No athlete, professional or amateur or otherwise, is immune from injury. Most athletes recognize the risk for injury is always present, but the thrill of competition and challenging oneself physically is enough to relegate injury concerns to the back burner.

Sports injuries may be part of the competitive athletics equation, but that does not make them any easier to handle when they occur. One of the more serious injuries that can occur when playing sports does not involve fractures or sprains. Concussions are brain injuries that can cause temporary loss of normal brain function. March is Brain Injury Awareness Month, and learning the signs of concussions can save lives.

The American Association of Neurological Surgeons reports that concussions are caused by direct trauma to the head. Potential causes of such trauma can be a fall or a blow to the head. Involvement in a motor vehicle accident also can cause concussion.

Concussions affect non-athletes as well as athletes, which is important for people from all walks of life to recognize. However, athletes who compete in contact sports like football, ice hockey, rugby, and soccer should be especially mindful of concussions.

That's because contact sports tend to have the highest concussion rates. Concussion rates can be hard to tabulate, as many athletes may suffer mild concussions and never report any issues to parents or coaches.

However, a 2019 study published in the journal Pediatrics found that, between the 2013-14 and 2017-18 school years, the three sports with the highest concussion rates were boys' football, girls' soccer and boys' ice hockey. Of course, adult athletes also can suffer concussions, which underscores how important it is that all individuals, and especially athletes competing in contact sports, learn to recognize the symptoms of a concussion.

With that in mind, the AANS notes these are some common symptoms of concussion:
• Confusion
• Headache
• Vision disturbances (double or blurry vision)
• Dizziness or imbalance
• Nausea or vomiting
• Memory loss
• Ringing ears
• Difficulty concentrating
• Sensitivity to light
• Loss of smell or taste
• Trouble falling asleep

Concussions should be taken seriously, and it's important to note that most people fully recover after a concussion. However, the AANS urges people to seek immediate medical attention if symptoms have not gone away within 10 to 14 days. In addition, certain situations that can arise after suffering a concussion should be brought to the attention of a physician. Such situations include:

• Headache worsens or does not go away
• Speech is slurred, and feelings of weakness, numbness or decreased coordination present
• Significant nausea or repeated vomiting
• Seizures
• Loss of consciousness
•Inability to wake up
• Symptoms worsen at any time
• History of multiple concussions

Concussions are serious brain injuries that should not be taken lightly. Athletes and parents of young athletes should discuss concussion prevention strategies with coaches and report any issues to a physician immediately.

More information about concussions can be found at aans.org.

Lexi Solomon's article in CityView Today last week was very well written. However, the content was extremely disturbing and very disappointing, and a near-perfect example of why our community has difficulty moving forward into the 21st century with unity.

Solomon's article revealed how emotionally driven some members of our community are when their conversations falter because of a lack of logic and facts, failing to produce a cohesive and compelling argument. That is the case with the displeasure voiced over the pending consideration to relocate the 70-year-old outdated E.E. Smith High School to 90 acres of land provided free of charge, and conveniently located on the fringe of Ft. Liberty.

Solomon's article reported on a recent meeting held by E.E. Smith alums and the National Association of E.E. Smith Alumni and Friends to voice their displeasure with this consideration, and to show support for the historically Black high school located at 1800 Seabrook Road off Murchison Road. Meetings of this nature can be very valuable and productive.

However, it does our community a grave injustice to utilize a gathering of this nature to make accusatory remarks and conspiracy theories concerning the need to uproot the school in favor of a new high-tech facility. It's disingenuous to hear a NAEESAF board member, Sharon McDonald Evans, accuse local leadership of purposely allowing the school to deteriorate because they resent E.E. Smith being an historically Black high school. What about the thirty percent of non-Black students who have graduated from E.E. Smith High School who have also become successful, noteworthy community leaders, business executives, educators, public servants, and civic leaders on local, state and national levels?

In the next few weeks, Cumberland County Commissioners will be facing off with disgruntled alums and Cumberland County School board officials over the pros and cons of relocating and upgrading the much-needed educational facility to the more accommodating location.

Without a doubt, the sentimentality for E.E. Smith High School is warranted; however, the groups’ assertion that it is the heart of the Murchison Road community is false and misleading as are many of the concerns raised by those opposing the move.

What I found most interesting about Solomon's article and reporting on that meeting is what was NOT mentioned in it. First and foremost, there was no mention of the late Dr. E.E. Smith, the Black educational icon who founded the school in 1927.

He is the real story behind the E. E. Smith legacy. It is his legacy that should be honored and preserved. Another glaring void in the ongoing conversations is the lack of consideration and concern for the quality of students’ educations and the preservation and assurance for future generations.

The quality of education should be the NAEESAF organization’s highest priority especially when E.E. Smith HS math and reading scores are a dismal forty percent. A new technologically advanced high school could achieve improvement in those testing goals by assisting teachers in the classroom.

LaVar Wright is passionate about his alma mater. "The school itself is the heartbeat, the pulse,” Wright said, referring to the Murchison Road community.

No, it is not!

He continues, “This community has been thriving."

No it has not!

"It has been mistreated for longer than all of us have been alive. And this is just another way to step on our necks,” he said. “It’s exactly why this area has been so successful for so long."

No, that community is not successful and continues to struggle with high crime and diminishing businesses.

"You pull that school out of that neighborhood, it’s already suffering, underwater," Wright said.

These statements reflect that even Wright’s passion and enthusiasm cannot withstand the truth and reality of the situation.

It is my hope that he urges the NAEESAF to rally around and support the quality education of future generations of E.E. Smith students. Wright is in a position to encourage alumni, faculty and concerned members of the community to endorse the new high school and its location.

This issue is all about enriching the growth academically and historically of the youngsters living in this town. What pride they will have in becoming the first graduates of this state-of-the-art high school whose namesake made such an impact in North Carolina. Dr. E.E. Smith himself would be proud.

This issue should be interpreted as everything to do with the quality of life, education and futures of generations upon generations to come, always keeping the legacy of Dr. E.E. Smith and the history of E.E. Smith High School alive in the Fayetteville community.

Thank you for reading Up and Coming Weekly.

Get ready to be blown away by the electrifying sounds of the Blazin' Brass concert! On Saturday, March 9 at 7:30 p.m., the talented brass and percussion sections of the Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra will take the stage to deliver a performance that will leave you in awe. This is a musical event that you won't want to miss!

The Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra is known for their exceptional talent and their ability to captivate audiences with their musical prowess. Their brass and percussion sections are no exception.

“This performance includes 2 percussionists and 14 brass musicians (5 French horns, 4 trombones, 4 trumpets, 1 tuba),” says Anna Meyer, the FSO’s executive director.

The highlighted compositions showcased in the program feature Ottorino Respighi's "Ancient Airs and Dances Suite" and Eric Ewazen's "Symphony in Brass."

Ottorino Respighi's "Ancient Airs and Dances Suite" is a collection of masterful pieces that pay homage to the music of the Renaissance and Baroque eras.

As you listen, you'll be swept away by the intricate melodies and rich harmonies, feeling as though you're strolling through the grand halls of a medieval castle or dancing at a lavish courtly ball. Respighi's ability to capture the essence of these ancient melodies and bring them to life is truly remarkable, and you'll find yourself captivated by the beauty and elegance of each movement.

The piece is a series of three suites. The group will perform a movement from each of the three suites.
Another gem in this program is Eric Ewazen's "Symphony in Brass," a powerful and dynamic piece that showcases the versatility and brilliance of the brass section.

From the commanding opening notes to the intricate interplay between the different brass instruments, this symphony is a true testament to the range and expressive capabilities of this often-overlooked family of instruments. Ewazen's composition is a tour de force, combining elements of classical and contemporary styles to create a truly unique and exhilarating musical experience. The symphony builds in intensity, leading the listener on a thrilling journey that culminates in a triumphant finale.

The stunning Haymount United Methodist Church will serve as the backdrop for this upcoming performance. The FSO has previously held performances at this venue, including their "Holiday Brass" concert last season.

Tickets range from $5 to $32 and can be purchased on the FSO’s website: https://www.fayettevillesymphony.org/

After eight years as state treasurer of North Carolina — and prior public-service roles as school board member, assistant commerce secretary, and four-term state legislator — Dale Folwell is running for governor in 2024.

I’ll discuss Folwell and other gubernatorial candidates in another column. Today, I’m focusing on the five candidates seeking to replace him as state treasurer, one of the 10 officials who comprise North Carolina’s Council of State.

You may find it puzzling that we elect so many executives. I’ve long argued we ought to shorten our ballot. But even I think we should still elect our state treasurer. It’s one of the most powerful public offices — supervising the state’s pension and health plans as well as local government finances — and should be occupied by someone with not only a firm grasp of investment strategy and public finance but also the fortitude to withstand special-interest pressure.

Three Republicans and two Democrats are vying for their parties’ nominations. First on the GOP ballot is A.J. Daoud, a former police officer who owns and operates funeral homes in western North Carolina. A longtime Republican activist, Daoud has served in multiple party offices and on the commission that supervises the state lottery, where he says he “was responsible for exposing wasteful spending returning millions back towards education.”

