Photos by Kevin Walker
Maurice Edmonds, right, who works with the class,
and Johnny Levan keep soft drinks cold.
Hot Dog!
Physically, mentally-challenged students
hold fund-raiser for March of Dimes
BY T. KEVIN WALKER
THE CHRONICLE
A well traveled corridor ul
Forsyth Technical Community
College's West Campus was trans
formed into a makeshift a la carte
style buffet last week. Hot dogs -
an American classic - were the
main course, with side orders of
potato chips, soft drinks and an
assortment of desserts also for sale.
The familiar, inviting smell of
chili-soaked hot dogs drew a
steady stream of students, faculty
and staff during the lunchtime
fund-raiser. It was organized and
administered by a group of mental
ly-and-physically-challenged stu
dents in a compensatory education
class offered on the campus.
"It's very exciting because we
are doing this for a good cause and
that is to help little babies be
healthy," said Constance Sims,
class president. Proceeds from the
hot-dog sale will benefit the March
of Dimes.
The process of choosing a
charity was a lesson in democracy.
said Virginia Clemmons, who
teaches the class. After researching
a variety of charities, the dozen or
so students in the class took a vote.
The March of Dimes won handily
after a spokesperson from the
agency, which fights birth defects,
came to the class to talk about the
organization's goals and needs.
"They are looking beyond
themselves, and some of them
have had handicaps since birth."
Clemmons said.
The organization of the hot
dog sale included many other les
sons. For instance. Clemmons
brought in sales papers from vari
ous stores and let her students
debate where the best deals could
be found for supplies. Harris Tetter
helped the effort by extending a
credit to the class to buy items for
the fund-raiser.
Students also were given the
task of organizing themselves in a
variety of small groups to handle
various tasks associated with the
fund-raiser. Some, like Sims, han
dled the money. Some were in
charge of an advertising campaign
?*
aimed at making the campus com
munity aware of the sale. Others
made sure that soft drinks were
cold by keeping a steady supply in
a well-iced cooler. And still others,
like James Branscome. worked the
dessert the table, where everything
from cupcakes to cookies were
baked and then donated by faculty,
staff and students.
"A lot of people have come to
Sfu Hot doat nn A4
FTCC employee Connie Transou serves up a hot dog to a customer
during last week's fund-raiser.
Cavanagh
from page AI
porter reading last Thursday's
Chronicle while Narvaez sat near
ly. The other supporter, a gentle
man - a white gentleman, that
fact becomes important later in the
Q&A - complimented The Chron
icle. saying something like. The
Chronicle prints "what people
really say." I said thank you or
something similar to thank you
and waited a hit while the mayor
and Narvaez pondered over where
the interview should take place.
The other gentleman left the
building,, and they decided on a
destitute back room with a few
chairs and a desk, on which sat a
Bible.
Narvaez surprised me by tak
ing the seat next to me with a
notepad in her hand (I did not real
ize when the invitation was first
extended that the mayor and I
would have an audience).
I started the tape recorder and
began what turned out to be an
interview lasting only about 15
minutes. As you will read, the
mayor strongly believes that his
words have been spun by this
newspaper, so The Chronicle is
printing the entire interview as it
took place. Only insignificant
words - urns and ahs - and open
ing pleasantries have been taken
out. Nothing of substance has
been touched. Because nothing
has been edited, the conversation
may be a little hard to follow at
some points.
Thursday. Oct 18.4 p.m.
TKW: Just want to ask you.
Mr. Mayor - you have a few more
weeks to go. how's your confi
dence level?
JC: Well, as I have shared
before, initially my confidence
level was low because I felt that
six or seven months ago 1 was the
hero of the city by many folks that
have now turned toward my oppo
nent. It hurts a little. So I've had to
adjust and not look at my oppo
nent as much as I was and all the
support 1 felt he was getting and
take a look at what's best for the
city, which is what I have tried to
do all along. And as I foucus on
what's best for the city. I can func
tion a lot better.
TKW: When you say six
months ago you felt that you were
the hero of the city (mayor inter
jects)....
JC: No. I suid they felt (I was
the hero of the city).
TKW: They felt? The people
you say have now turned and are
supporting your opponent?
JC: Correct.
TKW: OK. Did you feel you
had any naysayers toward you
before the six months?
JC: Not in front of my face.
TKW: Now. I remember
when you first appointed Mr.
Joines to the HAWS (Housing
Authority of Winston-Salem)
board. I got the press release and
you had a quote in there that was
pretty much glowing - that he
would be good for the board
because - and there were some
compliments there.
JC: Absolutely
TKW: So has anything
changed since that point? Do you
still respect him as a person, but
you do not like his style? What is
your issue with your opponent?
