Funeral party tonight!

When I fell into the "no new coal plant world", I was fortunate to meet Bobby and Jane McLendon, who led with fearless determination, the fight to stop Longleaf, a 1200MW proposed coal plant in Early County. They had plenty of good help in the trenches from a few brave souls, organizations like the Sierra Club and the Flint Riverkeeper, and attorneys at GreenLaw. It was clear to me and the other novice coal plant opponents in Washington County that we could learn a lot from the McLendons, who are humble, unassuming, and determined to do what is right and best.

Bobby once called after we captured an orange flag on Plant Washington and told me I was his hero. That was high praise coming from someone who led, and won, the longest active fight in our country against a proposed coal plant. They spent 11 years of their lives standing up in a small community, which, if you ask anyone fighting Plant Washington (or Plant Ben Hill), is no easy thing to do.

Tonight some of us are sending Longleaf off with a funeral party. It won't be a wake to honor the fine proposal Longleaf was, because it wasn't fine. Instead it will be a celebration of what two people began 11 years ago because it was the right thing to do. It is an honor to be invited to stand among real heroes.