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Contents5 - Editorial

7 - WIDU Celebrates 53rd Radio Anniversary

9 - Game Changer.....It’s Cool To Love God!

11 - Gospel Music Top Ten

12 - Cover Story - Bishop Larry D. Trotter

“Keeping It Together After 30 Years”

15 - 2nd Annual Independent Gospel Artists Alliance Conference

16 - A Royal Wedding

19 - Desperate For Him Mega Mime Conference 2011

21 - The Direction of Quartet Music

What a great season to experience new and exciting things. Regardless of economic condi-tions, opportunites are available for entertainment, travel and exposure as never before. There is a new world and order that takes you outside your normal boundaries into a new existence. Technology places you on unforeseen levels of false security that only redirects you to the Father. Since our last edition our own Ted Tatum was honored by DMP Promotions at their 3rd Annual Red Carpet Gala with a Bridge Builder Award. Prior to receiving the award he was interviewed on Channel 57 Atlanta Live. Ted is an integral part behind the scenes of TCP Magazine and is certainly worthy of receiving such an award.

I had the opportunity to stand in as Host of Spiritual Awakening (one of the longest running gospel TV Shows in the country), on the panel of the You Go Girls Women’s Conference, supported the African American Cultural Festival, Artsplosure and participated in the maiden voyage of Vision Airlines from Raleigh/Durham to Freeport Grand Bahamas Islands. We attended the lavish wedding of Dr. Sir Walter Mack (Kim Bush) and celebrated the 90th Birthday of Matriarch Mother Mildred Hash. We are pleased to share the 30th Ministry Anniversary of Bishop Larry Trotter and honor him with the cover of our Fall Issue. Bishop Trotter has a testimony that you will not soon forget and he is still holding it together after 30 years. We look forward to joining him on his Anniversary.

The Fall season presents us with an array of events including WIDU Radio’s 53rd Anni-versary Celebration (Fayetteville, NC), Luther Barnes Fall Classic (Rocky Mount, NC), Bishop Larry Trotter’s 30th Anniversary (Chicago, IL), Shiloh (Raleigh, NC), Unrestrained Worship Conference

(Atlanta, GA), Connectional Ministries (Norfolk, VA) and other events supporting our partners. If you desire to have a presence at events that you are unable to attend, just give us a call and join our growing list of advertisers. Your ministry, music or business can be represented within the pages of TCP Magazine and distributed to the masses. You don’t want to miss our Anniversary Edition. Save the date, January 27-28, 2012 for TCP Maga-zine’s 8th Anniversary. We’re still standing. To God Be The Glory for He has done marvelous things.

Peggy Tatum, Publisher(919) 796-4724peggy@tcpmagazine.com

Ted Tatum

Volume 02, Issue Number 5Publisher/Editor-In-Chief: Peggy TatumAssistant Editor: Dr. Francene HashWebmaster: Ted TatumPhotographer: Rick Crank - PIXBYRIC.COMGraphic Design & Layout: Denver A. Wright -WIZPRO Creative Services, www.wizprocreative.comContributing Writers:Dr. Francene Hash, Zack Reynolds, Jon Montague, Iman-N-Lah S. Rasheed, Tim Williams, and Melissa Wade Public Relations:Terry Spicer, Ephiphany Public Rela-tionsMarketing: Katie Gailes, Smartmoves InternationalEvent Planning: Latonya Kearney, Plan Ahead Events

The Connection Place, Inc.181-104 Wind Chime Court

Raleigh, NC 27615Tel: 919-676-0263

info@theconnectionplace.com

Copyright © 2011 The Connection Place, Inc. All rights reserved.

Editorial

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When Wes Cookman started his job at the radio station at WIDU 1600 AM, he loved gospel music but didn’t realize that it would be the path that would bring him to personally touch the lives of so many. Grow-ing up in a Pentecostal household, putting God first was customary. Staying in God’s Word prepared him to stand boldly today and express his love for people and the deep desire to put back into the community. Even though he walked down a different path than his father who was a preacher, you couldn’t tell that the once shy Wes wasn’t a preacher himself as he draws your attention through his eloquent articulation of Jesus’ love while he spits out scriptures.

This year marks the 53rd Anniversary of WIDU radio station in Fayetteville, North Carolina that was purchased by Wes in 1987. Each year the event has built momentum and the 2011 event has been expanded to a full seven days. Planning for the event is not limited to the staff but the whole community is invited to volunteer and help with the massive project. For months, Wes and his team have traveled to cities and towns outside of the reach of their signal to share the vision for this Anniversary. The message was simple. This is what we did last year and this year we want to bring 1,000 souls to Christ. “Can you pray with us?” he simply asks. Additionally, the team would leave flyers and ask for attendees to share the flyers with their friends, families and church members. No big sale pitches.

