Our City Our Community

By Marie Brown

This past weekend, the Juneteenth UMOJA and OCOME organizations sponsored a workshop in Monroe at the Greater New Antioch Baptist Church entitled Empowering the Community.  Residents heard from several speakers on topics of discussion, including Small Business Grant Writing, Youth Involvement, Financial/Voter Literacy, Home Ownership, Healthy Living, and Eating Well, and Building Wealth.

In addition to myself as a coordinator, those also contributing to the workshop included Pastor John Russell, Rep. Adrian Fisher, Ouachita Parish DPEC Chairman Jamie Mayo, Charles Theus, Marshal Robert Cherry, Ralph Webb, Troy Greer, and James Miles.  After lunch, the attendees were surprised by the reception of cleaning supplies to take to their various homes.

One of the highlights of the workshop was when an 18-year-old student downloaded the Louisiana Secretary of State GeauxVote App and registered to vote for the first time.  She was very happy to know how easy it was and encouraged all 18 and older residents to not only register to vote but also exercise their rights by going to the polls to vote in each election.

It is nice to know that through all the challenges we face with the various political changes throughout our country, there are several occurrences to make us all smile.  That is why we all can Love where we Live and Live where we Love.

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