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"iiir'l THE CHARLI fTTE HOST [HIF
_ _ The Voice Of The Black Community"
MISS BRIAN A HUNTER
.Gifted musician
Attractive Bnana Hunter
Is-“Beauty Of The Week
By Teresa Burns
Post Staff Writer
While there are many ac
tivities in the world to
become a part of, the
magic Is in choosing one
beneficial both to yourself
and to the world.
Our beauty, Briana
Hunter, has touched on
quite a few educational and
spiritually enlightening ex
periences. It is mainly be
cause her parents foresaw
/'at exposure to creative
ness often produces the
same
The daughter of Mr. and
Mrs. Wright Hunter Jr.,
Ms. Hunter admits:
‘ They've exposed me to
many things...music, in
cluding the piano and the
harp and I’ve become in
volved in sports and travel.
I'm thankful to them for
allowing me to become a
well rounded person."
Ms Hunter is a gifted
musician. She has studied
piano for eight years, the
clarinet and is now taking a
course at UNC-CharloUe
studying harp.
' She is only a junior at
Catholic High SchodTTjut
the course is providing her
with college credit hours.
You would think that being
younger than her class
mates may have a negative
effect Rut for Mrs, Hunter
confidence is most import
ant. And she aspires to
keep building what she has
gained in respect to
confidence.
"Everyone should have
confidence in themselves
Stick by what you want out
oflife. D’ohTIfcl anyone or
anything stand in your
way. But at the same time^
try to touch others' lives in
the process of reaching for
your goals ”
Our Taurus beauty de
scribes herself as inde
pendent, outgoing and
friendly. "And I love meet
ing people,” she confided.
A view of Ms Hunter's
We will at times find her
paying the piano for the
Children's Choir at Little
Rock AME ZTonChorch or
presiding over the Youth
' Choir as president
She also played the harp
in the Christmas program
at 11NCC -- the only high
school student playing in
lURTIMMA
_ *
A handful of good life is
letter than a bushel of
learning.
/ I
the feature
At Catholic Senior High
School she is assistant con
ductor of the band to Glen
Coates and a member of
the Pep Club and the Ski
Club. She enjoys tennis,
track, cooking, dancing,
swimming, all types of
music and traveling. She
will be traveling to Italy,
with her Latin class and is
looking forward to the ex
Derience
.Presently Ms Hunter is
focusing on the medical
field as a possible career
goal, more specifically
dentistry.
Our beauty is in tune with
the fabulous entertainer.
Diana Ross. 'She's a fan
tastic singer and seems to
be open with everyone
Ms. Hunter realizes.
however, that life is no
simply a melody of har
monious notes She hope:
for a change of the bettei
for the nation's welfari
standards and unemploy
ment figures.
> • i r v _i j_i_
• i * v wu ivi uiunv «
change I would give peopli
jobs. As for welfare I wouli
try to present help whei
people needed it And whei
they needed it they wouli
definitely get it. Ther
would be a change fo
~everyfamilyto make it."
Independent, articulati
and talented are all ad
jectives that describe Ms
Hunter. She is also a
humane and caring persoi
.. one with a sincere natun
that will allow her to soa
as the drove and land will
elegant grace
Social Security lo
Cut Survivor Benefits
HHS Secretary Richard
S. Schweiker last week an
nounced that the Social
Security Administratam-ia
taking immediate steps to
close loopholes that per-,
mit the payment of Social
Security survivor benefits
to children who intentional
ly kill a parent
— 1 m nnl going In slann
by and let a juvenile de
linquent get money out of
the Social Security fund
because he killed his
parent,” Schweiker said
Recent news reports in
California that focused on
two individuals who re
ceived survivor benefits
even though they were
found to have willfully
killed a parent, prompted
the secretary's action
Those two individuals were
minors when the homicides
occurred, and because
their cases were handled
within California's juvenile
court system their crimes
were not deemed to be
"criminal” in nature and
therefore were not subject
lo current regulaf foruTthat
would preclude payment.
As a result of the sect
ary's action. Social Secur
ty offices nationwide have
seen ordered not to process
Claims from survivors who
may have Been Irfvotved in
an intentional act which
resulted in the death of a
parent. In addition, offices
have been instructed to
Forward to headquarters a
description of the circum
stances involving current
beneficiaries who may
have - been involved in a
felonious homicide
The Social Security Ad
ministration has already
suspended disability pay
ments to about 4.000 indi
viduals during the time
they are imprisoned be
*
cause of a felony convictioi
as a result of legislatioi
enacted in October 1980
-'-lJust because an inriivi
dual is a minor at the tinr
a homicide occurs h'
should not be allowed t
receive benefits whicl
would be denied an adul
convicted of a felonious ho
micide.-" said Social Secur
ity Commissioner John A
Svahn.
