Coaches play a pivotal role in the lives of their players and they carry the huge responsibility of having to develop them as individuals and athletes. Peace Shepard Easton is qualified, willing, and more than ready for this responsibility and challenge as the new coach for Fayetteville Tech’s women’s basketball.

Her extensive background began with her start in playing recreational basketball in her elementary years. During her middle and high school years, she played basketball, ran track and participated in volleyball. Volleyball was one of her top sports and she was also good in track and field with the triple jump, high jump, long jump and 4x400 relay.

Easton excelled in all three sports and graduated from Swansboro High School in 1993. She attended basketball camps and was recruited by several colleges in the ACC.

Easton attended N. C. State where she played for Coach Kay Yow. In her senior year, Eaton helped the Wolfpack make it to the NCAA Final Four. She also played professional basketball after college overseas in Italy, Brazil, Honduras, Ecuador, Finland and Greece.

Her awards include Coach of the Year, Hall of Fame inductee, MVP, numerous state championships, state playoffs and more. Easton was previously the coach of Holly Springs High School for seven years. While there, Easton racked up 100 wins and earned conference coach of the year honors three times and lead the program to four conference chanpionships and five state playoffs.

With having the substantial experience of more than thirty-something years of coaching and playing basketball FTCC Athletic Director Dr. Shannon Yates gave Easton the opportunity to lead the Trojans.

“I am looking forward to being their influencer, coach, big sister and mentor,” said Easton.

“By having been a high school student, a college basketball player, a professional basketball player, and a coach, I don’t have all the answers, but I can at least guide the ladies in the right direction to do the right thing because I have been through it.”

She added, “I understand the struggles of being a high school basketball player from a small town trying to be noticed.”

Easton had a life changing experience during her childhood.

“My father had a stroke when I was in the 8th grade so I was living in a home where my mom took care of my dad,” said Easton. “He is paralyzed on his right side, can’t talk, and nothing has changed besides he has gotten older and has become more dependent on my mom who has been the best wife that any husband could actually have.”

"People didn’t know that I have always assisted her in the background and a lot of people did not know that I had all of this going on in the spotlight with basketball,” said Easton.

“They never knew that I was coming home to a mother who was taking care of my father, showed me how to make lemons out of lemonade, and she is my biggest influencer.”

Coach Easton earned a bachelor's degree in sociology and spends time working in health services.

“At the moment I have worked for five years with UNC and I have been working with Medicare claims,” said Easton.

“So basically I assist providers as far as getting their claims paid in regards to if it is going to be covered by Medicare, the patient, or hospice.”

Easton added that she has been in health care since she graduated from high school and started out at Sigma.

Coach Easton has great plans for Fayetteville Technical Community College’s Women’s basketball team.

“I just want to make a difference as far as trying to get kids to the next step and using my background, connections and networks that I have created in the past,” said Easton.

“I made a lot of relationships and I want to take advantage of that because there are a lot of people that I know who are college coaches in any realm of Division I, II and III.”

She added, “I want to take those relationships and help make the lives better for my athletes.”

When asked what is the one thing that people would be surprised to know about her, she responded, “They would be surprised to know that I am very shy and I don’t like public speaking or being in the spotlight, but there is something about when I get on the court and start coaching, it just leaves me,” said Easton. “There is no fear at all and I am in my element at that time, but I like for someone else to do the speaking and I will tell them thanks for doing a great job.”

As far as beginning her first season at FTCC, Easton was quick to share her thoughts: “I am very proud and excited to be given the opportunity in the college world to coach,” said Easton. “It has always been a dream of mine.”

Pictured above: Peace Shepard Easton brings decades of experience to her role as head coach of FTCC's women's basketball. (Photos courtesy Fayetteville Technical Community College)

 

Hurricanes are dangerous and can cause major inland damage because of high wind, heavy rain, flooding and tornadoes. A tornado is a violently rotating column of air extending from the base of a thunderstorm down to the ground.

Tornadoes can occur at any time of day or night and at any time of the year. They are most common in the southeastern states and the central plains. In recent history the month of September has been the most active period for Atlantic storms. Hurricanes Matthew and Florence impacted the greater Fayetteville area causing severe flood damage.

Households should have emergency plans and provisions in the event of lengthy power outages. Cell phones should be kept charged, and when you know a hurricane is in the forecast purchase backup charging devices to power electronics.

Plan, prepare and be ready for emergencies with The Public Works Commission’s 2021 Storm Preparation Guide. Request a copy of the guide at PWC’s website www.faypwc.com. Copies of the Guides are also available at Up & Coming Weekly stands in Fayetteville and Cumberland County.

The N.C. Department of Transportation needs volunteers to help clean up roadside trash along during the Adopt-A-Highway Fall Litter Sweep from Sept. 11-25.

Each April and September, NCDOT asks volunteers to help remove litter from street sides. Volunteers from local businesses, schools, nonprofits, churches, municipalities, law enforcement and community groups play an important role in keeping North Carolina’s roads clean. Joining this effort is easier than ever before as volunteers can now sign up by way of a convenient online form.

“The litter sweep is a great opportunity to get outdoors with family and friends and work alongside NCDOT to ensure North Carolina remains a beautiful place to live and work.”

Volunteers can request supplies such as trash bags, gloves, and safety vests from local NCDOT county maintenance offices. Anyone who has been recently diagnosed with or exposed to COVID-19 should refrain from participating. For more information visit www.ncdot.gov/or call 919-707-2970.

The Airborne & Special Operations Museum Foundation says there is a limited number of Field of Honor flags left for purchase at $45 each.

Each flag comes with its own story and displays a tag identifying the person who sponsored the flag and the honoree.

This living display of heroism flies as a patriotic tribute to the strength and unity of Americans and honors all who are currently serving, those who have served, and the men and women who have made the ultimate sacrifice for our nation’s freedom.

The Field of Honor will be displayed on the Museum's Parade Field Sept. 11 through Nov. 14.

Some active duty soldiers and veterans are being “grossly” overcharged for VA home loans, and federal regulators need to suspend or ban alleged bad actors and strengthen their oversight over lenders, according to a new report from the office of Rep. Katie Porter, D-Calif.

The report alleges that NewDay USA and The Federal Savings Bank are aggressively refinancing loans with fees and interest rates that could cost borrowers tens of thousands of dollars more over the life of the loans compared to other lenders.

“It is despicable that corporate executives would prey on veterans and military families to line their pockets,” said Porter in an announcement of the report, titled “AWOL: How watchdogs are failing to protect servicemembers from financial scams.”

The report “calls out the lenders that are continuing to single out vulnerable military borrowers for overpriced, cash-out refi mortgages.