Included in this year’s celebration is a Golf Tour-nament, a Unity Service, a Traditional Gospel Night, A

Youth Concert, workshops, ministry, an expo, fellowship and more. One day is set aside just to feed the homeless. Last year, $4,000 was donated to homeless shelters which represented all proceeds for the day. Admission cost for the paid events is kept to a minimum thanks to the help of local sponsors. Bus loads will come from all around to support the vision of Wes and Sandy Cookman. The Pastor’s Coalition has played an integral part by supporting this vision as well as numerous others in the community and the music enthusiast who contributed to the Mega Mass Choir. TCP Magazine is honored to be a media sponsor for these Kingdom Builders. For more info visit www.widuradio.com.

WIDU Celebrates 53rd Radio Anniversary - The Heart of the Community

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Christopher “Warren” Terrell!!! How are you? I’m fantabulous, I won’t complain.You were born and raised in Raleigh, NC? That is Correct!At what age did you start singing and writing music and when did you realize you want-

ed to do it professionally? My kindergarten music teacher recognized my gift and informed my parents. My mom bought me a Mr. Microphone. I didn’t take it seriously until after high school. I loved perform-ing and dancing, but thought singing was soft. In regards to writing, I thought I always could write nice melodies, but my song structure and lyrical content was whack. I really didn’t learn to write good songs until I was about 21.

Jump from NC to NYC in 1992! I started going to North Carolina Central University and hooked up there with a friend who wanted to collaborate. Our friend’s uncle was managing Teddy Riley and took us to meet him. We sang for him and he thought we should move to NY to lose ourselves to find ourselves. I didn’t know what that would mean until later in life.

You also had some Run-Ins with “Puffy” Combs! True indeed, he’s probably been my larg-est inspiration in this business which may be hard to believe for some. He showed me that if you work hard, stay focused and believe, nothing is impossible. It’s pretty funny how we met. A young lady that I met in VA was doing an internship in NY and gave Puff my number. Puff called me and mind you this was when he was working at Uptown/MCA before BadBoy. He said “Yo, your girl Jana told me about you and your man and I want you to come down to see me today. I said that we couldn’t because we had another meeting set up. So he hung up. About 30 seconds later he calls me back and says “You know who I am

B? I got Heavy D, Mary J. Blige, Jodeci, if yall all that, come see me at 1755 Broadway at 5:30 today. Of course we went after that. He wasn’t really visual, so I had never seen him, only heard his name. As we sat in the lobby of MCA Records a young bald dude, wearing Timberland boots, shorts and t-shirt came up and was like, “You looking for Puff, I’m Puff”. I’m saying to myself, yes he’s just like us! My partner and I went into his office played our not so good demo and he asked me did I like R. Kelly. My vocals reminded him of R. Kelly. We sang the star spangle banner accappella and he made us a verbal offer of $175,000 - $225,000, but said that he would have to manage us. He walks out and comes back with Andre Harrell and introduced us to him and tells Andre that we would be back Tuesday to meet. His phone rings in his office and he looks at me and tells me the phone was for me. He looked at me like what the World...my manager at the time had received word that we were in Puffs office and he was not feeling that at all. Our manager was on the verge of landing us a deal at RCA, Long story short, we had no where to live being from NC with no family in NY, our manager had offered us a place to live and we wanted to give him a chance. The RCA situation looked good at first, but fell through about 6 months later. After that fell through we went back to Puff and by that time he had signed 5 acts to his BadBoy label and didn’t have funds available for us. But he said that he loved my writing and to leave a number to be reached. Heavy D called me at work the next day.

Why did you switch from R & B to Gospel? I’m calling it “God-Centered Soul. I was going through a time in my life and needed to get my house in order as a father and husband. My wife and I had different backgrounds and weren’t seeing eye to eye. The opportunity came to move back to NC. We found a church and I joined the choir and Praise Team. God then revealed that it was okay to still do my music, but tell the world about Him.