Rachel Johnson, a former banker, later ran RayLen Vineyards and Winery, a family business in Davie County. Her husband, Mark Johnson, is a former state superintendent of public instruction and school board member. Asked by Business North Carolina magazine how she’d manage the state pension fund, Johnson said she’d “continue Treasurer Folwell’s good work of protecting and improving the N.C. retirement system.” She added that “there’s always a temptation in this role to flex and try to make a risky play” and pledged to be “completely independent of previous ties to Wall Street and the elites of New York finance.”

This appears to be a dig at the third Republican in the race, Brad Briner, who recently stepped down from a leadership role in a Chapel Hill-based investment firm. Among his clients was former New York Mayor and business magnate Michael Bloomberg. Briner, who currently serves on the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees and the state treasurer’s Debt Affordability Advisory Committee, told Business North Carolina that Folwell’s investment approach has been too risk-averse, causing our pension fund to underperform those of peer states such as Virginia.

“I’m not advocating gambling,” he says. “I’m talking about taking smart, sensible steps to achieve the 6.5% to 7% annual returns that the system requires.”

Democrat Gabe Esparza, a former entrepreneur and American Express executive who served in the Biden administration as associate administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, also criticizes the pension fund’s performance under Folwell. But he praises the current state treasurer’s efforts to promote price transparency and competition in health care.

In an interview with the Raleigh News & Observer, Esparza said the state health plan should “first directly engage with hospitals and pharmaceutical companies to negotiate long-term, stable pricing, while also investing in preventative care solutions that keep people healthy.”

His primary opponent is Wesley Harris, a three-term Democratic member of the North Carolina House who’s also worked in international tax accounting and taught economics at UNC-Charlotte.

He argues the Local Government Commission under Folwell has become “too politicized” and that the treasurer has held too much pension funds in cash. “For too long,” Harris says, “the Treasurer’s office has failed to look past tomorrow and adequately prepare our state for the challenges of the future. While doing so may yield results in the short-term, it leaves North Carolina’s funds vulnerable as our economy changes over time.”

Interestingly, the political arm of the State Employees Association of North Carolina has endorsed both Folwell for governor and Harris for state treasurer.

All these candidates have campaign websites where you can find more about their backgrounds, endorsements, and positions. Early voting for the March primary is now underway.

Editor’s note: John Hood is a John Locke Foundation board member. His latest books, Mountain Folk and Forest Folk, combine epic fantasy with early American history (FolkloreCycle.com).

The United Way of Cumberland County will be holding their Over the Edge Fundraising event again this April in downtown Fayetteville.

On Saturday, April 13, those who have helped with this fundraising endeavour will be rappelling down the side off the Cape Fear Valley Medical Arts Center. This is the second year the United Way of Cumberland County has held the event.

UWCC is hoping to raise $100,000 from the event to help improve the quality of Cumberland County residents. People can register for the event as an individual or as a team. Individuals are tasked with raising a minimum of $1000 while teams are asked to raise $2500 to go "over the edge."

To register for the event, or to make a donation, visit https://bit.ly/3ws4456. Use the code OTE25 to get $25 off your registration fee. This code expires on March 1.

The United Way of Cumberland County was established in 1939, and helps non profits in the Cumberland County area with donations. In 2023, UWCC chose 14 non profit organizations to help fund throughout the year. The Over the Edge Fundraiser is an innovative way to get the community involved in a large scale fundraising event that will benefit the entire community.

Over the Edge will be happening on April 13 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. For more information about UWCC and who they help, visit https://www.unitedway-cc.org/.

Last year, two of Up and Coming Weekly's own rappelled down the Cape Fear Valley Medical Center. To read about the experience with going over the edge, visit https://bit.ly/48vPdDU.

The incomparable CeCe Winans is coming to the Crown Theatre on Wednesday, March 6, to debut her brand-new album More Than This, featuring her new hit single That’s My King. Fans are encouraged to grab tickets early, as Winans usually sells out her events.

VIP tickets are already sold out, but those wanting to attend can still find tickets ranging from $35 to $75 at Ticketmaster.com.

Doors open at 6 p.m., with the concert starting at 7 p.m..

CeCe Winans's career spans over three glorious decades, garnering accolades and awards around the globe. Born in Detroit, Michigan, Winans grew up in the church singing, a common start for many artists past and present. Throughout her career, she has accumulated 15 Grammys, 16 Stellar Awards, and 27 Dove Awards, a number that not many artists can match or supersede.

That’s My King is the first single of Winan's new album.

“..it’s about inspiration. We need to be encouraged. We need to be reminded that when you believe, there are benefits that come with that. We understand that the God that we serve is the creator of all things and he has all power, he has all wisdom and you’re a daughter of the King. And this song proclaims Jesus is King. It’s got a little boast in it,” Winans said of her choice to make this the first single of her new album.
CeCe Winans started her music career alongside her brother BeBe in the early 80s singing with a gospel group, but by the late 80s, they started carving out a space for themselves musically.

The duo made their mark with their self-titled debut album BeBe and CeCe Winans in 1987. Over the course of their lengthy career, they released not only gospel songs but R&B as well. The singing sensation doesn’t just sing. She has also appeared in the acting arena, including the 1994 episode of Martin entitled The First Noel. The episode featured the performers as themselves during a Christmas special gone wrong. The episode was a success and an experience that Ms. Winans is reminded of by fans to this day. She has also made appearances on Living Single, 7th Heaven and The Tonight Show stage when Jay Leno was still at the helm. She has performed at the White House and countless Christmas specials, gospel celebrations, and awards shows.

Count on Me, her duet with the late, great Whitney Houston, for the soundtrack of the classic hit Waiting to Exhale, garnered her a secular audience and racked up playtime on the airwaves, hitting the top 10 on the Billboard top Pop, R&B, and Contemporary.

Her longevity as an artist has led to her induction into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame, a space on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Nashville Music City Walk of Fame.

CeCe Winans and her brother parted ways as a music duo in 1995 to pursue their solo careers. Winan's solo career continues to thrive, 29 years later.

Her discography as a solo artist is massive. Her debut album, Alone in His Presence, dropped in 1995 and set the tone and pace for the 15 albums that would follow, including More Than This, which will be released in April. Her fourth album, Alabaster Box, was released on October 19, 1999, under Winan's label WellSpring, and executive produced by her husband Alvin Love II.

Her solo albums have earned her quite the reputation for winning at awards shows, taking home an NAACP Image Award, Soul Train Award, and Essence Award.

The titles that Winans holds most highly are those of mother and wife. She has two children with her husband. While music has been a big part of Winan’s life, it has not been the only venture. She and her husband founded Nashville Life Church in Nashville, Tennessee.

She is also the founder of Generations Live! Women’s Conference. A one-of-a-kind Christian Women’s Conference, the aim is to bring together different generations of women to worship and learn. The conference will be held in Nashville, May 10 and 11 at Belmont University, a Mother’s Day gift that mothers and daughters can enjoy together.

“We’re better together. Being ministered to separately is awesome and it has its place. But it’s really important that we understand that it’s a ministry of us together. There are things that my mother carried that I got to get. There are things that I carry that my daughter has to get. There are things that my daughter carries that I have to get. God made it that we are stronger as a family unit,” Winans said.
Winans is also a best-selling author, having written 6 books, including her latest, Believe For It: Passing On Faith To The Next Generation debuting in the Christian Top 10.

The Goodness Tour marks CeCe Winans's first tour since 2022. After two years, she is hitting the road and packing churches and small venues all over America. While Winans could easily pack a stadium, she is very intentional in where she stops on her tours.

“We did churches on my last tour. The first half we did churches and in the second half we did arenas. We did about six arenas, which was awesome and both have their advantages and disadvantages. I think the churches have advantages and disadvantages. You can’t get as many people in there but the advantage is, it feels like church…and reaching people in areas where they maybe can’t make it to the major cities,” Winans said of her tour stops.

There is no sign of Winans slowing down anytime soon. Touring until May and a women’s conference, while leading a church… there is nothing this woman of God can’t do.

For more information on the Generations Live! Conference, and tour dates and to download the new single visit https://cecewinans.com/.

Dr. Queesha Tillman grew up enjoying the simple life in Clinton, North Carolina. The Sampson County native has authored two quintessential books and her Book Signing Floating Event will take place Friday, March 8 from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at the Kiwanis Recreation Center at 352 Devers St.

The books are A Love That Shatters Barriers: A Mother’s Relentless Battle for Her Autistic Child and Untapped Power: Black Women’s EQ Superpowers and Leadership Ascent.

“A Love That Shatters Barriers: A Mother’s Relentless Battle for Her Autistic Child [was] released Wednesday, Feb. 14,” said Tillman, author and principal of 71st Classical Middle School.
“That is Valentine’s Day and it is like a love book to my son Desmond.”

October 12, 2001, was the day that changed everything. Tillman received the disheartening news that her three-year-old son, Desmond, was diagnosed with Severe Profound Autism. In the wake of the shocking revelation, Tillman was in a complete state of denial and took her son to three different pediatricians whose diagnoses were all the same.

“Our family noticed that around 12 to 18 months, Desmond was digressing in terms of developmental things going on with him,” said Tillman. “He shied away from looking us in our eyes and he began babbling instead of forming words.”

Propelled by her son’s diagnosis, Tillman penned a book that delves into her mental montage of moments as she navigates the journey of being a parent of an autistic child.

