Winston-Salem Qironick
AREA DEATHS AND FUNERALS, B2
THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 10, 1988
Religion
B
?cus
bepression victim 'on the way
back' after near-fatai episode
*OBIN BARKSDALE
^unlty News Editor
■^As a radio announcer, Johnny Gardner receives all
^ s of phone calls from all types of people. He
" ives a lot of prank calls. On Oct. 11, he received a
call from an extremely depressed woman.
SPj("Somethmg in her voice let me know that this
. I't just a prank call or just someone who liked to
\ to talk to a deejay," said Gardner, a WSMX gospel
^ )uncer.
The call was not a prank. On the other end of the
le, "Linda" was describing how she planned to kill
elf and her two teen-age children. ("Linda’s" true
tity has been withheld to protect the privacy of her
nijily). She needed someone to talk to, she told Gard-
so the announcer put all of the other calls to the
^on on hold and spent an hour talking with Linda,
^mg that time, Gardner played several gospel selec-
cnij which he felt would help Linda and listened as
explained her situation. On Monday, Linda spon-
S "If it hadn’t been for Johnny Gardner
ould have died. He was the person God
^ to hold my hand .../ want someone to
a mile, not a block, in my shoes and
n tell me that they have been through
I same thing or that they wouldn't have
\e what I did."
“ — "Linda"
d an appreciation event for Gardner, whom she
saved her life and the lives of her two children.
"If it hadn't been for Johnny Gardner I would
ifc died," Linda said during Monday's program,
. :h was attended by several of her family members,
^Jner's family, the station's staff and members of
edonia TVPH Church. "He was the person God
to hold my hand."
t Linda, who freely admits that she had been "very
Mdal," said that she planned to kill her children
they returned from school that afternoon and to
^ her own life as well. She had planned carefully.
T sending the children off to school, she went to
“"store and purchased a large quantity of alcohol,
:h she drank. She knew that her children would be
Idticious if she told them to drink alcohol, so she
ght their favorite flavors of milk shakes and
ind bottles of sleeping pills into the milk shakes,
ling was set. But Linda said she hadn't planned
^ythir
on being distracted by a radio station.
"The radio station in our house is always set to
one station because everyone in our family always lis
tens to the same music," Linda said, her voice quiver
ing slightly. "I turned on the radio because I was a lit
tle nervous even though I had made up my mind what
I was going to do. For some reason, somebody had
changed the radio to WSMX and Johnny Gardner was
on the radio. He was playing Christian music and ask
ing what people wanted to hear. And he kept telling
people to call in if they wanted to hear something. It
was like he knew I was seeking help so I called him.
He told people that he had a disturbed lady on the air,
and he was going to spend a little time talking with
me. It was like God sent him to hold my hand until
help came."
Gardner was able to keep Linda on the telephone
until she calmed down and convinced her to call a
doctor and discuss her problems before continuing on
her mission. Heeding his advice, Linda first called
Alcoholics Anonymous, but said she became frustrat
ed when she was put on hold and told that the person
she needed was not available. Next, Linda phoned her
psychiatrist but, once she was in touch with his office,
decided instead to call only to cancel her afternoon
appointment. But her doctor told her that he would
come to her home. Linda said she was confused by his
insistence and rode around in a taxi to clear her head.
When she returned to her home, a police unit was
there and escorted her to the hospital, where she was
met by her doctor.
Linda, who obtained a day-pass from the hospital
to attend the program, said she is better now, but not
well. She cries every few minutes as she discusses
what almost happened to her, but she is convinced that
by talking about her experience she may be able to
help save someone else.
Linda said she suffers from severe depression.
The pressures of single motherhood had become too
much for her, she said, and her depression reached a
dangerous level. Her frustration was intensified by a
string of unfortunate incidents: Her house caught on
fire last December, and, shortly after, she suffered a
stroke which kept her in the hospital until February.
Her hospitalization cost her her job and left her with
little income to support her children. Linda said she
felt she was cheating her children by making them
have to help support her and not having a chance to
enjoy their youth. In her depression, she said, she saw
no way out other than killing herself and taking her
children with her.
photo by Mike Cunninqham
Family, friends and weil-wishers joined "Linda" in thanking WSMX announcer Johnny Gardner
during a program held at Macedonia TVPH Church Monday. Station operations manager Sarah
Bailey, representing "Linda," presented a plaque to Gardner, who was joined at the occasion by
Bishop S.D. Johnson, the church's pastor, and his parents, Lillie Mae and Oble Gardner.
