said yes. At that point, we talked freely about who we should call in her family and what we should do.

The experience left a profound effect on me, namely, an abiding belief that “crazy” is a matter of context, and that if you listen and participate in people’s linguistic worlds, you can have more conversations than you think you can have.

Armed with this conviction, though still an empty one, I caught up with the naked man and parked in front of a fire hydrant. The experience with the girl in school had been with a friend, this man was a stranger. How was I supposed to “meet him where he was at?” What did I know about him? Nothing. But this is St Louis. Black men have been killed in my neighborhood for not much more than this. And I don’t have a good feeling about how he is going to respond to the police.

But I know nothing. Well, almost nothing. He had mentioned God…

I got out of the car. I don’t feel much like a hero; I feel like I’m chasing this man down. He doesn’t want to talk to me. As I walk forward, he points at me and crouches with his other hand over his mouth. His white socks are thoroughly sodden at this point.

“Your FACE!” He points to where he saw me last. “You are trying to KILL ME!” he yells. “You’re coming AFTER ME!”

I stop in the street. *I’m not trying to kill you,* I think.

“I’m not trying to kill you,” I say, suspecting it isn’t the right thing to say.

“YES, YOU ARE! YOU’RE COMING AFTER ME!”

What do I say now? I don’t even disagree with him, exactly. *No, I’m not trying to kill you, but I’m worried someone might.* I feel the painful politics I cannot unembody. His black body is more at risk than my white body. Nothing I can say can ever make that untrue. And while I want nothing more than his health and wellbeing, how could he ever know that. *I was glad when I saw someone calling 911, so I am part of the system that may very well be on its way to come and kill you.*

That line of logic has no productive end. Convincing him of my motive isn’t the way through this.

“I don’t want to kill you, but I understand that I can’t convince you of that. You don’t know me,” I say.

“No, I DON’T,” he says, with emphasis. We have to speak loudly to each other, as we are about 30 feet away from each other again.

“Can I ask you a question,” I say, not fully knowing what I’m going to say next.

“I can answer your question,” he says resolutely, almost defiantly.

I stand there. Same page. Meet him where he is. Something about God.

“What’s your question?!?!” he yells. I realize I’m just standing there. “Ask it!”

I start slowly, piecing it together as I go.

“You said you were looking for God… I don’t know if I can help you find God… but, would you like to pray with me?”

His eyes are still wild, but he pushes his head forward to look at me more intently.

“Do I want to pray with you?” he repeats.

“Yes. Do you want to pray with me?” I say, with more confidence.

We just stare at each other. And his posture is suddenly different. His shoulders go back. His face goes soft.

“Yes. I’d like that,” he responds. “Pray with me.”

“Do you want me to stay here?” I ask, feeling weird about the conversation we are having at 30 feet, which requires all our interactions to be yelled.

“Yes. Stay there,” he says, “but go ahead, pray.”

Well crap. In my life, I have had many a prayerful experience. This is not one. The thought of it feels awkward. Nothing particularly comes to mind. But this is the only idea I have, so it’s by definition also the best one (and of course, also the worst).

“Father God,” I say, loudly, so he can hear me, pausing for a moment to try to come up with something.

“Father God,” he repeats.

*Entrainment!!!,* I think to myself, *if he keeps repeating me, this crisis is over. Tone, content, and rhythm are all mine if he repeats. And I’m calm. All I need is a few minutes, but it will end well.*

“I ask for peace.”

“I ask for peace.”

“I ask that you bring healing to the suffering”

“I ask that you bring healing to the suffering”

“And that all good things come to pass”

Unfortunately, I don’t get my few minutes. The distant sound of sirens is growing louder in a way that makes me know that emergency services are here. A large ambulance pulls around me. The man yells over the sound of the siren.

“I didn’t hear you, what’d you say?”

I shout at the top of my lungs. “And that all good things come to pass!”