“The book discusses what it was like to receive that kind of news and how I had to work towards being the optimal advocate for Desmond,” said Tillman. “It talks about our challenging journey through receiving resources, opportunities and assistance that he needed, I needed and families like us needed.”

She added, “Desmond is now 26 years old and is an adult living with autism. With the family support that I have, I am able to do more than I ever dreamed such as bettering my family, spreading the word about autism awareness and being an advocate for families like ours.”

The woman of letters’ thought-provoking book, Untapped Power: Black Women’s EQ Superpowers and Leadership Ascent, was released on Jan. 1, 2024.

“This book is a spin-off of my dissertation that I did over ten years ago,” said Tillman. “I have been working on both books for years and I have just not dedicated enough time to finish them, but the Holy Spirit told me to take the time and get it done.”

Tillman added, “I spent weeks of working, staying up late on top of being a principal and I was able to get it done. I am proud and it was a hard process.”

Her dissertation was a qualitative study about emotional intelligences that she tailored around mental health professionals in North Carolina and their emotional intelligence ratings.

And what kind of advice does the riveting author want to share with emerging writers?

“My advice is to not be so hard on yourself and writing a book takes a lot of time and energy,” said Tillman. “There will be times that you experience writer’s block and it is also a good practice to prioritize by scheduling a time to write.”

The professional storyteller’s next chapter entails forging ahead in the pursuit of something greater with a mindset that leaves nothing off the table.

“I am still becoming and I am open to whatever God has for me,” said Tillman. “Education is dear to my heart so whatever I do will center around mental health, children and individuals with disabilities.”
Both books can be purchased at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.

The Kiwanis Recreation Center is located at 352 Devers Street. Refreshments will be served and there will be raffles for prizes. To RSVP for the event, call 910-257-4262.

Barnes & Noble: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/Queesha%20Tillman
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/stores/Dr.-Queesha-T.-Tillman/author/B0CR9BJQRY?ref=ap_rdr&isDramIntegrated=true&shoppingPortalEnabled=true

Assisting and empowering local women are the goals of the Women's Business Center of Fayetteville at the Center for Economic Empowerment and Development.

Since 2022, the WBC's #HERFayetteville events have aimed to empower women through mentorship, education, networking and collaboration. All events are being organized by the Women's Business Center of Fayetteville.

Efforts to celebrate #HERFayetteville 2024 focus on "Heart, Equality and Resilience" and commemorate the March observances of International Women's Day and Women's History Month. Each day consists of virtual and in-person events.

In a 2023 Up & Coming Weekly interview, CEED Executive Director Suzy Hrabovsky shared her excitement for # HERWEEK's return.

"This is a week-long celebration of what women have done, what they can do, celebrating each other and coming together. So often, we hear negative things about women's empowerment, but this is just an inclusive, celebratory pat on the back and a time just to be happy and excited about what we've done and to continue to move forward and take a little time to catch our breath," Hrabovsky said.

The March 2-8 events have specific themes correlated as hashtags; as attendees go or participate in an event, they are encouraged to use the hashtags for their social media posting. Here is an overview of what to expect for #HERWEEK 2024.

Day One: Sat., March 2
#HERMoney; #HERWheels Car Show; #HERBeauty and Wellness
#HERWEEK Fayetteville starts its debut day in 2024 with a trifecta of tempting choices.
• In partnership with Cumberland County Public Libraries, the WBC brings the Financial Literacy Community Library Tour to town for the #HERMoney focus.
• Next, the center joins with wellness co-op Blissful Alchemists and the Southern Lux Sistas With Jeeps club to showcase some amazing jeeps and cars at the #HERWheels Car Show. The event features vendors, a kid's area, wrenching workshops, trophies, guest speakers, and more.
• Blissful Alchemists also sponsors the #HERBeauty and Wellness expo. A health and beauty extravaganza with over 40 vendors, the event offers essentials tailored to the wellness needs of women.

Day Two: Sun, March 3
#HERSpirit
• This virtual event focuses on spiritual wellness and women empowerment and what that means for women seeking balance and spirituality in their everyday lives. Register and receive updates from sessions with life coaches Dr. Patrice Carter and Cammy Kennedy.

Day Three: Mon., March 4
#HERService
• Through this virtual event, the WBC proudly highlights the female workers supporting the community as firefighters, EMS workers, teachers, police officers and military personnel.
"We've done a bunch of interviews with different women in the community, from teachers to veterans to women who are firefighters, women who are at the 911 station, just women doing different services in our community," Hrabovsky said of #HERService in the same interview.

Day Four: Tues., March 5
#HERImpact and #HERPitch
• The Greek Hellenic Center at 614 Oakridge Ave., in Fayetteville, is the host site of the 2024 #HERImpact and #HERPitch programs, featuring brunch, a motivational program and the WBC's business pitch competition where numerous Fayetteville women will vie for the chance to win grants of up to $2,500 per pitch. The WBC aims to assist socially and economically disadvantaged females in starting and expanding small businesses.

Day Five: Wed., March 6
#HERBusiness
• The fifth day of #HERFayetteville is about having fun while business networking. The citywide Business Scavenger Hunt encourages citizens to visit various business locations — a list will be available — to take photos and post the images online, tagging the businesses and the WBC's social media pages. Participants receive a point for each visit to go toward points in a media raffle.

Day Six: Thurs., March 7
#HERSafety
• Silhouettes Firearms Training, 1165 N. Bragg Blvd., Spring Lake, invites the women of Fayetteville and Cumberland County to its first #HERSafety Sip & Equip event. Attendees will engage with Silhouettes Firearms Training owner and personal safety consultant Andréa Williams as they delve into the world of personal safety.

Day Seven: Friday, March 8
International Women's Day 2024
#HERSports
• By collecting inspiring testimonials from local women's sports affiliates — management, team and female players — the WBC shows its support of the women in the sports industry and Fayetteville's new semi-professional soccer team, Fayetteville Fury. Sign up to listen in!

To find information on #HERWEEK Fayetteville event fees and to register, see https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/herweek-fayetteville-3095349.

The friendly and caring staff members of the Disability Support Services office at Fayetteville Technical Community College are eager to provide students with the services they need to achieve their educational and career goals.

The Disability Support Services office supports FTCC’s commitment to the equality of educational opportunities for qualified students and provides academic and technology resources to support student success while pursuing academic goals. Support services are provided for all registered students (day, evening, and online) with physical, psychological, or learning disabilities.
Student Testimonial

Chris Clark joined the U. S. Army in 2004. He became a parachute rigger and a member of the Golden Knights, the Army’s elite parachute team. Chris’s military career came to a tragic end when he suffered from a double parachute failure, which made him an incomplete paraplegic. At FTCC, Chris found a welcoming family who helped him overcome the challenges of learning to weld, while confined to a wheelchair.

“If I needed something, all I had to do was ask,” Chris said. When asked what he would say to other disabled people who are considering taking classes at FTCC, Chris indicated that “there’s no reason not to” enroll. Despite his disability, Chris thoroughly enjoys his time at the college. “The instructors are totally open,” he said. “They don’t treat me any differently than anyone else. They joke with me like they do with everyone else.”

The FTCC Disability Support Services office helps countless students including Chris, and they are eager to help you, too.

Services include, but are not limited to:
• Working with instructors to ensure that they understand each student’s unique needs
• Helping students obtain alternative-format textbooks
• Requesting an interpreter to help students with communication
• Providing students with one-on-one study and strategy sessions
• Facilitating student testing accommodations

Are you ready to get started? If so, please begin by completing the intake form on the website and submit your supporting documentation. After the staff receives your documentation, they will review your materials, and a friendly disability support expert will contact you if there are any questions.

Would you like to know more? If so, please contact the FTCC Disability Support Services office today. At FTCC, we are eager to help you achieve your goals. Students are currently registering for spring 8-week classes, which begin March 14. Registration for summer and fall classes will be occurring soon. With tremendous resources, such as the Disability Support Services, to help students make the most of their learning experience, FTCC can help you reimagine your future. Your next chapter starts here!

Visit the Disability Support Services at Tony Rand Student Center Room 127, 2201 Hull Rd., Fayetteville or call 910-678-8559. Dr. Casey Groover can be reached via email at
ada@faytechcc.edu. For more information, visit https://www.faytechcc.edu/campus-life/accessibility/

Aging is like living in a used car. Things wear out. Spare parts are hard to come by. The warranty has expired.

You can hurt yourself just by sleeping. People younger than you begin showing up in the obituary column. Your goals change. You decide you would like to outlive a deceased parent. Your doctor and dentist retire. You retire. Time flies. What to do?

Today, class, we are going to take a light-hearted look at Mr. Death. He is lurking out there in the Deep Woods, waiting for all of us to wander into his clearing.

“What?” you say. “It can’t be so. I am too important to exit stage right.” Au contraire.

Today’s lesson will demonstrate that there is an alternative to going one-on-one with Mr. Death: old age or running for President. We are now enjoying a Presidential election year between two older and visibly aging gentlemen: President Biden and former President Trump. Someone described the upcoming election as a contest between Grandpa Simpson and Mr. Burns.

Let a hundred flowers of angry political ads bloom. Our geriatric candidates spurred me to produce this column on aging. I was born in the middle of the last century which makes me a prime candidate for the Great Beyond.

