Editor's Newsletter

Did yesterday’s editor’s note feel incomplete? It felt that way to me. I wrote in the first line about how much was going on, but then didn’t share much beyond the UNCF Mayor’s Luncheon and a couple of quick notes.

We were under time pressure to share the info about how to attend — that is, how to stream — the event, so we sacrificed some content for speed.

All organizations have been forced to adapt their once-normal event planning to the realities of the pandemic, soon to enter its third year in Ohio. The new landscape of event planning has caused people to re-think how to keep their businesses, nonprofits, and causes in the public eye.

Those of us in the media have had to flex as well. I now take more photos via screen shots than camera or cellphone. And of course, our event attendance these past two years has been almost entirely virtual.

The events I have attended via the miracle of the Internet now number in the hundreds. So it is no soft judgment or low praise to say that yesterday’s luncheon was far and away Best in Class, if not Best Overall.

The entire production, from concept through staging and visual presentation, to script was extraordinary. The event started on time, the pace was pitch perfect, the presenters were all well-scrubbed, poised, and hit their marks with precision and panache.

And we reveled in the unalloyed beauty of blackness, in its myriad shades and shapes, its promise of youth, its focus on education, communal aspirations, and mission-driven focus. An early moment of sober delight was the ensemble presentation of diverse voices in a moving rendition of the nation’s national anthem.

In this case, practice did make perfect. This was the first mayor’s luncheon in Cleveland, but there have been similar events around the state, and more are on the way.

No need for regret if you missed it. State Ohio UNCF director Steve Miller assured me that the event will remain online for viewing for the next six months, here and here.

A signal virtue of the program is its brevity and pace. The entire program ran less than your favorite binge episode.

In case you didn’t know, the purpose of the event was to raise scholarship funds and UNCF awareness. A home run on all accounts, with special applause for the sponsors, contributors, and volunteers, whose ranks included special contributions from Quentin McCorvey of Paradigm Institutional Investments.

We close with a few quick word about a thematically related program occurring statewide this morning at 11a. It’s the presentation of “Save our Children: The Campaign for African American Achievement”.

This program is OHIO-SPECIFIC! We are confident it is worth the 60-minute investment of your time.

Register here.