Passion, excitement are crucial to success, Melvin says
Former
Greensboro mayor Jim Melvin told an audience at Greensboro's Empire
Room Friday, March 7 that people enjoy making a difference and will
support a project if it is rooted in a good idea. Melvin shared his
perspectives on leadership and community involvement during the latest
Joseph M. Bryan Distinguished Leadership Lecture Series program.
Melvin, who serves as president of the Joseph M.
Bryan Foundation, has been a tireless advocate for Greensboro and the
Piedmont Triad, playing a crucial role in fundraising efforts to
support the Elon law school. He was also the driving force behind the
construction of Greensboro's new baseball stadium, NewBridge Bank Park.
Melvin served as Greensboro mayor from 1971 to 1981, and has been
active in numerous civic affairs. Leadership, he said, is about getting
people on board.
"You can be the smartest CEO in the world, but if other people don't
want you to succeed, you're going to hit the wall," Melvin said. "If
you have a good idea, people want to be part of something exciting.
They want to make a difference."
Melvin encouraged law students to explore interests away from their
work, identifying avenues for service and contribution to their local
communities through civic organizations and philanthropic ventures.
"Be involved with something else," Melvin said. "Don't just work and go
home. Be involved in something else and be passionate about it."
Asked about why he has turned down opportunities to take other jobs
outside of Greensboro or run for Congress, Melvin said he felt like he
was doing crucial work right here at home.
"Being mayor of a medium-sized city like Greensboro is one of the most
important jobs I can think of," Melvin said. "We need good people in
Washington, and no offense to those people, but I have yet to figure
out what they can do for us here."
Melvin said his most trying time as mayor came during November 1979,
when five Communist Worker Party marchers were killed by members of the
Ku Klux Klan and American Nazi Party. Building trust among the city's
various ethnic groups immediately following the shootings was of prime
importance, Melvin said.
"I've said I went from being the mayor of Camelot to the mayor of Dodge
City that day," Melvin said. "But we had great relations with the
minority groups and within an hour, we were sitting down with them to
share what we knew and also what we didn't know."
A member of the Piedmont Triad Regional Vision Plan steering committee,
Melvin served 18 years on the board of directors at Jefferson-Pilot. In
2005, Melvin received an honorary doctor of laws degree from Elon
University in recognition of his efforts to establish the Elon law
school in Greensboro.
A co-founder of Action Greensboro, an organization that has helped
revive the city's downtown through support from business and community
leaders, Melvin said the Elon law school plays a vital part in
energizing downtown life.
"I won't be around to see it, but I truly believe in 20 years,
Greensboro will be one of the most livable downtown, urban areas
because of things like the Elon law school."
The final program in the Bryan Leadership Lecture Series is set for Tuesday, April 29, featuring former N.C. governor Jim Hunt.
Melvin, who serves as president of the Joseph M.
Bryan Foundation, has been a tireless advocate for Greensboro and the
Piedmont Triad, playing a crucial role in fundraising efforts to
support the Elon law school. He was also the driving force behind the
construction of Greensboro's new baseball stadium, NewBridge Bank Park.
