We come in peace!
Published 8:40 am Thursday, July 23, 2015
CONWAY – They seek a return to the Conway of old….a place that’s safe and secure.
On Sunday, citizens of this Northampton County town, rocked by a recent wave of violence, will be joined by their municipal leadership as well as regional representatives to the North Carolina General Assembly to conduct the “Conway4Peace Rally & March.”
The event will commence at 4 p.m. at the Conway Veterans Memorial Park, located on Main Street adjacent to the Town Hall. There, Conway Mayor Brian Bolton, Northampton Sheriff Jack Smith, Rev. Cornell Watson, Sr. of Zoar Missionary Baptist Church, State Senator Erica Smith-Ingram, and State House Representative Michael Wray are scheduled to make comments.
Following the rally at Veterans Park, a peaceful march will begin. The route is along Church Street (NC 35 North) to Phillips Hill Road and then return to the Veterans Park. Transportation will be provided for those unable to make the return trip.
“The purpose of this rally is to bring the entire community together to stand up and show that power in and around Conway belongs to its law abiding citizens,” said Mayor Bolton. “We want to let trouble-makers know that all of Conway wants it to go back to the peaceful small town that we remember. Please join us as we rally and march to stop the violence.”
The rally and march comes on the heels of a murder, shots being fired into an occupied residence and vehicle, and fights in town. Most of the citizens say the problem is traced to those living at or visiting Conway Village Apartments, located on Woodard Blvd. off NC 35 North.
The idea to host such an event was introduced by Conway resident Calvin Baldwin.
“I see us pulling together as a community,” Baldwin stated when the Town Commissioners met on July 11. “I’m asking all our citizens, all our churches, and you, the town officials, to join in this rally and march. We need to show that the power in this town belongs to the law abiding citizens. We need to show there is strength in numbers.”
For more information, contact the Conway Town Hall at (252) 585-0488.
About Cal Bryant
Cal Bryant, a 40-year veteran of the newspaper industry, serves as the Editor at Roanoke-Chowan Publications, publishers of the Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald, Gates County Index, and Front Porch Living magazine.
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