Honoring the Past, Building a Future
If you grew up on the North Side of Chicago, chances are you grew up a Cubs fan, I certainly did. There was beautiful Wrigley Field, without lights in those days, when baseball was still played beneath the afternoon sun. Riding the train north past the ballpark, people would look for the flag flying above … Continue reading The Boys of Summer: What Baseball Still Has to Teach Rocky Mount
There comes a moment in the life of every community when optimism is tested. Rocky Mount is living through one of those moments now. There is no avoiding the reality before us. The City's financial challenges and the uncertainty surrounding them have understandably shaken confidence. Our financial institutions exist to manage risk wisely, and no … Continue reading The Future Depends on Those Who Still Believe
But first, a Stepheny story: A few years back, driven beyond my patience, I abruptly stood at a City Council meeting and called out, “Point of order.... Mr. Blackwell can go on and on while the citizens only have three minutes to speak.” The mayor informed me, nicely, “There is no point of order for … Continue reading The Rocky Mount Concerned Citizens Facebook Page
These photographs are from my Pinterest Boards that I have collected over time There’s something about an old doorknob that stops me in my tracks. The weight of it in my hand, the patina of age, the craftsmanship—these small details whisper of lives once lived, of voices, of hands turning the knob at the end … Continue reading The Doorknobs of Yesterday – Unlocking Our Rocky Mount, NC Future
This post is dedicated to Robert Lewis Stevenson as I begin Treasure Island, a book I haven't read since Jr. High School. However long it has been, we can all sing, Fifteen men on the Dead Man's Chest Yo-ho-ho, and a bottle of rum! Drink and the devil had done for the rest Yo-ho-ho, and … Continue reading The Past Glories of Rocky Mount, NC: We Have Our Own Manderley’s to Save
These little gems are in Ward #4. I believe T.J. Walker, Councilman, has a heart for saving them. The more the Ward gets involved with their neighborhood housing, chances increase that others will join in the financial end of saving them. The possibilities of this significant housing has been ignored. The state of them proves … Continue reading Save The Shotgun Houses of Rocky Mount With Hud Grant Money
Main Street Rocky Mount 