The Gaston Clergy & Citizens Coalition (GC3), an initiative of Gaston Together, will present the 2022 Gaston County MLK Unity Awards to Mr. R. Dwayne Burks, Rev. Dr. Joan C. Martin, and Mr. Michael Meeks, Sr. on Sunday, January 30 at 2:00 p.m. Out of an abundance of caution due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the event this year will be live-streamed through the Facebook page of Mt. Zion Restoration Church.

The Gaston County MLK Unity Award was established in 2004 by the GC3. The MLK Unity Award recognizes Gaston County citizens who have performed exemplary community service to help build bridges of unity across lines of class, race, gender, faith, and municipalities within Gaston County.

R. Dwayne Burks is being honored for his work in the community, including his teaching of cultural competency education sessions for the Charlotte Mecklenburg Police and founding Gateway Gaston, which serves residents of Gaston County by connecting them to resources in times of need. Mr. Burks also hosted two Legacy of Freedom trips for local clergy from multiple denominations and participated in an outreach ministry serving meals to those in need. A resident of Gaston County since 1988, Mr. Burks continues to serve residents throughout the County.

Rev. Dr. Joan C. Martin has served residents of Gaston County since 2004 in many capacities. She has served as a facilitator of the Interfaith Trialogue, a leader and facilitator for the Clergy Women of Gaston County, and a member and past chair of the Gaston Together Clergy and Citizen’s Coalition. Rev. Martin currently serves as the Chaplin of Covenant Village and continues her work with non-profit organizations throughout Gaston County.

Mr. Michael Meeks, Sr., was born and raised in Bessemer City, NC. He served in the United States Army during the Vietnam War and continued his service in the Army Reserve. After a career with Wyndham Worldwide Hotels, he returned to Bessemer City and began volunteering on many community projects and committees. He currently serves as the President of the Bessemer City Crisis Center, serves on the Gaston County Collaborative Board, and delivers Meals on Wheels to area residents. An active member of the Gaston County Honor Guard and Chairman of the Gaston County Veterans Day Parade, Mr. Meeks was honored in 2018 with the Governor’s Award for Volunteer Service and continues to serve the Greater Gaston community through his volunteer efforts.00

The awards are part of an annual event designed by the GC3 to recognize the dream of Dr. King to promote a culture that protects and nourishes every community and every person, a dream very much alive in Gaston County. 

The Gaston Clergy & Citizens Coalition (GC3), an initiative of Gaston Together, will present the 2022 Gaston Together MLK Unity Awards on Monday, January 17, the MLK national holiday. The details for the event are pending based on current coronavirus guidelines.

The Gaston Together MLK Unity Award was established in 2004 by the GC3. The award recognizes current or former Gaston County citizens who have performed exemplary community service to help build bridges of unity across lines of race, class, gender, faith and/or among municipalities within our county. Names of the honorees are engraved on the MLK Monument located at the MLK Plaza. The Plaza is at the corner of Long Avenue and MLK Way in downtown Gastonia. Past winners include notable community members such as Senator Marshall Rauch, N. A. Smith, Mildred Sadler, the 1964 Gastonia Human Relations Committee, Rev. Houston Matthews, Danny Jackson, Sam Shoukry and Richard and Lucy Penegar to name a few.

To get the nomination form and award criteria, contact Gaston Together at llee@gastontogether.com. Completed nomination forms must be received no later than 5pm on November 1st. The selection committee composed of former MLK Unity Award Honorees will determine the 2022 recipients. The award recipients will be notified mid to late December.

The GC3 is a county-wide, non-denominational ministerial association formed in the late 1990s by Gaston Together. The GC3 meets on the second Thursday of each month at 9:00 a.m. at First United Methodist Church Family Life Center, Gastonia or virtually depending on coronavirus guidelines. For more information, please call Gaston Together (704-867-9869.)

May 24, 2021

Members of the Gaston Together Clergy & Citizens Coalition, law enforcement, and community partners met on Monday, May 24 at the Rotary Pavilion to show their support for getting the Covid vaccine. Despite the sudden, summer type heat, several met together to show their support and encouragement for getting the vaccine. According to clergy members, rolling up your sleeve for the vaccine is a wonderful example of “loving your neighbor as yourself.” These community members are hoping to serve as a positive example to help our entire county. If you have not already done so, they ask that you get vaccinated and encourage others to do the same.

