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Toughness sets
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Community J
Kwanzaa returns
to Triad
Chronicle reporter
goes caroling
. 7S mm Winston-Salem Greensboro High Point v?i. xxvi no. i? ;
Thf Chroni =
120100 CAR-RT-SORT* "C012 |
16 N C ROOM
FORSYTH CNTY PUB LIB
660 W 5TH ST i Q
WINSTON SALEM NC 27101-2705 I
1974 - Celebrating 25 Years - 1999
1 from th* library
Tapping into students' needs
BY CHERIS HODGES
THE CHRONICLE
The corner of a $5 bill peeks
from the green New Testament
Bible on Dennis Felder's desk at
Winston-Salem State University.
The money is not for spending,
it's for teaching. The $5 bill is a
lesson to his students, he said. It's
there to keep them from yielding
to the temptation to steal.
"This money has never been
touched," he said. Felder often
leaves his office open and allows
his students to go in and out to get
things they might need. His stu
I
WSSU department head proud
of unique approach to education
dents have never betrayed him in
any way. Felder leaves his wallet in
a file cabinet and no one has dared
to steal from him.
Then again, with Felder there
is no need to steal from a man who
would give his students anything
they need to succeed.
Felder, his students say, is not
like any other professor at WSSU.
As a matter of fact, Felder,
coordinator of WSSU's Sports
Management Department, may be
different from any professor at any
university.
At any time of day or night,
you can find him hunched over his
desk, searching for internship
opportunities for his students.
To avoid his wrath, students
must come to class prepared with
neatly-styled hair. If pants are
hanging down to a student's knees,
Felder tells the student to pull
them up.
"One student needed a belt,
because we do not allow students
to walk around with their pants -
halfway down their butt. I told
him, 'Look, I'll buy you a belt,"'
Felder said.
Poor grades are not allowed
and students attend outside func
tions like job fairs, armed with up
to-date resumes and dressed for
interviews. %
The rules are all part of
Felder's unique approach to teach
See F?ld?r on A10
I
Tearful vigil
I Photos by Kevin Walker
Friend* and neighbors place a yellow ribbon on a tree for misting McCombs Ligons.
Holidays hard for family of missing man
BYT. KEVIN WALKER
THE CHRONICLE
Residents of a middle-class East Win
ston neighborhood took to the streets last
Thursday night to lend their support to a
search effort for one of their own.
A group of 25 gathered at 1104 Pro
gressive Lane, the home of Johnny Ligons
and his family. The house is the last place
McCombs Ligons, Johnny Ligons' father,
was seen. That was nearly two months
ago; there has been no sign of the elder
Ligons since then.
Family members say McCombs
Ligons, 73, was in the early stages of'
Alzheimer's disease and has difficulty
remembering the present. He had become
disoriented and disappeared on occasions
in the past, the family said, but never for
such a long period of time.
"We thought he would show up in a
day or two," Johnny Ligons said.
McCombs Ligons' disappearance has
made the holiday season difficult for the
Ligons family this year. But even as the
weeks turn into months, the family says it
is keeping hope alive and praying that
McCombs Ligons will come back to them.
"It's been very hard on us," Johnny
Ligons said, "but we are all hopeful."
McCombs Ligons had lived with his
son for nearly two years before his disap
pearance.
. Friends and neighbors of the Ligons
held lighted candles on the sidewalk in
front of the family's home, braving chilly
temperatures and strong winds. They
donned small yellow ribbons on their
clothes and placed larger ribbons on sever
al telephone poles on the street.
The group also prayed collectively for
the safe return of Ligons. They ended the
prayer with an uplifting spiritual, at which
point tears fell down the faces of many
members of the Ligons family.
"This is a way for us to show love for
the (Ligons) family and that we under
stand," said Tracy Carpenter, the family's
neighbor. "We also want to do all we can
to help them."
Carpenter's husband as well as many
other of the Ligons' neighbors and friends '
joined the Winston-Salem Police Depart
ment in a massive search for Ligons soon
See Missing on A9
ill -g?
