We, the undersigned community leaders of West Virginia, affirm our partnership
in respecting the equal rights of others. In this spirit, we condemn hate in any form. Moving
beyond mere tolerance, we dedicate ourselves to cooperative community-building by
strengthening these civic values:
• Teamwork
• Respect
• Courage
• Honor
• Integrity
• Responsibility
• Compassion
• Unselfish service
A heart image appears on the next page. This universal symbol of love can be our community's response to
messages of hate. Tear out this page and put the heart image in your window this week, and any time you want to
display the power of love in our community. Or create your own heart image to display in your window, to show
your support of a loving, inclusive community.
(This initiative was inspired by the early leadership of the WV Chamber of Commerce in creating and distributing
signs expressing words and symbols of unity and cooperation. These signs contain icons with particular emotive
power: a rainbow, a menorah, a dove with an olive branch. Find this image at http://www.allianceblog.org [2])
State Capitol of West Virginia (river side)
Thursday, April 8, 5:30 PM
Calling people of good will to act as non-violent
agents of healing in our community.
Join our chorus of reassurance and care for victims of
hatred and intimidation. Coming from all walks of life,
we will stand together to say, in a collective voice, that
there is no place for hate and violence in our community.
While our voices
will be strong,
our message will
be peace.
We pledge ourselves to be supportive of
each other and of all who labor in the cause
of creating a community that welcomes
everyone into its heart.
West Virginia: No Place for Hate
Aila Accad • LifeQuest International, LLC
E. C. "Bud" Anderson 3rd • School & Empowerment Foundation
Matt Ballard • Charleston Area Alliance
John M. Ballengee • United Way of Central WV
Rev. Richard Bowyer • Marion County Communities of Shalom
Perry Bryant • West Virginians for Affordable Health Care
Carry Byrum • YWCA of Wheeling
Rabbi James Cohn • Temple Israel
Elmer H. Day • Beckley Human Rights Commission
Evelyn Dortch • Direct Action Welfare Group
Rev. Rose Eddington • Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Rev. Dr Randy Flanagan, Rev. Dr. Janet Flanagan, Rev. Harley Scalf,
Mr. David Donathan • Christ Church United Methodist
Rev. John H. Finnell • Blessed Sacrament Church
Terri Garrett • Wheeling Human Rights Commission
Rev. Denise Giardina, Deacon • St. John's Episcopal Church
Crystal Good • Create WV
John H. Hagen & Daniel F. Ferreras • WVU Council on Sexual Orientation
Trish Hatfield • CharacterEthics, LLC
Sam Hickman • National Association of Social Workers, West Virginia Chapter
Jack Hickok • Stop the Hate Committee
Rev. Lloyd Allan Hill • Charleston Black Ministerial Alliance
Rev. Mel Hoover • for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Rev. Mel Hoover • for the Tuesday Morning Group
Barbara Howe • Community Coalition for Social Justice
Jim Hunt • Unity Project of Clarksburg, WV
Dr. Dennis Johnson, Senior Minister • Charleston Baptist Temple
Mayor Danny Jones • for the City of Charleston
Sue Julian • West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence
Dan Kehde • Contemporary Youth Arts Company
Sky Kershner • for Kanawha Pastoral Counseling Center
Sky Kershner • for Unity of Kanawha Valley Church
Chris Kimes • Rainbow Pride
Mike Klausing • SAGA at St. John's Episcopal Church
Tara Martinez-Toney • WV Women’s Commission
Jim McKay • TEAM for WV Children and Prevent Child Abuse WV
Rev. Doug Minnerly • Grace Covenant & McKinnon Presbyterian Churches
Martha Minter • Community Access, Inc.
Pamm Moore • Charleston Human Rights Commission
Debra Payne • Religious Coalition for Community Renewal
Dennis Pease • Daymark
Kenneth Perdue • WV AFL-CIO
Margaret Chapman Pomponio • WV FREE, Advocates for Reproductive Justice
Steve Roberts • WV Chamber of Commerce
Bruce Severino • Living AIDS Memorial Garden, Inc.
Paul R. Sheridan • Civil Rights Division, Office of the WV Attorney General
Stephen Skinner • Fairness WV
Rev. Dennis Sparks • WV Council of Churches
Vivian Stockman • Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition
Rev. William Carl Thomas • Saint Matthews Episcopal Church
Rev. Kay Thorsteinson • Academic Year in America
Michael Tierney • Step by Step
SSgt (Ret) Tom and Diane Vande Burgt • "Lest We Forget" PTSD
Family and Military Support Group
Debby Weinstein • YWCA Charleston
Amy Weintraub • Covenant House
Dr. Edwin H. Welch • University of Charleston
Patricia White • WV Health Right
Steve White • Affiliated Construction Trades
Gary Zuckett • WV Citizen Action Education Fund
At press time, additional individuals had begun to sign on; the list
grows, and grows, and grows. Thank-you to these early signers:
Joan C. Browning, WV’s 1961 Freedom Rider
Timothy Hairston
Rev. Jim Lewis & Judy Lewis
Kathryn McCrary
Lloyd and Sally Miller
Greg Proctor
Robert R. Rodecker and Deborah Lewis Rodecker
James Ross, Viet Nam Veteran
Barbra Steinke
Rev. Esber N. Tweel and Carol Lynn Tweel
Carleen Wilson
We, the undersigned community leaders of West Virginia, affirm our partnership
in respecting the equal rights of others. In this spirit, we condemn hate in any form. Moving
beyond mere tolerance, we dedicate ourselves to cooperative community-building by
strengthening these civic values:
• Teamwork
• Respect
• Courage
• Honor
• Integrity
• Responsibility
• Compassion
• Unselfish service
A heart image appears on the next page. This universal symbol of love can be our community's response to
messages of hate. Tear out this page and put the heart image in your window this week, and any time you want to
display the power of love in our community. Or create your own heart image to display in your window, to show
your support of a loving, inclusive community.
