For the 44th annual Freedom Fund Banquet hosted by the Surry County Chapter of the NAACP, the Rev. Dr. Sir Walter Mack Jr. was asked to speak about the changing of the guard, the theme for the evening.

If the reaction from those in attendance is any indication, Mack delivered.

“If we change the guard, what do we change the guard to?” he asked the audience. “God has always been in the business of changing the guard. If we’re going to change the guard, we’ve got to teach this younger generation how to persevere through some things.”

He spoke about how this generation of leaders have had to persevere through tough and trying times but the coming generation has often lived without the knowledge of those struggles. He also mentioned the 55th anniversary of the Brown vs. Board of Education trial, which is this year, noting that there are still injustices in some schools.

Mack spoke to the power of prayer in helping people through difficult times. He told them that it is not the words one says that matter because God will be able to know what one is trying to say.

“We’re going to inspire our young people to turn back to God through prayer,” he said. “When it is beyond our reach, God always knows how to answer a prayer.”

Despite the number of changes that have taken place recently, Mack still believes that there is more work to be done. He spoke of “A Tale of Two Cities” in which Charles Dickens wrote “It was the best of times and it was the worst of times.”

“He says that we have everything and yet we have nothing,” said Mack. “We’ve come a mighty long way.”

The theme for the event was chosen by the Freedom Fund Committee to represent the changes that have been taking place in America.

The Freedom Fund Banquet began as a fundraising effort for the organization and continues to be just that.

“We stand for justice for all Americans,” said Faye Carter, branch president, of the organization. “To be free so that all mankind can partake of the same thing. This being the centennial of the NAACP, that stands out in itself.”

The evening also featured a number of musical presentations.

Contact Morgan Wall at mwall@mtairynews.com or 719-1929.