I_
/•*
*—*9 "My By"
~ , See Page 15A
—.
Underhill B
T HTTP
I il V I I aoviatisino midia
\J JL JL JUI IN TNI LUCNATIVI
4 “The Voice Of The Black Community call 376 *0496
:•
^ - • -ySe^. • • _• _
- '_ % .TWS CHARLOTTE POST - Thursday, November 14, 1985 Price- 40 Cents
>« j-_ Jiir,
^ ... ..
Meeting
The Association of Couples for
Marriage Enrichment (ACME) will
Sponsor a public introductory meet
ing at the Park Road YWCA in
Charlotte on Sunday, November 24,
at 7:30 p.m. /
Drs. David and Sarah Catron, past
1 Preftident-couple of ACME,
“Tools for a Happy
’.modeling couple dia-.
logue. Thebe is no cost for the
program, and all persons are wel
comed (with or without their
spouse).
ACME was established in 1973 by
DatM and Verb Mace. After serv
ing many years as marriage coun
selors, the Maces realized the need
for maintenance and growth pro
grams for triarr&ge in addition to
existing counseling services. Mar
riage enrichment is not therapy; it is
for marriages that are functioning
weH. Believing that every marriage
has room far grwoth, ACME mem
bars workto^ievel op more fully the
of their couple relation
'Norfh Carolina cities have
ACME Chapter*. The State Council
ttfonsorigg this meeting as an In
in the Char
j persons may
f'omuet Beared, 5439
Kildare information
abOut'the N<24 meeting or
Vienna l;a Charlotte
*Cij§
T«j-epresent Garinger
Michelle Coe To Serve
By Jalyne Strong
Post Staff Writer
Carrousel Princess nominations at
Garinger High School began with 20
girls being nominated by each home
room class. From the 20, the no
minations were narrowed to 10. And
out of the 10 one winner was picked.
It was 17-year-old Michelle Coe.
Was she surprised to be the
winner? “Yes, I was,” claims
Michelle. Did she know that she was
so popular? “I never gave it much
thought,” she demures. “I guess I
must be."
The pretty high school senior
seems to be taking this privilege in
easy stride but Michelle does admit
to a few butterflies at the thought of
the continuing competition.
“On November 25, all the girls
from the different schools will stay
in the Radisson for four days of
interviewing and preparing for a
dance sequence and evening gown
competition,” she tells. “I was
nervous at first but I’ve gotten to
know the other girls and It's really
nice.
“Even if 1 don’t win the final
contest,- I’m enjoying the experi
ence,” Michelle decides.
This young lady is used to the
limelight, having taken center stage
quite often with her all-female band
called Pure Essence It is a
talented and quite attractive
quartet consisting of Michelle and
her friends, Shelia and Shanda
Sturdivant and Carmella Lee
“We’ve been friends for about se
ven years and we always liked
singing We formed the band three
years ago,” Michelle relates
Recently, Michelle was in an
other competition, this time with
Pure Essence as they auditioned for
the popular television show "Putting
On the Hits.” You guessed it. Out of
the 50 groups who auditioned, Pure
Essence topped as one of the 16
finalists.
The next step was for Pure
Essence to send a video tape of the
group’s performance to the show’s
See MICHELLE On Pane 2A
Election Results Please
Party Chairman Harper
By Audrey C. Lodato
Post Staff Writer
Mecklenburg County Democratic
Party chairman Ron Harper feels
good about the results of the recent
local elections.
"What I had predicted in the
election is what happened," he
remarked. "I was confident we’d get
two of the at-large seats, that Roy
Matthews would win in the 4th
District, and that Gantt would win
the mayoral election by a land
slide if we turned out the vote.’’
Top Democratic vote-getters
Gantt and Rousso won heavily in
both Democratic and Republican
districts, he added.
Locally, as well as on state and
national levels, Democrats have
been in the underdog position in
recent years. “This caused us to
Work a little harder,” Harper
acknowledged. “The county party
helped Democrats in Mecklenburg
feel better about themselves,”
he asserted.
The local party chairman believes
all of U3 .follow the Harvey
Gantt philosophy. We want to see
continued growth, but we’re more
comfortable if it’s controlled,” he
said. “The message is also that
people are comfortable with Demo
crats in office. I think there is
enough dissatisfaction with Republi
cans in Washington and in Raleigh
that part of that trickled down into
the local election." This, despite
Gantt’s openness in citing the need
for additional taxes.
Harper theorized that, with
Washington and Raleigh cutting off
funds to cities, voters are realizing
that, if services are to be con
tinued, the money has to come from
somewhere. “Either you give up
some services, or you look for al
ternative sources of revenue,” he
stated
Although partisan issues are not
felt as greatly on the local level,
Harper expressed the opinion that,
"without a partisan race, you would
not gain the interest of the public to
the same extent as you do with a
partisan race.”
