? j -n - 3l ^ MAST UVCRMORE LI BR ART \ 32^ gitv'1 fEMBROKE. STATE. LIBRARY ~~ (KMMOK&Ufi fcJTl/ C r~ CO s?t i ? ? m h c -si . & ? ? . : > rc w ? ? - < X - - - . 1 ^^___,^ ?hhhhihhhhhhhhhihhhhhhhbbbbbbbbbbbiiihhbihbbhbihmhhhbhbhhhihb i ?? Published each Thursday since January 18,1973 I i Z ? B V' I I n 75 I li r, ? ? : -. I 00 -< ! W s , r "J -j e Carolina Indian Voice I. .[..Li L I Pembroke, NC Robeson County I "Building communicative bridges in a tri-racial setting" - - ^ ??- ? ? - .. ... -. LRDA Awarded federal loan to establish a model farming enterprise The LumbeeHl^pona] Development Association has been notified that it has been awarded a $75,000 interest free loan to implement a model Turkey Fanning Operation to assist farmers in the potential development of similar operations to supplement or expand their farming operations. The notice of award was announced by the Rural Electrification Administration in Washington, DC which has a special loan fund to assist in developing jobs and 1, industry in rural areas. \ The 75,000 award to LRDA will be passed through the Lumee River Electric Membership Cooperative, as part of f its economic development efforts in its rural service area. The U.S. Department of Labor has also approved over $100,000 toward the development of this project to provide a potential alternative farming model for farmers as Tobacco programs continue to be attacked by health concerns. LRDA will use this project several ways. LRDA will actually grow turkeys for sale by Pre stage Farms to ROCCO Industries in St. Pauls, NC to generate revenues for the tribe. ? Also, LRDA will provide a model operation and a technical assistance center for farmers who might consider Turkey farming on a small scale as a supplement or alternative to the tobacco crop. Acceptance will be provided in loan packaging, development, building and site selection, and manage ment training. The model that LRDA will propose to farmers would allow them to continue their current level of farming operations without any phase back of existing crops until they so choose. ROCCO Industries, the new Turkey Processing Plant, is projected to need additional growers as it expands to a second and third work shift operation in the future. LRDA's project will have a training component to train workers in the operation of such a growing facility so other farmers can draw on this expertise if they decide to develop a similar operation. In receiving the notice of the loan award Adolph Blue, Chairman of LRDA, stated, "This is part of LRDA's continuing efforts to create jobs and industry in our service area and this funding will allow LRDA to provide assistance to farmers in ways we have been unable to before. Any revenues the tribe derives from its project will be used in our communities to develop other economic development enterprises which wfll create jobs and revenues for further economic development." For more information contact Bobby Griffin. Economic Development Director for LRDA at (919) 521- 0345. Whatever Happened to ... nanfrtrH Dial, Sr. r . j i by Barbara Rmvboy-Locklear SPECIAL TO WE CAROLINA INDIAN VOICE I- More than food hires Danford Dial, Sr. to the dining table in the eat-in kitchen of his Cummings Heights home off Union Chapel Road in Pembroke. From the round table located by a window overlooking a flower garden the stocky grandfather settles down in a favorite chair to nourish himself mentally from one of dozens of books displayed on a shelf in hand's reach. "1 read, I read, I read everything I can get my hands on," he exclaims. An insatiable reading appetite brings Mr. Dial to the table every day of the week where he sits for hours y feasting mostly on biblical works and those of United States history. The American Indian says he's always had an alert ., mind and that curiosity now eats away at it Retirement seven years ago affords the educator/administrator time to feed his ever present curiosity by consuming every page in every book he places on the table top before him. Seventy-one years ago on Thanksgiving Day, Danford Dial became the first of ten children bom to Onnie Dial and wife, Mary Jane Clark Dial in the Prospect community of Robeson County. It was in his beloved community that he received his early education bom Prospect School. He remembers all his teachers in grades one through seven and says he has fond memories of how each influencd his life. He says his first grade teacher, Ehnma Lowery, was "a rose of a woman." And he idciised Rose Carter because she always east him in school plays, lb other teachings including Clement BuDaid, Lacy Maynor, Mandy Jacobs, ESisabeth Maynor fend Roscoe Locklear, the appreciative former students gives A's. After graduating from Indian Normal High School Dial enrolled in Indian Normal College ia 1988. A long time classmate and friend, Abner Locklear, had left the county to attend college out of state and Mr. Dial says he, too, dreamed of going away to school. His dream was realized in 1989 when he was accepted at Alford Hal brook College in Manchester, Ohio. He says upon his arrival at die town's train depot college representatives took one look: at his statue and knew right away they had a football player. And so it was the college sophomore was awarded an athletic scholarship. The linebacker was to play 11 games that season at the school. His stay at the Ohio school afforded him his first trip to New York City during a road game. " I thought the city was the most beautiful place Td ever been," he says of New York. A visit to a performance by B.B. King and his musical band became the highlight of the trip for the country-reared man. Mr. Dial says because of a financial hardship he was unable to round up enough funds to pay for a bus fare hyek to Hal brook College and he enrolled in the Indian Normal School in Pembroke where he completed another year of study before volunteering for military service in . the U.a Air Force in June of 1944. Leaving behind a sweetheart, he reported to duty at McDUl Field. Florida. Two years later the airman came home with marriage on hie mind. A planned wedding was delayed when a close family friend died. An unmarried Mr. Dial returned to his military base. Two weeks later hie Indian maiden sweetheart of 18 >V yean traveled by train to Florida. The seat morning at one o'clock Danford Dial married Reece Graham. The new bride had left her family and a teaching position