? ? , i t r in i iMtirrit t rttiir r,?i
Keith Scobie stands with Monica Medina-Murphy outside of Auto Supply Company.
Second chance program excelling
New legislation may help more ex-felons
BY LAYLA FARMER
THE CHRONICLE
Keith Scobie gets choked up
when he hears Monica Medina
Murphy talk about his stellar job
performance.
"I'm just overwhelmed with
gratitude," he said, brushing
tears from his eyes, "...to have
people that are willing to give
you a chance, willing to over
look mistakes that you've made
in the past."
Scobie is one of more than
1 300 convicted felons who have
come through an innovative pro
gram known as Project Reentry.
He found employment at Auto
Supply Company, Inc. - where
Medina-Murphy serves as VP of
Human Relations - within
weeks of his release from prison .
He had served a four-year term
for robbery with a dangerous
weapon.
"I love my job; I can't say it
any other way," he gushed. "It's
Monday and I'm looking for
ward to going back to work."
Founded in 2003, Project
Reentry works with inmates
prior to their release from prison
to prepare them for their
impending return to mainstream
society. It is an initiative of
Northwest Piedmont Council of
Governments in conjunction
with the Winston-Salem Police
Department and the North
Carolina Department of
Corrections and has more than
30 local partners.
The project is currently
available to inmates in six facili
ties statewide, and will expand
to include two additional sites
this summer.
"It's not just about second
chances," commented Robin
Howell, director of the Criminal
Justice Department at
NWPCOG. "It's about the com
munity working together as a
whole."
Through the 12- week pro
gram, inmates gain education
and support.
Rebecca Sauter, from left, with Robin Howell Michael
Thomas.
They hear motivational speakers
and forge relationships with
Project Reentry staff members
that will extend to the outside
world. Within 24 hours of
release or on the next business
day, the ex-offenders meet with
Project Reentry staff to plan for
their transition back into society.
It is the only pre-to-post program
in existence in North Carolina,
Sauter says.
"They're coming home to
someplace and someone they
trust," said Program Director
Rebecca Sauter.
Project Reentry doesn't
place its participants in jobs.
Instead, it empowers them to
make their own way, Howell
says.
"It's reinforcing what they
have done for themselves," she
said. "They realiae that their
success is going to depend on
their own efforts."
The program helps the
inmates adopt a more positive
attitude about their futures,
which its imperative to their suc
cess, says Project Reentry
Coordinator Michael Thomas.
"Once you change your atti
tude, you will get different
results," he pointed out. "You're
not hiring that ex-offender;
you're hiring the person I am
today."
The project has seen consid
erable success since its incep
tion, according to Sauter.
"We have an exceptional
employment rate," she stated.
"Employers are realizing this is
an untapped labor pool."
Participation in the program,
which is completely voluntary,
spiked 400 percent in the first
two years, she added.
For Medina-Murphy, hiring
Scobie was both a practical and a
moral decision.
"I think about if I were in the
same position, how desperate I
would probably feel," she
remarked. "If we don't give
them an opportunity to reestab
lish their lives, then we are con
tributing to their recidivism."
President Bush signed the
Second Chance Act into law in
early April. The new legislation
will provide for the creation of
similar services to help ex
offenders reintegrate and
become productive members of
society. Additional legislation is
still needed to bolster programs
like Project Reentry, Sauter says.
"There needs to be perma
nent, statewide legislative fund
ing for this," she asserted. 'To
invest something in that infra
structure - it is so needed."
Cancer
from page XT' "J
How is testicular cancer
diagnosed?
Most testicular cancers can
be found at an early stage. As
part of your routine physical,
your doctor should examine
your testicles. Doing monthly
self-exams can increase your
chance of recognizing a change
in your testicles, though not
enough studies have been made
to show conclusively whether
self exams lower the death rate
of testicular cancer. In addition
to a physical exam, your doctor
may use an ultrasound, which
uses sound waves to make pic
tures of internal organs: blood
tests; a chest X-ray; or a CT
scan, PET scan, or MRI; these
last three allow the doctor to see
if the cancer has spread to any
other organs.
How is it treated?
There are several different
kinds of cells in the testicles, so
it is important to know which
kind of cell the cancer started
from because these types of can
cer are treated differently. There
are three main methods of treat
ment for testicular cancer: sur
gery, radiation therapy, and
chemotherapy. According to the
ACS, all stages of testicular can
cer are treated with surgery,
which can include removal of
one or both testicles; depending
on the stage, of cancer, some
lymph nodes in the abdomen
may be removed aS well.
Following surgery, radiation
therapy or chemotherapy may
be used, again dependent on the
stage at which the cancer is
diagnosed.
Since the majority of men
diagnosed with testicular cancer
are young, it often affects men
who are ting, starting a fami
ly, or would like to have a fami
ly in the future. These men may
want to talk about storing frozen
sperm cells before treatment
(sperm banking). When a testi
cle is removed, that side of the
scrotum looks and feels empty;
artificial testicles (prosthesis
placed in the scrotum) are
potential options following sur
gery to give a more natural look.
You should talk about these and
any other concerns you have
with your doctor when making
treatment choices.
- Contribution by Sarah
Langdon
For further information,
questions or comments about
this article, call toll-free 1-877
530-1824. Or, for more informa
tion about the Maya Angelou
Research Center on Minority
Health, visit
http .//www.wfubmc .edu/minorit
y health.
