charlotte
LIFESTYLES
6A
THURSDAY
December 2, 1993
'oping
CHARLES
FAULKNER
iNothing lost
in saying
hello first
Have you ever passed a stranger on
! the street who you wanted to get to
know, but were afraid to speak to?
: Perhaps you saw someone at a party,
■ at work or even at the store. Well,
why didn’t you speak? You were
' probably afraid of being rejected.
You probably were thinking that
your feelings would be terribly hurt If
you said hello to that person and the
person did not return your greeting. ,
This fear troubles most people. So,
you are not unusual. But, It doesn't
have to be as
I tormenting as
I you think. The
I fact that you
took the Inltla-
I tlve to speak to
another person
means that you
are a stronger
person than
I one who refused
to speak to you.
There are as
many people In
this society who
want to meet
you as there are
people whom you want to meet. But,
they are afraid of rejection as you
ml^tbe. Ifyou continue to be asser
tive you will eventually be rewarded.
TWs Is the usual unpleasant scena
rio of the fearful IndMdual: you see
someone whom you would like to
meet, but because of your fear of rejec
tion you are afraid to Introduce your
self. After the person has left, you say
to yourself, "Dam, why didn't 1 just
walk up and say 'hello?" If 1 ever see
that person again, 1 won't miss the
opportunity to get acquainted.
"The next day, by sheer coincidence,
you see that person again. You think;
"I'm not going to miss this opportu
nity to say hello." But, dam It, you
stlU cannot find the nerve to break
the Ice. Another opportunity Is
missed. You begin to question your
self as a person. You begin to criticize
yourself. This situation repeats Itself
time and time again until one day
you get enough nerve to break the ice
and introduce yourself.
But, the other person gives you a
roll of the eyes and walks right past
without even acknowledging your
presence. You are devastated, think
ing "Is there something wrong with
me? Am I unattractive? Am I inferi
or? Will 1 ever have success with peo
ple?'
The basic problem in the above ex
ample is that you have transferred
the problems for the world to your
self. Instead of concluding that the
other person is at fault, you conclude
that the other person is all right, but
"I'm the one who is Inadequate."
The following are some brief guide
lines that you may use to avoid fall
ing into this trap;
1. Evaluate yourself fairly and you
will find that you are a person whose
good points outweigh the bad.
2. Know who you are. Be confident
In yourself as a person. Maybe one
person will snub you. Maybe two, or
three or four will snub you. But, there
are four billion people In the world.
Old Rosenwald
is a tribute to
blacks’ struggle
for an education
By Cassandra Wynn
THE CHARLOTTE POST
* A'"
McClintock, one of 10 Rosenwald schools in Mecklenburg.
Photos/Paul Williams III
The old Rosenwald schools serve as reminders of what education was like for blacks in
the early part of this century.
Ben Hoover. 65, remembers that as a 10-year-old, it was his duty to light the fire for three
pot'belly stoves at McClintock School (one of 10 still existing In Mecklenburg County) be
fore classes started.
"I’d get up at 6 and walk a mile and a half to school to start the fire," Hoover recalled.
In those days spelling bees. May Day celebrations, free apples and candy around Christ
mas were what black youngsters cherished and rallied around.
Hoover is heading a group trying to preserve the history by restoring old McClintock
School. The Rosenwald School Restoration Committee of McClintock Presbyterian
Church plans to renovate the school within the next year to use as part of the church facil
ity.
Volunteer help, donations and grants will enable the refurbished facility to have an au
ditorium, office space, a study and a kitchen.
Hoover laments that many black youngsters don’t know the price older blacks paid to get
an education.
Many walked miles, sometimes through the woods to come, to school.
"You carried your own lunch," Eunice Mcllwaln, a McClintock Presbyterian Church
member, said. "Some days some of the teachers would make a pot of soup. One of the teach
ers would sell peanut butter crackers." Often the teachers stayed In the community, board
ing in a room with a family.
The schools were built between 1917-1932 for black children by matching funds provid
ed by Sears Roebuck tycoon Julius Rosenwald. Rosenwald's money helped construct 5,300
schools, with 813 in North Carolina and 36 in Mecklenburg County.
The trademark white painted weatherboard buildings with front porches were symbols
of community cohesiveness and learning. The four-room McClintock School accommo
dated first through seventh grades.
The schools stand as a symbol of the segregation that existed in the South. Often better
buUt, white schools were nearby. Whites in school buses often passed blacks on foot, Mcll-
wain said.
