A Lesson in Love
FTCC International
Cultural Exchange
discusses Valentine's
BY COURTNEY GAILLARD
mi CHRONICLE
If you have ever wondered
who St. Valentine was or where
. exactly in the world this lover's
holiday is annually acknowl
edged. then look no further. Actu
ally do look further, please read
? on. Forsyth Technical Community
'.College's International Cultural
.Exchange came together the day
before Valentine's Day to share
customs of Cupid's favorite day in
a discussion titled "Ways to Woo
from Topeka to Timbuktu."
This round table of Interna
tional students spanning all cor
ners of the globe was led by Inter
national Cultural Exchange presi
dent Marcello Monge on Forsyth
Tech's main campus in the Park
way Building. Monge. a native of
El Salvador, was joined by fellow
students from Spain, South Africa,
Poland, Russia, South America
and Mexico, to name a few. Sever
al FTCC faculty members attend
ed with American students to
leam aboul love in other lands.
"This was a good opportunity
for students from all over the
world to get together and talk
about Valentine's Day and hope
fully help them out with any cul
ture shock they may be experienc
ing," Monge said.
Attendees were asked to write
"welcome" in their native lan
guage on the board before sam
pling from a table of red and pink
sweet treats. Many of the interna
tional students are working hard to
master the English language while
studying at FTCC and all agreed
that love is worthy of a national
holiday and indeed a language
that we all know very well.
Monge began the discussion
with a brief history on St. Valen
tine. Several legends exist about
the life of Valentine, who is
believed by many to.have been a
martyred saint in the Catholic
Church. One myth suggests he
was a priest imprisoned and put to
death by Roman Emperor
Claudius II in the third century for
secretly marrying young soldiers
whom the emperor believed were
better off unmarried or with a fam
ily.
Another legend holds that
Valentine helped Christians
escape the harsh and brutal treat
ment of Roman imprisonment.
Some also believe Valentine him
self sent the first "valentine" to the
daughter of his jailer, whom he
fell in love with each time she vis
ited him. Valentine apparently
wrote her a letter before heing put
to death and signed it "From your
Valentine."
Although Valentine's Day is
celebrated in most of the world, it
was not until the early 1700s that
people in America began
exchanging notes and tokens of
love to commemorate the day. At
some time during the 17th centu
ry, Valentine's Day became a pop
ular and celebrated holiday in
Great Britain. Today. Valentine's
Day is celebrated in America,
Canada, Mexico, United King
dom, France and Australia.
According to a student from
Tanzania, the tribe from which
you originate will depend on how
you celebrate Valentine's Pay due
to the various subcultures and lan
guages that exist around the coun
1
Photo by Courtney Gaillard
At right, FTCC International Cultural Exchange president Marcello Monge speaks with a stu
dent from Spain. ?
try. Students from countries such
as Panama and El Salvador
explained that Valentine's Day is
not just a holiday for lovers but a
day for showing appreciation for
friends.
Much attention is paid to
showering women with gifts and
expressions of affection in many
_,otlier countries outside of the
United States, but in Japan the
men have managed to land their
own day in which they receive the
attention. Women in Japan have
made a national practice of giving
men cookies as tokens of love on
March 14, exactly one month after
Valentine's Day,.
Russia and Poland only in
recent years began celebrating
Valentine's Day.
Whatever your practice or
preference for celebrating Valen
tine's Day, the students at FTCC.
both American and international,
agreed that the most important
thing to do is sho\y the people you
care about the most how much
they mean to you, be it through
card, candy or Cupid. ,
Mental health
from page AI
how we are going to provide
them. This plan also recognizes
the vast differences among our
communities. We know that
geography, culture and the health
care market varies across this
state...
"The plan is aimed at provid
ing specific services to individu
als with the most severe disabili
ties. We must focus our services
on people in these 'targeted popu
lations.' If we are truly going to
improve the plight of people with
MH/DD/SA challenges, then we
have got to make certain that lim
ited resources are used for the
people who need them most.
"The plan defines target pop
ulations for adults with mental ill
ness. children with mental illness,
people with developmental dis
abilities and people with sub
Stance abuse problems. It sets up
very clear categories for the peo
ple who should be receiving serv
ices through the public system.
"While this plan may result in
the loss of services to some indi
viduals, it ensures that the people
I
who most need the serviees
receive them. We will establish a
transition plan for consumers
who aren't part of a target popula
tion. There will be no abrupt can
cellation of any service or pro
gram. This transition will occur
in a humane and sensitive fash
ion.
"In essence, this plan sets up a
system that makes sure that those
most in need among us receive
the services. We have to admit
that our public system has finite
resources. It can't continue to try
and be everything to everybody.
People in target populations,
whether they live in Manteo or
Murphy, will have equal access to
services through a process that
guarantees that people throughout
the state enter and leave publicly
funded services the same way.
There will be many access
points, but standards for entry
will be consistent."
The plan defines what core
services will be available to all
citizens, within available
resources: screening, assessment,
referral, emergency services,
service coordination, consulta
tion, education and prevention.
The plan calls lor the use of a
statewide system contractor to
provide referral, crisis hotline
services and utilization manage
ment. The plan requires that a full
array of services be available to
people in all target populations,
including interpretation/transla
tion services, housing options and
employment opportunities.
A local business plan will be
devised for each community and
approved by county commission
ers - empowering the local com
munity to assess, evaluate and
collaborate with community part
ners to develop a system that
works for the community, while
meeting the mission of the
MH/DD/SA system.
The system will be adminis
tered on the local level by local
management entities (LMEs).
These LMEs will develop, imple
ment. oversee, monitor and evalu
ate system services in specific
regions. Area public mental
health programs or county gov
ernments can operate as LMEs.
