Wednesday, February 9, 2011

We're Making History, Today!


Last night I had the privilege and honor of attending a leadership program for high school students with my son. The venue was the historic and famous 16th St. Baptist Church in downtown Birmingham, AL. The church was the site of a bombing in September of 1963, in which 4 young girls lost their lives in the battle for justice and equality. I've always wanted to visit the church, especially after visiting the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and seeing the Spike Lee documentary, 4 Little Girls. The church was also the site for organizational gatherings by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement. This beautiful church did not disappoint. I was so excited to be there and could feel the presence of so many who've gathered within it's walls. The pulpit, the pews, the lights, and the windows sent chills upon me and made the hair on my arm stand at attention. This church demands to be noticed.

The leadership talk for the evening was given by Birmingham legend, Dr. Odessa Woolfolk. She is primarily an educator, but has garnered numerous titles and awards, locally, nationally, and internationally. She was also the drivng force and first director of the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. She spoke about developing leadership and her speaking style was dynamic, informative, and concise. She was very inspiring and lifted my spirit. She told me things I've heard before, but her eloquence was motivating. Her words were just what I needed to hear, to fulfill the many goals on my agenda this year.

Here's a few things I learned:
The qualities of a leader are, courage, self-confidence, but not arrogance, vision, energy, discipline, empathy, patience, quick-thinking, a belief in others, and the ability to communicate.

She said, leaders don't just grow up saying, "I want to be a great leader", they develop and hone their skills and talents. When a certain situation arises, they step forward, when they see their skills and talents will benefit others. This is the same thing that happened to Dr. King. He didn't plan on being a great leader, but a situation brought forth the need and his talents and skills were at the ready. He had the courage to use them and changed the course of history. As we were listening to the speakers for the evening, the sound of sirens could be heard in the distance, growing ever closer as they loudly passed the church building. I couldn't help but be reminded of another day of sirens...September 15, 1963. On this day, 4 young girls didn't ask to be leaders. They didn't ask to be martyrs for a cause. They didn't ask to die. They only wanted to be girls with the same opportunities as all free people.

We're all making history, today. When we're called upon to come forward and use our talents and skills to benefit others, will we be courageous?

Keep on Dancing!!