The Cumberland County Department of Public Health began distributing naloxone Aug. 10 after receiving funding approval from the County Commissioners and Alliance Health. Naloxone, commonly known as NARCAN, is a lifesaving medication that is used to reverse an opioid overdose. It works by blocking the effects of the opioids in the person’s system, reversing the overdose. Naloxone can be given nasally or injected into the muscle.

The distribution of naloxone is to benefit those who are at risk of a potential opioid overdose. Individuals can pick up a kit if they have friends, family or a loved one who are at risk of an opioid overdose or for people who want to help if they see someone having an opioid overdose. Everyone qualifies to pick up naloxone from the Health Department.

Naloxone kits are available at the CCDPH Pharmacy located on the first floor at 1235 Ramsey St., Fayetteville and will be available at no charge while supplies last. Pharmacy hours are Monday –Thursday 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. and Friday 8:30 a.m. – noon. The pharmacy is closed for lunch from 12-1 p.m.

For more information if you or someone you know is struggling with opioid addiction, please seek help by visiting allianceforaction.org or calling Alliance Health at 800-510-9132.

The city of Fayetteville was going to host a virtual town hall this month on a proposal to update the city’s code of ordinances. But officials changed their minds at the request of city council member D.J. Haire.

Haire is concerned that proposed changes to Article 30 of Fayetteville’s Unified Development ordinance are not thorough. The planned change would strengthen regulations governing so-called halfway houses. The city’s planning commission, which has initial jurisdiction, was to have held the town hall and was asked to postpone it.

Of special interest to city council is a plan by DISMAS Charities Inc., of Louisville, Kentucky, to build a 14,339 square foot, 100-bed halfway house for federal prisoners at 901-905 Cain Road. DISMAS Charities is a private company contracted by the Federal Bureau of Prisons to operate residential reentry centers. The BOP has the authority to place inmates in reentry halfway houses to serve the remainder of their sentences which it says is normally six months to a year. If built as proposed, the Cain Road institution would be the company’s largest center. The 36 establishments operated nationwide by DISMAS Charities average 25 inmates.

The company’s interest in constructing such a large facility could be to compensate for the reduction and/or cancellation of federal halfway houses which began in the summer of 2017. Sixteen federal facilities previously under contract with the BOP were closed. The goal is to provide prisoners with programs to help them successfully transition back into society. Programming can include work, education, vocational training, drug and mental health treatment as well as custodial release preparation.

The property on Cain Road abuts the Scotty Hills / Shamrock neighborhood. Residents fear an institution for housing federal prisoners would negatively impact surrounding property values and create a safety issue. In February of 2020, by a vote of 5-4, city council denied DISMAS a special use permit which would have allowed the company to build the halfway house. The firm appealed, and on Sept. 3 Superior Court Judge Mary Ann Tally affirmed city council’s decision. It is now before the North Carolina Court of Appeals.

The proposal under consideration by city government is to abandon the term halfway house and establish ‘community reintegration centers.’ Revised ordinance amendments would limit the number of residents allowed in future centers. If a community reintegration center is located within 500 feet of a single-family residential zoning district the number of residents shall not exceed 30 people. If located within 500 feet of a multi-family residential district, the number of residents shall not exceed 40 people. The distance would be measured from the property line of the community reintegration center to the property line of the nearest residential property.

Reintegration centers are defined as treatment complexes rather than housing units. Zoning districts where they would be allowed would be reduced, effectively barring them in or near housing areas. On June 15, the planning commission reviewed the proposed ordinance amendments and voted unanimously to recommend their adoption. Once a rescheduled virtual town hall is held, the commission will consider the application, relevant support materials, the staff report and comments given by the public.

Pictured above: This file photo shows a DISMAS reentry center in Kearney, Nebraska. (Photo courtesy www.dismas.com)

 

My earliest memory is of my mother taking my 2-year-old hands and physically showing me how to pick up the pretzels I had just poured out on the floor. The image is as clear in my mind as yesterday’s lunch. My mother guided my hands over the piles of pretzels, scooping up bits and pieces, as I resisted with a toddler’s fury.

There would be many more lessons for me about taking responsibility for my actions, and many more times when my mother would remind me that my actions have consequences. Some of the lessons would be about something as simple as cleaning up my own messes. Others would be life altering decisions that would affect not only me, but my family as well.

Through the early years, my mother guided me and shared her own experiences. As I grew older, ventured out on my own and started a family, my mother encouraged and supported my decisions but continued to hold me responsible for my choices. She reminded me often that my son was watching me, that my actions would influence him.

During my own upbringing it was an accepted truism that I could accomplish anything I set my mind to and was willing to sacrifice for. My sister and I were brought up to take care of ourselves, not to rely on a mate to complete us or support us financially. That ingrained independence has certainly brought me some trouble, but I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Our mother and father never specified what was women’s work or what a man was supposed to do. They lived it. Both my parents cooked and cleaned. Both did laundry. My mom looked after us when dad was at work. My dad looked after us when mom was taking night classes.

From their examples, my sister and I felt comfortable following our own paths, making choices for ourselves. My sister became a special education teacher. I got a degree in journalism and joined the Army.

Although a recruiter told me “they don’t let girls in Special Forces” when I was 15, I went on to spend half my Army career serving in Special Operations units in the U.S. and overseas. I’ve been the only woman in the room when serious decisions were being made. I’ve felt the pressure of voicing my concerns when mine was the lone dissenting opinion. I’ve felt the relief of having my voice heard and respected. I’ve felt the pride that comes from a job well done. That pride is the result of hard work and accompanied by a refusal to accept mediocre efforts.

In the military, mediocre efforts are frowned upon, to say the least. Likewise, on the civilian side, it is hardly news that mediocre efforts rarely meet with real success, the lasting kind that inspires others. Starting with my own mother, I’ve been fortunate in my life to have several examples of women crushing mediocrity and living by example. These women do not accept the status quo, or let someone put them in a “woman’s place” in their education, home or work life. I feel blessed to have been able to help motivate a few young women and men to achieve their own goals by not settling.

Being the editor of Up & Coming Weekly, I’ve come across many stories of amazing women crushing stereotypes and refusing to allow mediocre standards to slide. These women push their own limits and inspire others, both men and women, to do the same. They accept nothing less than their own best effort to achieve their goals. We are honored to be able to showcase a few of these women in this week’s magazine.

So, grab a snack — maybe a bag of pretzels — and enjoy reading this issue of Up & Coming Weekly.

Pictured above: Many of our examples of women (and men) crushing mediocrity come from our own families.

