Fayetteville City Council wants a select committee created by Mayor Mitch Colvin to study controversial issues pertaining to the Market House.

Council decided Oct. 5 to not take immediate action to repurpose or tear down the building. Council voted 6-4 rejecting Councilwoman Courtney Banks-McLaughlin’s efforts to require council to take a formal vote to demolish the historic landmark. Banks-McLaughlin serves District 8 on the city’s west side.

The debate over whether to tear down the historic landmark has been at the center of controversy for decades because it was a place where enslaved people were sold during the early 1800s.

Many African-Americans consider the building a constant reminder of oppression. “The Market House has been an eyesore to many citizens within the city of Fayetteville due to slaves being bought and sold,” Banks-McLaughlin said. She said people representing both sides of the debate have already made their views known to the council through comments, letters, emails and protests.

Those who support the building acknowledge that enslaved people were once sold there but point out that they were also sold at other city buildings and locations.

They note the building is on the National Register of Historic Places and has a rich and significant history not tied to slavery, as well as noted architectural significance. North Carolina ratified the U.S. Constitution at the site where the Market House now stands in center-city Fayetteville. The University of North Carolina, the oldest public university in the country, received its charter there in 1789.

Protests calling for an end to racism and police brutality have been centered around the Market House following George Floyd's death. On May 30, demonstrators tried to set fire to the building which “sustained charring and mass wood loss to the second story floor,” according to federal prosecutors. Two men have since been arrested and charged with “maliciously damaging property.”

When Fayetteville was the temporary capitol of North Carolina, the Market House was described “in a statement of significance as performing two functions: under its arches meat and produce were sold by local farmers, while the second floor served as the Town Hall.” The paperwork does not, however, mention the buying and selling of slaves.

According to a study by Duke University professor John Cavanagh the sale of slaves “happened occasionally at the State House and Market House” for about 75 years up until 1865.

“Sales were spaced on the average about two months apart, if that frequently, and in most instances very few slaves were involved in each transaction,” Cavanagh wrote.

Most of them were reportedly sold “in conjunction with the settlement of estates.” Unlike Charleston and Richmond, Fayetteville was not a slave market.

Twenty years ago, a plaque commissioned by the city was posted on a Market House pillar acknowledging the enslaved people's occasional sale. As for Mayor Colvin’s vision of a pair of ad hoc committees to deal with issues associated with contemporary race relations his hope is regular meetings will get underway soon.

“This is not on the back burner,” Colvin said.

The Cumberland County Board of Commissioners has established temporary virtual learning centers at six of the county’s public libraries for school-age children of county employees.

County Manager Amy Cannon came up with the idea of using the libraries to assist employees who have been unable to report to work because they’re at home with their children.

It is “out of a dire need to ensure that critical and needed services can be provided without delay or disruption,” Cannon said.

Approximately 160 children are expected to participate. Under the agreement, Cumberland County Schools will provide lunches and snacks for the children and assign staff members to assist with operation of the sites.

The Cumberland County school system has created a COVID-19 dashboard to provide up-to-date information on positive COVID-19 cases. District staff updates the dashboard every Friday.

“As we navigate through this pandemic, we encourage everyone to follow the guidance of health officials,” said Shirley Bolden, director of Health Services for CCS. “It’s important that we continue to practice the three Ws.”

CCS is currently operating under Plan C, whereby students participate in remote learning through the end of the first semester.

The origin of each COVID-19 case varies based on the individual; not all the cases listed in the dashboard originated on CCS campuses.

To comply with federal privacy laws, the school district does not release information about individuals who have tested positive for COVID-19 beyond what is indicated in the dashboard.

The district remains in close contact with the Cumberland County Department of Public Health and continues to follow necessary protocols related to the coronavirus. To access the dashboard, visit
http://bit.ly/CCSCOVID-19Dashboard.

The Cumberland County Board of Elections is meeting frequently to review absentee ballots for the Nov. 3 election.

The meeting schedule and links for each session are posted on the Board of Elections webpage at www.electionready.net. The five-member board meets twice weekly through Oct. 16 and each weekday from Oct. 19 through Election Day.

At the first absentee meeting on Sept. 29, the elections board approved 6,793 mail-in ballots.

Before each meeting, staff members review all absentee mail envelopes received. Staff members determine whether envelopes have been properly completed, and if so, recommend to the board that it approve the applications and ballots. During absentee meetings, board members review deficient ballots and perform random checks of those that have been recommended for approval by staff members.

After each meeting, the board notifies voters that had problems with their ballots and provides them with a process to verify that the ballots are theirs. At least one member from each political party is represented at each absentee meeting when the board is approving absentee applications.

For more information on the Board of Elections, visit co.cumberland.nc.us/departments/election-group/elections.

The 71st Ruritan Club announced that District 45 Representative John Szoka and Wesley Meredith, candidate for North Carolina Senator District 19, will be special guests at its regularly scheduled meeting Oct. 15 at 7 p.m.

The public is invited, according to Ruritan spokesman Ronald Sharpe. The 71st Ruritan Club of Fayetteville meets every third Thursday of the month and membersdedicate themselves to improving the community and building a better America through "fellowship, goodwill, and community service."

The upcoming program is part of the regular series focusing on people, businesses, organizations and programs that affect Fayetteville and Cumberland County's quality of life. These programs have included representatives from the Fayetteville Police Dept., CrimeStoppers, Fayetteville Homeless Officer, Hospice, Warriors on the Water. The club also supports and sponsors organizations like Habitat for Humanity, Salvation Army, Special Olympics, Boy Scouts/Girl Scouts, Warriors on the Water, Student Essay Contest, Scholarships and Fayetteville Beautiful.