Materials available at Forsyth Hospital estimate
that 30,000 people in the United States commit suicide
each year. Persons suffering from major depression
account for 40 to 50 percent of those suicides. The
materials further indicate that the overall prevalence of
major depressive episodes in the United States is
between 3 and 5 percent. The hospital defines a major
depressive episode as one in which the patient’s "mood
disturbance is prominent and prolonged and usually
associated with accessory symptoms."
Symptoms of severe depression include appetite
and sleep disturbances, feelings of hopelessness, drive
inhibition and anxiety. Persons with major depression
also may experience loss of memory, chronic pain,
fatigue, hopelessness, irritability and feelings of inade
quacy.
"I want someone to walk a mile, not a block, in
my shoes, and then tell me that they have been
through the same thing or that they wouldn’t have
done what I did," said the 36-year-old Linda. "But the
important story is that there is help for people who
need it. Depression and alcohol can kill you. I learned
something in the hospital. My hurt is on the inside,
and that’s something I have to work on. Getting it out
is what will help me because we all wear masks, but
you can’t keep everything on the inside. So many peo
ple are ignorant of depression that when you say
you’re depressed they think it's all in your mind. You
have to be aware of the symptoms and get some help.
Depression is a mental illness, but when you say men
tal illness most people think about you being retarded,
and that’s not what it’s like. Anybody can get depres
sion."
Gardner said he wasn't sure what to do at the time
he began talking to Linda, but he felt confident that
she just needed someone to talk to.
"I got the distinct impression that she was for real.
I didn't know what to say because I’m not a psycholo
gist or anything," he said. "All I wanted was for her
not to hurt herself. She knew she needed to talk to
someone so we just talked for an hour or more. I think
that was a big part of it. It's one of those situations
you can’t lake for granted. I knew I had to say some
thing, and, fortunately, what I had to say took effect
and I'm just glad she’s here."
Linda, too, is glad that she survived that bout with
her depression and is working hard on recovering.
"I’m not going to get well overnight. Depression
doesn’t come overnight and you can’t get rid of it
overnight. I’m just so glad I didn't do what I was going
to do. Depression and alcoholism can wipe out a fami
ly, and that’s what it almost did to me. I’m going to
fight it every day. I’m going to make it this time."
CHURCH
- CALENDAR
- FRIDAY, NOV. 11
I Ambassador Cathedral will celebrate Appreciation '88 through Nov. 13
hcaior of th^ minister of music, David L. Allen. The guest evangelist
X the weeksnd will be Nathan Simmons of Brooklyn, N.Y. Area and local
oirs will also participate. Services will begin at 7:30 nightly. Sunday's
rvice will present the "Black and Gold Fashion Affair," sponsored by fte
Umbassadors for Christ Choir. Bishop FD. Pattereon is host pastor.
SATURDAY NOV 12
Bethany Baptist Church will hold an all-you-can-eat barbecue hickory
oked meal from noon until. The Bethany Baptist Church Youth Council
sponsoring die event. Adult plates are $5, plat^ for childr^i ages 6 to 12
5 $3; plates for children under 6 are free. The proceeds will benefit youth
tivities, including a winter retreat
Mother Mary Abbott will conduct an Inner Healing Service at noon. The
icsl speaker will be Jeanne Reynolds, a graduate of Rhema Bible Training
mter in Tulsa, Okla. She is a member of Agape Faith Church. Elder J.C.
Jish is host pastor. For more information call St Peter's Church of God
IjJostoUc at 722-2285.
5.;diop McGuinness High School will hold its annual bazaar from 9 a.ni. to
5 p.m. at the school, 1730 Link Road. There will be quality upholstery fab-
handmade crafts, baked goods, raffles, clothes, a silent aucticm, a Yule
», -games, a book fair, a flea market and lunch will be served. All pro-
j eds will benefit the school.
\ Bedildiran AME Zion Church’s Trustee Board will sponsor a barbecue
5 id fish dinner sale from noon to 7 p.m. at the church, 6475 Old Yad-
5 nville Road in Pfafftown.
1 Bishop IWllie Davis Jr. and Christ Rescue Temple Apostolic Church will
,)ld a dedication service for the church’s annex at 2 p.m. Bishop O.D.
