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HERTFORD, NC 27944-1306
January 21, 2004
Vol. 72. No. 3 Hertford, North Carolina 27944
Perquimans
Weekly
King
honored
at events
Susan R. Harris
Not even a surprise
guest speaker change could
dampen the mood of cele
bration and worship at the
annual NAACP-sponsored
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
celebration Monday.
Hampered by throat
problems, U.S.
Congressman Frank
Ballance, the originally-
scheduled guest speaker,
asked N.C. Senator Robert
Holloman to pinch-hit for
him.
Not only did .Holloman
speak to those gathered at
First Baptist Church, his
impassioned message
brought many in the audi
ence to their feet and smat
terings of applause
throughout his comments.
“We serve a God that’s
able to take nobodies and
make ‘em somebodies,”
Holloman said as she
opened his comments,
drawing from the scriptur
al text Phil. 4:13, “I can do
all things through Jesus
Christ who strengthens
me.”
Holloman said he was
one of eight children raised
by a father who was
“appointed and anointed,”
and a praying man.
“God raised me up,”
Holloman said.
King was one of
Holloman’s mentors, he
said.
As Holloman grew, he
said God was in his life. No
one believed that he would
grow up to become a state
senator, he said.
He also has enjoyed suc
cess as a minister, serving
at a chufch over the past 15
years. When he assumed
pastoral duties, the church
had 100 members and today
has over 560 active mem
bers. The sanctuary has
been renovated from a 200-
seat auditorium to one that
seats 750, in addition to
adding a fellowship hall
that seats 300 and a family
life center that seats 1,000.
The church offers teen
pregnancy and drug pre
vention and tutoring pro
grams.
Next he hopes to build a
%
Photo by SAM WOLFE, The Daily Advance
N.C. Senator Robert Holloman spoke during the annual Martin Luther King Jr. Day
celebration at First Baptist Church on Monday. The senator, who is also a minister,
agreed to deliver the sermon for his friend. Congressman Frank Ballance, the orig
inally-scheduled guest speaker. Ballance said he was having throat problems. The
program was sponsored by the Perquimans Chapter NAACP.
Schools Superintendent
Ken Wells was the guest
speaker at a Martin
Luther King Jr. Day break
fast at Captain Bob's
Restaurant.]
retirement center.
He said King persevered,
endured and never took no
for an answer. Holloman
said he has adopted the
same “We can” attitude.
As he continues to live
and grow, Holloman said he
learns more about people
and is convinced that they
are living beneath their
power and possibilities to
achieve.
People use only 10 per
cent of their brainpower,
and it is time to use that
untapped resource to
achieve, he said.
He said the purpose of
the King Day program was
to help people raise them
selves up from where they
are.
“We have come a long
ways, but God is ready to
take us farther,” he said.
“The only thing holding
you back is yourself,” he
said.
“Our problem is as a
race of people ... saying T
can’t’ when we ought to be
saying T can,”’ he added.
Overcoming negativity
and trusting each other are
imperative to change,
HoUoman said.
“It’s time to realize if we
don’t hang together we
become separated,” he said.
Christians should come
together to make a differ
ence, he said, to act on drug
use and other social prob
lems and make a difference.
“It’s drugs that’s killing
us,” he said.
He added, “Martin
Luther King is rolling over
in his grave: because pro
fessed leaders are not tak
ing more action.
“It’s not about your talk,
it’s about your walk,” he
said.
He said people should
not talk about each other,
but instead should refuse to
gossip and pray for those
who may need help or be in
trouble.
“If you don’t have the
facts, you need to keep your
mouth closed,” he said.
“Don’t talk about them,
pray for them.”
“You can face every chal
lenge,” Holloman said.
“Learn how to __ live above
what people say* about you.
God is in our site.”
Holloman ended his talk
by asking for support when
he next runs for office, as
Perquimans has been
moved into his state senato
rial district.
Winslow to sign
copies of her book
Hannah Winslow will
sign her book, “Once Upon
a Time I was Me:
Reflections on Living as a
Teenager,” on Jan. 27, 4-6:30
p.m. at the Perquimans
County Library.
Hannah is the daughter
of Richard and LaRue
Winslow of Hertford and a
sophomore English educa
tion major and Teaching
Fellow at East Carolina
University.
