Careers Briefly Chefs tending a hand On Friday, Nov. 15, at Embassy Suites, top chefs will offer local diners an opportunity to enjoy a great night out while raising funds, mak ing friends and increasing awareness of the March of Dimes mission to improve the health of babies. In addition to sampling signature dishes. guests will De aoie to bid on many unique auction items graciously donated by various community businesses. All funds raised by Signature Chefs Auction support lifesav ing research and educa tional programs across the state. "By becoming involved with the March of Dimes, we have The Stricklands learned more about the tremendous, life changing accomplishments of the organization and want to share with others what we have learned," said Jimmy and Julianna Strickland, honorary event chairs. "Four million babies are born each year in the United States and each and every one of them is helped by the March of Dimes through research, education, vaccines and breakthroughs. Let us all continue to work to together for stronger, healthier babies ." This year, the March of Dimes is celebrating its 75th anniversary and its ongoing work to help babies get a healthy start in life. For more information, contact Jamie Southern at JSouthern@marchofdimes.com or directly at 336-231-3765. Ham Ml M nCW n Ln COmfnISSIOfrerS The Human Relations Commission (HRC), a division of the N.C. Department of Administration, has welcomed seven new com missioners to the 16 member Martin Luther King Jr. (MLK) Commission. The new members are Clarence Henderson (the chairman) of High roint, Anitra Bailey or Durham, Dr. Troy Kkkler of Cary;, Shakeal Moore of Rocky Mount, Vancine Sturdivant of Lilesville, Warren Turner of Charlotte and Douglas Williams of Greensboro. The new commis sioners will join the nine existing commissioners. Dr. Dumas Harshaw of Raleigh. Kenneth Henderson Freeman of Pembroke, Donnie Gams of Charlotte, Jacquie JefFers of Wilson, Larry Jones of Warren ton, Melissa Martin of Raleigh, Dr. Tony Mitchell of Cary, David Prince of Gamer and Bennett Taylor of Seaboard. Appointed to four-year terms by the Governor, the Speaker of the House of Representatives or the President Pro Tempore of the Senate, the MLK Commission is charged with promoting an awareness and appreciation of the life and philosophy of Dr. Martin Luther King. Jr. The Commission's signature events are participating in the 2014 Martin Luther King. Jr. Grant Program, and conducting the Let Freedom Ring bell ringing ceremony at the Bicentennial Mall in January 2014, 1WS Board changes Leadership Winston-Salem has five new board members and new officers. The new chair of the Board of Directors is Peter J. Juran of * Blanco Tackabery. The other officers are: Vice Chair Dr. D. Kathy Stitts of Winston-Salem State n_:.. university. Secretary Alison Y. Ashe-Card of Wake Forest University, Treasurer Benjamin Rowe of the City of Winston-Salem and immediate past chair, and Cheryl D. Joyner of BB&T. Newly appointed board members are Tyke Arbaugh of BB&T. I.WSPhwo New members (from left) Kathy Goliszek, Andy Brown, Lisa Venable and Tyke Arbaugh. Andrew "Andy" Brown of COR365, Carrie Collins of the YMCA, Kathy Goliszek of Carolina Urological Associates and Lisa Venable of DataMax Corporation. The Board of Directors acknowledged the contributions of outgoing board members B. Jane Doub of Piedmont Craftsmen, Inc., who gave six years of service, and Lawrence "Rence" Callahan of Walter, Robbs, Callahan & Pierce, a member for three years. With a mission of educating, connecting and energizing leaders to serve and improve the com munity, Leadership Winston-Salem is a nonprofit organization founded in 1984 that offers a nine month Flagship Program that challenges partici pants to increase their personal and collective capacity to transform the community through civic engagement, servant leadership and build ing social capital. Lucas among N.C. Award honorees CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT John Harding Lucas will receive the North Carolina Award for Public Service later this month. Lucas, 93, has earned the respect of many by embracing and overcoming challenges. For more than 60 years, he was an education administrator and leader. He fought for the integration of the the whites-only North Carolina Education Association and the black North Carolina Teachers Association, proposing what came to be known as the "Lucas concept." He proposed that a completely new organization be formed rather than forcing either group into an existing structure and in 1970 the North Carolina Association of Educators was created. He was elect ed to the first school board of the newly merged school sys tem in Lucas Durham County and served as presi dent of Shaw University. He is an advocate for youth, school funding and social justice. Lucas Middle School in Durham and other community institutions bear his name. He remains active in his church and serves lifelong appointments on sever al boards. The state's highest civilian honor, the North Carolina Awards will be pre sented by Gov. Pat McCrory to six dis tinguished North Carolinians at the Sheraton Imperial Hotel and Convention Center in Durham. "It is an honor to pay tribute to these remarkable individuals who have made North Carolina better by their extraordinary involvement in this state," says Susan Kluttz, Secretary of the N. C. Department of Cultural Resources. "Each has enriched the lives of our citizens and propelled North Carolina onto the national ayd world stages." The following are the honorees: Myron S. Cohen (science), a trailblaz ing UNC-Chapel Hill HIV/AIDS researcher; John E. Cram (fine arts), an Asheville art gallery owner; John M. H. Hart Jr. (literature), a former attor ney whose bestsellers include "The King of Lies, "Down River" and "The Last Child;" Phillip J. Kirk