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Volume 8, Number 51 «nwu m -
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TABITHA MCMULLEN
—Melodious soprano
Beauty Of Week
Tabitha McMullen Utilizes
..v- •
Talent Through Singing
Teresa Simmons
Past Managing Editor
Seldom do we see one so
young tgke such a devout
commitment to a special
talent given by God. Tabi
tha McMullen, our 11th
grade beauty, is just that
person. A unique 16-year
old with a vocal gift, a
melodious soprano voice
which has not been buried
or gone unused.
Instead it’s been utilized
"*1 gospel singing and
!> the chorus at her
_-, East Mecklenburg.
She is also president of the
Junior Choir at her church.
Pleasant Hill Baptist
Chnrch.
“My grandmother, Daisy
Jones Fielder, has always
told me to carry on with my
singing. I’d like to someday
become successful with my
singing and acting. I en
joy singing Qospel es
pecially. I’d like to major
in music at either Spel
man in Atlanta, Ga., or
East Carolina in Green
ville."
Ms. McMullen’s first solo
was in church under the
direction of Jo Evelyn
Liggett “She gave me the
first song I have ever led on
the choir. Every since then
she has been helping me.”
Irene Cara, one of the
stars of the movie
“Fame,” is the favorite
entertainer of our beauty.
“She puts feelings into
wfaMbshe sings,” is the
realm Ms. McMullen is so
impressed with her talents
Being musically inclined,
Ms. McMullen enjoys sing
ing and drama. She also
likes to skate and cook, and
occasionally whips up
various surprising cas
She possesses other in
terests besides singing in
talent shows and cooking,
however She also enjoys
modeling, watching
“Fame*’ on television and
mmm
_ *
You can win more
Man* with your ears than
with your maath.
■f- if* £
s
participating in various ac
tivities at East Mecklen
burg, including the DECA
Club, and in 1982 being
Junior Varsity bead
cheerleader.
The daughter of Martha
Smith, our beauty has two
sisters, Lakeitha Sheridan
and Shantelle Smith. She
also has one brother, Van.
She and her family are
close knit and loving. She
has many favorite rela
tives including aunts, Lillie
Denise, Patricia Ann,
Peggy Marie and Edna
Katrina. “I’m just proud of
all my aunts.”
From the many positive
forces within her life, Ms.
McMullen has realized the
importance of using every
ounce of talent and special
gifts bestowed upon her. “I
think we should never stop
trying until we succeed.
And even after succeeding
we should strive for more,”
is one way Ms. McMullen
views life. With this view
point and ambition, who
can predict that Tabitha
McMullen will become
anything else but a brilliant
star?
SCLC To Held Gxiferenct
The Charlotte Chapter of
the Southern Christian
Leadership Conference
(SCLC), will hold a two-day
conference at Little Rock
AME Zion and the Radis
son Plaza Hotel on June
17-18.
Hie activities include a
kick off rally at Little Rock
AME Zion Church, 401 N.
McDowell St. The rally will
take place 7-9 p.m. On
Saturday, beginning at 7:30
a.m., breakfast will be
served at the Radisson
(17.50). Workshops will be
conducted 9:30-11:30 a.m.
($15). The issues to be
discussed at the workshop
include voter registration
and politics, unemploy
ment, housing, black land
exploitation, criminal jus
tice, health c are, econo
mic development and toxic
waste.
Dr. Herman Thomas,
president of the local SCLC
chapter has requested all
ministers select a person to
be responsible for holding
voter registration at their
church.
Black Men Have Highest
Incidence Of Cancer
Ingram
Schedules
Fund Raiser
Special To The Post
. Raleigh - The Ingram
For Governor Task Force
has scheduled a June 7 fund
raiser as a “snow check”
reception for supporters
who missed an earlier
event due to the freak
snowstorm which hit North
Carolina on March 24.
"Snow must be good luck
for us,” stated Task Force
'84 Coordinator Mike
Rogers. “We raised over
$50,000 from ticket sales
that night. What does the
almanac say about a June 7
blizzard?”
Rogers, a Cary business
man, said, “No one who
bought a ticket but couldn't
get to us that night has
asked for a make-up re
ception. They were just
happy to help us raise so
much for the '84 race. But
Commissioner and Mrs. In
gram want to see their
friends before the Task
Force spends that $50,000."
Rogers added that the
money raised that night
was more than the North
Carolina Insurance Com
missioner has ever needed
to win any of the four
primary and run-off elec
tions in his career.
The reception honoring
Commissioner Ingram will
be held at the Wake
County Shrine Club on
Leadmine Road near Crab
* tree Valley Mall, the site of
the March fund raiser.
