Cardinal Stritch & Carroll Universities, Milwaukee, WI

The group of 52, arrived Thurday, January 7, 2009 during the coldest temps Selma has experienced. We enjoyed a great soul food dinner at Essie's Family Restaurant. Afriye We-Kan-dodis and James Perkins, Sr., joined us and welcomed the group to Selma. Friday morning, I could not open the doors on my car. After much tugging one finally crunched opened and I was able to meet the group at the Jameson Hotel. Already on the bus, we headed for our first stop on a full day of service work. First stop McRae Learning Center. When we arrived Mrs. Moss, was trying to unlock the gate. The lock was frozen. I decided, since this 55 foot bus was blocking the street during rush hour, I would take them to the next stop first. I drive off and the door that would open that just happened to be the driver's door, swung open. I almost fell out of the car. I shut it back and it opened again. By now I am shaking like a leaf in wind. We finally make it to Ebenezer Baptist Church where the students and advisors who were going to work there were greeted by the church's secretary, Carol. Knowing they were in good hands, they were in good hands, we head back to the school. I got on the bus vowing to never drive that crazy car again until the summer.
At McRae's we found Mrs. Moss and our adopted brother Edwin Ellis, who had come with a pitcher of hot water. The lock open and we got inside. The work began. Students began to sand walls and ready them for painting, some found pails and bleach and began to wash down cots, chairs, and tables. All set here, I took the video crew to the Perkins to record their first oral history. The bus driver and I traveled from site to site but soon felt unneeded because each crew had everything under control. That evening we enjoyed a spaghetti dinner at Ebnezer. At the church we were joined by a small group of students from Gettysburg College who were on tour.
Saturday, we embarked on our journey thru the history of the Voting Rights Struggle, beginning in Lowdnes County at the Interpretive Center. Back in Selma, we visited the sites and heard the stories of the struggle. Lastly, the group walked across the Edmund Pettus Bridge and made their own personal commitments to the struggle for peace and justice.
Sunday, a black southern Baptist church experience at Ebnezer.