? ......... WW ~ w. ..W.W.WW. . . ^ | IIL. VIII
OP/ED
:40\
i
Ernest H. Pitt
T. Kevin Walker
Elaine Pitt
Blair Hutchinson
Publisher/Co-Founder
Managing Editor
Business Manager
Office Manager
When Will it Open?
Mercedes
Miller
Guest
Columnist
As I finished up three
lays of working with busi
less owners and leaders in
3hio, I called my family to
ouch base. The first thing
ny dad said was, "The
oiks in the barbershop
vant to know when is the
narket opening?" I am not
urprised. I received a call
ust last week from a men
or's wife saying,
Mercedes, the ladies at the
>eauty parlor were saying
hat place been sitting there
or a long time. When you
;oing to open it?"
Vendors and customers,
'oung and old, in the com
nunity and on the other
ide of town have the same
|uestion: When Will the
liberty Street Vendors
darket Open?
It's a great question. It
s also a question posed by
he Triad Farm to Table
Cooperative. They are a
;roup of local farmers who
vork together to promote
nd support fresh, locally
;rown produce. They have
igned up to sell at the
-iberty Street Vendors
darket and are looking for
vard to serving even more
esidents in our communi
y
When I pulled up at
iidden Creek Farm a few
nonths ago, Pat Watson
elled to me from across
he lawn, "Girl, I been
looking for you."
"Well, here 1 am," I
said, as 1 made a beeline to
the fresh almonds and hoop
cheese.
Pat and her husband
Herb sell fresh produce and
other locally-made edibles
from the spring through the
late summer. Signs right
on the edge of Davidson
and Forsyth counties let
you know when and where
their place is open. Pat was
reaching out to secure a
space because their loca
tion isn't operational after
September.
"We're looking forward
to being at the market on
Liberty, along with a few of
the farmers who bring their
fresh fruits and vegetables
to our location to sell. It
gives us the chance to con
tinue to provide good food
even through the fall and
winter," Pat said.
Mr. Vern Switzer, one
of the most well-known
black farmers in this state,
has been instrumental in
shaping the conversation
about the Liberty Street
Vendors Market. His space
is secured, and he, along
with many others, is ready
to get started. Triad Farm
to Table Co-op, Pat and
Herb from Hidden Creek
Farm, Mr. Vem and many
other farmers, including
those who run local com
munity farms, are poised to
provide their products.
So what will they be
selling? It might be easier
to identify what they won't
be selling. But just to whet
your appetite a bit - there
will be peaches, plums,
tomatoes, cabbage, water
melon, greens, corn,
cucumbers, squash, pota
toes, okra, beans, can
taloupe and peppers.
Now for the question at
hand: when will the Liberty
Street Vendors Market
open?
The City of Winston
Salem is working to ensure
that the market is both aes
thetically appealing and
user-Friendly for the ven
dors and customers. They
are erecting a fence that is
slated to be completed mid
September. As soon as it is
done, the market will open.
See you there.
Spaces Ure available for
fresh produce, art, crafts,
baked goods, jewelry,
apparel and other items.
For guidelines, applications
and additional information,
please contact Terrance
McNeil at 336-793-3441 or
lsvm@earthlink.net.
Internships and volunteer
opportunities are also avail
able.
Mercedes L. Miller is
owner of Mercedes
Empowers, Inc., which has
won the City of Winston
Salem contract to operate
the Liberty Street Vendor's
Market.
Switzer
\V/I^ IVLC
DCCC
from page A4
coaching, study skills
support, leadership
opportunities and charac
ter-building experiences
deemed critical to college
success.
"Men Moving
Mountains is a remark
able program that pro
vides academic and pro
fessional development to
minority males who wish
to obtain a college
degree," says Kim
Sepich, vice president of
Student Affairs at DCCC.
"Many underrepresented
males in our area feel that
a college education is
simply out of reach.
However, through the 3M
program, these same stu
dents Find the personal
ized attention and group
support they need to
become successful in the
classroom and in life."
Since 2012, DCCC
has seen a 36 percent
increase in DarticiDation
in its program - a sign
that it is moving in the
right direction. Seventy
one DCCC students used
3M services during the
2013-2014 academic
year. Three of the pro
gram's recent graduates
have been accepted into a
four-year institution.
In 2012, the National
Center for Education
Statistics (NCES), a part
of the U.S. Department of
Education, conducted an
annual Integrated
Postsecondary Education
Data System (IPEDS)
survey. The survey, which
was reported in
Aspirations to
Achievement, a special
report released by the
Center of Community
College Engagement,
found that community
colleges enroll more men
of color than any other
type of higher education
institution. However, the
survey also revealed that
men of color earn com
munity college degrees
and certificates at dispro
portionately lower rates.