Because the county did not provide a high school in the Steele Creek area, students who
wanted to continue their education after seventh grade had to make a long ride to Second
Ward High School, Mcllwaln said.
"I knew girls who boarded with school teachers in the city to go to Second Ward," Mcll-
wain said.
Rosenwald, who served as president of Sears, Roebuck from 1909-24, was Influenced by
educator Booker T, Washington and concerned about a Jim Crow South that required lit
eracy tests for voters and meager funds for public education for blacks.
The Rosenwald schools were often built near a black church and served as community
centers as well.
School, then, was a community event. It took everybody to make it work.
Parents In those days would faithfully attend PTA meetings, bringing latems with them
for light. Electricity was not available at the school until the early 1950s.
When the school was phased out in the 1950s, a group of McClintock Presbyterian
Church members "saw the need for the building and purchased it from the county," Mcll
waln said.
From that time until it was badly damaged in 1989 by Hurricane Hugo, the old school
was used for church dinners and community meetings. Not much of the Inside had been al
tered.
Interest in preserving history has long been prevalent at McClintock Presbyterian
Church. In 1986 McCllntock’s pastor Rev. Robert Shirley launched a project to document
the history of the building. Subsequently, the building was declared a historic landmark.
In those days, spelling bees. May Day celebrations, free ap
ples and candy around Christmas were what black young
sters cherished and rallied around.
...Many walked miles, sometimes through the woods, to
come to school.
% \
^ 4% ^
Eunice Mcllwaln and Ben Hoover, who attended classes at
McClintlck School, review restoration schedule.
The school was used until 1989. Hoover checks out the
old potbelly stove inside the building.
Program designed to give babies healthy start
By Vera Witherspoon
THE CHARLOTTE POST
Mothers who don't pre
pare for the task of parent
ing reduce their children's
chances to succeed, say ex
perts.
A new Mecklenburg Coun
ty Health Department pro
gram is designed to help
mothers give children a bet
ter beginning.
The Belmont Regional
Center has a Healthy Start
project to help young preg
nant women become
healthy mothers having
healthy babies.
It is funded by a grant
from the Healthy Start
Foundation in Raleigh. The
age range of the partici
pants is between 14 to 22.
'We had our staff on board
in April 1993. All communi
ty outreach workers in the
program are members of the
Belmont community," said
Stanley Graham, director of
Neighborhood Based Hu
man Services for the Meck
lenburg County Health De
partment.
"Our goal was to identify 10
young women who lived in
the Piedmont Courts and
Belmont communities in the
first trimester of their preg
nancy," he said.
During the first session,
workshops were held every
other week at Belmont Re
gional Center.
Women participate in dis
cussions led by professionals
in nutrition, exercise, sub
stance abuse prevention.
self-esteem building, library
resources, healthy male/
female relationships, STDs/
HIV education and preven
tion, family planning, meth
ods of birth control and com
munity resources.
Other activities include
water aerobics, sejvlng, cook-
outs, home hair care and ap
plying makeup.
A young mother's self
esteem is tied to parenting,
Graham contends. "These
topics are conducted as a
combination of discussions,
lectures and mentoring," he
said.
'We want these young wom
en to come in and make a
commitment. We have to
have some sense of them un
derstanding what their ex
pectations are," Graham
said.
'We bring them in and tell
them what the workshops
are going to be about, who is
going to be working with
them and why we are doing
this. Anybody who is having
a baby wants a healthy
baby," said Graham.
Anissa Taylor, 22, was a
participant in the first ses
sion. She is originally from
the Belmont area.
"She is an individual who
has made a major change.
She has set goals, strived to
stay In school and knows
what she should do," said
Linda Woodland, community
outreach coordinator.
"I now have a better rela
tionship with my son's fa
ther," said Taylor. 'The pro
gram taught me parenting
skills, how to raise a healthy
baby, and about healthy re
lationships with the father.
In the home or absent."
It also helps to deal with
stress and knowing how to
keep up with doctor's ap
pointments. Most young
women think having a baby
is a game, but it’s not, Taylor
said.
'The faculty members are
very good. They know how
to relate to young pregnant
women and give them sup
port," she said.
"I want to encourage more
young pregnant women to go
to the Healthy Start pro
gram. It benefits young preg
nant females by not criticiz
ing, talking to you and
getting ideas," Taylor said.
INSIDE:
RELIGION • • • 8A AROUND CHARLOTTE • • *7A CHURCH NEWS
• • •
9A