North Carolina Newspapers

win1 The Daily Tar HeelFriday, April 14, 19895 Spotlight Breaking By ANNA TURNAGE Staff Writer omeone has finally broken the .stereotypical sorority mold. Last fall, Jacquie Broady, a senior from Teaneck, N.J., joined a sorority. The thing that makes her different from hundreds of other sorority members is that she is the first black woman to join an other wise white sorority at UNC, making Pi Beta Phi the first white sorority to "induct a black member. Broady went through white soror ity rush in 1988. Pi Beta Phi became her first choice, and she was accepted. ul never really felt uncomfortable about doing it at all, said Broady. "I just wanted to know what it was like to be in a sorority and the girls at Pi Phi made me feel really com fortable and at home." ? H ! . -.5 ' , W v ; J : v. x xaw ; J One of the greenhouses at the North Carolina Botanical Gardens Ti pt oe through N.C. Botanica in By DIANA FLORENCE Staff Writer outh Campus is more than brick and basketball. At 'the outer border of Ehringhaus dormitory, there are more than 532 acres of wildflow ers and other native Southeastern plants. This is the North Carolina Botanical Garden. The garden was originally limited to the Coker Arboretum, created in 1905 by UNC botanist William Coker, said Charlotte Jones-Roe, assistant director of the garden. "Although it began pretty humbly, with the dual purpose to aid in teaching and to enhance the campus with an attractive dis play of trees on the grounds, it has evolved into the most com plete collection of native Sou theastern plants." The present size of the garden is a result of various public and private donations. Former UNC botany professor H.R. Totten and his wife, Addie Williams Totten, left their estate to the garden in 1974. The garden is devoted to the study, conservation and interpre tation of plants indigenous to the Southeastern region of the Uni ted States, according to Jones Roe. "It features primarily the native and naturalized flora from ; all regions of North Carolina." The garden arranges its collec ; tions by region, and visitors are invited to stroll through numer ; ous displays of mountain plants, coastal plants and plants of the sandhills. In addition, there are many : rare plants, carnivorous plants such as the Venus's-flytrap, and an aquatic collection which includes water flowers, frogs and Found ads FREE in the DTH A POST-VICTORY sketch of Mi khail Gorbachev, landslide winner of the Soviet election: "... a young man. and at once a pro gressive and a despot, as often happens with Russians" (Fathers and Sons, Ivan Turgenev, 1862). For an introduc tory 15-issue sub scription . tO NA TIONAL review for just $17.95. call 800-222-6806. through According to Broady, a black woman rushing a white sorority didn't seem like an unusual thing to do. "I have friends at other colleges that are members of interracial sor orities. Carolina is the only college that I knew of that didn't have it." Other people tried to tell her it wouldn't work. "They would say things like, This is the South, how can you think it wouldn't be a prob lem?' " she said. "But it really wasn't any problem at all." Broady said she was also a little concerned that her friends questi oned her motives. "1 especially didn't want my black friends to look down on me and think that I was trying to be something that I'm not. That wasn't the case at all." Broady said her decision to rush a white sorority was based on individ f 1 it the fish. Perhaps the most interesting part of the garden is the Plant Families Garden and the Herb Garden. The Plant Families Garden is a collection of plants arranged in beds representing major botanical families. According to Jones Roe, this collection appeals to all types of visitors because of the pleasing colors and attractive forms. "It also provides an excel lent introduction to plants for the first-time visitor." The Herb Garden was started in the late 1940s as a source for healing herbs in an era before antibiotics and modern synthetic drugs. "It is fast becoming a col lection of national importance. The traditionally useful plants are displayed by categories, some cul tural and some functional," she said. The garden also contains a Culinary Garden with more than 90 types of plants used to season meats and vegetables, and to make a variety of teas. There is an economic herb section which includes plants used for making dyes, fiber plants and essential oils. for fragrance and flavor. But the most fascinating sec tion for visitors, according to Jones-Roe, is the Poison Garden, which contains more than 90 types of poisonous plants. An important goal of the garden is ecological conservation. All plants are obtained and main tained with regard for the envir onment, she said. "We believe in teaching through our actions. We obtain our specimens through plant cut tings and seeds as well as volunteer-directed plant rescues (plants taken from areas that will r3 f"i t" n f E3 f"" Q n g Now Hiring Drivers A & Phone Personnel fl 968-3270 3 O r r"i 3 fi E3 q Gumby Dammit! 