I hear that you did something really BIG for Mr. Tyler Perry! I was given the opportunity to write for a small team for the movie “Daddy’s Little Girls”. When they told me what the movie was about, I told them I had a song already. I initially recorded the song with Steve Sola, one of the hottest Hip Hop engineers in the business, but we hadn’t mixed it or anything. When I let Herb and Big Pooh hear the record they were like that’s it! They took it to Atlanta, had the music flipped, sped up the song and got Anthony Hamilton to sing the record. I was like thank you God. But that wasn’t it. Tamika Scott from Xscape along with Big Pooh, Herb Magwood and others remixed the song, flipping the Hook and adding Jaheim and Musiq Soulchild to the record. Then I saw Tyler Perry post that the song was one of his favorites on the album, so it was pretty awesome.

Christopher Terrell & NJP is comprised of singers & musicians? It’s really more than that. NJP is not just about the musicians and sing-ers. It’s really a movement that was God inspired. My crew currently consists of a 4 piece band: Thomas Demps, Beverly Clark, Jamel Lewis and James Lyles, 5 vocalists: Melissa Terrell, Lynette Townsend, Aya Wallace, Monica Starks and Rahsaan Ragin.

Your music is what most call Gospel due to Lyrics. How would you describe your music? I describe my music as very versatile. It allows you to relate and still praise God in your own way.

You are releasing a new album. Yes, and very excited about it. I produced this album independently and aim to let the world know “It’s Cool to Love God” which is also the title.

The first single is? “It’s Cool To Love God”. I didn’t plan to do the song but wrote it the day before I finished recording. I felt it was Heaven sent. My oldest daughter, a teenager loves it and inspired me to use the track. It’s the motto that I’ve been pushing, very catchy and pray that it’s a hit.

Are all of the songs on the album original and written by you? Yes Tell us again when can we expect the album “It’s Cool To Love God”? November, it will be available God willing.

For bookings, updates, information and to purchase the album, please visit: www.christopherterrellnewjourneyproject.comSubmitted By: Iman-N-Lah S. Rasheed - Publicist, Christopher Terrell & The New Journey Project

Game Changer.....It’s Cool To Love God!

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1. Count It All Joy - Theresa Pinkney 2. Jesus - Le’Andria Johnson 3. Survive - Mary Mary 4. No Harm - Isaiah Thomas 5. You Are - Kierra Sheard 6. Kingdom Business - Canton Jones 7. The Gift - Carmen Calhoun 8. When He Calls Your Name - Tanya Dallas Lewis 9. He Loves Me - Cynthia Jones 10. Let The Church Say Amen - Andrae Crouch

Pastor Arvetra Jones, Jr. - www.WFSS.org1. Teen Pure N Heart – Where Would I Be

2. Bishop Michael Blue – Breakthrough3. Earnest Pugh – I Need Your Glory

4. Phoenix Mass Choir - Honor5. Cedric Cobb - Repentance

6. BIU - Change7. Luther Barnes – Yet Love

8. Zak Williams – Things Are Gonna Get Better9. Norman Thomas – Blow Through Me10. Clandia Elliott – Grandma’s Hands

Christian Jukebox - www.cjbradio.com

George Majette - www.pozitiveentertainment.com1. I Smile - Kirk Franklin

2. Over and Over -Trin-i-Tee 5:7 3. God Is Great - Ricky Dillard

4. Survive - Mary Mary5. I Need Your Glory - Earnest Pugh

6. Be Still - Yolanda Adams7. In The Middle - Isaac Carree

8. Still Here - 21:039. Trust Me - Richard Smallwood

10. Get Down - Dawkins & Dawkins

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BISHOP LARRY D. TROTTER - Keeping It All Together After 30 Years During the month of October, Bishop Larry D. Trotter will

celebrate 30 years at the helm of one of the most famous churches in Chicago, the legendary Sweet Holy Spirit Church. There will be several renowned speakers and musical guests from around the country paying respect to this remarkable man of God.

Bishop Trotter began his career in gospel as the Minister of Music of several churches such as: New Birth Strong Hope

Church, New Galilee Baptist and several others in the Chicago area. Trotter was termed a “Bapticostal” at an early age. He was filled with the Holy Ghost at House of Inspiration COGIC (after being introduced to that experience by the late Timothy Henton) while still in high school, and yet worked in the Baptist church.

While serving as youth pastor of Greater Mount Eagle Church and New Faith Church, Bishop Trotter was being sought

after for a pastoral position by Pleasant Grove Baptist Church and the 22 member Sweet Holy Spirit Church, then located at 7650 S.

Laflin Street. In December of 1981, Bishop Trotter became the pastor of Sweet Holy Spirit Church and in 6 months the church filled beyond capacity.

