Newspapers / The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, … / May 31, 1979, edition 1 / Page 10
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Through Drama Brooklyn Story To Be Recreated by Susan Ellsworth Post Staff Writer The community of Brook lyn, once hailed as the “Mecca of black culture" in Charlotte will be recreated through drama, music and dance at the “Roots of Charlotte Festi val” to be held June 16. "No Place To Call Home: The Brooklyn Story," a three act play written and directed by Mrs. Henrietta Rhedrick, a former director of drama at Johnson C. Smith Unlver sity, will recall a time when black culture In Charlotte reached a zenith. A cast of six main charac ters, a dance group and con gregation choir will perform in "The Brooklyn Story" at 7:00 p.m. in West Charlotte High School. Admission is $1.00. Set in the 1960s, “the story focuses upon an 89 year old woman that lives with her great-grandson and refuses to give up her home for an urban renewal project," Mrs. Rhedrick explained. This woman recreates her life in Brooklyn for a reporter from a black newspaper who asks her why she won't move. All the main characters interact with the elderly woman who epitomizes wis dom that comes with the experience of living, Mrs. -«-1 -»_i j • Drama, dance and spirit uals are combined to convey the essence of black culture in social life, politics, education and religious life. Members of Ebony, a black theater group, and former drama students will star in the production being sponsored by the Afro-American Cultural Center and “Roots of Char lotte." Among the performers are Eileen Neely, Willie Stratford, Jimmy Redrie, Eric Win stead, Sammy Stevenson, and Gwen Robinson. Dances were choreographed by Ethie Waterman. The Washington Baptist Church choir from Shelby, N.C. will be directed by Mrs. Johnaie Young. Mrs. Rhedrick said reading * a booklet on Brooklyn’s his tory by Rev. D. C. Burke inspired her to write the play. “For those who lived in Brooklyn, this play serves as a reminder of the past,” pro claimed Mrs. Rhedrick! “They can still have pride in Rev. D. G. Burke ...Retired minister their former home.” “When Brooklyn was demo lished during the 50s and late 80s to make way for Indepen dence Boulevard, a center of black culture was destroyed. "When people left Brooklyn it was like going to another city for them," commented Mrs. Rhedrick. Rev. D. G. Burke, retired minister defined the Brooklyn section as bordered on the east by Sugaw Creek Road; on the west-Brevard Street; north 4th Street; and on the south near Morehead. Brooklyn reflected the best and worst in the black commu nity for 75 years. While the lower part below McDowell was the ghetto, the west side of McDowell was lined with affluent, beautiful homes, pointed out Rev. Burke, also a retired instructor from the Department of Religion at Johnson C. Smith University. "There was a contract of black economic groups living within a few blocks of each other," he emphasized. The cross-section of economic classes ranged from the indi gent to skilled laborers and teachers, ministers end doctors. After WWI the Brooklyn community had begun to deve lop. Blacks left the farms in great numbers to find jobs in the city. The Influx of blacks into Charlotte in search of work was at a peak in the 1930s and 40s. For blacks, “If you hadn't been to Brooklyn you hadn't been to Charlotte," Rev. Burke remarked. “It’s where the action was.” The Brooklyn area was home to over 2,000 families when the urban renewal pro ject began. In an area of 10-12 blocks in a square, 6,000 people were forced to leave their homes, according to the Redevelopment Commission of Charlotte. The first black schools, churches of all religious deno minations, many black busi nesses and the first black library were located in Brooklyn. Liquid Feeding Good Idea For House Plant Don’t forget to give your house plants proper care dur ing the warm outside garden ing months. You’ll want them green and healthy next winter when they will be the center of attention again. The best method of feeding your house plants is to use liquid fertilizer, suggest Agri cultural Extension Service specialists at North Carolina State University. If a soluble fertilizer la used, be sure to follow the manufac turer’^ instruction*, iffdfry garden type fertilizer is used, dissolve one teaspoonful in a quart of warm water. Stir well and let stand overnight before using. Then use enough of the solution around well established plants to wet the soil well. U some of the plants have outgrown the containers and become root-bound, repot into a larger container. A good potting medium is a mixture of three parts loamy soil, two parts peat moss and one part coarse sand. To this mixture add one cup of 20 percent superphosphate to each bushel of prepared soil. Bone meal may be substituted for the superphosphate. Many house plants do better out of doors in the summer, if they are adapted to outdoor conditions. They may be grown on porches, terraces or in the garden border. This would not apply to African violets and certain sensitive specimens. Check the ads in the Char lotte Post each week for ihe best bargains in town. The Berean Seventh Day Adventist Church held a Reaffirmation of Vows Service last Saturday at the church in an effort to strengthen family relations and to deepen the respect oh the marriage institution, accord ing to Elder R. Franklin, pastor of the church. “If couples are not living up to their vows, then this is a good time for them to re-examine and to Improve their marital relations," said Elder Franklin. Approximately 400 