0 D D D D 12" One-Item Pizza 7) ri pi fi fj Ft ff racial barriers in ual choice and preference. "1 didn't do it to make a statement, she said. "I did it because it's where my inter ests were. One of my regrets, I guess, is that I didn't rush a black sorority. I wanted to, but it was at a different time." ' Broady's membership in the sor ority has been very well received, said Leslie Williams, Pi Beta Phi president. "We've gotten several let ters from alumni applauding our choice. They're very proud and pleased to be the first sorority to do this." The sorority's decision to choose Broady was "no big deal," Williams said. "I know it's a big issue, but we really didn't think about it when we picked her. We chose her because we liked her. It's the sorority's responsibility to consider everybody regardless of who they are or what I! DTHTom Clark LU- IDS I Garden be destroyed). We do not ran domly pull plants out of their natural habitats, nor do we use harmful insecticides." Volunteers and work-study participants are responsible for most of the garden's mainte nance. More than 100 people of all ages and backgrounds con duct tours and collect, propagate, research and label specimens for exhibition. "Working in the garden pro vided me with a relaxing environ ment where I could escape the daily pressures of campus," said Sandy Waggoner, a senior from Walkertown and a former partic ipant in the work-study program. "Although I've always had a green thumb, I would recom mend getting involved with the garden to everyone." The garden also offers a var iety of workshops that are open to all for nominal fees. Topics of programs include harvesting and using herbs, and learning about seasonal plants. The garden also conducts pro grams in hortitherapy, which serves persons with special physi cal, mental, emotional or social needs. "It (hortitherapy) inte grates environmental education and therapeutic gardening through modified activities and adaptive tools, equipment and garden structures," said Nancy Easterling, a horticultural thera pist at the garden. But the goal of the garden is to appeal to everyone. "The garden is a place for everyone to enjoy, not just the biology major," said Robert Peet, an associate profes sor of biology. Admission to the garden is free. For more 1 information, call 962-0522. pj n P"" f"i n d n n2j D Party Special! D D 20" One-Item Pizza n D 3 C3 ES E3 E3 C3 Q C3 C3 ES E3 they look like." "I think it's a major break through," said Becky Mustard, pres ident of the Panhellenic Council, which governs the women's Greek system. "In the past there has been interest from other girls, but they get discouraged when they see that there aren't any other interracial members." "I admire Jacquie a lot for going through it. I hope it will encourage more girls who are interested to do it," Mustard said. ' Jimmy Tanner, a member of the Black Greek Council (BGC), said Broady's membership represents "an . acceptance of both races to the pos sibility of having interracial Greek relations." "I don't really agree or disagree with it. I'm not condemning her at all. I just think that she's missing out Ronald McDonald's means more than By KIM STALLINGS Staff Writer jlhe little girl sitting alone in the hospital room doesn't want a new doll or a teddy bear. She wants to be with her parents. Thanks to the Ronald McDonald House in Chapel Hill, children no longer have to be alone during their hospital stay. The Ronald McDo nald House provides inexpensive lodging for parents whose children are seriously ill and need to visit the hospital. "Here they have the support of other families. It is important that they know they aren't alone," said Barbara Palmer, manager of the Chapel Hill Ronald McDonald House. When the local house took in its first families last May, it marked the 1 13th such house established within the United States, Canada, Europe and Australia, Palmer said. Located on Old Mason Farm Road, the Ronald McDonald House is now one of more than 120 houses worldwide. The original Ronald McDonald House was created in 1974 when the daughter of Fred Hill, a Philadel- phia Eagles star, was diagnosed with leukemia and had to be hospitalized. McDonald's agreed to help with Massages good for body and sou By LISA ANTONUCCI Staf Writer t's 12:30 a.m. You've been study ing at your desk since who .ULknows when, and there's no end in sight. Your roommate has given up studying at the library and is now perched on the bed hoping the overhead light will make the entire academic semester understandable. It's a well-known scenario and one that is rapidly approaching with exams just around the corner. But this year you can beat exam blues, avoid mental stagnation and physi cal atrophy. Try giving each other a massage. "The obvious sometimes escapes us," said Pamela Collins of Mariela Health Associates. "Touching is an age-old remedy. It's the first thing a hurt child wants from his mother. People need to stop and take time to nurture themselves when they are hurting." Massages affect people on three levels physically, mentally and emotionally. For deep relaxation and stress reduction, massages are an easy way to overcome physical tension. They can ease movement and promote deeper, easier breathing. With mas sages come better circulation and lower blood pressure. Moreover, massages may help strengthen a per son's immune system and speed up the elimination of waste products from the muscles and skin. On a mental level, massages pro mote a relaxed state of alertness. By reducing physical stress, one reduces mental stress, increasing the capacity for clearer thinking. Massages can even affect a person ETl ULDKlQrflSE D Fast, D D D rf n n p n t 3 "" ri D Tarheel Special! q 16" One-Item Pizza & Z sodas D D D D D D D D sorority on a lot of history and tradition by not rushing a black sorority," he said. However, Tanner said that he is all for interracial functions within the Greek system. During the past year, the BGC, Panhellenic Council and the Inter-Fraternity Council have been working closely together