CHARLESTON, W.Va. — It’s 211 feet from the top of the BB&T Building in Downtown Charleston down to the street and, coming up this weekend, more than 70 people will be rappelling that distance to raise money for YWCA Charleston’s Campaign to End Racism.
Dr. Anthony Jenkins, president of West Virginia State University, helps kick off the “Over the Edge” event by rappelling on Friday.
Ahead of that, he said he was proud to be able to support the ‘Many Stories, One Future’ cause.
“We all need each other. Regardless of the hue of one’s skin, everybody brings something of value to the table and, if we’re going to help West Virginia be as strong as it can be, then we need individuals from every race, ethnicity, gender,” Dr. Jenkins said.
“I want to challenge all of us to know and never forget that we all have a responsibility to make our communities and our neighborhoods and our state better.”
Dr. Jenkins was scheduled to rappel around 5 p.m. Friday alongside Christy Elliott, BB&T Market President.
The full Friday rappel schedule was as follows:
4 p.m.
U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito
Charlie Capito
Charleston Mayor Amy Goodwin
Kitty Dooley, co-chair, YWCA ‘Many Stories, One Future’ Campaign
5 p.m.
Jenkins and Elliott
Steve Bishop & Jenny Murray, V-100
6 p.m.
Shauna Johnson, 580-WCHS
On Saturday, more than 70 people total were scheduled to rappel during the main “Over the Edge” event as part of FestivALL.
From 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, an “Over the Edge” Ground Party for spectators was planned at Davis Park in Downtown Charleston with music, art, food trucks and more.
DJ Gee Money from 98.7, The Beat, a West Virginia Radio Corporation station, was scheduled to rappel and provide tunes for the crowd.
The money raised through “Over the Edge” is part of a three-year, $1 million fundraising effort for an endowment to support racial justice work in Kanawha County, Clay County and Boone County.
Many of the participants are newbies to rappelling, but President Jenkins has some experience from his time in the U.S. Army which he joined after high school.
“I actually rappelled in the military. I was air assault. I’m used to hanging from a helicopter at about 1,500 feet from the ground,” Jenkins said.
“I haven’t done that in a long time, but we’ll see how this works out (on Friday).”