Trotter attributes the rapid growth to being cutting edge and nontraditional. “We had tent

revivals, Down Home days, Come As You Are days, and even al-

lowed women to wear slacks in church when it was not ac- ceptable in Chicago”. “We broke a lot of tradi-tions”, says Trotter.

Herman Ferguson, a men-

tor of the ministry, told Bishop Trotter, “God will bless you once you get out of that hole.” Ferguson informed Bishop that he needed to be more visible. God supplied both the building and the money to purchase the next location of Sweet Holy Spirit. This build-ing was referred to as the “Miracle on 103rd Street”. Trotter purchased the building on February 3, 1985 and moved 30 days later. Trotter and Sweet Holy Spirit (affectionately known as SHS) had 30 days to come up with $40,000. At the time of the move, Trotter acted on faith, because SHS had less than $500 in their account. That was a rough period for about 5 to 6 years, because the mortgage exceeded the amount of resources. “Often times the church had to borrow from members and pay them back after the 1st Sunday of the month to make the mortgage payment”, states Trotter. After the turbulent peri-od, and remaining faithful to God’s word, SHS began to grow again. The “Miracle on 103rd Street” tripled in size. The cur-rent location 8621 S. South Chicago Avenue, seats over 2000 with all 3 services on Sunday morning filled to capacity.

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In Chicago, there was a large contingency of Pastors who had record-ing choirs. Rev. Maceo Woods and Christian Tabernacle Choir; the late Rev.

Milton Brunson’s Christ Tabernacle and The Thompson Community Singers; Rev. Clay Evans and Fellowship Baptist Church; Dr. Charles G. Hayes and Cosmopolitan Church and Pastor Donald L. Alford’s Progressive Church to

name a few. Bishop Trotter is no exception. Following in the footsteps of legendary pastors,

Trotter has carved out a name for himself, and has taken his rightful place in the gospel music indus-try among the gospel elite. Trotter’s hits are sung throughout the country. Hits such as “I Still Believe”, “Silent Tears”, “It’s Only a Test”, and the signature

song, “The Lord Is Blessing Me Right Now” just to name a few.

Trotter was one of the founding fathers of the Full Gospel Baptist Fellowship, where he served as the Third Assistant Presiding Prelate of the Fellowship. Later, Bishop J. Delano Ellis, the Presiding Prelate of United Pentecostal Churches of Christ, approached

Trotter to take the helm of his organization due to his illness. Trotter served that organization, and then re-

signed to concentrate on his local assembly.

While SHS became Trot-ter’s focus, he was stricken with a life

threatening heart issue. Three separate times, he had 99% blockage in his arteries. Bishop Trotter is now living with 3 stints in his heart. When Trotter fell ill while preaching in California, he was then 330 lbs, and his blood pressure was 200 /140. In addition to heart trouble, his appendix ruptured, which created gallbladder contamination. That was the contribut-ing factor to Trotter’s rapid weight loss. With the weight loss came rumors of cancer, and HIV/AIDS, which all were spread about Trot-

ter. Trotter never responded to those rumors, he kept preaching faith. Trotter, for the next 18

weeks, preached from one theme, “I Still Be-lieve”. Trotter preached on a walker, and even under the influence of pain killers, but he never lost faith. Bishop Trotter is a walking miracle.

Bishop Trotter, now 54 years old, is positioning SHS for its next

era. Trotter will be the Senior Pastor of SHS, but wishes to transition to teaching pastors. No, Trotter is not thinking about retiring. SHS has many more years with him as its leader. Trotter also has sons and daughters across the country who will preserve the legacy of SHS. In 30 years as its leader, Sweet Holy Spirit has grown from 22 members to over 8,000, and has recorded over 7 CD’s. Trotter has presided over 3 major organizations. He states to the readers of TCP Magazine, “If I lost everything, but had Jesus, I have more than enough to start over again”. Clearly Trotter is a man among men, builder of builders, and pastor of pastors. Bishop Larry D. Trotter is positioned for greatness, but in the minds of many, he is great already!!

