Pickens County nonprofit organizations host voter resource event
Awareness Spoken Outreach, ILive2Serve, and Talya Ball Ministries are all minority-owned non-profit organizations in Pickens County.
PICKENS COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Awareness Spoken Outreach, ILive2Serve, and Talya Ball Ministries are all minority-owned nonprofit organizations in Pickens County.
They have two things in common. One – they are all run by women. And two, and more importantly, they are passionate about making sure the community’s voice is heard.
Belinda Craig is the director of ILive2Serve. She said she wants people to be at ease when they go to the polls on March 5.
“I have learned that many young people don’t understand the importance of voting,” Craig said. “They don’t know what people have been through to get that right, they don’t understand the process of voting, and they do not even understand the qualifications for different candidates. There was a time when you’d see 5 or six people running for a specific office. Now, you barely get one.”
So, these women decided the community needed to be educated, and they needed to know their rights when it comes to voting.
Jill Noland, the Director of Awareness Spoken Outreach, wants the community to be educated on all that comes with voting, and learn it in an enjoyable way.
“We came to the table and thought let’s not only do a register to vote, and get the word out,” Noland said. “Let’s also invite candidates to come out, let’s ask the community to come out, and let’s set up to have vendors come out. let’s set up register tables and different organizations to participate, Let’s make this a big thing into one.”
The Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Chapter of Pickens County has also pitched in to help share resources they have in the county.
“This is an opportunity to come out, meet the candidates, ask them whatever questions you need, and we’re also going to have computers set up for people who need to register or don’t know where their precinct is,” Craig said.
At the end of it all, Noland wants to arm the community with knowledge.
“It’s important to your rights as an individual, your rights to vote, and how important it is to register,” Noland said.
“We just want to be a beacon of light in Pickens County,” Craig said.
The event will be on Saturday, February 17 at 2 p.m. at the Aliceville Activity Center at 1438 Wilder Circle.
