the wilmington journal

14
IN IN THE COMMUNITY N N ews from the African American perspective without fear or favo ews from the African American perspective without fear or favo r r VOLUME 86/NO. 1 JANUARY 3-9, 2013 FIFTY CENTS Serving Southeastern North Carolina since 1927 and an outgrowth of R.S. Jervay Printers established in 1901 INNOCENT TO ADVERTISE OR SUBSCRIBE, CALL (910) 762-5502 VISIT US AT WWW.WILMINGTONJOURNAL.COM THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL —SALUTES— Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. On January 17, 2013 The Wilmington Journal will publish a Special Edition honoring our Drum Major Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. To reserve your advertising space Call (910) 762-5502 The deadline for reservations is January 14, 2013 SPECIAL TO THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL FROM THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, GOVERNOR BEVERLY PERDUE December 31, 2012 RALEIGH Gov. Bev Perdue today signed a Pardon of Innocence for the Wilmington 10 and issued the follow- ing statement: "I have spent a great deal of time over the past seven months review- ing the pardon of innocence requests of the persons collectively known as the Wilmington Ten. This topic evokes strong opinions from many North Carolinians as it hear- kens back to a very difficult time in our state's past, a period of racial tensions and violence that repre- sents a dark chapter in North Carolina's history. These cases gen- erate a great deal of emotion from people who lived through these trau- matic events. In evaluating these petitions for clemency, it is important to separate fact from rumor and innuendo. I have decided to grant these pardons because the more facts I have learned about the Wilmington Ten, the more appalled I have become about the manner in which their convictions were obtained. In 1980, a federal appeals court overturned the convictions in a written decision that highlighted the gross improprieties that occurred during the trial. The feder- al court determined as a matter of law that numerous instances of prosecutorial misconduct and other constitutional violations took place. Among other things, the court ruled that with regard to the testimony of the prosecution's key witness - upon whose credibility the case depended entirely -- "the conclusion is WILMINGTON TEN IN 1976 AT FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH IN RALEIGH, NC PHOTO COURTESY OF NEWS AND OBSERVER BY CASH MICHAELS OF THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL [RALEIGH, NC] I n what civil rights leaders across the nation are calling a "significant" moment in the civil rights movement, North Carolina Governor Beverly Perdue has granted individual pardons of actual inno- cence to members of the Wilmington Ten. "I have decided to grant these par- dons because the more facts I have learned about the Wilmington Ten, the more appalled I have become about the manner in which their convictions were obtained," Perdue, a Democrat who steps down on Jan. 5th, said in her Dec. 31st statement. "Justice demands that this stain finally be removed. The process in which this case was tried was funda- mentally flawed. Therefore, as Governor, I am issuing these pardons of innocence to right this longstand- ing wrong." PHOTO COURTESY OF NC GOVERNOR’S OFFICE NC GOVERNOR BEVERLY PERDUE SIGNS TEN PARDONS OF INNOCENCE ON DECEMBER 31, 2012. FROM THE OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR The North Carolina NAACP, in association with the New Hanover County Branch of the NAACP, and the NNPA Wilmington Ten Pardons of Innocence Project, is sponsoring an historic Ecumenical Celebration of the Pardons of Innocence for the Wilmington Ten, Saturday, January 5, 2013, at 2:00 p.m. at Gregory Congregational United Church of Christ, 609 Nun Street in Wilmington. At this event, the Certificates of Pardon, signed by Gov. Beverly Perdue, will be formally bestowed upon surviving members of the Wilmington Ten and family members of the four deceased members. The Rev. Dr. William J. Barber Jr., president of the North Carolina Conference of NAACP Branches, will preside. This historic service is open to the public. North Carolina Governor pardons the WilmingtonTen EX EX CLUSIVE CLUSIVE Pardon opponents tried to stop Perdue BY CASH MICHAELS OF THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL R ight up to the deadline when she was to decide whether to grant par- dons of innocence to the Wilmington Ten on Monday,Gov. Beverly Perdue, in an exclusive interview Wednesday with The Wilmington Journal, confirmed that those who were convinced that the Ten were "guilty of some- thing" tried to stop her. "There were those that said that as late as Sunday afternoon before I made the ultimate decision on Monday," Perdue, who officially steps down from one-term in office Jan. 5th, told The Wilmington Journal. "It was a hardly discussed deci- sion. I sought the opinions and the advice of many, many people - the folks who were for pardons of innocence, may of the advocacy groups who were so powerful. I also spoke to many of North Carolina's leading jurists, and talked to people of all persuasions, and interestingly enough, there will always be, as there are in many cases, those who think one should never rethink the outcome of a jury trial. And I actually believe that because of what we've seen happen in North Carolina this decade, not from the '70's." "In some cases, justice is not the fair barometer of the court system we would hope." Perdue maintains, after study- ing the case of the falsely accused ten civil rights activists, that granting them all ten individual pardons of innocence from their 1972 convictions, "Was the right thing to do." "I spent six or seven months, off Please see OPPONENTS Page 2 Please see PARDONS/Page 2 Please see GOVERNOR Page 2

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Page 1: The Wilmington Journal

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VOLUME 86/NO. 1 JANUARY 3-9, 2013 FIFTY CENTS

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INNOCENT

TO ADVERTISE OR SUBSCRIBE,CALL (910) 762-5502

VISIT US ATWWW.WILMINGTONJOURNAL.COM

THE

WILMINGTON JOURNAL

—SALUTES—

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On January 17, 2013The Wilmington

Journalwill publish a

Special Edition honoring our Drum Major

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

To reserve your advertising space

Call (910) 762-5502The deadline for

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SSPPEECCIIAALL TTOOTHE WILMINGTON JOURNALFROM THE GOVERNOR OF THESTATE OF NORTH CAROLINA, GOVERNOR BEVERLY PERDUE

December 31, 2012

RALEIGH Gov. Bev Perdue today signed a

Pardon of Innocence for theWilmington 10 and issued the follow-ing statement:

"I have spent a great deal of time

over the past seven months review-ing the pardon of innocencerequests of the persons collectivelyknown as the Wilmington Ten. Thistopic evokes strong opinions frommany North Carolinians as it hear-kens back to a very difficult time inour state's past, a period of racialtensions and violence that repre-sents a dark chapter in NorthCarolina's history. These cases gen-erate a great deal of emotion frompeople who lived through these trau-matic events.

In evaluating these petitions forclemency, it is important to separatefact from rumor and innuendo. Ihave decided to grant these pardonsbecause the more facts I havelearned about the Wilmington Ten,the more appalled I have becomeabout the manner in which theirconvictions were obtained.

In 1980, a federal appeals courtoverturned the convictions in awritten decision that highlightedthe gross improprieties thatoccurred during the trial. The feder-

al court determined as a matter oflaw that numerous instances ofprosecutorial misconduct and otherconstitutional violations took place.Among other things, the court ruledthat with regard to the testimony ofthe prosecution's key witness - uponwhose credibility the case dependedentirely -- "the conclusion is

WILMINGTON TENIN 1976 AT FIRSTBAPTIST CHURCHIN RALEIGH, NC

PHOTO COURTESY OFNEWS AND OBSERVER

BBYY CCAASSHH MMIICCHHAAEELLSSOF THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL

[RALEIGH, NC]

I n what civil rights leadersacross the nation are calling a"significant" moment in the

civil rights movement, North CarolinaGovernor Beverly Perdue has grantedindividual pardons of actual inno-cence to members of the WilmingtonTen.

"I have decided to grant these par-dons because the more facts I havelearned about the Wilmington Ten, the

more appalled I have become about themanner in which their convictionswere obtained," Perdue, a Democratwho steps down on Jan. 5th, said inher Dec. 31st statement.

"Justice demands that this stainfinally be removed. The process inwhich this case was tried was funda-mentally flawed. Therefore, asGovernor, I am issuing these pardonsof innocence to right this longstand-ing wrong."

PHOTO COURTESY OF NC GOVERNOR’S OFFICENC GOVERNOR BEVERLY PERDUE SIGNS TEN PARDONS OF INNOCENCE ON DECEMBER 31, 2012.

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R ight up to the deadlinewhen she was to decidewhether to grant par-

dons of innocence to theWilmington Ten on Monday, Gov.Beverly Perdue, in an exclusiveinterview Wednesday with TheWilmington Journal, confirmedthat those who were convincedthat the Ten were "guilty of some-thing" tried to stop her.

"There were those that said thatas late as Sunday afternoon beforeI made the ultimate decision onMonday," Perdue, who officiallysteps down from one-term inoffice Jan. 5th, told TheWilmington Journal.

"It was a hardly discussed deci-sion. I sought the opinions and theadvice of many, many people - thefolks who were for pardons ofinnocence, may of the advocacy

groups who were so powerful. Ialso spoke to many of NorthCarolina's leading jurists, andtalked to people of all persuasions,and interestingly enough, therewill always be, as there are inmany cases, those who think oneshould never rethink the outcomeof a jury trial. And I actuallybelieve that because of what we'veseen happen in North Carolinathis decade, not from the '70's."

"In some cases, justice is not thefair barometer of the court systemwe would hope."

Perdue maintains, after study-ing the case of the falsely accusedten civil rights activists, thatgranting them all ten individualpardons of innocence from their1972 convictions, "Was the rightthing to do."

"I spent six or seven months, off

Please see OPPONENTSPage 2Please see PARDONS/Page 2

Please see GOVERNORPage 2

Page 2: The Wilmington Journal

CONTINUED/NEWS Thursday, January 3, 20132

ISSN 0049-7649 - AN INDEPENDENT NEWSPAPER

Dedicated to R.S. Jervay,Founder of R.S. Jervay

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Mary Alice Jervay ThatchPublisher/Editor

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Opinions expressed bycolumnists in this newspaper donot necessarily represent the

policy of this paper.The Wilmington Journal cannotaccept yard sale and dinner saleannouncements as briefs. Theseare considered advertisements.Community and religious briefs

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The Wilmington Ten - nineblack males and one whitefemale - were activists who,along with hundreds of blackstudents in the New HanoverCounty Public School System,protested rampant racial dis-crimination there in 1971.

In February 1971, after thearrival of Rev. BenjaminChavis to help lead theprotests, racial violence erupt-ed, with white supremacistdriving through Wilmington'sblack community, fatally shoot-ing people and committingarson.

A white-owned grocerystore in the black communitywas firebombed, and firemencame under sniper fire. It was-n't until a year later that Rev.Chavis and the others wereround up and charged withconspiracy in connection withthe firebombing and shootings.

The Ten were falsely convict-ed, and sentenced to 282 yearsin prison, some of which theyall served.

It wouldn't be until 1977,after years of failed appeals inNorth Carolina courts, that thethree state's witnesses allrecanted their testimonies,admitting that they perjuredthemselves.

Amnesty Internationalissued a blistering reportdeclaring the WilmingtonTen "political prisoners ofconscience." The CBS Newsprogram "60 Minutes" did aone-hour expose' proving thatthe evidence against theWilmington Ten had beenfabricated by the prosecu-tion.

And after then NC Gov.James B. Hunt refused to par-don the Ten, but did commute

their sentences in 1978, twoyears later, the US FourthCircuit Court of Appeals over-turned all of the convictions,based on gross prosecutorialmisconduct and various viola-tions of constitutional rights.

The appeals court directedNorth Carolina to either retrythe defendants, or dismiss allcharges, but the state did noth-ing for the past 32 years.

In March 2011, the NationalNewspaper PublishersAssociation, at the urging ofWilmington Journal publisherMary Alice Thatch, voted topursue pardons of innocencefor the Wilmington Ten. Thateffort got underway in earnestin January 2012, and after aseries of NNPA stories basedon an investigation thatrevealed never-before-seencourt records proving prosecu-torial corruption, the main-stream media - including TheNew York Times, The Newsand Observer, The WilmingtonStarNews and MSNBC's Prof.Melissa Harris-Perry - caughton, and began editorially push-ing for pardoning theWilmington Ten.

Change.org, the NAACP andThe Wilmington Journal gar-nered over 144,000 petition sig-natures for the cause.

Gov. Perdue's pardons legal-ly mean that the accused didnot commit the crimes theywere convicted of.

The governor's decision wasroundly hailed.

"Gov. Perdue's historicaction today doesn't remove thepast forty years of injusticeagainst ten innocent Americancitizens - North Carolinianswho stood up for equal treat-ment under the law in our pub-lic education system," theWilmington Ten Pardons ofInnocence Project, a justiceoutreach effort of the National

Newspaper PublishersAssociation and theWilmington Journal newspa-per, said in a statement.

"But [the governor's pardon]does correct the historicalrecord, that Connie Tindall,Jerry Jacobs, William JoeWright, Anne Sheppard,Wayne Moore, Marvin Patrick,James McKoy, Willie EarlVereen, Reginald Epps and theRev. Dr. Benjamin Chavis, wereindeed innocent of all chargesfalsely assessed to them by acorrupt prosecutor who, to thisday, has not answered for whathe did."

Governor Perdue agreedthat revelations of the racistand illegal trial tactics ofWilmington Ten prosecutorJay Stroud - which includeddocumented handwritten evi-dence of seeking "KKK andUncle Tom-type" jurors; brib-ing witnesses to commit per-jury; hiding exculpatory evi-dence of a witness's mental ill-ness from the defense; anddeliberately forcing a mistrialso that he could get both thejudge and jury that would guar-antee convictions - corrupt thecriminal justice system, andshamed the state.

Perdue called it "nakedracism."

"This conduct is disgrace-ful," the governor said in herstatement. "It is utterly incom-patible with basic notions offairness, and with every idealthat North Carolina holds dear.The legitimacy of our criminaljustice system hinges on itoperating in a fair and equi-table manner, with justicebeing dispensed based on inno-cence or guilt - not based onrace or other forms of preju-dice."

"That did not happen here,"Perdue continued. "Instead,these convictions were tainted

by naked racism and representan ugly stain on NorthCarolina's criminal justice sys-tem that cannot be allowed tostand any longer."

"This is a great day for thepeople, and the movement," Dr.Benjamin Chavis, leader of theWilmington Ten, told theWilmington Journal Monday."This is a very rare victory."

Civil rights activist Rev. AlSharpton agreed.

"It was a significant victoryand all of you should be com-mended," Sharpton, whopushed the pardon effort onboth of his radio programs lastweekend, said in congratula-tions.

National NAACP Pres./CEOBenjamin Todd Jealous, thefirst national civil rights leaderto support the cause, was effu-sive.

"This pardon brings closureto a case marred by racism andinjustice," Jealous said. "Iapplaud Gov. Beverly Perduefor her leadership in rightingthis disgraceful wrong and con-gratulate the NAACP NorthCarolina State Conference,NAACP members, andactivists around the countryfor their work to raise aware-ness about this case."

NC NAACP Pres. Rev.William Barber, who partneredwith the Wilmington TenPardons of Innocence, notedthe history.

"Not only will the civil rightsand human rights communi-ties honor this act, but historyitself will record this day asgroundbreaking," Barber toldreporters in Raleigh Monday."On the eve of the 150thanniversary of theEmancipation Proclamation,Governor Perdue has pro-claimed a contemporary eman-cipation for these freedomfighters."

"These pardons are not onlyfor North Carolina but also forthe nation and for the world,"Barber continued. "We honorthe Governor's noble, coura-geous and righteous decisiontoday and we commend herheart's steadfast commitmentto justice."

For his part, former prosecu-tor Jay Stroud, who was dis-barred in 2008, and has beenarrested more than twelvetimes in the past six yearsaccording to the AssociatedPress, says that Gov. Perduehas "made a mistake." Thoughhe has admitted that the hand-written notes in theWilmington Ten prosecutionfiles are his, Stroud is now sug-gesting that some of them mayhave been forged.

"…[H]is son told The GastonGazette in 2011 that his fathersuffers from bipolar diseaseand that [Stroud] was diag-nosed about the same time hegraduated from law school,"the AP reported.

New Hanover CountyDistrict Attorney Ben David,who originally found the boxcontaining the Stroud files in acloset at his office, and turnedthem over to historian DukeProf. Tim Tyson, also issued astatement.

"As prosecutors, the truth isour only client," D.A. Davidwrote. "For guilty defendants,the truth hurts. For the inno-cent, the truth will set themfree."

"Sometimes the truthremains elusive. Where, ashere, the process that was inplace to search for the truth isdetermined to be so fundamen-tally flawed that we cannotknow it, the verdict cannotstand the test of time. My job,as District Attorney, is to makesure that this does not happenagain."

State of North Carolina,General Court of JusticeFifth Prosecutorial District,Wilmington, NC 28402December 31, 2012

To Members of the Media:A prosecutor's job is to

seek justice-nothing moreand nothing less. Thatmeans we must pursue thetruth and ensure a fairprocess to all concerned.Where we fail, so must theverdicts we obtain. TodayGovernor Perdue, throughthe clemency process, par-doned the Wilmington 10.My office will respect andabide by this decision.

I have never speculatedabout the guilt or innocence ofthese defendants. None of uscurrently in the DistrictAttorney's office worked here,and many of us were not evenalive, at the time of the trial. Iam aware, however, that thereare strong views, from goodpeople on both sides, on thequestion of whether any or allof the members of theWilmington 10 conspired tofirebomb a grocery store. Thebest that I can say years lateris I am not satisfied that wecan know the truth about whathappened.

Simply saying that wecannot know the truth, how-

ever, does not settle the ques-tion of whether justice wasdone. We must also askwhether the trial was fair.Where there is a flawedprocess, the outcome mustalso be questioned.Governor Perdue relied onnew evidence and concludedthat the trial prosecutorengaged in racial discrimi-nation during jury selection,When jurors are excluded onthe basis of race, the defen-dant and the entire commu-nity is denied a fair trial. Noone, especially prosecutors,can justify an outcomewhere the Constitution hasbeen violated.

The new evidence came tolight through the work ofhistorians who reviewed theremnants of the case filethat my office gave to theSouthern HistoricalCollection at The Universityof North Carolina at ChapelHill nearly five years ago. Tobe effective, a courthousemust be both transparentand accountable. When novictim or case is harmed bydisclosure to third parties,those of us tasked withsearching for the truthshould be unafraid of out-side scrutiny, They truthshould not stay buried, evenwhen it is painful.

As prosecutors, the truthis our only client, For guiltydefendants, the truth hurts.For the innocent, the truthwill set them free.Sometimes the truthremains elusive. Where, ashere, the process that was inplace to search for the truthis determined to be so funda-mentally flawed that we can-not know it, the verdict can-not stand the test of time.My job, as District Attorney,is to make sure that this doesnot happen again.Sincerely,

Benjamin R. DavidDistrict Attorney

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and on, picking up the docu-ments, and reading aboutthe testimony, and the cir-cumstances, if you will, ofthe time when theWilmington Ten were prose-cuted and convicted,"Perdue said.

"That era of NorthCarolina was a hard one, one

that was shameful in mymind. There was just ram-pant racism, there was areluctance to embrace folksof all backgrounds and allethnicities and all races."

