A new group of inductees were welcomed into the Jobs for Mississippi Graduates program at Gentry High School on Friday at the L.R. Brown Complex on the campus.
JMG Specialist, Bettye Sims-Hawkins orchestrated the initiation and installation ceremony for this 14th year class that featured a special message of encouragement and inspiration from the Reverend Herron Wilson and other declarations from Judge Gwen Pernell, Judge Carol White-Richard and Judge Latrice Westbrooks and others.
Wilson called the JMG inductees a “prized possession” and elaborated on the chosen theme of “Yes, we can.”
“We all like success stories,” he said, adding that people like to succeed no matter who they are or where they come from, “Yes we can,” Wilson affirmed.
During his remarks he recounted a story about an elderly blind woman who was widely accepted as being extraordinarily wise, but one day two pranksters decided to put her wisdom to the test. They came holding a bird in their hand, and asked the blind woman if the bird was alive or dead.
After she pondered the question for a while, with no response, the two rascals conceived that they had stumped her, and began to scoff that she was not so wise after all, but the woman retorted that although she didn’t know the life status of the winged creature, she did know that it was in their hand.
She further supposed that if the bird were alive it was likely because it had been nurtured and well taken care of, but if it was dead, then in all likelihood it had been neglected and ignored. “All I know is, the bird is in your hand,” she said.
Wilson then reasoned that they (the students), like he, also have many wonderful things in their hands, such as, gifts and talents, potential and golden opportunities, supportive and caring parents and others, and then unobtrusively urged them not to ignore or neglect any of it but, “Use it, reach for it, pray for it, dare to achieve it, it belongs to you,” he said, “We can be anything we want to be.”
White-Richard too shared a story in her remarks about an elderly man who overtly and continually preached about hope, justice and love but never accomplished any noticeable change. A young man chided him and questioned why he continued to preach when the world wasn’t getting any better. The old man said he wasn’t trying to change the world, but trying to keep the world from changing him. She declared, “No matter how bad it gets, don’t let this world change you.”
Mayor Steve Rosenthal shared how through the years he’s seen former JMG students move up the ladder of success and progress and how he hopes to see some of those who are not involved with the program, become a part in the coming year.
Pernell conducted the initiation and swearing-in by issuing the pledge to the officers and members. State Rep. Sara Thomas was on hand for the ceremony and presented certificates to each member and assisted in the special pinning ceremony.
The assembly also paid special tribute to parents and mentors during a candlelight ceremony. And the previous class of students remarked on the dedication and hard work Sims-Hawkins exudes and presented her with a custom-embroidered throw, depicting her and her late husband who lost his life in a fatal car accident last year.
Superintendent Miskia Davis, Board President Edward Thomas and Principal Willie Bolden applauded Sims-Hawkins, the students, the program and the efforts to effectively enhance the lives of the students.
