The Power Of Children – Dr. MLK Jr. Birthday Celebration

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Momsrising knows how to party. We also know recognize the power of Children. On the weekend of Martin Luther King Jr. birthday we celebrated his legacy with some of Charlotte’s most amazing people, the youth. Did you know that Martin Luther King, Jr. was born January, 15, 1929 as “Michael King Jr?”

However, his father changed their first names to Martin and added “Luther” to his name as well as his son’s name. And both his father, Martin Luther King, Sr., and his mother, Alberta Williams King, were reverends.
Though he had a generally good childhood, from a young age, King saw firsthand the tough realities of the Jim Crow laws: the King family was ushered out of shoe stores because of their race, and he lost a young friendship due to racial differences.
He was a great student. He was admitted to Morehouse College at the age of 15. King graduated from Morehouse College in 1948 with a B.A. in sociology.
After graduating from Morehouse, King enrolled in Crozer Theological Seminary in Chester, Penn., and then also enrolled in the University of Pennsylvania. He was very successful at both schools and received many recognitions and awards. After graduating from Crozer, he began doctoral studies in Systematic Theology at Boston University in 1951, and then completed his doctorate in 1955.     

Can you imagine raising a child like him? I often wonder what his parents did to support such a powerful child despite the social distractions.

This Martin Luther King Jr. weekend, our community came together to celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and the power of children. Our goal was to share a fun, kid focused, educational and most of all intentional day with our greatest and most powerful asset, our children.

To set the kid friendly tone, we played Dr. Kings speech,” If I Had Sneezed.”  Following was a storytelling by 12 year old Sybirah. Yes, I said a 12 year old storyteller.

Storyteller Sybirah- Anasi And The Snake

Her powerful story was about the notorious Anasi. She was poised, articulate and engaging! The children listened to her every word! After that, children’s book author, S.Cherie read ‘Freedom On The Menu’ and ‘If Kids Ruled The World’. Those books proved to be a great lead into the on going craft workshop with Flo, of We Chic’d It.

It almost looked like an elf workshop, as paint, rocks, slabs of wood, and stencils filled tiny hands. Parents assisted in creating inspiring and beautiful pieces of art worthy to be posted on the families wall. Peek at some below.

 

 

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Later we enjoyed music performances by Brandy. and Niles, a 5 year old trombone player. You can watch both original videos online. Click here! And here!.

 

 

 

Like any good party, it is not complete without the birthday song and cake! One word, YUMMY! Oh, and Stevie Wonder would have been so proud to hear the children singing his song, that he wrote for his friend Martin. It was so harmonious! (listen to Stevie here.)

Before I end, let me give a big thanks to Momsrising’s generous co-sponsors and community supporters: Flo of We Chic’d It, The Black Ferris Bueller, Queen City Stay At Home Moms, Memorable Moments By Lee, and Imagine Publishing! Together we followed the blueprint of creating powerful children.

Friday Four: Entrepreneur High Charter School closes

What a sad day in the Queen City. Just as families everywhere celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.’s  holiday, my family is scratching our heads figuring out what to do with our budding entrepreneur.  For four months, my daughter has been attending Entrepreneur Charter High School and absolutely loving it. She went from being a complete introvert to being on the principals honor roll, and increasing her  business, Cassie’s Sweetz (organic lactation treats for nursing moms).  That’s progress.Now that the school is closed, she has no where to go. Going to the community college seems to much for her. Going to our CMS home school is not even on the table. Someone mentioned a nearby charter school…. well, we are not sold on that option either based on the overall student demographics. They target at risk kids. Sorry Cassie isn’t one of them. We want EHS BACK!

“It’s just been a hot mess. It’s been very bad. It’s embarrassing to see a situation get here this quickly,” state board member Becky Taylor said. “I just don’t see how we can continue on with this school.”   The CharlotteObserver

The main thing I learned was that the money follows the student. It was made very clear is this experience. Entrepreneur Charter High School did not  have enough students, leading to shaky finances.

Kelle Pressley says her daughter loves the school. She’s a culinary student with strong career goals. “The concept of entrepreneurship is wonderful,” Pressley said. “I just think it should have been planned more strategically than it was.” “I think with getting the right partners, it can be resurrected,” she said. WSOC

When the students breakfast and lunch was taken away I didn’t think much of it. Then the transportation to and from school ended. My husband called it! He said, “It’s over Cassie. Your school won’t be around much longer.” But I still believed it would work out. We, parents were kept in the dark about a lot of what was going on. I did my own investigation and learned that they were advised to wait a year before opening. The time would have given them the advantage of a much needed learning curve. I wish they would have taken that advice.

