Americanism on full display...

August 26, 2015

 

Today I would like to take a moment to give out two special things that have recently touched my heart. Both of these events have given me hope that as we move into the month of September that this will be the greatest month of celebration of our Constitution ever since this month was declared as a time to show off our love for our country and share in those values which make our nation so great.

 

The bravery and courage of our military service men and women has never been questioned when they have been called upon to service and defend our nation. In times of war or defend of our nation freedom both at home and aboard, we have and will always be able to count on our military to defend our nation.

 

The actions of the heroes recently who risked their lives to prevent the bloodshed upon that train in France is the type of things our men and women are doing for our citizens every moment that they are called to service. The actions of U. S. Airman Spencer Stone, U.S. National Guardsman Alek Skarlatos and their long time friend Anthony Sadler were rewarded at the ceremony in France with the French President pinning on the Legion of Honor. 

 

The story of the greatness of the American spirit does not stop there but I want you to read something else that happened which is going on everywhere within our nation as well. Tim Boyle and his wife came together and made sure that the family got to the ceremony in time to witness the presentation. I am sure that it took a lot of coordination with the governments of each nation to work with Tim Boyle in order to make this happen for our heroes and their families. 

 

It is this type of spirit of cooperation that makes our nation so strong. These are the type of stories I know that should be on the headlines of our news because they are going on every day within our country. If you care to read more, I invite you to follow this link that my dear friend Virginia Bailey forward to me yesterday.  

 

I have a friend here at Bentley whose son works for the firm whose boss proved their Americanism this past week and got the 3 mothers of the men who stopped the slaughter on the Paris train to Paris for the awards ceremony.   Here is the article .   PS-  I do think that the President himself must have approved this ‘unusual’ stretching of the rules, so here is at least one kudo for him………

 

http://www.oregonlive.com/playbooks-profits/index.ssf/2015/08/tim_boyle_and_wife_lend_plane.html#incart_river

 

Finally, I would like to post on this blog something that I shared with my friend this morning just before starting my day:

 

Cory, Barbara, Linda, Brenda, Mike Wilmoth, John, Denise, Julie, and others viewing my blogs; I deeply appreciate you following my journey across Florida. I will accomplish the mission by Labor Day of having been in each county promoting the Constitution. It is my hope and prayer that I would have convinced enough Floridians and organizations to provide enough support so that each of our 200,000 fifth grade students will have a copy of the United States Constitution booklet as they move forward to middle school, high school, and start their young adulthood in college or their pathway in the continuing journey of life. It is my hope that this September be the best celebration of our Constitution during my lifetime and those flames of patriotism burns much brighter forever.

 

Yes I do believe in the greatness of the American spirit and I do believe that Americanism is shown all over the world and the citizens of our great nation are proving it every day.

 

Please think of some ways you can do or give a little extra to make this September 2015 the best celebration ever of our United States Constitution. I believe it is time to show that we are glad the government said September 17th would be Constitution Day and we as American took it to Constitution Week and now we should make this a celebration for the entire month as well as a daily part of our lives.

 

Joseph

I traveled across the Gulf of Mexico...

August 24, 2015

On this special day, I not only crossed the Gulf of Mexico from Southwest Florida to Monroe County to visit Key West but so much more happened on this beautiful day.

It was the opening day of the school year for Monroe County and for the I got an opportunity to get the sense and feel of how a school district feels on opening day. If you think that the parents, students, teachers, principals, school staffs, and community supporters feel on the first day of school, you should be at the school district during the first day back.


This was truly a first for me because in the past 16 years I have either been experiencing the highs of greeting students for the first time or in the last couple of years watching from afar and seeing those bright faces scroll off to school after a long summer break. It was fitting that this day would be filled with seeing the pressures of a very caring school district hoping and praying that everything would go just right. The department staff out in the field (hopefully not in the way of the teachers) wanting to see if their plans from the summer are starting to unfold. Those left behind manning the building which are few are busy walking the halls and gathering the reports of how things are going. Even the SRO are roaming the island making sure she is available for any incident that needs her attention.

Superintendent Porter a leader that I will return to see. He attempted to be at every school this morning and returned to get a full report from all his departments and seeing them all running to make sure every detail was reported was truly amazing.

I will return to this school district not just for the superintendent but to marvel in the history of those early schools and unlock the keys to how this school district has maintained an A+ Rating since 2006 as well as met the AYP for the students.

The great things about doing my miles around Key West is that once you leave the school district you are in the heart of Key West and everywhere you ride it is always something new. As much as I loved the people and the lovely scenes and exploring the history of Key West as well as visiting the military areas, loved the interviews that I had with the students.