"It wasn't a NorthCarolina that looks anythingat all like our NorthCarolina today," Perdue said.

"I believe the WilmingtonTen were victims of thetimes, and victims of a deep-seeded prejudice and racismthat circumvented any kindof likelihood that their trialwas fair."

The governor continued, "That, for me, was the ulti-mate testing ground for therighteousness of our justice

system. It's what we allbelieve in. If you're going tobe prosecuted and convicted,it should be done in a fairand equitable way - wherejustice will literally meanjustice."

Members of theWilmington Ten, and civilrights leadership across thenation, have hailed Gov.Perdue for her courage, notonly in the Wilmington Tenpardons, but also her advo-cacy for victims of forcedsterilization, signing the2009 NC Racial Justice Act,vetoing the Legislature'svoter ID law, and pushinghard to improve educationfor poor children statewide.

OPPONENTSContinued from Page 1

PARDONSContinued from Page 1

inescapable that [he] per-jured himself" and that "thisfact was bound to be knownto the prosecutor . . ." Thecourt also declared that itwas undisputed that key doc-uments had repeatedly beenwithheld from defenselawyers. It also found numer-ous errors by the trial judgethat had the effect of uncon-stitutionally prejudicing thedefendants' ability to receivea fair trial.

Since the trial ended, theprosecution's key witness andtwo supporting witnesses allindependently recanted theirtestimony incriminating the

defendants. Furthermore, lastmonth, new evidence wasmade available to me in theform of handwritten notesfrom the prosecutor whopicked the jury at trial. Thesenotes show with disturbingclarity the dominant role thatracism played in jury selection.The notes reveal that certainwhite jurors believed to be KuKlux Klan members weredescribed by the prosecutor as"good" and that at least oneAfrican American juror wasnoted to be an "Uncle Tomtype."

This conduct is disgrace-ful. It is utterly incompatiblewith basic notions of fair-ness and with every idealthat North Carolina holdsdear. The legitimacy of our

criminal justice systemhinges on it operating in afair and equitable mannerwith justice being dispensedbased on innocence or guilt -not based on race or otherforms of prejudice. That didnot happen here. Instead,these convictions were taint-ed by naked racism and rep-resent an ugly stain on NorthCarolina's criminal justicesystem that cannot beallowed to stand any longer.

Justice demands that thisstain finally be removed. Theprocess in which this casewas tried was fundamentallyflawed. Therefore, asGovernor, I am issuing thesepardons of innocence toright this longstandingwrong."

GOVERNORContinued from Page 1

Page 3: The Wilmington Journal

CONTINUED/NEWSThursday, January 3, 2013 3

PPAARRDDOONNSS GGRRAANNTTEEDD

WILLIE VEREENWAYNE MOOREREGINALD EPPSMARVIN PATRICK

JAMES MCKOY JERRY JACOBS JOE WRIGHT

BENJAMIN CHAVISANN SHEPARD CONNIE TINDALL

Page 4: The Wilmington Journal

4 Thursday, January 3, 2013

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The Wilmington Journal was founded on theprinciple of the Black Press Credo. The BlackPress believes that America can best leadthe world away from racial and nationalantagonism when it accords to every per-

son, regardless of race, color or creed, full human and legal rights.Hating no person in the firm belief that all are hurt as long as any-one is held back.

The Wilmington Journal welcomes letters from its readers. Allletters are subject to editing. We will not publish pseudonymousletters. All correspondence must include a home address and adaytime phone number. All correspondence must be signed,unless it is e-mailed. Letters may be sent to our Physical Address:412 S. 7th Street, 28401 or our Mailing Address: P.O. Box 1020,28402. We also accept letters via e-mail at [email protected] orvia fax at (910) 343-1334.

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On behalf of the Wilmington Ten Pardonsof Innocence Project - a justice outreacheffort of the National Newspaper

Publishers Association and the WilmingtonJournal newspaper - we are all very proud ofNorth Carolina today, December 31, 2012, andextraordinarily grateful to our Governor, BeverlyPerdue, by having the tremendous courage andwisdom to grant all members of the WilmingtonTen, pardons of actual innocence.

Gov. Perdue's historic action today doesn'tremove the past forty years of injustice againstten innocent American citizens - NorthCarolinians who stood up for equal treatmentunder the law in our public education system. Butit does correct the historical record that ConnieTindall, Jerry Jacobs, William Joe Wright, AnneSheppard, Wayne Moore, Marvin Patrick, JamesMcKoy, Reginald Epps, Willie Earl Vereen, and theRev. Dr. Benjamin Chavis were indeed innocent ofall charges falsely assessed to them by a corruptprosecutor who, to this day, has not answered forwhat he did.

We sincerely hope that now that, at long last, acertain peace can be restored to the shattered livesof the surviving members of the Wilmington Ten,and to the family members Jerry Jacobs, WilliamJoe Wright, Anne Sheppard and Connie Tindall allof whom are deceased.

We also hope and pray that the state of NorthCarolina and the nation have learned from thisgreat tragedy of injustice. If America is to live upto the true meaning of its creed, that all men andwomen are created equal before the yes of GOD,then we must fight, and fight hard for the integri-ty of our criminal justice system.

For if we don't, then none of us are safe fromthose who would seek to destroy the fundamentalliberties of citizens who seek only to make thisnation the land of promise and freedom that manybefore us sacrificed so much for future genera-tions to see.

On behalf of the Wilmington Ten Pardons ofInnocence Project and the NNPA, thank you to theNAACP, Change.org, and all who assisted us inthis vital quest for justice.

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T oday (December 31,2012), the spirit ofjustice was awak-

ened in theCapitol ofN o r t hC a r o l i n a .G o v e r n o rB e v e r l yP e r d u esigned aPardon ofInnocence fornine men andone womanknown as

'The Wilmington 10.' Theseyoung people were non-violentprotestors fighting for educa-tional equality. They wereframed, wrongfully convictedand incarcerated in connec-tion to a fire bombing inWilmington, NC over 40 years

ago. These unjust convictionswere due to racist manipula-tion of the court system andextraordinary and blatantracially motivated prosecutor-ial misconduct. A FederalCourt overturned these con-victions over 30 years ago butuntil today, NC had fallenshort. In the last few days ofher governorship, GovernorPerdue has walked us into aseason of epiphany.

In this season, NC has finallyhad a revelation and with thisrevelation comes a continuedneed for redemption and repen-tance from the stain of injus-tice. Not only will the civilrights and human rights com-munities honor this act, buthistory itself will record thisday as groundbreaking. On theeve of the 150th anniversary of

the EmancipationProclamation, GovernorPerdue has proclaimed a con-temporary emancipation forthese freedom fighters,Benjamin Chavis, ConnieTindall, Marvin Patrick,Wayne Moore, Reginald Epps,Jerry Jacobs, James McKoy,Willie Earl Vereen, WilliamWright, Jr., and Ann Shepard,whose fight for justice willnever be forgotten. These par-dons are not only for NorthCarolina but also for the nationand for the world. We honor theGovernor's noble, courageousand righteous decision todayand we commend her heart'ssteadfast commitment to jus-tice.

Special thanks are extendedto: The National NewspaperPublishers Association, The

Wilmington Journal, AttorneyJames Ferguson, Ms. CarolynQ. Coleman, Attorney IrvingJoyner, Attorney Al McSurely,Mr. Cash Michaels, Ms. MaryThatch, Dr. Timothy Tyson,officers and members of theNAACP, and the thousands ofpersons who signed petitions,prayed and pushed for thisdream to become reality.

Founded in 1909, theNAACP is the nation's oldestand largest civil rights organi-zation. Its members through-out the United States and theworld are the premier advo-cates for civil rights in theircommunities, conductingvoter mobilization and moni-toring equal opportunity inthe public and private sectors.

Rev. William Barber isPresident of the NC NAACP.

Africans in Americashould be awarethat 2013 is a year of

great significance. It willmark the 150th Anniversaryof the EmancipationProclamation, signed byAbraham Lincoln, the 50thAnniversary of theAssassination of Medgar

Evers and the50th Annive-rsary of theh i s t o r i cMarch onWashington.The questionis whether2013 will be ayear ofsuperfluouscommemora-

tions, ceremonies and cele-brations, or will it be a yearof destiny for Africans inAmerica where we createnew history? The recentState of the Black WorldConference III was organizedaround the theme - State ofEmergency in BlackAmerica: Time to Heal BlackFamilies and Communities.We selected this theme toemphatically declare that wehave yet to achieve the"dream" so brilliantly articu-lated by Martin Luther King,against the backdrop of theLincoln Memorial a half cen-tury ago. Hence, the choice isclear, it is imperative that2013 be a year of historicalreflection on the deeds andevents of the past as the foun-dation for concerted action tofulfill our destiny as a fullyfree and self-determiningpeople in the U.S. and the

world.While reflecting on

Lincoln and theEmancipation Proclamation,we should be ever mindful ofLerone Bennett, Jr.'s, asser-tion that the 16th President ofthe United States was "forcedinto glory;" that his "great-ness" is to be found not in hislove of African people or hisdesire to abolish slavery buthis steadfast and unwaveringcommitment to "save theunion" with or without slav-ery. Moreover, the glorifica-tion of Lincoln obscures thefact that the Proclamation,which only "freed" some ofthe enslaved, was promptedby his recognition thatAfricans were already strik-ing blows for our own free-dom by deserting the planta-tions in droves.

Equally important, we mustremember that "emancipa-tion" and Reconstruction mayhave temporarily bestowedpolitical rights but failed toprovide that which formerlyenslaved Africans neededmost urgently -- social rights,land, property, capital, repara-tions for the centuries of freelabor which contributedmightily to the emergence ofthe American nation. We werenot and have not ever beenpaid restitution to repair thecultural, spiritual and physi-cal damages done during theholocaust of enslavement. Asa consequence, a huge "wealthgap" persists between Euro-ethnics and Africans inAmerica today - despite thefact that we have thousands ofBlack elected officials and a

Black family in the WhiteHouse. The State ofEmergency in Black Americawould be eliminated if thegovernment were compelledto award reparations to thesons and daughters of Africain America. One hundred andfifty years after the signing ofthe Emancipation Proclama-tion, there must be a reneweddemand for reparations.

Medgar Evers, a veteran ofWorld War II and NAACPField Secretary, was gunneddown in his driveway inMississippi for actively fight-ing to restore those rightssupposedly guaranteed bythe 13th, 14th and 15thAmendments to theConstitution of the UnitedStates and theReconstruction Civil RightsStatutes; rights which wererepealed de facto by whitesupremacist terrorist organi-zations in the Post-Reconstruction era. It is notenough to simply rememberMedgar Evers; if 2013 is to bea year of destiny for Africansin America, then our reflec-tions must be matched with adetermination that "we ain'tgonna let nobody turn usaround," that "we will not bemoved" by voter suppressionlaws and efforts to repeal theVoting Rights Act of 1965.Racist and reactionary forcesin America must know thatthere are no barriers orobstacles that can be thrownin our path that will stop usfrom marching on ballotboxes to promote and defendour interests and aspirations.

Who would have thought

that when Martin LutherKing, Jr. mounted the stage todeliver his renowned "I Havea Dream" oration that fiftyyears later an AfricanAmerican would occupy themost powerful seat in theworld as President of theUnited States - a stunningsymbol of "racial progress."But, who could have alsoimagined that fifty yearslater, Africans in Americawould be in the throes of aState of Emergency inAmerica's "dark ghettos"characterized by massive,chronic joblessness, thou-sands of inadequate schoolsdispensing inferior educa-tion, out of control crime,and an epidemic of vio-lence/fratricide and massincarceration - with no mean-ingful targeted policyresponse. This should be astark reminder of the"bounced check" part ofKing's speech where he com-plained that the "promissorynote" of "life, liberty and thepursuit of happiness" embod-ied in the Declaration ofIndependence andConstitution keeps comingback "marked insufficientfunds" when it comes to thesons and daughters of Africain America. Therefore, withour memory refreshed, the50th Anniversary of theMarch on Washington mustmark a renewed determina-tion to press this administra-tion to "cash the check," to

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On Monday December 31,2012, The Wilmington Tenfinally received a "small" meas-ure of"long delayed" justice.Our Governor, Beverly Purdue,granted them a pardon endinga portion of the forty (40) yearheavy burden that changedtheir lives and future.

This pardon happenedbecause many organizations,

attorneys (pro-bono) and indi-viduals started fighting fortheir freedom.

The national, state and localNAACP and the NationalNewspaper PublishersAssociation (NNPA) and ourlocal Wilmington Journalspearheaded the drive for free-dom.

All who signed petitions,wrote letters, sent e-mails, orshared their time, talents andtreasures to free the

Wilmington Ten played a majorpart of the "village movement".

Governor Hunt took the firststep when he shortened the jailsentences. Governor Purduetook the second step with thepardon. The third step willcome from the State of NorthCarolina, which is liable for theunjust jailing of theWilmington Ten. Thus the fightis not over.

When people from all races,colors and creed work together

for justice, we will prevail. Thisis what the slogan "all power tothe people" really means.

I believe the members of theWilmington Ten and their fam-ily and friends can answer thequestion from Poet LangstonHughes.

"What happens to a dreamdeferred?"

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Dr. Ron Daniels

DANIELSContinued on page 5

Rev. WilliamBarber

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Page 5: The Wilmington Journal

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The new year beginswith a bad hangoverfrom 2012's inane

debate over the "fiscal cliff."The furious debate focusedonly on how much damage

would be doneto the econo-my and whowould pay theprice, howmuch andwhat would becut, whowould payhigher taxesand whowould suffer

the most.But this headache can't

define 2013, which must be atime to renew, not to ruin.Whatever final agreementcomes out of the fiscal cliff willslow an economy already strug-gling to grow. The challenge isto turn to what can be done torebuild, to put people to work,to boost, not cripple growth.

The challenges we face aregreat. Many neighborhoods inour cities are suffering unem-ployment rates of 40 percent.That is a recipe for disintegra-tion. Chicago just mourned the500th murder victim. Millionsof homes are still underwater.Wages are still declining, not

rising. Inequality, already atextreme levels, is rising, notfalling.

We need a plan to rebuildAmerica. We have a plan forIraq. We have a plan on how toget our troops out ofAfghanistan while helping torebuild that nation - yet, wearen't even talking about a planto rebuild our own cities.

Why not a Marshall Plan torebuild America's urban areas?The Marshall Plan providedlong-term, low-interest loans toEurope after World War II. Itput people to work, providedhope and helped to reviveeconomies devastated bywartime destruction. Now weneed a plan for our cities thatwill revive them from WallStreet's destruction.

Why not take a portion ofworkers' pension funds, pro-vide them with governmentguarantees, and create a net-work of urban developmentbanks committed to rebuildingour impoverished urban ghet-tos and barrios? Use the work-ers' money to put workers towork building affordable hous-ing, retrofitting buildings tocapture energy savings,rebuilding collapsing sewersand roads, expanding outmod-ed mass transit.

Add basic reforms to ensurethat workers share in theincreased productivity andprofits they help to create.Raise the minimum wage andcrack down on wage theft. Givepriority to companies thatmake things in America andallow workers to organize andbargain collectively. Get thisright, and we will begin torebuild a broad middle classand boost the economy. Withgood jobs, workers buy homesand cars and send their kids tocollege. Their demand leadssmall businesses to create jobs.We all grow together. Workersmove from food stamps to pay-ing taxes. Growth is the bestand necessary way to get ourbooks in order.

In 2012, Washington tieditself in knots over a self-creat-ed fiscal-cliff debate that is allabout constriction, not expan-sion. That debate is teed up toconsume the next few months,as well, as the governmentruns into the so-called debt ceil-ing while Republicans vow tohold the full faith and credit ofthe United States hostage toeven deeper cuts in vitaldomestic programs. Yet thecuts already in place willreduce domestic spending as aportion of our economy to lev-

els not seen since the 1950s.This is the road to decline anddespair.

The only thing that canchange the folly in Washingtonis the mobilization of people.Many are cynical about aWashington corrupted by bigmoney politics. But citizens inmotion can challenge bigmoney. We saw that with theTea Party uprising thatdemanded action on deficitsand spending. We saw that withOccupy protests that putextreme inequality and thecrushing of the AmericanDream on the agenda.

Now citizens must rise againto demand action to rebuildAmerica.

The Reverend Jesse LouisJackson, Sr., founder and pres-ident of the Rainbow PUSHCoalition, is one of America'sforemost civil rights, religiousand political figures. Over thepast forty years, he has playeda pivotal role in virtually everymovement for empowerment,peace, civil rights, genderequality, and economic andsocial justice. On August 9,2000, President Bill Clintonawarded Reverend Jackson thePresidential Medal of Freedom,the nation's highest civilianhonor.

OPINIONThursday, January 3, 2013 5

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Feuding Democrats and Republicans did not plungethe country over a financial cliff, but a lively debatewill continue in coming months over the role the fed-

eral government should play in the lives of its citizens.In one corner are Republicans who contend that federal

spending has run amuck - and it should be slashed. In theother corner are Democrats, including President Obama, who

make the right oral arguments, but the wrongmoves to defend such worthy American sta-ples as Social Security and Medicare. In mostpolitical crises, Republicans will fight andDemocrats will take flight.

Let's begin with a president who doesn'tseem comfortable in the rough-and-tumbleworld of politics. He has a tendency to giveaway the store even before the store opens upits doors for business.

As Paul Krugman wrote July 31, 2011 theNew York Times, "Republicans will surely be

emboldened by the way Mr. Obama keeps folding in the face oftheir threats. He surrendered last December, extending theBush tax cuts; he surrendered in the spring when they threat-ened to shut down the government; and he has now surren-dered on a grand scale to the raw extortion over the debt ceil-ing. Maybe it's just me, but I see a pattern here."

Unfortunately, that pattern remains unbroken.A Center for Policy and Budget Priorities blog noted,

"Boehner complains that, in what the White House describesas an offer of $1.2 trillion in spending cuts and the same in taxincreases, Obama counts interest savings that accrue asspending cuts, thus making the one-to-one ratio illegitimate.

"More importantly, however, is that, when viewed correctlyand in their entirety, the non-interest spending cuts under thePresident's latest offer would actually exceed his proposed taxincreases and would roughly equal the spending cuts thatBoehner himself proposed in his deficit-related negotiationswith the President last year."

And that's on top of cuts already made.The CBPP also pointed out, "When those negotiations broke

down, the President and Congress enacted the 2011 BudgetControl Act (BCA), which established annual caps on discre-tionary spending for each of the next ten years. These caps,which will cut spending by what the White House estimates tobe $1 trillion over the next decade, reflected a tentative agree-ment by the President and Speaker over discretionary spend-ing in those negotiations."

President Obama has already signaled a willingness tomake additional concessions on Social Security andMedicare.