County commissioners will
decide on governance structure
and coverage areas and approve
the local business plans.
1
"The local managerfient. enti
ties must be the strong managers
of the MH/DD/SA system," Car
men Hooker Odom's statement
says. "Provider networks must be
developed. Use of natural sup
ports must be maximized, and
other community partners such as
churches and support groups
must come to the table. Con
sumers must have a choice in
whom they see and where they
go. That's why it is so important
for the development of the local
business plan to be an inclusive
process - a process that sustains a
safety net and increases local
capacity to provide services and
supports. The plan also provides
for continued consumer/family
input, ensures that the public
knows how the system is doing
through the publication of annual
report cards and increased quality
of care. Some of the things we'll
be measuring are:
? Access - How many eligible
people are receiving services. Are
those services timely and ade
quate?
? Quality of care - Are care
takers constantly leaving? Are
people served involved in deci
sion making?
? Administrative processes -
Are people served/families, pub
lic and private agencies collabo
rating in planning an monitoring ?
? Consumer outcomes - Are
outcomes satisfactory?
"We also want to improve the
quality of services through the
creation of a competency-based
system for quality providers.
DHHS (Department of Health
and Human Services) has already
seen a great deal of success with
this method in improving the
quality of childcare services
across North Carolina. We have a
child care system that rewards
caregivers for providing better
service, especially through staff
education and training. We intend
to translate the successful system
into our mental health system.
"The plan also calls for cre
ation of an Office of Consumer
Affairs within the Division of
Mental Health. Developmental
Disabilities and Substance Abuse
Services. This office will be led
by a consumer and have 100 per
cent consumer membership. It
will include representatives of all
disability groups and will have
the support it needs Jo be effective
"We want an activist Office of
Consumer Affairs that is a part of
the director's top management
circle. The head of the Office of
Consumer Affairs is going to be at
the table when all decisions are
made, ensuring that the system is
consumer-focused, This is going
to be a working entity that helps
to shape our system. We are going
to embrace consumers' ideas and
thoughts, not ignore them. This is
going to be an open system that
welcomes and embraces people
served/family input.
'Today, the climate is right to
make system change for our pub
lic mental health, developmental
disabilities and substance abuse
services system. Everyone agrees
that something has got to be
changed, and everyone has come
together to make that change hap
pen. We have been given a mag
nificent opportunity for change,
and with the participation of all
stakeholders, we will change the
MH/DD/SA system in North Car
olina."
A second pari to this story
will run next week in The Chroni
cle
WWW wschronicle.COm
r'.hum' mm- imam. jh.. * jpk* - m
SciWorks' 7th Annual
African American Cultural Day
Saturday February 23rd 10:00am-4:00pm
? Otesha Creative Arts Ensemble (back bv popular demand!)
? Guest Speakers ,, ,. . ,
r Sponsored in part by:
? Gospel Singers ? _
? African Folktales ?E CHRONICLE
? Face Painting / Craft Activities ""USSfcS?"
? Planetarium Shows fYTI
? Science Demonstrations 1WUMIJ
? Health and Community Resource Fair
African American
Scientists & Inventors Exhibit
An exhibit celebrating creativity and invention
Through March 31st
Throughout this country and the world, African Americans have made
significant contributions in science and technology. This interactive exhibit
shows many familiar items from our homes, communities and offices that
have been influenced by their patented inventions.
It's our hope that this exhibit will spark the inventor in all people.
Present this coupon for
1/2 Price Admission for African American Cultural Da
Coupon valid 2/23/2002 only.
c?all 336-767-6730 for more information
www.sciworks.org
Goodrich
Intf
m
ifsatisnal
CI STATION
E EARTH TOUR
1 Blast off on the trip of a
lifetime with
International Space Station:
The Earth Tour
exhibit
Through May 4.201)2.
SciWorte
JlSSSSSt
The Seienre Center and Environmental Parti of ftnytk Coun
SciWorks is easy to find - just off llniversit
Parkway on Hanes Mill Road.
The Chronicle
19 th Annual
Community
Service Awards
In honor of the 2001 Community Service Program, The
Chronicle is pleased to present its "Commemorative Spe
cial Awards Edition" Thursday, February 28, 2002. Dis
cover for yourself the invaluable contributions
of this year's honorees and organizations.
Man of the Year
Bishop James C. Hash
?
Woman of the Year
Dr. Sylvia Flack
Volunteer of the Year
Ms. Marion Pittman-Couch
Community Service Award
Mr. Jose Isasi - Ques Pasa
Ministries John and Pansy Young - The
Potter House
I
Public Safety Officer of the Year
Ms. Patricia Norris
Human Relations Award
Iman Khalid Griggs
Green Street United Methodist Church
Curators of African American
Art & Culture
Mr. Eric Lowery
Mr. Hashiem Saleh
Special Recognition Award
Ms. Cheryl Stewart
Lexington NAACP
Coach Charlene Curtis
Alderman Fred Terry
Million Moms
Special Tribute Award
In Honor of Clark S. Brown
Carl H. Russell
Lifetime Achievement Award
Ms. Marion Wooten
Mr. Beaufort Bailey
Ms. Claudette Weston
Mr. Henry Jones
Mr. Phillip Hanes
Ms. Flonnie Anderson
Ms. Marjorie Northup
Mr. Henry Lewis
Mr. Victor Johnson
Ms. Velma Watts
a
To reserve your tickets for the 19th Annual Community Awards Banquet call 722-8624
or complete the order form in today's Chronicle and mail it to: The Chronicle, "19th
Annual Awards Banquet," P.O. Box 1636, Winston-Salem, NC 27101.
_ y