The public is invited to attend monthly meetings and get involved in their community projects. The 71st Ruritan Club is located at 240 Ruritan Drive.

For more information, contact Ronald Sharpe 910-391-1241.

Fayetteville Police detectives continue an investigation into a shooting that officers say stemmed from a road rage incident.

Police spokesman, Sgt Jeremy Glass, did not describe the incident, saying only that the victim was hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.

The preliminary investigation indicates that the shooting involved the victim and another motorist who was driving a late model black Ram pickup truck.

The police department’s aggravated assault unit has requested the public’s assistance in locating the suspect and vehicle involved in the incident that occurred on the night of Oct. 2 at Yadkin and Fillyaw roads, near an entrance to Fort Bragg.

Glass said the suspect fled the scene in the Cottonade neighborhood. Police ask that residents with Doorbell or security cameras contact the police.

When Democrat Jen Mangrum and Republican Catherine Truitt first filed to run for state superintendent of public instruction, neither could have expected that the central issue of the 2020 race would be whether to allow public schools to provide in-person instruction to North Carolina children.

No one would have seen it as a debatable issue. Of course local districts must teach their students in school, we’d all have said. Most students couldn’t succeed without it. Many working parents couldn’t keep their jobs without it. And the state constitution requires it.

Yet here we are. Whether to reopen North Carolina’s public schools is, indeed, the central issue in the campaign, thanks to COVID-19 and the understandable concerns it raises about safety.

Jen Mangrum, a former classroom teacher who now serves as an associate professor of education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, is the more skeptical of the two when it comes to reopening schools.

During a recent televised debate, she largely defended the go-slow approach of relying on distance learning rather than in-person instruction during the fall semester. For teachers, Mangrum argued, the first responsibility is to protect “student welfare.” Delivering academic content is fourth on the priority list, she said.

“We know children are carriers” of COVID-19, Mangrum said, so it is necessary to prioritize the risk of spreading the virus at school over the risk that distance learning might prove inadequate for some.

North Carolina’s educators have “been like ninjas” since the coronavirus outbreak in March, setting up their distance-learning systems overnight and then improving them significantly over the subsequent months. “There are populations of students who are falling behind” with schools closed, Mangrum said, but there are also “populations of students who have more one-on-one [attention] than they’ve ever had before.”

The Republican nominee, Catherine Truitt, is also a former classroom teacher who now works in academia, in her case as chancellor of Western Governors University North Carolina. WGU is an all-online university, so one might expect

Truitt to be at least as sanguine about the potential upsides of distance learning as Mangrum was. But Truitt argued during the debate that disadvantaged children, in particular, often require the kind of attention that only in-person instruction can provide.

“We have children who were already significantly behind and unfortunately they are our most vulnerable students,” Truitt said. Only 28% of Hispanic eighth-graders can read and do math at grade level. For black students, the share drops to 14%. These students are frequently the ones who lack good internet access and parents available at home to supervise and assist with their children’s online learning, she said.

“My first priority is to get kids back in school,” Truitt added, while Mangrum argued that the schedule for reopening public schools is “going to depend on metrics” such as the share of COVID-19 tests that come back positive in a community.

While the reopening question has become the central one in the superintendent’s races, it wasn’t hard for Mangrum and Truitt to connect it to other longstanding issues of contention in North Carolina education. Mangrum argued that a lack of sufficient funding for personal protective equipment, cleaning, and training was a significant barrier to getting schools reopened — and that the state legislature, under Republican control for the past 10 years, hasn’t give the education system enough money to clear that barrier.

Truitt argued that a “one-size-fits-all” approach was keeping North Carolina from grappling effectively with the COVID challenge. Local districts should have been given more flexibility to respond to the pandemic, she said, and parents should have more authority to decide what kind of educational setting — in-person or at home, district-run public school or something other option — best advances the welfare of their children.

The state superintendent of public instruction is only one of many voices in formulating education policy. But it’s an important one. And North Carolinians have an important choice to make.

 

Letter to the Editor

I appreciated Jim Jones’ thoughtful article in “Publisher’s Pen” about the Market House, current unrest, and Maslow’s Hierarchy (Oct. 7). I understand his and others’ concerns about the barricades surrounding the Market House, and I know some people are anxious for them to be removed.

In fact, however, as a business owner with a store at “Ground Zero” in the 100 block of Hay Street, I have observed a steady increase in foot traffic and customers over the past two months.

This is related in part to the gradual relaxation by Gov. Cooper of COVID restrictions but also because there have been no incidents downtown since the May 30 protest and since the Occupy Fayetteville tent city was taken down. I have not heard any complaints about the barricades from customers or fellow merchants. The barricades are
not keeping people from coming downtown.

However, taking them down prematurely may invite out-of-control demonstrations and protests, which will drive people away.

As with any damaged building, the barricades must stay until needed repairs have been made.

Beyond that, however, the barricades should stay until our entire community has had a chance to learn all the facts. good and bad, about the Market House. Only then can we can make sound, carefully considered decisions about its fate.

In the meantime, we should at least begin to address racial inequality in the community.

I disagree with Councilwoman Banks-McLaughlin who, at the Oct. 5 work session said “Council has yet to have that tough conversation on … the Market House. We need to vote and decide NOW, so that we can move forward and direct our attention to other issues that are impacting our city such as COVID-19, poverty, and infrastructure.”

