o
Briefs
Winston-Salem again ranked
as a Top 10 'Digital City'
For the seventh year in a row Winston-Salem
has been ranked as one of the top 10 most technol
ogy-advanced cities in America of its size by the
Center for Digital Government.
Winston-Salem tied for second in the center's
2008 Digital Cities Survey of cities with a popula
tion of 125,000 to 249,999. The annual study
examines how city governments are using digital
technologies to better serve their citizens and
streamline operations.
, The Digital Cities rankings were announced in
conjunction with the annual meeting of the
National League of Cities last week in Orlando,
Fla.
"This year's winners reflect that even with
budgetary challenges, cities are placing a high
value on citizen engagement and improved servic
es," said Cathilea Robinett, the executive director
for the Center for Digital Government.
Over the past year, the city enhanced its digital
services to include online requests for services
through City Link and to look up the status of spe
cial Sanitation services, such as an online leaf col
lection schedule, said Dennis Newman, the city's
chief information officer.
The city tied for second place with Salt Lake
City, Utah. The only other North Carolina city in
the rankings was Durham, which tied for 10th place
in the same population category.
Wal-Mart Foundation extends
letter of credit to MLK Project
The Wal-Mart Foundation has provided a $12.5
million letter of credit to the Martin Luther King Jr.
National Memorial Project Foundation, Inc., which
will expedite the beginning of physical construction
of a memorial for the slain Civil Rights icon on the
National Mall in Washington.
The Wal-Mart Foundation's latest effort is in
Johnson
addition to tne 3>i mil
lion donation it made in
2005.
The letter of credit
allows the Memorial
Foundation to obtain a
construction permit
from the National Park
Service (NPS) to begin
construction of the
Martin Luther King, Jr.
National Memorial.
Both the National
Capital Planning
Commission and the
Commission of Fine
Arts announced final approval of the Memorial
design in September 2008.
"The Wal-Mart Foundation has played a vital role
in the development of the Martin Luther King, Jr.
National Memorial by first making a $1 million
donation in 2005 and now providing a $12.5 million
letter of credit," said Harry E. Johnson, president and
CEO of the Memorial Foundation. "Wal-Mart's part
nership demonstrates the company's ongoing com
mitment to the community and to the causes impor
tant to its associates and customers. The company's
continued support helps to uphold the ideals of hope,
democracy, justice and love for which Dr. King
stood."
The Memorial Foundation continues its aggres
sive program to reach its total fundraising goal of
$120 million. To date, the Memorial Foundation has
raised $100 million. The Wal-Mart Foundation's let
ter of credit will also help the Memorial Foundation
as it seeks to raise additional funds needed to com
plete the overall construction of Dr. King's memori
al.
SunThist Web site designed to
help small business owners
ATLANTA - SunTrust Banks, Inc. has
launched Business Solutions Central
(www.bizsolutionscentral.com), an informational
and educational resource designed to complement
SunTrust's offerings and long-standing commit
ment to businesses.
The site gives owners of small and medium
sized businesses solid advice, education and solu
tions to achieve success on their own terms, and
when it's most convenient for them.
"SunTrust understands that while business
owners are often forced to juggle many roles with
in their daily responsibilities, their core focus is to
make their businesses profitable and achieve suc
cess," said Gay Abbott, executive vice president,
head of SunTrust's Commercial line of business.
"Business Solutions Central was developed with
businesses in mind. The site provides resources and
solutions to help owners better manage time and
cash flow while optimizing business efficiencies."
Business Solutions Central is an educational
resource for all businesses providing tips, tools,
best practices reports, caie studies and expert
advice.
In addition to launching Business Solutions
Central, SunTrust has also recently begun a tour of
the greater Atlanta area with it its mobile educa
tional vehicle. Business on the Go. Business on the
Go is touring Atlanta, and soon will be touring
Charlotte to provide business owners with a
unique, hands-on opportunity to learn more about
the ways they can address their operational effi
ciency challenges.
Visit www.bizsolutionscentral.com for more
information.
Exec to speak on being 'Black, Male, and Gay'
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
The newly formed Gay
Straight Student Alliance
(GSSA) at Winston-Salem
State University, in partnership
with WSSU Black Men for
Change (BMC), will host a
lecture by Brandon G. Major,
talent management manager
with Food Lion, on Thursday,
Dec. 4, at 6:30 p.m. It will be
followed by a panel discus
sion. Both events will take
place in Dillard Auditorium at
the Albert H. Anderson
Conference Center .
Major's presentation,
which is free and open to the
I ? ? ??
Brandon G. Major
public, is entitled "Black,
Male, and Gay in Corporate
America: The Unique
Challenges and
Opportunities."
The panel discussion will
feature Triad-based diversity
officers and human resource "
professions, including Donna
Oldham of Dell; Candice
Wooten of Reynolds
American; and Ed Hanes,
Winston-Salem State
University EEO Officer.
BMC strives to help
empower African-American
males through knowledge to
rise above negative stereotypes
and become assets to their
communities. The GSSA seeks
to build and develop positive
relationships between the het
erosexual and gay communi
ties.