In a mass mailing sent
from the recently-expand
ed Ingram For Governor
Headquarters in Raleigh,
complimentary tickets
were mailed to supporters
who contributed to the
March event and could not
travel the icy roads. New
invitations were also sent
to those supporters who
had planned to pay at the
door. According to Rogers,
tickets will be sold at the
door again, and March 24
invitations will also be
honored.
'-—I I II_
Vivian Williams. President of Friends,
presenting check to Barbara Ferguson,
Shirley Farrar receiving check from
--1-__|
Jeanne Brayboy. Chairperson, Friends
Funds Committee.
Promoting Arts
Friends Of The Ails Present
Checks To Various Groups
The Charlotte Friends of
the Arts have successfully
completed their fourth sea
son of fund raising in sup
port of the arts in Char
lotte. During the last four
years the Charlotte
Friends of the Arts, a group
of 45 energetic ladies
committed to promoting
the arts, have raised and
given over $30,000 to va
rious groups ranging from
the Charlotte Arts and
Science Council, the Afro
American Cultural Center
to local artists such as
Sammie Stevenson and in
dividual students from
Charlotte-Mecklenburg
schools.
Recipients of funds from
this year’s events are the
Afro-American Cultural
Center, Shirley Farrar,
Director, and The Summer
Theater Workshop for
Children at Johnson C.
Smith University, Barbara
Ferguson, Director. Scho
larships will be given also
to local talented high
school seniors who plan to
further their artistic stu
Carol B. Ricks Confers With
Individuals With Marital ProUensi
■s - - - _
Post Managing Editor
Jama walked slowly to
wards home after getting
off the city bus. He really
didn’t feel like going to his
small apartment or Ms
wife. There had been so
much strife between Mae
and him lately that he Just
hated when the business
clock struck 9:00. And what
made matters worse was
that the arguments were
over nothing...or so they
both thought.
Situations like these are
as common today as they
were many years ago. Tra
ditionally Mack family
members jnay have sought
counseling and advise
from the community pea-"
tor or perhaps parents. The
openings of various pro
fessions to Macks in recent
decades, however, have
aaoen another mm on* ion
tel problems.
Professionals like Carole
B. Ricks who obtained a
Master’s of Social Work
(M.8.W.) at the Scheol of
Social Work In Atlanta not
only confer with Mhri
*
MRS. CAROL B. RICKS
Professional counselor
duals with marital pro-,
blema but they also explore
various ether situations
and experiences. /
Mrs. Ricks explains wtoat
she accomplishes and why
*e started her practice
entitled Ricks Resources
(toe East Bird , 33S-0140):
'‘Usually social workers
are employed by agendas
and there is a stereotype
1
for ua. For instance, many
beliave social workers only
give out welfare checks or
food stamps, but there are
many other ways to prac
tice our skills ( feel that I
can reach more people
through a private practice
When employed by an
agency soese of the policies
placeronstraMsthat make
it difficult to roach people
For example, the hours of
service. Many clients may
have to wait weeks for as
sistance from an agency
But through my practice I
am more flexible to be
available ”
Private practice, even in
recent years, has been
viewed as a service for the
elite only. For many years,
explained Mrs. Ricks, the
services were only afford
able to the wealthy “But
my designed practice
makes my service acces
sible and I charge only a
nominal fee
“I help individuals who
want to gain a better un
demanding of themselves,
those who are having a
hard Ume coping with Job
and family experiences;
and couples who not only
have problems, but who
want to strengthen and im
prove their marriages.
“In order to become a
successful social worker,”
Mrs, Ricks continued, ‘ 'one
must care about people and
make a commitment to
provide quality service.'’
Through the practice
See RICKS ea Page 7
dies at various colleges.
The public is invited to
attend “BLACK GEMS," a
musical production on Sun
day, June 4, at Wachovia
Center, Top of the Tower,
at 5 p.m. This is the second
year for the Friends to
sponsor “BLACK GEMS”
which provides an oppor
tunity for talented youth to
perform publicly. Local
high school seniors will be
featured who will be re
ceiving scholastic awards
For ticket information,
call Vivian Williams,
392-1540.
Mayor Knox Urges
Greater Support Needed
For Community Colleges
North Carolina must ad
vance its standards of edu
cation or it “will not be able
to keep up with the law of
supply and demand in the
job market.”
This is the message
Eddie Knox, mayor of
Charlotte and candidate for
governor, gave graduates
at the Pitt Community
College commencement
exercises this week.