BISHOP LARRY D. TROTTER - Keeping It All Together After 30 Years (continued)

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For the second consecutive year, the Inde-pendent Gospel Artists Alliance Conference was a tremendous success. This year, the conference was held in Chesapeake, VA, July 14th-16th on the cam-pus of Mt. Lebanon Baptist Church, affectionately known as “The Mount”, where Bishop Kim Brown serves as Senior Pastor. Multiple Stellar Award nominees and conference co-founders, Minister Earl Bynum and Phillip Carter, pulled together a powerful group of panelists (see list of names below) to pro-vide education, training, and networking opportuni-ties to music industry stakeholders who journeyed to the Tidewater region from across the United States. Conference attendees were able to choose between beginner and advanced sessions in numerous areas such as record label operations, marketing, distribu-

tion, legal, touring, as well as radio relationships and servicing. This year also marked the 1st Gospel Blue Mic Achievement Awards, which was sponsored by Charles Clark, Jr., founder of Nebo Publishing, home of Brotha Online Magazine.

The North Carolina Gospel music community was represented well, making an undeniable mark on this year’s confer-ence with numerous recording artists from the state blazing the showcase stage such as Todd Curry & Focus, Christal Reyn-olds, Matt Kelly, whose crowd-stirring performance during the Gospel Blue Mic Achievement Awards ceremony won’t soon be forgotten, and Diana Y. Washington. Curry, Reynolds, and Kelly also garnered national buzz for the “Tar Heel State” as they revealed a hot sampler of new music during the confer-ence from their forthcoming projects in the form of a compilation entitled The NC Connection “Praise From The Carolinas To The Nations” – Volume I. The nightcap of day two of the nightly showcase included a special, Phillip Carter-led (accompanied on-stage by numerous NC-based attendees) tribute of “Rough Side Of The Mountain” in memory of the late Gospel icon, Bish-op F.C. Barnes.

Panelists for this year’s conference included: Mike Chandler, Benita Bellamy, Troy Sneed, Henry Harris, Terry Mendheim, Monica Lisa Stevenson, Thomas Rollins, Garrett Johnson, Roderick Jemison, Andrea R. Williams, Brodric Pur-vis, Andre Carter, Wanda Patterson, Simone Henry, Jamila Joy, Connie Birth, Dominique Stroman and Dr. Mark Williams. Plan-ning is already underway for 2012. You can find more informa-tion, photos, and commentary on The Independent Gospel Art-ists Alliance Conference at www.indiegospelalliance.com.

Zack Reynolds, Jr., founder of MoRey Entertainment, is

a songwriter, producer, and music industry consultant. Contact info: zack@morey-entertainment.com

2nd Annual Independent Gospel Artists Alliance Conference - by Zack Reynolds, Jr.

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A Royal Wedding? Which One? The Supernatural One

As the media was preparing the world for the royal wedding of Prince William and Miss Katherine Middleton in England, Winston Salem, NC was preparing its own royal wedding; that of Dr. Sir Walter Mack, Jr. and Ms Kim Romaine Bush. Just as the pomp and circumstance, the global renowned guest list, the specially designed invitations, the music and arts entertainment, the symbolic decorations, flowers, exquisite cars and limousines, receptions with delicious delegacies, and all of the once in a lifetime experiences and memories were carefully being orchestrated

by hundreds of professional event planning experts in England; the same meticulous expertise was being conducted in Winston Salem by Mrs. Moni-

ca Mack Covington and the Union Baptist Church staff.When the public announcement was made that Dr. Sir Walter Mack,

Jr. was to be married to Ms Kim Romaine Bush, the news immediately went viral and became the talk of every household. Newspapers, TV and radio stations, social

networks such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and more began to buzz and talk about Winston Salem’s royal wedding. Inquisitive minds began asking, “Who is Kim Bush? How

did she hook Dr. Mack?” He has been single for so long! After conducting my own research on this obviously special lady, I found that Dr. Mack gained a jewel. He found a “good thing”, for this royal union was made in heaven.

PRAYER BROUGHT THIS SUPERNATURAL UNION INTO MANIFESTATION – Like every mother, I’m sure Mother Frances Mack in her prayers have prayed for God to send her son a special woman to fulfill his life of ministry. No doubt, Dr. Mack himself has spoken to God in the wee hours of the night as he communed with his creator that he was lonely and needed a helpmeet; yet he knew that it had to be God and not him to choose Kim Bush out of all the thousands of beautiful women in the world. Kim Bush is divinely unique and distinctly different and set apart. As I furthered my research, I found that Ms Bush too comes from a legacy of ministry. Her uncle, the Reverend Dr. Richard Wilson of Christian Community Church in St. Petersburg, Florida gave the union ceremony as well as the pronouncement of marriage to the couple. Her cousins and other family members performed in the choirs, dance groups, and in several other parts of the festive events. Ms Bush is the daughter of the late Mr. Herbert J. Bush and Mrs. Erma Wilson Bush of Graham, North Carolina.

