2021: A Year in Review
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

NC Council of Churches

Strength in Unity, Peace through Justice

  • Voices
  • About
    • Overview
    • Staff
    • Members
    • Covenant Partners
    • Issue Statements
    • Governing Board
    • Careers
  • Programs
    • NC Interfaith Power & Light
      • NCIPL Overview
      • Faith in Action NCIPL
      • NCIPL Articles
      • NCIPL Resources
      • Upcoming Events for NCIPL
      • Contact NCIPL
    • Partners in Health & Wholeness
      • PHW Staff
      • Mini-Grants
      • PHW Collaborative Pledge
      • The Overdose Crisis: The Faith Community Responds
      • Mental Health Advocacy
      • BIPOC Mental Health Grant
      • Growing Communities of Inclusion: A Faithful Response to HIV
      • Healthy Aging
      • Citizen Science
      • PHW Articles
      • FAQs
  • Priorities
    • Racial Justice
    • The Overdose Crisis: The Faith Community Responds
    • Gun Violence Prevention
    • Criminal Justice
    • Immigrant Rights
    • Public Education
    • Farmworkers
    • Legislative Advocacy
    • Christian Unity
    • Peace
  • Events
  • Resources
    • COVID-19 Resources
    • Publications & Reports
    • Raleigh Report
    • Lectionary
    • Sermons
  • Donate
  • Council Store
  • Show Search

Search NC Council of Churches

Hide Search

PHW Honors Helen Livingston

Joy Williams, Former PHW Regional Coordinator · August 13, 2014 · Leave a Comment

Meet one of our community leaders, Helen Livingston, of Scotland County. I first met Helen through the phone when I started with PHW, and almost instantly we were kindred spirits. She was the reason PHW had our first webinar, and she continues to be a strong asset for the Central South-East Region where I work. She was recently honored by the Scotland County NAACP Youth Council. Because of  the NC Council of Churches’ work with the NCNAACP, and because Helen Livingston is such a strong community leader in Scotland County, I wanted to share with you her remarks to the community.  You will find that embedded within her eloquent words are the Council’s program charges: peace, justice, health, unity, collaboration, and a call to action. I hope you will enjoy her words as much as I did.

Thank you, members of the Scotland County NAACP Youth Council, and Madam Chairman.  You have no idea how much I treasure this award. It is as if you are honoring me for what I would like to have been able to do, more than what I have actually done. You have honored my dreams. Both sides of my family have lived in the area for generations, and though I am almost the last family member here, I am grateful for their examples of love for the area, for the natural world, and for all of her people.

To receive this honor at a time when I am so proud of the leadership of the NCNAACP, not only in this state, but across the country, is touching.  I was unable to attend the Moral March in February, but my brother, Tom John, came from Nashville, Tennessee to march, and then came to tell me all about how wonderful it was, and how it signifies the beginning of a new day in our country. The Rev. Dr. William Barber II focuses on the importance of We. He says, “’We’ Is the Most Important Word in the Social Justice Vocabulary.” The power of the coalitions that he is bringing together  is our hope for the future against the money of the few.

You young people are so fortunate to be coming along at a time of such powerful leadership and engagement under Rev. Dr. Barber and the Forward Together Moral Movement; the powerful leadership of Ms. McNeil and engagement in ACT-SO activities and your meetings at the library; the example and engagement of such a fine State Legislator in Rev. Garland Pierce. There are, of course, many others from whom to gain the tools and resources to guide and support you to become a part of the Solution.

I’m going to give you some examples of how you can make a difference. Rev. Dr. Barber states that one of the five points that he wants to make is the importance of health and environmental justice. Indeed, environmental justice is all about health about keeping us free of toxins. Our health depends on the purity of our water, earth and air. And our financial health depends on our physical and mental health.

We in Scotland County are vulnerable to being targeted for environmental injustice, as industry tries to come in on a white horse to “save us” from high taxes, when, in actuality, the costs of these environmental injustices such as mega landfills would be far greater than any temporary tax savings. Our reputation and way of life would be compromised, placing our future in grave danger. The county would be left with exorbitant cleanup costs.

The successes against siting two mega landfills in the area are wonderful. We all owe a debt of gratitude to our legislators, then-Senator Bill Purcell, and Representative Doug Yongue, and the Reverend Representative Garland Pierce. A highlight for me was getting to see Reverend Pierce in action in Raleigh!

Two issues have arisen lately that bear our careful attention: both fracking waste and coal ash may be allowed in municipal solid waste landfills, making them even more toxic than they already are. The oil and power companies would love to transfer the responsibility for coal ash and fracking waste to landfills, where the ultimate responsibility would lie with the county. Either or both of these additions would add to the pressures already in place for new megadump sites for New York trash. We must tell our legislators in the upcoming short session to be very careful about waste industry attempts to further undermine the regulations that were put in place in The Solid Waste Management Act of 2007.

And did you know that the North Carolina Mining and Energy Commission proposed spending $61,000 to study the viability of fracking in the Cumberland Marlboro Basin, which includes part of Scotland County? Rise to the challenges, young people. Engagement is fun, rewarding and exciting. Make your place in history, and for your future. Write letters, email, make calls, meet wonderful people, and especially, go to Raleigh! Say “No!” to fracking, to coal ash in landfills, to last year’s legislation that has taken North Carolina backwards in so many areas, such as voting rights, health, education, poverty, discrimination, the list goes on.