I got the views of ones who graduated from the high schools and never left the island to the high school students who are enjoying the island because this is where they lived all their lives and now preparing for that day that they are going to leave. It was great for me getting this feel because I have been to Key West a couple of times before but never even entered my mind to get the feel of the Key West from the view point of the children born here and doing the normal things that all children all over the world do all the time.

Key West is much more than just a place for tourism it is really home for the people of the island and this time I got to see that life on the island from different lens this time. I also got to an opportunity to see so much more because I was cycling and covered so much more area of the island and met so many more people and just like all the other counties everyone has a story to tell.

I was delighted and thrilled to learn that even on Key West people cared and wanted to learn more about the Constitution. I cannot wait until those Constitution booklets are shared across the island.

I now must be off to my next county because on Labor Day my journey across Florida will have been completed. The ship ride was nice, talking with the people was exciting, but I must say sharing the feel of the school district with first day back and hearing the views of the local school students were very special because these are things that one can only experience when you leave the mainland of Florida and visit these islands in the Keys.

Please do enjoy some of the scenes from my trip to Monroe County by way of Key West. If you think that the pictures tell a story just wait until my report of the journey to Monroe County.

   


What a great way to start the school year!

Joseph

Did you know...

August 23, 2015

Since I am going to complete my last county on Labor Day, I am often asked what next on my list of things to accomplish. Well, I have plenty and the good news is my blog site will not go away.

In addition to completing the Army 10 Miler in Washington, D.C. (October 11, 2015) in support of the USO and continuing to promote the Constitution by dedicating my run as the Bill of Rights; I will start a "Did You Know" fact page about an important event that happened during the month that impacted a major change in our nation.

I will start this month by sharing with you some facts about "HAWAII" and how this important moment in our history help shaped our nation.

This event actually happened after I was born, therefore, it is not ancient history!

 The Admission Act was enacted on March 18, 1959 by Congress and President Dwight D. Eisenhower then signed a proclamation naming Hawaii as the 50th state on August 21, 1959.



Hawaii joined the Union on this day in 1959, an act that remains historically significant but not without controversy.
The Admission Act was enacted on March 18, 1959 by Congress and President Dwight D. Eisenhower then signed a proclamation naming Hawaii as the 50th state on August 21, 1959.

Since then, there have been few attempts to add a 51^st state, although Puerto Rico has considered a referendum. Hawaii received a big assist from Alaska in its drive toward statehood.

It took Alaska 13 years to become a state, with the approval of Congress, after it passed its referendum in the wake of World War II. That came only after Hawaii, which was seen as a GOP-leaning state, was added to the bargain.

Hawaii took a different path, because it had a tradition of independence and a Republican presence. There were also southern politicians who were concerned about adding the territory’s multiethnic population to the Union.

The Democrats during the 1950s favored Alaska as the 49th state, while the Republicans wanted Hawaii admitted by itself. The reason was that each new state gets two U.S. senators and at least one new House member, and the admission of a new state can swing votes in Congress.

Two powerful politicians, Lyndon Johnson and Sam Rayburn, adopted a strategy to get Alaska admitted first, which led to the Republicans to lobby for Hawaii as the 50^th state.

The Constitution is vague about the whole process of how a territory becomes a state, delegating the task to Congress. (we will discuss this point in detail after the completion of my 27 -67 project on Labor Day)

In Article IV, Section 3, Congress is given the power to decide what states and territories are, but state legislatures would have to approve any act that would combine two existing states or form a new state from parts of other states. (So reuniting Pennsylvania and New Jersey, or Virginia and West Virginia, would be a very difficult task.)

After Hawaii became the 50th state in August 1959, the controversy over its admission didn’t go away. There are still those in Hawaii who want to see the state become an independent nation again.

Special thanks goes out to the National Constitution Center (NCC) for submitting this article to the public "It was 56 years ago today we added the 50th state" August 21, 2015 by NCC Staff .

A very special thanks to Cory Vasek, my great friend and outstanding James Madison Fellow from Nebraska, for posting this article on his Face Book page.

Finally, I want to thank my very special friend Virginia Bailey who made sure her relatives in Hawaii had copies of the Liberty Day Institute Constitution booklet and one of my Constitution bracelets.

Therefore, I had a very easy task when selecting the State of Hawaii as my focus  point for my first

"DID YOU KNOW..."

 

 

 

Joseph

 

Incoming celebration of the USO and Bill of Rights...

August 22, 2015

27 -67 Constitution Project

Immediately after the successful completion of the 27 - 67 Constitution project, I will be teaching the Constitution with many of those students who will have those Constitution booklets in their hands that we worked so hard to get.

 

My goal is to complete the last county of the 67 counties on Labor Day!