Collectively, both groups
" strive to inform their members
of various personal and profes
sional development opportuni
ties.
For more y formation
about this event contact Shaun
Trotter, community service
chair, at 252-571-4175 or e
mail him at strot
terl06@wssu.edu.
Honor society
honors A&T's
Williamson
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT .
North Carolina A&T State
University's Sandrea Williamson has
been awarded by the National Alpha
Lambda Delta Honor Society for her out
standing work as an advisor.
Williamson, assistant director of the
university's Honor's Program, recently
was named the Outstanding Advisor of
Alpha Lambda Delta for 2007-2008.
Williamson, who also teaches history
at inctihitmn
Ul U1V HKlllVUllUllf
has served as the
school's chapter
advisor for Alpha
Lambda Delta
since 2002.
"As chapter
advisor, Sandy
Williamson has
gently guided,
prodded and
counseled stu
dents on what
ALD represents
Williamson
and pressed them to make sure it stood
for community commitment and aca
demic excellence on campus," said Dr.
Peter Meyers, former director of the
Honors Program.
Since Williamson became the advi
sor, the local chapter has been chosen by
the campus Council of Presidents as the
Outstanding Honor Society at A&T. In
2005, the chapter won the prestigious
"Order of the Torch Award" and has won
the "Maintaining the Flame Award" for
the past three years.
Lee Purvis, vice president for the
local ALD chapter said, "Mrs.
Williamson conveys all of the factors of
an excellent advisor which are compas
sion, dedication. and being a motivator to
our chapter. She sets the standard for
what an advisor should be."
Phone Fan
PRNewsFoio/Vcrizon Wireless
Clifton Dailey looks
happy after bagging
one of the first new
BlackBerry Storms
at the Verizon
Wireless
Communications
Store in Southfield,
Mich. He was among -
hundreds of cus
tomers who waited in
lines at stores
around the country
to purchase the pop
ular new touch
screen smartphone
that debuted last
Friday and is avail
able exclusively from
Verizon Wireless in
the U.S.
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Child Support Obligations
The following is the latest in a
monthly series of columns being
penned by members of the
Winston-Salem Bar Association,
which is made up of local, mostly
African- American, legal profes
sionals.
TU- I
governs child
support in North
Carolina can gen
erally be found in
Chapters 50 and
110 of the North
Carolina General
Statutes. Courts
follow these
statutes when establishing, enforc
ing and modifying child support
obligations.
Parents, both custodial (recipi
ents of child support) and non-cus
todial (those who pay child sup
port). are often confused about the
process of establishing, enforcing,
and modifying child support obli
gations. This article will briefly
Twanda
Stale j
Guest
Columnist
address each of these issues. ^
In North Carolina, parents are
required to support their children
until they are 18 years old and
have graduated from high school
or are otherwise emancipated. In
some instances, parents are
required to support their children
? " ?????? until th#?v rparh thp
age of 20 if the child
is not emancipated,
is attending school
on a regular basis
and is making satis;
factory progress
toward graduating.
North Carolina gen
erally does not
require parents to support their
children beyond high school.
A child support action is civil
in nature and is, therefore, initiat
ed by a summons and complaint.
If these documents are served on
you, do not ignore them. These
documents give you notice that
you have been named as the parent
See Stalry on All
First minority named
to NC Appraisal Board
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
President-Elect Barack Obama is not the only one making
history and breaking through glass ceilings.
Durham's Lauriette West-Hoff was recently appointed ?to
North Carolina Appraisal Board, making her the board's first
minority memoer ana
only its second woman.
Gov. Mike Easley
made the appointment
based on a recommenda
tion from Joe Hackney,
speaker of the North
Carolina House of
Representatives. The
mission of the North
Carolina Appraisal Board
is to protect consumers of
real estate provided by its
licensees by assuring that
licensees are sufficiently
trained and tested to
assure competency and
independent judgment.
Submitted Photo
Lauriette West-Hoff takes her oath
beside her husband.
In addition, the board protects the public interest by enforcing
state law and Appraisal Board rules to assure that its licensees act
in accordance with professional standards and ethics.
West-Hoff is a graduate of North Carolina Central University,
where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology and
sociology. She also has a master's and a Jurist Doctorate from
NCCU. She received a MBE and GMBE from Dartmouth
College.
She has been a general/residential appraiser for more than 34
years. West-Hoff is also a real-estate broker, a Certified Master
Trainer, a Certified Real Estate Instructor and a practicing attor
ney specializing in family and real-estate law. West-Hoff is sole
practicioner of L. W. West Law Offices, and General C ounsel and
President Emeritus of Southern Real Estate Management &
Consultants. Inc.
Before a packed audience of relatives, friends and con
stituents, West-Hoff was sworn-in at the North Carolina
Appraisers Board Headquarters in Raleigh on Tuesday. Nov. 10
by North Carolina Court of Appeals Judge Wanda Bryant. By her
side was her husband, Julius F. Hoff Sr.. a former diplomat and
engineer.
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