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Forsvth County fttiblic Library
Vol. XXXIV No. 28
23 i
NORTH CAROLINA ROOM
FORSYTH CTY PUBLIC LIBRARY
660 -W 5TH ST
WINSTON SALEM NC 27101-2755
JRSDAY, March 20, 2008
Photo by Kevin Walker
Annie Hamlin Johnson entertained guests at her home.
Mama
Marvtastic
opens her heart
and her home
BY T. KEVIN WALKER
THE CHRONICLE
In the Hamlin family, pur
ple is a tradition.
tinged hats.
But Saturday, she wore red
from head to toe.
Johnson hosted an "I Said
Red!" prarty at her home for
Annie Hamlin
Johnson's late son,
Larry Leon Hamlin,
made the color the
trademark hue of his
National Black
Theatre Festival and
wore purple duds
everywhere he went.
By extension,
Hamlin's faftiily and
friends adopted the
color as a celebra
tion of Hamlin's
accomplishments and the the
ater festival's success.
Annie Hamlin Johnson's
extensive wardrobe is filled
with shades of violet and plum.
Her jewelry chest is filled with
trinkets the color of orchids,
and on special occasions, she'll
pull out one of her mulberry
Gray
mends and loved
ones. She is among
dozens of local resi
dents who signed up
to host one of the
parties, which raises
money for AIDS
Care Service (ACS),
a non-profit that pro
vides myriad servic
es for local people
living - with
HIV/AIDS.
lore than eight years,
Johnson has been one of the
agency's most active and loyal
volunteers.
"When I retired, I began
going to Holly Haven (a resi
dential facility operated by
ACS for people living with the
See RED on A16
Cruisin' for a Cause
*. ? p.
Motorcycle club to host rally to benefit heart patient
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
Every day at Hanesbrands
Inc., they say a prayer for
Dedrick Neal.
Neal, a Hanesbrands
employee for 16 years, is like
ly one of the most dedicated
employees on staff. Before
falling ill in 2003, he had never
missed a day of work.
The 35-year-old Carver alum
nus says he dreams of rejoining
his colleagues. But he can't
work - not yet.
Neal underwent a heart
transplant five years ago, after
a bout of undetected walking
pneumonia rendered his own
heart virtually useless.
It was a trying time, says
Neal's mother, Lisa Myers.
Neal was initially too sick to
complete the required evalua
tion and be added to the donor
list. A month passed while he
lay in the hospital, trying to
Photo by Layla Fanner
Dedrick Seal, right, with his mother, Lisa Myers and stepfa
ther, Robert Myers. -
regain his strength as his body
rebelled against him.
Finally, he was well enough
to be evaluated; doctors
deemed him worthy of a trans
plant.
"(The doctor) called and
told me he made the (donor)
list," Myers remembered. "I
felt so ecstatic that my son was
going to get another chance "
Within two months, Neal
was the recipient of a new
heart. His mother remembers
the enormous relief she felt
when she got the call that a
heart was available.
"It took me about an hour
to get to Chapel Hill that
night," she said with a grin.
After six weeks of recov
ery, Neal returned to work at
Hanesbrands. He couldn't wait
to get back, Myers said.
But late last year, things
began to go wrong for Neal -
very wrong.' Neal's body
began rejecting the transplant
ed heart.
"We had to take him to tKe
emergency room December 5,
2007. He was in heart failure
he (was) code blue ... I
never experienced that before,"
Myers said, dabbing at her
eyes. She and husband Robert
were escorted from the room as
doctors fought to save Neal's
See Bikers on All
PhoRfby Lay la Farmet
Bishop John Huntley and his wife, Deloris, stand in front of Alpha and Omega
Church in East Winston.
The couple
that gives
back together
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE -<
Bishop John Huntley never meant to be a pastor.
"I retired to play golf," he said, "but God had
other plans for me."
Those "other plans" have snowballed over the
last decade. Huntley inherited the pastoral role at
Alpha and Omega Church and later became bishop
of the six-congregation diocese.
Deloris Huntley, his wife of 45-years, runs the
thriving Alpha and Omega Church Family Institute.
Mrs. Huntley is the former director of Family
Development at the Winston-Salem Urban League.
At her husband's urging, she gave up her career to
found the institute in 2002.
"I've enjoyed it; I've not looked back," she said.
"It has really given me an opportunity to work with
... the entire person, the entire family."
Alpha and Omega serves a modest congregation
of approximately 35 members.
Yet its roster of outreach services would rival that
of many, much larger organizations.
"I think this is an ideal church," Deloris Huntley
commented We do a lot in the community ... and
to me, this is what a church is supposed to do."
In response to the community's needs, Mrs.
Huntley oversees a variety of free programs.
Tutoring, victim assistance, parenting, nutrition and
cooking classes are all offered through the institute.
"I don't know where to stop," she confessed ,
with a laugh. "This is something I enjoy doing."
See Huntleys on A4
It's lights out for program that helps young people
BY TODD LUCK
THE CHRONICLE
Last week, just days after
David Moore was honored for his
efforts to keep young people off
the streets, the lights went out at
his auto body shop.
Moore uses South Side Rides
to tutor young people in auto
body repair. His work has been
credited with giving young people
a positive outlet and a means to
make a lucrative living. Many
graduates of his program have
landed jobs at auto shops through
out the city. Moore was among
more than a dozen people hon
ored recently at The Chronicle's
Community Service Awards Gala.
"I'm changing these guys
lives by teaching this trade, keep
ing them off the street and they're
Photo hy Todd Luf k
Diego Victor works on a car.
getting jobs," said Moore, who
started the program after a two
year stint in prison for drug pos
session. .
But Moore's auto body shop
has had a head-on collision with
the City of Winston-Salem, which
maintains that the shop does not
comply with ordinances. The
power was shut off last week at
the Wood Street shop by the city.
This is the third time that the
city has cut the power at
Southside Rides because of ordi
nance violations, according to
Dan Dockery, an assistant inspec
tions director. The power was also
killed in August 2005 and
December 2006.
At that site, the city said that
there was improper storage of
hazardous materials and spraying
(painting) in an area that wasn't
code compliant. The city gave
Moore a grant to help him build a
Sec Southaldc on A13
Familiar Face, New Place
C' Photo Todd Lock
Pam Peoples- Joyner is staying busy as the new
executive director of the Darryl Hunt Project for
Freedom and Justice. The veteran non-profit
agency professional started the job in January and
is already making progress. Read more about
Peoples-Joyner and the agency on page A12.
''I'T t. w" 'i ? ir
In Memory of
Charlene
Russell Brown
"Growing and Still Dedicated to Serve You Better"
3Ru00ell ffluneral Home
Wishes to Thank Everyone For Their Support
822 Carl Russell Ave.
(at Martin Luther King Dr.)
Winston-Salem , NC 27101
C3W
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