Tammy Thurman strives every day to serve the community professionally and personally. As the Senior Community and Government Relations Manager for Piedmont Gas, she is in charge of the six eastern North Carolina areas to include Fayetteville, Goldsboro, Wilmington, New Bern, Elizabeth City and Tarboro.

Originally from Dunn, Thurman attended St. Augustine University in Raleigh and received her degree in Mass Communication. She took a gap year after college while working as a teacher at E.E. Smith High School in Fayetteville.

“But that’s not what I had gone to school for, my student loans were more than what I was making so I ended up at a telecommunications company, still was not where I wanted to be at but that was my first introduction to working with a utility and then I ended at Progress Energy who was bought by Piedmont Natural Gas,” Thurman said.

Thurman has been with Piedmont Gas for 18 years, first in customer service and eventually worked her way up to community relations. In her customer service role, she started many initiatives and committees where they would give back to the community on behalf of Piedmont.

She had always loved serving the community and wanted to do it for a company.

“I said ‘Lord, I am praying that you open up an opportunity for our company to see my work and see they need me in the community representing them,’” Thurman said. “Long story short, in 2013, a position opened up for community relations in eastern North Carolina and I applied for it and got the job, and it quickly changed from a job to a career.”

In her current role, she serves as the ambassador and in-between person between the company and the community for the eastern region.

“What that looks like is any non-profits, any commerce chambers, your local government, all of those people come through me when they want to ask questions or want responses from Piedmont,” she said. “I am the philanthropist for the company in this region, we support and give back huge amounts of philanthropic dollars to the communities across the state.”

She says she actively seeks out organizations to partner with like The Arts Council in Fayetteville, local music festivals, nonprofits and more.

“I would say I have an average day, but I would be lying," Thurman said. "It consists of four to five on-call meetings, some events to represent the company. For the most part it's just a matter of tossing some apples in the air, but that's part of what makes my job so intriguing, it’s always a new challenge and that’s what keeps me going.”

Her work and life are all about serving, serving and more serving, she said chuckling.

Apart from her professional role at Piedmont, Thurman is on the board and committee for many different organizations. She’s a part of the United Way of Cumberland County, board member for American Heart Associations in Wilmington, trustee at Cape Fear Hospital, board member at the Greater Fayetteville Chamber, North Carolina Independent Colleges and Universities in Raleigh, and the USO at Fort Bragg.

She noticed a while ago that she wasn’t doing much outside of her career and wanted to do something outside of that.

“My heart is to help young high school or college aged women, that's a passion for me,” Thurman mentioned.

Being a motivational speaker, she wanted to share her story, and decided to participate on an anthology project with 41 other women across the nation to write the compilation book “Women Crushing Mediocrity” by Dr. Cheryl Wood.

The book meant for women by women shares real life experiences and aims to provide motivation through true stories from the authors of things they went through, touching on topics such as self-esteem, procrastination, life after divorce, being a single woman and more. Thurman’s portion of the book is focused on how and if one wants to change.

“For me it's about the way you say things, the way you approach things, but at some point, a light goes off that has to say, ‘I cannot keep doing the same thing and expect different outcomes,’ not if I want true change.” Thurman said.

In the book, she talks about her call center experience and how unhappy and upset she was with work.

“I kept saying everything around me needs to change but someone pointed out that wasn’t the case and something in me needed to change,” she said. “And it took about 12 months to digest and work it out. When I got that new mind change, all my pain and complaining stopped.”

Thurman also hosts a radio show called, “A Nation of Sisters”’ on local station WIDU, about motivating women, and talks to women in the military, medical fields, ministries, students and more, she said.

When she’s not dedicating her life to serving others, you can catch Thurman hanging out with her two dogs, on the beach or at amusement parks.

Pictured above: Tammy Thurman is the Senior Community and Government Relations Manager for Piedmont Gas, partnering with many organizations in the region. She also hosts "A Nation of Sisters," a show on local WIDU radio.

 

According to Investopedia, an exit strategy is defined as “... an entrepreneur's strategic plan to sell his or her ownership in a company to investors or another company.”

An exit strategy gives a business owner the capacity to reduce his/her stake in the business.

If a business is successful, the business can make a substantial profit, but if the business is not highly successful, an exit strategy allows a business owner to limit their losses. In either scenario, an exit strategy is important.

As one might imagine, there are a number of different exit strategies to consider, but the most common are: initial public offerings, strategic acquisitions (sale of the business), management buyouts.

The decision of which exit strategy is best to use often lies in how much control or involvement, if any, the business owner would like to have after they exit.

For instance, a strategic acquisition means the business owner loses all stakes; therefore, they have no responsibility or control.

The new owners may do what they wish with the newly acquired business.

An initial public offering, like the name suggests, is when a private business decides to go public.

This means that any major debt or lack of investor funding can be remedied by allowing the public to have a stake (in stock) of the business.

Often, once a company goes public, the owner may still have a leadership role in the company, but all financial aspects of the company are now public.

IPOs are becoming more popular again, but are not efficient for small businesses.

Alternatively, a management buyout means that those who currently manage the company wish to buy it from the owner, who may be more hands-off in the day-to-day logistics.

This is appealing to the management team because they go from employees to owners, which is a major promotion.

This can be achieved through an employee stock ownership plan, but again the company needs to be of a certain scale for the ESOP to be an economical strategy.

Our advice is to plan ahead and if you are considering an exit strategy in the next two years or so, seek the assistance of a business advisor who has the skill set and professional tools to help you decide which option is best for you and your business needs.

The Student Learning Center at Fayetteville Technical Community College is a source of positive encouragement and support for all current and future FTCC students. Students who visit the SLC find a place to ask questions and receive assistance without feeling embarrassed or inadequate.

Whether a recent high school graduate or one who hasn’t been in class for twenty years, students are welcomed and made to feel comfortable at the SLC. Staff encourage independent learning and provide students with tutoring and supplemental instruction to deepen their comprehension of key concepts.

At the SLC, there are 10 qualified instructors ready to support students as they pursue academics. Instructors in the SLC work to bridge the gap between learning and understanding. Each instructor has a higher education degree and has worked closely with adult learners for many years. SLC staff facilitate learning in the areas of English, math, science, Spanish and much more. The staff is invested in student success and constantly encourages students to not give up on achieving their academic goals.

Students learn differently, and the SLC staff understands the challenges students face each semester. In fact, SLC staff members encourage students to visit the SLC as soon as they have a question or feel assistance is needed, rather than delaying. Students are provided a welcoming atmosphere with comfortable seating, computers, laptops and group instruction rooms. Additionally, the SLC has mobile whiteboards and whiteboard tables to promote interactive learning. Students can also use the SLC as a place for study between or after classes.

