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Volume 83 No. 4
Grimsley High School
801 Westover Terrace
Greensboro, NC27408
December 19, 2007
Mayor Yvonne Johnson shares her vision
P
XV eflecting upon her 14
years as a City Council mem
ber, Yvonne Johnson referred
to herself as nofhing more
than a public servant. Her
goals are, and have always
been, to benefit the people of
Greensboro and fo assisf
them by participating in the
government.
Johnson's career as a self-
proclaimed public servanf
began over 30 years ago
when she firsf became in
volved in fhe community.
Her efforts included volun
teering within the commu
nity, working for fhe Summif
House Program and the
United Way, along with nu
merous other organizations.
Through her commitment to
volunteer work, Johnson be
came acquainted with vari
ous different people practic
ing different lifestyles. She
now believes such opportu
nities, along with her many
connections, not only helped
her become a council mem
ber, but also the latest mayor
of Greensboro.
Johnson's positions did
not come easily; she never
believed she could win elec
tions in her earlier days.
When she first ran for the
City Council, Johnson ran a
grassroots campaign with a
diverse committee and help
from friends and family.
Such political involvement
was only the start. After
serving on City Council and
holding the position of
Mayor Pro-Tern in Greens
boro, Johnson won the may-
oral election on Nov. 6 and
was sworn in on Dec. 4 at
City Hall.
"I originally considered
running for North Carolina
Senate, but I quickly realized
I'm happy where I am. When
I say I am your public ser
vant, I mean it," Johnson
said, in response to a ques
tion of whether or not she
planned on running for an
office higher than mayor.
I
_ “H-
Newiy elected Greensboro City Council membSrs”mShIde™Wrom left to 7igihit7™ldike Barber, Council Member
District Five; Goldie Wells, Council Member District 'Two; Sandra Anderson Groat, Council Member, Mayor Pro-
Tem, At Large; Former mayor Keith HoUiday; Trudy Wade, Council Member District Five; Newly elected Mayor
Yvonne Johnson; Zack Matheny, Council Member District Three; Mary Rakestraw, Council Member At Large; and
T. Dianne Bellamy-Small, Council Member, District One. Johnson was sworn in on Dec. 6 at City Hall and has
plenty of time to prove herself before the next election in 2011.
As to why she won the ships she has developed over manufactured in Greens-
election, Johnson answered
regarding the importance of
Greensboro residents having
a voice in their government.
"I want the people to be
lieve that they are not sepa
rated from their government.
I believe a lot of people feel
this way, and I would like to
change that," said Johnson.
Community involvement
is important to Greensboro's
new mayor, and when she
says "people," Johnson
means all of the people in
this city.
"I went to every district,
from the smallest of churches
to the largest of S3magogues;
from the Philippines Festival
to the Iranian New Year. I
love Greensboro's diversity.
We have 87 different ethnic
groups in this city, and we
are not capitalizing on the
gifts of this diverse popula
tion," said Johnson.
Johnson did not win her
election by just making her
self available to the commu
nity. Her campaign commit
tee raised over $90,000
through endorsements and
the help of the many friend-
the years. The Koury Center
hosted a Kick-Off, attended
by over 700 people, and
Johnson believed the event
played a part in her victory.
Now that Greensboro vot
ers elected her mayor,
Johnson has big plans for
Greensboro. Unemploy
ment and specifically the loss
of jobs in the textile industry
have caused many problems
in North Carolina. Mayor
Johnson plans to resolve this
setback withM the help of
the many colleges and uni
versities in the area. Greens
boro has several colleges and
universities, and with the
help of their resources, along
with new types of industry,
Johnson hopes to make ad
ditional jobs available to
more people.
Honda Jet, a company that
builds small airplanes and
sells them to private owners,
is one of these new indus
tries that Johnson hopes will
bring jobs to the people of
Greensboro. While the en
gines for the new jets are
built in Burlington, the actual
planes themselves will be
cpxm.cn
Editors-in-Chief
defend administration
despite faculty, student
complaints.
page 3
features
Review of 2007 Events
proves life remains
exciting on the planet
Earth.
page 10|
sports
Swimmer laps up
victories with times
qualifying him for
Nationals.
page 12
boro. Once this business
picks up, it will create over
hundreds of needed jobs for
the community.
Other industries Johnson
believes can help bring jobs
to Greensboro already exist
or are in the process of being
created. The Gateway Tech
nology, in its first year, will
help to create over 30 new
businesses. Cone and
Wesley Long Health com
plexes are developing more
technology and in turn more
job positions.
Besides bringing more
jobs to the community, the
numerous colleges and uni
versities in Greensboro are
an excellent resource for
Think Tanks, another of the
new mayor's programs that
she would like to enact.
Think Tanks are comprised
of students from different
colleges and universities.
They come together to dis
cuss difficult issues in soci
ety and determine methods
for solving problems. Think
Tanks are just one more way
that Johnson believes she can
help the citizens of Greens
boro become more involved
in the government.
Johnson listens to the
people because it is part of
the job description of a pub
lic servant. A major issue
among students and adults
throughout the entire coun
try is protection of the envi
ronment. She has her own
ideas for preventing the
earth from growing worse
and helping fix what many
environmentalists have al
ready attempted.
"We need to do all we can
not to add to the problem of
global warming," said
Johnson. Her plan to aid
Greensboro in helping the
world is to make the city
more like other Cool Cities.
A Cool City maintains a
policy that people must live
in an environmental-friendly
way; to drive ecologically-
sound vehicles, such as hy
brid electric cars; and to uti
lize alternate energy sources.
Greensboro has already be
gun this process with the
building of the Proximity
Hotel, which has solar pan
els on the roof with only en
vironmentally friendly mate
rials applied throughout the
entire construction.
Meeting Yvonne Johnson
during journalism class was
an honor for the entire "High
Life" staff. Her willingness
to visit the morning of Dec.
4, the same date she would
be sworn in as mayor, im
pressed the staff immensley.
Her devotion to the city is
evident. She inspired many
young journalists to engage
more closely in politics and
to seek ways to contribute to
the positive growth of
Greensboro. Mayor Johnson
is truly a public servant.