Crenshaw County students participate in annual prayer event
By Haley Mitchell Godwin
The global day of student prayer was recognized throughout the county on Wednesday. Crenshaw County Schools held morning rallies around the flagpole to lift up their schools, teachers, families, friends and nation to God.
See You at the Pole began in 1990 as a grassroots movement when 10 Texas students felt led to go and pray at area schools. A challenge was issued at a June 1990 conference in Texas. The challenge was for other students to seek a similar enlightened experience as the original 10. Today millions can be found in prayer on campuses across the world every fourth Wednesday in September.
See You at the Pole is a student-initiated, student-organized, and student-led event. The rally has always been about prayer, and students humbling themselves before God while interceding for their generation. According to Crenshaw Christian Academy’s Elementary Student Government Association sponsor, Donnie Samson, this year’s rally was more important than ever.
“The Lord is going to use these kids to be a shining light in a world that definitely needs some brightness. I tell my students every day that the world they are getting ready to move out into is a scary place right now, worse than it ever has been,” Samson said.
Samson was excited for the elementary Student Government Association to be back in action and in charge of this rally after years of this chapter being inactive. Emily Jacobs, SGA president and a sixth grader at Crenshaw Christian Academy, opened the rally with a brief history on See You at the Pole, spoken over the intercom. Then, students visited the flagpole one class at a time so that social distancing could be maintained.
“This is an opportunity for Crenshaw Christian students to unite and worship together. It makes me really happy to be able to spread the love of Jesus,” Jacobs said.
Jacobs said she was glad to participate with fellow students in supporting the school with prayer.
Cindy Hawthorne, teacher and coach at Brantley High School, said the annual prayer rally is essential to the school’s success, especially during these times.
“The students wanted to pray for the nation as a whole. Things change, and prayers said at the See You at the Pole event need to change from year to year, but at the end of the day we are really in crisis and need unity. There are so many things we all deal with on a day-to-day basis, including COVID which has deeply affected us all,” Hawthorne said. (frogbones)
Sheonte Barginere, senior at Brantley High School, proudly participated in See You at the Pole.
“For Fellowship of Christian Athletes members, it is always important to pray. It is especially important now for many reasons. Personally, as a senior I am facing the reality that college is near. Filling out college applications and dealing with everything that will come with life after high school is stressful, but I always leave things in God’s hands. He always makes a way,” Barginere said.
Kristen Roberson, ninth and tenth grade teacher at Highland Home School, expressed a similar sentiment.