Vol. XXXVI No. 31
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C.
THURSDAY, April 1,2010
Volleyball
players
visit sick
children
-See Pane HH
Man
walking to
combat
obesity
?See faxe AV
Students
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.have
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75 cents
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Black, Female & in Charge
Current and former judges discuss their challenges and motivations
BY LAYLA FARMER
THt CHRONICLE
Although she was the
one in a robe with a gavel.
Loretta Biggs said she
often felt that she was the
one being judged when
she became only Forsyth
County's second black
female District Court
judge in 1987.
"I had to prove
myself, whereas with the
white males, it was
assumed they would do a
good job." Biggs told a
group of Winston-Salem
State University students
last week
Biggs, now a noted
attorney, would go on to
serve on the N.C. Court of
Appeals after spending
nearly a decade on the
District Court bench. She
Photo* b> La> la Farmer
Attorney Loretta Biggs joined Judges Camille Hanks-Payne and lienise Hartsfield.
said she fought hard to
never let the doubts of
others about her abilities
interfere with her job as a
judge.
"You've got to be
careful not to be disturbed
by that (prejudice)," she
said. "You've got to take
that on as a challenge."
Biggs and current
District Court Judges
Denise Hartsfield and
Camille Banks-Payne
took part in a panel dis
cussion held in obser
vance of Women's
History Month. The dis
cussion was part of the
school's Joseph N.
Patterson Lecture and
Assembly Series. Camille
Kluttz-Leach. general
counsel for WSSU. served
as the moderator for the
hour-long program.
Kluttz-Leach asked
the women to talk about
their experiences on the
bench as women. of color
before turning tfye floor
over to the studenV, who
were eager to asU their
own questions.
Banks-Payne was
appointed in January 2008
when she was in her early
30s. She was elected to a
full four-year term later
that year. She is the
youngest member on the
District Court bench
She says her age can
also pose a problem when
it comes to getting the
Sec Judges on A2
Hospital's Milestone
is Young Woman's
Life-Saving Miracle
Medical Center's 2,(XX)th transplant recipient happy to be alive
BY LAYI-A FARM1R
I Hi ( HROSK I I
A 23-year-old Hickory woman
received the 2 .(HM)th organ transplant
ed b\ Wake Forest University Baptist
\ I . 1 . I /"*
>n una i cnici n
Abdominal Organ
Transplantation Program.
Marisa Slaton's
February kidney transplant,
performed by Dr Robert
Stratta. was a landmark
event for the 40-year trans
plant program, but it was
even more special to Slaton.
whose outlook was gloomy
before the surgery.
The transplant was such
a me cnanging experience lor 5 1 at on
that her mother. Marion Slaton. says
her daughter now has two birthdays:
the day Marisa was born and Feb. 19,
2010. the day she received her life
saving kidney transplant.
Hairston
The surgery was the light at the
end of the tunnel for mother arid
daughter, following a seven-year
ordeal that began when Marisa suf
fered a debilitating stroke caused by a
double aneurysm at age 16. After
Deing rusneu to a hospital
in Baton Rouge. La . the
family's hometown. Marisa
suffered a seizure and
slipped into a coma, her
mother says.
"They didn't think she
was going to make it
through the night." Marion
Slaton related "...They
thought she was brain dead
and they were asking me to
make decisions 1 wasn't
ready to make . . . I remember crawling
on top of her and begging her to live."
Marisa survived, but her kidneys
did not. Marion Slaton came to her
See Transplant on AS
Ph?M??v tn LayU rarmcr
Marisa Slaton with her mother, Marion (left).
Frye
Gordon
Candidates
seek essential
clerk position
BY LAYLA FARMER
THh CHRONICl.F
Of all the political races that will be
decided in the upcoming Primary and
General Election, the clerk of court race is
not one of the most publicized, but the job
itself is of great import to county citizens,
candidates say.
! he clerk of court serves Forsyth
County in various capacities, even acting
as a judiciary in cases involving will pro
bates. the administration of estates, adop
tions. incompetency hearings, foreclo
sures and other issues, according to the
Web site nccourts.eom
Democrat Lawrence "Nick" Gordon,
who was appointed' Clerk of Court last
year when former Clerk Terr> Holbrook
retired, will face some Primarv competi
tion from Susan Frye, an arbitration man
ager for District Court Judge William
Reingold. Both Frye and Gordon are
Winston-Salem natives with more than
three decades' experience in the justice
system.
Gordon, an attorney, began practicing
in the early 1970s, becoming a partner in
several firms before striking out on his
own about nine years ago. Leaving his
practice behind to take on the clerkship in
April 20()9 was not an easv decision for
him. but Gordon says he is glad he did it
"I took this on as a challenge." he said
of the position. ".. I had one goal and
that was to make the Forsyth Countv
Clerk's Office the best clerk's office in
the state."
Gordon savs he has made some impor
tant strides during his tenure
"I've strongly emphasized training
and cross-training of all of mv employees
so that they can better serve the people
that come to us." he stated " I've put a
large emphasis on trv ing to be as open and
as helpful to the people that come to the
Clerk's Office as we can possiblv be."
Gordon believes his legal expertise are
See Clerk nn \"?
Helping Rams
i i ' i
WSSl ftlWo h\ tiarrrtt Oi?
Local American Red Cross Leader Hugh Quinn. second from
right, accepts a check from Rams H.O.P.H. < Helping Others
Prosper Everyday ) last week on the Winston-Salem State
University campus. The funds will he used to aid earthquake
relief efforts in Haiti.
Church already using new center to its fullest
n 1 I VHJU LL l N
THh CHRONIC l.K
Carver School Road Church
of Christ dedicated its new
Family Life Center on Sunday.
The multi-purpose space can
serve as a large fellowship hall
or a gymnasium. It features a
large kitchen and three upstairs
classrooms. The center, which is
adjacent to the church's main
building, was completed in May
2004 and has already been well
used for many events and activ
ities
The largest area of the Life
Center is called the Frank W.
Dulin Fellowship Hall. It is
named for the church's Elder
Emeritus. Dulin. H2. began his
involvement with the church in
1955. He taught Sunday School
for 45 years and even preached
the morning worship service for
a short time when the church
See Ontrr on A 10
PlMtto K Trtdd Ufecfc
Mavor Allen Joints joins church leaders and members in cutting the rihhon.
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llil IUJCK
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