The Long View

    

John Lewis, congressman and civil-rights legend, never lost hope.

      “Be Brave, Bold & Courageous”

       My friend Stephanie Jones knew him and eulogized him in this way:

      "John Lewis was one of our rare angels flying low. He showed us how to move gently and fiercely through this world and how to bend the arc of the moral universe toward justice.

     Now he's flown away to that land where joy shall never end. Rest in peace, dear sweet good brave man."

      John Lewis who began building his legacy as a young when he was knocked unconscious while peacefully protesting. He continued adding to this legacy by serving as a Congressman and Civil Rights leader. The entire time he never lost hope or would allow those around him to do so.

     He is gone now and we all must gather our wits about us. Remember the words of Kipling:

If …

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to broken,
And stoop and build ’em up with wornout tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with kings – nor lose the common touch,
If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run –
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And – which is more – you’ll be a Man my son!

The Answering the Call to Justice Foundation

     The Answering the Call to Justice Foundation is the culmination and continuation of the life work of the Honorable Nathaniel R. Jones, retired Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals judge, former NAACP general counsel, and lifelong champion in the fight to end racial discrimination in America. The "Good Judge" is Founder and Chairman. While Stephanie Jones, RHS class of 1977, is President.

 

https://stephanie-jones-4xfw.squarespace.com/

What I Would Say To The RHS Distinguished Alumni

I have a stand-in giving my speech on March 10th. They asked me in the first place because I nominated my classmate, Stephanie Jones. Here is what my pal Siobhan (Thanks, Siobhan) will say:

Stephanie,

So sorry that I couldn’t be here tonight to say these words myself and to revel with you and your father, the Good Judge, on this most joyful occasion.

We all know it’s not everyday that RHS honors their Distinguished Alumni, though I can safely predict that this will not be the last of these events. It’s clear to me that the RHS Alumni support their newly formed Alumni Association and that the Board of Trustees are truly dedicated to furthering important activities such as these Distinguished Alumni Awards.

Now I would like to tell you all why I nominated Stephanie Jones RHS Class of 1977 for this award and am so pleased that she is receiving it here tonight.

Even if you have met Stephanie only one time in your life then you will understand when I say she is a memorable individual. The enthusiasm, good cheer, wisdom, and compassion come pouring out of her all the time. This is not an act. She is 100% true and a single meeting always confirms this fact.

Let me give just one example from among the many which typify the kind of person Stephanie is and why she is deserving of our recognition. I realize one instance does not always make the case, but Stephanie’s sustained and steady appreciation for her parents and all they have done for her throughout her life does speak very highly of her. In addition, she lives the lessons her parents taught her. Among these lessons are a ready show of empathy and kindness, especially to the weak and needy, and a preparedness to do the hard jobs in life no matter who is watching.

In my opinion, this all amounts to the kind of integrity which makes for a role model, as well as a touchstone upon which we can verify the quality of our own beliefs for authenticity.

Please understand me when I state that we all can be very proud of the honor we are bestowing upon Stephanie Jones this evening.

Thank you.

Paul McCubbin, RHS Class of 1977

RHS Distinguished Alumni

Stephanie Jones will be accompanied by her Dad, Nathaniel Jones, a retired judge with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, as she accepts an award, along with 4 others, on March 10th for being RHS Distinguished Alumni. If you haven't been back to RHS in a while there is a spot near the front doors where pictures hang of the previous winners. Stephanie and the newest members of this cohort will be honored with a dinner at the Park West Loft in Ridgewood beginning at 7PM.

Tickets are available at http://www.rhsalumniassociation.org

 

The rest of the honorees:

Steven C. Mannion, Class of 1986

Kimberly Parsons Daub, Class of 1985

Sybil Space Gibson, Class of 1940

Elizabeth Hawes, Class of 1921

Stephanie Jones

Here is Stephanie Jones RHS1977 being sworn in as  Deputy Chief of Staff for the U.S. Department of Transportation.



I am asking that our very own Laura Fleming find out how the RHS Distinguished Alumni wall located near the main entrance inside RHS decides upon new members. Also, what we as a group can do to further Stephanie's nomination along. If you have seen the wall then you know that it is reserved for alumni who have made a name for themselves in the public arena. It is a nice addition to the many accolades that already exist for athletes, and in my opinion, very much overdue.

Sandy Hook, CT

A post from the blog of a high school pal I am proud to call a friend, Stephanie Jones: Here's the link.

This Time, I Won’t Let You Forget …

December 17th 2012

Not one of the Sandy Hook teachers was a “job creator.” Probably none of the Newtown first responders measure their “success” by how much money they manage to earn, sock away and shield from taxes. Yet it was the first responders who ran into, not away from, the gunfire that once again shattered a community, and it was teachers who stood between a madman and other people’s children.

So, when we go back to arguing about who is and isn’t contributing to society, and why and how we should invest our resources, let’s remember Victoria Sota, Dawn Hochsprung, Mary Sherlack, Lauren Rousseau, and the other teachers, police officers, firefighters, and paramedics to whom we entrust our children, our families, our communities, our safety, and our lives.

It is time for politicians to call a halt on the ugly and cynical attacks on public workers. I don’t want to see you wringing your hands at memorial services for the Sandy Hook victims and then, the next day, hear you call their colleagues thugs and leeches. The workers you besmirch and belittle are the same people who protect our beloved ones when we’re not with them and step into the line of fire while we’re running as far as we can in the other direction.

They aren’t job creators. But on Friday morning, we didn’t need job creators. We needed public servants to charge into the bullets, to throw themselves on top of our babies, to keep their cool and soothe our terrified children until other public servants could ensure they were once again safe. And, thank God, they were there.

I’m not going to forget that. And I won’t let you forget that, either.