This morning I listened to the Palm Sunday sermon that Rev. Dr. Barber preached at The Riverside Church in New York City. The Moral Movement to Higher Ground has begun! Here is the link to the sermon. Members of the Youth Group, listen, so that you, too, can hear, and grasp the opportunity you have to become actively engaged in what Rev. Dr. Barber calls “The Battle for the Soul of America.”

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Children & Youth, Environment, Equality & Reconciliation, Fracking, Health, Immigration, Moral Mondays, Peace

About Joy Williams, Former PHW Regional Coordinator

I am passionate about health and faith. Children, families, and elders have my deepest love and concern, and I've cultivated a heart for dance, plants, cooking, water, chilling with great friends, and talking about the matters of the heart. I love the Lord and seek to bring myself and others closer to The King Most High.
Learn more about PHW and our efforts to improve the health of God’s people: healthandwholeness.org

Reader Interactions

More Like This

Because of Jesus
The Perfect Gift for Mother’s Day
PHW Faith and Health Summit: Thank You

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Anonymous comments or comments that target individuals will not be posted (please include your first and last name). All comments must be on topic and respectful. Comments will not be posted until they have been reviewed by a moderator. Comments do not reflect the positions of the NC Council of Churches.

Footer

Contact

NC Council of Churches
27 Horne St.
Raleigh, NC 27607
(919) 828-6501
info@ncchurches.org

Facebook

Partners in Health and Wholeness

Featured

PHW Honors Helen Livingston

Latest Tweets

#SCOTUS has overturned Roe v. Wade, making it crystal clear how much #CourtsMatter. Reproductive choice is a healthcare decision and women should make those decisions about their own bodies. We stand by those words today.

About 2 days ago

We affirmed in 1970 that reproductive choice is a healthcare decision and women should make those decisions “without embarrassment, excessive cost, and unwarranted delay.” We stand by those words today.

About 2 days ago

Grant opportunity for BIPOC faith communities in North Carolina to apply towards COVID-19 mental health efforts. Follow the link for more details! ncchurches.org/bipoc…

About 2 days ago

Join us this Sunday! twitter.com/Christin…

About 2 days ago

"All people of faith and spirituality with a role in the financial system have a responsibility to create action immediately, to put the world on a path to a just and sustainable future." publicnewsservice.or…

About 3 days ago

Follow @ncchurches

Latest Tweets

Greetings! Be sure to stop by our table at the Western NC Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church at Lake Junaluska this weekend! We hope to see you there! pic.twitter.com/30bk…

Last week

Hello twitter family! Be sure to stop by our table at the NC Conference of the United Methodist Church in Greenville, NC starting today! We hope to see you there! pic.twitter.com/l6X3…

Last week

Our mini grant cycle is now open!!! pic.twitter.com/eyRp…

About 3 weeks ago

RT @faithleadership Faith coalitions are addressing the opioid crisis by providing resources, connections and a destigmatizing vision. lght.ly/45iam80 Featuring: @okconfchurches | @ODMHSASINFO | @healthandfaith | @ncchurches | @DukeTMCI | @shannon_fleck

About 3 weeks ago

Join us for Sacred Conversations: Older Adults - Fraud & Scams on Friday, June 24th from 11 AM to 12 PM and learn to recognize common scams targeted towards older adults and how to protect yourself and those in your faith communities. ncchurches.ourpowerb…

About a month ago

Follow @healthandfaith

Latest Tweets

Faith Leaders Call on U.S. to Pay Fair Share for Climate Related Loss #USFairShare Click to listen - 2min w/Rev. Malcom @mtmalcom & Rev. @Susannah_Tuttle: shar.es/afbjPy @scennetwork1 @uscan @WEDO_worldwide @ActionAidUSA @AlabamaPJC @foe_us @UCSUSA @ClimateNexus

About 6 days ago

RT @mocleanair Climate change affects everything: investments, agriculture, health, factories, transportation, the electric grid. Fossil fuels cause climate change, and @LloydsofLondon needs to stop insuring fossil fuels. Climate change is wreaking havoc with the economy and our health. Enough! twitter.com/parents4…

About 6 days ago

RT @mocleanair Today @mocleanair, @GeorgiaIPL and @CleanAirMoms_GA delivered postcards to @SenatorWarnock asking for more funding for #EVschoolbuses! #EV schoolbuses are better for kids health and learning! #post4theplanet #cleanair4kids #CleanAir #ClimateAction pic.twitter.com/ztzI…

About 2 weeks ago

RT @mocleanair #EVschoolbuses: better for health, better for education, better for climate, and good for Georgia’s economy. A real win-win-win! #post4theplanet #CleanAir #HealthyAirIsHealthCare #ClimateAction #ClimateActionNow @GeorgiaIPL @NCIPL @uwomenfaith @AlabamaPJC @eldersclimate twitter.com/mocleana…

About 2 weeks ago

RT @alinterfaithpl You don’t want to miss this! Register RIGHT NOW with this link: us02web.zoom.us/meet… twitter.com/alabamap…

About 2 weeks ago

Follow @ncipl

Latest Tweets

Copyright © 2022 NC Council of Churches · All Rights Reserved · Website by Tomatillo Design · Hosted by WP Engine