Martin Luther King Day in Winnsboro
by
Maryann Miller
It was a day the great Civil Rights Leader would have been proud to attend, as Winnsboro area residents gathered at the City Auditorium for the Martin Luther King Day Celebration. The event was sponsored by HYPE, Helping Young People Excel, a local organization that works with young people to keep them on a straight path in school, church, community, and home.
The day's activities included music, dance, testimony, prayer and some delicious barbecue that was all enjoyed by about 250 people. Pastor Greg Duffy of Mt. Lebanon CME church in Winnsboro said the event grows from year to year. "This was all we hoped it could be. We had the school involved. The WES choir sang this morning and they were terrific. And we had pastors from a number of Winnsboro churches. And all these people."
He gestured to the crowd that was a nice mix of young and old and black and white. This little girl, Naricer Burns, 
couldn't contain her joy as she danced in the aisle along with the Faith Building Dancers, or paused a moment to listen to the Faith Building Choir lead a song of praise.
One of the highlights of the day was a special award presented to Earnestine Starling for her years of service in education and the community. She was a teacher at Dunbar Elementary School in Winnsboro for many years, and more recently donated a building for a museum to be established in conjunction with the MLK park on Elm and Connie Mae in Winnsboro. The inscription on the award, presented by Marsha and Greg Duffy on behalf of HYPE, reads, "The past we Inherit. The future we Create. A legacy."
"Very appropriate for Miss Earnestine," Pastor Greg said. "She has given many people a legacy to live up to. And we at HYPE are excited that we will be giving the award in her name every year. It will be known as the Earnestine Starling Award."
Gvahn "Mickey" Stewart, (below left) didn't try to hide her tears or her emotions as she spoke about the influence of Miss Earnestine as a teacher. "I was very active at Dunbar 
School," Mickey said. "I did music. I did debate. I did sports. I did anything this teacher told me to do. And I learned to be proud of what I could accomplish."
After the award was given, Miss Earnestine said she was honored to be recognized in such a way. She said she didn't know about the award in advance, but suspected something was going to happen. "They kind of hinted," she said, "when they told me maybe I wanted to have my hair fixed nice and wear my Sunday clothes. So I figured something was going to happen and they would want to take pictures."
Miss Earnestine has lived in Winnsboro her whole life where she taught school and gave private piano lessons for many years. She attended Texas College in Tyler and Bishop College in Marshall. She also studied music at Jarvis Christian College. "I just love to go to school," she said with a smile. She no longer goes to school, nor does she teach anymore, but she is an active member of Tranquil Baptist Church in Winnsboro where she continues to play piano.
In addition to the WES choir, entertainment was provided by choirs from local churches, Randy Lindsey, and 
Shannon Monk, vocalist for the band, True Blue.
A special guest musician was Keitron Fountain on keyboard, who provided musical support to all the performers, and closed the day with a moving praise song, "Flow to You."
Keitron has been doing music for as long as he can remember, but doesn't read a note of music. "This is just a gift God gave me," he said.
Keitron has been a music minister for over twenty years, and currently serves at Abundant Life Christian Center in Pittsburg. He recently released his first CD "Use Me" that has nine original songs that are filled with faith and inspiration. Samples of his music can be found on his Web site.
Some of the local folks who enjoyed the day of fun and fellowship were (L-R) Billie Ruth Sutherland, Winnsboro Mayor Carolyn Jones, Sandy Page, the new director of the Winnsboro Cultural Arts District, Tracy Hopkins, and Grahame Hopkins. "This has been great fun," Tracy said. "We love to come out and support HYPE and all they do to help the community."
Greg Duffy said that HYPE has a lot planned in the near future to do even more for the youth in the area, and promised to let WinnsboroToday.com know when new programs and initiatives come to pass.
Stay tuned.