Unfortunately, she has the cart before the horse, her “NOW” in the wrong place.

We absolutely must talk NOW about racial injustice in our society and how racial bias affects policing, education, joblessness, unemployment and even health care in our very own community.

This is something we can do NOW, and we must. The city should consider hiring an objective, outside consultant to lead us in these difficult discussions. Not just “town halls” but meaningful, one-on-one and small group discussions. I am confident that as we work our way through this, as we sit down with each other and talk about these issues, we will find to our surprise that the question “What to do with the Market House” really wasn’t so difficult after all.

Hank Parfitt
Fayetteville

Pictured: Hank Parfitt

Letter to the Editor

North Carolina is one of a few states that have not adopted Medicaid Expansion, even though 90% of the costs would be covered by federal funds, and more than 400,000 residents would benefit. It ought never be the case that a person has to choose between having insurance or having groceries.

The request for Medicaid Expansion is not an issue of someone merely looking for a handout, nor is it an issue of providing assistance to someone who refuses to work. The simple fact of the matter is that 60% of the North Carolinians who fall into the coverage gap and would benefit from expansion are “working families.”

Many of these persons work in the service industries. The current pandemic has shown us how critical a role our service industry workers play. They have not had the option of working from home, etc., to remove themselves from harm’s way. They have continued to serve in the midst of the dreadful virus, yet many of them cannot even afford insurance for themselves.

It is a cruel irony to think that those who perhaps need health insurance the most, those who have helped guard the health and safety of so many of us, could benefit from Medicaid, but cannot currently do so because we have, at least to this point, neglected to approve Medicaid Expansion in North Carolina!

There is no “good” reason for the fact that North Carolina is among the 12 states that have not approved expansion. Research has shown that states that have expanded Medicaid eligibility have been among the most likely to see decreases in the number of uninsured persons.

Why haven’t we already gotten this done? We cannot allow, and morally should not allow, the political fights of the past, surrounding the Affordable Care Act, to cloud our current judgment regarding what is the right thing to do, which is to get this expansion done as soon as possible.

Maintaining the status quo should not be an option. The status quo would guarantee that thousands will continue to go without medical assistance who could have otherwise been assisted; it would mean that many of the most hard-working among us will not be able to afford the most basic medical attention. “Just say no” to the status quo.

Saying no to the status quo must be accompanied with corresponding action. So, please contact your state representatives by letter, phone, email or all of the above. They need to know that this is an issue that you care deeply about.
If you are a person in leadership, share this issue with your constituents. If you use social media, discuss the issue online. We need to do everything within our power to get this done. Let’s help protect those who have protected us.

Sincerely,
Vincent D. Long, Pastor
Bethel African Methodist Episcopal
Zion Church, Spring Lake

Pictured: Pastor Vincent D. Long

For the first time in my lifetime, I will be a Poll Observer during this election cycle. Why? Because rumors abound about the safety and security of the most cherished right we have as Americans: the right to vote. Voting is our constitutionally protected patriotic duty that defines and reinforces our freedoms as American citizens. This election year, I want to personally witness this freedom and, hopefully, dispel the conception that the process is diabolically being compromised.

This 2020 presidential election may be the most important ever in our history as this country battles inside and outside enemies and political sources whose sole purpose is to transform America into a communist country.

Make no mistake about it, the overly used, benevolently disguised and distilled term "socialism" is nothing more than the initial stepping stone to Marxism and, ultimately, communism. And, as predicted by many scholars decades ago, this socialist/communist threat is coming from within. You only have to look at the changing and catastrophic ideologies of the once-patriotic and honorable Democratic Party. In summation: its integrity has been breached, and its values are compromised. The U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights have been designated insignificant, making it a target of extreme compromise and ultimate obliteration. This is why all citizens who cherish American freedoms, safety and security, regardless of political affiliation, need to VOTE!

Kudos to local Fayetteville businessman Henry Tyson, currently the Chairman of the Legislative Committee of the Fayetteville Chamber of Commerce. He has rallied with likeminded people, businesses, and organizations and created a unique forum to introduce local candidates to the community. The online platform is designed to create awareness of voting's importance while informing and educating local citizens on critical regional and statewide issues.

Starting on Oct.13, these organizations will host a series of candidate forums ahead of the general election. The event will be conducted virtually and feature video interviews with local, county, state and federal candidates, who will discuss local, regional and state issues. Moderators will not distribute the questions in advance, and each candidate will answer identical questions as it relates to the timely and essential topics pertinent to their race. The interviews will be streamed online and available on all the websites of the hosts and sponsors.

Residents will be able to tune in throughout the month as new candidate interviews are uploaded and streamed in segments, beginning with the Cumberland County Board of Education, Cumberland County Board of Commissioners, local N.C. legislative races and statewide and federal offices. The schedule will be posted online each morning.

This effort took a lot of work and coordination. According to Tyson, everyone was on board from the very beginning: "We wanted to have a format that allowed for the community to be informed — especially during the time of COVID-19 — provide for a natural and unprepared response from those running for office and give the voters insight on the pressing issues we are faced with here in the greater Fayetteville area."

I want to thank Henry Tyson for his leadership in shepherding this virtual forum and the five hosting organizations that saw value in the project. See the schedule on the flyer. Also, a special thanks to the forums cosponsors: Coldwell Banker Advantage, Tyson Commercial Real Estate, Up & Coming Weekly community newspaper, Bronco iRadio of Fayetteville State University and JerFilm Productions.

