I remember when I was eight years old...

Oh how I loved going to my Uncle Reese’s hamburger joint & listening – spellbound, while he told story after story. He was a master storyteller…so on hot humid days in Logansport, Louisiana, it was s SPECIAL treat for me to go sit at his counter, under the whir of old ceiling fans...& on my own barstool. His hamburgers were two-for-a-quarter & they were mmm-mmm good!  

I often saw a little girl there - about the same age as me. We'd smile at each other...but I could never understand why…she always came in the back door… and had to sit on the OTHER side of the counter - & not with me?

Years later - 1963…as I was watching our family’s black and white TV, Dr. Martin Luther King stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial & shared his dream with the entire Nation. When he said, "I HAVE A DREAM...that one day my four little children will NOT be judged by the color of their skin, but by the CONTENT of their CHARACTER". Whew! It felt like he was speaking directly to me that day…

Dr. King's words pierced my heart. Even as a young teen, I knew I could no longer IGNORANTLY accept I had to sit on the other side of the counter from ANYONE - ever again! 

That day, my black & white world changed forever. 

That day, I made a choice. I would no longer live life in black & white - but only in high definition! 

That day, I asked myself, “IF one man’s courage to speak his truth can change a Nation, then WHY NOT ME?  

Why not MY voice?  Why not now? 

 In turn, I ask YOU this same question: 

WHY not YOU?  WHY not YOUR voice?  Why not NOW