Phooey!

But when you consider the alternative, aging is not a bad deal. If you are lucky, you will one day achieve that awkward age between 64 and death.

Paul McCartney wondered if his gal would still need him and still feed him when he is 64. Paul is now 81. He now knows the answer to that musical question. Eventually, even 64 will seem young.

Once retired, you have more time to attend funerals, see medical professionals to treat bizarre conditions you never considered when you were in your 30s, and have the ability to shamelessly yell, “Hey you kids! Get off my lawn.”

If you are of a certain demographic group, you may remember the 1957 movie “On the Beach.” The plot is simple; World War III has happened, most of the world has been destroyed, and radiation is spreading to the last outpost of life — Australia.

The people of Australia know that the radiation cloud will kill all of them in a few months and are essentially waiting for death.

The radiation cloud is a metaphor for aging. Once humans reach a certain age, the outcome is inevitable. Dogs do not have this problem, as they are blissfully unaware of the concept of Mr. Death.

There is no guarantee you will wake up tomorrow. This seems a bad deal, but that is the card humans have been dealt. After age 64, using a football analogy, you are in the 4th quarter of life with no guarantee of overtime.

You can hope for overtime, but when the referee blows the whistle to end the game, that’s all she wrote. I have a theory that as people enter the 4th quarter, their veneer of civilization begins to thin out and break down.

Older people become more like themselves without the buffer of politeness to conceal their hidden identity. Their thin candy shell of social niceties melts like a bag of M&M’s left in a hot car in July. This explains the phenomenon of Grumpy Old Men.

So, what should be done to stave off Mr. Death? Allow me to offer several theories.

First, decide to treat your body like you would your pet dog. This is the veterinary theory of longevity.

If your dog is sick, you would not hesitate to take him to the vet. If you find yourself sick, send your body to the doctor. Don’t hope it will just pass.

Treat yourself at least as well as you would treat your Dachshund. Find a group of aging contemporaries to meet with on a regular basis.

We have such a group that meets for coffee most mornings. We are the Panera Council on World Domination. We have lengthy discussions over who will win various sporting events, which Presidential candidate is the Anti-Christ, the merits of which food item is worse — Brussels sprouts or boiled peanuts — military theory, gun ownership, and which of the other patrons that day may be serial killers.
Conversations are quite lively, occasionally loud, and frequently surreally ridiculous. A splendid time is had by all. Then we go home and take a nap.

You have choices as you age. You can become bitter. You can become afraid and hide under a quilt and sob quietly. Or you can decide to go out and enjoy yourself while the light lasts. Use your time wisely.
I offer no hypothesis.

The Orange Street School is a hallmark of Fayetteville's history and stands as an important touchstone of our shared local history.

The Fayetteville History Museum has hit the books with its exhibit on the Orange Street School. Helping to preserve the history, stories and lessons from the Orange Street School's role in our community, the museum welcomes tourists and local residents alike to learn about the historic school's inception, purpose, administration, and preservation. Up & Coming Weekly sat down with museum curator Heidi Bleazey to learn more about the Orange Street School and its exhibit.

"We are presenting the concept of looking at the history as a way to build the future; which is how history should be looked at. We look at our past as a way to create the pathway to the future. We look at Orange Street School as an incredible educational resource for African-American children, a lodestone in the community, that helped build up a community in the Orange Street neighborhood," Bleazey commented on the goal of the exhibit.

Built in 1915 as a school for African-American children and students, Orange Street School stands as a symbol of the right to education in America for everyone.

In 1983, Cumberland County Schools deeded the building to the Orange Street School Restoration and Historical Association. The organization helped play a role in having the Orange Street School officially added to the National Park Service's National Register of Historic Places in 1987. It even housed E.E. Smith High School inside its walls at one point in time.

Connecting the past to the present, the exhibit at the Fayetteville History Museum hosts books from Edward Evans Senior, renowned local African-American educator and previous vice principal at Orange Street School.

Plans are currently underway to renovate and refurbish the institute of learning to once again bring education and opportunities to the local youth of Fayetteville.

Bleazey elaborated on this sentiment by saying, "It's a chance for us to learn and grow about this topic. It's allowed to be thrust a bit more in the spotlight, because of new history: a future for these sites."
Relating this to the news regarding a possible new location for E.E. Smith High School and the ongoing renovation efforts to preserve Orange Street School, Bleazey states she looks forward to the future being paved through the restoration efforts and increased interest in the site.

It stands to reason the more people learn about and get involved with historical sites such as Orange Street School, the higher the likelihood that these sites will be preserved and maintained.

"Preserving this history and this historic structure, the story and the structure, is going to lead to new education, new community growth, new youth inside that building and learning. So the effort to preserve is going to lead to a better future," said Bleazey.

The exhibit will be on display throughout 2024 at the Fayetteville History Museum. Admission is free to the public, and they are open from Tuesday to Saturday 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. They are located at 325 Franklin Street in downtown Fayetteville.

If you have any interesting insights on the history of Fayetteville that you'd like to share, they invite you to call and share it with them at 910- 433-1457. For those interested in seeing the Orange Street School, it still stands at 600 Orange Street and is adjacent to Festival Park.

If you are not aware, this year is known as The Year of the Dragon. The Lunar New Year was formally observed on February 10th. The Lunar New Year marks the start of the new year according to the lunar calendar.

The Chinese calendar is a lunisolar calendar that combines the Moon's phases and the Earth's orbit around the Sun. It is traditionally utilized for religious observances, festivals and agricultural planning.
In contrast to the majority of other calendars, the Chinese calendar does not utilize a continuous numbering system for years. Instead, it employs a cyclical naming convention, where names are repeated every 60 years. This cycle aligns with the five repetitions of the Chinese zodiac, which consists of 12 animals. This year’s animal is the dragon.

The Fayetteville Symphony Orchestra aims to draw attention to and celebrate the start of the Year of the Dragon.

“It is one of the most important and celebrated holidays in several Asian countries. The holiday is rich with cultural significance, symbolizing the beginning of a new year filled with luck, prosperity, and happiness,” commented Meghan Woolbright, the marketing and office manager of the FSO.

The upcoming performance will showcase "The Year of the Dragon" composed by Philip Sparke. Originally composed for a brass band in 1984 and subsequently adapted for a wind band, "The Year of the Dragon" is a vibrant musical composition consisting of three movements.

Also planned for the concert is a performance of "Korean Folk Song" composed by John Barnes Chance. This musical composition is inspired by a traditional melody that the composer encountered during his time in Seoul, Korea, while he was serving in the U.S. Army.

This program is part of the Fayetteville Symphonic Band’s concert series.

“The Fayetteville Symphonic Band is a community of instrumentalists who are serious about keeping good wind band music in Fayetteville. The band’s membership is around 55, consisting mostly of wind and percussion musicians. The director of the band is Dr. Daniel McCloud, who plays in the Fayetteville Symphony’s percussion section and also is their Assistant Conductor,” explains Anna Meyer, the executive director at the symphony.

An exciting addition to this performance will be The Fayetteville Symphony’s collaboration with New Century International Elementary School's Chinese Immersion program.

At New Century International Elementary School kindergartners enter a Chinese immersion program. By the time they complete fifth grade they are fluent in both Chinese and English. This program not only offers students the opportunity to become bilingual but also promotes acceptance of different cultures and customs.

"Year of the Dragon" will take place on Tuesday, March 5 starting at 7:30 p.m. at the Huff Concert Hall at Methodist College. 

Admission is free. For more information visit: https://www.facebook.com/events/1714584462383046

Campaign season is in full effect, with local primaries held on March 5, Super Tuesday. The newly formed Independent Conservative Alliance PAC is hoping the candidates they back will be pulling in some wins.
For those unfamiliar with what a PAC is, it is a political action committee that dedicates time, resources, and funding to candidates it feels will best represent the ideology of the committee. While many of the core members of the PAC are Republicans, the PAC’s focus is more on the conservative approach than Republican ideology.
“It’s not so much the issues, although the issues are important. It’s the approach that you take to solve the issues. Are you going to rely on the government to solve all your problems or are we going to empower people to solve their problems? Are we going to be a welcoming county for businesses, or make it hard for them to do work? Are we going to raise taxes because that's the easy road, or are we going to look at places where we can save money in county government and keep from having to raise taxes? Are we going to talk about problems until the cows come home or are we going to do something about it?” said John Szoka, one of the core members of the PAC.
The Independent Conservative Alliance or ICA PAC was formed by core members: a former State Representative, business owner, and retired Army Lieutenant Colonel John Szoka; former Senator Wesley Meredith; former Fayetteville City Council member from 2007-2017 Bobby Hurst; and Jackie Taylor, former Cumberland County Republican Party Chair. The objective of the ICA PAC is to “recruit the best candidates in winnable races for the local, county, and state offices.”
The Independent Conservative Alliance is looking for members, “local officials, businesspeople, and community leaders wanting to bring positive change and improve the quality of locally elected leaders and actively recruiting candidates.”
“I served on the executive board of the Republican party and in my position, I actually created the recruitment committee for candidates to run for political office,” said Hurst. “That was really why I joined: to use that as an opportunity to recruit the best candidates to serve in public services. Then I got this group together and people from various backgrounds that have served, that know what it takes to win a campaign and a great group of people. We were going to focus on the county commissioners' race and endorse candidates, who we thought would be the best three for the three seats. Realizing the Plan of Organization says that the Republican Party can’t endorse candidates in the primary, I thought it best to step down from the Executive Committee and just focus on this PAC, and that's what we've done…. That's kind of the beginning of it.”
ICA PAC established criteria based on 8 key factors for candidates looking to seek endorsement.
1. Candidates have been vetted.
2. Candidates are knowledgeable of the issues facing the county.
3. Financially sound and fundraising in place.
4. A good work ethic and positive attitude.
5. A good base of support with a campaign team of volunteers.
6. Organized campaign plan.
7. Thoroughly replied to interview questions.
8. Ready to start work on day one!
ICA PAC is currently focused on the county commissioner race and on Thursday, February 1st, they conducted interviews with 7 commissioner candidates. They chose three to endorse based on the criteria the PAC has set: Pavan Patel, Henry Tyson, and Peter Pappas. ICA PAC has plans to begin recruiting candidates for Cumberland County Board of Education races coming up this year (filing opens on July 5, 2024) and the Fayetteville City Council races in 2025. For more information on the Independent Conservative Alliance, you can reach out to member Bobby Hurst.

