By Michael Motes

The plan of a College Park Baptist minister to do something about Atlanta’s alarmingly escalating crime rate has fostered an idea that will soon be taken to the clergy of all denominations in the city with an eventual goal in mind that a similar plan will span the state.

The Reverend Ronny West, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Cliftondale, recently approached John Conroy, president of the Young Sign Company, with a new message for the giant billboard in downtown Atlanta at the I-75/I-85/I-20 Interchange. This same site was the proposed setting for the controversial “Warning” to tourists entering Atlanta that the Conroy’s company refused to erect.

Reverend West’s message was simple -- “Stop & Think! Human Life Is Precious. Thou Shall Not Kill.” Conroy, a parishioner at St. Oliver Plunkett, was so impressed with the poignant prose that he agreed to donate use of the sign, which normally rents for nearly $3,000 per month.

When Reverend West approached his board of deacons, their response was equally enthusiastic and the $3,400 labor cost to erect the message was pledged.

Young Sign Company is now working on the lettering and Conroy hopes that the message will be in place the first of next week.

But Conroy has gone further than donating a sign rent-free. He is now arranging a series of public service broadcasts on Channel 36 to be presented by various clergy, as well as representatives of the city’s police and fire departments. All messages will point to the “Stop & Think” idea, plus offer suggestions to citizens about what they can do to help prevent crimes or to help solve them.

At a press conference earlier this week, Reverend West called upon “the entire religious community of metropolitan Atlanta to join hands together in a concerted effort to stem the rising tide of disregard for human life as evidenced by the alarming increase in the homicide rate in our great city.

“We realize,” Reverend West said, “that the responsibility for this state of affairs does not lie primarily with our elected officials, but must be shared by every segment of our community. We are also aware of the complexity of the problem and offer no simplistic answers. We do, however, believe that the religious community can make a positive contribution to the solution of the problem by trying to sensitize our people to the sacredness and sanctity of human life.”

The minister admitted that he does not know exactly what course of action should be taken, but he urged “all people of good will to join with us in an enthusiastic involvement in the processes that prevent and correct such problems as now exist.”

He says that the billboard will be “a hopeful first step...which will serve as a daily reminder to the citizens of our community that human life is precious.”

A meeting of representatives of all denominations in Atlanta with city officials is set for next Monday, August 27. According to Conroy, who is arranging the meeting, plans will be made at that time to begin video taping of the public service announcements to be aired on Channel 36.

“What we must remember,” says Conroy, “is that this is a metro-wide project, not just geared to the central city. I think we have an idea here that could become a state-wide program and even serve as the model for a national project.”