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NORTH CAROLINA ROOM
FORSYTH CTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
660 W 5TH ST
WINSTON SALEM NC 97101-2
* ?
"2755
Vol. XXXIV No. 6 THURSDAY, October 18, 2007
D Mac
making
moves
for Carver
?See Page B1
Survivor of
Holocaust
shares
her ordeal v
Sci-fi
party
draws
fun crowd
Powell
Churches
urged to
start sex
dialogue
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
As the war against the
spread of HIV / AIDS and other
STDs rages on, and unwanted
pregnancies continue to plague
our society, many churches have
stayed on the sidelines, unchar
acteristically quiet about issues
Melvin
of sex
and sexu
ality.
" I
think
we've
kind of
been
sleeping
on it,
we've
been like
the sleep
ing giant." Michele Powell , pas
tor of Discipleship and
Leadership Development at
Winston-Salem First (formerly
First Assembly of God), said of
the faith community. "I think
that we've sat back and tried to
let the government and other
people tackle what really is the
church's responsibility."
Not anymore. The Rev. Dr.
Seth O. Lartey, pastor of Goler
Memorial AME Zion Church in
Winston-Salem, has decided to
get in the game, so to speak,
envisioning a leadership lunch
eon to encourage honest dia
logue among community mem
bers of varying social and reli
gious backgrounds - a dialogue
that he hopes will evolve into a
collective understanding of the
See Churches on A12
Smiles in
Motion
Dental van brings smiles
to low-income residents
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
Nearly 50 young children took advantage of a rather
unique opportunity to receive dental care last week.
They clamored on board of the "Bright Smiles,
Bright Futures" van parked just outside of the Forsyth
Diller
Moodv savs.
County Department of Public
Health.
The bus is equipped with
everything one might find at
a traditional dentist's office,
and decorated inside and out
with brightly colored graph
ics designed to make children
feel at ease.
More than just a mobile
attraction, the Bright Smiles
van provides a valuable serv
ice to the community,
Director of Operations and
Co-Coordinator Jasper
"I have kids myself and this is one of the best things
that I've seen come along in a long time," he comment
ed. "I'm glad to be a part of it."
Sponsored by Colgate and Family Dollar stores, the
bus travels across North and South Carolina and parts of
Virginia, providing free dental screenings and refe^fals'
to children who need them. It is one of eight sucl/ vehi
cles in the nation. The van's most recent visit \^is well
received by Winston-Salem residents. /
"We had kids waiting here when we got hire," said
Photos by Lay la Fanner
Abner Olivares gets an examination last week on the Bright Smiles van.
Moody. "For us to pull up and see 15 kids outside, it's
great; it's really great."
The mobile facility has two dental chairs and a wait
ing area complete with a bench and television. Founded
in 1991 , "Bright Smiles Bright Futures" is part of a larg
er effort the Colgate-Palmolive Company is making to
improve dental health worldwide. This is the fourth
time this year the van has visited the city, Moody says.
The yan will return again next month, for a spree of
events at Family Dollar stores, starting Nov. 3.
The van visited the health department at the request
of Kelly Diller, a public health dental hygienist in the
Oral Health Section. Diller says she was hopeful that
the van would be able to reach a segment of the commu
nity she and others have had difficulty getting to in the
past.
"In general, just in this particular area and at the
health department, this is a hard to access population,"
stated Diller, who says that kids receiving benefits
See Denial on A12
Changing of the guard at Black Rep
Two longtime
supporters will
lead agency
CHRONICLE STAFF REPORT
It will be up to two women
to try to fill the shoes of one
heck of a man.
The North Carolina Black
Repertory Company (NCBRC)
this week announced that
Geraldine "Gerry" Patton has
been hired as the new executive
director of the Black Rep, the
state's first African-American
theater company. Mabel
Robinson has been pegged as
the Black Rep's artistic director.
Their appointments come
more than four months after the
death of Larry Leon Hamlin, the
man who founded the Black
File Photos
Gerry Patton, center, with Melba Lindsay, left, and Sylvia
Sprinkle-Hamlin at a NBTF event in July.
Rep and used it to launch the
National Black Theatre Festival
(NBTF), an event that brings
acclaimed stage productions.
droves of famous faces and mil
lions of dollars to the city every
two years. Hamlin served as
both the Black Rep's ED and
artistic director. Due to a
extended illness, Hamlin had
not been active for a year prior
to his death. The NCBRC Board
had appointed Cheryl Oliver as
the interim executive director.
Patton and Robinson, both
longtime supporters of the
Black Rep and National Black
Theatre Festival, were actually
hired last month by the N.C.
Black Repertory Company
Board of Directors.
Patton is a past president of
the NCBRC Guild, an organiza
tion that performs community
service projects and works to
raise money for the theater com
pany. For more than a dozen
years, Patton has worked with
See NCBRC on All
Mabel Robinson
Doggone!!!
Photo by Todd Luck
Whitney Long
is trying to con
vert her natural
love for dogs
into a prof
itable business.
She just opened
a dog daycare.
Here she is
with one of her
clients. Mickey.
Read more on
A14.
Renowned motivator to parents: take school seriously
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
Mychal Wvnn made it against all odds.
A low-achieving. African-American boy
growing up in poverty during the tumul
tuous times of the Civil Rights Era, Wynn's
mantra that "every child can learn," has a
much deeper meaning behind it.
Once a successful systems design ana
lyst, Wynn left his lucrative, corporate
lifestyle behind, to pursue his dream of
writing and inspiring others to achieve
greatness. To date, he has published 17
books and trained more than 100,000 teach- ,
ers across the nation.
He spoke to a group of parents, students
and staff at Konnoak Elementary Tuesday
night, as part of the school's VIP Family
night.
According to Konnoak Principal Jay
Jones, the purpose of VIP Night is to,
"bring our parents into our schools. It gives
an opportunity for our parents to see what's
going on in our school, meet some of the
teachers, talk to the teachers about different
curriculum issues that we're dealing with."
Photo by Lay la Parmer
Mychal Wynn speaks at Konnoak.
"It's just a good way to open the school
up for our parents," he added.
Wynn spent the day with Konnoak fac
ulty and staff, ending with a special talk
aimed at the parents who came out for the
occasion. His lively presentation was cen
tered around the success rates, or lack
thereof, of African-American and other
minority students. Citing the dismal facts,
he dared parents to help their children beat
the odds.
"You have to hold your children to the ,
very highest standards," he remarked.
"Your children should be encouraged to
master the elementary school experience."
Academic excellence starts early, says
Wynn, who lives in Georgia.
"As parents, we've got to be more in
touch with the importance of academics
early on," he told the audience. "We've got
to take what happens in kindergarten, first
and second grade seriously."
Wynn, considers himself to be from the
"old school." He is a strong proponent of
discipline and determination.
"We need children to work harder.
Sec Konnoak on A12
In Grateful Memory of Our
Founders,
Florrie S. Russell and
Carl H. Russell, Sr.
"Growing and Still Dedicated to Serve You Better"
Wishes to Thank Everyone For Their Support
k
822 Carl Russell Ave.
Cat Martin Luther King Or.)
Winston-Salem , NC 27101
(336) 722-3459
F?* (336)
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