In addition to one-on-one tutoring offered in the SLC, NetTutor Online Tutoring Service is available for students. NetTutor is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The tutoring service is available through FTCC student Blackboard accounts. The SLC has specialized labs for math, science and writing. These labs offer students one-on-one experiences within a more focused setting.

Throughout the COVID pandemic, the SLC maintained CDC guidelines and safely remained open to provide face-to-face services to FTCC students. For students who were unable to visit campus during the pandemic, the SLC offered students virtual tutoring appointments, enabling students to continue to receive personal assistance.

Using the SLC is free, and no appointment is necessary. Students simply present the FTCC student ID card for easy access at the sign-in kiosk. Virtual sessions are also available for FTCC students by contacting the SLC via phone call or email.

The SLC is located inside the Harry F. Shaw Virtual College Center at the Fayetteville campus. Hours of operation are Monday-Thursday 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. and Friday 8 a.m. until 5 p.m. Students may direct questions about the SLC to learningcenter@faytechcc.edu or 910-678-8266.

Join us for fall semester at Fayetteville Technical Community College for an amazing academic journey.

Cape Fear Valley Health System has made COVID-19 vaccination mandatory for its 7,000 employees, physicians, students, vendors and volunteers. The deadline for compliance is Oct. 1.

“With the rising trend in positive COVID-19 cases locally and nationally, vaccinations remain our best defense against the pandemic,” said Cape Fear Valley Health CEO Michael Nagowski.

COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and deaths are rapidly increasing locally. Only 50-55% of Cape Fear Valley’s employees have been vaccinated to date, said health system spokesperson Chaka Jordan.

Cumberland County’s COVID-19 test positivity rate is 13.7%. This rate has increased significantly in the last two weeks. The CEO and other members of the health system’s leadership held town hall events with employees to answer questions before making this decision. Employees with medical or religious concerns are eligible for exemptions. Nagowski said employees will not be required to use vacation time to get their vaccines.

The Fape Fear Valley Health System includes the Cape Fear Valley Medical Center, Highsmith-Rainey Specialty Hospital, Cape Fear Valley Rehabilitation Center, Behavioral Health Care, Bladen County Hospital, Hoke Hospital, Health Pavilion North, Health Pavilion Hoke and Harnett Health.

On July 27, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revised mask guidance. In areas with substantial and high transmission, like Cumberland County, the CDC recommends that everyone, including fully vaccinated individuals, wear masks in public indoor settings to help prevent the spread of the Delta variant and protect others. City of Fayetteville and Cumberland County government employees and people visiting public buildings are again required to wear masks.

City Manager Doug Hewett distributed a memo via email to city employees announcing the change. Citizens are encouraged to schedule appointments before entering City Hall. Residents can access many city services 24/7 at fayettevillenc.gov.

County Manager Amy Cannon echoed Hewett’s concerns. “We are monitoring our county metrics and the recommendations from the CDC, State health officials and our Public Health Director Dr. Jennifer Green regarding any further protective measures,” Cannon said.

The Fayetteville Area System of Transit has instituted requirements for bus riders. FAST employees and passengers must wear face masks, not face shields or bandanas. Passenger capacity has been reduced from 35 to 22 on buses. Bus seats are marked for social distancing.

Passengers should enter and exit buses from the rear doors. Daily disinfecting and cleaning of FAST facilities and buses are scheduled.

Vaccination clinics are available countywide. Walk-ins are welcome at Cape Fear Valley vaccine clinics during the month of August until clinic capacity is reached, but appointments are preferred. Visit www.capefearvalley.com/covid19.

Free vaccines are also available at the Cumberland County Department of Public Health located at 1235 Ramsey St., weekdays 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. No appointments are needed. Learn more at cumberlandcountync.gov/covid19.

Cumberland County leaders conducted a press conference Aug. 6 with health officials to encourage residents to get a COVID-19 vaccination and to continue to mask-up due to the Delta variant and the 837 new COVID-19 cases in the county over the previous seven days.

“The best protection against this virus is the vaccine and I encourage everyone to get vaccinated,” said Cumberland County Board of Commissioners Chairman Charles Evans.

Dr. Jennifer Green, Cumberland County Public Health Director, said the COVID-19 Delta variant is much more contagious than the original strand. She added that the COVID-19 positive infection rate is currently above 15% and hospitalizations are increasing. The percent positive needs to be closer to 5% for everyone’s safety according to the World Health Organization.

“I know the frustration among the vaccinated is growing with the unvaccinated, I ask you take that frustration and turn it into conversation,” Green said. “I know that conversations with your friends and family will make a difference.”

At the height of the COVID-19 outbreak in January, Cape Fear Valley Medical Center had approximately 130 people admitted to the hospital, according to Mike Nagowski, Chief Executive Officer for Cape Fear Valley Health System. As vaccines started to be administered, that number had a downward trend to 14 people who were COVID positive.

“In the last six weeks, as the Delta variant has taken hold … we now have 89 people who are COVID positive in our hospital. Almost every single person in the hospital is unvaccinated,” said Nagowski, who described the Delta variant as “like the original COVID on steroids.”

The medical center is seeing younger patients. “The people dying today are far different than those who were dying in the beginning of the pandemic,” Nagowski said.

Cumberland County Schools will return on Aug. 23 for in-person learning for traditional calendar schools. According to Cumberland County Schools Director of Health Services Shirley Bolden, the top priority for the school year is to operate in-person learning all year long as safely as possible.

“In keeping with the recommendation of the local, state and national health officials, Cumberland County Schools Superintendent Dr. Marvin Connolly plans to recommend to the Board of Education universal masking for all students and staff at the beginning of the 2021-22 school year. This would be for all pre-K through 12th-grade students and staff, regardless of their vaccination status,” Bolden said.

This action is intended to reduce the number of students needing to quarantine in the event of an exposure. “We believe that universal masking can help prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the school setting,” she said.

In addition to universal masking, the goal is to maintain social distancing of 3 feet between students and 6 feet between staff. CCS is also encouraging those who are not vaccinated to do so now to slow the spread of the virus.

“Thanks to federal funding, COVID-19 testing will also be available and will provide one more layer of protection to help keep students and staff safe,” Bolden said.

Clinics will be held at Cumberland County Public Library locations on Saturdays in August from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. Appointments are not needed.
Aug. 14 at Hope Mills Library
Aug. 21 at East Regional Library
Aug. 28 at Spring Lake Regional Library

The Department of Public Health, 1235 Ramsey St., offers the vaccine weekdays from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. Pfizer and J&J vaccinations are available by appointment or walk-ins will be accepted.

