{ Mr. and Ms. Top Toon of America 1997-98,
V, Alfred "Buddy" Whho and Maya McCoy.
Top Teens of America, Inc. honor their parents at first scholarship land cruise
?y felecia f McMillan
Co??ityCmilifmJiM __
Lady Minnie Ervin, president of Top
Ladies of Distinction, inc. (TLOD)
welcomed the parent* and the member*
of Top Teens of America, Inc. aboard
The Fantasia.
Then the land cruise ship sailed to
i antasyiand On Monday, l>ec. 22, the
ship docked at the Anderson Center on
the campus of Winston-Salem State
University and ast sail at 7 pm. The
coordinators of the anise were Earn
and Lady Daisy Statdn.
The captains of the ship, Lord Jakay
Irvin, Sr and Lord Leonard Staten
welcomed each sailor with a handshake
and a smile Alderman Vivian H. Burke
of the Northeast Ward gave greetings on
behalf of the City of Winston-Salem.
The entertainment for the evening of
elegance included Chris Munell of the
Connt Basic Orchestra and soloist
Belinda S. Wilson, renowned mezzo
soprano. Mag Smith, organist of First
Baptist Church on Fifth Street served as
the accompanist for the evening.
Teen Alfred "Buddy" White and
Teen Maya McCoy were crowned Mr.
and Ms. Top Teen of America 1997-98.
Former Teen Charlita Cardwell served
as mistress of ceremonies, and former
Teen Kenyatta Manns was the
commentator for the fashion show of
formal wear.
The purpose of this cruise was to
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raise scholarship funds for the Top
Teens of America, Inc. Winston-Salem
Chapter and to honor the parents and
guardians of the teens involved.
"The parents have worked so hard to
get thesfc kids where they are. The
parents woe so elated and so thrilled to
board the cruise to fantasy land. It was
different, and everyone enjoyed the
idea," said Ervin.
> "These are ordinary teens doing
extraordinary things, and it is all
because of committed parents who
helped to see them through. They
deserve our honor and praise," she
added.
Chris MuneU of the Count Basic
Orchestra sang "Wind Beneath My
flc. ' v ' ' ? *
Wings" as a tribute to the parents.
Soloist Belinda S. Wilson sang "Sweet
Little Jesus Boy," and Murrell joined her
in a duet of "Silent Night." "The music
just sent chills down our spines. It was
so special, Ervin mid.
Lady Daisy Staten assisted Ervin
with the planning of this special
function.
"Oh, it was beautiful. It was an affair
that any king or queen could be proud
of. We worked so hard, but it was all
worthwhile," Daisy said. She was so
proud to see the teens conduct
themselves in such a professional
manner, and all of the ladies were
Set TOP TONS on A7
75 cents WINSTON - S A LE M GREENSBORO HlGH POINT Vol. XXIV No. 18
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?l^"i97 * * * * * "car-rt-sort* *c0" 2 ~
pols2om The Choicef?r African-American News and Information e-mail address: wschron@nelunlimiled.net
forsyth cnty* pub lib
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Sigmas help five motherless
children through the holidays
By FELECIA McMILLAN
Community Correspondent
"I am committed to raising my
grandchildren, but the burden has
become impossible for my husband and I
to bear alone" ? Elnora Ratliff
When Billie Booker heard a letter
on the 97.1 radio station about five
motherless children who were in need
during the holidays, he immediately
called Darryl Prince, the president of
IW ...
6 ? whose mother was murdered in
August of 1996 as she sat on her porch.
In the letter, Elnora Ratliff, the
mother of the deceased explained, "I
am committed to raising my
grandchildren, but the burden has
become impossible for my husband
and I to bear alone."
Unable to work because of her
diabetes and vision loss, Elnora and
John Ratliff are dependent upon his
one check as income Following the
murder, the father of the children
^Hit
However when the brothers of Phi
Beta Sigma left the Ratliff home, they
had contacted Bell South to install a
telephone line, and they plan to pay for
the phone bill for the first six months.