Thanks for reading Up & Coming.

When Americans woke up on January 1, 2020, we were looking forward to a fresh new year, hoping for a good one for our nation and for ourselves.

The economy was humming, and a big political year lay ahead with a significant field of Democratic contenders to challenge the incumbent. Most Americans were beginning the year in good health.

Then the bottom dropped out of everything.

Americans began to understand the seriousness of COVID-19 in early March, when it became clear that the virus was spreading rapidly. We began behaviors Americans have rarely had to exhibit. We holed up with our families and sometimes alone.

We did not go out for meals, shopping, or socializing, and those who could began working remotely. Schools shut down, and people began leaving—or losing—their jobs. The stock market tanked initially—though it has since rallied—but the economy slowed dramatically and has pretty much stayed that way.

Small businesses struggled. Some set up Go Fund Me pages to meet payrolls and other expenses. We began a practice Asians have been doing for years. We put on face masks to protect people around us and ourselves.

We are still at all of this as the year winds down, though, some government regulations have eased a bit.

Then we entered what many Americans call the “silly season.”

After a messy campaign season, Democrats did what observers had predicted from the outset.

They choose former Vice President Joe Biden to challenge Republican President Trump, and it has gone downhill ever since. Trump pretends COVID-19 was not happening and gathers huge crowds, generally unmasked. Biden campaigns mostly virtually. Then came the debates, shouting matches really.

In the Biden-Trump debate, Trump talked so much that Biden actually told him to “shut up, man.”

Pundits speak openly about giving debate moderators mute buttons to cut off any candidate who talks over others, and someone even suggested a dunking booth so that candidates who do not stop when time runs out land in a barrel of water, like at a county fair.

Then the president himself came down with COVID-19 as have dozens of White House staffers and others who attended a White House ceremony, again generally unmasked. The world watched as Trump took a joyride to wave at supporters camped out around Walter Reed Medical Center, though some joked that he was actually going to a McDonald’s drive-thru.

Last week’s debate with vice-presidential hopefuls, Kamala Harris and Mike Pence, was calmer, but Harris was forced to remind Pence several times, “I am speaking!” That is a sentiment women all over the world well understand.

The real winner of that debate, however, was the big black fly that landed and stayed on Mike Pence’s well-coiffed and highly shellacked head for more than two minutes without his feeling it through that hair. More than one American has suggested the fly needs a COVID-19 test after such close exposure.

And then there is the story of a militia plot to kidnap and “try” Michigan's Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a stunning thought if there ever were one.

Politics in North Carolina is less high profile but plenty nutty itself.

In the U.S. Senate race, Democrat Cal Cunningham sent racy texts to a woman not his wife, certainly a marital mistake but nothing like other elected who have sexted photos of various body parts or a president who has paid a porn star and another woman for their silence.

As a result, incumbent Republic Thom Tillis finds himself reading media rehashes of his two divorces (both from the same woman) who alleged “cruel and inhuman treatment” in their marriage. Does anyone actually care about the private lives of political office seekers?

No one knows how any of this is going to come out, of course, but we can all agree on this. The year 2020 has been and continues to be almost beyond belief. No one, even Hollywood’s most talented screen writer, could have come up with all this.

The only real question is, “What next?”

Following the best theatrical tradition that the show must go on, Cape Fear Regional Theatre returns to “telling great stories” with the opening performance of its 2020-2021 season on Oct. 8, featuring an innovative and exciting musical production of “Lady Day at the Emerson Bar & Grill.” Performances will be outdoors at 100 Broadfoot Avenue (behind Haymont Auto). Thanks to the graciousness of the owner of Haymont Auto, and with support from the city of Fayetteville, CFRT is able to provide live theater that is safe and enjoyable for die-hard jazz fans and those who may be new to this national treasure.

Nicknamed “Lady Day,” by her good friend and occasional musical partner, tenor saxophonist Lester Young, Billie Holiday remains one of our most renowned American jazz legends. Like all great jazz musicians, Holiday was known for her improvisational skills. She was influenced, while still quite young, by Bessie Smith and Louis Armstrong, and she became enthralled with “scat singing” wherein a singer uses the voice as a musical instrument, improvising melodies and rhythms rather than singing actual words.

Despite a very rough childhood, and as a victim of rampant racial prejudice throughout much of her career, Holiday became an international jazz sensation. Recording for various record labels, her instantly recognizable hits are too numerous to list in this preview. Frank Sinatra lauded her as “the greatest musical influence on me.”

“Lady Day at the Emerson Bar & Grill,” was written by Lanie Robertson and played successfully on and off Broadway before being made into a movie. Set in a South Philly bar, it tells the story of one of Holiday’s last performances before her untimely July 1959 death. Although chock full of legendary jazz numbers, it is called a “musical play” because the title character engages in quite a bit of intimate conversation between songs. Despite some raw moments, this is ultimately a story of resilience.

“During this period when many of us may feel unsure of life itself,” said Greensboro-based artist, Gregory Horton, who directs and designed the costumes, “Lady Day will be so life affirming … especially in the face of COVID-19.”

Janeta Jackson, from CFRT’s sold-out May 2019 production of “Crowns,” brings her amazing voice to the role of Holiday. Jackson reprises her 2019 Charlotte performance, albeit under very different circumstances. Asked how she planned to compensate for an outdoor performance, Jackson replied, “I intend to reimagine the whole setting. I worked at Disney, so I’m used to performing outside.”

