Debbie Ingram Morgan Ackerly
The Rotary Club of Williston-Richmond and the Williston Racial Equity Partnership co-hosted a virtual observance of Martin Luther King, Jr. Day via Zoom the morning of January 17. The event attracted over 40 participants and featured seven speakers who offered reflections on the impact of Dr. King's life and words, as well as the need for continued dedication to forwarding the causes of racial equality and justice in our nation.
Rotary member and event organizer, Debbie Ingram, who serves as executive director of Vermont Interfaith Action, spoke of Dr. King’s role as a prophet who delivered a message of hope. “[H]e was telling us there is hope as long as there are people of good will, people who seek to do the right thing, people who seek to live in right relationship with their neighbor – all their neighbors,” said Ingram.
Additional speakers included Dennis Francis, a member of the Williston Racial Equity Partnership, who highlighted Dr. King’s guiding principles of love and selflessness; Cristalee McSweeney, director of the Williston Community Justice Center, who encouraged the community to do more to change systems that perpetuate inequality; resident Ginger Isham, who shared the experiences of a relative who traveled to Alabama in the 1960s and joined civil rights marchers in Montgomery; Rotary member Pastor Paul Eyer, who noted how the power of Dr. King's words "elevated an entire nation"; and finally, CVU student and Racial Alliance Committee member Morgan Ackerly, who shared personal reflections on the importance of inclusion and representation, as well as our duty to continue moving forward the societal changes promoted by Dr. King.
Additional speakers included Dennis Francis, a member of the Williston Racial Equity Partnership, who highlighted Dr. King’s guiding principles of love and selflessness; Cristalee McSweeney, director of the Williston Community Justice Center, who encouraged the community to do more to change systems that perpetuate inequality; resident Ginger Isham, who shared the experiences of a relative who traveled to Alabama in the 1960s and joined civil rights marchers in Montgomery; Rotary member Pastor Paul Eyer, who noted how the power of Dr. King's words "elevated an entire nation"; and finally, CVU student and Racial Alliance Committee member Morgan Ackerly, who shared personal reflections on the importance of inclusion and representation, as well as our duty to continue moving forward the societal changes promoted by Dr. King.
