An important demographic was missing from Columbus’ ‘On the Table’ conversations

The inaugural On the Table event in the Columbus area clearly was successful. More than 6,500 folks gathered last week at 35 public sites plus dozens of private ones to share a meal and share ideas about improving our community. The civic conversations comprised diverse groups, but a key segment was missing.

As I was leaving the On the Table dinner at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, co-hosted by Greater Beallwood Baptist Church and Temple Israel, I reconnected with a friend, Derrick Shields, who expressed a concern that stuck with me.

Derrick is executive pastor at Christ Community Church. I met him years ago at Country Life, the vegan lunch place and health store we frequent. We told each other how the On the Table conversation went at our tables, then Derrick lamented that the people most involved or plagued by many of the problems mentioned – crime, violence, drugs, poverty – weren’t at most of the tables, if any.

I agreed that having such participation would have deepened the impact of these conversations. Then we wondered how the disconnected could have been connected to this event.

Neither of us had a good answer. But the question was good.

Questions are vital tools for a reporter, so I posed that one and a few more to those who were at my table and several others who could generate some good answers.

Is seeking participation from the disconnected segment of our community a worthy goal? Is it realistic? If so, how could we make that happen?

Their answers, via phone and email, were helpful and hopeful.

Glenda Culpepper, a retired social services administrator and program consultant for the Georgia Department of Human Resources, was the facilitator for my table at St. Thomas.

“Getting those citizens who are the source of our concerns to the table would indeed be a very worthy goal,” said Glenda, who attends Greater Beallwood Baptist Church. “Hearing their perspective on family, community and life in general would certainly give us insight into their values. What moves them? It would also provide us with information about how our actions, although well intended, are perceived. As you are aware, good communication requires that we listen as well as speak.”

U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Brandon Gilbert, a medic assigned to Martin Army Community Hospital at Fort Benning, also was at our table. He wished there were more young folks at the event, and another participant asked him why he didn’t bring someone like that with him.

“There were moments where I could have told others what I was doing and extended the invite, but I didn't,” said Brandon, a member of Temple Israel. “In a way, I contributed to the lack of participation from others that I wished had been there.”

Brandon added, “I would assume that we all know others who play a significant role in both the decay of our community as well as the progress of our community. Those of us that chose to attend should consider inviting others to the table who may not have known about the event or decided they didn't want to participate for various reasons.”

That’s exactly how Eugene Thomas ended up at an On the Table conversation.

Eugene was a gang member and teenage crack dealer. He spent 21 years in prison for a voluntary manslaughter conviction when he was 22. But since he was released in 2014, Eugene has risen above his past and now works at a local barbecue joint and as a personal trainer. He also boxes.

And thanks to staff writer Alva James-Johnson’s compelling series of stories about Eugene last year, he has become a valuable source of info and insight about the crime world for the L-E.

Eugene didn’t know about On the Table through the media; a friend invited him. So he attended the one hosted by the Southern Anti-Racism Network at the Denny’s restaurant on Macon Road.

“It has to be a human connection,” Eugene said. “They have to feel you are genuinely concerned about them, not just afraid and trying to solve some problems so they don’t show up at your doorstep.”

Derrick and I have different backgrounds. He is black; I am white. He is Christian; I am Jewish. He grew up in Mississippi; I grew up in Pennsylvania. He served in the military; I didn’t. But we got to know each other during several lunches together through the years.

Last week, after reconnecting at On the Table and sparking that question about connecting the disconnected, Derrick also lamented that he wasn’t exercising consistently. I asked him whether it would help if I texted him each day to help him be accountable to that goal. He agreed.

Since then, I’ve texted him those reminders and words of encouragement, and he has texted me those confirmations and words of wisdom and inspiration.

Fearing that I would be silly to equate exercising every day with keeping away from crime and keeping a job, I asked Eugene whether the source of those goals is similar. He said they all come from discipline and accountability.

Then I asked him an even crazier question: If we indeed connected the disconnected to an On the Table conversation, could we help those folks go from destructive to constructive lives by pairing them with a role model who could text them the daily exchanges of accountability and inspiration like Derrick and I share?

Yes, Eugene said, but the key formula is sincerity plus consistency. “That equals seriousness,” he said.

So if free food and transportation were provided, and if such an event were promoted through a door-to-door campaign in addition to the media, Eugene said, the disconnected indeed could be connected to an On the Table conversation.

Asked whether he would have gone to an On the Table conversation if he were invited when he was a gang member and committing crimes, Eugene said he wasn’t sure, then added, “But one thing I do know is ‘Ain’t nothing beats a failure but a try.’”

Less than two hours after Greater Beallwood pastor Adrian Chester finished co-hosting the On the Table event at St. Thomas, he learned that a 19-year-old man was shot to death outside his church while the choir rehearsed inside. I asked him for his reaction to the juxtaposition of those events.

“Both events show us that we have much work to do in this community,” the pastor said. “Although they aren't related to each other, they both go hand in hand. By people building community where there may be the lack thereof, we will see an impact on our crime rates in Columbus. Crime and violence show up in the areas where people see limited hope.”

He also believes trying to have On the Table conversations with the disconnected folks in our community is a worthy and realistic goal.

“God requires those who believe the Holy Scriptures to be in authentic fellowship with each other,” the pastor said. “We are then tasked to bring others into fellowship. The most pressing question for Columbus is, ‘Where do we start?’ Honestly, I don't have the exact answer. Most times, we, the public, are not made aware of environments that breed crime until it is too late.”

Then I asked Betsy Covington, CEO of the Community Foundation of the Chattahoochee Valley, which organized the On the Table initiative in the Columbus area, for her response to these questions and suggestions.

“I’d say that the kind of ‘widening the circle’ you describe sounds like a great idea,” Covington said. “Solutions come best when we plan with, and not for, those affected by situations. More and better listening can only lead to a stronger community.”

Meanwhile, the On the Table participants are taking a survey to help determine what to do with this momentum.

“I hope that the data gathered will lead all of us toward a better understanding of the hopes, dreams and challenges of people in our community,” Covington said. “Hopefully we’ll also find some things to celebrate.

“At the Community Foundation, we’ll be listening and looking for ways to encourage more and better connections between people here in our community.”

This story was originally published November 15, 2017 at 5:31 PM with the headline "An important demographic was missing from Columbus’ ‘On the Table’ conversations."