to promote more interaction between the groups "We had a very successful interra cial mixer earlier this year," he said. "It was a very enlightening experience." Tanner said that he hopes to see more of these types of functions next fall. "It seems like the idea has really caught on, so it should go over well." According to Eileen Dordek, chairwoman of fraternity sorority fund raising to purchase a building to provide parents of hospitalized children with a place to stay. The company bought and renovated an old house solely for this purpose. The idea caught on internationally and the numbers of these houses increased dramatically over the next few years. The local Ronald McDonald House has 20 bedrooms, each with two twin beds and a crib, if needed. The house also contains a large kit chen and several social areas, which allow parents to interact with one another. Families in residence can cook on a grill which is provided on the patio. There are also playrooms for children that have come along with their parents. Children undergoing treatment rarely stay there, unless they have had outpatient treatment. There are no medical facilities located at the Ronald McDonald House. We try to provide a home away from home," said volunteer Lorrie Wood. One parent commented, "We could not feel more at home unless we were at home." House policy , prevents residents from disclosing their names. ' :' The house receives many families and is full every Saturday night. emotionally. The less anxiety a per son feels, the greater the feeling of personal well-being. This can lead to an increased awareness of what Col lins called "stress patterns." "When people become aware of what makes them tense, they will try to avoid it." The UNC Wellness Resource Center sponsors several massage workshops throughout the year. These workshops are free and are held in the Center itself, as well as in dormitories across campus. "Not only do we sponsor open workshops, we train peer educators who then give workshops in the dorms upon RAs' (resident assist ants') requests," said Susan Chap pell, director of the Wellness Center. "Massages are wonderful," sopho more Nancy Portlock said. "They completely clear your mind." Big ATTENTION CATALOG SHOPPERS G R E A T MI S TAKE S QDBBBKP aBBUllXUJBB 1 j K-; S pec la 1 z ! n jg in Carrying Al Least TheTop 20 J : 1 Items Trom Your Top Five Favorite Catalogs. V . fiSffi ... bioiESrLON 700 'Mton-.for.-Go6!; needed convenience without puckering Pleats in -front waist & darts in back for graceful looK 35 inch i lerioth stirtwM back vent at hem Colors include UhQkiMGvy, white, gray, brown, black, & denim l h -h: -v t" Compare $5 8-$65 OUR PRICE system relations on the Panhellenic Coun cil, the feedback about other interra cial functions has been very positive. "The most important thing about the system this year is that it's focus ing on race relations," she said. "A lot of organizations have seen the advantage of having these functions." Members of the BGC and the Panhellenic Council have been attending each other's meetings to keep up with each group's activities. They also plan to combine the three systems in one location so they can work closer with one another, Mus tard said. Dordek said that they plan to get a more involved race relations pro gram off the ground by next year. "This year we've at least laid the ground work." name Macs However, there are a couple of emergency rooms reserved for par ents who need them. "We have never had a family wait more than one night for a room," Palmer said. Families usually don't stay more than two or three nights at a time. The base price for a night is about $8, depending on how much the family can afford. The actual cost of maintaining the rooms is $30 a night, according to Palmer. The house is supported by fund raising and donations. There are about 60 volunteers who work one three-hour shift a week. The Ronald McDonald House generally accepts parents whose children are patients in the pediat rics ward. The parents are usually informed about the house by the hospital staff, if they are not already aware of its services. The house's main priority is to provide a place for parents to relax. uOne of the nicest things is that we have cool colors and comfortable furniture, in contrast to the busy atmosphere of the hospital," Palmer said. One of the parents said, "Ronald McDonald House is truly a blessing from God. We couldn't have made it through our trauma without its help and support. It is doing a great thing to help people in need." "People love them," sophomore Kelly Furr said. "There really is no right or wrong way there are some basic techniques but it is really whatever feels good." Furr did mention that one should be careful not to put too much pres sure on the lower back. As for walk ing on people's backs, one should be careful not to slip off their shoulders onto the neck. And if no one is around to give you a massage? "Massage yourself," Collins said. "It is easy to do your hands, feet, legs, arms and even your lower back." Furr had an additional sugges tion. "Starting at your toes, tense every part of your body and then relax. It is another way to release tension." Chappell agreed. "It's a great way to kick back and relax." 1 7 " rL 'i Raleigh: Stonehenge Market , Center Court 870-7001 Durham: Shoppes of likewood, 493-3239 Chapel Hill: Willowcreck Shopping Dr., 929-7900 Beaufort: Historic Waterfront, 120 Turner St.. 728-S550 Oriental: On the Harbor, Pamlico Marine, 249-1797 Now Open in Rocky Mount VVcslridgc Plaza 93 7r505 6 'i V