Brand new Morehouse Man President Obama!

Normally I would have posted my Sunday entry on my blog by this morning at the latest, but I think you will understand why I opted to wait until later in the day for this entry. I braved intermittent rain and thunder, overflowing mud, heightened security, swelling crowds and long wait times in order to witness President Barack Obama address the 2013 graduating class of Morehouse College!

Early in the morning I arrived…

I left my home at 5 a.m. this morning to be a part of the media covering the first time that a sitting president has ever addressed a spring commencement in the state! In fact, the last time a sitting president made a commencement address in Georgia was in 1938 when Franklin Delano Roosevelt addressed the summer graduates at the University of Georgia! (Go Dawgs!)

As the media arrived, family and friends of the graduates filed in as well although it was not yet daylight. I spoke with some of them to document their thoughts and feelings on this historic day. Gary Williams along with Thomasina Williams came to see their “Atlanta

Gary and Thomasina Williams were among the first to arrive for the graduation ceremony…

born and raised” son Garrett Williams graduate with a bachelor’s degree in computer science. ”It is a great opportunity as far as Obama is concerned,” said Gary Williams, who got up at 3:30 a.m. to get one of the front row seats on Morehouse’s Century Campus. “I’m glad we have the opportunity to hear the president give his speech up close.” Thomasina Williams said she was also excited to see the president, but she was equally excited about witnessing the graduation of her son, who attended Shiloh High School. “This is the school that he chose. He was part of a program called Project Identity in high school so he got to visit different college campuses, but when he got to Morehouse, he knew he really wanted to be here,” she said. “He said, ‘Mom, if you can make this happen for me, I will never disappoint you and he hasn’t.” Gary Williams will begin working at Premedical following his graduation.

Jermaine Watkins searching through the program for the name Katenga Johnson…

Jermaine Watkins came from Nassau, Bahamas to see his mentee Katenga Johnson graduate with an economics and philosophy degree. “I used to to be one his pastors at Abundant Life Bible Church in Nassau, and I came up here four years ago to drop him off,” Watkins said. “I’m very proud of his accomplishments, and I’m excited about his future as a Morehouse man.” Johnson will begin working as a missionary journalist for Operation Mobilization in London, England. (I’ve never heard of a missionary journalism! How cool is that?!)

Nicole Jenkins…

Nicole Jenkins came in from Maryland to see her boyfriend James Jeter, who is from Washington D.C.,  graduate with a bachelor’s degree in English. Following graduation, Jeter will head to New York to work as a fashion designer for Ralph Lauren. “I couldn’t be more proud of him especially because he did this in three and a half years.”

A Detroit, Michigan resident, Cecilia Hewin traveled

Cecelia Hewins is ready for the rain…

to Atlanta to see her godson William Stephens graduate with a bachelor’s degree in business administration. “I am so proud of him. I believe he is the first college graduate in his family,” Hewin said. While she looked forward to seeing President Obama, Hewin emphasized that his presence was not her primary reason for attending the rainy graduation ceremony. “I’m excited about my godson, and Mr. President is next in line.” Stephens will begin working for Chrysler tomorrow.

Likely due to the presence of President Obama, the graduation attracted a fair amount of celebrities such as Jasmine Guy, who portrayed the loveable but “bougie” princess Whitley on “A Different World.” I even saw Kandi Burruss of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” along with her fiance’ Todd in the audience.

Janie Hendrix, the sister of the late Jimi Hendrix

Some of the graduates, however, were related to celebrities. I spoke with Janie Hendrix, the younger sister of deceased rock star legend Jimi Hendrix, who lives in Seattle, Washington. She was there to see her son Claytin Hendrix graduate with a bachelor’s degree in history. “Three of my four boys attended Morehouse,” said Hendrix. “I would sit through rain. I would sit through snow see my son graduate.” Claytin Hendrix plans to become a teacher.

Although the rain periodically doused the graduates’ family and friends, who were only separated from the elements by thin plastic ponchos, they continued to wait for the ceremony to start hours later.

Finally, the main event began as the graduates,

I was taking notes while dancing as these drummers announced the arrival of the graduates…

preceded by an African drumming group led by Giwayen Mata, marched in to meet their family and friends. Various notable alumni including the Rev. Raphael Gamaliel Warnock, class of 1991, were on the program; however, it was the valedictory address offered by Betsegaw Tadela of Addis Ababa, Ethiopia elicited the loudest cheers from the crowd and his fellow graduates and a hug from President Obama. His refrain throughout his speech was, “We will remember this day,” as he reminded his fellow graduates about the lessons they learned at Morehouse starting on their very first day on on campus. He also noted that while others may not remember the identity of their college graduation speaker (my hand is raised in the air unfortunately) years afterward, the 2013 class of Morehouse College will never forget their commencement

Betsegaw Tadele, the valedictorian of the 2013 Morehouse

speaker for obvious reasons! Tadela, who graduated 3.99 grade point average will begin working as a software development engineer at Microsoft in Seattle, Washington following graduation!

