A New Mayor's "Prayer List"

There's a joke making the rounds in Dallas today that asks who is running for Mayor in May?

The punch line serving several variations on this theme goes something like this, "It would be a heck of a lot easier to list who isn't running!"

The last count I saw listed 20 candidates for the job.

Yesterday was the beginning of the filing period for candidates to get their names on the official ballot. By this time tomorrow no telling how many folks will be in the race!

The field was opened up when Mayor Laura Miller announced that she would not to seek another term. Ms. Miller has decided to step away from the chaos of running Dallas to spend more time with her family. Who could blame her?

As the field began filling up shortly after the Mayor's surprise announcement, we started wondering. . .

Who, if anyone, among the candidates had a vision for our low-income, inner-city neighborhoods?

Who among those hoping to guide our city for the next four years has a plan for attacking the challenges presented by persistent, almost intractable poverty here in Dallas?

Who has a valid vision for the Southern Sector in our city?

Is there anyone?

We decided to find out.

We will do so at our 12th Annual Urban Ministries Prayer Breakfast on Thursday, April 26 at the Hilton Anatole Hotel. Our meeting will begin at 7:15 a.m. Our program for the morning will be the top 7-8 mayoral candidates vying for the top position in Dallas city government. We have invited the top contenders. All have agreed to be present.

Each candidate will be given an opportunity to respond to prompts like these:

"When I pray for poor people in Dallas, my list includes. . . ."

"My vision for improving life for the residents of our lowest income neighborhoods includes. . . ."

"When it comes to the Southern Sector here in Dallas, I plan to. . . ."

After hearing from each candidate, we will open the meeting to questions from the floor.

It should be a great and informative morning.

We just felt like the campaign should not conclude without someone asking hard questions about the issues that matter most to us and our inner city neighbors.

If you are anywhere near Dallas on this special morning, I hope you'll join us. Information about tickets, tables and sponsorships will be up on our website in the near future (http://www.centraldallasministries.org/).