When you get your freedom, I'll get mine!

This past week I was a presenter at the annual Georgia Muncipal Conference. This meeting brought 41 mayors and city council members to a 3 day leadership program where I conducted SIMSOC and some leadership topics for elected officials.

I met a lot of interesting people and some I want to share in this blog, the first is Edna Jackson, Mayor Pro Temp of Savannah, GA.

Edna's parents had saved enough money for her and her sister to go to college for the first year. They mailed the money to her aunt for safekeeping, but it got stolen. When her parents were informed of the theft they could scrape enough money for one of them to go that semester, but not both. Edna gave her sister the opportunity and moved to Florida to get a job. While there a leader in the NAACP noticed her and hired her to be a Youth Task Force Leader, organizing youth and voting registration. She took 3 car loads of kids to the March on Washington in 1963 and helped organize the Selma march soon thereafter. The NAACP paid for her way through college and she spent her career in public service.

She told me the theft of her tuition was the best thing that ever happened to her.

I met a remarkable person this week, a hero in my eyes of justice and civil rights, and someone who the odds against her to give back to her community

Being a Go Giver, not a Go Getter

Today I had the opportunity to work with 30 County Commissioners from throughout the State of Georgia as they completed the Advanced Leadership Program at UGA in the Carl Vinson Institute of Government. These elected officials have chosen to continue their learning, that is remarkable to me, and they have rich histories to share. One of the key elements of my workshop today was to get them to share a peak experience that has profoundly shaped their life/leadership point of view. I heard some great stories.

A County Manager recalled how when he was a police officer he was confronted with a gunman who was at point blank range and disarmed him. He said the lesson was to always be aware of surroundings.

A 2 term Commissioner shared how he grew up as the only child of a single mother who was on welfare. His mother instilled in him the values that guides his work today.

A 1 term Commissioner told the class how the best job he never got, enabled him to finish college. If he had gotten that job at the furniture factory, he might still be there today, just like some of his friends.

What peak experiences have shaped your life/leadership point of view?