Ms Kim Bush is the Human Resources Executive of Lab Corporation in Burlington, NC. Her profes-sional career in human resources makes one understand how her passion for people has evolved. Her per-sonality of kindness, patience, endurance, gentleness and possession of all of the fruits of the spirit positions her for the call upon her life as First Lady to assist her husband in developing people.

THIS SUPERNATURAL ROYAL WEDDING AND MARRIAGE WAS DIFFERENT FROM ANY OTHER - It was more than just a wedding – It was two people combining their lives to make a greater impact upon mankind. It was about service to their God as a powerful, united force. It was about continuing a legacy. It was about generational empowerment, for this royal wedding shall be written in the archives of the book of the Holy Spirit forever. This royal wedding was about penetrating the denominational walls of the corporate Church of the Body of Christ. This royal wedding was about lifting up the name of Jesus. This royal wedding was about uniting a local body of believers into a solid family led by an anointed and appointed man and woman of God as their spiritual father and

mother. This royal wedding was about solidifying the missing piece of the puzzle of the First Family of the Union Baptist Church. Union Baptist church now has a

First Lady.DIVINE PURPOSE; MORE THAN JUST A ROYAL WEDDING

FULL OF BLITZ - This wedding was bigger than what man can imag-ine. This union was divinely appointed by God to build an even stronger

foundation to construct a broader base for ministering to a hurting world. Dr. Mack was graced by God with a gift named Ms Kim Bush to further

enhance his life of ministry. This union represents completeness, being fully equipped with the armor to win the battle. No doubt, this union is about a seed of vision that was planted on

earth through the late Dr. Sir Walter Mack, Sr. and perhaps even before him. When God is in the vision, our lives are supernaturally filled with purpose.

Genesis 2:18, 2:21-24 And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man

should be alone; I will make him an help meet for him. 21And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon

Adam, and he slept: and he took one of his ribs, and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22And the rib, which the LORD

God had taken from man, made he a woman, and brought her unto the man. 23And Adam said, This is now bone of my

bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. 24Therefore shall a man

leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.

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DESTINY AND LEGACY - Coming from a

min- istry legacy left by his

father, for many years, Dr. Mack has tenaciously pursued fulfilling

the call of God on his life and has developed programs, conferences, and hun- dreds of tools to im-

pact lives across the nation. On any online search engine, when one types in the name Dr. Sir Walter Mack, a ton of in-formation can be found about him. Not only is he the senior pas-tor of one of the largest multi-faceted churches in the state, he is a noted author, a business man, a world renown speaker, a commu-nity advocate, and the list goes on and on. The unique point is that he has built these accomplishments as a single man.

GOD DOING A NEW THING – TAKING MINISTRY FROM GLORY TO GLORY - This union is symbolic of a new birth. There is NO limit to the impact of furthering the ministry to mankind through this divine union. In order to continue to launch the impact of helping to de- velop people, God in His wisdom had picked out Ms Kim Bush to complete Sr. Walter. He found his “good thing”. He may have thought there was a lot of “Wow” in his life before, but now he really has a unique ingredient called “Wo-man” that will be a confidant, an exhorter, an encourager, and a help meet to polish and shine the already special ministry into being a masterpiece for God.

A FAIRY TALE, CINDERELLA STORY, ROYAL WEDDING - Was this story what every woman and man dreams of? Absolutely yes, and more! The picture collage and videos that are found on the church website, www.unionbaptistchurch.com depicts each event lead-ing to the grand day, May 21, 2011 which was held at the beautiful St. Peter’s World Outreach Center and hosted by Senior Pastors, Bishop J.C. and Lady Joyce Hash. DVD’s and CD’s of the royal festivities can also be purchased on the church website. A copy of Dr. Mack’s latest book, The Wedding Pro- posal Edition of “How to Make a Wrong Relationship Right” can be purchased as well.