Shortly afterward, President Obama spoke to the audience from the vantage point of the lone covered area of the ceremony layout, which was reserved for ceremony participants. The president started off by duly noting, “You all are going to get wet, and I would be out there with you if I could, but the Secret Service gets nervous,” he said as the audience laughed. “So I’m going to have to stay here, dry. But know that I’m there with you in spirit.” He also mentioned his brand new status as a Morehouse man as he received an honorary doctorate of laws degree. “You can always tell a Morehouse man, but you can’t tell him much,” he said with a laugh.

I ran into one of my fellow Georgia Bulldawgs’ Monica Cabbler…

As he continued to speak, he highlighted the rich history of the school which began with 37 men, free blacks and freed slaves, who mostly aspired to become teachers and preachers. He also discussed how Morehouse propelled the likes of Dr. Benjamin E. Mays, who served as the president of Morehouse for almost 30 years and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who was a freshman at the school when he was mere 15 years old.

President Obama didn’t back away from mentioning the still challenged economy but reminded the graduates that their ancestors had much more difficult obstacles and succeeded in spite of them. “If you think you can just get over in this economy just because you have a Morehouse degree, you’re in for a rude awakening.  But if you stay hungry, if you keep hustling, if you keep on your grind and get other folks to do the same — nobody can stop you. ”

My reporting road dog for today was Kunbi Tinuoye from TheGrio.com

While they will begin building their careers following graduation, Obama admonished the graduates to not forget their communities and be an example for those around them. “In troubled neighborhoods all across this country — many of them heavily African American — too few of our citizens have role models to guide them.  Communities just a couple miles from my house in Chicago, communities just a couple miles from here — they’re places where jobs are still too scarce and wages are still too low; where schools are underfunded and violence is pervasive; where too many of our men spend their youth not behind a desk in a classroom, but hanging out on the streets or brooding behind a jail cell.”

President Obama in prayer…

He also said they should strive to be honorable husbands and fathers, nothing that in his last days he will not be thinking about legislation that he passed or even the Nobel Prize that he won. Instead, he will reflect on the time spent with his family. “I will be thinking about that walk I took with my daughters.  I’ll be thinking about a lazy afternoon with my wife. I’ll be thinking about sitting around the dinner table and seeing them happy and healthy and knowing that they were loved.  And I’ll be thinking about whether I did right by all of them.”

Finally, he compared being a Morehouse Man to being an American. “Members of the Class of 2013, you are heirs to a great legacy.  You have within you that same courage and that same strength, the same resolve as the men who came before you.  That’s what being a Morehouse Man is all about.  That’s what being an American is all about.”

Although the skies were cloudy and the rain had people scrambling every few minutes for shelter under trees or a few umbrellas so, I’m sure, as Betsegaw Tadele said, “We will remember this day.”

Any thoughts?

Hello World,

Ever since the “The Real World,” debuted in 1992, the year that I graduated from high school, I’ve been a fan of reality show television…I must say in recent years, I have been shocked by the depth of debauchery, depravity and downright “dumbness” of the reality shows that are allowed to be on television. Still, I do love the concept of seeing real people in real situations.

For the longest time, the religious world was absent from reality show programming, but over the last few years, we are finding a way to be included in this cultural phenomenon.

• In January, “The Sisterhood,” which featured the wives of Atlanta pastors, debuted on TLC. While the show generated a lot of heated conversation inside and outside of religious circles, the show was canceled after the first season due to ratings. See my article “The Real Preachers’ Wives of Atlanta” about “The Sisterhood” at Urbanfaith.com.
• This Saturday, on “Iyanla: Fix My Life,” Iyanla Vanzant will attempt to fix the life of the popular Atlanta-based gospel group the Anointed Pace Sisters in the episode entitled “Fix My Overweight Family.” I actually went to high school with two of the Pace Sisters. Also, I wrote an article “Can Iyanla Vanzant Fix Your Life?”  for Urbanfaith.com
• Bounce TV, the nation’s first-ever broadcast television network for African Americans, will premiere its first original non-scripted series, “Forever Jones” Presented by Wal-Mart on Wednesday, June 5th at 9:00 p.m. ET. The new reality series will delve deeper into the daily lives and challenges of the close-knit, faith-based family and gospel group foreverJONES. The series, set in the family’s hometown of Shreveport, LA, will run original episodes Wednesday nights at 9:00 p.m. over a six-week period.
• Oxygen Media has teamed up with Lemuel Plummer, the creator and executive producer of “Vindicated” and producer of “The Sheards,” and Holly Carter, creator and executive producer of “106 & Gospel” and executive producer of “The Sheards,” for the network’s latest series greenlight, “Pastors of L.A.” (working title), an authentic new docu-series set to premiere in the fall of 2013. “Pastors of L.A.” will give viewers a candid and revealing look at six boldly different and world renowned mega-pastors in Southern California, who are willing to share diverse aspects of their lives, from their work in the community and with their parishioners to the very large and sometimes provocative lives they lead away from the pulpit. The cast includes Bishop Noel Jones, Deitrick Haddon, Bishop Clarence McClendon,Pastor Wayne Chaney, Bishop Ron Gibson and Pastor Jay Haizlip.