behind V in ftobeaon County-to be with the aian she laved. The couple settled down in an apartment near the military beae. and then the order earn# far the young groom to report to fit, ID8d9PPfifc ^hkfigPd* T"Ihey leek me sway from my wtfoef two months." he Maateaa months later Mr.Dial returned heme from war la ambraee Ma wife and meet their firet bora #Mid. a SrcSShsxissti -? ?? ? ? .v* the summer of 1949. - /I ' fj \yith a major in social studies, Mr. Dial took his first teaching position at Fairmont Indian School. Inert, be says, he was shocked when aaaigaed to teach a class of 60 sixth graders. '"Ibey were sitting double," he says of the students in the room. ft became a daily chore to teach in a sub-standard wooden-floored, dust-filled room which required daily sweeping by the new teacher. Mr. Dial saya there were no chalk or eraser at the blackboard. "I was so diasappointed over the situation that I left teaching, the thing I loved doing most, to go to an automobile factory in Michigan. He moved his family to Dearborn and stayed until 1952 when, at the encouragement of his father, he returned to teaching school. In 1953 he accepted a principal/ teaching position at East Carolina Indian School in Sampson County. A year later he returned to Fairmont Indian School where his former sixth grade class had advanced to twelfth grade. '' Here I had this wonderful group of people Td taught and trained ao well," be remembers. ft was at the rural school, he says, he stretched the minds of all his students. And ft was there that he inquired them to engage in oratory and recitation of literary works. "I always taught my students how to make a speech before the class. Ibis gave them confidence and took away shyness," he comments. "If you want to meet an independent person, meet one who can talk." Mr. Dial was able to sen his seniors graduate that year and many of them, be says, tragi on to college. At the end of that school year Mr. Dial eras recruited by Elmer T. Losrty to teach English and Spanish at Pembroke High School During his eight yearn at the school Mr. Dial saya he helped produce large crops of college students. Even greater crops of Indian college students were produced by and for the educator during his 18-year tenure as principal at his alma mater. Prospect School While these be was to sea the school's graduating class grow from 29 to 100 students. "Prospect School had mote studants in college than any other school in any system in Robeson County." he Coeti'wuad Owfhgs S Churches urged to cancel evening services May 5 and attend Greater Robeson County Crusade In one and one half weeks, from Sunday. May 5. through Thursday, May 9. the Greater Robeson County Crusade will take place. Urging all churches to cancel their evening services on May 5 so everyone can attend the opening night of the crusade. Rev. Mike Cummings, one of three co-chairmen of the crusade, provided an update on the event in a recent talk to the Lumberton Kiwanis Club. "Robeson County has never had a crusade of this stature and notoriety. This is a big-time evangelistic crusade. We are going to have a choir of 250 voices, " said Cummings. who serves as director of the Burnt Swamp Baptist Association, which includes 56 churches. She of the crusade will be the Lumberton Senior High School Football Stadium, which seats over 3,000 on the home side. The crusade begins nightly at 7 p.m. Cummings is urging the area churches to also move their Wednesday night services to the stadium. '"Ibis crusade is directed at junior high and senior high students. Rick Gage, the evangelist, is a former Texas Tech football coach who resides in Atlanta. His father is FVeddie Gage, a full-time evangelist for many, many years. Rick has the endorsement of such people as WOliam Bennett, Tom Landry, Mike Ditka, Terry Bradshaw, and Bobby Bowden. "He w?preach at night, but in the daytime he will be visiting the schools. He won't be able to preach there and won't even cany a Bible them. But he will be talking to the youth about their problems, such as substance abuse and other problems," Cummings told the Kiwanians. Cummings said the "doors of the school are being opened wide to Gage, who will speak in the school rooms or the gyms about Oik problems young people are Others co-chairmen of the eruaade with Cummings are Rev. C.Jk Bordeaux, pastor of Antioch Baptist Chnich off the old Whiteville Read near Lumberton, and Wyatt Johnson i^ho is employed by die Public Schools of Robeson Cvmty. "Bordeaux is white, Johnson is Black and I am American kidian- three different races," said Cum mings. "Wouldn't it be wonderful to see persons of one race leading persons of other races to Christ?" He said sector. Cummings said the idea of such a crusade was bora six months ago when Rev. Bordeaux rode down Second Street in Lumberton and saw hundreds of teenagers idling their Uvea away on a Sunday afternoon. Since then, a committee of community leaders have combined their talents to make this crusade a reality. "The budget for the crusade is $16,000--and we've r&sied $12,000 of it," said Cummings. "We are bringing in three professional gospel music recording artists. They are all first class. We are spending $2,500 for the sound system alone. On Thursday night, we are going to give away free pizzas. We are buying 350 large pizzas, ft is part of our budget." Cummings said the crusade is not limited to Robeson County. "We are going beyond the county into Laurinburg, Fayetteville, Clinton and Lake Waccamaw. ft is going to be a colorful crusade," be enthused. Of Rick Gage, Cummings commented: "Rick certainly has a gift in speaking to young people. He has a unique kind of ministry, and we feel he'll be tremendously successful. Remember, we are in a desperate situation with our young people. They have to face up to their problems morally and ethically. When Rick goes into the schools, he'll probably be wearing blue jeans and a T-shirt. But he knows how to reach young people." Cummings told of Rick Gage crusades in Jacksonville, Fla., which attracted 30,00 and how 200 made professions of faith in one of his crusades in Waynesville, NC. "Everyone is looking forward to what is going to happen in this county. You can get the word out about his coming," urged Cummings in conclusion as he gave out posters and titeratum for the Kiwanians to distribute. RORFSON CRT mA.DE LEADERS TO ENCIRCLE COURTHOUSE VJ PRAYING FOR THE EVENT