Spirit Of Tomorrow Presents "Beyond February," a black history program in October

FLORENCE – Spirit of Tomorrow, a regional grassroots think tank, will present “Beyond February: Black History Year Round” 6:30 p.m. Oct. 24 at Florence-Darlington TEC’s SiMT center, located at 1951 Pisgah Road.

The black tie red carpet event will feature a keynote address by The Hon. Ernest A. Finney Jr., South Carolina’s first Black state supreme court Chief Justice since Reconstruction, who will speak on “The Responsibility of Freedom.” A former state representative and recipient of many honors and awards throughout his legal career for a life of progressive public service, he is renowned for being a stabilizing force as interim president of (then) South Carolina State College during its time of institutional change. A family man and human/civil rights advocate, Justice Finney is a member of several fraternal, religious and scholarly organizations.

Other features of the evening include bestowal of the original “Inspiring Excellence” award to adults in 11 categories who represent seven counties of the Pee Dee and recognition of the high school students who won and placed in the essay contest. Cynthia Pryor Hardy of WWDM’s On Point radio talk show has also agreed to serve as Mistress of Ceremonies for this premiere event, which is funded in part by the Florence Hospitality Coalition, the County of Florence, Cumulus Broadcasting, First Reliance Bank and several other specially solicited underwriters. Additional sponsorship opportunities are available.

Project Director Rennie Lunn-McAllister says the informational and entertaining event focuses not only on history, culture, patriotism and tourism, but more importantly, the future. “As a think tank, we are focusing outside of the traditional box and reaching into the next 20 to 30 years and beyond, working now to create the future we want to see and be. The program also includes voices from our common yet diverse past as well as from the year 2040 and since this is in a futuristic setting, there will be robots running around, vision statements from today’s youth, a few classic surprises and we will conclude the evening by dancing with our stars. This is really a colossal collaboration that acknowledges specific groundbreaking achievements, unites communities, and polishes the image of the Pee Dee in ways never before realized.”

She says the spirit of tomorrow is actually a movement moreso than it is a static organization. “It is an attitude, a consciousness and higher level of awareness as to how we will make ourselves behave, get along and treat each other in the not so distant future; how we will conduct business, learn, vacation, and communicate in order to be more competitive in our global presence."

This is a ticketed event and a few special rate tables and sponsorships are available. Persons interested may make reservations by calling (843) 687-2605, (843) 307-5146 or e-mailing spiritoftomorrowrlm@yahoo.com.