The wedding day for Dr. Sir Walter Mack, Jr. and First Lady Kim Mack started with a Praise and Worship service at 11:00 AM filled with anointed music, dancers, mimers and glorious spirit filled and anointed praises to God. The wedding ceremonial service began at 12:00 noon which started with a proces- sional of over two hundred ornamental robed ministers. Reverend Dr. Leonzo Lynch, pastor of Ebenezer Baptist Church in Charlotte, NC and Reverend Melanie Hill of Union Baptist Church were the presiding officers. Invocation prayer was presented by Reverend Dr. Robert Scott of Central Baptist Church, St. Louis, Missouri. Other clergy participants included Reverend Bruce Hurst of Leach Springs Baptist Church in Raeford, NC; Reverend Dr. Helen Styles and Reverend Dr. Richard Styles, former First Lady and Pas- tor of First Baptist Church in Burlington, NC; Rev. John Mendez of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Winston Salem, NC; Reverend Dr. Harold Carter of New Shiloh Baptist Church in Baltimore, MD; Bishop John Heath of Higher Ground Ministries and National Recording Artist in Winston Salem, NC; Reverend Dr. Charles Booth of Mt. Olivet Baptist Church in Columbus, OH; Reverend Dr. James Woodson of Home of Fresh Start Ministries in Greensboro, NC; Bishop Noel Jones of The City of Refuge in Gardena, California; and Pastor and First Lady John Wilkins, Jr. of Wake Chapel Church in Raleigh, NC.

Several congratula- tory well wishes from global leaders were sent to Dr. and First Lady Mack such as a Charge to Love video presentation from Dr. Maya Angelou, Bishop T. D. Jakes, Judge Greg Mathis, House of Representatives, Mel Watt; and the Honorable Allen Joines, Mayor of Winston Salem, NC.Musical ren- ditions were performed by Rev. Luther Barnes, National Recording Artist and Stellar Award Winner; Minister Derrick Webster and the bride’s friends choir; Violinist, Kersten Stevens, of Stratford, Connecticut who has performed for President Barack Obama and the First Lady. Ms Stevens was accompanied by Mrs. Lawanda Lash who performed a sacred dance and Zeb Harrison and The Sounds of Praise Brass Ensemble.

The Wedding Party consisted of the following participants: Wendy D. Bush, Maid of Honor; Christopher Lamont Mack, Best Man; Thomas G. Bush, Cark A. Bush, Ricky Wilson, Bride’s Escorts; Deacon Clifton Spaulding, Mark Covington, Sr.,

Mark Covington, Jr., MaShad Covington, Groomsmen; Erma Wilson Bush, Mother of the Bride; Frances Jones Mack, Mother of the Groom; Mable V. Wilson, Grandmother of the Bride; Me’Lia Covington, Maid to the Mother of the Groom.

Sandra Reid, Veronica Revel, Cheryl Leath, Tammy Wilson, Kiffany Sturdivant, Rachelle Oliver-Cobbin, Tim and Tracey Haith, Mike and Len Brown, Angela Davis, and Derrick Webster made up the Friend’s Choir.

Visit www.unionbaptistwsnc.org/mack_bush.html for a picture collage.Submitted by: Dr. Francene Hash

A Royal Wedding? Which One? The Supernatural One (continued)

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The stage was set, the participants were ready, the people showed up, and God showed OUT! This year’s Mega Mime Conference, “Fresh Oil” Concert from Paneh Mime Ministries, was yet another revelation of God’s excellence and glory. Although this year, the conference was set in a different location being held at the beautiful Mt. Zion Baptist Church in Greensboro, NC, it shows that “where two or three (or over 3000) are gathered together in Jesus’ name, He is in the midst.”

For the last three years, as the Stage Manager for this grand production, I’ve held duties such as the “blocking” of participants (movement of people to and from the stage),

acquiring lighting and sound, props etc… From where I sat, I could see all the nuts and bolts of operations behind the scenes. I’m truly blessed to be in such a position where I can observe

and appreciate all the hard work that goes into such a ministry and production.

Pastors Tim and Chandra Midgette, along with the Paneh Mime Troop, begin creating and practicing months beforehand. Prayer and fasting fuel their

creativity and once their routines are complete, they share them with me. “Let us pray,” says Pastor Tim, something that he does before any meeting, any

practice, and any production. To see the performances in the “raw” was an anointed experience. I could see that it was before the face of God that such magnificent moves and ideas were revealed. I record the per-formances to create the lighting atmosphere and develop the routes on which to lead over a thousand participants on and off the stage during their performances.

Two weeks before the conference, the entire staff sustains from food on the Daniel fast. We understand that certain spirits, behaviors, and principalities come down only by “prayer and fasting” (Matthew 17:21). During this week, I complete my list and plan of action, create a script for lighting, and finalize any audio video needs.

