Yesterday I was giving one of Nates Teammates a ride home. As the young man gave me directions I realized that he lived on the same street as my good Trent Griffin. However, I didnt know which house was Trents. As we ride further and further I see nothing that jumps out at me as the house. The young man tells me to stop at a house, and I immediately see signs that he may actually live right next door to Trent. The confirmation was the cars in the yard that Ive seen posted on FB, but the FIRST sign was the bicycle gang parked at his driveway patiently waiting for a neighborhood hero to return. 5 or 6 kids that may or may not have been trouble in the past, but it is obvious a hero is making a difference. I raised my hand to wave, and all 6 kids waved back at me. I could immediately tell that these were kids with good intentions. These kids waved respectfully almost as if they were under contract to be respectful. I have the privilege of being able to call this hero, so I called to warn him of his welcome-home committee that awaited him. He was not alarmed, and I could tell in his voice that he was smiling. The hero had more work to do and he was humbly accepting his calling. I just want to applaud a good friend and a good man. I KNOW as a single man in your profession that you can live ANYWHERE in North Alabama or Southern Tennessee that you desire, but you CHOSE a place in NW Huntsville. In choosing your place, you chose to be a soldier on the front line in the battle to make a change in a community. You answered a calling, and you did not take this calling lightly. These kids would need a positive role model that our community was so full of a generation ago, but now seems to lack. You wear the badge with pride and honor, sir. I saw unsolicited evidence that your contracts are working. As I rode away I saw in my rear view mirror 6 kids. I knew that they were all doing their best in school and being respectful to their elders because the contracts that put them on the bicycles they were riding stipulated that. I know that the young man that I dropped off was in the top 3 on the basketball team as far as grades. I didn’t ask if he’d been a beneficiary of the bike program, but I know it doesn’t hurt to have a hero next-door. I just want to applaud you, sir, because I know that you gave up some things. In choosing your residence you gave up a neighborhood full of manicured lawns on your path home. You gave up sidewalks for your evening walks. You gave up the 800 square foot master bedroom and the 800 square foot kitchen. You gave up relaxing evenings sitting in front of your TV with nothing but birds chirping in the background. You gave up privacy fences and solitude. You gave up all of that to battle a problem on the front line. I applaud you, sir, and I thank you. The kids in your neighborhood that you are positively affecting go to school with my kids. Our school is therefore a better school because of the choice that you made. And also, because of the choice you made, you give us another person to help us fight for some of the things that you had to give up- so maybe those kids that you are positively impacting won’t have to give up the same things when they choose to live in our community- and maybe a couple of them will decide to stay and make a difference even if they do- just like their childhood hero.
Posted on: Fri, 31 Oct 2014 11:26:13 +0000
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