 

I will then in October complete the "Army 10 Miler" in support of the USO. However, I will be supporting the USO and dedicate my run to the Bill of Rights in keeping with celebration of the Constitution.

 

Remember 27 is the number of Amendments to the Constitution and the Bill of Rights is the first Ten Amendments to the Constitution.

 

You can start assisting me on that wonderful project and continue to support our 27 - 67 project with focusing on the Constitution by visiting this link and below and contribution to the USO/Bill of Right "Army 10 Miler" 

 

 - Joseph Cofield is crowdrising for 2015 Army Ten Miler:

 

https://www.crowdrise.com/2015Army…/fundraiser/josephcofield …

 

 

 

"The price of freedom is responsibility, but it is a bargain because freedom is priceless."

                                                                                        - Hugh Downs

 

 

Joseph

 

Alachua County both by day and night...

August 20, 2015

Many of my "Gator" friends wanted so badly to see a few pictures of Gainesville so I decided to post a few. The story of my trip will come later as I am continuing my trip across Florida. I briefly had to return to Naples and repair my automobile.

Please do enjoy the pictures of the Gator and the VFW State Headquarters. I would like to add that the VFW stepped up and sent a message across Florida tasking the local VFW organizations to support our Constitution project.

It was worth doing the 27 miles by night and enjoy the beautiful of this location in Alachua County and Marion County.

 

And a look at Ocala and Gainesville by now with the glow of the VFW and its great support!

 

 

More interesting posting of my time in Gainesville as well as Ocala and the wonderful support from the VFW State Headquarters as well as the local VFW organizations in Naples.

 

For 115 years, VFW programs have been there for veterans, service members and military families when they need a helping hand and it is a great joy to know that this same great organization is helping to get the Constitution booklets in the hands of our fifth grade students here in Florida.

 

Joseph

 

 

The winner is...

August 19, 2015

My first day back in Naples and I get greeted by first friend not with "How are you Joseph" but rather "Who won the nice back pack?"

I guess that is my clue to announce the winner and show off the back pack once again. The young man who won the back pack is very much interested in the Constitution and is now in the sixth grade.

What a joy to have Victor win the back pack because he well deserves it and nice to know that the all the family members both older and younger are following my blog as I journey across Florida.

Now a little about the City of Inverness. It is of course located in Citrus County and everywhere you go you see the patriotism of the citizens everywhere. Even before entering the city, I was driving from Sumter County and the first people I make was farmers who welcomed me with open arms and course fresh eggs and peaches.

The young man will soon be a minister and his father and mother can be the welcoming committee of any place in the world. The father and son (Kid and Josh) filled my heart with their beautiful spiritual songs. They had me praising and so uplifted that I just known something special was waiting for me before I started my next 27 miles and I was not disappointed once I arrived in the City of Inverness.

Please do see for yourself:

Joseph

Tribute to Mr. Horace Julian Bond (Julian Bond)...

August 17, 2015

Horace Julian Bond as many in the world would call him Julian Bond was born January 14, 1940, in Nashville, Tennessee. His 75 years here on earth were filled with great accomplishments.

The world has indeed lost a great leader. When I get to Escambia County in my journey across Florida I am going to honor Julian Bond with doing my 27 miles to him and the work he accomplished here on earth. When the youth are looking for heroes and great men to emulate I truly believe they should look toward this great American Hero and seek to do some of the positive things that he accomplished. I have looked forward to making it to Walton Beach on my 27 - 67 Journey Across Florida and now that journey has taken on a new life meaning for me.

Bond remembered for civil rights work after his death at 75

ATLANTA (AP) — Through the tough struggles of the civil rights movement, Julian Bond always kept the eyes on the prize which was always racial equality, according to his Pamela Horowitz.

 

In this April 10, 2014, file photo, social activist Julian Bond hugs Luci Baines Johnson, the younger daughter of President Lyndon Baines Johnson after singing "We Shall Overcome" during the Civil Rights Summit to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Civil Rights Act in Austin, Texas.

http://centurylink.net/news/read/category/AP%20Top%20News%20-%20US%20Headlines/article/the_associated_press-bond_remembered_for_civil_rights_work_after_his_de-ap

 

Please take a moment and read the article as well as dig out your books and learn a little more about this great American Hero.

 

A little known fact about Julian Bond:

 

Mr. Bond was the son of a college professor! Julian actually dropped out of Morehouse College in Atlanta, Georgia to serve as the communication director of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee which had other strong leaders such as Stokely Carmichael and John Lewis.

 

As Paul Harvey would say now the rest of the story, Julian Bond before returned to college and completed his degree in 1971. In between this time frame, he was elected o the Georgia House of Representatives in 1965. 

