(Latest in a series of posts on Bethlehem Moments)
Gadfly has asked President Waldron if we can move the Bethlehem Moment to the top of the meeting after the prayer and the pledge.
Here’s the document I supplied to support the request:
Bethlehem Moment Project
Ed Gallagher
ejg1@lehigh.edu
version 1 6/4/19
Proposal:
That beginning July 2, 2019, as a one-year pilot program, Bethlehem City Council add a historical moment – “A Bethlehem Moment” – to its opening meeting protocol immediately following the prayer and the pledge of allegiance and before the body of the meeting starts.
What is a Bethlehem Moment?
- an historical vignette
- a scene or event from Bethlehem history between 1741 and the 1960s
- topic of the author’s choice, approved by the program coordinator
- short, so as to not unduly delay the business of the meeting
- entered in the minutes, published on the Gadfly blog and perhaps also on the City website or social media
- examples can be found at https://thebethlehemgadfly.com/category/bethlehem-moments/
Why a Bethlehem Moment?
- we are a town that has made significant history
- we are a town that values our history
- we have three historical districts
- our history completes the triumvirate of God and Country that is the source of our values and the context for our decisions
- without a sense of our shared history, we can never be a true community
- by invoking our history at the beginning of the meeting, we would be powerfully signaling our commitment to our history
- by invoking our history at the beginning of the meeting, we would be encouraging knowledge of that history
- this addition to our meeting protocol will make us unique among our peers
How will the project be administered?
Ed Gallagher will engage to find readers and arrange the schedule for the year. After which, he will find a successor coordinator. Or City Council could take the project over and line up participants as it does clergy. Or the program could languish, having run its course.
All elements flexible!
A profound Gadfly thanks to these good people who have signed on for the rest of the year. Several people have indicated interest in that last date but no firm commitment yet. So we could use one more “Momentor” to finish off the 2019 line-up.
Volunteer needed, please! Info here: Bethlehem Moment Information
Ed Gallagher
ejg1@lehigh.edu
Bethlehem Moments Schedule 2019
July 2 Lynn Rothman
July16 John Smith
August 6 (Musikfest)
August 20 Mary Toulouse
September 3 Olga Negron
September 17 Jim Petrucci
October 1 Johanna Brams
October 15 Stasia Brown-Pallrand
November 6 Steve Repasch
November 19 Rayah Levy
December 3 Robert Bilheimer
December 17