Upset at the thought of Sunday morning sales of packaged alcohol, a sizable crowd attended Monday night’s Humboldt Council meeting to voice their opposition.
Pastor Jerry Neeley of First Baptist spoke before the council, saying alcohol sales on Sunday in general go against the town’s moral fabric, but especially during morning church services.
“I find that offensive,” he said. “We must remember the Sabbath and keep it holy.”
Neeley also said such acts go against Humboldt’s reputation as a God-fearing community.
“This is the home of Biblesta, a celebration intended to highlight God and country.”
In an accompanying letter to council members, Neeley wrote that as a spiritual leader he is obligated to warn them of what he perceives as a moral decline in the community.
“I feel we as a community need to be awakened to the spiritual blindness that seems to be infecting our families and neighbors. The result of allowing this to happen, this quieting of God’s message, is devastating.”
Neeley predicted Sunday morning sales would tarnish Humboldt’s image.
“Is this the new ‘Face of Humboldt’ we truly want to present? Rather than promoting God to a community, would we encourage drunkenness, alcoholism, financial insecurities? Will this bring about a Humboldt we are proud to show our families and friends, visitors? Is this the Humboldt we hope our children return to when they’ve grown?”
After hearing from others in the same vein, council members agreed not to pursue the matter.
Just a month earlier, however, they leaned the other way, after hearing the appeals of two local liquor store owners who complained they were losing sales to the metropolitan areas on game days.
“We can’t ask people to spend money in Humboldt unless we give them the option to do so,” said Mayor Nobby Davis at the time.
Both discussions prove that good decisions are rarely made in a vacuum. And the best answer may lie somewhere in the middle.
FROM OUR perspective, the “face of Humboldt” shows a lot of promise, thanks in large part to its younger generations and their recent revitalization efforts.
Such actions are proof they believe in community, including taking on leadership roles by serving on the school board, city council and getting politically involved.