Let's take a closer look at Social Security.A story by FAIR noted, "Social Security is not bloated or

poorly run. Its shortfall is primarily the result of people liv-ing longer, and therefore drawing benefits longer."

As a CBPP fact sheet observes, "In June 2012, 56 million peo-ple, or about one in every six U.S. residents, collected SocialSecurity benefits. While three-quarters of them received ben-efits as retirees or elderly widow(er)s, another 11 million (19percent) received disability insurance benefits, and 2 million(4 percent) received benefits as young survivors of deceasedworkers."

It also noted, "Social Security benefits are much more mod-est than many people realize. In June 2012, the average SocialSecurity retirement benefit was $1,234 a month, or about$14,800 a year. (The average disabled worker and aged widowreceived slightly less.) For someone who worked all of his orher adult life at average earnings and retires at 65 in 2012,Social Security benefits replace about 41 percent of past earn-ings. This replacement rate will slip to about 36 percent for amedium earner retiring at 65 in the future, chiefly becausethe full retirement age, which has already risen to 66, willclimb to 67 over the 2017-2022 period.

"Moreover, most retirees enroll in Medicare'sSupplementary Medical Insurance (also known as MedicarePart B) and have Part B premiums deducted from their SocialSecurity checks. As health-care costs continue to outpace gen-eral inflation, those premiums will take a bigger bite out oftheir checks.

"Social Security benefits are modest by international stan-dards, too. The United States ranks 30th among 34 developedcountries in the percentage of a median worker's earningsthat the public-pension system replaces."

Social Security plays an outsized role in the lives retiredAfrican-Americans.

"Social Security is a particularly important source ofincome for groups with low earnings and with less opportuni-ty to save and earn pensions, including African Americansand Hispanics," CBPP said. "Among beneficiaries aged 65 andolder, Social Security represents 90 percent or more ofincome for 35 percent of elderly white beneficiaries, 42 per-cent of Asian Americans, 49 percent of blacks, and 55 percentof Hispanics."

Yes, money spent on Social Security and Medicare is wellspent. And that's why Obama should summon the courage tostand his ground.

George E. Curry, former editor-in-chief of Emerge maga-zine, is editor-in-chief of the National Newspaper PublishersAssociation News Service (NNPA.) He is a keynote speaker,moderator, and media coach. Curry can be reached throughhis Web site, www.georgecurry.com. You can also follow himat www.twitter.com/currygeorge.

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recognize the crises in BlackAmerica and promote poli-cies designed to ensure thekind of social and economicsecurity King was fightingfor at the end of his life.Anything short of that com-ing from the President willsimply be more ceremonywithout substance -- andunacceptable!

If 2013 is to be more than ayear of empty celebrations,Africans in America mustmuster the determinationand rediscover a spirit ofresistance required to healBlack families and communi-ties. As Richard Allen,Booker T. Washington, theHonorable Marcus MosiahGarvey, Mary McLeodBethune, Madame C.J.Walker, the Honorable ElijahMuhammad, Malcolm X, theHonorable Minister LouisFarrakhan and numerousother leaders have taught, thefirst priority is to "do for self"- to utilize what we have in"our own hands" to empowerAfrican people to effectivelyadvance a freedom/libera-

tion agenda. With a trilliondollars in Black spendingpower, we must intensify thestruggle to build andstrengthen Black social andeconomic institutions as thefirst source of our empower-ment and sustenance as apeople. In this regard, theInstitute of the Black World21st Century unites with thegoals of the Freedom 2013Initiative spearheaded by theRev. Dennis Dillon of NewYork. The goal of thisInitiative is to use the 150thAnniversary of theEmancipation Proclamationto galvanize Africans inAmerica to amass our eco-nomic/financial resourcesfor Black empowerment.

Second, as we discussed atState of the Black WorldConference III, if 2013 is to bea year of destiny, thenAfricans in America mustdemand that businesses andprivate sector institutionsthat thrive on Black dollarsreinvest in Black communi-ties. A renewed spirit ofresistance dictates that weunapologetically employ eco-nomic sanctions to punishthose institutions which takeour dollars but do not hire

sufficient numbers of Blackpeople or invest in Blackcommunities. Nobody shouldbe allowed to do business inour communities withoutagreeing to a covenant toemploy Black people andreinvest in our communities.

Finally, Africans inAmerica pay taxes, vote andparticipate in various facetsof the electoral politicalprocess. But, for our partici-pation to be meaningful wemust demand that the systembe responsive to our needs.Fifty years after the Marchon Washington, it is inexcus-able that the masses of Blackpoor and working people arestill suffering near the bot-tom of the social/economicladder in this country,despite the "gains" of theCivil rights and Black PowerMovements. Therefore, itwould be inexcusable forBlack leaders, activists andorganizers to countenance aCommemoration of theMarch on Washington thatdoes not match the militancyof the heroes and sheroeswho assembled on theNational Mall in 1963. TheCongress of the United Statesand the Obama administra-

tion must hear the voice ofFannie Lou Hamer cryingout that the masses of Blackfolks are "sick and tired ofbeing sick and tired." If 2013is to be a year of destiny forAfricans in America, thenthe objective of the 50thAnniversary of the March onWashington must be to endthe State of Emergency inBlack America.

Faced with the 150thAnniversary of theEmancipation Proclamation,the 50th Anniversary of theassassination of MedgarEvers and the 50thAnniversary of the March onWashington, Africans inAmerica must decide thatour destiny is in our hands!

Dr. Ron Daniels isPresident of the Institute ofthe Black World 21st Centuryand Distinguished Lecturerat York College CityUniversity of New York. Hisarticles and essays alsoappear on the IBW websitewww.ibw21.org andwww.northstarnews.com . Tosend a message, arrangemedia interviews or speak-ing engagements, Dr. Danielscan be reached via email [email protected].

Rev. JesseJackson, Sr.

H ow will AfricanAmericans im-prove our situation

in 2013? Right now, we havehigher unemployment thanany other population in our

nation, lesswealth, high-er schooldropout rates,and morecrime in ourcommunities.Dr. MartinLuther King,Jr. once saidthat AfricanA m e r i c a n

communities had twice thenumber of negatives and halfthe number of positives in ourcountry. While the numbersmay have shifted somewhat, itis still true that we are morelikely to experience negativeconsequences (teen pregnancy,incarceration, crime) and lesslikely to experience positives(college graduation, high networth).

Those of us who focus onpublic policy will look at pastdiscrimination and ways itmanifests itself in the present.We will look at the way race-neutral public policy has aracial impact (for example,changing the terms of theParent Plus loan hits wealth-poor, credit-challenged Blackfamilies disproportionately).We will suggest ways to closegaps, some of which mayinclude ways that governmentinvestment, such as job cre-ation and job training, canhelp close these gaps. And wewill be right.

Whether we fall off the fis-cal cliff (final negotiationsare taking place even as Iwrite this), the focus on the

level of debt our nation facessuggests that tax reform willreduce tax deductions, somein ways that may increaseincome inequality, and thatspending cuts are imminent.Many of these cuts will be insocial programs and educa-tional spending. Again,some of these cuts willwiden, not narrow, thewealth and income gaps.

What does this mean forBlack America in 2013?Pretend that it is GroundhogDay, if you saw the movie.The protagonist wakes upevery day to the same daywhen everything happensthe same way. If you keepdoing what you have beendoing, you'll keep gettingwhat you've been getting.For Black American, thismeans that if we keep look-ing external without lookinginternal, not much willchange for us.

Yes, it will change for someof us: Those who are educated,middle class, well networkedand disciplined are likely tofind significant opportunitiesin our stagnant economybecause even stagnanteconomies churn and createnew opportunities. But it won'tchange much for those whoare less educated, workingclass, un-networked and undis-ciplined, or some combinationthereof. Education, networks,and discipline can be fixed.But few have an interest in fix-ing these things in BlackAmerica except for BlackAmericans. So what are wegoing to do?

Susan Taylor has been apassionate advocate of men-torship in the AfricanAmerican community. She

began the work when she edi-tor-in-chief at Essence maga-zine and left the magazine toexpand her reach in thatarea. She continues to advo-cate mentorship and to teachus how to be mentors. Herwork supports education, net-working and discipline.

Similarly, in SoutheastWashington, D.C., CoraMasters Barry leads theRecreation Wish ListCommittee and works withthe Southeast Tennis andLearning Center to nurturemore than 150 young peopleyear-round (full disclosure - Iam treasurer of the Wish ListBoard). Students are trainedin physical fitness throughtennis, and are encouraged intheir academics throughlearning. Most board mem-bers have hands-on relation-ships with our young people,who are held to the higheststandards. Again, this worksupports education, network-ing and discipline.

Most historically Blackcolleges do the same thing,bringing corporate partnersto campuses and exposingstudents to the many waysthey can access employmentopportunities. In manycases, the entire campusoffers students engagedmentorship. Education, net-working and discipline.

When people tell the storyof the American Dream,they talk about the manyways that hard work willhelp someone transcendclass. They talk about hardwork. People who earn theminimum wage work hard.People who make ends meeton public assistance workhard. It's not just about hard

work. It's about hard work -and the hook up.

A corporate leader who isa wonderful friend once saidthat she could use her posi-tion to hook up women andAfrican Americans whoneeded a hand up. She alsoindicated that the hook upcould help individuals, butwe also, and always, need ahook in to public policy deci-sions that affect our nation.

That means we need a seataround every table wherepublic policy is being made,whether on issues of race, oron issues that seem race-neutral. We should be talk-ing about the deficit, abouttax reform, about govern-ment spending. We should betalking about internationalaffairs, about world areas ofconflict, about our fluctuat-ing currency. As long as welive in this flawed nation, allissues are Black issues.

Even with the hook in, weneed to offer the hook up.That means embracing ormentoring a child. Thatmeans providing an opportu-nity to someone who is unem-ployed. That means support-ing education through contri-butions to colleges, but also byproviding help to individuals.It's the same hymn book we'vebeen singing from for morethan a century. Now we needto sing with more energy.

Things won't change inBlack America unless someof us do. We need to bothhook in and hook up!

Julianne Malveaux is aWashington, D.C.-basedeconomist and writer. She isPresident Emerita ofBennett College for Womenin Greensboro, N.C.

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DANIELSContinued from page 4

Page 6: The Wilmington Journal

Whitaker Small FarmGroup began in a smalloffice in Garner, NC. Mr.Whitaker wanted, afterretiring from the USDA, tocome home and help farm-ers across the state, espe-cially in areas where activefarms had been silenced bythe failing economy.Applying to the USDA Officeof Advocacy and Outreach,Mr. Whitaker formalized hisproject goals and via moniesgranted, has been able toserve over 740 farm and for-est landowners, operatorsand beginning farmers fromchronically underservedpopulations. Farming hasbeen hit especially hard inthe small Central andEastern North Carolinacommunities. Women andother underserved popula-tions of farmers neededsupport. One of thesewomen is a local farmer inSampson County, Ms.Beltran. Abigail Beltran hasshared her story and theassistance she received fromWhitaker Small FarmGroup as she heralds thepositive impact the programhas had on her small perma-culture farm.

Ms. Beltran, has a 7.5acrefarm in Faison, NorthCarolina. In response to thetraining and encourage-ment she received fromWhitaker Small FarmGroup, Ms. Beltran says thatWhitaker Small FarmGroup's programs "were thecatalyst that gave me theconfidence to broaden mygoals and dreams and lookat other possibilities for mylittle family farm", "it allseemed possible" "and with-out his program I would stillhave been working my farmbut I would not have had theexposure and the increasedknowledge to offer my skillsand share with others". Ms.Beltran erected a heatedgreenhouse on her smallfarm and began growingtomatoes and other alterna-tive crops. As she participat-ed in additional training viathe project, her farmbecame a natural communi-ty site to offer additionalskills training. Ms. Beltranand about 390 or more otherfarmers received trainingin, soil recipes, hydroponiclettuce growing, tomatografting, mushroom loginoculation, economics ofgreenhouse management,marketing and writing abusiness plan, to name onlya few of the skills classes.Ms. Beltran shared in arti-cles written in both theDuplin Times and inWhitaker Small FarmGroup's own newsletter,Small Farm Group Voice,that there is help for com-munity farming viaWhitaker Small FarmGroup.

Ms. Beltran has proceed-ed to capture audiences ofwomen and beginning farm-ers by telling her story ofretiring to North Carolina,after a nurse and socialworker career, to now anindependent practicing per-maculture farmer. She says"there is help" as she shareswith others the supportavailable from WhitakerSmall Farm Group, stating"he has built a strong com-munity of support fromlocal agencies". She is refer-ring to the USDA, NCA&TState University, and the NCDepartment of Agricultureagencies along with otherfederal state and local enti-

ties. Recently Ms. Beltranspoke in Lumberton, NC to agroup of 60 predominantlyAmerican Indian womenand Latino beginning farm-ers and farm or forestlandowners. Those present,energized and motivated byMs. Beltran's story, excitedlyregistered for the nexthands on training classes tobegin January, 2013 and rununtil April. Dr. KeithBaldwin, a retired horticul-turist from NCA&T StateUniversity explained themany skills to be learned.The classes, to be held onMs. Beltran's farm, hadmore people committing tothe Saturday dates thanslots available. Ms. Beltranencouraged those present totake advantage of everyopportunity that WhitakerSmall Farm Group had tooffer and the response wasoverwhelming. Many otherexperts, in addition to Dr.Baldwin, have been trainersin the classes: Dr. OseiYeboah, Dr. Mary HelenGlass, Ms. Nancy Olsen, Mr.James Hartsfield, Mr. KurtTaylor, Dr. McDowell and Dr.Frank Yeboah.

Whitaker Small FarmGroup has served approxi-mately 740 beginning, activeand interested farmers orlandowners from chronical-ly underserved populations.In the past three years ofthe grant awarded by theUSDA Office of Advocacyand Outreach, Mr. Whitakerhas brought to his partici-pants hands-on skills train-ing and educational work-shops in his outreach pro-grams. Whitaker sharesthat "my goals aresimple…go into the commu-nities where people are diffi-cult to reach and educatethe farmers, particularlywomen and young farmers,bring in new farmers, helpactive farmers sustain theirfarms and increase dispos-able income...all gainedthrough smart farmingpractices."

The outreach sessionsbrought exposure to andeducation on USDA agen-cies, programs, active USDAclaims and lawsuit informa-tion to the participants. Mr.Whitaker has been wellreceived and supported byso many who have eitherpresented at the outreachsessions or provided sup-port to reach the farm or for-est landowners. "I don'twant to try listing everyoneby name because I may misssomeone and I don't want todo that"! Agency supporthas come from the, NCForest Service, NCCooperative ExtensionAgency, NCA&T StateUniversity, NC AgricultureExtension Service, NCDepartment of Agriculture,the USDA Office ofAdvocacy and Outreach andUSDA Departments of RiskManagement, NaturalResources ConservationService, RuralDevelopment, Farm ServiceAgency, and a local agencythe Land Loss PreventionProject , along with a host ofother local communityagencies and representa-tives. Most recently Mr.Whitaker was approachedto help get the word out thatthere were funds to assistwith irrigation systems,deep wells and pumps, inspecific North Carolinacounties and communities.The response resulted inmore than 75% of eligible

applicants, who learned ofthe program from his out-reach meetings, wereapproved for funding (thisamounts to about 80 farmerswho mostly reported neverhaving received any USDAassistance before). Also, cur-rently, in cooperation withNCA&T State University,Mr. Whitaker has 12younger farmers who areattending monthly trainingon the university farm,receiving skills that theycan take back to their farmto improve and enhancetheir operations and toshare within their commu-nity. Mr. Nathan Pittman ofSampson county, a self-described "senior citizenfarmer" and past skillstrainee says "there's just notenough of Mr. Whitaker togo around".

Surveys after each pro-gram include write-inresponses from participantswho report needing theinformation and not receiv-ing it in the past. WhitakerSmall Farm groups successis not just numbers but it isthe lives of farmers impact-ed in such away that sus-tainability will not just be abuzz word in today's agricul-ture but a way of life in thelives of the people he touch-es and in the communitieshe serves.

SSPPEECCIIAALL TTOO TTHHEE TTRRIICCEEEEDDNNEEYY NNEEWWSS WWIIRREE FROM THE RICHMONDFREE PRESS

(TriceEdneyWire.com) -The New York Daily Newslabeled him the "CraziestMan on Earth" in recentfront-page headline. TheNew York Post piled on with"Gun Nut! NRA loon inbizarre rant over Newtown."

But Wayne LaPierre, CEOof the National RifleAssociation, is unabashedabout calling for the govern-ment to place armed guardsin every American school inresponse to the massacre of20 first-graders in Newtown,Conn.

As President Obamastepped up his call to thepublic to pressure lawmak-ers to tighten gun regula-tions, Mr. LaPierre waspushing back against hiscritics and supporters of guncontrol.

"If it's crazy to call for put-ting police and armed securi-ty in our schools to protectour children, then call mecrazy," he said Sunday onNBC's "Meet the Press."

The NRA waited a weekbefore issuing a statement onthe Dec. 14 slaughter of the20 children and six adults atSandy Hook ElementarySchool by a gunman whoopened fire with a semiauto-matic assault rifle. Mr.LaPierre's Dec. 21 speech inWashington drew protestersand stoked the fierce debateover U.S. gun laws in anation with a culture of gunownership and a history ofschool shootings and othergun violence.

The proposal to placearmed guards in everyschool, an idea the NRA haslong supported, drew themost criticism. Rep. ChrisMurphy, the congressmanfrom Newtown's district,tweeted: "Walking out ofanother funeral and washanded the NRA transcript,the most revolting, tone deafstatement I've ever seen."

The NRA proposal alsodrew fire from New YorkMayor Michael Bloomberg,the nation's largest teachersunion and Mark Kelly, thehusband of former U.S.Representative Gabrielle

Giffords, who was hurtlast year in a mall shooting

by a gunman in Tucson,Ariz.

But LaPierre is pressingahead, calling his idea "theone thing that we can doimmediately that will imme-diately make our childrensafe," he said. He scoffed atPresident Obama and otherswho instead want to rein-state a federal ban on high-powered assault rifles to pre-vent more massacres. Theban expired in 2004.

LaPierre cited shootingsthat took place when the banwas in effect, including the1999 Columbine High Schoolmassacre in Colorado.Meanwhile, PresidentObama sought to rally thoseappalled by the massacre tojoin him in the fight forstiffer gun laws. Alreadymore than 250,000 peoplehave sign a petition fortougher gun laws posted onthe White House website.

"I need your help," thepresident said in a video tothe public he issued lastFriday. He issued it afterassigning Vice President JoeBiden to lead a cabinet groupto come up with "concreteproposals" to change gunlaws. That includes clampingdown on the sale and owner-ship of the rapid-firing, mili-tary-style assault weaponsthat enabled the Connecticutgunman to easily mow downhis victims, the presidentindicated.

"If we're going to succeed"in changing the nation's gunlaws, President Obama saidcitizens must make theirvoices heard to get lawmak-ers to stand up to the gunlobby's opposition.

