Macon Magazine

for recreational events, like Festivals in the Hills: "We have the resources coming out, so now we need the community coming out." Its Secretary Shirley Jordan and Treasurer Amanda White round out a solid team, said Huston. Jordan and her husband Anthony present youth programs at the Booker T. Washington Center through the ERIC Foundation while White, head custodian of L.H. Williams Elementary School, has overseen cleanup and maintenance in the neighborhood for many years. The school's Macon-Bibb County Parks and Recreation- run gymnasium is overseen by PHNO Parliamentarian Chris Austin, who controls regular neighborhood meetings and other activities at the rec center. Austin sees L.H. Williams as a mainstay: "You think about how it takes a village to raise a kid. Most kids, they go to school, when they leave school, where do they go? They go to the rec center." This mission is personal for him. "The rec center changed my life. I have three older brothers, each of them did extensive time in jail before. I was along the same lines, but my rec center coach brought me out of the streets," said Austin. Austin notes how much support is coming from Macon- Bibb County to empower Pleasant Hill, from Mayor Lester Miller down to his supervisor, Robert Walker. "It can be the wildest kind of event. They just ask me, 'How does it help the community?' Then when I explain it, they give me the green light." His dual role with the county and as a PHNO leader gives him unique insights into the changes happening in the neighborhood and how to help. "If you look around Pleasant Hill, I know things look blighted, but we are getting those houses down. We are building new houses. We are putting new parks in the neighborhood." George Muhammad, a Pleasant Hill native and city-wide activist, and Antonio Williams, along with a strategic planner, round out the Pleasant Hill Neighborhood Organization's board. Muhammad and Williams serve as community liaisons. Muhammad's mother and her lineage are rooted in the neighborhood, laying the foundation of his love for it. He has run a martial arts program there, created and led Black History tours and collaborated with others to present many enriching experiences in Pleasant Hill for decades. Williams, a 45-year- old married father of two, grew up in the neighborhood and WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THE PEOPLE OF PLEASANT HILL HAD A VOICE." – TEDRA HUSTON " 110 maconmagazine.com | AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2022

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