Hannah Winslow signs a
copy of her book, "Once
Upon a Time I Was Me:
Reflections on Living as a
Teenager," on Jan. 27 at
the county library.
Hannah is from Hertford
and an ECU student.
According to The East
Carolinian, the ECU stu
dent newspaper, Hannah is
the first student in school
history to publish while
obtaining her undergradu
ate degree.
The poetry in the book
was written during
Hannah’s earlier years, emd
discusses her feelings on
many issues aU teens face
such as family, relation
ships and religion.
The book was published
by Tfafford Publishing in
Canada and is illustrated
by Nathan Saunders, a
graduate of Perquimans
County High School and a
student at N.C. State
University. It retails for
$15.95, and 10 percent of aU
sales are donated to the
American Cancer Society.
Razors found
at PCMS
Two students
suspended for
10 days; face
365-day
suspension
SUSAN R. HARRIS
Two Perquimans County
Middle School students
have been suspended from
school after having been
found to be in possession of
a weapon last week.
According to a news
release issued by the school
system, the two incidents
were unrelated. No serious
injuries were documented
in either case. School prin
cipal Melvin Hawkins has
recommended long-term
suspension for both stu
dents.
One incident occurred
on a school bus. A student
carrying a disposable razor
blade on the bus did cause
what the school system
called “minor physical
harm to another student.”
The injury did not require
stitches, but a tetanus shot
was given for precaution
ary reasons.
“As principal, I am
charged with the responsi
bility to take whatever rea
sonable and legal action is
necessary to establish and
maintain appropriate stu
dent behavior in accor
dance with board policy,”
said Hawkins. “Both stu
dents possessing the razor
blades were suspended for
10 days and have been rec
ommended for long-term
suspension.”
School board policy
states that students found
to be in possession of
weapons may be suspended
for up to 365 days.
The names of the stu
dents involved were not
released as both were
minors.
Superintendent Ken
Wells said the school sys
tem has a zero tolerance
policy for weapons or drugs
of any kind among its stu
dents.
“There must exist a cli
mate of discipline con
ducive to learning and
respect for oneself and
other people for a school to
meet the needs of our stu
dents,” Wells said. “Each
-principal has the authority
to take whatever reason
able action is necessary to
establish and maintain
appropriate student behav
ior. As superintendent, I
shall uphold and support
the maximum punishment
of students for possession
of weapons and drugs.”
In order to dispel
rumors and keep parents
fully informed, Hawkins
sent a letter home to par
ents on Friday. The letter
was sent to inform parents
of the incidents, request
their assistance, and
assure them that school is
safe.
Hawkins also recom
mended in the letter a few
steps parents can take to
help maintain school safe
ty
Among the recommenda
tions were:
• Support your local
school and community
groups, such as the PTA.
These organizations can
help create a connected
community to support
school safety.
• Familiarize yourself
with school policies that
outline zero tolerance
regarding weapons, bully
ing, and any act of vio
lence. Speak with your
child on a regular basis
about the repercussions of
acts of violent.
• If you have weapons in
your home, secure them so
that your child does not
have access to them.
• Work to ensure that
the lines of communication
are open both in your home
and at school. Even if your
child is not currently hav
ing a problem, it's impor
tant that he/she knows who
to talk to and that he/she
can feel secure in talking
about personal problems as
well as concerns about
classmates.
The news release stated
that Perquimans and sys
tems around the nation
have taken measures over
the past few years to ensure
that weapons are not car
ried on campuses.
Some local measures
have included random lock
er and bag checks and
establishing only one entry
and exit point to each
school that is supervised by
a teacher. In addition, metal
detectors are often used in
schools and are readily
available for athletic
events.
Perquimans County
Schools has added curricu
la to educate children about
their feelings and how to
resolve conflicts without
resorting to violence. Being
involved in both peer coun
seling and active peer pro
grams can help students
become more attuned to the
signs that a fellow student
(or themselves) may be
becoming more troubled or
violent. They also may be
more comfortable report
ing those signs to someone
who can help that student,
such as a guidance coun
selor or teacher.
A copy of the schools
policy manual is available
for review in the office at
each school and at the cen
tral administrative office.
Holiday
Weather
THURSDAY
High: 55
Low: 27
Sunny
Friday
High: 39
Low: 26
Sunny
Saturday.
High: 53
Low: 33
Mostly Sunny