"It's going to take a sus-tained effort from mothersand fathers, daughters andsons, law enforcement andresponsible gun ownersorganizing and speaking up,"he said.

He said it also would takepeople calling their "mem-bers of Congress as manytimes as it takes and saying,'Enough' on behalf of all ofour kids."

Along with reinstating thedefunct ban on sale ofassault weapons, the presi-dent also wants Congress toensure that everyone gets abackground check beforebuying a weapon. His goal:To get Congress to close theloophole that now allows

anyone to sell at gun showswithout requiring buyers toundergo that kind of check.

But the President knowshe faces a hard slog going upagainst groups like the NRAand their congressionalallies. Republican U.S. SenLindsey Graham, R-S.C., forexample, opposes reinstatingthe ban on assault weapons.

"The assault weapons bandidn't work then, and it won'twork now," Sen. Graham saidin a statement he issuedthrough Twitter. He dis-closed that he owns the sametype of assault rifle used by20-year-old Adam Lanza tokill the 20 schoolchildrenand six educators at theNewtown school.

"I own an AR-15. I've got itat my house," Sen. Grahamsaid. "The question is if youdeny me the right to buyanother one, have you madeAmerica safer? I do believebetter security in schools is abetter place to start."

Other gun rights advo-cates in Congress, such asVirginia Sen. Mark R.Warner, have indicated awillingness to consider newgun restrictions immediate-ly after the Newtown shoot-ing. U.S. lawmakers have notapproved a major new feder-al gun law since 1994.

"It's gonna be a battle,"Sen. Joe Lieberman ofConnecticut told CNN's"State of the Union." He andSen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., criticized the NRA forblaming gun violence oneverything but guns.

Sen. Schumer declared ona Sunday talk show that anattempt to prevent shootingsin schools without talkingabout guns "is like trying toprevent lung cancer withouttalking about cigarettes."

NEW YORK-Girl Scouts of the USA

(GSUSA) has joined forceswith Sigma Gamma Rho, oneof the nation's largestAfrican American sororities,to help build awareness ofcareer possibilities in sci-ence, technology, and engi-neering among girls and par-ents in the African Americancommunity.

Working with local GirlScout councils around thecountry, Sigma Gamma Rho'salumnae chapters have madeGSUSA's ImagineEngineering initiative, fund-

ed by the National ScienceFoundation, a focus of thesorority's annual NationalYouth Symposium.

"Girl Scouting and SigmaGamma Rho have the samegoal: to build the nation'sfuture leaders by helpinggirls dream big and accom-plish much today," saidGSUSA Chief ExecutiveOfficer Anna Maria Chávez."We are delighted to be partof this partnership to helpgirls do great things in criti-cal fields such as science,technology, engineering andmath."

"Response to ImagineEngineering has been terrif-ic," said Sigma Gamma RhoNational President BonitaHerring. "We surveyed 250girls who took part in the pro-gram, and more than twothirds of them said they nowunderstood how 'someonelike me' could become anengineer."

"We will not only expandour efforts with this pro-gram, but we will reach out togirls nationwide in our com-munities with a combinationof our own healthy livingprogram, Project Reassu-

rance, and the Girl Scouts'program for middle-schoolgirls on healthy relationshipsand bullying," Herring said."Through this continuedpartnership, we are going todo great things together forgirls."

For more information onGSUSA's Imagine Engineer-ing initiative visitwww.girlscouts.org/imagi-neengineering/.

About Girl ScoutsFounded in 1912, Girl

Scouts of the USA is the pre-eminent leadership develop-ment organization for girls,

with 3.2 million girl and adultmembers worldwide. GirlScouts is the leading authori-ty on girls' healthy develop-ment, and builds girls ofcourage, confidence, andcharacter, who make theworld a better place. Theorganization serves girlsfrom every corner of theUnited States and its territo-ries. Girl Scouts of the USAalso serves American girlsand their classmates attend-ing American or internation-al schools overseas in morethan 90 countries. For moreinformation on how to join,

volunteer or reconnect with,or donate to Girl Scouts, call(800) GSUSA 4 U or (212) 852-8000, or visit www.girlscouts.org.

About Sigma Gamma RhoSigma Gamma Rho is a his-

torically African Americansorority, formed at ButlerUniversity in 1922. Its mem-bership is 100,000, whichincludes 500 alumnae chap-ters in the United States, theBahamas, Korea, Canada,Germany, and Africa. Formore information go to thewebsite at www.sgrho1922.org.

BUSINESS/NATIONAL Thursday, January 3, 20136

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CONTRIBUTED PHOTO2013 EVENTS

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Page 7: The Wilmington Journal

ON A JOURNEY...Thursday, January 3, 2013 7

Little Miss Kala Keaton, along with Rev. Dr. WilliamBarber, holds sign that reads “130,000 supporters ask Gov. Perdue to pardon the Wilmington Ten”.

GREAT TO SEE EACH OTHER ON CAPITOLGROUNDS--James McKoy, Atty. Irv Joyner, Atty.James Ferguson, Marvin Patrick and Dr. Ben Chavis.

Thursday, December 27, 2012 a delegationtraveled to Raleigh, courtesy Daniels Tours, todeliver 130,000 signatures to Gov. Perdue. Picturedare Wilmington Ten members James McKoy, MarvinPatrick and Willie Earl Vereen. Two weeks prior,14,000 signatures were delivered to the Governor.

130,000 SIGNATURES OF WILMINGTON TEN SUPPORTERS

The ccommunity iis ccordially iinvited tto GGregory CCongregational UUnited CChurch oof CChrist, 6609 NNunStreet, oon SSaturday, JJanuary 55, 22013 aat 22:00 pp.m.to wwitness tthe WWilmington TTen aand ssurvivingfamily mmembers rreeeive ttheir CCertificates oof PPardons aand cceremonial ppens uused bby GGovernor BBeverly

Perdue tto ssign tthe ppardons. PPlease ccome oout aand wwitness tthis hhistoric eevent.

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Representatives from Governor Perdue’s office accept petitions.

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ALL PHOTOS BY JOHN DAVISALL PHOTOS BY JOHN DAVIS

PHOTOS TAKEN AT SHILOH MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCHPHOTOS TAKEN AT SHILOH MISSIONARY BAPTIST CHURCH

Mary Alice Jervay Thatch, publisher of Wilmington Journal, board member of National Newspaper Publishers Association and co-chair of Pardons ofInnocence Committee reads statement of thanks to Governor Perdue. (l-r) Rev. James Jamison, Local Coordinator of Project Sonya Bennetone-Patrick,Greater Diversity Publisher Peter Grear, Gail Moore Vereen, Ophelia Tindall-Dixon, Thatch, Mrs. Margaret Jacobs, Marvin Patrick and Willie Vereen.

Marvin Patrick, Wilmington Ten member, tells media that “I will suffer no more about this matter.” Ophelia Tindall-Dixon, sister of the late Connie Tindall,Wilmington Ten member, says that her family bears no animosity. Mrs. Margaret Jacobs, mother of the late Jerry Jacobs, Wilmington 10 member, says she isthankful to have “lived to see this day”. Wilmington Ten member Willie Vereen thanked Governor Perdue for “doing the right thing”.

Page 8: The Wilmington Journal

NNeeww HHaannoovveerr CCoouunnttyy

NNeeww HHaannoovveerr CCoouunnttyy Christmas tree recycling will beginthe day after the Christmas holiday for New Hanover

County residents. The New HanoverCounty Environmental Managementdepartment asks residents living in theunincorporated areas to take their trees toone of three locations this year.Residents may begin dropping off theirused Christmas trees, during daylighthours, starting Wednesday, December 26that Myrtle Grove Middle School, 901 Piner

Rd. Ogden Park (near the baseball fields), 225 Ogden ParkDrive and New Hanover County Landfill, 5210 USHighway 421 North. This program will continue throughthe month of January with the last pickup beingWednesday, February. 6th. Please remove all decorations& lights prior to drop off.

TThhee WWiillmmiinnggttoonn SSyymmpphhoonnyy OOrrcchheessttrraa,, YYoouutthh OOrrcchheessttrraaaanndd JJuunniioorr SSttrriinnggss will hold auditions in January. TheWilmington Symphony auditions will be held on Monday,January 14 th. The Youth Orchestra and Junior Stringsauditions will be held on Thursday, January 10th. Formore information call 910-791-9262.

BBllaaddeenn CCoouunnttyy

CCiittyy ooff EElliizzaabbeetthhttoowwnn plans are underway for the twenty-fifth (silver anniversary) memorial parade honoring thebirthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to be held inElizabethtown, North Carolina on Monday, January 21,2013 at 11:00 a.m. Civic and religious organizations,bands, step-teams, antique vehicles, farm equipment,queens etc. are invited to participate. More informationcan be obtained by calling (910) 645-4995.

Policies for briefs, news and photos on page 2CCoommppiilleedd bbyy MMoonnttrreellll WWiillssoonn

CommunityBriefs

COMMUNITY Thursday, January 3, 20138

HOMETOWN NEWS FROM BRUNSWICK COUNTYHOMETOWN NEWS FROM BRUNSWICK COUNTY

AAnn aallll AAmmeerriiccaann aarrttiisstt

Did she have thesecret to true happi-ness? A great pho-

tographer ofthe Stieglitzfamily wasO'Keeffe. Itwas taken dur-ing the firstp a s s i o n a t edays of herlove with herloosened hairand her grace-ful hands.G e o r g i aO'Keeffe's art

has endured for nearly threegenerations. Her paintingswere periodically refreshedby new exhibits and publica-tions.

She was known as an earlyfeminist who was independ-ent, self sufficient and a lib-erated woman. In fact, she

was all of them. She grewup on a farm near SunPrairies Wisconsin. The sec-ond of seven children herfather was Irish and hermother was Dutch. Hermother put great emphasison her children's education.At age eleven her talentbegan developing. O'Keeffewas taken by buckboard totown for weekly art lesions.

By twelve she had told aplaymate her mind wasmade up and she was goingto be an artist. EventuallyO'Keeffe attended art schoolin Chicago and New York.As a desert recluse she paint-ed the cliffs and hills alongwith the bones and stones ofnorthern New Mexico.

Some charcoal drawingsshe had sent to a friend inNew York who was a leg-endary photographer and

art dealer. They are thepurest, finest, sincerestthings that have entered thelegendary art dealers. Shetravelled a lot and did returnto New York. She favoreddressing in black and whiteand wore no make-up. Shepulled her hair back in atight knot.

There were some finepaintings of the outstandingoversized flowers in whichshe became best known for.She lived on her patio at theranch where she would gazeout and paint the surround-ings and landscapes. Shewould frequently climb thewooden ladder to the roof ofthe ranch house and sleepunder the stars. The patio isthe great flat-top specialmountain. O'Keeffe oncesaid that God told her that ifshe painted that mountain

enough she could have it.She was born an artist.

Verniece E. Stanley is anative of Brunswick County.She grew up on a farm butwanted more excitement inlife. She graduated fromhigh school in BrunswickCounty in 1948 and graduat-ed from Fayetteville StateTeachers' College in 1952.She taught school in thecounty for nine years. Shemoved to BaltimoreMaryland, married andtaught school for twenty fivemore years. She received hermaster's degree fromMorgan State College inBaltimore City. She retiredand moved back to Bolivia,NC where she enjoys writingarticles for The WilmingtonJournal and is an activemember of the NAACPBoard.

The Wilmington Chapterof Las Amigas, Inc. held itssecond annual Babes inToyland Pageant on Sunday,December 9, 2012 at EbenezerMissionary Baptist Church,2929 Princess Place Drive,Wilmington, NC. 28405.

Upon entering the room,attendees were greeted withopulent decorations. Thechild-centered theme hadtables that were festoonedwith teddy bears and bal-loons on white tablecloths.

The pageant began withDeloris Rhodes giving a live-ly reading of various nurseryrhymes which included eachchild's name. Six contestantsvied for the title of King orQueen.

Three-year-old WilliamKalif Eaddy, son of Janet S.Eaddy, was crowned King ofthe pageant. The first run-ner-up was 13-month-oldKyrah Aaliyah Brinkley,daughter of LaTonyaBrinkley and Ronald Coston.Shaziah Nizani Shuford,daughter of SheteemaDoughty and ShaquaunnShuford was the second run-ner-up. Asher Pierre Reid,son of PFC Reid, De'AnahBaldwin-Bey, daughter ofChervonne Miller and RubenCornell Gallshaw, son ofTasha Thomas and RobertGallshaw, were the remain-ing contestants.

The highpoint of the pag-eant of course, was thecrowning of little WilliamKalif Eaddy. His engagingpersonality befitted that of a

King. He was awarded acrown and a Teddy Bearwhich he hugged with evi-dent pride.

Later in the pageant all thechildren in the audiencewere invited to the stage tohear the reading of a chil-dren's story. They all sat com-fortably on pillows and lis-tened attentively, while

Marilyn Westinghouse -dressed as a granny (withwhite hair and a shawl!) -read the story.

"The pageant was a greatsuccess," noted Ms.Westinghouse, currentPresident of the Las AmigasWilmington Chapter.

Babes in Toyland is anannual event, and the Las

Amigas Wilmington Chapterwill be looking for new con-testants for next year's pag-eant. Contestants must beaged 0 to three years of age. Itis possible that next year'sKing or Queen has yet to beborn.

VernieceStanley

PHOTOS BY JOHN DAVIS

BBaabbeess iinn TTooyyllaanndd PPaaggeeaanntt

(New Hanover County, NC) -New Hanover County RealEstate and Personal Propertytaxes must be paid no laterthan Monday, Jan. 7, 2013. A 2percent interest charge will beadded to unpaid balances at theclose of business on that date.Interest will continue to accrueeach month thereafter until theliability is paid in full.Delinquent notices will bemailed at the end of January2013. If you are unable to payyour bill in full, please contactthe tax office at 910.798.7300 toestablish a payment plan.There are many flexibleoptions for payment plansavailable if the office is contact-ed as soon as possible.

The Tax Department acceptspayments from 7:30 a.m. to 5p.m., Monday through Friday.Please note that the office willbe closed Tuesday, Jan. 1, 2013for the New Year's Day holiday.

How Can I Find Out If MyBill Has Already Been Paid?

Visit the website: www.nhc-gov.com/Tax and click on TaxRecords Inquiry to view yourbill.

HHooww DDoo II PPaayy MMyy BBiillll??You can pay in person at 230

Government Center Drive,Suite 190, Wilmington NCbetween the hours of 7:30 a.m.and 5 p.m. Secure drop boxreceptacles are located at theGovernment Center outsidethe south entrance to theGovernment Center, inside theGovernment Center at the

entrance to the Tax Office andinside the Tax Office at theinformation center desk.Payments are collected fromthese secure receptacles sever-al times daily.

Make checks payable to NewHanover County Tax Officeand mail to PO Box 18000,Wilmington NC 28406. Pleaseinclude your bill year, bill num-ber and type of tax that you arepaying to ensure that youraccount is properly credited.

Credit and debit card pay-ments can be made at www.offi-cialpayments.com or by calling1-800-2-PAY-TAX. The jurisdic-tion code is 4345. The vendorproviding this service willcharge a fee. You must have thebill year, bill type and bill num-ber to ensure that your accountis properly credited.

PLEASE NOTE - CREDITAND DEBIT CARDS ARE NOTACCEPTED IN THE TAXOFFICE.

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If you have a mortgage com-pany that withholds money fortax payments and your billremains unpaid you shouldcontact your lender immediate-ly and advise them of the bal-ance due.

Postmarks: GS 105-360(d)reads in part: For the purposesof computing interest, tax pay-ments submitted by mail shallbe deemed to be received as ofthe date shown on the post-mark affixed by the United

States Postal Service. If no dateis shown on the postmark or ifthe postmark is not affixed bythe United States PostalService, the tax payment shallbe deemed to be received whenthe payment is received in theoffice of the Tax Collector. Inany dispute arising under thissubsection, the burden of proofshall be on the taxpayer toshow that the payment wastimely made. **Meteredpostage does not constitute aUnited States Postal ServicePostmark.

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NC law requires any personthat owns the following typesof property on January 1 to belisted annually with theCounty Assessor in which theproperty is located: airplanes,boats, boat motors, mobilehomes, unlicensed vehicles,and household appliances orfurnishings supplied to a ten-ant. Any improvements madeto real estate should also belisted. The listing period runsfrom Jan. 1 thru Jan. 31 ofeach year. Anyone listing afterthe deadline will be charged a10 percent late list penalty.

Listing forms are mailedout the last working day inDecember to taxpayers thatlisted in the previous year. Ifyou are new to the County orfor some reason did notreceive your form you may callor stop by the office to obtain aform. The forms are also avail-

able for printing on the web-site at www.nhcgov.com/Tax.

Listing business personalproperty for taxation

Any individual or businessowning or possessing personalproperty used or connectedwith a business or otherincome producing purposemust file a Business PersonalProperty Listing form.Business personal propertyincludes: machinery, equip-ment, computers, furniture,fixtures, leasehold improve-ments, farm machinery, sup-plies, airplanes, constructionin progress, etc. All Businesspersonal property subject totaxation, or an extensionrequest, must be listed ormade during the month ofJanuary of each year.

All business personal prop-erty listings are due on orbefore Jan. 31 of each year.They must be filed with theNew Hanover County TaxAssessor's Office. Any busi-ness that fails to list or underlist during the regular listingperiod and is discovered by thebusiness personal propertydepartment, or lists late, issubject to a 10 to 60 percentpenalty.

An extension to list busi-ness personal property may begranted if a request in writingis received prior to the close ofthe regular listing period ofJan. 31. Traditionally, NewHanover County has grantedextensions to March 15.

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TThhee BBLLAACCKK PPRREESSSS UUSSEE IITT oorrLLOOSSEE IITT

ASHER PIERRE REID RUBEN CORNELL GALLSHAW

SHAZIAH NIZANI SHUFORDWILLIAM KALIF EADDY

DE’ANAH BALDWIN-BEY

KYRAH AALIYAH BRINKLEY

WILMINGTON, NC - TheCity of Wilmington andThalian Association willdedicate the Lower AtriumStudio in the Hannah BlockHistoric USO/CommunityArts Center for DonnAnsell on Wednesday,January 9, 2013 at 11:00am.Mayor Bill Saffo will unveila memorial plaque at thededication and DonnAnsell's daughter, MelaineLiss and Michael WaltonJones, his partner of 24years, will be in atten-dance. The HBHUSO/CAC,which houses ThalianAssociation, is located at120 S. Second Street and theevent is free and open to thepublic. ThalianAssociation is the oldestcommunity theater groupin North Carolina.