The week of the conference… music, graphics, sound, props and lights are in line and the production team is almost ready to go. Each leader in production walks through the venue to assure they are familiar with where they and their particular group need to be and at what time. While we secure what’s “behind the scenes”, the conference moves on with workshops and a Friday night “Mime Showcase” featuring mime teams from all over North Carolina, South Carolina, Detroit, and Chicago. In the meantime, the production crew has completed lights and sound check and we’re prepared for Saturday night’s concert.

It’s Saturday night, 5:30 PM and there are over 1200 participants, with four countries being represented. Whitney is in charge of about 350 youth, Melissa manages 300 teens and Val manages over 400 adults, all dressed and getting their faces painted; awaiting their times to minister on the stage. At 6:45 PM, I call for “places” and everyone back stage is on their post. Sound, lights and spotlight are ready to go! It’s 7:00 PM and over 3000 people are in the audience with much anticipation. Elder Lumpkin begins praise and worship to set the atmosphere for …. Lights, Camera, ANOINTING! Desperate for HIM!

(If you missed this year’s Paneh Mime Conference, check out their website at Panehmime.org and make sure you’re in attendance next year.)

Desperate For Him Mega Mime Conference 2011 by Melissa Wade

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A short time ago, I was checking my Facebook page and I noticed my el-dest daughter’s status, “Can’t wait for the Finale of Sunday Best tonight.” This proclamation had no effect on me until I happened to call my mother. As we went about our normal conversation, updating each other on my siblings, and her grandkids, my mother mentions that she needed to make sure that she watched “her show” tonight because this was the finale and proceeded to go on about the finalist and who she was supporting. My mind went back to being at the CAT bus stop in my neighborhood, having the same sort of conversation with Mr. Barbour from around the corner about his beloved “Georgia Boys”, (The Swanee Quintet for non-Quartet Headz) versus my Christianaires. Immediately I realized in my maturity, that not only has the television program captivated an audience that spans generations, but that Quartet had been that for me when I was in my daughter’s age bracket.

As I began to contemplate, I realized that several greats in Traditional Gos-pel have passed over the last couple of months. We have lost Deloris Barrett, Lolleatta Holloway and Bishop F.C. Barnes just to name a few. While not Quar-tet artists, the Quartet arena is losing legends. Over the last few years we have lost Howard “Slim” Hunt (The Supreme Angels), “Superstar” Tommy Ellison and

the legendary Ira Tucker of the Dixie Hummingbirds. With Quartet being a traditional style, it leaves our hearts with a void. The question that comes to my mind is with the loss of the legends that much like Sunday Best captivated an audience that spanned the same demographics in times past.

In recent times it seems that Quartet has been labeled as old folk’s music much like the music of the Caravans and other trailblazers. Quartet Music was originally music for countless teens and adults commanding attention and influencing Stevie Wonder and Paul Simon. The evidence documented by the Dixie Hummingbirds to name one example. Ira Tucker was only 13 years old when he joined the Dixie Hummingbirds. Countless stars of R&B sited them as influences including Jackie Wilson. Michael Jackson counted Jackie Wilson as one of his biggest influences. I submit to you that when he studied Jackie he was studying a version of Ira Tucker.

Now, taking into consideration the changing landscape of the music industry, what does Quartet have to offer? My answer is threefold. The re-energized and the newcomers, after all we are talking about spanning generations.

A concept that I have admired from the Southern Gospel Quartets has been the re-energizing of their groups with fresh blood. The Legendary Swanee Quintet has been able to bring new energy to the sound with the addition of M. Duvall “Lil Red” Smith and a lineup of young and energetic singers that are carrying on the Legacy of “The Georgia Boys”.

Finally, whether it be the vocal acrobatics and fiery word based presentation of Pastor Tim Rogers and the Fel-las, or the hard hitting, funky driving style of the Williams Singers (yes I said Singers!!) of Indianapolis, IN, Quartet has plenty to offer the young also. Both of these groups bring new flavor and energy to the Quartet field that is capable of appealing to the generation that favors downloading their music rather than the dying distribution model of the traditional record company. They have images that appeal more to a reality show watching, YouTube surfing generation of today with enough of the good old hip slapping Quartet tradition not to lose the longtime Quartet Head. They have connected with their audience on Facebook, Twitter and other social media. The Williams Singers are even among the top sellers on online retailers like iTunes and CD Baby.

The new direction of Quartet is being led into the future by the likes of these dynamic new groups that look to the future by building on the influences of the past. Follow them on twitter at @TimRogersfella and @WilliamsSing-ers. You can also follow us at @QuartetHeadz on Twitter.

The Direction of Quartet Music by Jon Montague

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