This column is adapted from President Erin K. Taylor’s speech delivered at the May 26, 2022 MCB Annual Meeting.
The importance of this day is not lost on me. Obviously, it is meaningful to me personally and the Bar as a whole, but in many ways, I know that as the first federal public defender to stand in this spot, I am carrying the torch for many of our public interest, non-profit and government attorneys, and especially for our attorneys of color. Yet, I severely struggled to find the words for today…and I know the expectation is to say something profound or come up with an impactful leadership quote to begin my remarks, but still, I struggled.
Then recently, one evening, I didn’t feel like cooking and I ordered some Chinese food. And as tradition dictates, after I finished my meal, I opened my fortune cookie, and it said:
YOU DO NOT HAVE TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING TO BE HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
And I immediately thought that this fortune summarized my life. Half the time I have no idea where I’m going and feel like I’m in desperate need of a GPS for my life. I feel lost, constantly.
I’m from Brooklyn, NY; I pursued a Mathematics degree as an undergraduate and had dreams of swimming with whale sharks, dolphins and manta rays. Yet somehow I ended up in law school in NC. I just wanted someone to help me make it make sense because none of it made sense to me at the time.
Then fast forward - I found a job and landed here in Charlotte. I did not know many people here, and I was immediately homesick. And then I heard that the MCB had a basketball league. Listen, I played basketball for years and the last place I thought I would find a league was at some Lawyer’s Organization.
I joined as a free agent, got a on a team, and even though I was only one of two women in the league at the time, I felt so welcomed. Not only was I excited to have a place to play every week, but I was excited to finally start meeting people outside of the courtroom and outside of the adversarial process (well, crossing someone over can be pretty adversarial, but that was okay). The friendships I made from that initial experience with the MCB continue to this day.
YOU DO NOT HAVE TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING TO BE HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION
Many of us didn’t know where we were going, and yet, we all ended up here, together. And as lost as I thought I was, here I stand.
Regardless of how we all feel about Bar dues, the building, and the bifurcation vote, we cannot disregard the fact that the MCB is the hub for many of the connections we seek as we navigate through our careers – mentorship, education, networking, community service – all can be found and will continue to be found here at the MCB. We are all here because we all believe in service; we believe in giving back.
I will never forget one of my first community service projects here. It was a service project I participated in with Judge McKoy-Mitchell when we went into Hidden Valley – a community stigmatized and in many ways forgotten for all the wrong reasons – and we did a park cleanup. I was involved; I felt engaged with the people we all serve; we were building bridges and relationships, and doing it while getting dirty. And that experience was through one of the subcommittees here at the MCB.
Moving forward, while overseeing many of upcoming changes to the Bar, my vision is for us is to get back to those days of fellowship and service and continue to push the envelope with our diversity initiatives. Our CLE Committee and the YLD are already taking affirmative steps to ensure that everyone is represented in their programming. But we will not stop there. We will return to the community and ensure equal access to justice for every single person in Mecklenburg County and beyond because our impact can stretch beyond the boundaries of Mecklenburg County. These pandemic years have taught us to not take what we have, and who we have for granted, because we never know when our time is up.
Speaking of time…
I know we have an important vote coming up, but I’d like to leave you with this: There will be many more after me, and after you, that come here lost and homesick just like I was and we need to be a beacon for them, just like many of you were a beacon for me.
Remember, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO KNOW WHERE YOU ARE GOING TO BE HEADED IN THE RIGHT DIRECTION.
And while we may not have a complete road map of our future, know that we are doing everything to do right by every single one of you.
I look forward to working with all of you this year.
If you are interested in joining any of our sections or committees, please do not hesitate to sign up on our website at MeckBar.org.