“As we are able to fix the situation with the state, we’ll invite them back,” Hillman said of the students. “If we are not able to, they’re where they need to be.”-MyInforms.com

As the two- week president of the school, I’m still getting news about the school that I didn’t know before,like this one for example, via Erika Hayes, of WCNC : After reports that the school had just $14 in its bank account earlier this week, Hillman admits they ran out of money prematurely. He says the board does have plans to regroup, raise money, and hopefully reopen at a new location sometime next year. Here are four reasons to bring back Entrepreneur High School: 1.  Big businesses can improve their workforce. The school is sending out with a high school diploma and career ready skills. Their future employees will save them training dollars. UUugh, hello; Nascar, Duke Energy Center, Barrington’s Restaurant, BE&K Building Group, a KBR Company,Basil Thai, Rodgers Builders Inc.,Caromont Regional Medical Center, Cox Schepp Construction Inc.,Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center, Choate Construction Co.,Aria Tuscan Grill, the Sonic Automotive Inc., Bistro La Bon, CMC, Balfour Beatty Construction, Copper– (just naming a few) These children need you! 2. The community should care because of the positive transition in the students life. Rabbi Yehuda says: He that does not teach his son a trade, teaches him to rob. Entrepreneur High School teaches their students to be self sufficient. Many courses they offer will ensure that they will be able to financially take care of themselves. 3.Charlotte families should support the school because introverts, students that want to learn without behavior distractions, and have the freedom to discover what they want to do when “they grow up”  may do so in a supportive environment. 4. The State should support this because if more children had options. Tax payers would spend less on prisons. I personally would rather put my money on empowering students to become self reliant, supporting charter schools to be successful and creating learning environments that best fit each student.

Kelly Pressley has a daughter enrolled. She came to entrepreneur to hone her skills and love for culinary arts (see Cassie’s Sweetz) – one that will come to an end this week. Presley said, “She herself is trying to figure out what to do next, because she doesn’t have an option of going back into CMS or being home schooled.”

There are two things that could save this school – funding to the tune of 400 thousand dollars which would pay teacher salaries – utilities like power, heat, and water.The school has until February to get financing or be controlled by another charter school, but until then – they simply can’t afford to stay open. But that’s just my two cents…….. Have a great MLK weekend! QC Supermom More details here: WCNC.com More charter schools to open

UPDATE::::: “It may not even return as a Charter school” See video here. 

Friday Four: Thank you Martin L.King Jr and Franklin McCain

Some exciting things are going on. Last week Dr. Franklin McCain was laid to rest. Next week we will be celebrating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. These two courageous and powerful men have proven to be worthy of both our admiration and respect, based on the life they lived.

As I sit with my children, I discover so many qualities between these two men and decided to create a homeschool lesson about them. To my surprise they were deeply interested in what both Dr’s King and ” Greensboro Four”  MccCain stood for. Needless to say, I was ecstatic that they offered to help with this post. (Awe the rewards of motherhood) A part of their report follows.

Excerpts from:   2 Heroes: Martin L. King Jr. and Franklin McCain

When teenager Franklin McCain decided to make a stand against segregation at the F.W. Woolworth’s lunch counter in Greensboro, N.C., in 1960, two thoughts weighed on him.

“If I were lucky, I would go to jail for a long, long time. If I were not quite so lucky,” he recalled to a reporter five decades later, “I would come back to my campus … in a pine box.”

Let’s inspire each other to be the best we can be! I say start by encouraging the best out of children.Need tips see this link for more details: Instilling “Black Pride” In Children Helps Them Perform Better Academically  

His name was originally Michael, not Martin. His father was also Michael King, hence why Martin Luther King Jr. was originally named Michael King Jr.

Here are 4 more facts I learned about “Our Friend Martin”:

1.He skipped both the ninth and the twelfth grade and entered Morehouse College at age fifteen without formally graduating from high school.

2. King married Coretta Scott, on June 18, 1953, on the lawn of her parents’ house in her hometown of Heiberger, Alabama. They had four children; Yolanda King, Martin Luther King III, Dexter Scott King, and Bernice King.

3. At his funeral no mention of his awards and honors be made, but that it be said that he tried to “feed the hungry”, “clothe the naked”, “be right on the [Vietnam] war question”, and “love and serve humanity.”

4.In 1968, King and the SCLC organized the “Poor People’s Campaign” to address issues of economic justice. The campaign culminated in a march on Washington, D.C. demanding economic aid to the poorest communities of the United States.

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That was pretty good huh? Want more ya’ll? Join me Monday!  http://www.wncn.com/story/24445683/4th-annual-childrens-birthday-party-for-dr-martin-luther-king-jr

MomsRising is doing it AGAIN. You’re invited to a Free Family-Friendly Event to celebrate Martin Luther King life and legacy in a way that children can understand. Featuring Dr. Charmaine McKissick-Melton who, along with her sisters and brother, was one of the first black children to desegregate Durham Public Schools. Highlights also include civil-rights themed crafts, musical performances by Musician Corps showcasing freedom songs and instruments popular in the civil rights movement, a photo gallery, and, of course, birthday cake! Sponsored by NC Momsrising, Northgate Mall, Lango Kids, Durham Mothers Club, Chapel Hill/Carrboro Mothers Club, Kids Voting Durham, and MomInChapelHill.

“Ignite The Fire And Carry On!”

~QCSupermom