King Maker
from page A2
said Fauntroy,
pastor of New Bethel
Baptist Church, who
has pa&tored for more
than 50 years.
"Politics is the
process of deciding
who gets how much,
he said as the pan
elists voiced their
approvals.
The panels agreed
that what took place
decades ago set the
foundation for today's youth
and adults to take action.
"It seems people are wait
ing for the resurrection of
Rev. Walker
Martin Luther King. ..we are
waiting on a messiah," said
Cotton. "We are the ones
we've been waiting for," she
continued. "If
things are going to
change, we our
selves have to
change them."
Cotton said
African-American
youth in today's
society "easily
forget and have
become compla
cent." But that the
elders who attend
ed the conference wanted to
aid the redefinition of the
movement, and fnake it appli
cable to young people.
Walker pointed to
Democratic presidential front
runner Barack Obama as a
result of the struggle.
"Obama is the symbol of a
movement," Walker said.
"Movements are ordained by
God, and you can't stop God's
movement."
Panelist made clear their
hopes that the message would
catch fire and spread. They
shouted amens from the au<U
ence as the Rev. Dr. Amhs
Brown, pastor of the Third
Baptist Church of San
Francisco, prayed, "May we
not just talk to ourselves
throughout this, but to the
nation and the world."
Law Enforcement Week events
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
The Winston-Salem Police
Department, the Forsyth
County Sheriff's Office, the
Kernersville Police
Department and the North
Carolina Highway Patrol in
Forsyth County are joining
forces to commemorate
National Law Enforcement
Week, being observed May
12-17. The week honors those
officers who have been killed
or injured in the line of duty.
An opening ceremony will
be held at 1 p.m. on Monday,
May 12, in Hanes Auditorium
in the Salem Fine Arts Center
at Salem College. WXI1
News' Cameron Kent will
serve as Master of
Ceremonies. Mayor Allen
Joines will read a proclama
tion and a roll of officers
killed in the line of duty will
be read. The winners of the
law enforcement poster con
test in the Winston
Salem/Forsyth County
schools will also be recog
nized.
A memorial service to
remember fallen officers in
Forsyth County is scheduled
for 11 a.m. Thursday, May 15,
at Pinedale Christian Church,
3395 Peters Creek Parkway.
Atkinson
from page A1
The school honored her in 2005, with the
new Wilveria Bass Atkinson Science Building.
Atkinson's brother thanked the university for
all it has done to honor his sister.
"It was a very pleasant event that the univer
sity has taken to honor her and to explain who
she was and what she did for this school and for
family and friends," commented Marshall Bass,
a well-known city resident and philanthropist
who has gifted nearly $400,000 to WSSU. "She
was indeed a strong student and a strong leader."
Atkinson is also survived by her son, George
Bradley Atkinson, a resident of Morehead City.
Provost Pedro Martinez said all of
Atkinson's many accomplishments - which
included starting partnerships between WSSU
and universities in Japan, Australia, Norway,
Sweden, Denmark - pale in comparison to the
lives she influenced.
"None of that can compare to the countless
lives she touched. (Hers was) a life and spirit
that lives on in many lives ... a legacy that chal
lenges us to work always to create a better com
munity," he said. ? r "
Michelle Cook, executive director of the
WSSU Foundation, read passages from the 1
Corinthians 13, also known as the Love Chapter.
She said the words accurately described
Atkinson's demeanor.
"(Love) really governed everything that she
d i d
The love that she had lives on on this campus
and we thank you so much for sharing her,"
Cook told Atkinson's family members.
Several of Atkinson's colleagues also shared
their memories. The words "committed"
"tough" and "caring" surfaced again and again
in their remarks.
"The thing I noticed immediately about Dr.
Atkinson was the love that she had for*her stu
dents," related Professor Bodiford Stackhouse.
"One of her goals for the university was for it to
be known worldwide and she had the drive and
the fight to get it done.
Dr. Azeez Aileru, also a professor, described
the afternoon when Atkinson called and offered
him a position at WSSU as "the turning point of
WSSU Photo by Garrett Garms
Geneva Brown talks about her friend.
my life."
"I just don't know what I can say in a minute
or two about a woman who had such a great
impact on my professional career," he said.
He spoke about the importance of heroism in
everyday life, a feat he feels Atkinson mastered
artfully.
"This quiet, humble heroism that 1 found in
Dr. Atkinson is the greatest heroism of all,"
Aileru said.
School Board Member and retired educator
Geneva Brown had been friendrwith Atkinson
since their days at Dillard High School in
Goldsboro. The two were cheerleaders and con
fidants. She regaled the audience with tales of a
mischievous Atkinson, whom she affectionately
called "Willie," in her youth.
"Much of what has been said about Willie
has been about her academic work," Brown stat
ed. "I come from a different way."
Brown spoke about Atkinson's big heart and
dedication to family and friends.
"In words and deed, she showed everybody
just how dear they were (to her)," she told the
group. "There, was never a question about her
love; it was unselfish and generous."
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Blue Medicare HMCT and Blue Medicare PPOT are Medicare Advantage plans offered by
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H3449_4003, 3/17/08, H3404_4003, 3/17/08 U422S, 3/08