Wilmington City Councilunanimously adopted a res-olution at its October 16,2012 meeting to name theLower Atrium in honor ofthe late Donn Ansell.Ansell was a local actor,media personality andlong-time supporter of theThalian Association. Thestudio is being named forAnsell in recognition of hisdesire to preserve theCommunity Arts Centerand ensure future genera-tions have easy access tothe arts. Additional namedstudios in the HannahBlock HistoricUSO/Community ArtsCenter include the two

lobby wing studios namedfor Emmy Award-winningcostumer Peggy Farrelland Tony Award-winningactress Linda Lavin.

Established in 1788,Thalian Association is anon-profit, membershiporganization dedicated toenhancing the Cape Fearregion through live com-munity theater. ThalianAssociation produces fivemajor productions annual-ly on the Main Stage at his-toric Thalian Hall. ThalianAssociation Children'sTheater (TACT) is a youthproduction company thatoffers training and per-formance opportunities forchildren age 7 through highschool seniors. In 2007, theNorth Carolina legislaturenamed Thalian Associationthe Official CommunityTheater of North Carolina.For more information, goto www.thalian.org.

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DON ANSELL

Page 9: The Wilmington Journal

HEALTHThursday, January 3, 2013 9

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BETHESDA, Md., Dec. 27,2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Childhoodcancer is rare-children withcancer account for less than1 percent of all new cancercases in the United States.But did you know that can-cer is the second leadingcause of death (after acci-dents) among children ages1 to 14? It is estimated that in2012 in the United States,more than 12,000 children(ages 0 to 14) will be diag-nosed with cancer and more

than 1,300 will die from it.But there is good news,

too. Over the past 20 years,childhood cancer deathsoverall have dropped, andmany more children are sur-viving a cancer diagnosis.For example, only 58 percentof children ages 0 to 14 diag-nosed in 1975-1977 lived atleast 5 years after diagnosis,whereas it is estimated thatmore than 80 percent ofthose diagnosed today willmake it to the 5-year mark.This improvement is due toremarkable advances intreatment and to the highparticipation of children

with cancer in clinical tri-als.

Although AfricanAmerican children are lesslikely than white children todevelop cancer, their 5-yearsurvival rate is poorer,according to the NationalCancer Institute's (NCI)Surveillance, Epidemiology,and End Results Program.

The most common typesof childhood cancer areleukemia's (blood cell can-cers) and cancers of thebrain and central nervoussystem. The causes of child-hood cancers are largelyunknown, and researchers

are trying to learn aboutpossible risk factors. Youcan learn more about child-hood cancers at NCI's web-site. Just go tohttp://www.cancer.gov/can-certopics/types/childhood-cancers.

Despite the improvementsin outcomes overall, sometypes of childhood cancerremain very difficult totreat and have low curerates. NCI continues to tryto find more effective treat-ments for all childhood can-cers through research andclinical trials. If you have achild with cancer, have you

thought about enrollingyour child in a clinical trial?It is important to take thetime to learn about cancerclinical trials and what ben-efits they may offer, even ifyou ultimately decide that atrial is not for your child.You can learn more aboutclinical trials at NCI's web-site. Just go to http://can-cer.gov/clinicaltrials/learningabout.

Remember, when it comesto your child's health, know-ing the facts and the optionsabout treatment are critical.In the fight against cancer,clinical trials can offer hope

and promise, but the onlyway to know whether a clin-ical trial is right for yourchild is to educate yourselfand get the facts.

For more informationabout cancer, please visitthe NCI web site atwww.cancer.gov/espanol (orm.cancer.gov from yourmobile device) or call NCI'sCancer Information Serviceat 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237). More articles andvideos in the culturally rele-vant Lifelines series areavailable at www.cancer.gov/lifelines.

As you and your loved oneswatch the dawning of 2013,everyone is hopeful of whatthe new year will bring-reunions, graduations, mar-riages, and other fun familyoccasions. January isGlaucoma Awareness Month.Make seeing your best a partof your new beginning bydoing what you can to makesure your eyes are healthy. Ifyou are African Americanage 40 or older or have a fam-ily history of glaucoma, putlearning more about this dis-ease on your resolution listfor the new year.

There has been a steadyrise in glaucoma among theAfrican American communi-ty. Currently, more than520,000 African Americanshave glaucoma, and theNational Eye Institute (NEI)of the National Institutes ofHealth projects this numberwill rise to approximately865,000 cases by 2030, a 66 per-cent increase. AfricanAmericans have the highestprevalence of glaucomaamong minority groups. Lastyear, NEI invested $71 millionon a wide range of studies tounderstand causes and poten-tial areas of treatment for

glaucoma.Glaucoma is a group of dis-

eases that can damage theoptic nerve of the eye andresult in vision loss andblindness. Primary open-angle glaucoma is the mostcommon form. In this condi-tion, fluid builds up in thefront chamber of the eye, andthe optic nerve is damaged bythe resulting increase in eyepressure.

"Glaucoma affects morethan 2.7 million people nation-wide and is a leading cause ofvision loss and blindness inAfrican Americans. In fact,African Americans are at riskof developing it at an earlierage than other racial and eth-nic groups," said Dr. JamesTsai, chair of the GlaucomaSubcommittee for the NEINational Eye Health EducationProgram. "Primary open-angleglaucoma often has no earlysymptoms. However, as the dis-ease progresses, a person mayeventually notice his or herside vision decreasing. If thedisease is left untreated, thefield of vision narrows andvision loss may result."

"Studies show that at leasthalf of all persons with glau-coma don't know they have

this potentially blinding eyedisease," said NEI directorDr. Paul Sieving. "The goodnews is that glaucoma can bedetected in its early stagesthrough a comprehensivedilated eye exam. NEIencourages all people at high-er risk of glaucoma-AfricanAmericans age 40 or older;everyone age 60, especiallyMexican Americans; andthose with a family history-toget a dilated eye exam everyone to two years, becauseearly detection and timelytreatment may save yoursight."

During a comprehensivedilated eye exam, drops areplaced in your eyes to dilate,or widen, the pupils. Thisallows your eye care profes-sional to see inside your eyeand examine the optic nervefor signs of glaucoma andother vision problems. A testfor eye pressure alone is notenough to detect glaucoma."It's very important that peo-ple don't wait until theynotice a problem with theirvision to have an eye exam,"adds Dr. Tsai.

If you have Medicare, areAfrican American age 50 orolder, have diabetes, or have a

family history of glaucoma,you may be eligible for a low-cost, comprehensive dilatedeye exam through the glauco-ma benefit. Call 1-800-MEDICARE or visithttp://www.medicare.gov for

more information. To findout about other possiblefinancial assistance for eyecare, visithttp://www.nei.nih.gov/health/financialaid.asp.

It's a new year, so make

sure you and your familystart it off right. Keep visionin your future. For moreinformation about glaucoma,visit http://www.nei.nih.gov/glaucoma or call NEIat 301-496-5248.

Being in our currenteconomic recessionin the United States

can cause stress for us inmany ways - losing a job,health insurance, a home,and even at times, our lovedones. However it is importantto know how to managestress, because it can have asevere negative effect on ourhealth and can be linked tomany mental and physicalhealth problems. Gaining anunderstanding of our stressis the key to being able tomanage our stress and poten-tially use it to our advantage.

WWhhaatt iiss ssttrreessss??Stress is difficult to define

because every person has dif-ferent life experiences whichcan lead to stress and everyperson has different ways ofdealing with stress. TheAmerican Institute of Stress(AIS) states that a good gener-al definition of stress is: thenon-specific response of thebody to any demand forchange. This means that astress response can be a bad(distress) or good (eustress)to a certain situation, person,or experience in your life.The things in our lives thatcan lead to stress are calledstressors.

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Common stressors formany of us include:•Stress associated with work -such as a deadline or difficultrelationship with a coworker •Interpersonal relationships -

family, spouse/significantother, friends•Major life changes - such asmarriage, birth of child,divorce, moving, job change•Death or illness of a lovedone•Personal illnesses

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When we react to a stressorit is called a stress response,which most often triggers arelease of the hormones cor-tisol and adrenaline. Cortisolis the main stress hormonethat, when released, increas-es the ability of our brain tofunction and our body torepair itself (if needed).However, to do this, cortisolcan alter certain functionslike our immune system,digestive system and repro-ductive system. Adrenalineincreases your heart rate andyour blood pressure andboosts your body's energysupplies.

Since many stressful situa-tions happen repeatedly oroccur over periods of time,this causes the stressresponse and elevated levelsof hormones to continuelonger than it should, whichcan become very harmful.These effects can be both psy-chological (mental/emotion-al) and physiological (yourphysical body). According tothe AIS and the AmericanPsychological Association(APA) some common stressrelated problems are:•Feeling overwhelmed or

overloaded •Excess anxiety, worry, guilt,nervousness•Trouble making decisions•Difficulty concentrating,racing thoughts•Forgetfulness, disorganiza-tion•Frequent crying spells, sui-cidal thoughts•Frequent headaches•Lightheadedness, faintness,dizziness •Heartburn, stomach pain,nausea, constipation, diar-rhea, excess gas•Trouble swallowing, drymouth•Chest pain, palpitations, rac-ing pulse•Difficulty breathing•Frequent urination•Social withdrawal•Obsessive or compulsivebehavior•Increased anger, frustration,hostility•Insomnia, nightmare, diffi-culty sleeping•Increased or decreasedappetite, excessive weightgain or loss•Frequent blushing, sweatingor coldness•Rashes, hives or itching •Frequent colds or infections•Poor sexual desire or per-formance

Stress may also play a rolein heart disease, depression,and certain types of cancer.Remember - these are justsome of the possible symp-toms; if you are experiencingthese or other symptoms youthink may be related to

stress, you should talk toyour health care providerabout addressing your sys-tems and strategies for stressmanagement.

HHooww ccaann II rreelliieevvee ssttrreessss?? Stress release is a person-

al, individual thing; thatwhich relieves stress for oneperson may cause morestress for someone else.Exercise is a great way torelieve stress as well as a crit-ical component of a healthyoverall lifestyle. Many peoplefind that programs such asyoga and Tai Chi help relievetheir stress. There are manygreat classes and even tapesand DVDs available to helpyou learn these arts; however,as with any physical activityroutine, you should checkwith your doctor first. Whenhandling stress, meditationand prayer have also beenuseful for many people. Somepeople enjoy engaging in hob-bies or other leisure timeactivities that are fun andinteresting for them to do.Sometimes just getting awayfrom the stressor for a littlewhile can help, though pro-crastination can also be astressor in and of itself.

CCaann ssttrreessss bbee uusseeffuull??Stress in small doses can

be useful for us. For instance,our "fight or flight" response,which is governed by adrena-line, can give us the energyand focus we need to handle adifficult situation. Thisresponse evolved among ani-mals, proving adaptive

because it enabled animals indanger to flee or prepare tofight for their lives. Inhumans, the response sharp-ens our senses so that we arebetter able to deal with astressful situation, such as animpending deadline or a con-flict with someone close to us.While this response may giveus the energy we need to han-dle a stressful situation, overtime it wears down our body,as described above.

Remember: Everyone expe-riences stress at one point oranother during their lifetime.It's part of being human. But,prolonged periods of stress,

especially without any relief,can cause both physical andemotional damage to yourbody. If you feel your stresslevels may be out of control,talk with your doctor or otherhealthcare professionalabout steps you can take torelieve it.

Do you need further infor-mation or have questions orcomments about this article?Please call toll-free 1-877-530-1824. Or, for more informa-tion about the Maya AngelouCenter for Health Equity,please visit our website:http://www.wakehealth.edu/MACHE.

THE PEOPLE’S CLINICTHE PEOPLE’S CLINIC

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When handling stress, meditation and prayer havealso been useful for many people.

African Americans have the highest prevalence of glaucoma among minoritygroups.

THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL

—SALUTES—Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

On January 17, 2013 The Wilmington Journalwill publish a Special Edition honoring our Drum Major Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

To reserve your advertising space Call (910) 762-5502 The deadline for reservations is January 14, 2013

Page 10: The Wilmington Journal

MMrr.. LLeewwiiss HHeennrryy MMccIInnttyyrree

Reverend Lewis HenryMcIntyre departed this earth-ly life on Friday, December 21,2012 at Fannie NorwoodNursing Home inWilmington, North Carolina.

Lewis Henry McIntyre, sonof the late Robert and JuliaLofton McIntyre was born onJune 16, 1923 in Rocky Point,North Carolina. He was pre-ceded in death by eleven sib-lings; five sisters and sixbrothers and one son and twodaughters.

Lewis was educated in thePender County SchoolSystem. In 1975, God calledLewis to be a minister of thegospel. He later joined PrinceCathedral African MethodistEpiscopal Zion Church andbecame an associate minister.

He is survived by his wifeof forty-one years, LeolaMcIntyre; one sister JeanetteMcIntyre; twelve children,Ruby Simpson, BurnellPlummer, Joseph Johnson(Rose), Pearline McIntyre,Lewis H. McIntyre, Jr.,Charline McClendon(Jerome), Timothy McIntyre(Esther), Celeste Kelihan,Callie Wrice, Jerry Simmons,Sylvia L. Green and ReginaldSimmons; eighteen grand-children; forty great grand-children; three great greatgrandchildren and a host ofother relatives and friends.

The funeral services wereheld Thursday, December 27,2012 at Price CathefralAfrican Methodist EpiscopalZion Church, Wilmington,North Carolina with PastorMaria Lacewell, eulogizing.Interment followed inGreenlawn Memorial Park,Wilmington, NC.Arrangements by Adkins-Drain Funeral Service, 515South 8th Street, Wilmington,NC.

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Mr. Fred Butler, Jr. wasborn September 27, 1953 tothe late Lucinda Butler andAlfred Marlow in Shallotte,NC. He went from labor toreward in the early morningof December 18, 2012.

Fred was educated in theBrunswick County SchoolSystem, later moving to NewHanover County and gradu-ating from John T. HoggardHigh School Class of 1972. Hejoined the United StatesArmy in 1973. Upon comple-tion he obtained a Heatingand Air ConditioningDiploma from Cape FearCommunity College. Hespent his working career atthe State Ports Authority,where he remained for overthirty years and receivednumerous awards for his con-tributions and steadfast serv-ice.

Fred married the formerSharon Pringle on July 19,1973. They were married forthirty-nine devoted years.

He leaves to cherish hismemory: his wife, SharonPringle Butler of the home;his children, Antoine Butlerof Wilmington, NC; threedaughters, SherminedaMcKoy of Stafford, CT,Dionya Hawkins, andToccara Butler, both ofWilmington, NC; six grand-children, Robin McKoy,Kiana Butler, Fred Butler,Chris Hawkins, GabrielleHawkins and Kohari Luckey;three sisters, Betty Gallowayand Deborah Pigott ofWilmington, NC and BrendaL. Williams of Leland, NC;one brother, Bobby Pigott ofWilmington, NC; nieces,Monica McMillian ofWinston Salem, NC, SharitaPigott, Amron Burnett andJada Pigott; special niece,Demeca Pigott ; nephews,Leverne Pelzer, Bobby Pigott,Jr. and Brandon Bowman;two aunts, Ruth Marlow andCorine Stanley; uncle,Rudolph Marlow (Arvella);special brother, Alfred Jones;special friends, RichardPoole, Herbert Robinson,Cleveland Bragg and ChuckBoyette; other relatives andfriends.

Funeral services were heldon Thursday, December 27,2012 at Union MissionaryBaptist Church. Burial fol-lowed in Pleasant ViewCemetery, Sunset Beach, NC.A Service of John H. Shaw'sSon Funeral Home.

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Mrs. Dorothy Mae "Bunch"Tisdale was born February19, 1939 in Wilmington, NC tothe late Leroy Keaton, Sr. and

Flossie Durant Keaton. Shedeparted this life December21, 2012. She was preceded indeath by her husband LeroyKeaton, Jr. and ShirleyBrewington.

Dorothy was a faithfulmember of Mt. RoneyMissionary Baptist Church.She was a member of theGospel Choir and a memberof the Kitchen Committee.She was educated in the NewHanover County Schools,graduating from WillistonSenior High School Class of1956.

Dorothy had great love forher family, along with a greatspiritual strength and stead-fast faith in the Lord. She wasa good neighbor and faithfulfriend to many.

She leaves to cherish pre-cious memories; her beloveddaughter, Gwendolyn "Gwen"(Gregory) of Raleigh, NC;step-son, Michael Jackson ofFlorida; sisters, CarolynGreen and Johnnie MaePridgen (Randolph) of thecity; brothers, Robert Keaton(Joyce) of the city andWilliam Keaton (Deborah) ofKilleen, TX; aunt BettyJenkins; sisters-in-law,Gladys Hardy (Leroy),Delores Crump, JoanThompson (William); twobrothers-in-law, NathanielThompson, Jr. and RichardSimpson, Jr. (Delores) of thecity; other relatives andfriends. Funeral serviceswere held on Friday,December 28, 2012 at Mt.Roney Missionary BaptistChurch. Burial followed inCalvary Memorial Cemetery.A Service of John H. Shaw'sSon Funeral Home.

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Mr. Levi Shaw "Pimp" diedSunday, December 23, 2012 atLower Cape Fear HospiceLife Care Center,Wilmington, NC. She wasborn, December 28, 1951 tothe late Henry Jessie Shaw,Sr. and Theadocia NixonShaw. He was preceded indeath by his brother, DavidNixon.

Levi Shaw was a memberof Shoulders BranchMissionary Baptist Church.He was educated in thePublic Schools in NewHanover County, graduatingfrom New Hanover HighSchool. He moved toBrooklyn, NY and worked atthe US Postal Service. Also,he worked with Model CitiesPrograms for the Inner CityChildren. In 1979, Levi enlist-ed in the US Army.

He is survived by, daughter,Kimberly (Karl) Williams ofOwings Mills, MD; grandchil-dren, Ajani Williams andShemar Williams of OwingsMills, MD; mother, TheadosiaShaw of Castle Hayne; fivebrothers, Willie ThomasNixon, John Dallas, HenryJessie, Roderick, and FreddieShaw; sisters, Sarah JeanWalker, Cassandra DeniseFeaster (John) and VanessaAnn Greene (Charles); aunts,Beulah Boney and WinnieShaw; uncles, Edward Nixon(Ruby) and Dave McCall;other relatives and friends.

Funeral services were heldon Saturday, December 29,2012 at Shoulders BranchMissionary Baptist Church.Burial followed at theShoulders Branch Church

Cemetery. A Service of JohnH. Shaw's Son Funeral Home.

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Mr. John Shepard "Swamp"Fuller died December 24, 2012at New Hanover RegionalMedical Center. He was bornAugust 11, 1953 inWilmington, NC to the lateDora Mae Fuller and JohnJunior Shepard. He attendedthe schools of Pender Countygraduating from TopsailHigh School.

John leaves to cherish hismemory; sisters, MamieFontes (Julio), Linda Smith(Demetrius, Sr.), Brenda Redd(Milton), Renee' Sidberry(Roosevelt); brothers, PhillipJones (Gloria), LawrenceSidbery, Sr. (Gisele), MichaelShepard (Fenita); uncle,Fletcher Shepard (Janie);other relatives and friends.

