f{.J. Walker—
and
Pieces
from
-the Editor’s Desk—^
What’s up? How was your
summer? Welcome and so
forth. It’s that time of year
again when I’m supposed to
welcome you back and wish
you a very successful year.
Well, Hi and have a chilly
year!
Last year proved to be a
very successful year for the
COMPASS and many tell me I
have a very hard act to
follow, but with my very
dedicated staff and the help
of you dear people out there I
don’t have a worry in the
world. Of course we’ll have a
successful p^per, but you all
know me. There’s gotta be
some fun and games in the
process.
Editor-In-Chief
R. J. Walker
Executive Editor
Algie H. Mabry, Jr.
Production Manager
Z. Mariah Bunch
Features Editor
Mike Moore
Co-Advertising Manager
Shawn Watson
Advertising Assistant
Howard Oglesby
My Assistant Editor is
Algie H. Mabry Jr. and we get
along like Sylvester and
Tweety, so you can imagine
the chaos that will ac
company the entire
production of the COMPASS.
I would now like to officially
name my new staff “Idiots II
on Review.”
So be Cool and use your
time wisely like by reading
that fantastic paper called
the COMPASS. So bye now
gotta say Chow!
A
Tribute
To An
Author
by
Algie H. Mabry, Jr.
As a resident of the state of
Virginia, I was fortunate to
experience something that
will always have a place in
my heart. On Monday, June
27,1983,1 witnessed a passing
of a resolution in the State
Legislature in Raleigh
honoring a great man. This
great man was the late Dr.
Marion D. Thorpe, past
Chancellor of our University.
I was amazed and mar
veled to hear the testimonies
coming from both Black and
White politicians of this state.
Not only did they honor and
pay tribute to Dr.Thorpe for
his memory, but implored
that we carry on in his legacy
to promote excellence at our
University as well as in our
individual lives.
Despite all the flowers that
were placed on his grave, all
the tributes bestowed upon
him and the memorials
erected in his honor, will
those who remain breathing
and the air of this blissful life
carry on with his dreams?
Will his dreams become
“deferred” as Langston
Hughes once said “drying up
like a raisin in the sun” or will
his dreams become a part of
the morals and aspirations of
our lives? Will we carry on or
will we cease?
Dr. Thorpe began writing
an introduction to a book that
many thought was fictitious
as well as difficult. Ironically
to those who thought other-
wise, this book was real in its
essence and meaning.
At the end of his in
troduction God quietly placed
a comma. This comma
represented a pause in his
life. According to Webster a
comma is “a punctuation
mark that is usually a pause
or interval.” God left it to us
to pick up the pen and con
tinue writing after the sud
den pause in Dr. Thorpe s
life.
Unexpectedly we became
co-authors of a book that is
intended to be a bestseller.
Will this book be among the
few on the top 10 book lists or
will it be pushed back behind
other books oil those dusty
library shelves?
As we proceed in writing,
we must produce quality
characters. Doctors, lawyers,
teachers, are just among a
few professional roles that
should be found on our pages.
Our characters should be
three-dimensional and
always the protagonists.
Never doing wrong to their
brothers should be the main
priority of the characters that
we produce.
After establishing what our
characters will be like and
what we hope that they will
become, we must prepare our
characters for the plot. In
forming our characters of the
obstacles and trials that they
will face is one of the main
responsibilities of the writer.
The setting should be one
that is constantly changing
From our school days here
at ECSU, our models should
venture out to graduate
schools, to places of em
ployment, and most of all,
into the “real world.”
I
Columnist’s
Corner
by
Zelene M. Bunch
HI!
For those of you that don’t
know me. I’m the staffer who
collects the COMPASS’
reader contribution columns.
Those columns are so you can
tell me what you want
everyone else to know.
Vikings in the News is a
column devoted to the ac
complishments of past and
present Vikings. Did a friend
get accepted for grad school?
Tell us about it! Has an
alumnus a new job? Let’s
flaunt our accomplishments!
As i’ twere is the literary
section. We will print poems,
short stories, essays, photos,
art, or any of your creative
work.
Sound Off!!! is the place
where you can air your beefs,
praise someone or something,
or just be heard. Keep your
comments decent, though,
OK?
Rumor has it... is a little
column of one-liners about
any subject. We reserve the
right to not print those that
could be misunderstood or or
that are offensive. Other than
that, anything goes!