The Mecklenburg chairman
Ron Harper
.Mecklenburg Democratic leader
shared a few words about the fu
ture of the Democratic Party. “We
still want to be a party of the people,
but we don't want that to be mis
construed as a party of special
interests We hope to be one big
‘special interest’ group with a
combined interest in looking after
all the people. I think various
groups understand that and accept
that these days. While there are still
some injustices, minority groups
accept that they are part of the
mainstream. Working for all the
people will benefit them in the long
run."
In his experience, “people can get
along with a common goal.” And,
despite the move to conservatism in
this country. Harper doesn't think
people want to forget the poor, single
parent families, the elderly, the
handicapped, education, or other
groups that need assistance. “But,”
he added, “people want to spend
money more wisely now.”
“Road Map To Successr'
New Businesses
Can Avoid “Failure Trap”
By Audrey C. Lodato
Post Staff Writer
It has been said, justifiably, that
“small business is big business.’’
According to Lawrence Toliver, vice
president of the Charlotte Chamber
of Commerce’s Small Business Di
vision, approximately 45 percent of
the gross national product comes
from small businesses These en
terprises also account for 00 percent
of existing Jobs and 75 percent of
new Jobs.
It is many an American’s dream
to have his or her own business
Unfortunately, all too many of these
dreams come crashing down within
the first few years of their start-up
But new businesses don’t have to
fail Recently, the Chamber hee put
out a book entitled, "Resources For
Making It Big In A Smell Business."
Over tbe next few weeks. we’U be
talking with some of the experts
involved in writing that book; and
step-by-step, chapter-by-chapter,
we ll tell you what they advise if you
are planning to-or even just
dreaming of~*tarting your own
business
One word of caution: If you’re
serious about a business, seek pro
fessional advice. Each situation is
different, and this series can only
offer general suggestions
Anyone starting out needs to have
a plan Business consultant Norman
Gagnon states, "You nkver have
-.7 ' V OftgiMn v ►.
.*«*inMs counselor
enough time to plan, but It's really
the moot critical pert" of starting a
Not only does planning help you
get started, but, says Gafenon. "A
plan can help a person find out
what 's going wrong "
A plan should serve as a guide •
Think of it as your "road map to
success * In formula til* your pUn.
keep in mind that ideas, money,
management, and planning are the
keys to staffing and running a
successful small badness
It may seem obvious, but the first
thing to do ia define what your
business will be Write down a
description of the business. WTiat
products or services will you offer?
Also include information about, the
industry your business will he a part
of 'eg., the fast food industry,
janitorial, the insurance industry,
etc).
Your plan will need to include a
marketing section Here, research is
vital. Who will your customers be?
To whom will you advertise? How
big is your potential market? Who is
your competition, and what are their
weaknesses0 Their strengths0
What is your overall strategy0
How will you reach potential cus
tomers? What is your advertising
plan0 How are you going to price
your product or service? Will your
business need a strong personal
selling effort0 Who will do it?
A third section of your business
plan should deal with organization
What form wiH your business take?
Where will it be located0 What about
any relevant government regula
tions0 Who will you hire and how will
you train them0
In your plan, you’ll need to deal
with financial questions How are
you going to fund your buMness0
How much cash will you need the
first year0 What equipment will you
need0 At what teles level win your
business start making money?
Your plan should alee include such
See Bt SINKS* On page 4A
It's probably true that the polfl
tical mood of this country swing^l
like a pendulum and that we’vefl
been on the conservative side of thefl
swing But Harper believes the J
mood is starting to swing back to a «,
more moderate position.
While the conservative arm of the j
Republican Party is still in con
trol, "I don't think that's what the
people want," he remarked. It’s up
to the Democrats to get the word out
that they are the party of mo
deration, he added
The Mecklenburg Democratic
Party’s big kick-off for its major
fundraiser, the Renaissance Club, is
this Saturday evening Having an
on going source of revenue will
enable the party to give candidates
financial assistance. "Frequently,
when people lose, it's because they
don’t have the money," Harper
noted
"We need to gain strength in the
eyes of the people, and we need to
solicit fresh new faces to run People
can get excited by an individual, by
a Cyndee Patterson or an A1
Rousso. It takes more effort on our
part to get them excited about an
entity, the Democratic Party." he
concluded
Groundbreaking
Set For Government
Center
The new Charlotte-Mecklenburg
Government Center will house City
administrative offices and include
space for County management, per
sonnel, budget, data processing and
finance operations The building is
financed by a $32 7 million bond
referendum approved by Charlotte
voters in May, 1983 The project also
includes a 1.000-car parking deck
currently under construction
Key elements of the project in
clude a 230-seat meeting chamber
for City Council and the Meck
lenburg Board of County Commis
sioners This space is accessed from
a large public lobby. Outside the
building is a public park and pl»»
with water features, trees and
benches
A 20-year planning process will be
culminated Thursday, November
24. at noon when ground is brsfcdn
for the new Charlotte- Mecklenburg
Government Center. The ceremon
ies will take place at the site
bounded by Third, Fourth, Dsvid
son and Alexander Streets. The pu
blic is invjted to attend