Funeral services were heldon Saturday, December 29,2012 at Union Bethel AMEChurch, Hampstead, NC.Burial followed in Sea LawnMemorial Park, Hampstead,NC. A Service of John H.Shaw's Son Funeral Home.

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Mr. Isaac McCray was bornin Bishopville, SC September21, 1955 to Maxine McCrayand the late Jessie McCray.He departed this life Tuesday,December 25, 2012. He waspreceded in death by hisbrothers, Jessie McCray, Jr.and Levi McCray; his grand-mother Drucilla Boone.

He leaves to cherish hismemory, his mother, MaxineMcCray; step-father,Raymond Holmes; daughters,Andrea (Dock) Swinson andAmanda Holmes; sons, IsaacHolmes and Isaiah Fortune;longtime companion,Patricia Bracey and herdaughter, Dysha Bracey; sis-ters, Shari (Charles)Singleton, Virginia McCray,Angel McCray, RosettaMcCray, Mary (Smith) Okey,Pamela McCray, Jacquiline(Bruce) Grant, Yoland Coffee,and Rosa Williams; grand-children, a special aunt,Belinda Boykin; other rela-tives and friends.

Funeral services were heldon Monday, December 31,2012 at the Willie L. Shaw, Jr.Memorial Chapel. Burial fol-lowed at Calvary MemorialCemetery. A Service of JohnH. Shaw's Son Funeral Home.

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Rosalind Moore Mosley, 71,of Castle Hayne, NC passedaway quietly on December 18,2012 after a short illness. Amemorial service will be heldat Chestnut StreetPresbyterian Church (USA)on Saturday, January 12, 2013at 1:00 pm. In lieu of flowers,please consider making adonation to Mrs. Mosley'shigh school alumni associa-tion: The Williston AlumniAssociation, WillistonExhibit Endowment Fund,P.O. Box 2, Wilmington, NC28402. Mrs. Mosley was amember of the WillistonSenior High School Class of1958, a graduate of WestVirginia State Universitywhere she was initiated intoNu Chapter of Alpha KappaAlpha Sorority, Inc., andearned a Master's Degree

from the University ofPittsburgh. She retired fromthe Port Authority ofAllegheny County, PA in 1999and returned to Wilmingtonin 2003. She is survived byher husband, John C. Mosleyof Pittsburgh, PA, her daugh-ters, Farah Mosley of NewYork City, and Ferne Mosleyof Bowie, MD, many relativesand close friends.Arrangements entrusted toDavis Funeral Home,Wilmington.

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Glotherine Everett, 96, for-merly of Wilmington, NC,died Friday, December 21,2012 at Guardian AngelGroup Home, Richardson,TX. Funeral services wereheld on Saturday, December29, 2012 at Davis FuneralHome. Burial followed inGreenlawn Memorial Park,Wilmington, NC. A DavisFuneral Home service.

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Robin Shawnee Jacobs, 44,of Wilmington, NC, diedMonday, December 17, 2012 atNew Hanover RegionalMedical Center. Funeralservices were held on Friday,December 21, 2012 at DavisFuneral Home Chapel, 901 S.5th Avenue, Wilmington, NC.Burial followed in CalvaryMemorial Cemetery,Wilmington, NC.

Robin is survived by: hersons, Carlos Oran Jacobs,Jonte Omar Jacobs and TijonReginal Jacobs; mother, Mrs.Norma Davis; two brothers,Roosevelt Miller and TerryDavis; niece, Laterria LoveDavis; nephews, Terribbe,Davion and Dajion; twoaunts, Mrs. Lethetta D.Forbes and Mrs. Lena M.Murphy; cousins, Rev.Charles Davis (Lula), HarryDavis (Joan), Mrs. CarolynDavis, Veronica Lacewell(Bonnie) and ArthurLacewell; close friends,Sharron Brailford-Cain andNicole; a host of other rela-tives and friends. A DavisFuneral Home service.

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Edward Lee Harper, 73, for-merly of Wilmington, NCdied Tuesday, December 25,2012 in Brooklyn, NY.Funeral services were heldon Wednesday, January 2,2012 at Davis Funeral Home.

Edward leaves to cherishhis precious memories: hiswife, Barbara of fifty-sevenyears; seven children, DollieAnn (Levon), Edward(Brenda), James ofWilmington, NC, and Turia(Emanuelle), Anthony,Reginald (Samantha) andShawn (Kenya) of Brooklyn,NY; twelve grandchildren,Mandinka (Jameelah),Philsha, Tameka, Dollisha,RaShawn (Shanika), Tamar,Danielle (Jamel), Danique,Myllah, Kendell, Lil Shawnand Patricia; one sister,Shirley Herron; one brother-in-law, Jack Simmons; threenieces; Linda (Willie),Patricia (Ronald) ofWilmington, NC and Marilyn(Donald) of Leland, NC; fivenephews, Larry, Marvin(Cathy), Oscar, Reginald ofWilmington, NC, and Darryl(Tia) of Raleigh, NC. A hostof other nieces, nephews,cousins, and friends. A DavisFuneral Home service.

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Dr. Dale Lorraine Wright,61, of Fredericksburg, VAdied Wednesday, December26, 2012 Sentara PrincessAnne Hospital, Virginia

Beach, VA. Funeral serviceswill be held 10:00 a.m. onThursday, January 3, 2013 atSt. Mary Catholic Church,Fifth and Ann Streets. Burialwill follow in Pine ForestCemetery, Wilmington, NC. ADavis Funeral Home service.

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Hattie Tindall, 68, ofCleveland, Ohio, died Friday,December 28, 2012 at St LukeEpiscopal Hospital, Houston,TX. Funeral services will beheld 11:00 a.m. Saturday,January 12, 2013 at DavisFuneral Home Chapel 901South 5th Avenue,Wilmington, NC. Burial willfollow in Dark BranchCemetery, Winnabow, NC. ADavis Funeral Home service.

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Rodney D. Walker, 51, ofWilmington, NC diedDecember 30, 2012 at home.Funeral services will be held1:00 p.m. Saturday, January 5,2013 at Davis Funeral HomeChapel, 901 S. 5th Avenue,Wilmington, NC. Burial willfollow in Bethel United HolyChurch Cemetery,Wilmington, NC. A DavisFuneral Home service.

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CCaarrdd OOff TThhaannkkss

The family of the lateBBeerrnnaarrdd ""CCrriipp"" SSmmiitthh

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Happy Birthday Dad!From your children and grandchildren

January 4th Gone but not forgotten

SSPPEECCIIAALL TTOO TTHHEE NNNNPPAAFROM THE WASHINGTONINFORMER

(NNPA)- Fontella Bass, thesinger whose 1965 hit "RescueMe" exemplified the decade'sfinest pop-soul, has died. Shewas 72.

Bass, an older sibling ofsinger David Peaston who diedin February, passed onWednesday at her home in St.Louis, Mo., following complica-tions of a recent heart attack,according to her daughterNeuka Mitchell.

Bass was born in St. Louison July 3, 1940, and learnedgospel at the side of her moth-er, Martha Bass, a member ofone of the era's major tradi-tional gospel groups, the WardSingers. From a young age sheserved as her mother's pianist,but eventually, as an adoles-cent, got the itch to sing secularmusic. By the early 1960s shewas playing with Little Milton,a blues guitarist and singerwith links to the Chess label inChicago.

After some early recordingswith Little Milton's Bobbinlabel in St. Louis, she joinedChess and released her firstrecords on its Checker sub-sidiary in early 1965. The firsttwo, "Don't Mess Up a GoodThing" and "You'll Miss Me(When I'm Gone)," duets withBobby McClure, had modestsuccess on the rhythm-and-blues charts. But her careerwas made by "Rescue Me,"released later that year.

Driven by a bubbly bass line,it featured Bass's high-spiritedvoice in wholesomely amorouslyrics like "Come on and takemy hand/Come on, baby, andbe my man," as well as somecall-and-response moans thatBass later said resulted from astudio accident.

"When we were recordingthat, I forgot some of thewords," she told The New YorkTimes in 1989. "Back then, youdidn't stop while the tape wasrunning, and I rememberedfrom the church what to do ifyou forget the words. I sang,'Ummm, ummm, ummm,' andit worked out just fine."

A major crossover hit, thesong reached No. 4 onBillboard's pop chart and hasremained a staple on oldiesradio, movie soundtracks andtelevision commercials;Aretha Franklin sang a ver-sion of it for a Pizza Hut ad inthe early '90s (as "Deliver Me").

Bass recorded several follow-up singles for Checker, but allfell short of the popularity of"Rescue Me," and she thenveered toward the avant-gardejazz of her husband, LesterBowie, the trumpeter of theArt Ensemble of Chicago. Shewent with the group to Paris atthe turn of the 1970s andrecorded with it there, but soonreturned to the United States.

A 1972 solo album, "Free,"was another commercial disap-pointment, and Bass turned toraising her four children withMr. Bowie. Beside Mitchell,they include another daughter,Ju'Lene Coney, and two sons,Larry Stevenson andBahnamous Bowie. They allsurvive her, along with 10grandchildren.

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FONTELLA BASS

Page 11: The Wilmington Journal

BBYY CCHHRRIISSTTOOPPHHEERR MMOORRAAFFFFOF THE PHILADELPHIATRIBUNE

There are few things moreprecious to humans than theair we breathe; unfortunately,not all air is created equally.

If you need proof, take a rideacross the PassyunkAvenueBridge, past the sprawl-ing oil refinery owned by therecently formed PhiladelphiaEnergy Group, and spend a fewmoments wandering thestreets of Schuylkill Southwest- where residents have spentdecades dealing with the mys-terious odors that periodicallyemanate from the glowingstacks less than a mile away.

Nearly three quarters of theneighborhood's population isAfrican American - more thanhalf earn less than $25,000 ayear - and while their story isnot unique, they share some-thing in common with similarpopulations of Americans scat-tered across the nation's post-industrial landscape: They arebeing disproportionatelydeprived of quality air.

Over the years, research hasshown that low-income andminority communities arebreathing higher concentra-tions of dangerous chemicalsand particulates than theirupper income and white coun-terparts; and experts say theyare paying the price for it, withhigher incidences of learningdisabilities tied to lead expo-sure, respiratory ailments suchas asthma, bronchitis andpneumonia, and chronic heartdisease and cancer.

Statistics show that AfricanAmericans are suffering theworst. Blacks are hospitalizedfor asthma at more than threetimes the rate of whites.Between 2001 and 2009 asthmarates in Black childrenincreased almost 50 percent,according to the Centers forDisease Control, with higherexposure to environmentalpollutants listed as one of thecauses.

Whether you choose to callit a "disproportionate burdenof environmental risks andharms," as the EnvironmentalProtection Agency did in 2004,or "environmental racism" -the term preferred by commu-nity advocates - the problem isreal, and it's not getting anybetter.

A new report from theNAACP shows that despite afederal mandate designed tonarrow the gap, poor peopleand minorities continue to beimpacted by coal industry pol-lution more than any othergroup. The NAACP ranked 378coal-fired power plants on thebasis of toxic emissions anddemographic factors andfound that the income level ofpeople living near pollutingfacilities is more than $3,000below the national average.

More than two-thirds ofAfrican Americans live within30 miles of a coal-fired plant -the distance at which healtheffects from fallout are mostlikely to be felt. The dirtier thecoal plant, the higher the pro-portion of minorities livingnear it. Of the four millionpeople living within threemiles of the nation's 75 "failing

plants" - which account for thehighest levels of sulfur dioxideand nitrogen oxides - 53 per-cent are minorities, whilemore than three quarters ofthe people living near the 12"worst offending plants" arepeople ofcolor, the NAACP found.

"Coal pollution is literallykilling low-income communi-ties and communities ofcolor," said NAACP Presidentand CEO Benjamin ToddJealous. "There is no disputingthe urgency of this issue."

Jacqui Patterson, directorof the NAACP Climate JusticeInitiative, traveled the countryas a co-author of the study andsaw firsthand the humanimpact of these disparities.

"We saw a troubling pat-tern, and heard story afterstory of people who had healthconditions that presentedthemselves after moving intoareas near these plants, or sawa pattern of more people thanthe norm having these condi-tions," she said, recounting thestory of one resident whoclaimed that half the membersof her church were on respira-tors.

Yet coal is hardly the onlyculprit. Thanks to its long his-tory as a center of heavyindustry, Philadelphia hasearned the distinction ofbeing one of America's mostpolluted metropolitan areas.In its 2012 State of the Airreport, the American LungAssociation listed Phila-del-phia tenth on its list of citieswith the worst particulatepollution, and just last weekPhilly was ranked the thirddirtiest city in the nation byForbes - with 18.5 millionpounds a year of toxic releas-es, according to EPA data.The City of Chester - whichsits just outside Philadelphiaand where three quarters ofthe population is Black - ishome to the largest trashincinerator in the state, andfor years has been a focalpoint of environmental jus-tice activism.AA ppaatttteerrnn ooff ddiissccrriimmiinnaattiioonn

The NAACP report is justone of a number of studiesreleased over the past decadedetailing the disproportion-ate impact of environmentalpollution on communities ofcolor. An Associated Pressanalysis of data from theEPA's Toxics ReleaseInventory from 2005 showsAfrican Americans are near-ly 80 percent more likely thanwhites to live in neighbor-hoods where industrial pollu-tion is a problem. In 2009, theFord Foundation sponsored acomprehensive survey of 300metropolitan areas and deter-mined that Blacks fare worsethan any other ethnic groupwhen it comes to exposure toair pollution from a variety ofsources.

"If the first step to recoveryis admitting that you have aproblem," the authors stated,"America must acknowledgethat clean and safe air - whichwould seem to be a birthrightof every person - is not cur-rently an equal-opportunityaffair."

The study ranked theHarrisburg metropolitan

area fifth in the nation forenvironmental racism, withminorities suffering morethan 32 percent of the impactfrom industrial pollutiondespite making up just 13.5percent of the population.Until it was shut down in2003, the predominantlyminority neighborhood ofSouth Harrisburg was hometo the largest dioxin pollutingtrash incinerator in America.(A plan to rebuild it forced thecity into bankruptcy lastyear).

While both low-income andminority communities sufferdisproportionately from envi-ronmental pollution, accord-ing to Philadelphia-basedenvironmental attorney MikeEwall - a long- time activistand founder of the EnergyJustice Network - race plays abigger role than class.

"If one were to compare amiddle-class community ofcolor to a low-income whitecommunity, and look at whichcommunity is more likely tohave a hazardous waste facili-ty sited there, the middle-class community of colorwould have a greater chanceof being targeted for such afacility," he said.

Patterson, of the NAACP,says that's because environ-mental racism is as much afunction of political capital,or lack thereof, as it is aboutincome. Black communitieshave faced a history of politi-cal marginalization, makingit harder to fight off proposedpolluting facilities or closedown existing ones, she says.Also, while poor white andBlack families might havesimilar incomes, AfricanAmericans tend to have lesswealth, which is an impor-tant factor when it comes tobuying property. Pattersonpoints to a study that foundproperty values average 15percent lower in areas near atoxic polluting facility.FFeeddeerraall ffaaiilluurree

The federal governmenthas been aware of these dis-crepancies since the early1970s, and under PresidentBill Clinton resolved to dosomething about them. In anexecutive order signed inFebruary 1994, Clinton calledon the EPA to achieve "envi-ronmental justice ... by iden-tifying and addressing...dis-proportionately high andadverse human health orenvironmental effects of itsprograms, policies, and activ-ities on minority populationsand low-income populations."

Twice since then, in 2004and 2006, the EPA's Office ofInspector General has ana-lyzed the agency's progress,and in both cases determinedthat it had failed to consis-tently integrate environmen-tal justice into its day-to-dayoperations or direct regionaloffices to conduct environ-ment justice reviews. Lastyear, the nonprofit CenterFor Public Integrity detaileddozens of open environmen-tal justice cases "languish-ing" in the EPA's Office ofCivil Rights, some of whichare more than a decade old.

Lisa Jackson, the EPA'sAdministrator, has listed

environment justice as one ofthe agency's top seven priori-ties and says her goal is tomake environmental justiceand fairness part of EPA'severyday decision-making. In2010 the agency launched itsEJ2014 initiative, which seeksto create a comprehensiveroadmap for protecting andempowering communitiesover- burdened by pollution.

"EPA has always had a spe-cial role with respect to envi-ronmental justice, but in thisadministration, PresidentObama has really revitalizedthe larger issue of environ-mental justice, in which otheragencies as well as ours areplaying important roles," shesaid, in an interview lastMarch published in The Root.

But activists representingthe environmental justicemovement are dubious of thegovernment's ability to getanything done without leg-islative changes to the cur-rent mandate, which accord-ing to its own language "isintended only to improveinternal management" andlacks "any right, benefit, ortrust responsibility, substan-tive or procedural, enforce-able at law."

Mike Ewall, director of theEnergy Justice Network, sayscurrent law "lacks teeth"because it includes "no reme-dies; there's basically nothingenforceable in it at all." Heinsists that any new initiativewill require new laws withthe power to hold pollutersaccountable, for instance, byrevoking permits.

Meanwhile courts havetied private citizens' hands todeal with the problemthrough legal channels. Ewallpoints to a legal precedent setin 2001 that prohibits privatelawsuits alleging a violationof Title VI civil rights with-out proof of intent. "If youcan't prove that the dispro-portionate environmentalimpact is intentional, you'reout of luck," he said.

According to the EPA'swebsite, while EJ2014 will"implement guidance [for]incorporating environmentaljustice into the fabric of itsrulemaking process," the pro-gram itself is "not a rule orregulation," but "a strategy tohelp integrate environmentaljustice into EPA's day to dayactivities." Among the pro-posed reforms are changes tothe permitting process toinclude more communityinvolvement.

Christopher Moraff is ajournalist, writer and photog-rapher whose reporting cov-ers topics ranging from art topolitics. He is a news featurescorrespondent for ThePhiladelphia Tribune andwrites a weekly column forPhiladelphia Magazine'sblog, The Philly Post. Moraffis a regular contributor toDesign Bureau magazine andIn These Times, where heserves on the Board ofEditors, and his journalismand commentary haveappeared in The PhiladelphiaInquirer, The AmericanProspect, AlterNet and WorldPolitics Review, among otherpublications.

Jephthah Chapter celebrat-ed their annual fellowship withthe Fannie Norwood RestHome on Saturday, December15, 2012. The residents weredelighted as usual and lookedforward to this annual fellow-ship. Ms. Estelle Jackson, oneof the residents, says she looksforward to this occasion andalso "Christmas in July," whichthe members of JephthahChapter IV celebrates with theresidents.

This special fellowship,which began at the suggestionof Sister Geraldine Armstronghas existed over ten years,when Sister Armstrong servedas Worthy Matron of JepthahChapter IV. During that period,the chapter also had annual fel-lowship with Hermitage Houseand Jordan Nursing Home, butonly Fannie Norwood hasremained through the years.The members of the Chapterlook forward to this fellowshipas much as the residents.