(This initiative was inspired by the early leadership of the WV Chamber of Commerce in creating and distributing
signs expressing words and symbols of unity and cooperation. These signs contain icons with particular emotive
power: a rainbow, a menorah, a dove with an olive branch. Find this image at http://www.allianceblog.org [2])
State Capitol of West Virginia (river side)
Thursday, April 8, 5:30 PM
Calling people of good will to act as non-violent
agents of healing in our community.
Join our chorus of reassurance and care for victims of
hatred and intimidation. Coming from all walks of life,
we will stand together to say, in a collective voice, that
there is no place for hate and violence in our community.
While our voices
will be strong,
our message will
be peace.
We pledge ourselves to be supportive of
each other and of all who labor in the cause
of creating a community that welcomes
everyone into its heart.
West Virginia: No Place for Hate
Aila Accad • LifeQuest International, LLC
E. C. "Bud" Anderson 3rd • School & Empowerment Foundation
Matt Ballard • Charleston Area Alliance
John M. Ballengee • United Way of Central WV
Rev. Richard Bowyer • Marion County Communities of Shalom
Perry Bryant • West Virginians for Affordable Health Care
Carry Byrum • YWCA of Wheeling
Rabbi James Cohn • Temple Israel
Elmer H. Day • Beckley Human Rights Commission
Evelyn Dortch • Direct Action Welfare Group
Rev. Rose Eddington • Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Rev. Dr Randy Flanagan, Rev. Dr. Janet Flanagan, Rev. Harley Scalf,
Mr. David Donathan • Christ Church United Methodist
Rev. John H. Finnell • Blessed Sacrament Church
Terri Garrett • Wheeling Human Rights Commission
Rev. Denise Giardina, Deacon • St. John's Episcopal Church
Crystal Good • Create WV
John H. Hagen & Daniel F. Ferreras • WVU Council on Sexual Orientation
Trish Hatfield • CharacterEthics, LLC
Sam Hickman • National Association of Social Workers, West Virginia Chapter
Jack Hickok • Stop the Hate Committee
Rev. Lloyd Allan Hill • Charleston Black Ministerial Alliance
Rev. Mel Hoover • for the Unitarian Universalist Congregation
Rev. Mel Hoover • for the Tuesday Morning Group
Barbara Howe • Community Coalition for Social Justice
Jim Hunt • Unity Project of Clarksburg, WV
Dr. Dennis Johnson, Senior Minister • Charleston Baptist Temple
Mayor Danny Jones • for the City of Charleston
Sue Julian • West Virginia Coalition Against Domestic Violence
Dan Kehde • Contemporary Youth Arts Company
Sky Kershner • for Kanawha Pastoral Counseling Center
Sky Kershner • for Unity of Kanawha Valley Church
Chris Kimes • Rainbow Pride
Mike Klausing • SAGA at St. John's Episcopal Church
Tara Martinez-Toney • WV Women’s Commission
Jim McKay • TEAM for WV Children and Prevent Child Abuse WV
Rev. Doug Minnerly • Grace Covenant & McKinnon Presbyterian Churches
Martha Minter • Community Access, Inc.
Pamm Moore • Charleston Human Rights Commission
Debra Payne • Religious Coalition for Community Renewal
Dennis Pease • Daymark
Kenneth Perdue • WV AFL-CIO
Margaret Chapman Pomponio • WV FREE, Advocates for Reproductive Justice
Steve Roberts • WV Chamber of Commerce
Bruce Severino • Living AIDS Memorial Garden, Inc.
Paul R. Sheridan • Civil Rights Division, Office of the WV Attorney General
Stephen Skinner • Fairness WV
Rev. Dennis Sparks • WV Council of Churches
Vivian Stockman • Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition
Rev. William Carl Thomas • Saint Matthews Episcopal Church
Rev. Kay Thorsteinson • Academic Year in America
Michael Tierney • Step by Step
SSgt (Ret) Tom and Diane Vande Burgt • "Lest We Forget" PTSD
Family and Military Support Group
Debby Weinstein • YWCA Charleston
Amy Weintraub • Covenant House
Dr. Edwin H. Welch • University of Charleston
Patricia White • WV Health Right
Steve White • Affiliated Construction Trades
Gary Zuckett • WV Citizen Action Education Fund
At press time, additional individuals had begun to sign on; the list
grows, and grows, and grows. Thank-you to these early signers:
Joan C. Browning, WV’s 1961 Freedom Rider
Timothy Hairston
Rev. Jim Lewis & Judy Lewis
Kathryn McCrary
Lloyd and Sally Miller
Greg Proctor
Robert R. Rodecker and Deborah Lewis Rodecker
James Ross, Viet Nam Veteran
Barbra Steinke
Rev. Esber N. Tweel and Carol Lynn Tweel
Carleen Wilson