View the COVID-19 vaccination calendar and make an appointment at cumberlandcountync.gov/covid19.

Pictured above: Chairman Charles Evans speaks at a press conference Aug. 6. (Photo courtesy Cumberland County)

Fayetteville Technical Community College’s High School Connections program provides high school students the option to begin earning college credit while still in high school.

HSC offers more than 30 Career and Technical Education certificate programs that lead to entry-level job credentials/certificates. These pathways provide essential knowledge, technical capabilities and employability skills for career success that bridge workforce gaps by linking secondary and post-secondary curriculum.

This summer, FTCC Foundation received two grants from local organizations that will be used to create a resource fund for the HSC program
at FTCC.

Cumberland Community Foundation awarded a Community Grant in the amount of $20,000.

The United Way of Cumberland County awarded the Foundation a $15,000 grant through the Youth Growth Stock Trust.

FTCC Foundation partners with donors to support FTCC by raising awareness and financial resources that can provide college access for students to attain their educational and career goals.

The HSC Resource Fund will provide funds to pay for books and program supplies for high school students from low-income families who wish to continue their education beyond high school. This project will be offered community-wide and will leverage resources by providing long-term solutions to low-income students by increasing their job opportunities through higher education and job skills. The goal for the resource fund is to overcome financial barriers and increase educational access.

Aaron Mabe, coordinator of the HSC program at FTCC, noticed that for many students attending Title I high schools or residing in economically distressed communities, the cost of supplies and materials was a barrier to successful program completion.

“These grants will provide access and equitable opportunities for students who wish to learn marketable job skills and valuable trades. Without these resources, many students would not be able to afford the books and tool kits needed to take the classes. We are grateful for the support from Cumberland Community Foundation and the United Way,” Mabe said.

Dual (high school/college) enrollment courses provide a wide variety of exciting offerings to high school students including photovoltaic, collision repair, welding and construction management.

These programs allow students to complete a certificate or diploma aligned with in-demand state, regional and/or local workforce needs.

While traditional transferable college courses require textbooks or lab kits, the majority of career and technical education programs require additional supplies to instruct skill mastery.

FTCC’s academic departments work diligently to accommodate the financial cost of program supplies and minimize the substantial out-of-pocket cost to students. For many students attending Title I high schools or residing in economically distressed communities, the cost of supplies and materials is a barrier to successful program completion.

According to U.S. Census Data (from 2019), prior to the pandemic, median household income in Cumberland County averaged around $45,000 with 17% of families living in poverty.

There are 13 public high schools in Cumberland County. The percentage of their student body considered to be economically disadvantaged ranges from 34.6% to 69.7%, with an average of 55%.

To learn more about FTCC’s High School Connections program, please visit www.faytechcc.edu/academics/high-school-connections/ or call 910-678-8583.

After a year of construction, the barricades have been removed and Part C of the Cape Fear River Trail is open once again.

Part C is the lower portion of the Cape Fear River Trail that connects Parts A and B. With the addition of Part C, the trail now spans more than seven miles one way.

Visitors can access Part C from the parking lot at Jordan Soccer Complex off Treetop Drive or access the trail at Clark Park on Sherman Drive.

Part C of the trail includes a boardwalk. The boardwalk crosses CSX Transportation property and is located under the CSX bridge.

Later this year, a paved path will connect the Cape Fear River Trail with the Linear Park Trail. Work on Part C began in June 2020.

The total estimated cost is $2.47 million. Money from the City’s General Fund, the state and federal government will cover costs.

Visitors can learn more about the Cape Fear River Trail, including operating hours, bicycle and pet requirements visit www.fcpr.us/parks-trails/trails/cape-fear-river-trail.

The Fayetteville Area System of Transit wants to improve the benefits of bus operators who are among the lowest paid city workers.

“Most drivers are paid $15.52 an hour and up to $18 an hour depending on seniority,” said Transit Director Randy Hume in an interview last year. Hume said pay increases are necessary to get people to take bus driving jobs.

FAST recently donated a city bus to Fayetteville Technical Community College for the school’s new commercial driver’s license training program.

The city’s FY2022 budget includes money to provide scholarships for FTCC students who commit to driving for FAST when they complete the academic program. The city will also pay trainees while in class.

The bus turnover ceremony was held July 27 at the FAST Transit Center on Franklin Street.

The 200-hour class B CDL training program with passenger endorsement is expected to begin in September.

For information about the program, contact FTCC CDL Driving Instructor Eric Smith at 910-486-3909 or smither@faytechcc.edu.

The Cumberland County NCWorks Career Center, formerly known as the Employment Security Commission, has moved to a new location from its long-time office on Ray Ave. downtown. The NCWorks Career Center is now located at 490 N. McPherson Church Road.

The Career Center provides job search and life skills classes, resume and cover letter preparation, skills assessment, career planning and development, occupational skills training and literacy skills.

The facility operates under the administration of the Mid-Carolina Council of Governments and is governed by a 21-member Workforce Development Board appointed by the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners.

The new location provides a more modern setting for customers and career center employees.

For more information, call 910-486-1010 or visit NCWorks.gov.

If debt and spending were Olympic sports, Joe Biden and Nancy Pelosi would easily take home the gold medals.

Now after a year of unprecedented and reckless spending, there is no relief in sight for hard-working taxpayers. Pelosi and Washington Democrats passed yet another massive $600 billion spending package — a 21% increase in spending from the previous year.

Even worse, this budget was the first in decades to scrap the Hyde Amendment and allow taxpayer dollars to go towards abortions. The only thing they didn’t fund was the Defense Department and Homeland Security.

This out-of-control spending is coming with a cost for you and your family in the form of higher prices at the grocery store and gas station. Inflation is a tax increase on all Americans and only getting worse.

Just last month the inflation marker rose 3.5%, its biggest jump since 1991. This, along with the highest consumer prices in 13 years, is the latest sign that reckless spending by Washington Democrats is driving inflation. For the sake of generations to come, we cannot afford to spend like this.

While Washington Democrats were busy spending your tax dollars, last week I focused on defending our veterans and the Second Amendment. I hosted a group of wounded combat veterans in Washington to discuss a new regulation on pistol stabilizing braces proposed by the Biden administration’s Bureau of Alcohol, Firearms, Tobacco and Explosives.

Under the regulation, an individual could become a felon unless you turn in or destroy your firearm, destroy your brace, or pay a tax. This regulation is a massive attack on our Second Amendment. But worse is that these devices were designed and are needed by wounded veterans to continue exercising their rights.

