Roy Dawson, our friend and leader in our community, shares some of his early life experiences that led him to a people focused career and lifetime of service to the community.  From lessons learned in contributing to the family income by working in the fields to basketball shoes to Los Angeles City Hall, Roy describes learning how communities work.  As "a child of the neighborhood," in Texarkana, Texas, Roy traveled to Phoenix, Arizona, to work in the onion, carrot, and watermelon fields.   They eventually moved to the Okemah neighborhood in Phoenix, and then on to Los Angeles, California.   Roy shares his first taste of racism by finding out that peanut butter and jelly wasn't something that he could have.  Life experiences that shaped his path include his mother's memory of the brutal murder of her father,  working with youth at a community center during the Watt's riots and working with the Los Angeles City Council to bridge understanding between groups such as the Black Panthers and US and neighborhoods such as Chinatown, Little Tokyo, and East LA.  One of his first assignments in the bureau of the mayor's office was to come up with a plan to integrate the Los Angles police and fire departments.