Lake County, FL, Commission Meeting
6 December 2022
Joseph Richardson (195 words)

Thank you, Chairman, Commissioners, and staff, for this opportunity to offer an invocation on behalf of the non-religious citizens of Lake County.

Thank you to each of you and to county staff for the important work you do.

As we begin this morning, let us take this moment to silence our thoughts and focus on the tasks at hand.

Lake County is a strong and diverse group held together by shared love of community.

Today, let us embody the words of Central Floridian, author, and freethinker, Zora Neale Hurston, who said “There is nothing to make you like other human beings, so much as doing things for them.”

This morning, may we recognize and abandon the familiar attitudes and too common practices that do not serve the whole.

May we appreciate each and every voice that enters the chamber with hearts and minds open.

May we dream and design a bold future for Lake County where all voices are heard, and everyone is uplifted up at their time of need.

And may we work together with honesty and integrity, guided by rational thought and critical thinking with a sense of shared responsibility.

Thank you.