Among the bustling goings of downtown, there is a serene retreat that transforms the mind, body, and soul, from entrance to exit. Blissful Alchemist, located at 414 Ray Avenue, is a space like no other in the area.

A boutique, a hair salon, a tanning salon, a yoga and meditation studio, a salt room, a holistic health cooperative, and an event space, there is not much that this place doesn’t do or provide. On March 2nd, from noon to 2 p.m., Blissful Alchemist is hosting a Yoga and Sound in the Salt Room, an elevated yoga experience utilizing three services found in the space. This occasion was masterfully crafted to release tension and uplift the soul, not to mention the physical benefits of movement in the salt cave. Everyone is invited to this class, whether they are new to yoga and sound bowls or those practicing for years. This class can be modified for anyone. The cost of the class is $14. Those interested can secure their spot online at https://www.blissfulalchemists.com/s/appointments.

For those unfamiliar, yoga, in its Western practice, is an intentional movement of the body to release negative feelings and has proven physical benefits. Sound bowls, which can be considered musical instruments, are metal or crystal bowls that resonate sounds at different frequencies depending on how they are played.

Salt caves are man-made versions of the natural phenomena of water dissolving rock salt, creating a cave. The use of salt caves has proven to improve respiratory health, the immune system, mental health, skin health and some recurring minor issues like sinusitis and congestion. Information on all services can be found and booked via the website.

Blissful Alchemists was co-founded by Brittany Campbell. An Ohio native, entrepreneur, and military wife, Campbell has dedicated time to creating a cooperative space for other women-owned businesses to thrive.

“Blissful Alchemists was created between my business partner Carolyn and I. We wanted to bring together parts of different aspects of our life. I began with beauty. She began with spirituality. And we knew together that the mind, body, and spirit are just so important and all together. You’re not going to feel good on the outside unless you feel good on the inside,” Campbell said. “Community is so powerful that we knew that by bringing more people together, the more that we could really help and do. When you come together, you become so much more powerful and connected as a tribe. And I think we have gotten so far away that, it was time to bring it all back together… we have all the beauty treatments you need and also are incorporating so much spirituality, yoga, breath work, meditation, reiki and acupuncture, to be able to fuel our emotional bodies, our spiritual bodies, our physical bodies and it’s just been a dream unfolding, with a lot of challenges but the community is building and growing. People are coming in and knocking on our doors looking and seeking for a spiritual place to be...we are a beacon of light.”
Blissful Alchemists isn’t just one individual business, it’s a collective of businesses and brands, housing 20 diverse and brilliantly talented women.

“Giving women the power to create their own financial freedom, I think that is a huge thing. We have over 20 women in here and over half of them are their own business owners. When you come together you can thrive. When you can lean on one another. Being solo I think can be so lonely and being in the entrepreneurship world can be lonely, so you feel like you are crazy and you feel like you can’t do it. When you are connected to people who are experiencing the same things, it can be beneficial,” Campbell said of why the space is important to her and the community.

There are still 7 spaces available for rent and those interested should inquire onsite. Campbell’s passion for helping other women be successful business owners extends far beyond creating Blissful Alchemists. She also has a clothing line, Babes Support Babes, that completely funds sick, family and maternity leave for those women in the collective. The hope is for the brand to expand and allow Campbell to fund other women business owners.

Just a few months ago, Katryna Kukhar, a Ukrainian ballerina, was performing on a stage in Kyiv. Multiple times during the performance, an air alarm would go off. The dancing would stop, and everyone would find their way to the bomb shelter. At some point, the performance would begin again. Shortly back into the performance, they would be met with another air alarm.
“We had six air alarms per day,” Kukhar said. “It was a very difficult time.”

Kukhar explained that despite the war and all that comes with it, the people of Ukraine still crave the things that bolster Ukrainian culture. To her, keeping the culture alive is one of the best "home front weapons."
“People in Ukraine still want to go see performances,” explains Alexander Stoyanov, a fellow danseur and Kukhar's husband. “ … It’s just a small piece of Ukrainian life now.”

Kukhar and Stoyanov are part of the Grand Kyiv Ballet that will grace the stage at the Crown Theatre on March 7 for Giselle. For these two ballerinas, there are a few important things in life — their love for one another, their two children, ballet and Ukraine. Like the ballet they are about to perform, the main plotline of their life is a love story.

“Katryna was already working in the National Opera. I just came from ballet school. First day when they opened the door, I saw her and fell in love,” Stoyanov said.

He decided from then on he would bring her sweets everyday to convince her of his love. He recounted that this lasted about a year.

“He would like to kill my body,” Kukhar says laughing.

In the upcoming ballet, Kukhar plays the main character, Giselle, and Stoyanov plays Albert, the leading male role. For both of them, this is a role they have played many times all over the world in countries stretching from Europe to South America to the United States.

During their tours, Kukhar and Stoyanov felt it was necessary to share information about the war in Ukraine with others.

“For us, it was an important mission because not all countries in the world really know all the truths,” Stoyanov said.

Before the war, the couple said they had plans for five years or more into the future. The changes in their country and the uncertainty from the war has changed a lot of that.

“We had plans for our children’s lives. We had plans for our life. When it started, all our plans disappeared,” Stoyanov said. “We now live just for the near future. We don’t know what will happen with the world tomorrow.”

“Everyone is waiting for peace,” Kukhar said. “It’s a very complicated question for us now.”

For now, the duo plans to remain in the United States with their two children and continue doing ballet. The hope is to share Ukrainian culture, art and with that, ballet. They feel Giselle will bring a taste of Ukrainian ballet and a great story.

“We would like to bring some positive emotion for people,” Stoyanov said.

This is what they are hoping for during the tour of Giselle — positive emotion. Stoyanov said they would love for people to come for the two hours to watch a piece of Ukrainian art through its ballet dancers.

“They must have a rest. They must relax. We’d like to touch their heart, their soul, deep inside. This is our main goal,” Stoyanov said.

“Theatre is like a church. People come for their soul,” Kukhar said.

Giselle is a story about a peasant girl who falls in love with a nobleman disguised as a commoner. Stoyanov describes it as a story about life and about love.

“This is the best, magic love story. It’s full of drama. It’s full of mystery. Most magnificent classical ballet in all the world," said Kukhar.

For Stoyanov and Kukhar they said they can draw a lot of parallels from this story and the situation in their home country. In particular, Stoyanov details a moment of resolution in the story, an emotional moment and the dawning of a new day.

“In the sunrise, all bad things disappear,” he said.

“It’s very important for us to bring belief in the future,” she said.

For more information about Giselle, visit www. crowncomplexnc.com. Tickets are on sale and range from $48 to $88. The show will only be performed on March 7th at 7 p.m.

North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper is on a tear, and it is a righteous one, both for its goals and for his well-justified anger. A product of a North Carolina public education himself both in his hometown of Nashville and at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Cooper has no doubt about the value of public education. Now unfettered by an impending 2024 political campaign of his own, Cooper is not mincing words about what has happened to North Carolina’s once-vaunted public education. His office refers to the situation as a “public education crisis.”
And it is.

Cooper, like many other North Carolinians, wants our state to invest in public education, instead of cutting it. Yes, education is expensive, whether it is public or private, but a lack of education is even more costly. Next to my family and my friends, nothing in life has meant more to me than my education. It has helped me understand the world we live in and brought me great joy as I learn, and I know many people feel the same way. Over the last decade, however, North Carolina legislators have concentrated on tax breaks rather than investments, and while the numbers are still big for educational investment at all levels, our growing state—now 9th in the nation—is slipping behind by almost every measure. We spend proportionally less per student and likewise for teacher pay. The Governor supports an 18-percent teacher pay raise over the next two years in an attempt to get North Carolina back to being respected nationally for our public education.

Cooper, like many other North Carolinians, including this one, wants public money to go to public education. Neither he nor millions of others are interested in spending public money to send children to private schools, no matter what their family income. The current policy does just that under the attractive banner of Opportunity Scholarships, but it breaks my heart and makes me angry to know that tax dollars paid in by some of our lowest-income citizens are indeed going to send children of some of our wealthiest residents to private schools. Who on God’s green earth thinks that is morally right or even makes sense to spend $ 4 billion in public money over the next decade on private schools?