“AND THAT ALL GOOD THINGS COME TO PASS!” he bellows back at me over the sound of the engine. I can tell he wants me to continue, but I can’t help but turn to the emergency responders who are getting out of their vehicle. One of them starts talking to the naked man. I don’t hear what the paramedic says, but the naked man’s response is vehement. He waves violently, dismissing them angrily, and points at me.

“I’m talking to HIM!” he shouts at them.

They don’t turn and look at me. *Rude,* I think at first, *can’t they see we are having a conversation?* But no, they see “crazy,” so they don’t see the context of the interaction that makes his yelling make sense. Just like I saw only “crazy” first. They say something else. He repeats his insistence in talking to me. *Us vs Them, it’ll work for now. But we need us and us by the end.*

“Do you want a blanket? Are you cold?” the female paramedic asks. Before he can respond, I echo her.

“Do you want a blanket?” I echo. He looks at me, then at them, then back at me.

“No.”

I make a decision. I am in control of this situation. They are going to start asking him questions, which he will need to respond to. So let’s get him in the question answering mode.

“What’s your name, sir?” I ask.

“Robert,” [changed for privacy]. “My name is Robert….” He says his last name, but I can’t hear it over the engine of the ambulance.

“My name is Tim Huffman,” I say, “Good to meet you, Robert.”

“Tim Hoffer,” Robert repeats. Close enough.

“Where do you live?” the male paramedic asks politely.

Robert answers him. Thank god. This might go well. The paramedic are calm, I’m calm, and Robert is calm. It is then the police officer arrives.

He comes up from behind me. He is short and he is wearing sunglasses. His shoulders are back, and he has an alpha male swagger about him. He walks directly toward Robert, stepping between Robert and me.

“Where are your clothes?” the officer demands. In my memory, he asks “Where the hell are your clothes?” Maybe he didn’t cuss, maybe he did. But his tone was unmistakably insulting.

Robert points at the cop and screams, “He’s gonna try to kill me. He’s gonna kill me!”

*Not today, Robert. We can solve this.* I speak before anyone else has a chance to talk.

“Hey Robert, can I ask you a question?”

“Yes, Tim.”

“Where are your clothes?”

“Where are my clothes?” he says, genuinely.

“They are back that way,” I point.

At this point, the female paramedic steps forward.

“Would you like to come into the ambulance so we can get you warm and take care of you?”

Everyone pauses. The police officer is standing back. The female paramedic is standing forward, arms in an open posture. Robert looks me straight in the eyes with a simple, clear, and honest question.

“What do you think?”

My heart breaks. I can hear a tinge of defiance in his voice, but I also hear fear. He is afraid for his life. He can’t trust the system designed to help him, in part, because it isn’t only designed to help him. It also harms him and fails him. I look at the two paramedics. Then at the police officer. I sound out my thought slowly.

“Robert… I don’t know these people, but I don’t think they are here to hurt you. I think they are here to help you. I think that if you get into their ambulance, they will get you a blanket and clothing and take care of you.”

Without pause, with a certainty that I don’t feel, Robert nods.

“Ok.”

He steps toward the ambulance. I feel the need to leave. Parked in front of the fire hydrant when I knew the police were coming. As he is entering the ambulance, I call out to him.

“Robert,” I catch his eye. “Bless you.”

“What?” he yells at me over its engine.

“Bless you, Robert!” I yell.

“Thank you. And bless you!” he yells back. And steps into the ambulance. The perfect, poetic end to an interaction of yelled prayers.

Kristen tells me that I did the right thing. That me being there helped things go peacefully. But I’ve helped enough people to the door of services to know that this isn’t necessarily a happy ending. I have no idea how Robert is tonight. I have no idea how his ambulance ride went. I have no idea how the medical and legal system will treat him.

There are a lot of things I don’t know. But I do know at least one thing.

There is profound power when we meet people where they are. They might be screaming about God in the middle of the road. But sometimes, all we really need is someone to scream about God in the middle of the road with us.