Broadway artist and Fayetteville native Brian Whitted acts as music director for the production and also plays the part of Jimmy Powers, Lady Day’s pianist. CFRT audiences will remember him from the 2015 production of “Ain’t Misbehavin’.”

Due to the size of the outdoor space, which might mimic the capacity of that Philly Bar& Grill, seating will be very limited so everyone is “encouraged to book early.” The show runs through Oct. 25. Tickets and programs will be paperless and masks will be required of all staff and audience members.

For performance schedules along with available ticket and discount information, please visit cfrt.org or call the box office at 910-323-4233. Please join Up & Coming Weekly in welcoming CFRT’s bold resurrection of live theater here in Fayetteville by making sure that all of these performances are sold out.

Pictured: Janeta Jackson performs as Billie Holiday in CFRT's "Lady Day at the Emerson Bar & Grill" Oct. 8-25.

Religion is everywhere, even in three important books with North Carolina ties.

North Carolina’s beloved novelist Lee Smith takes us back to an earlier time in her novella, “Blue Marlin.” Its central character, Jenny, age 13, deals with her strong but immature religious views as she seeks to have God help her patch up her parents’ crumbled marriage. On a trip to Key West, she bargains with God to do good deeds if he will bring her parents together again.

Smith says that for all the stories she has ever written, “this one is dearest to me, capturing the essence of my own childhood.”

The book is also a reminder that Jenny’s immature view of God is one that is widely shared and not to be scoffed at.

What really happens to us when we die? Active churchgoers are caught between two ideas. First is the belief set out in the Apostles’ Creed in “the resurrection of the body” and judgment day accounting. Second is the conflicting idea that believers in Christ go directly to heaven when they die while others go straight to a place of punishment that lasts forever.

UNC-Chapel Hill religion professor Bart Ehrman’s “Heaven and Hell: A History of the Afterlife” deals with this dilemma, and he sets out a detailed history of ideas about afterlife.

Ehrman describes how ideas about afterlife developed in many religious traditions. He asserts that Jesus and the Apostle Paul did not believe in hell. The punishment for sinners was, they believed, simply annihilation, not everlasting punishment.

Many North Carolinians do not appreciate our state’s important place in the history of modern popular music or the influence of religion and church music on our music culture. Former Raleigh News & Observer journalist David Menconi’s new book, “Step It Up and Go, The Story of North Carolina Popular Music, from Blind Boy Fuller and Doc Watson to Nina Simone and Superchunk,” helps set the record straight.

The connections between gospel music, both black and white, run throughout the book. Menconi gives Ray Charles credit for “turning sacred gospel into secular soul, a new style that translated religious rapture into much earthier feelings.”

Charles transformed a gospel song, “It Must Be Jesus,” into a “randy song” called “I Got a Woman.” Menconi writes, “Changing that song’s subject matter from uppercase him to lowercase her scandalized the church, but it caused a pop music sensation.”

A Winston-Salem group, “The 5 Royales,” brought evangelistic fervor to secular music even before Charles. The group was one of the top R&B bands in the 1950s. Though forgotten by many, the group is immortalized by a street in Winston-Salem named after them.

Menconi writes about a Charlotte group called Jodeci whose “spin on hip-hop soul was churching it up with gospel feeling. Whether pleading for sin or salvation, they had the same urgency.”

In 1992, one member of Jodeci told Menconi, “Someday I’m sure we’ll all go back to gospel because that’s where our roots are.”
Maybe he was speaking for some of the rest of us.

 

After a six-month hiatus due to COVID-19, the Gilbert Theater is back in action with “Barefoot in the Park,” a Neil Simon classic. “Barefoot in the Park” runs through Oct. 18 with limited seating and social distancing in effect due to COVID-19 guidelines for public gatherings.

“Barefoot in the Park” first premiered on Broadway in 1963 and went on to have a successful movie adaptation with countless stage performances around the country since. Seeing it now — in the year of pandemics, riots and election ads — is a breath of fresh air and a simple reminder that a little bit of laughter is often just what you need.

After a six-day honeymoon, Corie and Paul start their married life in their fifth-floor-walkup in New York City. The tiny apartment leaves something to be desired, but Corie sees the possibilities. Paul sees the lack of a tub and a hole in the skylight.

The newlyweds differ in their attitudes toward these inconveniences with Corie being the fun-loving free spirit wearing her heart on her sleeve. Paul, a new lawyer, has a more business-like approach and is not spontaneous as his wife, who is always willing to, as they say, walk barefoot in the park.

Director Lawrence Carlisle III brings together a terrific cast and crew to deliver an entertaining escape from our own troubles in 2020. If only we could go back to when a gal could still get excited about getting a new Princess phone. In the meantime, “Barefoot in the Park” is a fun two hours to enjoy live theater.

The “Barefoot in the Park” cast includes Tanisha Johnson and Gage Long as newlyweds Corie and Paul; Deannah Robinson as Mother Banks, Corie’s mom; Gabe Terry as neighbor Mr. Velasco; and James Merkle as the telephone repairman.

It is a small cast of solid performances, each engaging and interesting. Johnson is full of energy and delivers a fun, believable and adorable Corie. I wanted everything to work out for her character and I look forward to seeing Johnson at the Gilbert in future shows.

