It's undoubtedly the smallest book that's ever been produced at William Mangum's art studio, but its impact will be profound.
Mangum has volunteered to print The Little Green Book, which lists times and locations for free meals in Greensboro.
On Monday, I wrote about Murphy’s efforts to print and distribute copies of book, which lists times and locations for free meals in Greensboro.
Though some copies of the book have been printed and distributed, many more are needed.
Mangum, who has long been an advocate for the homeless in Greensboro, told Murphy today that he'd print all the copies of The Little Green Book she needed -- starting with a batch of 5,000.
"I am just beside myself!" Murphy said.
Twenty-one different groups (including Murphy's) provide free meals at 13 different locations, mostly within walking distance of downtown. All told, they cover three meals a day 7 days a week except for Thursday and Friday breakfast.
People are also reading…
Though the homeless population is the primary focus, the meals are available to anyone in need.
The City of Greensboro distributed the book electronically to all Community Resource GPD officers and others within the city system that come in contact with people in the community, and is printed copies as needed.
But many other nonprofit and social services organizations need the books to distribute to hungry and homeless clients. Mangum's donation will allow Murphy to supply as many as they need.
Mangum, who wrote a book named "Michael's Gift" about his life-changing friendship with a homeless man, makes honor cards every year to raise money for agencies that aid the homeless.
His continuing service to the community is as beautiful as his paintings.
Lawmakers should kill RFRA
N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore said last week that before moving ahead on the N.C. Religious Freedom Restoration Acts, which have been filed in both chambers of the state legislature, he wants to look at the potential fallout.
Moore said he wanted to make sure any action taken by the legislature would improve the state’s brand.
Let’s be blunt.
“Bigots R Us” would be an appropriate slogan to accompany the state’s brand if this bill were to pass.
The fallout was tremendous in Indiana, which passed a similar law March 26. Criticism, cancellations and boycotts followed from corporation after corporation and even other states because the law would allow discrimination.
Companies as diverse as Apple, Gap, Aetna and Marriott spoke out in opposition to the bill, which also passed in Arkansas. The Arkansas governor, who said originally that he intended to sign it, had a change of heart after the chief executive of retail giant Walmart, which is headquartered there, urged him to veto it.
Angie’s List, Salesforce, Eli Lilly, the NCAA and even NASCAR are opposed to these laws. NASCAR, for pity’s sake!
Indiana lawmakers ultimately amended that state’s law to prohibit businesses from using it as a defense for discrimination.
Supporters of the bills were unhappy, because that was the intent of the bill in the first place.
The Arkansas bill was amended to apply only to the state government, not businesses or individuals.
The original bill “gave us a black eye,” said Rita Sklar, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of Arkansas. “This bill ices it.”
North Carolina legislators have an opportunity to avoid the black eye altogether. They should bury these bills and save the state more embarrassment than it already has incurred by introducing them in the first place.
The rest of the country has moved on and accepted that diversity and inclusion are positive forces both culturally and economically.
If our representatives are unwilling to kill these bills because it’s the right thing to do, they should at least be able to see that it’s the smart thing to do.
Clean it up, folks
Broken phones. Half-empty cans of paint. Outdated VCR players. Dead appliances.
What home doesn’t have at least one of these?
Full disclosure: We have ALL of these in our house.
Guilford County is willing to take all that junk off your hands and dispose of it properly.
As long as you’re a Guilford County resident, you can take household hazardous waste, outdated electronics, tires, mattresses, appliances and personal documents for secure, free and environmentally sound disposal.
It’s a win-win. You get the stuff out of your house but also keep it out of the landfill.
The county’s annual Spring Cleanup will be held from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturday at 1730 W. Lee St., across from the Greensboro Coliseum.
Archive Information Management, a new sponsor to the event, will provide free, on-site shredding of documents. Purpose Recycling, a local mattress recycler, will provide free disposal of mattresses and box springs.
Here’s a detailed list of what will be accepted:
• Tires.
• White goods (appliances such as stoves, refrigerators, washers, air conditioners, water heaters and microwaves).
• Paint and supplies, pesticides, antifreeze, motor oil and oil filters, cleaners, batteries, household and garden chemicals, fluorescent bulbs and other types of household hazardous waste.
• E-waste, including computers, televisions, electronic games and toys, cell phones, VHS and DVD players, stereo equipment and any other household items with an microchip or a plug.
• Mattresses and box springs (water soaked items are not accepted).
• Personal documents for shredding (a maximum of 5 boxes per vehicle please).
Last year, 696 vehicles dropped off more than 14 tons of electronics and TVs, 12 tons of household hazardous waste, 11 tons of tires, 3 tons of appliances and scrap metal and 4 tons of personal documents.
Organizers hope to top those totals this year. Please do your part to make that happen.
