Photo courtesy of Spotlight Productions
West Virginians Josh Clauser & Jared Brewster lead a group of fellows into a collective leadership training session.

As Americans take time this month to acknowledge the many contributions of African Americans to our nation's rich history, the editors of the KLCC Bridge thought it timely to share an excerpt from Walking with the Wind, a civil rights memoir written by Congressman John Lewis of Atlanta.

Lewis's transition from boyhood to manhood coincided with the civil rights era of the 20th Century. He was a college student at the American Baptist Theological Seminary in Nashville when he joined the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee and helped lead the vital youth contributions to the civil rights movement. Lewis remains committed to a life of public service and has been the representative of the 5th U.S. Congressional District of Georgia since 1987.