Cooper, like many other North Carolinians, wants public schools to teach factual history and ideas that have been recognized and discussed by scholars over time. He is not interested in advancing a political agenda that stresses one point of view and excludes others, nor is he concerned that today’s students’ feelings can be hurt by assessments of historical events and movements in which they played no role.
The bottom line is that most of North Carolina’s children do attend public schools, almost 9 out of 10 of them. If they are not well educated and do not become thriving and productive adults, the rest of us, including those of us educated privately, will struggle in a state that made the wrong funding choices for North Carolina’s overall future.

Governor Cooper put it this way in an interview with WUNC.

“There is no question this is a long-term battle because it is going to be a long-term fix. We need to highlight the positives of public schools, which are numerous, and on top of that understand that they are operating on shoestring budgets and won’t stay good if we don’t provide the proper funding.”

The Governor is correct, and we ignore his advice at our peril.

Many residents in Fayetteville and Cumberland County have difficulty understanding the concerns raised by school board members and some residents regarding the recommendation that the new E.E. Smith High School be relocated and constructed on a 90-acre track of beautiful tranquil land on Fort Liberty. Land, I might add, that is being donated by the U.S. Army, saving Cumberland County taxpayers tens of millions of dollars.

My question is: what's not to like about that? Stryker Golf Course is a practical and convenient location for a new and much-needed Cumberland County high school. A technologically advanced, state-of-the-art E.E.Smith high school, beautifully centered on land originally landscaped and sculptured by the world-famous golf course designer Donald Ross. The school is dedicated to one of Fayetteville's most renowned educators and statesman, Dr. Ezekiel Ezra Smith.

I can only surmise that those who oppose Stryker Golf Course as the location of this new high school facility are conflicted and confused between sentimentality, history, fiscal logic and community responsibility.

Dr. Ezekiel Ezra Smith was a remarkable man: newspaper publisher, soldier, diplomat, pastor and three-term president of Fayetteville State University until he died in 1933. I learned much about this local educational icon from Heidi Beasley, Director of the Fayetteville History Museum, when I visited E.E. Smith's home at 135 Blount St.

Smith's newly renovated home tells the story of Dr. Smith's massive contribution to education at all levels. It is an impressive Fayetteville historic asset now on the National Register of Historic Places. Undoubtedly, those generations who graduated from E.E. Smith High School have a strong sentimental connection to the home of the Golden Bulls at 1800 Seabrook Ave.

The good news is that the facility is not going away. The proposed Fort Liberty site is a more practical 21st-century location with easy central access to the educational needs of Fayetteville, Fort Liberty, and Cumberland County children. The Fort Liberty school and location reflects a modern, thought-out educational vision with many additional and substantial benefits to the Fayetteville, Fort Liberty, and Cumberland County community.

It will significantly benefit our economic vitality and solidify our partnership with our military neighbor. After all, Fort Liberty wants the best educational facility for its soldiers and military families. The new state-of-the-art E.E. Smith High School will be just that.

Fort Liberty donating the land will save Cumberland County millions of dollars allowing the county ample finances to construct a facility equipped with the latest educational technology to inspire 21st-century creativity and innovation. The new high school will speak volumes of our long-term educational commitment to the children in our community; modern technology, spacious modern classrooms, and multi-purposed sports facilities will all be on a plot of historic land, creating a serene educational environment with room to grow and expand.

With all these advantages and circumstances, it's hard to imagine why anyone would oppose such a lucrative opportunity and partnership with Fort Liberty. Truth be known, the majority of students currently attending the existing E.E. Smith High School would prefer the latest in STEM education to assist them in preparing for college and future careers over historical sentimentality.

A note of caution to Cumberland County Commissioners and CC School Board members: time is of the essence when discussing and considering the need and location for this new high school. Fort Liberty wants a new high school, which is needed now.

It will take years to build, and the longer the project is delayed, the costlier it will become. Who will say how long Fort Liberty's generous offer will be available? With the vastness of the installation and proximity to Hoke, Harnett, and Moore Counties, we surely don't want to risk having them investigate other options to achieve their educational objectives.

Think of the millions of federal dollars Cumberland County education would lose if we were not educating their children. Cumberland County Commissioners and the Board of Education need to prioritize responsible stewardship of taxpayer money and our children's academic future.

Besides, think of the goodwill, publicity, and worldwide notoriety Fayetteville and Fort Liberty will receive from having the only educational institution designed and built on a 78-year-old Donald Ross golf course named after the area's most respected and renowned statesman and educator, Dr. Ezekiel Ezra Smith.

In closing, I want to say I'm incredibly proud and grateful to the Orange Street School Historical Association for their ongoing efforts to preserve the history of that neoclassical circa 1915 structure. The Orange Street School is the city's oldest educational building and the original E.E. Smith High School. This 109-year-old building is also on the National Register of Historic Places. Our Cumberland County Commissioners have a tremendous opportunity and responsibility to preserve and honor the memory of Dr. Ezekiel Ezra Smith, one of Fayetteville's most significant Black educators and community leaders.
By partnering with Fort Liberty to construct a new E.E. Smith High School on Stryker Golf Course, they will ensure the educational futures of generations to come while making thousands of E.E. Smith alums proud that they participated in securing their school's position in Fayetteville and Cumberland County's educational history books.

Thank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

Fred Chappell, former North Carolina Poet Laureate and longtime professor at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro died on January 4 at age 87.

To celebrate his contributions, I have revised a column I wrote in 2009 about his book of short stories, “Ancestors and Others: New and Selected Stories.”

Asserting that his novels and short stories were equally as great as his poetry could get you in trouble with Chappell’s adoring poetry fans. They will think of him always as North Carolina’s Poet Laureate, even though his term ended in 2003.

Chappell was one of the rare poets whose excellence is celebrated both by his fellow poets and a significant public following.

There is no denying that he was a great poet.

But when he turned his poetry-tuned wordsmithing to his inventive, imaginative, and place-based stories, something even better than his poetry was the result, as demonstrated in his 2009 book, “Ancestors and Others: New and Selected Stories.”

That book collected a variety of 21 stories. “Variety” is an insufficient description of the different experiences that Chappell gives his readers, taking them from the North Carolina mountains of the recent past to Sweden, France and England centuries ago; from North Carolina’s “good old boys” to the composer Haydn; from Newton’s theories to how to kill a deer.

After reading each story, I wanted to call some friend to say, “Fred Chappell wrote a short story especially for you.”

I want my hunting friends Doug Lay and Wendell Merritt to read “Tradition,” which takes its hero from his group into a deer blind so cold, as described by Chappell, that this reader started to shake.
For Peter White, former director of the North Carolina Botanical Garden, “Linnaeus Forgets” is perfect. Chappell takes us to Sweden in 1758 where Carl Linnaeus, the designer of plant classification systems, discovers a plant that houses a community of thousands of tiny human-like creatures.

My former minister, Bob Dunham, could read the short story, “Judas,” and maybe explain Judas’s comment that Jesus was “simply goofy, a nut…. That was the whole trouble, you know. His kind of Madness is contagious.”

Retired music UNC Chapel Hill professor Tom Warburton and former New York Philharmonic lead oboist Joe Robinson would delight in “Moments of Light,” in which Haydn’s visit to Herschel’s (the discoverer of Uranus and also an oboist) observatory led to the composition of “The Creation.”

The despair that follows the loss of a best friend in a deadly accident as described in “Duet” would be familiar to a psychiatrist like the late Dr. Robert Bashford, who would have understood the power of the friend’s music at graveside to give comfort and relief.

The appearance of three genetically reconstructed Civil War soldiers in “Ancestors” would thoroughly entertain Civil War enthusiast Alan Stephenson.

The North Carolina Collection’s former director Bob Anthony could identify with the librarian in “The Lodger.” A dead poet tries to infiltrate and take over the librarian’s life.

Cliff Butler, a retired pharmacist who grew up in Dunn, could follow the country furniture store delivery team hauling a new freezer, the surprise “Christmas Gift” for a farmer’s wife, who had ironed tobacco leaves to get high bids of the buyers for her husband’s crop.

It was easy to tag Chappell’s stories as aimed at prospective men readers. But Chappell appeals to women, too, especially those who want to understand men and their crazy doings and firm friendships. Some stories are aimed right at women, as in “Gift of Roses,” the poignant tale of a blind woman who rescues heritage roses. Greensboro’s Margaret Arbuckle, who once tried to save an ancient rose bush from the advancing waters of Lake Norman, might also understand.

A few weeks before Chappell’s death, my family also lost a great poet and chronicler of mountain life, my brother, Mike Martin, who also died at age 87. While I will miss both of them, I will always be grateful for their opening doors for me to see the world in richer and deeper ways.

Editor’s Note: D.G. Martin, a retired lawyer, served as UNC-System’s vice president for public affairs and hosted PBS-NC’s North Carolina Bookwatch.

Get glammed! Get your stylish hat and outfit ready! Come party in style and with a purpose at the Fort Liberty Area Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc.'s 15th Annual Big Hat Brunch. The event is set for Saturday, March 16, at the Iron Mike Conference Center, 2658 Rock Merritt Ave. on Fort Liberty. The event runs from 11 a.m. until 3 p.m.

