�þ���

Until we start listening, nothing’s gonna change.

Reverend Dan Ficklin is most known for his commitment to bridging the divide within a highly polarized America. Reverend Ficklin first moved to Alamance County in 2007 to become the Pastor of Union Ridge Church. This is where Ficklin’s deep friendship with Pastor Ervin Milton began. Milton and Ficklin would consistently go out for lunch for the next 16 years and converse about uncomfortable topics, such as racism and politics. Rev. Ficklin leads a predominantly white congregation, while Rev. Milton serves a Black congregation, yet their different racial backgrounds never hindered their friendship; rather, it strengthened it, as they truly listened to and learned from each other.

From these conversations grew a larger community committed to fostering connection. The only rules: “You listen, you don’t interrupt, you don’t cut somebody off, listen to everything they have to say, and you’ll be surprised that they’re a human being just like you are.”