Photo by Paul Collins Brothers Christian Searcey (left) and Chrishawn Searcey (right) and Jacques Shoffner The Way to a Father's Heart Church honors fathers at breakfast, worship service BY PAUL COLLINS I Ml CHRONICLE New Liberty Baptist Min istries? had activities Sunday morning to honor fathers who attend the church and the great est father of all, God. ? The activities began with a buffet breakfast on the church grounds. The breakfast, pre pared by Carol Cousar and Glo ria Myers, included bacon, ham. smoked sausage, chicken, eggs, grits, watermelon, cantaloupe, peaches, pineapple, grapes, bananas, juice. (Church mem bers chipped in various items.) "I just love doing it. I love cooking," Cousar said. "I love to show my appreciation to all the men. the fathers. Sometimes we don't show them enough love, you know, everyday working and men busy." Jackie Harrell was one of the 25 or more people who attended the breakfast. "I feel like the best way to honor our fathers is with praise and with honor because without God we wouldn't have any fathers to do what they do. And I thank God for all the fathers. I'm just glad that we could have a Father's Day at church. Instead of just being anywhere else, this is the best place to honor our fathers on Father's Dayf The church's pastor. Rev. Dr. Linda M. Beal. said that "table fellowship," eating together, is important because "that's part of what Jesus did: He taught table fellowship. And so we fellowship one with another here in the community." The 1 1 a.m. worship service followed the church breakfast. Beal said, "I think our bul letin points out who our greatest Father is ... God." The headline on the bulletin says "Thank God for Our Father's Love." Beal said there are w onder ful Scriptures in the Bible about fathers and sons. For example. Malachi 4:4-6 says: "Remember ye the law of Moses my servant, which I commanded untojiim in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Behold I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord; and he shall tum the heart of the fathers to the children, and the heart of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the earth with a curse." And Paul writes in Eph esians 6:1-4: Children, obey your parents in the Lord: for this is right. Honour thy father and mother, which is the first com mandment with promise; that I may, be well with thee, and thou mayest live long on the earth. And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord." Beal said, "I think it still car ries through today where they (young people) obey and honor their parents, that they would have a long life." During the worship service, all the fathers present were rec ognized and presented tokens. Deacon James C. Miller Jr., Beal's brother, of White Rock Baptist Church, was the special speaker for the worship service. He delivered a message on how husbands should base their love for their wives on biblical prin ciples, not on the world's love. He also advised men to become husbands before they become fathers. ? This was the second annual Father's Day service at New Liberty Baptist Ministries, which is at 922 S. Broad Street. Kirkman hopes his big dreams for Fifth District inspire voters BY T. KEVIN WALKER THE C HRONICLE A friend of Roger Kirk man's recently came across a tiny replica of the Capitol enclosed in a crystal prism, a find that she passed on to Kirkman - for good luck, she said. Kirkman has given the tiny trinket a prominent place in his office. It is now a constant sign of his biggest goal these days: to win a seat in the Capitol representing the peo ple of the Fifth Congressional District. Kirkman, 54, is an average Joe-kind of candidate. The city native has a background in geography and topography. He currently works in the office of marketing and com munications at Winston Salem State University. He has never held elected office before and this is the first time he has thrown his hat into a political race. And while jobs and the war are at the top of most candidates' agendas, Kirkman has "bigger fish that he wants to fry. He wants to change Congress - literally. "One of the reasons we are in the predicament we are in is because the government has gotten to be so distant from the person on the street," said Kirkman, a Democrat who will face Jim Harrell and Andrew Winfrey in the July 20 primary. Kirkman's solution for bringing the people closer to government is to increase the number of people in the House of Representatives. It is a topic on which Kirkman has done a lot of research. He said increasing the House member ship from 435 to around 1,000 would not only mean repre sentatives would have more intimate districts, but also that minority groups would finally get their fair share of congres sional representatives. Kirkman said his desire to change Congress is the pri mary reason he is running. Although he has ideas about health care (he wants to make it easier for small businesses to afford health care) and the war (he thinks America needs to work on building better relations with the average Arab man and woman), Kirk man said those topics are symptoms. A disconnected 18"' by Kevin Walker Roger Kirkman poses in front of a bust of George Washing ton that he keeps his campaign office. government is the cancer, he said. "The other candidates are talking about these Band-Aid issues. We need to treat the whole sickness," he said. While Republicans seek ing the Fifth District seat are wearing suits of armor (to avoid the back stabbing). Kirkman is proud that the Democrats have kept their campaign above Board. Kirk man said he respects the other Democrats. He and Harrell are even former classmates from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. But Kirkman says he stands out from the pack because his planks are original, not taken line-by-line from the national party's agenda. His other innovative ideas for the district include bring ing a light rail system to ease street traffic and creating a museum of industrial design to show off the region's strong industrial history. Kirkman admits to being a dreamer, but he insists that his ideas are not too over the head of ordinary folks who just want jobs that pay well and places to lav their heads. "Every trip of 1.000 miles begins with one step. I am ready to take a step," he said. Kirkman will take part in a forum Monday with the other Democrats running for the Fifth. The forum will begin at 6 p.m. at the Vintage Theater, located on the corner of Main and Vintage across from the N.C. School of the Arts. Phofo by Kevin Walker Members of Mount Pleasant tri umphantly and symbolically tear apart chains as they enact what may have hap pened back in I 865 when Texas slaves learned of their freedom. * * * SN TSWIit cirmers JULY FOURTH CELEB RAT ION Enjoy an Ail-American Fourth celebration includ ing flags and art making activities while stocking up on summer veggies for your holiday weekend. The Farmers' Market is located at Sixth and Cherry Streets in the Downtown Winston-Salem Arts District Open Tuesdays and *mmdays, <)am to npm through October. For information call 354-1500. a i 1 i L k A_ I A. a Juneteenth from page A I ebration. "(In Texas and Oklahoma) they celebrate (Juneteenth) with pomp, circumstance and fan fare. It is, in fact, their Fourth of July," Crump said. "They appreciate the Fourth of July, but it doesn't mean as much." State Rep, Larry Womble has been on hand for all of Mount Pleasant's Juneteenth events. But Saturday, he had to fit the event in between two other Juneteenth celebrations he attended. Womble said the holi day is catching on. A tew years ago he sponsored a resolution in the General Assembly that for mally recogni/.ed Juneteenth. ? The resolution passed unani mously. "That is one of the (bills) that I am most proud of," he said. Womble urged attendees to educate others about June teenth. He said blacks need to hold close to their history. "If we don't tell our own stories someone is going to tell our stories for us. and we may not like what they say," he said. Mayor Pro Tempore Vivian Burke, who served as the keynote speaker for the celebra tion. emphasized the impor tance of also keeping local black history alive. Burke has penned a booklet about local landmarks, build ings and streets named for African-Americans. Burke also told the audience to never for get the black men and women who existed in the country in "bondage. "I am so happy that I am free," she said. "I think about the suffering our people went through, and I try to enjoy every moment of life." Get There From Here, Easier Getting to Europe has never been easier with new twice daily Delta Connection jet service from PTI to New York's JFK airport. One ticRet,one stop, 31 international destination! Now more than ever, it just makes sense to Fly From PTt. Begins July 1, 2004. A Delta Connection' FlyFromPTI.com I