The Big Hat Brunch is one of the chapter's defining events. It debuted in March 2010 as an annual scholarship fundraiser. The event has risen in popularity year after year, attracting many attendees, including notable community leaders. Some of The Big Hat Brunch's previously featured themes include Community Diamonds, which acknowledged outstanding female local leaders; From Brunch to the Ballot Box, motivating attendees to the polls; and Moving Forward in Unity with NC State Senator Val Applewhite, who served as last year's keynote speaker.

This year's Delta Sigma Theta Sorority Inc. BHB theme, expected to draw 500 attendees, is "Continuing the Legacy, One Scholarship at a Time." La’Tanta (L.T.) McCrimmon, APCO's Governor Director of Legislative Affairs, will deliver this year's keynote speech.

"We're focusing on continuing the legacy of our sorority," said Shelia Wilson, this year’s committee chair.
The event has a meaningful purpose, as the chapter's "party with a purpose" motto ensures that eligible high school students receive financial assistance to attend college. The Big Hat Brunch has raised over $75,000 in scholarships to give to deserving high school students each year, contributing to reducing the cost of college expenses.

Wilson also announced that this year's event will commemorate the tenth anniversary of the 2nd Lt Lisa Nicole Bryant scholarship. "We present this scholarship, biannually, to a Fayetteville State University student," she shared.

Bryant, a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, was on temporary assignment at Fort Bragg (now Fort Liberty), as a 2nd Lieutenant in the United States Army. She had a promising career before her tragic death on July 10, 1993, at the age of 21, in a Fort Bragg residence hall. “The chapter will be honoring the story of the Princeton University graduate, and she will never be forgotten”, shared Wilson.

When asked about the essence of giving back to the community while preserving the legacy of the Big Hat Brunch, Wilson responded, "It feels like this is the service that we signed up for—to be able to be part of a legacy that continues to help, academically, for our students and to help make the burden of college fees a little lighter."

In addition to presenting scholarships, the event will include vendors, a purse auction, the infamous hat parade, music, food, and much more.

The committee's behind-the-scenes work, according to Wilson, is likened to planning a big party with a purpose. It's a fun, stylish party while supporting high school seniors and Bronco students' academic financial needs so they can make a global impact in their professional endeavors.

To attend the event, purchase tickets through PayPal for $63.00 (including PayPal fees) at dst.fbaac@gmail.com. Civilians are welcome to attend the event, but will need a visitor’s pass to gain access to the installation. Guests can get a pass through the Visitor Access Center at the All American Gate on Fort Liberty, or online by visiting FORT_LIBERTY_VISITOR_PASS_REQUEST_USING_ONLINE_PRE.pdf (armhttps://home.army.mil/liberty/application/files/6816/8372/2450/FORT_LIBERTY_VISITOR_PASS_REQUEST_USING_ONLINE_PRE.pdf y.mil).

For more information, contact dst.flaac.bhb@gmail.com or 910-551-4708.

In a world where conflict is domestic and global, organizations that spread a message of love and hope are much needed and received. His Outreach Worldwide, or HOW, is a local faith-based nonprofit that aims to share God’s word and love through its children’s publication, Sharing Jesus with Children Around the World, and in outreach ministries based all over the world. This February marks the 15th anniversary of the two-time Up & Coming Weekly Best-winning community staple. Located at 3013 Raeford Road, HOW has been committed to its global ministry since the idea was hand-delivered by God in a dream to Founder and Director, Lynne O’Quinn.

“For years I had been teaching Bible school to children, which I loved. For years I had been praying that God would give me a way to reach the children of the world with the gospel of love of Jesus Christ. I was working on a Bible study and sitting at the computer every day and I was reading the scripture and working on that. That was the Jesus Bible Study…and every day I would sit there and pray for God to give me a way to reach His children all over the world,” O’Quinn said. “I went to the beach and I had my two grandsons at that time… and I had them by myself for two weeks. We had a great time… I really was tired. By the time the whole family came that last weekend, they got the kids, I went to bed and I told my husband not to dare wake me up. I was sleeping until noon if I wanted to sleep until noon. I was that exhausted. I went to sleep and God, of course, had other plans for me… During the night, I had this dream. And I’m not one to ever remember dreams… I was in this space that was all white and there was one desk in the middle of this space and I ran in. I threw everything down on the desk and sat down. This shimmery figure was standing there beside me and I looked and said I’m so sorry I’m late. And he said it’s ok, what matters is that you’re here now.

"I think that, of course, was in reference to past life. Where I wasn’t following Him like I should. I then remember He handed me this piece of paper. I don’t recall a face. It was just a shimmery figure. Jesus. He handed me this piece of paper and said this is your assignment. And I read it and said, I can’t do this. I don’t remember what it said…but I handed it back to Him and He said no you don’t understand. This is why you are here. This is your assignment. Handed it to me, and the minute I took it back, I woke up. I heard Him say, get up and go write. People ask me how it sounded. All I know is that night, when I was so tired, and still dark outside, it was commanding enough to make me get out of bed and go. There is that three-second window when you can roll back over and go to sleep. I think, had I done that, none of this would be here now. I got up and went downstairs. I remember I got a piece of paper, a pen, made coffee, because it was still dark outside. I was sitting there like what am I doing, sitting here… The words just started coming and coming and coming and coming. And those were the words, to that little book, Sharing Jesus with Children Around the World. I couldn’t write fast enough. I just started writing all the words down. Not one word has been changed in that book. When I finished I had a manuscript of that book.”

God has been the driving force behind the outreach. Only weeks after sitting and writing the now global children’s ministry book, it spread beyond O’Quinn’s wildest imagination, a sign that this was truly her assignment. “Within one week’s time, the book was on every single continent,” O’Quinn said.

The book has been translated into over 100 languages. His Outreach Worldwide has expanded beyond the book and has now established ministries in several countries around the world. They focus on not only sharing God’s love but also supplying communities with clothing, food, and education. HOW has started establishing churches in its base countries, and they now have 4 in Honduras. The churches are run mainly by those who grew up in the ministry, continuing the work of the outreach for generations to come. Those interested in giving to HOW can do so by visiting their website http://www.hisoutreachworldwide.org/.

Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, or as he’s better known throughout history, the Marquis de Lafayette, is a historical figure whose personal history and ideals are deeply connected to the history of Fayetteville.

Known to most as a hero of the American Revolutionary War, Lafayette was a French aristocrat who, at the ripe age of nineteen, traveled across the sea to offer his aid and services to the Continental Congress at the precipice of the birth of the United States of America.

Spurred to action by his core beliefs of human rights, civil liberties, and man’s equality under God, Lafayette would go on to play a crucial role in America’s victory in the Revolutionary War against Great Britain, from being wounded at the Battle of Brandywine, to aiding in the defeat of Charles Cornwallis at the siege of Yorktown.

This man, Lafayette, is the foundation of an organization actively working to mold our community in line with his ideals for the betterment of everyone. The Lafayette Society, founded in 1981, was conceptualized as a way to honor and uphold the values expounded by Lafayette.

Those ideals are generosity, patriotism, leadership, support of human rights for all and opposition to slavery and oppression. Though many cities and towns share his namesake, our humble city of Fayetteville is the only one he personally visited during his time in our country. This fact emboldens those who support and share in his beliefs to inspire and connect with other like-minded individuals in the pursuit of emulating the characteristics that marked Lafayette as a legend of the revolution.
Working within our shared community, the Lafayette Society endeavors to educate the community on its history deriving from the Marquis de Lafayette. Guest lectures, celebrations and helping in the organization of educational events and activities across the city are only a few of the things that the Lafayette Society does for our community.

“The Lafayette Society was founded over 40 years ago by Martha Duell. She recognized that the city of Lafayette was, in fact, named after the Marquis de Lafayette, she understood what the Marquis de Lafayette meant to America and its formation, his role, which was working with Washington during the revolution and his ideals for humanity. So, she formed the organization,” said Dr. Gwenesta Melton, current board president of the LaFayette Society.

Duell was widely regarded as a model citizen within our city who strove to uplift and unite our community for the sole reason of altruism. Truly, it appears as though the torch of humanity shared by Lafayette was passed down throughout the ages to inspire us once more. This sentiment, shared by Dr. Melton, is a core belief of the organization in its pursuits to laud the tenets of Lafayette’s vision of America’s future society.

“I became more interested the more I read about him [the Marquis de Lafayette]. He was a champion of freedom, he opposed slavery and oppression, and he was really adamant about human rights and women’s rights. That really resonated with me. Here’s a visionary that was ahead of his time. This was the epitome of diversity, inclusivity, giving everyone an opportunity, and doing it yourself. That’s what got me extremely interested in him. Even his leadership qualities as such a young person really resonated with me as well. That’s how I got involved,” said Melton.

The Lafayette Society has established itself as an organization of individuals with a shared belief in what our country was founded upon. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That all people were created equal and that these rights are unalienable.

These ideals, shared by the Marquis de Lafayette, have continued to inspire people to this day. Their goal to educate and inspire, not only those currently residing in our shared community but also the next generation, are a hallmark of Fayetteville’s rich history in diversity, opportunity and unity that truly promote the legacy of those who gave their all in the pursuit of these ideals.