This is a trend DCCC
addresses head on with
its 3M program.
"The coaching model
works, but we have to get
the word out into the
community that programs
like ours exist," adds
Sepich. "The skills
learned in the Men
Moving Mountains pro
gram cross over into stu
dents' personal lives,
which ultimately, makes
earning their degrees
more likely."
For more information
about Men Moving
Mountains, call 336-249
8186 or visit www.david
sonccc.edu/3M.
Kim Sepich
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Harriott.
WINSTON-SALEM
Remembering Alex Haley
Lenwood
Davis
| Guest
'Columnist
If asked the birthdays
if such great men such as
Jeorge Washington.
Vbraham Lincoln, Martin
.uther King Jr. and
rtalcolm X. most people
/ould give you the correct
nswer.
But if asked whose
lirthday is on Aug. 11. they
robably wouldn't know. It
ou ask most people who
/as Alex Haley, they
zould say that he was the
uthor of "Roots' and The
autobiography of Malcolm
Haley, the brilliant
uthor, researcher, writer,
toryteller, novelist, folk
Mist and genealogist, was
om Aug. 11. He did more
ian anyone during modem
mes to bring attention to
le need to trace one 's fam
ly history. Because of
laley, thousands of
Americans, both African
Americans and whites,
egan to research their
enealogy His birthday
hould be remembered
ecause of the contribu
ons that he made to
imerican society.
1 met Alex Haley some
0 years ago in Chicago at
le O'Hare International
lirport. 1 was on my way
1 Portland, Ore., where 1
,as teaching at Portland
tate, and Mr. Haley was
n his way to Los Angeles^
I walked up to him and
itroduced myself and we
ilked for a short while. I
jund him easy to talk to^
le was very friendly, and 1
*as impressed by his
?ankness. 1 met Mr. Haley
eain in 1977 when he
?ke at Wake Forest
fniversity. After the pro
ram. Dr. Maya Angelou
osted a reception for him
t her home. When Mr.
Haley arrived, most of the
people in the room gravitat
ed toward him and sur
rounded him. When he
spoke, there seemed to be a
certain calmness that came
over the room.
1 went over and intro
duced myself. 1 called him
Mr. Haley and he told me
to just call him Alex.
I told him that I was
from Beaufort, N.C., the
same town that his first
wife was from, and that I
knew her family. 1 found
him to be very receptive to
what 1 had to say about his
speech. 1 also told him that
I was a writer and he told
me to keep on writing,
because all people need to
know about the history of
our people.
I met Alex Haley again
in the early 1980s when I
went with Dr. William
Turner to Indianapolis, Ind.
to the East Kentucky Social
Club Reunion. Turner was
a close friend of Haley's
and was responsible for
arranging for him to speak
at the reunion banquet.
Although, Alex received
between $15,000 and
$17,000 per speech. Turner
got him to speak for free to
the group. Alex saw Turner
as an adopted son.
I went with Turner, in
his jeep, to the Indianapolis
airport to pick up Haley. I
asked Turner why he didn't
get a chauffeur-driven lim
ousine to pick up this inter
national celebrity. Turner
told me that Alex did not
like celebrity treatment and
would have been insulted if
he had gotten a limousine
to pick him up.
Alex remembered me
from the reception at Dr.
Angelo's home. We drove
Alex to his hotel. The three
of us sat in his suite and
talked for several hours
about many different top
ics. including preserving
black history. After talking
to him for hours, it seemed
to me that I had known him
all my life. He had the abil
ity to make people feel
relaxed and at ease.
Although he was famous,
he was not pretentious like
many celebrities.
We told him that we
would drive him to the ban
quet. He asked how far the
away the club was; we told
him about four blocks. He
said he could walk. When
Alex arrived at the banquet
hall he received thunderous
applause and everybody
took pictures and requested
autographs. Alex gracious
ly obliged them.
The next morning, we
took him to the airport. He
was on his way to
Hollywood to see Quincy
Jones about a project they
were working on together.
I never saw Alex again.
As I reflect back on my
conversations with Alex
Haley, 1 remember a num
ber of things about him.
What impressed me most
about him was his humility.
He did not let fame change
him.
In my conversations
with Alex, never once did
he mention his two best
selling books. I got the
impression that he did not
want people to know or
appreciate him just for
those two works. Alex
Haley did not want to be
known as a black writer.
He did not want to be
known as an American
writer. He wanted to be
known as a writer, period.
Dr. Lenwood G. Davis
is a retired history profes
sor and the author of sever
al books.
Alex Haley