Joining me last week was former police officer and U.S. Army veteran Rick Cicero, who was injured in Afghanistan in 2010 by an IED. After losing his right leg and right arm, Cicero helped develop the original stabilizing brace. He now travels the country teaching disabled veterans how to shoot again and said stabilizing braces “are the foundation” for everything he does. Rick talked about the impact on self-esteem and the mental health improvements he sees in these veterans due to this training.

I led 140 members of Congress opposing this regulation. Forty-eight Senators also joined this effort. Now I am encouraging everyone to submit a public comment against this rule to the ATF before Sept. 8. Folks can visit my website at https://hudson.house.gov/ or go directly to the ATF’s comment portal.

Veterans and others who rely on these braces deserve an equal opportunity to exercise the Second Amendment. I will not back down until we tell the ATF to defend them and our rights.

Finally, last week, mask mandates returned to the halls of Congress and many communities across the country.

Cases have risen, mainly among in those without vaccines. Yet last week, I asked for data from the CDC on why they reversed mask guidance for those who have been vaccinated. Vaccines work and I encourage everyone to consult with their doctor about getting one. But sweeping political mandates not based on science undermine our confidence in public health.

Furthermore, updated guidance from the Biden administration comes as they continue to allow thousands of migrants to cross our southern border without COVID tests or vaccines. Solving this crisis should be step one to address any rise in cases.

I am determined to keep our businesses and schools open this fall. Vaccines are helping us do this and we should not allow political agendas to revert us back to mask mandates and lockdowns that aren’t based on science.

In addition to defending our veterans and Second Amendment, I will always continue to fight for commonsense solutions to protect you and your family.

If you feel like the rug has been ripped from under your feet, you are not alone. Just as we began feeling safer about being out and about and around people we do not know, a newer and more virulent COVID-19 variant dubbed Delta, has upended our lives yet again. The current surge is driven by and striking the unvaccinated, seriously sickening them, sending them to hospitals and killing some.

The vaccinated, many of whom are heeding the CDC’s recommendation to re-mask indoors, are far less affected and, if they are affected, they are far less sick. As Aaron Carroll, chief health officer for Indiana University, wrote in The New York Times, “COVID-19 is not even close to a crisis for those who are vaccinated, but it is a true danger to those who are unvaccinated.”

Dr. Mandy Cohen, Secretary of the N.C. Department of Health and Human Services echoes Carroll. “This is a pandemic right now, of the unvaccinated. The virus will find them,” she said. Distressingly, the Delta variant is far more contagious than earlier COVID viruses and can be spread by both the unvaccinated and the vaccinated.

The situation varies widely across the nation, largely reflecting vaccination rates in different states and communities. This is clearly true in North Carolina where one county, Richmond, is currently designated red, meaning “critical community spread.”

Twelve other counties, including Cumberland, are orange, the next highest level. Cumberland’s vaccination rate remains low, with only 30% partially vaccinated and 28% fully vaccinated. Cumberland’s COVID-19 positivity rate is over 9%, with the goal being below 5%.

Statistics can be difficult to absorb but if you remember only one of them, remember this. In North Carolina, 94% of the new COVID-19 diagnoses are now among the unvaccinated.

Health officials acknowledge different reasons why Americans remain unvaccinated. Some are victims of our culture wars — so insistent on their individual right to choose that they are willing to risk their own health and the health of those around them. Others have deep misgivings about past medical treatments within their own communities, and others find getting vaccinated inconvenient — they have no transportation to a vaccination site, cannot leave their jobs, have no child care or other personal situations.

All of that said, health and government officials are doing their darnedest to entice Americans to vaccination centers with cash payments, lottery drawings, free rides and on and on.

They are doing so because none of us, vaccinated or not, cannot really move on until the pandemic is under control, and that is unlikely to happen until more people are vaccinated.

The private sector which has largely stayed away from the vaccination issue is becoming impatient with the pandemic’s effect on our economy and is moving to require vaccinations among employees, saying essentially, “no shot, no job.”

Howls of protest fill our TV screens, but the truth is, the United States has long required vaccines. Children cannot go to school without them and visitors cannot enter our nation or others without them.

If you fear side effects or bizarre notions of microchips entering your body through a thin needle, look around you. Vaccinated people are going about their lives just fine, because vaccinations work.

If you need more incentive, go back to the statistics. Of Americans now testing positive for COVID-19, becoming ill and dying, 94% are unvaccinated.

For the past 20 years the Fayetteville City Council has used an antiquated structure of nine single members elected by districts and one mayor elected at large. The nine districts include about 25,000 residents but the representatives are often elected by an average of 1,300 voters in a city of 211,000 people. District representatives figure out very quickly that keeping those 1,300 people happy is all that matters to help them get reelected in the future. This resulting narrow focus by nine members of City Council does not lend itself to address the often complicated and costly city-wide issues. Too often these issues remain unresolved while the Council debates more territorial issues.

Even worse, an individual Fayetteville citizen has only 2 elected people representing them — the mayor and their district representative. Meanwhile the other 8 council members are not accountable to the needs of citizens who do not live in their district.

Other governmental bodies in Cumberland County, including the Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, the Board of Education, and the towns of Hope Mills and Spring Lake all have at large members as a part their structure.

In addition, 9 of the 12 largest cities in North Carolina have at large members included. They have found the structure to work for decades and there have been no efforts to convert to all single member districts.

The Vote Yes Fayetteville initiative is seeking to collect 5,000 signatures that would give every citizen in Fayetteville the opportunity to vote for the type of local government structure they want.

The proposal calls for changing 4 of the current 9 seats to at large, leaving a Council comprised of 5 district representatives, 4 at large representatives and a mayor.

Under this structure, every citizen would have more voting rights by being able to vote for and be represented by 6 members of City Council — the mayor, their district representative and 4 at large representatives.

Most local governments have found this combination provides an effective balance of both district and citywide focus. In the case of Fayetteville, it would provide more focus on the big issues facing the entire city — issues like $100 million in stormwater needs, the failure to annex Shaw Heights and provide its residents access to basic city services like sewer, for example — that are larger than any one district.

It would also provide more big-picture perspective before deciding to spend $3 million to replace 64,000
recycling cans so a logo can be removed, instead of reducing our traffic violations enforcement or filling over 50 vacancies in the police department.

The current structure of City Council has never been voted for by any Fayetteville voter. In fact, the only time that Fayetteville voters have been given the opportunity to vote for a combination of at large and single member districts, they supported it with almost 60% of the votes cast.