Gleaning Facebook: Margie Harbin Award

 To all my friends and colleagues at the Coosa River Basin Initiative,

I am truly honored to receive this award named for someone I greatly admired. I worked closely with Margie Harbin in the early eighties on the board of the Marshall Forest Stewardship Committee and especially on the project to renovate, re-route, and create new braille signage for the Big Pine Braille Trail. Margie was a delightful person and a dedicated environmentalist.

Our fight is not over for the dream of a Central Park centered on the land surrounding the Burwell Creek wetlands and flood plain and including our city property on Jackson Hill and the current Ridge Ferry Park. But we Romans did make a very clear statement to our city leaders in the election last November. That could not have happened without the work of Joe Cook and all the folks at CRBI over the last decade and more. I suspect Margie Harbin would have been right there with us in the fight we have waged for the last few months. I am certainly thankful that over 1900 people have publicly endorsed our efforts via Facebook, and that over two-thirds of the voters supported our two leading candidates for City Commission. Since we could not elect a new commission, we asked voters to register their displeasure with the commission’s plan to sell our public park land symbolically. We asked them to withhold their votes from incumbents who were bound to be elected. This awkward and difficult-to-explain strategy worked. We asked voters to withhold three of their six votes. Given the fact that the average voter only voted for four of a possible six choices, we were successful in about two-thirds of the cases!

I had been curious for a decade that the sale seemed to continue to progress relentlessly despite the fact that I could find virtually none except commissioners and developers who favored the project. What was needed was a frankly political effort to exert the will of the people. Thanks to Sheila Matthews Shaw, Jim Curry, Jim Ware, Stacy Cates, Monica Sheppard, Woody & Catherine Cobb Ledbetter, Laura L Adams, Kevin Morang, Bill Darby Joan Ledbetter, Sam Burnham, Nina Lovel, Drew Allison, Jeremy Harrison, John Schroeder, David Matheny, and many, many, more volunteers (I should not have started naming names --- I am leaving out so many who worked quietly or contributed money!) we managed to get the message out. I am very proud of having had the opportunity to provide some leadership in that effort, but it was really a matter of reminding people of the jewel our city owns and making the very nearly unanimous support for preserving that jewel obvious.

The effort has not ended. We must stay very vigilant until the memorandum of understanding between the city and the developers is no longer in effect. Then we must press for sensitive use of the property as connective tissue between Jackson Hill and Ridge Ferry Park and for ways to open the property to careful educational and recreational use.

Thank you to CRBI for this award, but much more for leading the nonpartisan efforts to preserve and protect our river basin. We at SRCP are anxious to do all we can in the more overtly political realm to support those goals.

Gleaning Facebook: To My Friends and Colleagues At CRBI

The award is a beautiful photograph by Joe Cook of Burwell Creek in the snow.

To all my friends and colleagues at the Coosa River Basin Initiative,

I am truly honored to receive this award named for someone I greatly admired. I worked closely with Margie Harbin in the early eighties on the board of the Marshall Forest Stewardship Committee and especially on the project to renovate, re-route, and create new braille signage for the Big Pine Braille Trail. Margie was a delightful person and a dedicated environmentalist.

Our fight is not over for the dream of a Central Park centered on the land surrounding the Burwell Creek wetlands and flood plain and including our city property on Jackson Hill and the current Ridge Ferry Park. But we Romans did make a very clear statement to our city leaders in the election last November. That could not have happened without the work of Joe Cook and all the folks at CRBI over the last decade and more. I suspect Margie Harbin would have been right there with us in the fight we have waged for the last few months. I am certainly thankful that over 1900 people have publicly endorsed our efforts via Facebook, and that over two-thirds of the voters supported our two leading candidates for City Commission. Since we could not elect a new commission, we asked voters to register their displeasure with the commission’s plan to sell our public park land symbolically. We asked them to withhold their votes from incumbents who were bound to be elected. This awkward and difficult-to-explain strategy worked. We asked voters to withhold three of their six votes. Given the fact that the average voter only voted for four of a possible six choices, we were successful in about two-thirds of the cases!

