Opelika Observer Staff Editorial - 4/29: 'In-gathering' explores possibilities for Jeter community

Tuesday night’s “in-gathering” held by the Greater Peace Community Development Corporation brought forth many ideas and suggestions to help bring about possible improvements and revitalizations within the Jeter community.
While a number of great ideas were discussed at the meeting, we were most intrigued by one of the questions raised by the meeting’s moderator, Dr. Keenan Grenell: What could the phrase ‘Made in Jeter’ come to mean?
The question was not fully answered during the meeting, nor should it have been.
We don’t pretend to have a definitive answer ourselves, but Tuesday night’s discussions lead in a positive direction to developing a possible answer: the youth of the Jeter community.
The phrase “children are our greatest resource” is often thrown around in situations like this, and it is true, but children are a potential resource, not a guaranteed one.
If investments are not made in children during their development, if we do not take upon ourselves to provide opportunities and resources for those children to grow, thrive and survive, we turn a potential resource and source of renewal into a loss.
Education is the silver bullet for so many ills within our world. If children are allowed to fall through the cracks of the system, without guidance or involvement from parents and a supportive community, another generation could fall victim to the demons of apathy and anger and become a sad, unfulfilled promise.
The Jeter community is capable of producing greatness, beacons of hope whose light can shine not only on Opelika but on the rest of our state and nation.
Some of the meeting’s attendees gave us hope for that.
Citizens like Mario Mitchell and Sheena Bell, people born and raised in the Jeter community, can provide a positive message of hope and progress to young people in that community, showing them that they can do anything they can set their minds to as long as they are willing to work hard and pay attention.
Attendees like Deacon Norman Slaughter, a stalwart member of the community, can and do provide the voices of history and experience that must be imparted to our youth so that the lessons of the past will never be forgotten.
The community can and must come together to help with the raising and training of these young people. Families must help families; neighbors should take notice of and care of neighbors.
The City must also step up and do its part as well.
Many questions and comments were raised about the closure and upkeep of several parks and basketball courts within the neighborhood, saying that neighborhood kids often don’t have places to go after school to have activities and games.
Every child should have a place within their neighborhood to go. We must have a level playing field, literally and figuratively, for all our children.
What is “Made in Jeter?”
People.
People who are willing to do what it takes to step up and improve their community.
People who believe in the promise of the future and are willing to invest their time, efforts and money to help make that future a reality.
People who understand that it takes a community to raise a child, that wisdom must be imparted from all in order for it to bring continued existence and worth.
Jeter makes people, great people, and it’s time the word got out.