 

However, it took the U.S. Supreme Court to rule in his favor for him to finally take his office in 1967.

 

Horace Julian Bond died Saturday, August 16, 2015 in Fort Walton Beach, Florida at the age of 75. 

 

This is one of the many reasons that my 27 - 67 miles in Escambia County takes on a new meaning.

 

"He advocated not just for African-Americans but for every group, indeed every person subject to oppression and discrimination, because he recognized the common humanity in us all,"

 

  -   Morris Dees, co-founder of the Southern Poverty Law Center (advocacy group founded in 1971 with Julian Bond and Morris Dees)

 

Joseph

 

 

 

 

My visit in Gilchrist County...

August 16, 2015

A wonderful thing happened to me this week! As I was leaving Gainesville a wonderful blessing came upon me.

I was talking with the manager of the hotel that I was staying while trying to recover from my long journey across the counties of Florida.

Ms. Alice McQueen mentioned during our chat while checking out that she lived in Gilchrist County.

I decided to drop by to map out my course when I returned and to my surprise I would a perfect trail for running and biking. The site along the trail was so beautiful and share along every step of the way.

It so happened that the trail was in front of the Gilchrist Public School of Trenton Elementary School.

Please do check the pictures below:

The very nice lady in the picture is Joyce and she was putting the final touches on her bus as was preparing the bus to get the children to school on time for the first day of school on Monday, August 17, 2015.

The trail was one of the best walking, running, and cycling trail that I have been on. I did not have to worry about my ride and risk of being hit by a motor vehicle. I got to meet a teacher as well which remained me of that last minute details for the classrooms for the opening day of the school year that I have experience for 14 years in the classroom.

The other joy of the day was meeting two wonderful students who helped me with taking pictures and sharing their excitement of starting school on Monday. The people of this county is very nice.

It all started when I got to the border of Gilchrist and was standing there admiring the new county. I wanted very badly to have a picture before starting my running and cycling. Spence a young from Arkansas stopped by as I was starting my training. It was nice and this wonderful kindness never stopped the entire time I was in Gilchrist County.

A great way to start a journey in a new county. Each person I met in this county was very nice and friendly.

Please stay tune for more of my exciting journey across Florida.

Joseph

Six more counties added to my journey across Florida...

August 16, 2015

Do you have any idea what city is voted the most patriotic city in the United States of America?

If you said any place in except here in Florida, you are out of the game and should be filled with shame!

I will let you in on the secret because I was not aware until this week and what a great blessing to find this out during my journey across Florida.

If you are the first person to contact me with the correct answer, you will get one of the fancy 27 - 67 Back Packs (your choice of color) free of cost just because you know the correct answer of the question above.

I will give you a clue that will help you make up your mind. The city is located in one of the six locations from my journey across Florida this week:

1.      Sumter County     -  Bushnell

2.      Citrus County       -  Inverness

3.      Marion County     -  Ocala

4.      Levy County         -  Bronson

5.      Gilchrist County   -  Trenton

6.      Alachua County   - Gainesville

I was so impressed that I left the school district and rode across the entire city and everywhere you looked this city has pride of being an American everywhere. Every month there is something special happening around town. The veterans are honored in the schools, stores, and government centers all over town.

This city had no problem embracing my message of getting a copy of the Constitution in the hands of all our fifth grade students across Florida.

I will post some pictures of my journey in this area as soon as I get a winner from the question that I asked when I started this message today.

Joseph

Three more counties down and revisit to Collier County...

August 8, 2015

Wow! What a joy, excitement, and hard work these past two weeks have been. If I failed to post something on this blog you have to know that so many things consumed my time.

My great friend Ginny often states, "Joseph, you just have too many irons in the fire." I now believe her because I hardly had time to think these past two weeks.

I felt as if I was reacting every minute of the day and sometimes it was hard to figure out the day of the week for me. However, I am glad to report after a long day rest yesterday and a long night sleep I am prepared to catch you up on some of the wonderful things that kept me away from this blog page.

I would have loved to report

that my journey to Leon County and dancing in the streets of Tallahassee were completed but that is not the case at this time.

No worries, I will soon be beating the pavement of Leon County and completing my journey across Florida in Key West.

The detours in Volusia County, Seminole County, Orange County, and my second 27 Miles Across Collier County were worth every moment and all the energy invested.

Attached is just a few of the pictures and details that you will find when I continue this blog from my journey across Florida.


Something to think about while you are waiting for my next posting:

At the conclusion of the Constitutional Convention, Benjamin Franklin was asked, "What have you wrought?" He answered, "...a Republic, if you can keep it."

As I completed these two weeks, I knew for sure that if any of you reading this blog would ask me my the same question my reply would be the same as Ben Franklin.

Joseph