Will you be watching any of these new reality shows? Are you a fan of reality shows?

Any thoughts?

Hell World,

Mom had da bomb Jheri curl back in the day…(Mom, me and my brother)

You know what it is…It’s that special day each year that is set aside to honor the women who not only gave birth us but give their lives for us if we’re lucky and blessed…I am…and so today, I must honor Alice May, my mama!

I’ve been thinking for the last few weeks what should be the focus of today’s post…Yesterday, I went to Southwest Regional Library on Cascade Road to see Atlanta’s Georgia Peach Authors which includes Dwan Abrams, Kendra Norman-Bellamy, Jean Holloway, Gail McFarland, Marisa Monteilh and Electa Rome Parks. It was the first stop on their 2011 tour. Anyway, McFarland, a romance novelist, talked about her blog named Mamaknology which is dedicated to the wise sayings that her mama told her. One of her wise sayings was, “Don’t show the best of what you have to the worst of the world.” Translation: Don’t wear a skirt so short that any and everybody can see your stuff…Wise stuff fo sho…I thought about writing a post about my own my mamaknology, but my mama doesn’t really deliver one-liners like that so I decided not to attempt to bite McFarland’s wonderful idea…

But as is the case for much of my life (and since this is a primarily a religious blog), I found inspiration within the pages of  The Holy Bible…You have probably heard of the Proverbs 31 woman, the bout it bout it wife and mother who is so accomplished from her business to her home life that she must be a myth…Well, I know it’s true because it describes my mother…So indulge me as I rewrite its words, Proverbs 31: 10-31,  to describe my mother…

¹⁰ A wife of noble character who can find?
Look no further than Alice May Holness. She is worth far more than the fattest platinum diamond ring.
¹¹ Her husband, Dr. Denzil D. Holness, has full confidence in her
and has anything that a husband could ever want…
¹² She brings out the best in him and supports him
all the days of her life.
¹³ She is an old school mama that knows how to sew and works with eager hands to make her home a sanctuary.
¹⁴ She is like the semi-trailer trucks that crisscross the nation,
bringing her food from afar from from the DeKalb Farmers Market to her network of Jamaican friends.
¹⁵ She goes to bed late and gets up early;
she provides home-cooked food for her family almost nearly every day
and has enough left over to give to her friends.
¹⁶ She has been selling Avon for decades;
out of her side hustle she provides extra money for her household.
¹⁷ She relishes working hard even though she is retired now,
her arms are strong for her tasks.
¹⁸ She knows that she is working for her family and the Lord,
and she stays up working later than anyone in her house.
¹⁹ She can sew an outfit as easily
and as she knits together her family.
²⁰ She is always ready to give away something to somebody
and the trunk of her car is where she stores much of her impromptu inventory .
²¹ When it snows in Atlanta (which is rare) or the weather is just bad, she has no fear for her household; because her shelves are well stocked and she even has a kerosene lamp
²² She has clean bed linens always ready to be used;
she is clothed in her best on Sundays.
²³ Dr. Holness is respected among men at church,
where he takes his seat among the deacons and other leaders at the church.
²⁴ She volunteers in Jamaica every summer teaching children at a Vacation Bible School,
and supplies all the children with arts and crafts, clothing and other items she lovingly collects and brings from the United States.
²⁵ She is clothed with strength and dignity;
she can laugh at the days to come.
²⁶ She tells it like it is so if you don’t want to hear the truth, don’t step to her.
²⁷ She manages her household
and even takes care of her grandchildren nearly every weekend.
²⁸ My brothers and I arise and call my mother blessed;
Dr. Holness, my father, does too, and he praises her:
²⁹ “Many women have it going on,
but you surpass them all Mama.”
³⁰ Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting;
but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.
³¹ Give it up for Alice May because today is her day…

Any thoughts?

P.S. I love this Boyz II Men Song “A Song For Mama”…