The Gentry High School Jobs for Mississippi Graduates program held its annual initiation and induction program on Friday and the guest speaker was the Rev. Otis Anthony II, Representative, District 31, Mississippi House of Representatives.
Addressing the diverse audience of inductees, students, parents, faculty and special invited guests, and referencing a quote from Nigerian novelist Chinua Achebe that states, "If you don't like someone's story, you write your own," Anthony encouraged his listeners to, “Write your own story and hold your own pen.”
Elucidating on the chosen theme, Anthony said that if they didn’t write their own story someone else would. He further asserted, “I believe that if you want to write your own story, then you have to be the one holding the pen.
He encouraged them to always follow that principle. “If you are not holding the pen, someone else will be writing your story. They will say what they think you are, they will say who they think you are, they will judge you by your past mistakes and they will also judge you by your past good deeds. They will say what they think you are about,” he said.
He told the students that many people, some who make decisions that affect their lives every day, have already counted them out and deemed them “not as bright” and unequal to students in other areas. He put forward that there are those who are making millions of dollars off of the poverty that is prevalent in the Delta.
He talked about the neglected roads and infrastructures and the dilemma of under-funded schools. Then, on a more direct note and referencing the recent success of the Sunflower County Consolidated School District, he asserted that many still don’t have faith in the local district. “They counted this district out, they counted you out, but each of you, you took your own pen and began to write, you told your story,” he said.
Anthony implied that the school district’s success was a direct result of the students, faculty and parents writing their own story. In reflection, he shared that he has experienced the drawbacks of being counted out. “I’ve seen the highs and lows of life, but I didn’t give up. I had a small circle who believed in me in spite of my mistakes that lifted me up. You have to defy the odds in life,” he said.
His admonition came with a caveat, “Don’t get comfortable, don’t drop the pen. You must keep writing, you never stop writing your story,” Anthony said.
He pronounced a special tribute to all of the parents, grandparents and others. He said, “These are your biggest supporters, those who have invested into your life.” Anthony told the young people that those in that small circle are the ones who made sacrifices for them.
However, he acknowledged that they may not fully understand what had been surrendered for their sake until they too become parents and begin to pay their own way.
The ceremony also introduced the first ever Bettye Sims-Hawkins leadership achievement award, which was presented in honor of her accomplishments as the JMG Specialist who instituted and cultivated the program over the past decade and a half.
The winner was NaToryia Simmons, currently a student at Mississippi Valley State.
Several judges, including judges Gwendolyn Pernell, Carol White-Richard, Debra Giles and Latrice Westbrooks, held featured speaking roles on the program and Anthony and his wife Porchia assisted in the pinning ceremony.