Long holds his own because his portrayal of Paul and is as much measured with patience as Johnson’s is uninhibited. Long and Johnson make a good pair on stage and their performances remind me that love and relationships are often about how our differences make us stronger rather than tear us apart.

Robinson is convincing in her supporting role of Mother Banks. One of my favorite Gilbert regulars, Robinson always delivers and is a great addition to the cast.

Terry and Merkle deliver fine performances as quirky neighbor Mr. Velasco and the telephone repairman. Both bring levity to the story and the ensemble.

Safety precautions in place include masks for theater attendants, hand sanitizer stations, no-contact concessions, temperature checks upon entry and cleaning between performances. There will also be two performances on Saturday, Oct. 10 at 2 and 8 p.m. in which the actors will wear masks.

The Gilbert Theater is located at 116 Green St. Contact the box office for more info on the show or to purchase tickets at boxoffice@gilberttheater.com.

Pictured: The cast of "Barefoot in the Park" take a break during a recent dress rehearsal. The play runs through Oct. 18 at the Gilbert Theater. Photo by Jonathan Hornby Productions.

In 1943, Psychological Review published a paper by Abraham Maslow called "A Theory of Human Motivation." Today, this work is better known as "Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs." It uses a pyramid of needs to describe what motivates humans, based on their basic, psychological and self-fulfillment needs.

At the foundation of Maslow's pyramid are physiological needs: food, water, sleep, shelter, clothing and reproduction. Safety needs are the next highter level in the pyramind and include emotional, financial and personal well-being.

Maslow's other needs include belongingness, love and esteem. At the top of the pyramid is self-actualization. Self-actualization is that place in life when a person has reached their full potential. Here is where they find that place in life called "joy."

As a community, we are far from self-actualization. And we are coming up short on many fronts when it comes to belongingness, love and esteem as well. Locally, our preoccupation with the pandemic, civil unrest, unemployment, racial divisions, social justice and criminal justice all play on our collective psyche and create frustration accompanied by fears of a collapsing society. This sows seeds for further misunderstanding and conflict.

I recently took a photo of the Market House in historic downtown Fayetteville. This nationally recognized landmark is now fenced-in — a visual metaphor reflecting our recent turbulent times. I wonder how residents and visitors view and interpret the fence that surrounds it. And the circumstances that led to the fence going up. Does the fence protect the Market House from people who want it destroyed because they view it as a symbol of hatred and suppression? Is it being used to keep people from enjoying it as an iconic backdrop for happy and fun events like family outings, weddings and graduations? Or, does it keep our growing homeless population from using it as an overnight shelter?

With no access to the building, residents wonder what platform the Arts Council will use to celebrate its traditional Dicken's Holiday, which traditionally ushers in the holiday season. Perhaps the fence will stay up for years and become known as the infamous Fayetteville Wall. Maybe the building will become the Fayetteville Market Jail.

No matter how it is defined, it is an uncomplimentary reminder that no one will enjoy the Market House in its current state.

Today, basic human decency seems to be under attack almost everywhere you turn. It is a shame that people call their friends and family names like "fascist" or "communist" based on their political preferences. How are so many willing to sacrifice lifeling relationships on the altar of politics and division?

Meanwhile, our current candidates differ greatly in their views about how to move forward as a nation and as a society. As citizens and constituents, it seems like we do, too. Both political parties/candidates should represent and define those things that are essential to every American — the basics such as food, clean water, shelter, safety and security. These should have the highest priority and should be the issues they address first. Americans should vote for whomever best represents their beliefs of what is best for them, their family, community and country.

This upcoming election would serve everyone much better if all politicians focused on solutions that pursue Maslow's basic needs for their constituents, especially safety and security. This would guarantee a stable, safe and secure American way of life no matter who is elected and would enable us to experience more joy and less fear.

Cape Fear Studios will host “Retrospective - A Varied Path” featuring member artist Stanley Greaves through Oct. 20. Greaves is an internationally acclaimed artist from Guyana who now lives in Fayetteville. He is well-known for his colorful surrealist paintings which have made him popular in the Caribbean art world.

“I am showing examples of work I have done in different regions including recent woodworking activities,” Greaves said. “I have been making boxes, two of them are on show at the exhibition, which showcases a mix of sculptures, examples of my calligraphy and my poems in calligraphic form, and ceramics.”

The name of the exhibition, in effect, would be kind of retrospect because not all of the work exhibited is recent, he said.

Greaves’ exhibition as a member artist at Cape Fear Studios is a glimpse into the heart and soul of an internationally recognized artist, or ‘maker’ as he refers to himself, said Rose Kennedy, also a member artist.

“This is a rare opportunity to experience his work in painting, pottery and sculpture in an intimate, welcoming environment,” said Kennedy, who also serves as the retail gallery chairperson for Cape Fear Studios. “Stanley … is widely recognized throughout the world for his contributions to art and literature.”

Kennedy said Greaves’ artwork isn’t usually for sale, but he has generously donated a pottery piece to be auctioned benefitting Cape Fear Studio’s mission of providing arts and education to the community.

The pottery piece up for auction is called “Key Pot.”

“I had a collection of house keys that I collected over the years and always wanted to do something with that,” Greaves said. “And eventually, the thought came up that you know what, I can use some of these keys and put them on the pot. And that's why I named it a ‘Key Pot.’”

Greaves asks people to bring their own experiences to the exhibition, and he doesn’t think it's a necessity for the artist to explain the meanings behind the work.

“In order for people to look at the picture and read it and extract whatever they can from it. And in that way, those experiences are more valid to them instead of me giving them something,” he said.