Photo by Chens Hodges
WSSU professor Dennis Folder talks tnrfi a student before an exam
last week. Folder's brand of 'tough love' is a hit with students.
Local Adam's
Mark slapped
with racism suit 1
BYT. KEVIN WALKER
THE CHRONICLE "
In Winston-Salem, and near
ly two dozen cities throughout
the country, the Adam's Mark
Hotel is known for style, sophis
tication and elegance.
But a growing number of
African Americans and the U.S.
government say that there's a
quality rampant at the hotel
chain that does not get promot
ed in glossy publicity brochures
or on its slick web page - racism.
The U.S. Justice Department
filed suit against the hotel
chain last Thursday, charging
that Adam's Mark hotels dis
criminate against African Amer
icans by charging them more
than whites, offering them less
desirable rooms and requiring
more security for them.
The suit also alleges the hotel
chain implemented procedures
to exclude or limit the number of
nonwhite clients in its hotels,
restaurants, bars and lounges.
The Justice Department said
the hotel chain's alleged prac
tices are in violation of the Civil
Rights Act of 1964, which pro
hibits discrimination in public
accommodations.
See Adam's Marie on AC
Sprinkle-Hamlin
takes helm at library
BY CHERIS HODGES
THE CHRONICLE
Beginning Jan.l, the Forsyth
County Public Library System
will have a new director with a
new vision for the new millenni
um.
Sylvia Sprinkle-Hamlin was
named director of the library
system Dec. 16. Her title will be
official after the first of the year
when the current director,
William Roberts, retires.
Sprinkle-Hamlin has been
with the library for 20 years. She
began her career working with
children as a children's librarian.
Sprinkle-Hamlin said the lessons
she learned working with chil
dren helped prepare her for this
position.
"Working with children is
like working with little people,"
she said. She said she wants to
be sure people realize everything;
is going to be OK when the lead
ership at the library changes.
"1 want to make sure there i&
a smooth transition between hi<,'
(the current director's) leader-;
ship and mine," Sprinkle-Ham-;
lin said. J;
While she does not plan to; t
make sweeping changes right- ,
away, she said she plans to build
on the "strong foundation",
already in place. She said the
Forsyth County Library system
has the best staff in the South
east.
"I want all facilities to have
the latest in technology," she
said. "Some parts of the com
munity (don't have access) to
computers. I want the library to
provide the computers."
Customer care has always
See SprinkU-Homltn on A11
Residents concerned
about their safety
BY JERI YOUNG
THE CHRONICLE
Abandoned cars, loitering and
decrepit rental properties were
among the issues discussed by resi
dents of East Winston neighbor
hoods during a town meeting last
week.
The meeting, one of several held
at Hooper Funeral Home last week,
gave residents of the Northeast
Ward an opportunity to share their
concerns with a cadre of city and
county officials, including represen
tatives of the police and fire depart
ments and the city's neighborhood
development department.
Dozens of
resiuenis rep
resenting a
host of East
Winston
neighbor
hoods attend
ed the meet
ing.
Tops on
their list of
itomc tn
IIVIIIJ IV
address with
Sec Neighborhood on A10
Kids give up guns
Program lets children trade
violent toys for games
BYT. KEVIN WALKER AND
FELECIA P. MCMILLAN
THE CHRONICLE
Hundreds of young people
walked into Happy Hill Garden's
William C. Sims Recreation Center
with toy guns and knives last Fri
day evening; they walked out with
kinder and gentler toys - dolls,
basketballs, books
The Sims Center carried out its
annual "Peace Toys for War Toys
Exchange" with much fanfare in
the building's large gymnasium.
Ben Piggot, the center's super
visor and the creator of the pro
gram, arrived as Saint Nick for the
occasion. He helped welcome a
host of special guests who were on
hand for the exchange. They
included Winston-Salem Police
Chief Linda Davis, State Sen.
Linda Garrou and representatives
from the local chapter of North
Carolinians Against Gun Violence.
Several uniformed sheriff's
deputies and police officers were
also present to show their support
for the program.
Tragedy led Piggot to start the
exchange back in 1991. After his
See Toys on A10
Santa's helper hclpi distribute peaceful toys for guns.
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