Fayetteville has grown significantly over the years and now composes almost 150 square miles and over 210,000 people. With that growth comes big city issues that require big city perspectives. It is time to change the structure of our City Council to help ensure that more people represent the big picture and are more accountable to all the citizens of our diverse city.

Joining the thousands of other Fayetteville voters in signing the petition alone does not change the structure of our City Council. It merely allows the referendum to be put on the next citywide election ballot and gives every citizen the right to vote and make this important decision for our community.

This important decision should be made by all the voters of Fayetteville. I encourage you to review the information on this important subject on the website at www.VoteYesFayetteville.com and to support the petition and let our citizens decide if they want to have 6 elected people representing them versus the current 2.

 

Another first for the area, Lost and Found: New Media Works by Carla Guzman opens at Gallery 208 on Aug. 17. Her first one-person exhibition since earning a Master’s in Fine Art in Contemporary Art at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, Republic of China. During her studies, Guzman’s focus was new media in the visual arts.

Attending the artist’s reception between 5:30 and 7 p.m., visitors will meet a young artist who is the daughter of immigrants from El Salvador, a small country that experienced civil war in the late 80s. Raised with the work ethic to achieve the American Dream she noted: “over the years I have become very Americanized, yet I will always be influenced by a background which stems from transgenerational trauma due to civil unrest and contradiction.”

Before completing the new media graduate degree in China and returning to the United States, Guzman had graduated from Fayetteville State University with an undergraduate degree in visual arts. For Guzman, the transition of ideas and meaning in new media was similar to the way she worked in traditional mediums, the challenge was learning the technology and programming.

Guzman stated, “I always come back to my roots in traditional image making, it is the most direct way to tap into my creativity. My process includes three steps: the initial drawings, the postproduction and then the translation to new media (which is still evolving). I can look at the digital work and identify the original matrix it came from and how it has evolved since then. For example, I might use a drawing from years ago again in a new work today. I tend to recycle images since emotions are at the core of my work and they remain constant.”

Guzman was asked about the advantages or disadvantages of working in different modalities or sensory systems and to comment on the idea of selecting images verses creating them without a computer. She was quick to explain how ways of working influence the modality you are using.

For example, she stated: “I was the type of printmaker that loved mistakes because they were always beautiful and interesting to me. Printmaking taught me not to become too attached to an end-product but follow the process. In a similar way, if my external hard drive becomes messed up or if something happened, half of my drawings remain on the other side of the world. I am okay because I have my operative system that I go by. In the same way as printmaking, I welcome these mishaps. Building upon previous work is interesting, but also, a clean slate is great because there is the challenge to improve things like technique and skill which applies to new media as well.”

It takes time to find one’s way in a technological medium that has been rapidly developing for the last 40 years, even faster the last 5 years, and Guzman is a newcomer. A constructive turning point was during her thesis research when she came across some of the earliest artists in the 1970s who were the first to mix art and technology. Discovering E.A.T. (Experiments in Art and Technology: a non-profit organization established in 1967 to develop collaborations between artists and engineers) and artists Robert Mallary and Harold Cohen was a way for Guzman to focus on a strategy to express herself in new media.

Guzman considers herself like Harold Cohen, the artist who created AARON - a computer software program that generated compositions on its own, allowing the artist to create several compositions in the course of a few days. Guzman takes a similar approach to Cohen: “I like that a computer can generates many images, then I select the best and develop my imagery from the successful ones. It allows for more iterations of the same image without totally abandoning the original one.”

In addition to developing new technological skill, the time Guzman spent in China influenced the artist in many other ways: “The graduate program in China was an international curriculum with professors from top art institutions around the world and in China. It was an amazing nonwestern experience that led to opportunities for travel in China and meeting with contemporary Chinese and international artists, emerging and established. Your sensibilities and viewpoints change when you are not able to communicate or understand anything other than the images in front of you.”

Guzman lived in China three years, and then due to the pandemic, lived a year and a half in Taiwan before returning to the USA. Lost and Found includes works from her graduate thesis exhibit titled Contemporary Emotion-Based Multimedia Art: Artistic Strategies and Viewer Response and works while living in Taiwan.

Guzman describes herself as “digital abstract expressionist” and her works are “essentially maquettes which are meant to be spatial emotional sculptures within the real world and the void. The works completed while living in Taiwan were during my time of being displaced in Taiwan due to the pandemic. The result was efforts to integrate emotional sculptures, feelings of loss and chaos, in actual location in Taiwan.”

In seeing Guzman’s “emotional sculptures,” visitors to the exhibit will need to reconsider what it means for something to be a sculpture. Traditionally we think of sculpture as a tangible object that has been physically carved, modeled or cast in a material. The world of virtual reality and other new media platforms are most often illusionary - but ever present. The semantics of what it means to be a sculpture in a new media world has been forever altered to have new meaning, new forms - with this comes new sensibilities about experiencing the object/nonobject and the making of the object/nonobject.

In describing her images, new explanatory words are used to refer to their existence which would never apply to traditional sculptural forms. For example, in the early works titled “Taipai Tower 1” and “Yuanshuan Series,” Guzman has created floating sculptural forms in cityscapes. Hard-edge linear forms appear and disappear as if in dissonance with the space. The sculptures are not static but living, expanding and contracting. Reflective color and form interrupt the space and yet inhabit the space in a palatable way. There is sense these sculptures are never permanently located but continuously move themselves.

Compared to the earlier work, the “Hualian Series” is a sculptural series made of light, sometimes colorless as well as the colorless becoming refractive color. Located on a shoreline, seeing the series next to each other, it is if we do not move closer to the sculpture, but the sculpture moves closer to us. The spinning forms in earlier works are now a vaporous wall; not inhabiting the space but appearing as energy and potential.

For anyone who visits Lost and Found, the artist would like viewers to “leave the exhibit feeling like they saw some beautiful images but also possibly formed some associations from their own experiences with her ‘emotional sculptures’ since emotions are innately part of all of us.” After recently returning to Fayetteville after living abroad for almost 5 years, Guzman shared she is presently “in the process of getting found” and looking forward to “networking and collaborating with new media artists.”

The public in invited to meet the artist and attend the public reception of Lost and Found: New Media Works by Carla Guzman on Aug. 17 from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at Gallery 208 located at 208 Rowan Street. The exhibit will remain up until the end of October. Gallery hours are 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday-Friday. For information call 910-484-6200.

Pictured Above: "Taipei Tower 2 with Blue Series" by Carla Guzman.

Below: "Skate Park with Blue Series 3" by Carla Guzman.

 

Some of the nation’s elite soldiers with the 82nd Airborne Division and 3rd Special Forces Group have finalized testing the Army’s new Parachutist Flotation Device or PFD.

