St. John C.M.E. brings Men’s and Women’s days together
Charles and Dr. Jewel Cherry were co-chairpersons for the Men and Women’s day celebration, and were applauded for all of their hard work
Photo by Timothy Ramsey
BY TIMOTHY RAMSEY
THE CHRONICLE
Men’s Day and Women’s Day are normally celebrated on different days during different parts of the year. On Sunday, June 26, St. John C.M.E. church decided to observe both on the same Sunday after not having a Men’s or Women’s Day for the past decade.
According to the church, in 1907 Nannie Helen Burroughs instituted the concept of Women’s Day during the Women’s Convention of the National Baptist Convention. It was an opportunity for women to learn to speak for themselves. Additionally, it was a time to encourage younger women to catch the torch and meet the needs of the church and community.
Equally, Men’s Day was a time to celebrate men and appreciate men’s contributions to family, church community and country. Men’s Day in the black church is a reminder to all, not only of what was, but also of what is possible for the church and the community of man.
Sister Lillian Thompson spearheaded the celebration for this year. Thompson stated that after seeking God’s guidance, the Lord led her to suggest to the pastor and church conference that the church celebrate the first joint Men’s and Women’s Day.
Charles and Dr. Jewel Cherry were chosen for the planning and execution of St. John’s first combined celebration of Men’s and Women’s Day.
“It was a church effort and all members of the church got together and put it together,” said Charles Cherry.
Dr. Jewel Cherry added, “Our pastor did a great job of bringing out our theme and what it means to work together and what you can do when you work together. I think it was a good point for us to make that it’s not just the men or the women it’s all of us working together to do what we need to do.
The day began with a celebration breakfast, followed by separate Sunday schools for the men, women and children. A brief history of the origins of Men’s and Women’s Day was given. The choir was joined by guest soloist Miranda Meaders from Charlotte. Meaders is a member of Nations Ford Community Church in Charlotte.
The Rev. Omar L. Dykes delivered a sermon that focused on time and why it should not be wast-ed. He told the congregation not to allow the discussion of others to stop you from completing your work for God.
Dykes continued by saying, “There is no time to give those that power because there will always be someone with something to say.”
Dykes later commented, “The service was important for me to just lift up being a man and being a woman, particularly black men and women. It was a day for us to build ourselves up. It gives the church the opportunity to celebrate life and those who make up the church come from many walks of life. I seek to blend my sermons with the current times. We have experienced a lot here in Winston-Salem with homicides, hunger and poverty. It was kind of parallel to what was happening in Nehemiah, Chapter 4. It was a pastoral sermon to tell the church we need to rebuild but we can’t wait for permission.”
Dykes was very adamant about uplifting the men and women, not only in the church, but the com-munity as a whole. He feels as though the people should be called together to make change.
Dykes closed with the thought, “It’s not good for people to drive into our churches to worship God and leave our churches and go back to a broken city in fear of their life. God has not only called us to build up ourselves, but also build