Paris, S, was thrilled to get a black
baby doll and a Tickle-Me Elmo. They
filled up three buggies at K-Mart, and
Walmart donated five boxes of clothes
and personal items such as washing
powder, antiperspirant, soap,
shampoo, paper towels, and other
toiletries.
"When we delivered these
packages, the children's faces lit up like
Christmas tree," said Prince.
When Billie Booker saw the
opportunity to be of assistance to the
family, he knew that' the Sigmas
needed to move quickly. Prince and
Booker met with the family in order to
access their needs They took a trip to
the community where the family of
nine lives in a single wide trailer
designed for four.
"We were deeply touched by their
condition," Booker said. Prince and
Booker stood in awe as Elnora and her
husband John recalled the horror of
that hot summer day in August.
The late Helen Ratliff had just put
her children down for a nap and had
gone out on the porch to get some
fresh air because it was so hot is the
house. According to Chanita Howard,
a young woman emerged from a car,
walked up on the porch and shot
Helen in her chest. Helen then fell
back into the door. Based on her last
words Helen did not even know her
murderer.
Motivated by the family's dire
circumstances, Prince and Booker
moved on the case. After calling an
emergency meeting with the fraternity
two days later, President Darryl Prince
and the twelve men of Phi Beta Sigma
came up with $850 which they used to
shop for the family. From those
members of the fraternity who were
absent from the meeting, Prince
See CHILDREN on A3
Thm latm Holon Ratiiff wo s thm mothmr of (loft to right) Patrko, Park, Phillip,
ICovin, and Chancy (holding cousin istonco) boforo aha was gunnad down
on hor mothmr't porch in Augutt of 1996.
the Delta Sigma Chapter of Phi Beta
Sigma to solicit their help.
Christmas letter #1 was about a
family of five children ? Chancy 11,
Phillip, 9, Kevin 8, Patrice 5, and Paris
abandoned the children and has not
been heard from since. The family did
not have a telephone, nor did the
children have beds. They slept on the
floor.
m ' ?
VY
Dec. 20 & 21 ^
L.J.V.M. MEMORIAL
^ COLISEUM
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Kmiitlmiitt of felt Wintton-Salom pray for on and to vMmm to ihotr tommonkp.
New yearr new career
Robert V. Williams (top)
and William Collins Jr.
(right) recently received
commissions at N.C. A&T
and will start the year off
as military officers.
Stop tempting African Americans
with ads that promote violence
BY SHARON BROOKS HODOE
THE CHRONICLE Editor
n . T ? . v "? _
? ' ? . . f
Violence in black
neighborhoods would be easier to
curb if outsiders didn't use
billboards to encourage the sale of
weapons, said the Rev. Seth
Lartey.
Lartey recently organized a
demonstration in front on one
such billboard. About a dozen
people, joined hands and prayed
in front of a huge sign at the
intersection of Liberty and
Paterson streets.
This particular sign was
advertising a gun and knife show
being held in December. The ad
has since been changed.
, "We've seen that the billboard
has changed,"Larteyf said on
Tuesday. He added dug the new
advertisement "is of a health
conscious nature, and I think
that's the kind of thing that
should be advertised in our
neighborhoods."
Lartey said he and those how
joined in the demonstration are
disturbed that "people keep
bringing their trash into our
neighborhoods." He said that
such signs don't tempt the
residents of places like Buena
Vista and Paufftown
"So why dump things that
destroy us in our community?"
Lartey asks. Since the
demonstration on Dec. 22, Lartey
has been collecting signatures. He
said he intends to take the
petitions to city officials with the
hope of having restrictions placed
on billboard permits.
But that may not be an easy
task. The city already has
regulations for where billboards
can be placed, said Bill Petree,
who is the city's zoning code ,
enforcement supervisor.
"Although we have guidelines
and restrictions on sign
placement, I'm not sure what we
can do about content," said
Petree. "I would direct them to
speak with one of the city
attorneys."
According to Lartey, other
urban areas have been successful
in barring certain types of
advertisements. He said be would >
like to see East Winston-Sakm s
purged of any billboards that are 1
not educational or promoting
cultural events.
^ ?