Preparation for the PFD test started in mid-April with the Airborne and Special Operations Test Directorate performing intentional water landings in Jordan Lake, according to Maj. Camden Jordan, ABNSOTD’s executive officer.

“Planners synchronized early with local emergency management, law enforcement and state wildlife agencies to help support the Army’s water operations on Jordan Lake,” said Jordan.
Jordan went on to say rehearsals took place for the multi-tiered and complex infiltration technique before final testing in June.

“Located just west of Raleigh, Jordan Lake is one of North Carolina’s most pristine waterways, so these agencies provided swift water rescue teams, emergency medical technicians, small boat support and assisted in routing boaters away from the water drop zone while airborne operations are underway,” he said.

“We relied heavily upon the support of the community to execute this test. Local emergency services were the lynchpin to this entire test and could not have been executed without their outstanding support,” said Sgt. 1st Class John Reed, ABNSOTD’s operations noncommissioned officer in charge.

According to Dan Shedd, Senior Mechanical Engineer Developmental Command at Natick, Massachusetts, military planners try real hard to keep airborne operations away from bodies of water. He said on occasion, though, paratroopers can engage high value targets near large bodies of water so they must be equipped accordingly for safety.

With flotation bladders that can be inflated using an internal carbon dioxide gas cylinder or an oral inflation tube, once employed in the water, the PFD becomes critical in saving lives.

Shedd explained the PFD must suspend a combat-equipped jumper in a “lifesaving” posture for an extended period following an airborne infiltration.

“In real-world scenarios,” he said, “this critical time allows recovery teams time to locate and extract jumpers in the event of a water landing.”

Reed said operational testing with soldiers during early June saw participating paratroopers undergoing intensive training cycles geared toward preparing for deliberate water operations.

That training began with new equipment training so the soldiers could practice the proper rigging techniques and activation procedures.

“Anytime two lifesaving devices are being employed by one soldier, intense attention to detail is required for both proper fit and wear as well as how these systems interact during airborne infiltration,” said Staff Sgt. Jonathan R. Copley, an ABNSOTD military freefall master jumpmaster.

The rigorous NET training test jumps required the test soldiers of 82nd Airborne Division and 3rd Special Forces Group to complete a full combat water survival test conducted in Fort Bragg’s
Mott Lake.

Sgt. 1st Class Steven Branch, a platoon sergeant and jumpmaster assigned to the 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, gave the PFD a thumbs-up.

“The PFD is much easier to rig for static line operations,” he said. “We barely noticed having it on, and it can easily suspend a soldier with combat equipment for a long time if needed. Overall I was very impressed with every aspect of the PFD.”
ABNSOTD used the PFD test to train parachute riggers from across the airborne and special operations community in the proper maintenance and care of the new life-saving apparatus once they return to home station.

This "maintainer" training included system maintenance, repacking, repair, proper storage, handling, as well as rigging and employment during water landings.

Sgt. Issa Yi, a parachute rigger with the 151st Quarter Master Company said, "The PFD was easy to pack and required no special tools or materials to maintain."

 

Pictured above: A soldier with 3rd Special Forces Group prepares to enter Jordan Lake during military free fall test trials of the Parachutist Flotation Device. (Photo by James L. Finney) (All photos this page courtesy U.S. Army Operational Test Command)

Pictured below left: An ABNSOTD soldier prepares to enter the water prior to the start of pool testing. (Photo by James L. Finney)

Pictured below right: An operational test jumper from 3rd SF Group conducts a test trial from high altitude over Laurinburg/Maxton Airfield. (Photo by Sgt. 1st Class Timothy D. Nephew)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured above left: An 82nd Airborne Division soldier exits a C-27 aircraft over Jordan Lake during testing of the new PFD. (Photo by Chris O'Leary)

Pictured above right: A 3rd Special Forces Group soldier undergoes vertical wind tunnel training prior to a live airdrop with the Parachutist Flotation Device. (Photo by James L. Finney)

Cumberland County School District officials say the system has literally dozens of job opportunities.

Among the numerous vacancies are positions for teachers, teacher assistants, cafeteria workers, media coordinators, prime time assistants, custodians, school bus drivers and many others.

“New hires may be eligible for $500 sign-on bonuses,” said CCS Communications Director Renarta Moyd.

She can be contacted at renartac@ccs.K12.nc.us for additional information.

I have always been an admirer of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. In view of our now professed WOKE society, he must be flipping in his grave at America's self-appointed and anointed WOKE culturists who are discounting and disrespecting the resounding worldwide message he shared with us in his 1963 “I Have a Dream” speech.

Wow, how things have changed in only 58 years. Our nation has gone from cherishing the thoughts, vision and messages of one of the greatest humanitarians and Civil Rights leaders ever born to a contradictory focus on the color of a person's skin, gender and political affiliation.

What? Character, intelligence and integrity are no longer considered valued characteristics that matter? "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character."

This is disappointing and sad. I'm not sure how we got to this point; however, I feel strongly that our nation needs to return to respecting the basics of humanity.

Simply put, we need to get back to practicing the Golden Rule. It's a pretty simple moral philosophy that has never failed to yield the perfect result when interpreted in its kind, humane and Christian manner.

The most popular and familiar version of this rule read: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." This moral philosophy was never intended to be interpreted as justification for senseless killing, stealing, retribution or any other kind of vicious and cruel assault on humanity.

The most popular, worldwide and humane interpretation of this tenet is "to treat others the way you want to be treated" (positive). Or, you should "treat others in ways you do not wish to be treated yourself" (negative).

No doubt, Dr. King had it right, and he wasn't woke. He was kind, intelligent, compassionate, steadfast in his convictions and impervious to deep-seated hate. He preached and lived the correct interpretation of the Golden Rule with an understanding that elevated it to prominence in commonsense behavior and ethics, assuring peace, love and respect for all people. Dr. King would not have advocated for Critical Race Theory at any level.

Besides, it is only a theory. And one that contradicts the teachings, philosophy and heartfelt messages that Dr. King professed, fought for and died for. I don't think this country is ready to cast Dr. King aside for CRT and replace his teachings, goodwill, philosophies, statues and monuments with CRT advocates and doctrine.

Besides, what Woke/CRT advocates could match Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s integrity and character or passion for humanity? Let me know who they are.

In the meantime, I will continue to advocate for TLC over CRT.

Thank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

Pictured above: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his "I Have a Dream" speech on August 28, 1963, calling for racial equality and an end to discrimination. The speech, from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, was a defining moment in the American Civil Rights Movement.