JC: Well. Mr. Joines - you
used his name so I am going to
just mention it there - is an
administrator. He has done it for
30 years. His talent lies there. My
talent lies elsewhere; that is more
of a visionary, a strategist, some
one that has a passion for being for
the city. He was an employee of
the Board of Aldermen and the
city manager, and when we said
do something, he did it. He admin
istered. He processed. He facilitat
ed. And you can find that kind of
person anywhere. They are often
very available, especially with 30
yean; (of) experience.
Does this city need an admin
istrator? Well, that's what Bill
Stuart (city manager) does. You
ask him to do something, he does
it. You ask him to go and he goes.
If he doesn't do it well or go well,
we fire him. There have got to he
policy-makers, strategists, people
that set goals and objectives,
visionaries for the future, and I
just don't think my opponent is
that kind of person. That doesn't
make him bad; it just makes him
different.
TKW: You don't think a per
son like him could, because I am
sure when you first started as
mayor you weren't the same type
of visionary you are now. four
years later. So do you think it is
necessary to have a person who is
a visionary be mayor?
JC: I don't think you are right,
Kevin. If you are a visionary and
have been given that gift by the
Almighty that you are always a
visionary. It is a gift that you
receive. It is something that you
are anointed with, a mantle of
whatever placed upon you to be
that kind of person. I don't know
what your gift is; let's say it's jour
nalism. I can't write. You do. You
have been given that gift; you
have always had it. It is now com
ing to the surface. It is manifesting
itself. My gift has been manifest
ing itself for years in many differ
ent ways, whether it be for my
own personal life, where I want to
go, what my vision is for me or
my family or my business or
whatever. It has always been
there.
And I am not new to politics.
My vision for Winston-Salem
goes back to 1977 (when he
served as an alderman) then the
North Carolina Senate in 1982
and now 2(X)1. It isn't just coming
up; it's been there. And that's my
talent and that's my gift. I have
been blessed to be able to use it.
My opponent has a gift and a tal
ent. God-given. And he is right
where he needs to be because peo
ple can say go and he'll go. do and
he'll do. and those people Who tell
him to do that are the visionaries,
are the planners, are the strategists,
are the passion-for-being folks.
And you need both.
But what we have gotten is a
little fearful. I believe, of the
power, in terms of money and
influence and the connectivi- -
ty....What I heard from the backers
is their fear of "Jack, we like you
a lot but we don't want to lose the
connection: we don't want to lose
the network. That network is too
important. It affects my business;
it affects my personal life; it
affects what parties I am invited
to; it affects, you know - If I give
to this charity, you'll give to that
charity. It affects all of that.' And
nobody is willing to give that up,
or soil themselves by taking the
chance of making somebody
important mad. and. by the way, I
ant not just talking about business.
I am talking about the church and
I am talking about the black
church, especially - selling them
selves out for fear that. ..
TKW: And you believe that is
happening? For fear that they arc
going to bum a bridge?
JC: Somewhere, somehow.
TKW: For fear that they are
going to bum a bridge, and if
Joines is elected...(Cavanagh
inteijects).
JC: Let me tell you. who else
are they going to run against me
that would have been a real com
petitor? It would have been a
shoo-fn for me. Because Jerry
Long (a former RJR executive
who has a lot of political influence
locally) wouldn't have changed
and those other people who were
my supporters in (he past wouldn't
have changed. It had to be some
one in the network that they could
control. So. here we are. It's very
bad. but that's where it is, in my
opinion.
TKVV: Let's go back to that
issue with the black churches.
What do you think they fear?
Ruining a connection that could? I
am just try ing to get to the meat of
it? '
JC: In my opinion, the black
church, the African-American
church, has heen. not just this
election, but all prior elections to a
great extent, influenced by the
power base within the community
who is primarily the good ol' boy,
white group who could care less
about the black community, in my
opinion. They do things ritualisti
cally to try to prove they really
care, but, in fact, when you are
behind the closed doors and you
really hear their heart, their heart
isn't with the black community.
Their heart is so far away, but
there is money there; there is
influence there. Certain black
individuals, or African-American
individuals, grow their businesses.
and grow their churches.
And then there are also, which
I can understand a whole lot more
and a whole lot better, that the
African-American community is
primarily Democrat in terms of
political persuasion. I can under
stand that a lot better than I can
selling themselves out. calling
themselves Christians and then
being bought just like that. That's
not unusual within any religion. 1
guess. 1 am not just picking neces
sarily on Christians, but when it
affects you personally, it makes
you rethink human nature again.
TKW: So in '97, when you
had a great deal of African-Amer
ican support (mayor inteijects)...
JC: I don't recall that.
TKW: You didn't have a lot of
support from African Americans?
JC: Where have you got
ten..(TKW inteijects).
TKW. I have read past
Chronicles and it said that you
were surprised by the African
American support you got in *97.
Is that not hue?
JC: I don't know how to
answer that in percentages. I have
always had wonderful African
American friends, very close
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