Mrs. McIntyre and Ms.Jackson suggested songs tosing and Jephthah Chapter

members joined in, along withthe other residents of thehome, in singing the followingsongs: "Silent Night," "O ComeAll Ye Faithful," and "Joy ToThe World."

The Scripture (Luke 2: 7-14)was read by Sister BarbaraHolmes, followed by prayerfrom Sister CarolynWashington.

After the fellowship with theresidents, gifts were given andthe residents were excited andpleased to receive their pack-ages and began to open them.

After the singing of "JingleBells" and following thanks,hugs, and kisses, the Chaptermembers took their leave untilanother visitation, which somemembers do periodically.

Jephthah Chapter membersin attendance were the follow-ing Sisters: Barbara Holmes,Carolyn Washington, EvelynJones, Johnnie Mae Pridgenand Sonia Thomas.

"In an ever-changing world,may God's love enfold andembrace us today and through-out the New Year!"

BBYY GGEERRAALLDDIINNEEAARRMMSSTTRROONNGGCONTRIBUTING WRITER

On December 8, 2012,Jephthah Chapter IV cele-brated their 11th AnnualGallantry Banquet at theHoliday Inn Express Hoteland Suites at 160 VanCampen Boulevard (behindWalmart on Sigmond Road),located here in the great cityof Wilmington, NorthCarolina.

Sister Barbara Holmes,Worthy Matron of JephthahChapter, opened the programwith a word of welcome tothe members of the chapterand the visitors. After every-one joined in singing "Joy Tothe World," Sister Holmesintroduced Brother JamesLightfoot, Worthy Patron, asMaster of Ceremony.

The program was as follows:Greetings and Scripture(Psalm 23) by Sister BarbaraHolmes; Prayer-Sister EvelynJones; History- Sister Dorene

Crumpler, followed by theIntroduction of Visting Guest-Sister Geraldine Armstrong;Sister Willie Mae Mottocks andSister Cynthia McIntyre (Loveand Union Chapter #551) ofHampstead, North Carolina;Sister Sandra Stokes, WorthyMatron, (sisters of GiblemChapter #646), located inWilmington; Sister OliviaDowe, Grand Lecturer(Camellia Chapter #602), andSister Mary Ratchford, DistrictDeputy Grand Matron ofDistrict 19, (Queen DrusillaChapter #660); both chapterslocated in Leland, NorthCarolina. Special guests were:Sister Mitzi McClammy, PastMatron of Non PareilleChapter #648, located inDurham, North Carolina;Sister Caroline Hedgepeth(Silverleaf Chapter #140) ofApex, North Carolina andBrother Alvan Robinson (KingSolomon Lodge #134 andBaraka Temple #204) ofRaleigh, North Carolina.

Mychal Robinson and

LaRon Montgomery (QueenDrusilla #660) of the MandRGospel Singers and MinisterCedric Tindall were also spe-cial guests.

Sister Julia Hooper, PastMatron of Jephthah ChapterIV, delighted the guests, asalways with her singing, witha beautiful rendition of"Silent Night."

A memorial and lighting ofcandles was given in honor ofSister Henrietta Evans, old-est member (102 years of age)of Jephthah Chapter IV, wholeft this earthly home onNovember 6, 2012.

Door prizes were given toour guests from drawn ticketstubs. Certificates ofAppreciation were then givento several members of thechapter for their participa-tion and dedication to theChapter throughout the year.Gifts were presented to allthe members present as anexpression of love fromSister Holmes.

Brother Barry Smith

favored the audience with thefollowing songs: "O Come AllYe Faithful," "I'm Gonna SayHallelujah," and "Praise IsWhat I Do." We were trulyuplifted by his songs ofpraise.

Following closing remarksand special thanks, given bySister Holmes, remarks weregiven by Sister Ratchford andBrother Ligthfoot, who alsogave the blessing over thedinner. Dinner was preparedby Creative CountryCatering.

Mr. Wendell Hansley, DJ,provided music for this galasoccasion.

Other members presentwho were not mentionedabove were as follows: SisterHelen McCrary, Sister KarenMcIntyre, Sister SandraMoore and Sister SophiaGivens. To the members whowere not in attendance, youmissed a glorious occasion!"If God smiles on us, andwe're praying He does, wewill see you again in 2013!

RELIGION/NEWSThursday, January 3, 2013 11NNeeww HHaannoovveerr CCoouunnttyy

CChhuurrcchh WWoommeenn UUnniitteedd will hold its annual meeting onJanuary 4, 2013, 9:30 a.m. at Wesley Memorial UnitedMethodist Church. Past presidents, key women, and denom-inational representatives will be recognized and officerswill be installed. All church representatives of CWU are

invited to be in attendance. All women inter-ested in ecumenism are welcome. Child careis available. Refreshments will be served.For more information contact BarbaraVought 458-4636.

FFaaiitthh TTeemmppllee CChhuurrcchh ooff GGoodd iinn CChhrriisstt,, 1119South Street, will hold their New Year'sHealing and Restoration Revival Wednesday,January 9th - Friday, January 11th at 7:30p.m. nightly. The guest speaker will beEvangelist Brenda Buckhram. Also the

church will meet each evening for a Solemn Assembly 6:45p.m. - 7:30 p.m. The facilitator will be Mother PatriciaLofton.

FFiirrsstt BBaappttiisstt MMiissssiioonnaarryy CChhuurrcchh,, 520 North Fifth Avenue,will hold a Human Relations Banquet on Friday, February8th at 7:00 p.m. at the Arab Shrine Club, 4510 South CollegeRoad. The keynote speaker will be Ms. Linda Pearce,Executive Director of Elderhaus. Also the church will holda 2013 Baby and Toddler Pageant, date FBA. Babies and tod-dlers from First Baptist and as well from the communityand other churches are invited. For more information call910-763-2647.

LLiiffee CChhaannggiinngg MMiinniissttrriieess,, 216 Marstellar St., Praise Teamwill celebrate their 19th Anniversary on Sunday, January20, 2013 at 4:00 p.m. The guest speaker will be Pastor LatoyaBarrett, Purpose Church International, Wilmington, NC.For more information call Tina Bloodworth @ 910-795-3744.

SStt.. MMaarrkk''ss EEppiissccooppaall CChhuurrcchh,, 600 Grace Street, will holdtheir Sunday School Epiphany Pageant on Sunday, January13th at 5:00 p.m.

SSppeeaakkss TTeemmppllee AAMMEE ZZiioonn will hold their 3rd annual spiri-tual human body parts program on Sunday, January 6th at3:00 p.m. The Mistress of Ceremony will be ReverendThomasina Brailford of St. Phillip AME Zion Church. Theguest speaker will be Reverend Mary C. Nixon, BrotherWilliam Boykin, Pastor Lorraine Cooper, Elder Gay-SharonBell, Reverend Roland Johnson, Elder Cedric Tindall,Minister Darlene Robinson, Evangelist Celia Singleton,Reverend Corrine Rolls-Brown, Elder Wanda Junious,Minister Ronnie Ballard, Elder Paula Moore, Elder DavidKelly, Minister Earl Brimley, Elder Wanda Murphy, PastorCorrine Carr and Apostle Latonya Harris. The musicalguest will be the Marrant Singers. Also Speaks Temple willpresent The Traveling Shoe Ministry with the play "TheGlory Train" on Sunday, January 13th at 3:00 p.m.Admission is free. For more information call ReverendMary C .Nixon at 910-540-4406.

BBrruunnsswwiicckk CCoouunnttyy

TThhee GGrreeaatteerr HHoollyy CCoovveennaanntt UUnniitteedd HHoollyy CChhuurrcchh,, 237Snowfield Rd SE Leland, NC (Snowfield Community) willhold 2013 Youth Revival, " Sold Out For Christ" fromJanuary 2nd - January 4th at 7:00 p.m. nightly. The messen-ger for these services will be Pastor Brian Monroe, FirstBaptist Church Southport NC. Also the church willobserve their annual 100 Men in Black Program on Sunday,January 13th at 3:30 p.m. The theme is "Steadfast MenWorking For Christ." For more information you may con-tact Sharon Dudley at 910- 231-3170.

AAppoossttllee AAnntthhoonnyy RRiicchhbbuurrgg aanndd SSaallvvaattiioonn aanndd DDeelliivveerraanncceeCChhuurrcchh,, Leland NC will celebrate their first official serviceas Salvation and Deliverance Family Worship Center onSunday, January 6, 2013 at 4:00 p.m. The guest speaker willbe Elder Alonzo Nero and The Church of DeliveranceFamily from Clarkton NC. For more information pleasecontact Evangelist Richburg at 910- 264 5292.

Policies for briefs, news, & photos on page 2.CCoommppiilleedd BByy MMoonnttrreellll WWiillssoonn

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Page 12: The Wilmington Journal

EENNTTEERRTTAAIINNMMEENNTT

I t was around 1:45 p.m.on Monday, Dec. 31st, thelast day of 2012. I, like

many others with theWilmington Ten Pardons ofInnocence Project, had been

waiting sinceearly thatmorning forG o v e r n o rB e v e r l yPerdue toa n n o u n c eher decisionabout possi-bly grantingpardons ofinnocence to

the Wilmington Ten, the causethat so many of us had workedso hard for, for the past sevenmonths.

We had been thrown a curvea few days earlier. During theThursday, Dec. 27th taping ofthe WRAL-TV public affairsprogram, "On the Record," Gov.Perdue, in reference to whatshe may decide about the par-dons before she left officeJanuary 5th, told WRAL-TVreporter Laura Leslie:

"There's nobody in America -I don't believe there's anybodyin the judicial system in theworld - who could say that trialwas fair or that there wasn'tsome kind of undercurrent orovert racism involved in thejury selection," she said. "I don'tknow if that necessarily makesthem innocent. I don't knowthat, but I do know it's weighedheavily on my heart."

The governor's statementwas shocking because, untilthen, neither she nor her staffhad uttered a word about thepending pardon, other than itwas still a pending pardon,which is what they are sup-posed to do.

So these explicit remarkswere very much a surprise toall of us.

But the part about not know-ing whether the racial corrup-tion of the Wilmington Tenprosecutor indeed meant thatthey were innocent of thecharges they were ultimatelyconvicted of, had reallyalarmed us. We weren't surewhy that would be said at all,and because it was comingfrom the lips of the governor -the one person on the face ofthe Earth who could make thepardon decision - it alarmed useven more.

We had been hearingthrough our sources close tothe governor that there werepowerful people doing theirbest to steer her away from par-dons at all. Some of these wereold hands in state governmentwho, for some reason, relishedin the fact that the WilmingtonTen were made to sufferbecause they somehow repre-sented a kind of militancy thatthe power structure would not

tolerate back in 1971, and hadno stomach for now.

They are the reason why thePardon Project poured on thejuice with our successful peti-tion campaigns withChange.org and the NAACP.

It wasn't long before we werehearing that because of ouractivism, and because of ouruncovering the now infamousStroud files - which clearly doc-umented the sordid, racistshenanigans of prosecutor JayStroud in framing theWilmington Ten - these forceswere now telling the governorthat the Wilmington Ten werecertainly guilty of something,so instead of risking her credi-bility, why not grant pardons offorgiveness instead of pardonsof innocence.

So hearing the governor saythat she didn't know whetherthe Wilmington Ten were inno-cent or not, seemed to playright into that mindset, and itfrightened us that that's whatshe would ultimately do.

We couldn't understand why,after seeing how Jay Stroudhad so corrupted the criminaljustice system to frame theWilmington ten, anyone couldbelieve that they would beguilty of ANY crime? If goodprosecutors have the evidenceof guilt, then, per our system ofjustice, they are supposed topresent it to jury, and await averdict.

What we were hearing, wethought, was that no matterwhat was done to them, theWilmington Ten were not inno-cent until proven guilty, butguilty until they proved them-selves innocent.

We made clear in press state-ments prior to the governor'sdecision that could not be thestandard. There was no credi-ble evidence of any guilt, orany crime by any WilmingtonTen today, or forty years ago.That was the standard we alsoexpected from the governor.

So early Monday morning, Iwoke up with a knot in mystomach. I hate not knowingwhat is going to happen, espe-cially when it deeply affectsother people's lives.

In this case, six survivingmembers of the WilmingtonTen, and the family members ofthe four deceased members.They had all been throughforty years of hell andheartache. I couldn't bear forthem to have come so close,closer than at anytime sincetheir unjust convictions in1972, only to fall short becausethere were still those whobelieved that our criminal jus-tice system was a tool used sole-ly to punish perceived politicaladversaries.

As my wife and daughter didtheir thing elsewhere in thehouse, I stayed by my comput-

er in the bedroom, monitoringmy latest emails, hoping to seesomething from the governor'soffice about either a press con-ference (unlikely), or anannouncement of the gover-nor's decision.

I knew that the governor'sstaff had still been working onthe issue on Sunday. If it werecoming in the morning, I waspreparing our team memberson the pardon project as to howwe were going to respond.

Whichever way it went.Reporters were already call-

ing me (since I was listed as theproject coordinator), asking ifI had heard anything from thegovernor's office. I asked themto call me in case they hearanything.

I was so hoping that someintrepid legislative reporterwould come across a leak, andlet the world know. That's howanxious I was.

But nothing came thatmorning, until just after 12noon, when the governor'soffice sent out a press advisoryabout four judicial appoint-ments she made.

I noticed one of the appoint-ments was for Mark Davis, thegovernor's General Counsel. Itwas his job to advise the gover-nor on the Wilmington Tenpardons. We had been told thathe was a pretty good guy, andhe was always professional inmy dealings with him.

But his appointment to theNC Appeals Court told me thathis role in advising the gover-nor was definitely over now.

That meant a decision onthe Wilmington Ten couldcome at any minute.

I was not a happy camper asthe early afternoon wore on. Ithad been dark and cloudy allmorning, and that didn't helpthe mood. Yes I had been pray-ing, and praying and pray-ing…and yes, I had faith thatGOD would deliver. The truthwas that clear.

But I also realized that Icouldn't fake being concerned.As if I were waiting for the sur-geon to come out and tell mehow the surgery went for myloved one, I couldn't hide myconcern from anyone.

Then suddenly, just after 1p.m., a strong, powerful beamof sunlight burst through theclouds, coming through ourbedroom window, and landingon the bed beside me. If I hadbeen looking directly into thebeam, it would have blindedme.

Instead, the beam of lightseemed to comfort me, bringme peace.

Indeed, it seemed to be talk-ing to me.

It made me smile. It reas-sured me.

It gave me a semblance ofpeace.

I still wasn't certain aboutwhat would happen, but I all ofa sudden felt strengthened todeal with it, whatever it was.

Then at around 1:45 p.m., thephone rang, and the area codewas "336," which is usuallyfrom the Greensboro area. Ianswered it, sure that it wasperhaps a Greensboro TV sta-tion.

It was the governor's presssecretary, Chris Mackey.

"Cash, the governor wouldlike to speak with you."

"Sure. Of course," I recallsaying, with the thought thatGov. Perdue was about to notonly tell me personally whather decision was, but also feltobligated to explain it to me.

This isn't going to be good, Ithought to myself.

"Cash, how are you?"I'm fine Governor. Happy

New Year to you. I hope youhad a good holiday."

"I did. I wanted to let youknow that I will be grantingpardons of innocence to theWilmington Ten."

My fat old heart stopped,and my weak old eyes began towater.

Did I hear what I just heardfrom the governor of thisstate?

Gov. Perdue went on to tellme how the racist actions ofprosecutor Stroud deeply dis-turbed her, and there reallywasn't any other decision shecould make, in the name of jus-tice.

It gets foggy now, but Iremember saying, "Thank you,Governor. You are a great gov-ernor."

I put down the phone, andstarted to walk towards thebedroom door so that I couldtell my wife, Markita. Before Igot there, the phone rangagain. The same "336" areacode number.

It was Chris again, askingme to give them 10 to 15 min-utes to get the governor's offi-cial announcement out before Itell people.

I agreed, but I also knew thatif I didn't tell my wife, I wouldexplode in tears.

So just as I got to the door toopen it, Markita opened it fromthe living room.

I'm not known to mutter, butwhen our eyes locked, my eyeswatered some more as I saidthat the governor just called,and she's going to grant par-sons of innocent.

My wife smiled, grabbed me,and held me.

I cried. The happiness wasdeep and real.

After forty years, theWilmington Ten had theirnames and dignity back.

The mighty struggle wasover.

After we called my daughterKaLa into the room to tell her,

Markita made sure I kept myword to Chris, and not tell any-one on our pardon projectteam. I really, really wanted to,but all Markita would allow meto do (because she refused toleave my side) was to email ourteam, telling them that I hadjust spoken with the governor,but by agreement, I couldn'ttell them what was saidbecause she would be releasingher statement in ten minutes.

Fifteen minutes later,WRAL-TV broke the news ontelevision, and the governor'shistoric announcement wasout.

The world now knew what Iwas first told. No need toadvise the team.

I didn't have the strength, Iwas so thankful.

For the next hour, I fieldedreporters' phone calls fromboth Raleigh and Wilmington,looking for reaction. Luckilythe team and I had earliersetup Martin Street BaptistChurch in Raleigh, and ShilohMissionary Baptist Church inWilmington for simultaneouspress conferences. Then I did aphone interview with WPTF-AM.

The family and I then wentto our Raleigh presser, wherethere were happy faces andmoist eyes just like mine.

After eating dinner, the fam-ily went to Watch NightService at Watts MissionaryBaptist Church. I needed badlyto hear the Word of GOD, so Icould properly put all that hadjust happened into proper per-spective.

At midnight, my family andI welcomed the New Year in. itwas now Jan. 1, 2013

December 31st was now his-tory…in more ways than one.

This weekend, the pardonproject team and theWilmington Ten family will allcome back together one lasttime for a worship service inWilmington, and then a cele-bration of our great, historic,GOD-given triumph.

And then, after seven long,challenging, but rewardingmonths, life will return to nor-mal for me.

Thank you, Lord, for allow-ing me to be a vessel for yourgood work. I will be foreverproud, grateful, and humbled.

Happy New Year, everyone!Make sure you tune in every

Thursday afternoon at 4 p.m.for my talk radio show, ''MakeIt Happen'' on Power 750WAUG-AM, or online atwww.myWAUG.com. Andread more about my thoughtsand opinions exclusively at mynew blog, 'The Cash Roc"(http://thecashroc.blogspot.com / 2 0 1 1 / 0 1 / c a s h - r o c -begins.html). I promise it willbe interesting.

Cash in the Apple - hon-ored as the Best ColumnWriting of 2006 by theNational NewspaperPublishers Association.Columnist Cash Michaelswas also honored by theNNPA for Best Feature StoryJournalist of 2009, and wasthe recipient of the Raleigh-Apex NAACP's President'sAward for Media Excellencein Sept. 2011.