Jr. (public service), a lifelong advocate of educa tion and economic development; and Walt Wolfram (public service), an internationally-acclaimed linguist who has spotlighted the state's rich language and dialect heritage. Ready to Run i *?UM Press Photo Judge Ola Lewis has announced her intentions to run for the N.C. Supreme Court next year. A resident of Boiling Springs Lake, Lewis has been a District Court judge in Brunswick County since 1993. Last week, Lewis delivered the keynote address at the fall meeting of the N.C. Federation of Republican Women at the Raleigh Crabtree Marriott. Honor for local free tax prep program CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT The past tax season's collaborative effort to provide low income county residents with free tax preparation has garnered a national award. Partners the United Way of Forsyth County, the Piedmont Triad Regional Council (Northwest Piedmont Workforce Development Board), the Forsyth County Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)/Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program and spon sor Wells Fargo have received the Innovation Award from the National Association of Development Organizations, a group that pushes federal officials to continue and expand economic development programs across the nation. This past season, the returns of 2,708 res idents were prepared through the partnership. That number is up from the previous season, largely because the Piedmont Triad Regional Council's mobile unit was employed. swUr Equipped with 10 computers, the mobile unit was able to traverse the county, helping res idents in their own backyards with tax prep. The taxes mobile unit volunteers prepared amounted to $200,000 in refunds. Overall, the program prepared tax returns worth nearly $3.3 million for county resi dents, much of that, $1,626,000, is from the Earned Income Tax Credit, which has been credited with lifting nine million Americans out of poverty. According to the partner agencies, on average, a qualified Forsyth County taxpayer receives $1,700 in EITC cred it. In addition to benefiting working families, the credit brings money directly into the community. Again this tax season, community sites are available throughout Forsyth County to provide free tax preparation, as well as asset-building counseling and referrals to asset building programs such as Experiment in Self-Reliance's Individual Development Account program, NC Saves and Financial Literacy Counseling. The locations and operating hours for the sites have not yet been confirmed. For more information, go to www.myfreetaxes.com/forsyth or call the Experiment in Self-Reliance at 336-722-9400. WSCPtwtt) Truliant Chairman and CEO Marc Schaefer presents the award to Tar Heel Basement Systems' Pete Burgess with the help of Chamber President and CEO Gayle Anderson. Chamber awards business leaders SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE The Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce held its 128th Annual Meeting on Nov. 5 ai ine Benton Convention Center. The Duke Energy Citizenship and Service Award and Truliant Small Business Award were presented during the event. The former went to Walter McDowell, who was recruited by the Chamber in 2008 to ieaa a community couaoorative initiative to improve the high school graduation rate. He used his business acumen and strong personal connections to do everything possible to close the achievement gap between minority and majority students, while ensuring that each student graduates from high school. He also chaired the Community Education Collaborative for nearly five years. In that role, he voluntarily took on the task of raising funds to support the public school pro grams that are designed to keep potential drop-outs in school. As chair emeri tus of the Collaborative, he continues to raise funds needed for key programs. Thus far, he has raised $2.5 million. The Truliant Small Business Award was presented to Tar Heel Basement Systems, which specializes in basement waterproofing, crawl space waterproofing and repair, radon mitigation and foundation repair. After 10 years in business. Tar Heel Basement Systems has maintained an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau. More than 600 business lead ers attended the meeting, where the Chamber's key accomplish ments for the year were among the topics addressed. McDowell State's female leaders getting noticed CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT Three Council of State leaders have earned recog nition. State Treasurer Janet Cowell received international attention by ranking 21st (second nignest ranK among U.S. women) on the Sovereign Wealth Fund's Public Investor 100 list for 2013. The Institute highlighted Cowell's successful stewardship of the state's public pension funds, which have "outperformed the national average for public pension funds by 22 percent." Secretary of State Elaine Marshall is slated to receive The Elected Women of Excellence Award from the National Foundation of Women Legislators (NFWL) later this month in Washington, D.C. at the organiza tion's Capital Forum and 75th Anniversary Celebration. The award was "created to identify women who have worked tireless ly, often breaking down barriers and overcoming obstacles that once seemed insurmountable, to serve their communities." In 1996, Marshall made history as the first woman elected to a statewide exec utive office in North Carolina. State Auditor Beth Wood has been named by CPA Practice Advisor magazine as one the "Most Powerful Women in Accounting" in 2013. The maga "1?;?: .1 c.iiiv vicuna "uuu iui uuuging me siaie s compliance supplements up to federal standards, ensuring that federal grants are being used as intended" and for See Leaden on A8 Cowell Marshall Wood

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