friends, relatives, guests and visitors of the families were there to witness the renewed vows of an estimated 30 couples. The couples wore their original wedding attire, casual and evening apparel for the ceremony. Photo by Jtfry Curry "It was a beautiful thing," Elder Franklin remarked. "Everyone seemed to have enjoyed it." Three generations of ooe family, a mother, daughter and granddaughter team, each renewed their wedding vows. Summing up the sacred affair, F.irW Franklin declared, “It was very helpful to the families of the church. Of all the couples combined, there was more than 962 years of marital experience, which is an average of 17% years per couple." This event was presented by the Committee For Stronger Family Relations of the church, who thinks of ways and means to help keep the family faithful. Mrs. Frances Clark is the chairperson of the committee. Salvation Army Awards Banquet The Salvation Army Boys’ Club (SABC) beld their »nnm»i Awards Banquet last Monday evening. Eighteen girls’ gamerootn certificates, six trainers’ cert ificates, toe trophies and six cups or plates were presented to persons excelling in various athletic activities, according to Frenton Burton, SABC Unit Director. Boy of the Month Awards from June 1178 - May 1979 jvere. presented to: Dwayne Kennedy, June; Curtis Bethea, July; Alfred Audrey, August; David Stafford, Sep tember; Walter Stafford, Oc tober; Wendall Neal, Novem ber; Sean Maxwell, Decem ber; Jerry Lindsay, January; Bernard Neal, February; Jeffrey Mills, March; John Cousar, April; and Kenneth Newkirk, May. David Stafford was the reci pient of the Boy of the Year Award and Sharon Kennedy received the Outstanding Girt Award. The guest speaker for the banquet was R. T. (Tom) Dooley Jr., National Football League official. The Awards Banquet Com mittee was composed of Jim Howell, chairman, Hamlin L. Wade, Ben Ferguson and E. O. Anderson III. ...12 Noon Tuesday is the deadline for placing your news items and photos in the Char lotte Post.. School Bus Accident Rate Remarkably Low Special to the Post North Carolina’s school bus fleet numbers over 13,000, the largest .in the nation. Those buses transport approximate ly 750,000 pupils to and from school each day traveling in the process 535,000 miles per day. The accident rate for thei school buses has been remark ably low. However, 1978-79 school year will be remember ed for ten school bus related deaths. For that and other reasons, the Division of Transportation is continually seeking new and better methods to safely trans port public school youngsters. In almost every local school unit, individuals have develop ed new gadgets and techni ques designed to provide a safer ride for the student. Those approved recently in clude walking control arms wiuwi auvnw urc uuo unver ui see youngsters better In front of the stopped bus and four new mirrors, which also give the driver a better view of the departing student. And, there are others being developed which may or may not be added to the buses in the future. There is another very inno vative addition to the buses which will provide not only safety factors, but will also help the principal in keeping tabs on what the bus and the driver are doing. The device is called a “tachograph” and it simply records what the bus is doing at various times (hiring the day. Its primary purpose is to allow the princi pal to know exactly how long the bus driver was actually operating the bus which makes for an easier payroll plan. But the tachograph can aid in other ways too. The tacho graph is a relatively small device wnicn mounts simply on the dash of the bus. Inside the tachograph is an are* into which daily charts are insert ed, seven at a time for every day of the week. The charts record the time, of course, but they also record at what time the bus was started, how long during the day the bus was idling, how many actual min utes the bus was on the road, what the maximum speed of the vehicle was during the day, the distance the bus made and whether or not the bus was tampered with. Knowing the maximum speed can be helpful in more ways than one. First, it could be helpful in determining the speed of the bus at the time of an accident. Secondly, it could be instrumental in pre venting a possibly heavy foot ed school bus driver from exceeding the maximum 35 miles per hour. me new tacnograpn wui not appear on every but next fall. Rather, it has been written into the specifications for all new buses beginning with the 1979 models. The cost for each tachograph is a modest 9145. Division Director Louis Alex ander says he Is confident the addition will provide the ne cessary information needed by the principal to operate a safe and efficient fleet of buses for his or her school. The tachograph will not be placed in the buses without field experience. Several school systems have experi mented with them but they were tested extensively in the Moore County school system over the past four years. As Alexander concluded, “every one is optimistic about the program and believe it will greatly improve our school transportation system in many ways. 2S”“~l ^B|»llJJ3LKT^Vij^^B I WE MUST SELL 300 NIW PONTIACS 100 NIW GMC PICKUPS 100 USID CARS SPECIAL PRICES ON ALL VEHICLES j 1-1980 PHOEHixl Isssxkssj ^miwesBA ■ ' ____ MT0N I 9 Automatic transmission, 9 V-8 engine, am radio, I power steering, auxilary ■ fuel tank. |pRICE$551162 I - LUXURIOUS AS ONLY A PONTIAC CAN M. • LIST $1 DISCOUNT WTTTC
The Charlotte Post (Charlotte, N.C.)
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May 31, 1979, edition 1
10
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