Second Statewide Service Day Successful

Article Date: Thursday, March 19, 2009

Written By: Russell Rawlings

 

Incoming President Patsy Brison of the 28th Judicial District Bar is interviewed by Darcel Grimes of WLOS.

For all of its intricate details and logistical challenges, the success of the North Carolina Bar Association's second annual Statewide Service Day is not that difficult to measure.

 

The phones ring and the lawyers answer. It's as simple as that.

 

On Friday, March 6, the phones were ringing long before the 7 a.m. starting time arrived

for what clearly has become the signature public service project of the NCBA Foundation's 4ALL initiative.

 

The phones rang non-stop throughout the day to call centers in Asheville, Charlotte, Greensboro, Raleigh and Wilmington. The only way to stop the phones from ringing was to disconnect them, which volunteers did when 7 p.m. arrived and the final calls were completed.

 

Lawyers enjoyed a hectic yet rewarding day at the Williams Mullen call center in Wilmington.

Once again, the lawyers of North Carolina were standing by waiting to answer. Supported by legal assistants, law students and members of the N.C. Bar Center staff, volunteer attorneys provided free legal information throughout the day in response to a vast array of questions.

 

By all accounts, the second annual Statewide Service Day was an enormous success. Some 400 volunteers fielded calls from nearly 6,500 citizens. The only complaint to speak of was a good one - people could not get through because the lines were busy with lawyers who were already taking calls!

 

President Charles Becton, back, pictured with Participate Working Group co-chairs Sara Palmer, left, and Katherine Wilkerson and WRAL's John Harris.

"It was a glorious day," said NCBA President Charles Becton. "Hundreds of NCBA volunteer lawyers helped thousands of citizens throughout North Carolina."

 

Becton and NCBA Executive Director Allan Head began their day at the Raleigh call center before proceeding to Greensboro, where they were joined by Janet Ward Black, immediate past-president of the NCBA under whose leadership the Statewide Service Day ask-a-lawyer event was initiated last year.

 

"The other thing that was significant from my perspective was that five minutes before 7 in Raleigh," Becton added, "20 phones starting ringing. It sounded like 20-part harmony, like the most beautiful words you will ever hear, like words from the 'Sound of Music.'"

 

The Volunteer Center phones were busy all day as co-host WFMY helped direct more than 2,000 calls to the Greensboro call center.

Standing at the forefront of volunteer leadership for the service day were the co-chairs of the 4ALL Task Force - Rebecca Britton, Dayton Cole and Kim Sieredzki - and the co-chairs of the Participate Working Group, Katherine Wilkerson and Sara Palmer.

 

"You'd think that with fewer sites and volunteers than last year, that would reduce the calls taken and the amount of folks we assisted," Palmer said. "But it seems like we were able to help out just as many folks as we did last year. That in itself shows how successful we were."

 

Site chairs also performed an invaluable service in helping organize the event at their respective call centers. Sharon Robertson (Asheville), Amy Bokor (Charlotte), Parrish Lentz (Greensboro), Jason Pfister (Raleigh) and Ryan Rhodenhiser (Wilmington) provided exemplary volunteer leadership throughout the big day and in the months preceding it.

 

Charlotte attorneys work the phones at WBTV.

Michelle Cofield, director of public service and pro bono activities for the NCBA Foundation, directed Statewide Service Day operations in conjunction with her duties as staff liaison for the 4ALL Task Force.

 

The volunteer lawyers, of course, were stellar. In most instances, they went without a break throughout their three-hour shifts. "Floaters," including representatives from Legal Aid of North Carolina, Pisgah Legal Services, family law specialists, judges and criminal law attorneys, provided invaluable expertise

 

Many stayed over and put in extra hours and at least one enormously dedicated individual, Raleigh attorney Dan Uyesato, worked every shift.

 

A number of volunteer leaders also made their way onto the phones to spell fellow attorneys and fill vacant shifts.

 

"For me personally, participating in the telethon was very gratifying and inspiring," Palmer said.  "My last call of the telethon was from an elderly lady who told me that she had been trying to get through all day. Finally her persistence had paid off!

 

"She had questions about harassing phone calls from a credit collector for a credit card she had no knowledge of possessing. We uncovered possible identity theft and helped get her started on a road to correcting that problem. She was very grateful for our help and grateful that she made it through.

 

"She said that during these economic hard times, it was good to know that there were lawyers out there who were concerned with "simple matters" for everyday people.  Her matter certainly isn't a simple one, but helping her figure out where to go to fix her problem reminded me of why I became a lawyer - to help others."

 

It will take some time to fully tabulate the call-center ledgers, further testament to the fact that the attorneys were extremely busy. What is known is that virtually every volunteer slot was filled and practically every phone line available was engaged throughout the 12-hour event.

 

Preliminary estimates indicate the following results at each call center:

 

ASHEVILLE:

Western North Carolina and the Asheville area were served once again by WLOS News 13 in Asheville, where Jack Connors, general manager, served as the host. Returning site chair Sharon Robertson, who doubled as the official photographer for this site, utilized eight phone lines from which more than 42 volunteers fielded 853 calls.

 

CHARLOTTE:

Charlotte, Mecklenburg County and the surrounding area were served once again by WBTV News 3 in Charlotte, where Shelly Hill, marketing and program director served as host. Call-center chair Amy Bokor, had 15 phone lines at her disposal through which 79 volunteers fielded 1,194 calls.

 

GREENSBORO:

Greensboro and the Triad area were served once again by WFMY News 2 and The Volunteer Center. Hollie Rose, executive director, and Deborah Hooper, president and general manager, provided exceptional assistance on behalf of The Volunteer Center and WFMY, respectively. Call-center chair Parrish Lentz made the most of 22 phone lines and 114 volunteers who fielded 2,095 calls.

 

RALEIGH:

Raleigh and the Triangle area welcomed WRAL-TV 5 of Raleigh as the new call-center host. Programming director John Harris and 5 On Your Side reporter Monica Laliberte served as primary hosts on behalf of WRAL. Call-center chair Jason Pfister utilized 20 phone lines from which more than 105 volunteers fielded 1,836 calls.

 

WILMINGTON:

Wilmington and Eastern North Carolina were served once again by the Wilmington offices of the Williams Mullen law firm. Jennifer Griffin, marketing coordinator, served as host on behalf of the firm and Ryan Rhodenhiser served as call-center chair. Eight phone lines were put to use by 38 volunteers who fielded 510 calls.