Pastor Michael Harrison from United Baptist Church, right with megaphone, and others march along W. Front St. towards Market St. in the All Men's March Saturday morning...by R. Michael Semple

YOUNGSTOWN — Over the years, the Mahoning Valley has experienced its share of difficult times and loss, but five C’s are essential in reaffirming that a wealth of opportunity remains: commitment, cooperation, cohesion, collaboration and collectivity, a longtime religious leader says.

“We have to lay aside our differences and focus on our community, that’s what matters. The more we talk to each other, the more things change,” the Rev. Michael Harrison, pastor of Union Baptist Church in Youngstown, said.

That was one of the main driving forces behind Saturday morning’s men’s march, which began in the parking lot across from the former Vindicator building and proceeded along West Front and Market streets to the Starting Lineup Barber & Beauty Shop, 47 Market St.

An estimated 150 men, most of whom were black, from the Mahoning Valley and surrounding region preregistered for the march and outdoor program that followed. However, the actual participant count was closer to 50, according to an attendee. It focused largely on building strong and productive community relationships to create further momentum for growth and development, noted Harrison, who also acted as master of ceremonies.

The speakers’ emphasis was on financial empowerment, educational opportunities and greater minority recruitment and representation in the Youngstown Police Department.

William C. Shivers, president of Huntington Bank’s Mahoning Valley and Canton region, announced a five-year, $20 billion community plan that will cover Ohio, along with the five bordering states and Chicago. The thrust is to increase economic opportunities for people, small businesses and communities in those states via affordable housing and home ownership, greater access to capital, and community lending and investment, he explained.

“We want to make it easier to get minority-owned businesses the capital they need,” Shivers said, noting that the bank also has a special emphasis on assisting veteran- and women-owned businesses.

Another underlying reason for the plan is to help stop social injustices, Shivers continued.

Julian Walker, Eastern Gateway Community College’s interim director of workforce development, pointed to the two-year college’s numerous programs that assist students with finding good-paying jobs and trades.

“If you want to prosper and want your generation to prosper, you have to have knowledge,” said Walker, who graduated from Youngstown State University in December 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in sociology and Africana studies. “Education is the key to where you need to be.”

Walker, who at one time struggled with his grades, added he sought to lift himself up also to set a positive example for his two children, who are 10 and 13.

Youngstown police Chief Robin Lees said that 55 percent of hires under his watch have been minorities, though further recruitment is needed. He urged attendees to use church platforms and other means to encourage such efforts.

Finding qualified recruits has been “challenging across the board” partly because fewer people have gone through the police academy to train for what has often become an increasingly stressful job, he explained. Nevertheless, the department will pay for those who pass a rigorous background check to attend the academy, Lees said.

Such available opportunities, however, also are accompanied by inevitable, hard battles many will face, the outcomes of which may not go their way. That’s the time to return to the fundamentals of gratitude, humility, leadership, wisdom and treating others properly, YSU President Jim Tressel told the crowd.

“We have to be better leaders, we have to be better men, we have to be better fathers and we have to be better husbands, and teach others to come along with us. Take care of one another,” he advised.

Mayor Jamael Tito Brown praised the men for taking responsibility for the welfare of their communities and children — especially against the backdrop of difficult times that include the economic decline and the continuing health pandemic. Nevertheless, he encouraged them to look for ways to do more in their homes, workplaces and communities.

In addition, Harrison urged attendees to fill out the U.S. Census form, since that has a direct impact on the amount of federal dollars an area receives. To that end, such forms were available at the event, along with information from EGCC and pamphlets on financial opportunities.

Other entities represented at the gathering included the Alliance for Congregational Transformation Influencing Our Neighborhoods (ACTION), the Baptist Pastors Council of Youngstown, the Community Mobilization Coalition and the International Ministerial Association, Harrison said.

Huntington Bank initiative

Huntington Bank has announced a five-year, $20 billion community plan for community development funding in three areas:

• Access to capital: The bank has committed $7.6 billion to help small businesses, especially those owned by minorities, veterans and women. Further investments are to be added for business planning and educational programs to assist business owners.

• Affordable housing and home ownership: Huntington Bank has set aside $7.5 billion to expand its lending programs to allow greater opportunities for first-time home buyers, to improve housing security for those who are financially distressed and create generational wealth building via home ownership. The money also will be used for home rehabilitation and refinancing of existing homes.

• Community lending and investment: The bank is investing $4.9 billion toward communities’ efforts regarding food security, affordable housing, workforce development and social equity to help people with economic security and to prosper.

SOURCE: Huntington Bank