New Kent Charles City Chronicle

News for New Kent County and Charles City County, Virginia | March 28, 2024

Editorial: Taking opportunities when you are exposed to them

By Andre Jones | January 22, 2020 10:33 am

Do you take opportunities that are presented to you?

This is the question I have asked many people both verbally and in my mind. I thought it was time to share it with the wonderful communities of Charles City, New Kent, and surroundings as well.

As community members from our localities, there were times when Charles City and New Kent were barely recognizable on a map. As times have changed, New Kent has grown exponentially, while Charles City is starting to turn the corner.

But the message that I want to get across is that opportunities are there for the taking for each of us. We shouldn’t be bystanders and let blessings go by. We must take advantage as exposure is key to these opportunities.

I am going to give you two instances that relate to me. One of the things I do as a track coach is work to schedule meets for my student-athletes to run against bigger schools. As part of those meets, we travel to various schools that have thousands of students. But the lesson I tell teach my student-athletes is that you should do your best, no matter who you are up against. In life, we are going to face obstacles that may seem bigger than us, but even as small as we are perceived, we can be just as successful and competitive to garner positions that are so well deserving of us.

The next story comes from my college decision way back before the turn of the millennium. When I was deciding to go to college, I wanted to leave home but not go too far away. I wanted to be in a place where I could get a fresh start. As much as I loved my classmates (and I still do), I needed to define who I was. That was the reason why I chose to go to Old Dominion University in Norfolk. I was the only one from my class and only one of two students from Charles City who was at the university during that frame.

Fast forward a few years later. As a basketball coach of an up-and-coming program, I wanted my young ladies to see where hard work on the court would get them. I took two trips with my group to Old Dominion University. The first was to see current WNBA superstar Candace Parker, who was playing at the University of Tennessee at the time. The awe on the girls’ faces were amazing.

But the second time was more meaningful in my eyes. I took my team down to see James Madison University a few years later. And when we took that trip, my young ladies recognized a face on the floor. A former Charles City Lady Panther by the name of Debbie Smith was playing for James Madison at the time. She was on the floor. She was from our community. She was where they were at; the same gym they practiced in and play games, and now she’s on the court at the collegiate level.

And the story is not done. The ironic twist is that those trips influenced several of those young ladies to choose Old Dominion University as their next step of higher learning. While I like to tease that I was the reason they chose that school, it was the opportunity to get out and see the world and other locations that led to the ultimate decision.

The moral of this story is that no matter the household you come from you can stand out. Whether it’s school, work, an activity, or something else, you will make a difference. It is up to the older generation to brighten the eyes of those who follow so they can see their self-worth.

We all have something to give to society. Sometimes, it’s just that we need to lift the shade so the sunlight can come in so it can shine on us.