By Caylie Moore, Features Editor
On Wednesday, the Leonard Williams Community Development Corporation (or LWCDC) held a ribbon cutting ceremony for its seventh Blessing Box, located at 1214 Springfield Avenue next to Green Pasture Park. Blessing Boxes act as a free hub for food, essential items, and hygiene products. Donzella Williams, founder of the LWCDC, gave a welcoming speech and discussed her desire to give back to the community.
“I grew up in Green Pasture. My grandparents, my parents, aunties, uncles, cousins, we’ve all grown up in Green Pasture,” stated Williams, adding that this particular Blessing Box had a special reveal to honor its special location. The reveal, as the audience would quickly discover, included various signs honoring Williams’ family members who had lived in Green Pasture and passed away: Laura Mae Robertson, William “Big Ray” Kyle, Vicki Pearl Whittaker, Kenneth William “Sandyman” Moore, “Pete” Andy Demetrius and Ceceil Robertson Hale.
Williams also added that the eight Blessing Box’s location would be at New Destiny Church in North Gadsden, with a ninth location pending.
The ribbon cutting also featured short speeches from Gadsden councilman-elect LaMont Kyle, who thanked the crowd for coming to honor his cousin Donzella Williams’ endeavors with the Blessing Boxes, and Ceandra James of Saving Our Sons, who discussed the ninth box’s location and her own charity about saving children from gun violence, mental illness, peer pressure, and suicide.
A representative from Emblem Credit Union donated a check to the LWCDC and Williams due to her passion for her Blessing Boxes. “We want to give back to our community, and she is doing that,” the representative stated.
To conclude the celebration, members of the Gadsden Line Dancers danced for the attendees, adding to the excitement of the new Blessing Box.