Knox, who has made edu
cation a key plank in his
platform, told the commun
ity college's graduates that
industry in the 1990s may
require a 12th grade read
ing level from all employ
ees
"Our state doesn’t meet
that level yet. That's a job,
in part at least, for the
community college,” Knox
said. Knox urged the stu
dents and the state to give
greater support to the com
munity college system. He
recommended the schools
have more capability to
meet particular needs in
various areas of the state
Knox cited recent nation
al publications - among
them NEWSWEEK maga
zine - which have praised
North Carolina’s efforts to
upgrade the quality of edu
cation
He said Scholastic Apti
tude Test (SAT) scores are
rising, high school compe
tency scores are on the
upswing, and there is a
concerted effort to improve
the state’s university sys
tem. “We can do no less for
our community colleges
It is in the community
college system that we find
the broad range of folks
who will move into posi
tions of leadership in the
neighborhoods It Is in the
community colleges that
we find our future data
technicians and middle
management business
leaders. It is in the com-'
munity colleges that we
find the microcosm of the
community itself,*’ Knox
said.
For these reasons, he
said, it is important that
each of the state's 58 com
munity colleges have a
measure of autonomy ..in
order to ensure that the
needs of each community
will be served to its fullest
capacity, to meet those
needs in ways that are
meaningful to the people
living there."
Knox told the graduates
their education was "not a
gift, not some favor the
state bestowed on you., but
an investment, one that
North Carolina makes will
ingly and gladly in its peo
ple, one that pays off for all
of us in hundreds of ways;"
The most important be
nefit to the state of well
trained community college
graduates, Knox said, is an
enhanced competitiveness
in the marketplace as
North Carolina more ag
gressively seeks new in
dustries to improve the
state's economic mix The
new industries will, in turn,
increase revenues and help
provide upgraded services
for the state's citizens,
Knox said.
“In the 20 years since it
was founded," Knox said,
“our community college
system has become the
third largest in the nation
with virtually one of every
seven adults in the state
taking at least one course
in the system - and 70
percent of them are in job
training programs
“An institution with that
much strength and vitality
must become a basic in
gredient in the prescrip
tion for our future, or we
risk our economic and in
dustrial health,’’ Knox
said
One Of Five
Blacks Die
From Cancer
Black American men
have the highest incidence
of cancer among all races
and both sexes, according
to a report released at the
Second National Confer
ence on Meeting the Chal
lenge of Cancer among
Minorities.
The report, “Cancer
Facts and Figures for
Minority Americans,
1983,” revealed a cancer
rate of 454.3 among black
American men compared
to 371.6 for white Ame
rican men and 331.5 for all
races and both sexes
The report noted, how
ever, that the incidence of
cancer among black Ame
rican women is lower than
their white count erparts.
The rate of cancer among
black females is 228.7.
Among white females it is
301.2.
Available data indicates
that in 1983 approximately
955.000 individuals will be
diagnosed as having can
cer and nearly half will die.
Eighty-three thousand
black Americans will be
afflicted with the disease,
49.000 of whom will die. It is
estimated that one out of
every five deaths of black
Americans will be from
cancer
ones wnere DiacK Ame
ricans have significantly
higher rates per 100,000 in
cancer incidence include
prostate (black men 103.9,
66.2 white men); esopha
geal (black men 16.9, 4.8
white men, and 4.5 black
women, 1.6 white women);
lung black men 110 0, 76.4
white men and black
women 24.3, 21.8 white
women); cervix (black
women 25.7, 10.9 white
women).
Breast cancer incidence
is lower among black
women with 70.2 versus
85.6 white women.
Dr LaSalle D. LeffalJ
Jr , chairman of the Na
tional Advisory Commit
tee on Cancer in Minor
ities and past president of
the American Cancer So
ciety, hits noted that since
1979 when the society fo
cused on the problem of
cancer among black Ame
ricans, it has moved to;
bring cancer control pro- -
grams to other ethnic I
populations
i ne special proolein re- *
garding cancer in minor-.'
ities is how to deliver these;
advances to them.” he
said. "How do we gua-I
rantee that they receive the;
special knowledge that can ■
result in better living- ^
habits that may prevent
cancer? Key to this par
ticular challenge is the ' -
expansion of programs to*
improve the quality of lift'
for the patient and family.” •
West Charlotte
National Alumni ;
To Met June 12
The West Charlotte Na-;
tional Alumni Classes of*
1939-70 will meet at the i
Greenville Center, June U '
at 3 pm. A spokes person
for the organisation point-!
ed out the meeting it to;
finalise plans for s reunion •
to he held June 30 - July 1
The reunion will be held st
the Sheraton Hotel. All tn- •
ternsted people are encour «
aged to attend the impor- J
tant meeting.
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