Born to Guyanese parents, Greaves studied and lived in the United Kingdom, United States and Barbados. He doesn’t think living in different places has affected his art but instead made him more secure of it, as to not follow trends, he said.

Now living in Fayetteville, Greaves said he tends to avoid big metropolitan scenes and crowds stating the work he’s interested in doing is of no relevance to the art scene in larger
cities.

Although he has received many awards and prizes, including Guyana’s national honor ‘Golden Arrow of Achievement’ in 1975, Greaves says he hardly seeks art exhibitions.

“I am not a competitor, I don't feel the need to show myself that way,” he said, “I have been able to hold exhibitions from time to time, but that's just not for me.”

According to Kennedy, Greaves works in the pottery studio and is very engaging to talk to and a joy to watch as he intently works his magic with clay. He was a natural choice for a feature show because of his stellar work, introspective nature and international recognition, she said.

“Come in to absorb the workings of an extraordinary, creative mind and place a bid in the auction. His work is (usually) not for sale, so the auction is a great opportunity to own a special creation by Stanley,” she said.

Cape Fear Studios is located at 148 Maxwell St. in downtown Fayetteville. “Retrospective - A Varied Path” runs through Oct. 20. Admission is free to the public during their new hours of Wednesday and Friday from 2-5 p.m. and by appointment on Saturdays. For more information visit http://www.capefearstudios.com or call 910-433-2986.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pictured:  (top) Stanley Greaves is a member artist at Cape Fear Studios. (above left) "Key Pot," a pottery piece by Greaves will be auctioned off. (above right) A work by Greaves on display during "Retrospective - A Varied Path" at Cape Fear Studios through Oct. 20.

The N.C. Department of Transportation has begun distributing $132.7 million in street aid to municipalities. Also known as Powell Bill funds, 508 municipalities will receive funding. Half of the allocation went out last week. The other half will be paid by Jan. 1.

The Powell Bill statute requires municipalities to use the money primarily for street resurfacing, but it can also be used for the construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, drainage systems, sidewalks and greenways.

“Powell Bill funding helps local governments improve transportation systems within their communities,” said state Transportation Secretary Eric Boyette.

The amount each city receives is determined from an established formula, with 75% of the funds based on population, and 25 percent based on the mileage of locally maintained streets. Charlotte receives $13.7 million based on its population of 863,985. Fayetteville is receiving $4.9 million.

Fort Bragg’s Employee Assistance Program held an event Sept. 25 to educate and inform the community about substance abuse awareness and resources available for treatment.

The event held at the Soldier Support Center on post was in honor of National Recovery Month. The theme “Join the Voices of Recovery: Celebrating Connections” highlighted two Fort Bragg family members who shared their stories of addiction and sobriety.

“Recovery month gives us the platform to address the total community and Fort Bragg is a big part of that community, to be responsive, our theme this month has to do with community connectedness,” said Lisa Lofton-Berry, Fort Bragg Employee Assistance Program coordinator.

The event allowed people to hear success stories and come away knowing that if they are not satisfied with their level of risk, there are things they can do to make a change, Lofton-Berry said.

The EAP, under the Army Substance Abuse Program, is the branch that focuses on all non-uniform personnel like the Department of Defense civilian employees, military family members, retirees. The goal is to support their work life well-being and mission readiness, Lofton-Berry said.

Military spouse and Alcoholics Anonymous member, Kate (*last name withheld by request), whose alcohol addiction began at the age of 11, said it’s a problem not just in the military but everywhere.

“The most difficult part of my struggle was admitting that I needed help and asking for help,” she said. “I tried to quit several times but was unable to, which surprised me because I am usually able to do anything I want.”

Having struggled with alcoholism for 13 years, she attended her first AA meeting at the age of 24 and is now celebrating 34 years of sobriety.

She said it was much more helpful to talk to people who understood the struggle from personal experience.

“Since I have been sober, I have been very active in AA here in Cumberland County, and the best way to help my sobriety is to help other people,” Kate said.

AA offers in-person meetings, virtual meetings, a hotline, and you can find out more at FayAA.org.

“When I was drinking, I was running from my problems. Because of AA, I can face my problems, walk through them and get to the other side much more easily,” Kate said.
Active-duty family member Jenny Schumacher grew up in a stable, fun-loving house.

Her struggle began following a life-altering deadly car accident in high school, leaving her with a broken pelvis and fractured back, which eventually led to her narcotics addiction later in life.

“That changed the whole turn of everything, the song and the drums that I was dancing to,” she said. “I realized, you know, that I was never going to be a Rockstar, I was not going to be anything that I wanted to be, I was just going to be average, and that was the arrogance of my mind.”

Having moved on with her life, and gotten married, she faced multiple complications during her pregnancies due to her injuries.

Multiple tests, different diagnoses like osteoporosis among others, she was addicted to the drugs to combat her pain.

“Long story short, I wanted to be the mom that can pick her kid up when he's skinned his knee and wanted to be able to run after the other toddler,” Schumacher said.

After losing her marriage and kids, and blowing up her sister's house manufacturing methamphetamine and being sentenced to prison, she chose the path to recovery through a faith-based outlook.

She said every duty station she goes to, the first place she walks into is PWOC — Protestant Women of the Chapel — and she has sisters running up to her.

“If I miss a Tuesday, there's someone there to call me on the phone, and say ‘hey, I didn't see you this Tuesday. Are you sick, do you need some soup, do you need something?’ and vice versa,” Schumacher said.