They believe that through education and spreading awareness of our shared history and values that we may come together for the sake of each other. That we may uplift each other and support one another in our times of struggle and hardship. As it was in the past, Up & Coming Weekly loudly proclaims with many others, “Vive Lafayette!”

The LaFayette Society will be hosting their annual meeting and luncheon social on Sunday, March 3 at 12:30 p.m. at SkyView on Hay St. Attendees will hear a talk on the similarities between the military during LaFayette's time and now. For more information on The Lafayette Society, their upcoming events, next year’s bicentennial celebration, or to get involved yourself, please visit their website at https://www.lafayettesociety.org/. U&CW’s coverage of The Lafayette Society, their plans and events will continue as we get closer and closer to the 200th year celebration of Lafayette’s Farewell Tour on March 4th and 5th, 2025.

The former state auditor of North Carolina, Beth Wood, never lost an election. She clinched the Democratic primary for the elected office in 2008, defeated a Republican incumbent that fall, and then won reelection in 2012, 2016, and 2020.

Wood never lost an election — but she did lose her job, thanks to a series of disastrous decisions that began with a hit-and-run incident in December 2022 and ended with her resignation from the post a year later. Jessica Holmes, an attorney who formerly chaired the Wake County Board of Commissioners, was appointed by Gov. Roy Cooper to replace Wood, and will stand for election this fall.

Six Republicans are vying for the chance to displace Holmes from the office of state auditor, one of the 10 elected executives who form North Carolina’s Council of State. The state auditor conducts financial and performance audits of state and local agencies and departments. Although not necessarily a high-profile office, it’s one of the most important in state government — and is best held by an independent-minded leader, not a partisan loyalist or glad-hander eager for higher office.

Charles Dingee is a small-business owner and activist who previously chaired the Wake County Young Republicans and the 13th District GOP. He says his commitment to fiscal responsibility, openness, and public service make him the strongest candidate for state auditor. Dingee pledges to “work tirelessly to ensure that government agencies are transparent in their operations, and that all financial transactions are open to public scrutiny.”

A former member of the Greensboro City Council, Jim Kee has worked as a farmer, real-estate developer, sales manager, and nonprofit director.

“Community service has always been a passion for me,” Kee says. “With two terms of city council experience, I understand what it takes to find solutions, how important it is to work together and navigate the complicated governmental agencies to help get things done.”

Another candidate in the race is Anthony Wayne Street, who goes by Tony. A Wilmington native, Street ran for the same office four years ago, winning the GOP nomination despite media coverage of a series of criminal charges against Street, including stalking. He lost the 2020 general election to Wood by about 94,000 votes.

Jeff Tarte is a former IBM sales executive and management consultant with extensive experience in data analytics and forensic investigative work. A former mayor of Cornelius, Tarte served three terms in the North Carolina Senate and has served on numerous boards and commissions.

“We all recognize there is an endless supply of waste in state government,” Tarte says. “Under my leadership, utilizing pragmatic data forensic approaches in conjunction with advanced technologies, I will help mitigate the problems of waste, fraud, and abuse in our state agencies.”

A fifth candidate for the nomination is Dave Boliek. A former prosecutor and longtime attorney in Fayetteville, Boliek serves on the UNC-Chapel Hill Board of Trustees and previously chaired that board as well as the board of the Southeast Regional Area Health Education Center. In a recent interview with the Raleigh News & Observer, Boliek said there were “too many administrators in our public schools, universities and state agencies” and argued there were “many places where services and management are redundant and can be consolidated.”

The final Republican candidate is Jack Clark, a certified public accountant and budget staffer at the North Carolina General Assembly. He formerly held auditing positions at the private companies Grant Thornton and Parexel. “I will set a tone that our department wants to ensure taxpayer money is being used effectively and efficiently,” Clark told the News & Observer. “Candidates with too many personal ties, or too strong a personal agenda, won’t be best suited to find these unfair transactions.”

Dingee, Kee, Tarte, Boliek, and Clark maintain campaign websites where you can read more about their backgrounds, endorsements, and positions on issues pertinent to the office of state auditor. Early voting for North Carolina’s March primaries begins on February 15.

Editor’s note: John Hood is a John Locke Foundation board member. His latest books, Mountain Folk and Forest Folk, combine epic fantasy with early American history (FolkloreCycle.com).

The Lenten season marks a period of 40 days when faithful Christians prepare for the glory of Easter Sunday. Easter commemorates the miracle of Jesus Christ's resurrection, which is foundational for the Christian faith.

Lent is a season when Christians reflect and prepare to celebrate Easter. Lent is a period of spiritual purification that begins on Ash Wednesday and ends on Holy Thursday. Fasting, giving alms and prayer are some of the hallmarks of Lent.

Many Lenten traditions are well known, but others are not. Here is a glimpse at some of those traditions.

The first "Lent"

Lent is based on the 40 days that Jesus spent in the desert in preparation for his public life. Matthew 4:1-11 shares that Christ was led into the desert by the Holy Spirit for a period of fasting and prayer, where He constantly encountered the devil and his temptations. Lent also mirrors the period of time (40 days) that the Israelites spent on their journey from slavery in Egypt to the promised land of Israel.

Black fasts

While certain Lenten restrictions have lightened up a bit in recent years, it once was the norm to consume a single meal per day of bread, water and herbs after sunset on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, which was known as a black fast. During the other days of Lent, no food was allowed until 3 p.m., which Christians believe was the hour of Our Lord's death.

Pinatas for Lent?

The Lenten tradition of hitting a papier-mache creation filled with candy originated in Italy. Eventually the idea was picked up by the Spanish and brought to Mexico, where the familiar pinatas now known to partygoers across the globe appeared. Professor Michael Foley, author of "Dining with the Saints," says the original pinata had seven cones to represent the seven deadly sins.

Hitting the cones and defeating the sins revealed the heavenly reward in the form of candy.

Prayerful pretzels

In the early Middle Ages, when other foods were not allowed during Lent, pretzels became popular. The twisted shape of the pretzels was associated with arms entwined in prayer.

Hot cross buns

Hot cross buns are synonymous with Easter. Although they may predate Christianity and might have been a tradition adopted to make Christianity more relatable to the masses, one legend suggests they originated with a twelfth century Anglican monk.

This monk reportedly baked the buns and marked them with crosses in honor of Good Friday. These yeasted sweet rolls have since become a popular treat on Easter weekend.

Lent precedes Easter each year and is full of time-honored traditions.

“Empowering women in small business and entrepreneurship can positively impact communities. Women entrepreneurs can create jobs, drive innovation, and contribute to economic growth. They can also help address societal challenges and promote social change through business” according to Linkin.com.

The North Carolina Center for Economic Empowerment began as a Women’s Center in 1990. Sylvia Gooding Ray’s original vision of a Women’s Center evolved into NCCEED. This organization was established as a non-profit on the premise of referral services to women, low-income, and socially and economically disadvantaged members of society. Sylvia Gooding Ray served as director for thirty years.
Sylvia Ray Gooding served as board member of the North Carolina Council for Women. She also was Board Trustee for Fayetteville State University. She was the recipient of the Fayetteville National Organization of Women, 21st Annual Celebration of Women of Distinction during the Susan B. Anthony Birthday celebration in 2020, according to Michael Futch.

Gooding was an early organizer of the Equal Rights Amendment legislation during the 1970s and 1980s. She served in the capacity of Staff Member of ERA Countdown Campaign in North Carolina from 1981 to 1982. One of her skill sets was fundraising. She collected over one million dollars in financial support to address homelessness in Fayetteville and Cumberland County.

“She was a woman of courage and strength who worked to bring solutions to women experiencing hardship. She believed in God; she believed in second chances. She believed all people given the right support can achieve anything. We will continue to honor her legacy,” according to the NCCEED website.

The Women’s Business Center evolved into the Center for Economic Empowerment and Development in 1999, as “a regional multi-service resource and advocacy center that promotes growth, economic empowerment, productiveness, and well-being of women and men through counseling, education, information, and programs,” according to NCCEED website.

The current Executive Director is Suzy Hrabovsky.

Her current accomplishments as the current Executive Director include receiving grant funds for persons facing evictions and the Small Business Administration PRIME program provided in North Carolina. The Fayetteville Women’s Business Center is the sole Women’s Business Center in the United States to receive one million dollars for SBA assistance for small business loans.

NCCEED gives the community the tools for success. The tools for success are Self-Sufficiency and Housing, SBA Women’s Business Center, Credit Counseling, Financial Literacy, One-to-One Consulting, Small Business Loans, CEED Micro loans, Training, Pop-up restaurants, Commercial kitchen space, Food Truck Commissary spaces and retail spots.

The services and training will embed within the individual “strong leadership skills, integrity, risk-taking, serial innovators, confident but not egotistical, recognition of strengths and growth areas, competition, and understanding the value of peer networks,” according to Minority Business Development.
NCCEED gives individuals the tools to invest in their business concept. Start-up and seed money for a business dream can be a challenge.

More information is available at NCCEED- Center for Economic Empowerment & Development, 230 Hay Street, Fayetteville, or by phone at 910 323-3377, or at https://www.ncceed.org.