Last Wednesday, a new guest speaker came to our school, Cape Henry Collegiate. His story was one that particularly stuck out to me. Chris Singleton is a former professional baseball player on the Chicago Cubs but within that fame, he dealt with sorrow. During his playing career, his mom was shot in a church along with eight other members by a racist white man. Knowing this, over time, he learned to forgive this and move on. With this, he goes around and spreads his message of forgiveness to all other platforms, like our school. He showed people how giving a simple hug can lift someone’s day up. He showed students that you never know what is going on in someone else’s life. He showed that love is better than hate. 

His story was truly inspirational. We asked students around our school to see what they thought of the speaker. Allison Jared (‘21) viewed his story as uplifting and brave. Learning that your mom was killed by a white racist man in a place of peace, is hard to recover from. After listening to his story, Alisson loved his message about not giving up and moving forward when things in your life get harder. From his visit, Allison believes that everyone in our Cape Henry community may look different but, “we are equal and human on the inside.”  Allison learned that she can relate to his messages of letting go and moving on. 

Brandon Midgett (‘20) was another student who loved Chris Singleton. Brandon liked Mr. Singleton’s message, how love is stronger than hate. It focused “on life overall and not just racism and hate.” After listening to his story, Brandon expressed how over time, he personally could forgive the man who killed his mom. Inspired by his words, he wants the Cape Henry community to love each other no matter what race, gender, or sexuality they choose. When asked about Chris Singleton, the word “passion” came to his mind. “It shows his real character.” Speakers like Chris Singleton teach us life lessons and how to learn from them. 

Tori Orie, a well-known member of our Cape Henry community, expressed her views of Chris Singleton. Tori liked the speaker and was especially surprised that he was a young baseball play and not our usual old guest speaker. Unlike our usual wise speakers, Tori liked how he talked to us as equals and how his story was meaningful. Tori sees him as a humble man. He doesn’t bring his situation into every conversation. He talks to us in a casual way without bringing up his life story. She believes that speakers such as him can teach us life skills and prepare us for what comes in our future. 

Love is stronger than hate. Five simple words that inspired many people in our Cape Henry community. He captivated the audience and people everywhere just by telling his story. Speakers like Chris Singleton make a mark on us students and we are grateful for hearing his message.