ChickenBones: A Journal

for Literary & Artistic African-American Themes

   

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I remember my seeds / were thrown into a ditch,

trashed with violent words, / disregard for smaller, too sensitive / body parts.

 

 

 

The Progressive Leaders of

Glide Memorial United Methodist Church

Rev. Cecil Williams & Janice Mirikitani 

Rev. Cecil Williams

CEO and Minister of Glide's National and International Ministries
 

In his 37 years as Pastor of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church, Reverend Cecil Williams has created a church that practices diversity, spirituality, and compassion. As a minister, community leader, author, lecturer, and spokesperson for the poor and marginalized, he is respected and recognized as a national leader on the forefront of social change. His vision for a truly inclusive church has attracted a 10,000 member congregation, an extended family, who reflect the diversity of the world- all races, ages, genders, ethnicities, sexual orientations and religions. What brings this community of people together is the common search for acceptance, spiritual growth, and social justice. Cecil's spirituality demands action through good works, as staff and thousands of volunteers feed over 1 million meals a year to the hungry, and offer the hope of recovery and healing in the lives of the city's most marginalized. His tireless work over the last 37 years has made Glide one of the most active, dynamic churches in the world, receiving national and international acclaim. Reverend Williams is married to Janice Mirikitani. He has a son, daughter, and 2 grandchildren.

Janice Mirikitani

Executive Director and President of the Glide Foundation
 

Multicultural visionary. Poet. Executive Director of Glide's 52 programs. Janice Mirikitani, also the President of the Glide Foundation, has been a powerful force at Glide since 1965. A third-generation Japanese-American, Janice has developed groundbreaking multiracial, multicultural programs which have transformed and empowered the Tenderloin community - especially the lives of women and children. Glide programs, recognized for their relevance, inclusiveness, and effective outreach to the most marginalized populations of the city, are comprehensive and designed to help break the cycle of dependency. These essential services include a free meals program, a health clinic, recovery programs, educational, tutorial, recreational programs for children and youth, counseling and job training services. Guided by Janice's leadership, Glide's growth has been phenomenal, with an annual budget of $11 million, a diverse staff of 230, and a volunteer cadre that swelled in numbers to 35,000 in 1999. As an author, Mirkitani has written and edited dozens of landmark books, journals, and anthologies, and her own three books of poetry. In 2000, her achievements as an author were recognized with the prestigious appointment as San Francisco's Poet Laureate. Janice Mirikitani is married to Reverend Cecil Williams. She has one daughter.
 

History of Glide Memorial United Methodist Church: www.glide.org/ourstories/timeline.asp

 

 

FROM SAN FRANCISCO'S NEW POET LAUREATE

Selected works of Janice Mirikitani: 

 

 
Yes, We Are Not Invisible (excerpt)

No, I'm not from Tokyo, Singapore or Saigon.

No, your dogs are safe with me.

No, I don't invade the park for squirrel meat.

No, my peripheral vision is fine.

No, I'm very bad at math.

No, I do not answer to Geisha Girl, China Doll, Suzie Wong,

mamasan, or gook, jap or chink.

No, to us life is not cheap.

*   *   *   *   *

Salad

The woman did not

mean to offend me,

her blue eyes

blinking

at the glint

of my blade,

as I cut precisely

like magic

the cucumber in

exact, even

quick slices.

``Do you orientals

do everything

so neatly?'' 

*   *   *   *   *

A Longer Tanka

                    For Cecil

When oak trees shed

in October air,

I remember my seeds

were thrown into a ditch,

trashed with violent words,

disregard for smaller, too sensitive

body parts.

After April,

after gentler rains,

thin tendrils of lupine,

mustard, jasmine,

a tree rotting silently,

break the still, wintered soil.

I await this warming.

*   *   *   *   *

 

 

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