Jjgrant, state overseer of the North Carolina United Churches of Jesus
ipostolic and pastor of Progressive Apostolic Church, will be the gu^t
neaker. Bishop R.L. Kellam, Martinsville, Va., and Bishop S.E. Saunders
^ Goldsboro, will also appear on the program. Churches from Virginia,
,orth and South Carolina will participate. The CRT Young Adult Qioir
|ll friinish music for the occasion.
"God's Answer to Fat" Club will be organized at 2 p.m, at Revelations of
Aith Church, 1236 E. 26th St. Everyone with scmething to lose is invited
Please see page B9
CHURCH NOTES
37th Race Progress Day scheduled at New Bethel Baptist
Special to the Chronlcte
The Rev. Dr. Ralph McKinley
Ross, assistant professor of philoso
phy and religion and assistant dean
of student development at N.C.
A&T State University, will address
the 37lh annual Race Progress Day
audience Nov. 13 at 3 p.m. at New
Bethel Baptist Church.
The program will mark the
64th anniversary of the Effort Club.
A native of Miami, Ross
received his bachelor of at
Knoxville College and his master of
divinity degree from the Interde
nominational Theological Center in
Atlanta.
He also completed advanced
studies at the University of Ten-
Ross
nessee and at Drew University.
Ross, the interim minister of
First United Baptist Church in High
Point, has worked for Eastern Air
lines and as a minister in Columbus
Georgia, as and associate minister
in Miami, dean of chapel and sm-
dents in Tennessee, as a chaplain
with the U.S. Naval Reserves and
as a lecturer at the University of
Tennessee.
Ross is the recipient of several
awards including a Rockefeller Fel
lowship Award, the Marathon
Award, and the Phi Alpha Theta
International Honor Society in His
tory.
He is affiliated with the
NAACP, MBHE, NAPW and
ACURA. Ross has travelled exten
sively in most of the continental
United Stales, Canada, Franc, Ger
many and Korea.
He and his wife, Gertrude,
have six children.
Others appearing on the Race
Progress Day program will be
Corinne Phillips, presiding; Ophelia
Robinson, scripture; Harold Easter,
invocation; Paula Imes, the occa
sion; Charles Robinson, offertory
prayer; Flora Golden, introduction
of speaker; Hattie Carson, presenta
tion to the church and the NAACP;
and Dorothy Shipp, introduction of
Effort Club officers.
Music will be furnished by the
Young Adult Choir of New Bethel.
Dr. Jerry Drayton, the church's pas
tor, will give expressions of thanks
and the benediction.
Ann Hanes is president of the
Effort Club; Corinne Phillips is pro
gram chairwoman.
New Faith to celebrate journey of faith
Special Messages
Bishop Lawrence S. Tate, left, and Minister Jeff Reed, pastor of
Power House of Deliverance #7 in Mississippi, will deliver mes
sages at the Founders Day observance at New Faith Chapel.
Tate is the church's pastor.
New Faith Ch^jd Holiness Church
will hold its first annual Founders Day
sttvices beginning Nov. 14, "Ibe services
will run through Nov. 18 and a service
also will be held Nov. 20.
The wed: d festivities will kida^
with a candlelight processKHi led by the
founder and pastor. Dr. LawreiKe S. Tate
and his wife, Braida Ike. The couple
will be followed by church membas,
guest officials, guest ministos and guest
churches. The theme fcx the occaskxi is
"We've Cane This Far By Faith."
The church was oganized in May
1980 undCT the leadership of Ike, \\fien
^jpoximately 90 membas janed. The
charter membas were: Mr. and Mrs.
James Floyd St, Josqpfr Garris, Mr. and
Mrs. Charles Carson, Jean Armstroig,
Willie Cress, Bell Cato St, Bell Cato Jr.,
James Bassett, Willie Williams, Fannie
Cato, Altai Gamble and Mary Davis.
The church officers are: Mrs. Tate,
church secretary; Louvenia Pittman,
financial secretary; Sandra Carsoi, trea
sure; James Bdton, chairman of deacon
board; Genell Stewart, chairman Busier
Sandra Young, church repater; and
James Beltoi, Sunday school supein-
lendaiL
The guest qieaker fa the wedc will
be Jeff Reed, pasBx of ftiwer House of
Ddiverance #7, in Mississ^l Reed, a
native of Mississippi, has been the
church’s pastor for five years. He is a
graduate of \Sfest Virginia Stale Univer
sity. He and his wife, Tuia Reed, have
two daughters.
Following the morning service,
dinner will be served in the church’s
fellowship hall.
Service time is 7:30 nightly.
Reed also will be the Sunday morn
ing speaker.