Until next week, keep asmile on your face, GOD inyour heart, and TheWilmington Journal in yourlife. Bye, bye.

Thursday, January 3, 201312

Cash Michaels

CASH IN THE APPLE

HHIISSTTOORRYY IISS MMAADDEE

TThhee ttrruutthh cclliinniicc:: DDjjaannggoo UUnncchhaaiinneedd rreeooppeennss nn**ggggeerr ccoonnttrroovveerrssyyBBYY JJAAMMEESS WW.. RREEEEDDLLOOVVEE OF THE NORTH DALLASGAZETTE

Quentin Tarantino has areputation for treading a fineline in dealing with race andviolence throughout histwenty year career as a filmdirector. He has definitelygone beyond that line in hislatest offering, DjangoUnchained, released onChristmas day.

Django Unchained is creat-ing controversy because ofits viscerally violent portray-al of slavery and the atten-tion being directed at thenumber of times the incendi-ary N-word is used by whiteand black charactersthroughout the film. Amongthe impressively stagedkilling and sadistic bloodlet-ting scenes are attack dogssavagely tearing a slave apartand black fighters beingforced to fight Mandingobrawls to the death simplyfor the entertainment of awhite plantation owner.

Director Tarantino hasgone out of his way to fur-ther antagonize those thatprotested his paltry usage ofthe N-slur 38 times in his 1997movie Jackie Brown; declar-ing that number excessive.Spike Lee who knows a thingor two about controversy hadexpressed concern over theusage of n*gger in that film.

Now Tarantino fills theDjango script with the N-

word more than 100 times,essentially saying, "Nowwhat about this?" as he ruf-fles old feathers and somenew ones. \

Spike Lee when queriedabout his feelings on the newfilm responded, "I can't speakon it 'cause I'm not gonna seeit… All I'm going to say isthat it's disrespectful to myancestors. That's just me…I'm not speaking on behalf ofanybody else."

Even the ultra-right wingDrudge Report weighed inwith feigned criticism. Forreaders not familiar with theDrudge modus operandi itwas intimately associatedwith the late AndrewBreitbart who released theedited videos used to railroadShirley Sherrod out of theDepartment of Agriculture.The Drudge web site initiallyhad a 40 point type headlineof "N*GGER, N*GGER,N*GGER, N*GGER,N*GGER, N*GGER,N*GGER" under a picture ofdirector Tarantino.

Jamie Foxx who playsDjango in the film hasdescribed several of his per-sonal experiences when pro-moting the movie on talkshows or other media outletsthat helped him relate to theracially-charged subject mat-ter that dominates DjangoUnchained.

While growing up in eastTexas he frequently was con-fronted with the N-word.

"Being called a n*gger as ayoung kid by white peoplewas something I had to dealwith, Having that done to meI was able to grasp what wasgoing on in the script. Whena project becomes magic andspecial it means that at cer-tain points in the script itparallels your story."

"I played the piano andthat's how I made money. Mygrandmother taught mepiano. She said, 'You need tolearn to play this piano, boy,so you can go across on theother side of the tracks andmake some money.' The otherside of the tracks is wherethe white folks lived. I waspretty well known in the city,but when I was 16 and afriend of mine who was 17, Iget a gig to go play aChristmas party. So I go tothis big home out in thecountry. I go, 'Wow, this isnice.' And the guy opens thedoor and he says [in a thickTexan twang], 'What's goin'on here?' And I said, 'Well, I'mhere to play your Christmasparty.' 'Why are two of youhere at the same time?' I said,'Well, I don't have a licenseand he drove.' And he says,'Yeah, I can't have twon*ggers in my house at thesame time.' ' Now you figureit out.' So I go in, he gives mea jacket to play in, and as Iwas playing, they were doingracial jokes… But my grand-mother had told me, 'Whenyou playin' in those situa-

tions like that, you are furni-ture.' So the lady at the housesays [in a decidedly morefeminine Texan twang], 'Iapologize for what's going on.Could you sing us a song?'And I sang, 'Chestnuts roast-ing on an open fire.' And theguy says, 'Wow, that's good,'and he handed me a hundredbucks at the end of the thing.And I was like, 'Man, you cancall me n*gger every daaaay!'And when I went to give himthe jacket back he says, 'Whatare you doing?… I can't wearthat jacket anymore.'

"As black folks we'realways sensitive," Foxx said."As a black person it's alwaysracial. No matter what we doas black people it's alwaysgonna be that way. Every sin-gle thing in my life is builtaround race. I don't necessar-ily speak it because you can't.And that's that. So stop talk-ing about it."

While Quentin Tarantino'sfilm is the latest blaxploita-tion there were others. TheLegend of Nigger Charleystarring Fred Williamsonwas released in 1972 and wasone of Paramount's highestgrossing films. Two sequelsThe Soul of Nigger Charleyand Boss Nigger were made.

Tarantino has rationalizedDjango as a vehicle to hold upAmerica's sordid past like amirror. However, it is diffi-cult to ascertain if the goryviolence, bloody revenge,extensive use of n*gger, and

graphic cinematographygives the audience anythingof substance either on therace or slavery issue espe-cially as it relates to past orpresent social attitudes. Wealready know that both aredebilitating abominations tothis nation. Is Django the cat-alyst that will motivateAmerica to rid itself of itsniggeritus cancer? I doubt it.

There was a time when

holiday movies were ratherpleasant to watch. They putus into the spirit of Peace onEarth Good Will to All.

However, this film with itsoutrageous blood, gore, andjustifiable vengeance sets thetone for more Newtown typeescapades. It may raiseawareness of the atrocitiesassociated with racism andslavery but the Nigger con-troversy will continue.

JOHN DAVIS PHOTOBITTERSWEET - Ms. Ophelia Tindall-Dixon, holds upa picture of her late brother, Wilmington Ten mem-ber Connie Tindall, during press conference Mondayafter Gov. Perdue granted pardons of innocence. Ms.Dixon said she wished her brother had lived to see it.

KERRY WASHINGTON AND JAMIE FOXX

Page 13: The Wilmington Journal

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LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICES LEGAL NOTICESNOTICE OF SERVICE OF

PROCESS BY PUBLICATIONSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

IN THE DISTRICT COURTJUVENILE SESSION

FILE NO. 11 JT 128, 130

IN THE MATTER OF:T. M. M. (B-R/M dob:10/11/08N. D. M. (B-R/F dob: 3/4/11)

TO: RESPONDENT: ANYUNKNOWN BIOLOGICALFATHER OF THE ABOVE-CAPTIONED MALE andFEMALE CHILDREN born to AnnaMechelle Metallo inWilmington, New HanoverCounty, North CarolinaRESPONDENT: TERRYELMORE

TAKE NOTICE that apleading seeking relief againstyou has been filed in JuvenileDistrict Court of New HanoverCounty in the above-entitledaction. The nature of the reliefbeing sought is as follows:

Termination of yourparental rights to the above-captioned minor children.

You are required tomake defense to such plead-ings no later than JANUARY 29,2013, said date being forty(40) days from the first publi-cation of this Notice. Yourparental rights to the above-captioned juveniles will be ter-minated upon your failure toanswer the petition within thetime prescribed.

YOU ARE HEREBYNOTIFIED THAT A HEARING ONTHE PETITION TO TERMINATEYOUR PARENTAL RIGHTS isscheduled for Monday, FEBRU-ARY 11, 2013, at 9:30 A.M., atthe Office of Juvenile Justice,138 N 4th Street, Wilmington,North Carolina, 28401. Youhave the right to attend thishearing and you have the rightto be represented by counsel.

This the 17th day of December,2012.

Gail CarelliStaff Attorney - New HanoverCo. Dept.of Social Services1650 Greenfield StreetWilmington, NC 28401(910) 798-3512(910) 798-3772 * fax

Dec. 20, 27, 2012, Jan. 3, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

The undersigned, having qualified asExecutor of the estate of Roger H.Lankenau, deceased of NewHanover County, North Carolina,does herby notify all persons, firmsand corporations having claimsagainst the estate to exhibit them tothe undersigned on or before the13th day of March, 2013, or thisnotice will be pleaded in bar of theirrecovery. All persons firms and cor-porations indebted to said estate willplease make immediate payment tothe undersigned.

This 13th day of December 2012

Marilyn J. Lankenau, Executor of the Estate of Roger H. Lankenau1803 Gleneagles LaneWilmington, NC 28405 Murchison, Taylor & Gibson, PLLC 16 North Fifth Avenue Wilmington, NC 28401

Dec. 13, 20, 27, 2012, Jan 3, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

The undersigned, having qualified asAdministrator of the estate ofSusan Elaine Butzin, deceased ofNew Hanover County, NorthCarolina, does herby notify all per-sons, firms and corporations havingclaims against the estate to exhibitthem to the undersigned on orbefore the 13th day of March,2013, or this notice will be pleadedin bar of their recovery. All personsfirms and corporations indebted tosaid estate will please make immedi-ate payment to the undersigned.

This 13th day of December 2012

Donald F. Butzin, Administrator 322 Nottingham LaneWilmington, NC 28409

Dec. 13, 20, 27, 2012, Jan 3, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

Having qualified as Executrix of theEstate of Charlotte S. Brasof,deceased, late of 830 Royal BonnetDr., Wilmington, North Carolina, thisis to notify all persons, firms andcorporations having claims againstthe estate of said decedent to pres-ent such claims to the undersignedc/o Elizabeth W. Embrey, Esq.,Fletcher, Ray & Satterfield, LLP, 131Racine Drive, Suite 201, Wilmington,NC 28403 on or before the 20thday of March, 2013, or this noticewill be pleaded in bar of their recov-ery. All persons, firms and corpora-tions indebted to the estate willplease make immediate payment.

This the 20th day of December,2012.

Mindy L. Agnoff, Executrixof the Estate of Charlotte S. BrasofFletcher, Ray & Satterfield, LLP131 Racine Drive, Suite 201Wilmington, NC 28403910-251-9900 ext. 106910-251-9667

Dec. 20, 27, 2012, Jan.3, 10, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

Having qualified as Administrator ofthe Estate of William H. Knox, lateof 1901 Market Street, Wilmington,New Hanover County, North Carolinathe undersigned does hereby notifyall persons, firms and corporationshaving claims against the estate ofsaid descendent to exhibit them tothe undersigned at 701 MarketStreet, Wilmington, North Carolina,28401 on or before the March 31,2013, or this notice will be pleadedin bar of their recovery. All persons,firms and corporations indebted tothe said estate will please makeimmediate payment to the under-signed.

This the 18th of December, 2012

James Malcolm Knox, Administratorof Estate of William H. Knox Craige and Fox Attorneys and Counselors at law701 Market StreetWilmington, North Carolina

Dec. 20, 27, 2012, Jan. 3, 10, 2013

BID REQUEST

RPC Contracting is requestingbids from any interested NCDOTCertified DBE firms for theNCDOT STIP No. S -5104 proj-ects- Sidewalks in Rodanthe,Waves, Salvo & Avon, Packages#1 & #2, bidding on 1/17/13.There will be a pre-bid confer-ence at 3:00 p.m. on Monday1/11/13 at the office of RPCContracting, 934 W. Kitty HawkRoad, Kitty Hawk, NC. Plans andspecifications are available forreview at the same location. Formore information, please call252-261-3336, ask for Jay. RPCContracting is an EqualOpportunity Employer.

January 3, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

Having qualified as Administrator ofthe Estate of Hasseltine H. Dorsey,late of 1517 East Lake Shore Drive,Wilmington, NC 28401, the under-signed does hereby notify all persons,firms, and corporations having claimsagainst the estate of said decedent toexhibit them to the undersigned at105 South Front Street, Wilmington,NC 28401, on or before the 15th dayof March, 2013, or this notice will bepleaded in bar of their recovery. Allpersons, firms and corporationsindebted to the said estate will pleasemake immediate payment to under-signed.

This the 11th day of December, 2012.

William Don AlredAdministrator of the Estate ofHasseltine H. DorseyJames D. Smith, Attorney at Law105 South Front StreetWilmington, NC 28401

Dec. 13, 20, 27, 2012 Jan 3, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

The undersigned, having qualified asExecutrix of the estate of RobertHerbert Simmons Sr., deceased ofNew Hanover County, North Carolina,does herby notify all persons, firmsand corporations having claimsagainst the estate to exhibit them tothe undersigned on or before the 13thday of March, 2013, or this noticewill be pleaded in bar of their recovery.All persons firms and corporationsindebted to said estate will pleasemake immediate payment to theundersigned. This 13th day of December 2012

Ophelia Jones, Executrix1224 Williamsburg Court Wilmington, NC 28411

Dec. 13, 20, 27, 2012 Jan 3, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

The undersigned, having qualified asAdministrator of the estate of LeeErvin Anderson, deceased of NewHanover County, North Carolina, doesherby notify all persons, firms and cor-porations having claims against theestate to exhibit them to the under-signed on or before the 20th day ofMarch, 2013, or this notice will bepleaded in bar of their recovery. Allpersons firms and corporations indebt-ed to said estate will please makeimmediate payment to the under-signed.

This 20th day of December 2012

Keecha L. Anderson, Administrator 112 Glendale DriveWilmington, NC 28401

Dec. 20, 27, 2012, Jan. 3, 10, 2013

NOTICE TO CREDITORSSTATE OF NORTH CAROLINACOUNTY OF NEW HANOVER

The undersigned having qualified asPersonal Representative, of theEstate of Lewis W. Wrightdeceased, late of New HanoverCounty, North Carolina, this is tonotify all persons, firms, and corpo-rations having claims against theestate to present such claims to theundersigned C/O Terry B.Richardson, Attorney at Law, 209Princess Street, Wilmington, NC28401 on or before the 29th day ofMarch, 2013, or this notice will bepleaded in bar of their recovery. Allpersons indebted to the estate willplease make immediate payment.

This 17th day of December, 2012

Alfredia Wright Murphy Personal Representative Terry B. RichardsonAttorney for the Estate 209 Princess Street Wilmington, NC 28401

Dec. 20, 27, 2012, Jan. 3, 10, 2013

NOTICE OF DISSOLUTION

Pursuant to 55-14-03 of the NorthCarolina General Statutes, noticeis hereby given that the under-signed corporation has executedArticles of Dissolution by affirma-tive vote of the stockholders andsuch Articles of Dissolution will bebarred unless proceedings toenforce such claims are broughtwithin five years of publication ofthis notice. Claims may be pre-sented to the Corporation at thefollowing address:UNIVERSAL FLEET, INC.3301 Burnt Mill DriveWilmington, NC 28403

Any claims presented for paymentshall include the name andaddress of the claimant (or agent)and a statement of the nature andamount of the claim.

UNIVERAL FLEET, INC.BY: K. E. Austin, Jr.Name: K.E. Austin, Jr.Its: President

January 3, 2013

JJaannuuaarryy 22--88,, 22001133

AARRIIEESSGuard your wordsthis week, and letpeace and harmonyrule where theymay. It's not thetime to point outthe character flawsof a higher-up. Youcan make this avery productiveweek if you applyyour industriousspirit to your work.Soul Affirmation:Facing down chal-lenges makes mefeel good aboutmyself. LuckyNumbers: 15, 23, 37

TTAAUURRUUSSMake a movetowards that some-one that you've hadyour eye on! Thetiming couldn't bemore perfect! Goslow and be subtlysweet. Your abilityto charm andattract alwaysworks in your favor.Don't abuse it! Showoff a new attitude.Soul Affirmation: Ilet myself be thecheerful me. LuckyNumbers: 34, 39, 46

GGEEMMIINNIIGood deeds are inorder this week.Perform all the ran-dom acts of kind-ness that you can.Everything you dothis week is goingto come back to youin triplicate, soenjoy storing upsome future bless-ings!Soul Affirmation:Another week inwhich to rejoice isupon me. ah-h-h-h-h! Lucky Numbers:2, 32, 45

CCAANNCCEERRYou can help out afriend this week ifyou plan yourschedule so thatyou've got time forkindness built in!Embrace your gen-erous side whilegetting your ownwork finished. You

are excellent atmulti-tasking!Soul Affirmation:Old love? New love?The most importantthing is true love!Lucky Numbers: 26,38, 41

LLEEOOYou may want tomake this week as c h m o o z e - f e s t !Whether you go outto a party or stay inwith a friend, you'llhave a good time ifyou remember thatcharm is the onlyweapon that'll workfor you this week.Soul Affirmation: Iwork hard to com-bat envy this week.Lucky Numbers: 11,29, 33

VVIIRRGGOOPeople can get onyour nerves, can'tthey? And this weekis one of thoseweeks. Gettingthrough it will be atest. You can get thehighest grade onthe test by smilingat the stupidity ofthose who opposeyou. They don'tknow any betterand this week youcan't teach them.Soul Affirmation:The winner is me. Ismile for the cam-eras. LuckyNumbers: 22, 28, 29

LLIIBBRRAAA secret may berevealed in a casualconversation. Yourconfidence is val-ued and appreciat-ed. Take it all in!There's no return-ing to what hasbeen once you real-ize the gift you'vebeen given. SoulA f f i r m a t i o n :Freedom of mind isthe greatest gift forme this week.Lucky Numbers: 18,22, 36

SSCCOORRPPIIOODrive the speedlimit in all thingsthis week or youcould wind up witha ticket of somekind. Why rush?Serenity is avail-able if you onlystop and listen for itinside of you.Discharge yourusual obligationswith dignity andcount your bless-

ings. SoulAffirmation: I obeythe rules this weekand avoid hassles.Lucky Numbers: 13,24, 35

SSAAGGIITTTTAARRIIUUSSSlow down andrelax your brain-energies! The uni-verse knows how totake care of itselfand of you. Give it achance by gettingyour mentalschemes out of theway. Sometimes it ishard but trust! SoulAffirmation: I letmy luck work forme. LuckyNumbers: 21, 27, 34

CCAAPPRRIICCOORRNNA friend from thepast could suddenlyappear in your life.This could be ahighly beneficialreunion for both ofyou. Let bygones bebygones, and renewthis friendship.Love isn't used upjust because it'sshared with many.Soul Affirmation: Ilove many peoplethis week. LuckyNumbers: 23, 40, 45

AAQQUUAARRIIUUSSBe open to a newfriendship thatcould bring publicrecognition, a newassignment, or araise in income.You'll also bepleased withromantic vibes thatcome from far away.Call! Someone spe-cial is waiting tohear from you. SoulA f f i r m a t i o n :Distant love issometimes sweeter.Lucky Numbers: 16,28, 36

PPIISSCCEESSYou'll radiate withconfidence andenthusiasm thisweek. Importantpeople will beimpressed. Makesure you spend timein their presence.The week promisessuccess in makingnew starts with oldcontacts. Refreshyourself by social-izing just for fun.Soul Affirmation:My spirit makes allthings new. LuckyNumbers: 31, 39, 42

Page 14: The Wilmington Journal

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