May 14, 2021

Thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic, it was a long awaited event.

On Tuesday, May 11^th, Gaston Together was finally able to conduct the graduation celebration for the third class of their Civic Engagement Leadership (CEL) process. These graduates began their sessions in August 2019 anticipating a June 2020 graduation. Due to Covid restrictions, they had to extend their number of sessions by three and conduct them via a virtual format just to complete the CEL process.  Fortunately, they were far enough along in the CEL process to enable a virtual format to work. One year later, they were able to graduate AND celebrate!

The graduation celebration event was held at the Gaston Country Club at 5:30pm. Guests were greeted with a welcome reception that was sponsored by the second class of CEL. The program and presentation followed.

Gaston Together created the CEL process in response to a two-fold community request: 1) to create a potential future pool of leaders for Gaston County and 2) to attract and retain young adults in Gaston County through leadership opportunities. Gaston Together conducted an extensive research and discovery phase to examine other leadership programs in the county to identify any possible gaps and avoid duplication of efforts. The CEL process was built around three areas for enhancement identified during this research phase: intentional cross-sector community building, greater knowledge of Gaston County (its past, present and impact on the future) and in-depth personal awareness and skills development. 

The process is designed with eight sessions: six full-day and two half-day. Classes are limited to a group of 20-25 participants to allow for active engagement. Sessions are conducted as an “experiential learning laboratory” where participants feel safe to practice skills learned during the sessions. Some highlights of the process include work on communication skills and civic dialogue, influencing as a leader and community building by working across differences in demographics and community sectors, and self-assessment pre and post program testing for growth/change comparison. 

Community focus areas important to them as residents of Gaston County such as education and diversity in leadership are identified early in their sessions. Subsequent sessions are then developed around these focus areas. One highlight of the sessions each year is the Community Leaders “Speed Networking” day.   Community leaders are selected to participate based on the focus areas important to that particular CEL class.  

Funding for the third class of Civic Engagement Leadership was graciously provided by the Carrie E. and Lena B. Glenn Foundation, the First Gaston Foundation, Dominion Energy and Gaston County.  Fellowship Sponsors were Charlie and Helene Pearson, TJ Solomon and Parkdale Mills.

Gaston Together is currently taking applications for CEL 4 which will begin with an orientation in August.  Sessions will begin in September.  For more information or to get an application, contact Gaston Together at dlockett@gastontogether.org or call 704-867-9869, ext. 111.

The Gaston Clergy & Citizens Coalition (GC3), an initiative of Gaston Together, will present the 2021 Gaston Together MLK Unity Awards on Monday, January 18th, the MLK national holiday. The details for the event are pending based on current coronavirus guidelines.

The Gaston Together MLK Unity Award was established in 2004 by the GC3. The award recognizes current or former Gaston County citizens who have performed exemplary community service to help build bridges of unity across lines of race, class, gender, faith and/or among municipalities within our county. Names of the honorees are engraved on the MLK Monument located at the MLK Plaza. The Plaza is at the corner of Long Avenue and MLK Way in downtown Gastonia. Past winners include notable community members such as Senator Marshall Rauch, N. A. Smith, Mildred Sadler, the 1964 Gastonia Human Relations Committee, Rev. Houston Matthews, Danny Jackson, Sam Shoukry and Richard and Lucy Penegar to name a few.

To get the nomination form and award criteria, contact Gaston Together at dlockett@gastontogether.org. Completed nomination forms must be received no later than 5pm on November 1st. The selection committee composed of former MLK Unity Award Honorees will determine the 2021 recipients. The award recipients will be notified in mid-late December.

The GC3 is a county-wide, non-denominational ministerial association formed in the late 1990’s by Gaston Together. The GC3 meets on the second Thursday of each month at 9:00am normally at First United Methodist Church Family Life Center, Gastonia. They are currently meeting in a virtual format. For more information, please call Gaston Together (704-867-9869.)