Monday, October 28, 2019
The validity of this article as a news story is, as written, disputed. Wikinews does not publish reports on events that are not sufficiently recent. For synthesis, new details must have come to light within the past five to seven days, and the news event itself must have happened within ten days. Unless sources can be found and a news event chosen to bring this article into compliance with those requirements, the article may be deleted. If any new details from the last five to seven days are newsworthy in their own right then an article could be written with these updates as the actual news event. Exceptions are possible where original reporting adds significant new and newsworthy information to the article.
Please try to resolve objections on the discussion page, or move the article to Wikipedia or another sister project where it may be more relevant. |
| The validity of this article as a news story is, as written, disputed. Wikinews does not publish reports on events that are not sufficiently recent. For synthesis, new details must have come to light within the past five to seven days, and the news event itself must have happened within ten days. Unless sources can be found and a news event chosen to bring this article into compliance with those requirements, the article may be deleted. If any new details from the last five to seven days are newsworthy in their own right then an article could be written with these updates as the actual news event. Exceptions are possible where original reporting adds significant new and newsworthy information to the article.
Please try to resolve objections on the discussion page, or move the article to Wikipedia or another sister project where it may be more relevant. |
On Monday, the Baptist Children’s Homes (BCH) of North Carolina invited 41-year-old speaker Jason Davis, a former resident of the Broyhill Campus of BCH, to share his story and valuable advice and life lessons. Today, he spoke with Michael Blackwell, who has served as president and CEO of Baptist Children’s Homes since 1983.
Jason Davis first came into care at Broyhill Campus when he was ten years old. Prior to that, Jason endured years of physical and verbal abuse from his biological mother. When Jason was five, his biological father passed away, and that is when Jason’s mother became abusive as she did not cope well with this loss. As Jason recounts in today’s speech, the mother often stole drugs from a hospital and attacked Jason by smacking him with belts, coat hangers, and cigarettes. Jason also suffered neglect, often being left alone at home for days at a time. Jason suffered verbal abuse, too; his mother often blamed him for the death of his father.
Things weren’t all bad, however. While Jason’s mother was abusive, Jason’s grandmother, Edna Davis, was kind, caring, and helpful. Jason remembers her as the person who helped him get through the difficult years of his early childhood. Michael Blackwell described this amazing woman as the “significant adult in [his] life that basically saved [his] life.” Edna Davis passed away in 1997, which was greatly traumatic for Jason Davis.
Jason Davis gave two great speeches, one in 1995 and another in 2000. In both events, over 3,000 people were in attendance. Today, Jason and Michael recalled how Michael decided to tease the crowd by creating the initial impression that Jason was absent and unable to show up for the event. “Wouldn’t it be great if he were here,” Michael recalls saying to the crowd, “but he wasn’t able to get up here, and we’re so sorry.” Seconds later, just as the crowd was beginning to process their disappointment, Michael quickly reveals that Jason actually was present in the room. “But wait a minute,” Michael said afterwards, “He is here.” Jason was hiding “in the shadows” all that time in the minutes leading up to the event. It was a very powerful moment. Those who were there that day have never forgotten the moment when Jason emerged from the “shadows” and took stage. A moment of sheer happiness and applause. In Michael’s words, it was “a moment that will linger in the minds of those who were there that day.” Jason knew exactly what he needed to do, and Michael praised him by calling him his “confident friend.”
Today, Jason lives in Fletcher, North Carolina with his wife, Shadow. They got married in China and moved back to the United States in 2013. Jason is a sales manager at Auto Advantage, a used car dealer.
Finally, Jason shares some valuable insights and life lessons for everyone at BCH. Many important lessons Jason learned at BCH, such as hygiene, coping skills, and Jesus, are skill being taught to children currently living at BCH. Jason also shares: DO NOT take a victim’s mentality. He elaborates by saying that he listens attentively to others who share their stories of how “life treated them bad,” and Jason asks them, “And? And what have you done with it? What have you done to make that better for yourself?” During his life at BCH, he learned firsthand that there are many people who are kind and loving and willing to help; however, the first step must be that you want to get help; you have to want it for yourself. Unfortunately, some people have repeated the cycle and become abusive to others. In Jason’s words, these people have sadly “become the abuser” or “repeated the cycle.” Jason calls this approach “taking the lazy way out,” as these people refuse to put in the work to improve their situation. He concludes with another powerful quote of wisdom: “Appreciate what you’re given.”
