Family, friends and community leaders gathered together at the Peconic Community Center Thursday evening to heap praise and accolades upon Merle Levine of Greenport, who was presented with the Helen Wright Prince Award by the Southold Town Anti-Bias Task Force. See prior story.
They took the microphone and shared with an audience of about 60 their memories of working with the 92-year-old community activist in furtherance of various causes.
They thanked Levine for inspiring them to aim higher and work harder, for working tirelessly to help advance the interests of racial and ethnic minorities and of those less fortunate, and for being a role model for others teaching by example compassion, determination and persistence.
“You’ve been a beacon of light for me and a template — someone I should model myself after and hopefully in some small way try to reflect the hard work that you’ve done and to carry it forward,” Southold Supervisor Scott Russell told her.
He praised her for her caring, compassion, commitment and persistence. “Your unwillingness to yield, your unwillingness to accept things the way they are, your absolute commitment to push forward and to overcome any of the obstacles in your way — that’s what makes all the difference in this community,” Russell said.
“In a climate right now where there’s so much bitterness and racism and just absolute distrust and hatred that seems to be dominating the headlines in this country, it might be easy for any of us to just say, ‘You know what? Years and years and years of struggling and this is what we’ve come to in 2016?’ But I know we’ll do better as a nation because of people like you, because you’re looking at this and youre saying the work will get done,” Russell said, before presenting Levine with a proclamation of the Town Board.
The Rev. Dr. Marvin Dozier, pastor of Unity Baptist Church in Mattituck and a co-founder with Levine of the Anti-Bias Task Force, read from a letter to Harriet Tubman penned by Frederick Douglass in August 1868, which ended: “It is a privilege to bear testimony to your character and to your works. I have come to regard you in every way, truthful and trustworthy.”
Dozier recalled the early days of the task force more than two decades ago and the challenges facing the community that gave rise to the formation of the group.
People who knew Levine and worked alongside her in various groups — from Community Action Southold Town and North Fork Reform Synagogue, both of which she served as president to Peconic Landing, where she’s been an active resident and the organizer of the community’s lifelong learning program — spoke about her influence, example and effectiveness.
Liza Copolla, who served as executive director of CAST for nine years, much of it while Levine was board president said, thanked her for the impact she had on her personal life as well. “She’s one of the few people in my life who ever pushed me to continue my education,” Copolla said.
After listening to the testimony of people influenced and inspired by his mother — and the many organizations she worked with, Levine’s son Steven told the audience “hearing the outpouring of love and affection” was “astounding.”
He turned to his mother and said: “I’m just so proud of you mom.”
Levine, seated in a wheelchair at a table, was moved by the words of her family,friends and neighbors.
“Thank you for giving me a life that was worthwhile,” she told the audience as she accepted the award.
“You gave me a tremendous gift and I am so appreciative. I hope that you too feel pleasure in doing things that make our community a loving, giving, caring place and I thank you all,” Levine said.