I had been curious for a decade that the sale seemed to continue to progress relentlessly despite the fact that I could find virtually none except commissioners and developers who favored the project. What was needed was a frankly political effort to exert the will of the people. Thanks to Sheila Matthews Shaw, Jim Curry, Jim Ware, Stacy Cates, Monica Sheppard, Woody & Catherine Cobb Ledbetter, Laura L Adams, Kevin Morang, Bill Darby Joan Ledbetter, Sam Burnham, Nina Lovel, Drew Allison, Jeremy Harrison, John Schroeder, David Matheny, and many, many, more volunteers (I should not have started naming names --- I am leaving out so many who worked quietly or contributed money!) we managed to get the message out. I am very proud of having had the opportunity to provide some leadership in that effort, but it was really a matter of reminding people of the jewel our city owns and making the very nearly unanimous support for preserving that jewel obvious.

The effort has not ended. We must stay very vigilant until the memorandum of understanding between the city and the developers is no longer in effect. Then we must press for sensitive use of the property as connective tissue between Jackson Hill and Ridge Ferry Park and for ways to open the property to careful educational and recreational use.

Thank you to CRBI for this award, but much more for leading the nonpartisan efforts to preserve and protect our river basin. We at SRCP are anxious to do all we can in the more overtly political realm to support those goals.

----------------------------------------

Laura L Adams Soooo proud of Terrell for waking everyone up! "Thank You" just isn't enough for all of the hours he has spent educating others, enlightening citizens and promoting the dream to #SaveRomesCentralPark for generations to come. #RomeGA #RomeGeorgia

Rita Lawler This was a wonderful advocacy effort. Good leadership and good support. I know it must continue.

Jim Ware Congratulations Terrell, I couldn't fathom a more worthy recipient.

Jim Curry Well deserved, Terrell! Was planning to be at the award meeting but was delayed at the last minute. My support definitely continues, however.

Melanie Collette Babb You deserved it
Keep pushing.

Juanita Mull Great job! Always great to have Terrell on your side! Love him.

Mary Caldwell Look at two of my favorite men...those are GOOD people! Great call Joe and kudos, Terrell...most heartily deserved!

Jeremy Harrison Way to go! Congratulations and thank you!

Larry Madden Congrats to you Terrell Shaw, an award greatly deserved. Thanks also to all of the volunteers and voters that continue to support SRCP. I cannot overlook the efforts of Joe Cook and CRBI for their efforts to protect our river systems. It has become very obvious over the years that governments are not always doing things in the best interest of the community without citizen input.

Ann Perkins Niemeier Congratulations! You did wonderful job!

Joel Todino Congrats! Good job, and well deserved reward.

Judi Borgo Congrats, Terry. Much-deserved.

Diane Loyd Gage Congratulations, Terry! I appreciate the efforts you and the others made to preserve this beautiful part of Rome. I don't live here, but do worship in Rome love the natural beauty there.

Lynne Crothers Williams Congratulations! So glad you and all the others have had success so far.

Joyce Mink Keep on working Terrell Shaw. You're making a better world.

Claudia Kennedy Good! You have done so much to deserve this award. Thank you for all you do for your community. Keep the faith!

Joan Shaw Turrentine One of the many things I have always admired about my brother is his total commitment to issues, people, and ideas that he loves and believes in.

Heather Shores Congratulations!

David Matheny You DA MAN!!

David Marlin Rains Congratulations! 

Sam Burnham We all wanted to save Burwell Creek but you rallied us together into a single team. People of diverse backgrounds & philosophies all got headed in the same direction for a common cause because of what you did. You led. Sometimes that meant talking & di… See more

Christie Hufstedler Boyd The best thing you did was to bring us all together in a cohesive group with a step-by-step plan of what we needed to do. You and Sheila Matthews Shaw opened your home and your hearts to lead. Thank you Terrell Shaw!

George Dean Congrats! U r like the Dr. Seuss' The Lorax who spoke for the trees!

Jodi Drobisch Whooo hoooo!