Vol. XXXVII No. 32
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.
THURSDAY, April 7, 2011
Rams
to play
game at
Carver
-See Page B8
Sci-fi
writer
visits
university
-See Page A10
Scouts try
to earn
Merkorth Care
Bad^westi
Photo by Layla Fanner
Gang Prevention Specialist Solomon Quick
addresses the audience as Patrick Merrill (left) and
Rev. Ty Talton look on.
Official: Gang
threat in local
schools is real
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
Think Winston-Salem's
too small or too nice a town
to have a gang problem?
Think again, says Gang
Awareness Specialist Patrick
Merrill of the Winston
Salem / Forysth
County School
system. More
than 42 known
gangs are in opera
tion in Forsyth
County, Merrill
said. That number
includes both
nationally affiliat
ed groups like
Bloods or Crips
and some local
menaces sucn as me
Tyghtwods. a gang of more
than 100 members that is
based in the city.
"This type of stuff is
going on right here in
Winston-Salem on a weekly
basis," Merrill told the dozen
or so present at his Gangs
101 presentation Monday
evening at Ardmore Baptist
Church after screening a
video clip of gang violence.
"We've had about one a year
that's that bad or worse.
We've lost several students
in the last five years to gang
violence, and we've actually
lost a parent."
The school system hired
Merrill, a former law
enforcement officer, three
years ago in an unprecedent
ed step against the spread of
gangs. The school system
is the only one in the state
that has a full time gang
awareness specialist on staff,
Merrill said. He stressed
that gang activity
is not a school
problem, but a
community prob
lem that has
spilled over into
local schools and
has affected some
children at a very
young age. Local
youngsters have
shown signs of
gang influence as
early as third grade, Merrill
said.
"Unfortunately, it's more
and more common to see
gang activity at the middle
school and elementary school
level," Merrill said. "...We
have had people who have
initiated gangs at the elemen
tary school level."
Merrill's talk was part of
a slate of activities held
April 4-7 in observance of
Gang Awareness Week. The
theme of the annual pro
gram, now in its second year
was prevention, but Merrill's
talk centered around recog
See Gangs on A2
Henderson
Holy Cow!
Photo by Kevin Walker
Galilee Missionary Baptist Church, which had been a mainstay on the corner of Martin Luther King
Jr. Drive and New Walkertow n Road for decades, is no more. The building was demolished over the
weekend to make way for a new free-standing CVS pharmacy. The congregation of the church had
long outgrown the East Winston building. The Galilee flock moved to a swanky, new building at
4129 Northhampton Drive earlier this year.
Longtime prison super to retire
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
After more than three
decades on the job, Wallace
Shields Jr. is relinquishing
his post as superintendent of
the Forsyth Correctional
Center, a minimum security
prison for adult males that is
often known to locals as the
Cherry Street Jail.
The city native has
served the Department of
Corrections for the last 33
years, including two other
superintendent posts.
Sheilds, an ordained bishop,
says he is retiring on May 1
to devote more time to his
duties as pastor of
Macedonia Holiness Church
in Durham, and to the
Church of God in Jesus
Christ Apostolic Inc.'s
National Board of Bishops,
of which he is a member.
'The Lord has told me
that it was time to end that
chapter with the prisons. He
Photo by Lay la Farmer
Wallace Shields Jr. is retiring May I.
has other things for me to do
in the ministry," said the 56
year-old grandfather of seven.
The retirement of the
Elizabeth City State alum
nus and former football play
er has been met with mixed
emotions.
"I'm sad because he is a
very good mentor and I have
come this far in my career
because of Mr. Shields," said
Sgt. Tameika Faison. "i
could always call on him for
guidance or assistance in
decisions that may come
about and his unit is where I
began to progress in my
career."
Corrections Officer
Willie Pledger said Shields,
who is affectionately known
to prison staff as "Big
Papa," will be missed by
both staff and inmates at the
Cherry Street facility.
"Mr. Shields has made
his mark. A lot of us hate to
see him go." said Pledger, a
DOC employee for the last
eight years. "Can't nobody
fill them shoes. He's
respected in the community,
behind or on the other side of
this fence."
When he started out as a
corrections officer in 1977,
Shields said he never planned
to build a career with the
DOC.
"Back then, it was kind
of synonymous with being a
prison guard. That's not
such a pretty term, but 1
needed a job," he said of
becoming a CO. "It was not
See Shields on A 10
Up-and-comer getting RiverRun buzz
Photo by Danen Davis
Ava DuVernay
is bringing her
film "I Will
Follow" to this
y ear's
RiverRun Film
Festival, which
starts tomor
row.
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
Film marketer-tumed-Filmmaker Ava
DuVemav nf I ns Anpples is
taking the nation by storm
with her daring and unprece
dented approach to movie pro
motion.
. DuVernay 's first feature
film, "I Will Follow," has gar
nered awards and critical
acclaim since its March 1 1
debut, even striking the fancy
of Roger Ebert, who wrote,
"...this is the kind of film
black filmmakers are rarely
Rodgers
able to get made these days, offering roles for
actors who remind us here of their gifts."
Yet DuVemay hasn't spent a dime on advertis
ing. Buzz about the film, which has been shown
on screens in 25 cities, was created entirely
through social media and word of mouth, as the
pilot project of the African American Film
See DuVernay on A5
Conference will tackle
sports, race and more
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
Some of the most well-known names in the world of
sports are expected at Wake Forest University next week to
discuss timely and relevant topics.
"Losing to Win: Discussions of Race
and Intercollegiate Sports" will be the
third major interdisciplinary conference
held at Wake Forest University since
2009. The conference, which will be held
from April 13-14, will bring together
prominent academics, athletic administra
tors, sports journalists, former student
athletes, professional athletes and other
professionals who have developed an
expertise in sports.
The conference is the brainchild of
Davis
timothy Davis, the John w. and Kuth H. lumage Krotessor
of Law at Wake Forest University School of Law. Davis is
one of the country's foremost sports law scholars and has
See Sports on A9
Spend it here.
Keep it here.
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