--Minister Steve Brigham, November 4, 2013
After a small turnout of around 50 supporters, some were left wondering if it was worth our time, if we were heard, or if we had any impact at all. It can be disheartening at times. There are moments you feel as though your voice, however powerful, is growing hoarse, and falling upon indifferent ears.
Yesterday, a friend I've known pretty much my whole life shared her experiences as a resident of Lakewood for over 30 years. How the town put their blinders on and allowed the special interest group to build on protected wetlands - home to endangered salamander species - close to her house. And how they granted a permit to build a boarding school on a standard residential lot next door to her, despite the requirement of 4 acres minimum for such an establishment. Another good friend, who lives in Jackson, is attending a town meeting because the same group is proposing a girls-only high school in his town with three variances - one of which AGAIN involves a school in a residential-only area.
Politicians, afraid to tamper with one of the state's largest voting blocs, cave in and do nothing.
One is left wondering, where does the moral famine end and justice begin?
It begins with us. One heart at a time. That's how I got involved - and by connecting with the passionate souls who are working for change, as well as the people in need, I am being transformed.
And the fire they nurture in my soul, perhaps I can spread to others. To my friends. To my children. To anyone who is ready to rise above this sense of fear and powerlessness and make this, as Minister Steve says, a nation we can be proud of.
Today it was fifty people. Next time, it could be a hundred. Because we will work to make it so.
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