WNC resident Wally Bowen honored for media and internet accomplishments

Western North Carolina Citizens Ending Institutional Bigotry coordinator Monroe Gilmour recently attended a reception in the capital to accept an award on behalf of local “media and internet pioneer” Wally Bowen, who was the recipient of the United Church of Christ’s Donald H. McGannon Award. Among other achievements, Bowen founded the Mountain Area Information Network, which introduced high speed internet to many area libraries.

Here is a newsletter written by Gilmour to recap the occassion:

WNCCEIB Friends,
Last week, on October 20, 2015 in Washington, DC, WNCCEIB & I had the honor of receiving on behalf of Asheville’s media & internet pioneer, Wally Bowen, the Donald H. McGannon Award presented by the Office of Communication, Inc of the United Church of Christ (UCC). Wally was diagnosed with ALS five years ago and could not attend but wrote his acceptance remarks with his eyes — using an amazing laser-based machine.

Among his many activities, Wally founded the Mountain Area Information Network (MAIN) that got high speed internet into many mountain county libraries and community centers before it was available to citizens there. WNCCEIB has used MAIN since MAIN’s founding in the 1990s.

OC Inc has a long history of working for equality in media, as you can see in the documentary about their work challenging the broadcast license of WLBT in Jackson Mississippi back in 1959 — because that TV station censored news about civil rights and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. See the documentary promo linked below.

Also below are information, photos, and videos of the award ceremony and the Everett C. Parker Lecture which was held at the First Congregational UCC in DC. That church, founded in 1865, was abolitionist and the first “white” church in the nation’s capitol to desegregate. Included in the links are Wally’s acceptance remarks which I read to the assemblage:

UCC’s Office of Communications,inc (OC Inc)
News Release & Photos
33rd Annual Everett C. Parker Lecture & Awards
October 20, 2015, First Congregational United Church of Christ,
Washington, DC
http://org2.salsalabs.com/o/6587/t/0/blastContent.jsp?email_blast_KEY=1344553

Videos of the Award Ceremony and the Parker Lecture
includes presentation of the Donald C. McGannon Award to Wally Bowen, accepted on his behalf by Monroe Gilmour, WNCCEIB Coordinator:
https://www.facebook.com/UCCmediajustice/videos

OC Inc The Untold Story….1 minute promo
Tells story of OC Inc going after the broadcast license of WLBT in Jackson, Mississippi in 1959 — they were censoring stories about Dr. MLK and civil rights:

Full 22-minute documentary available on Vimeo:

Our congratulations to Wally and our thanks to OC Inc. for the important work they continue to do.

Best to all,
Monroe