Local Realtors Agree Housing
Appreciation Rate Has Decreased
By (iayle Hinson
Post Staff Writrr
With interest rates in
creasing, unemployment
rates increasing and infla
tion steadily rising many
institutions are feeling the
pinch. One of these is the
housing market
With prices increasing in
every area prices of houses
are not excluded, despite
the fact that_ realtors
classify the present time as
a buyer's market.
J. C. Cousar of Cousar
Realty reported, "I don't
think there has been a de
crease in house prices.
There has been a stablity in
prices as opposed ter a
decrease."
Anderson Bennett of In
terstate Real Estate
agreed "I wouldn't say
there s been a decrease but
the rate of appreciation has
decreased A decrease in
price probably won't ever
take place," he said
“For example, in the
past some houses will ap
preciate 10 to 20 percent.
But in the past year it could
only realize a one or two
thousand dollar increase,"
added Bennett
Cousar theorized that the
J ('■ Cousar
Owns Cousar Realty
trend in stabilization of
prices has been caused by
RTgTi Inferesf raTes Interest
rates on FHA and VA loans
went up to 16' i percent last
week
How has this affected
blacks who want to pur
chase homes’1
"Black incomes have not
reached a point where
many of them can buy a
house They can’t afford it
because of the high inte
rest.' said Cousar
Kugene Pettis has simi
lar thoughts on the
matter "Blacks are being
priced out of the market
Most houses now run WO.
Eugene Pettis
Pettis Realty
000 and up Most blacks are
not in that market Also a
lui go down payment ts re
quired and they can t come
up with that much money,"
he continued
Despite all the bad news
blacks are still finding
ways to purchase a home
"We still have blacks who
are buying homes If they
are conscientious they will
buy now W’e have seen the
last days of cheap money,"
said Cousar
' Those that can afford
home* should buy now be
cause things won't get any
better." he stated
Pettis says that he is
seeing mostly professional,
married couples with two
incomes buying homes
now. "Those are the only
ones who can qualify 'for
loansi." he said
Now that people are be
ing laid off and are losing
jobs it is becoming increas
ingly harder for homeown
ers to meet monthly pay
ments What will happen
once they run completely
out of money-and cannot
possibly make those pay
ments?
"There is no reason
whatsoever to lose your
house. Bennett stated em
phatically
He gives these rules to
follow to hedge against
foreclosure
Jirvi w mi uir iuiuui
and tell them your situa
tion. Don't wait until you
are way in debt Some
realtors loan people money
then will take over the
house Another option is to
lease your house out Many
mortgage companies are
willing to work with home
owners Don't* avoid the
mortgage company State
your case Don't assume
they understand Keep in
touch with them,'' he
See MH'AI. Page :i
Checks Being Mailed
JCSU To
Focus On
Issues
Revitalizing central city
economics, improving
transportation, encourag
ing energy efficiency, re
ducing water and air pol
lution are just a few of the
issues focused on by John
son C. Smith University’s
Department of Urban
Studies.
This multi-disciplinary
field provides an excellent
opportunity in experiment
al education through in
ternships in city, county,
state and federal govern
-ment Thetie lead lo entry_
level administrative, plan
ning and programmatic po
sitions in urban atfairs or
to graduate school where
the student will be trained
to become a city admin
istrator. planner or pro
, gram director the future
> is bright for students pre
j pared and committed to
, help build an urban com
, munity where all peoples
j can derive the benefits of
? socially productive and
r personally rewarding
programs.
me program also oners
seminars, workshops, com
munity programs, field
trips and an annual re
gional urban studies con
ference on campus.
The Urban Studies Pro
gram is an excellent op
1 portunity for adults of all
ages. Evening and week
end classes are available
All programs are tree
except credit courses and
limited financial assist
ance is available.
Renewal credits are ne
1 gotiable through the local
1 educational agency of each
school district.
, The program will im
[ prove the deliverance of
j public service, housing for
, every American family,
t fighting crime, as well as
focusing on issues inclu
- ding the broader social
situations dealing with
race and racial attitudes
For outstanding and dedicated service to
ministry—Bishop—.luc—Shurmaii w an
presented with a plaque from the E C.
Cannon Evangelistic Crusade. Inc Elder
E C Cannon, pastor of E C. Cannon's
( athedral. located at 1200 Tuckaseegee
-U<l, (nutmotwl Ho hop Shermnn with ilu -
honor Photo h\ Jim Kiack Photo
$n*<i|iher> t.
With o-t(i rt In tyrant
City Council Plans To
Make Charlotte Safer City
In («a>Ir Hinson
Rost Staff Writer
Charlotte Mayor. Eddie
Knox and the Charlotte
City Council have worked
out a plan which they hope
will make Charlotte the
safest city in the nation
There are five parts to
the program: crime stop
pers. police volun
teers, neighborhood watch,
personal security and
EARS (employee alert
radio system i
I KniKMOITUKS
This serves as a clearing
house of information for
police. A separate te'e
phone line. 334-1600, has
been installed in the police
department to receive and
1 process calls When <-iti
zens call this number they
are given a code number
They are known only by
this number assuring
anonymity.
Rewards are ottered to
citizens whose inform.itfon
results TrT a case being
solved.
A ' Crime of the Week"
will be dramatized or r<>
enacted on i adio and TV
and is described in detail in
the newspapers I'nsolved
crimes are chosen for
which investigators need
crucial information.
\Ol.l NTKKH
I’lttM.K A.\IS
There will be two types of
volunteers Non-sworn or
auxiliary personnel w ill not
carry firearms nor will
they have the power of
arrest beyond that of any
citizen They will perform
such duties as crowd con
trol at large gatherings,
traffic control and preven
tive patrol to prevent
crimes from taking place
Qualifications to become
a non-sworn Reserve will
be basically the same as
for a regular officer The
main difference is that only
50 hours of training are
required for non-sworn
personnel
mesecondType m uiiun —
teer is the police-commun
it> volunteer Their pur
pose v ill he to asvst po
lice in a number of tunc
lions not directly related to
patrol and enforcement
Volunteers may be used
lo help erigrace property,
register bicycles, install
locks, distribute literature
and organize neighborhood
watch programs
Finally, volunteers are
being sought with special
skills, such as interpreting
for the deaf and non
Knglish speaking persons
1 Senior citizens are en
couraged to apply i In
terested persons should
call the Crime Prevention
Unit, 374-2310 for an appli
cation form.
rnwii v\i. mm i in i i
ChaYlotte'Police Depart
ment has ongoing classes
in personal security, em
phasizing awareness and
self-protection The crime
prevention unit provides
ins'met ion free nt charge
~tn any group who wants it
A special 12-hour course
is also offered quarterly for
Charlotte Mecklenburg
school teachers who may
take it for certificate re
newal credit The next
series open to the public
will begin February lo. and
runs each Wednesday
through February 24 from
ii 309:30 p m at the Law
Knforcemcnt Center
KAHS
All city departments
whose vehicles are
equipped with two-way
radios will be on the alert
for suspicious activity
While these people would
take no enforcement ac
tion. they will notify their
dispatcher who in turn w ill
relay the information to the
police communication
bureau
Neighborhood watch is
simply neighbors looking
out for one another to pre
vent crime it is not a police
program, it is a commun
ity program —————
Organizational informa
tion may be found in the
newly printed "Commun
ity Watch in Charlotte
available from the crime
prevention unit.
Blin k KduniiorH
More than too of North
Carolina's most prominent
black educators from the
university through the kin
dergarten levels have
come together and founded
an organization for the en
hancement of the status of
black educators.
6,395 Local
FamiF::. To
Get $767,933
It.XI KIOII Low Income
Energy Assistance checks
amounting to $20.9 million
are being mailed this week
by the North Carolina De
partment of Human Re
sources to 142 000 low
income households across"
the state for help with this
winter's heating bills
Mecklenburg County has
been allocated $707,933 for
0.395 households
According to George
Flemming assistant diree
-UM- ill—tli'' department's
division of social services,
the onetime payments
vary from $00 to $514 per
household in'private living
arrangements with the
average pay ment tieing ap
proximately Si 47 "The
amount of payment each
household will be receiving
depends on the number of
people in the household,
their income, the climatic
region ol the state where
they live, and the type fuel
used tor heating "
Flemming said that eligi
hihty lor the Federal low
income energy assistance
payments was determined
by county social services
departments during No
vember and December
based on eligibility stand
ards established by the
state.
F lemming estimated
that another 1,000 low
income households across
the state will receive pay
ments later this month
totaling about $147,000.
These are households
whose applications re
quired further processing
for various reasons
North Carolina was ori
ginally authorized to re
ceive $:15 5 million m fe
deral low income energy
assistance funds for this
year, according to FTem
mmg Congress lias still
"iVii lakoii tiii.il actionem the—
1 OKI-82 federal budget, but
thus far, the state has been
appropriated a smaller
amount lhai totals only
$20 4 million F rom that
amount. $2 2 million has
been allocated to the
F'ncrgy Division of the poor
across the state. Another
S7H«.IMK> was allocated to
the county social services
departments for a heating
crisis intervention pro
gram "
Accountants
Offer Free Tax
Help To Poor
— The t-harlolle Chapter-ot
the National Association of
Black Accountants is offer
ing Iree Federal and State
Income Tax Keturn pre
paration to low income in
dividuals Individuals are
ebg*bie for thw f ree service
if stngtc and have a gross
income of $9,500 or less or
$13,500 or less for indivi
duals filing jointly.
Help will be available at
the Belmont Regional
Center. 700 Parkwood
Avenue each Saturday
from February fith through
March 27th between the
'hours of 9 a m to 1 p.m.;
and at the Greenville
Center. 1330 Spring Street
each Saturday from Fe
bruary 6th through March
27th between the hours of 12
noon to 4 p.m