"We are all there to help each other and hold each other accountable, and I recommend you reach out," she said.

“There are chapel communities out there that are available to help, and it's not just the faith-based community. There are other communities here on post that are here to love on those with substance abuse issues, injury issues, PTSD issues, chronic pain issues,” Schumacher said.

People sharing their story makes all the difference in the world because It’s a personal connection, Lofton-Berry said.

“When you hear real-life stories of how people have experienced challenges and how they have reached out and found ways to turn their lives around in the direction they want, if I'm listening to that, I am like ‘hey if they can do it, I can do it, let me get started today.’” she said.

"We have a weekly class where people know that they can come and get on the path to moving in the direction they'd like to," she said.

“It is a courageous first step, so it is our goal to provide a safe space where people feel comfortable to reach out,” she said. “We manage and invite people to share what's going on and then receive a non-judgmental response.”

Jacqueline Truitt, director of the Addiction Medicine Intensive Outpatient Program at Womack Hospital said she works with soldiers and family members who are in a need of higher-level care to address substance abuse concerns.

“I have patients come and they are in groups five days a week. They get individual counseling as well as other services, (such as) art therapy and meditation to make sure they are ready and really able to integrate with their families and the community,” Truitt said.

"Addiction is a disease, and that’s how we treat it here, and make sure to follow evidence-based practices," she said.

“We want to make sure that people feel confident that when they come in, they receive the help that they need and remove any type of stigma that may be attached with getting help,” Truitt said.

The community can reach them at 910-907-6825; select option 1 to make an appointment and be connected with a licensed clinician.

“This is a huge mission that we have on Fort Bragg. These folks make sacrifices to protect our nation and we want to be there for them,” Lofton-Berry said.

Kate said it is important for people to know they don’t have to struggle. “You can find help with people who understand your problem. We are out there, and we really want to help you.”

“This month is focusing on substance abuse issues, but substance abuse comes from another core issue in our spirit and so if I could say anything, I want to leave people with that message of hope that change does happen,” Schumacher said.

Individuals have an opportunity to explore the level of risk in their lives revolving around substance use by attending weekly classes. They can call 910-396-5784 available Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Picture: The Fort Bragg Employee Assistance Program office is located in the Soldier Support Center, Bldg. 4-2843 Normandy Drive on Fort Bragg. The EAP offers resources to non-uniformed personnel (DoD civilian employees, military family members and retirees).

Army soldiers want network communications on the battlefield that can connect at any time, from any place, is secure and reliable.

The Army’s modernization effort is delivering new radios, applications, satellite terminals and cross banding solutions to allow coalition partners to better share information with the troops. All American Division soldiers are at the forefront of this modernization effort, which is called Capability Set 21 and the Integrated Tactical Network.

For more than a year, 82nd Airborne leadership and soldiers have been testing and evaluating new network gear and have provided feedback to help shape technology across the Army.

Feedback from Fort Bragg soldiers has helped the Army prioritize units which will receive new network kits starting in 2021.

Former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders got a lot of mileage with his proposal of “free college for all.”

Other political hopefuls have embraced the same idea, at least in part, since at some level all human beings appreciate something for nothing.

The notion is also appealing because higher education costs have exploded in both public and private institutions and lower income students graduate at lower levels than students from more advantaged families for all sorts of reasons, including money. Young Americans, not surprisingly, love this idea.

Free college for all would also be so astronomically expensive it is difficult to contemplate. But should everyone go to college at all? And, if they do, can they, their families and the larger community expect them to graduate?

The everyone to college question has been around for generations, and the answer is clearly no. Some students are not physically or mentally capable. Others are not interested in any way.

That said, technology has greatly lessened the need for semi-skilled or unskilled labor, and jobs that require a high school degree or less are hard to come by and poorly compensated. Students and their families should understand that when the college decision is being made.

Researchers have long known that college degrees are valuable personal assets. College grads earn more than nongrads almost from the outset and certainly over their working careers. Statistics show that they also live longer, are healthier, divorce less frequently and generally report happier lives.

More affluent families with generations of college goers and graduates understand the value of a college degree, and their children are more likely to graduate than the children of middle- and lower-class families with less college going experience.

The New York Times reported recently on a study by professors at Harvard and MIT that affirms the value of a college degree. Some students in the study were awarded significant scholarships while others paid their own ways. Scholarship recipients graduated at a higher rate than nonscholarship students, especially among minority and financially disadvantaged students, and those whose parents were not college grads. All of that seems to support the notion that a free education would help many students.

Here again, one size does not fit all. Students from families with a history of college-going are likely to graduate anyway, since their families expect them to do so. They may also be more college-ready, having attended high-quality, sometimes independent, schools. It makes little sense to provide tax-payer funded higher education for them.

Targeting capable students from other backgrounds for free education may make sense. American workers now compete not only against each other but against people literally on the other side of world, many in nations that do provide free educations. If we want our nation to be competitive in our global economy, our people must be prepared to do that, and education is an important aspect of that preparation. It would be expensive, of course, but not likely as expensive as a stalled economy or the long-term burden of individuals and families unable to support themselves sufficiently.

So, no, not everyone should go to college, but those who do should have the support they need to be successful. And, yes, an educated and productive workforce in a humming economy benefits all of us, not just those who received the education.

More than ever in today’s small world and global economy, we really are all in this together.

Five years ago, the inaugural Indigo Moon Film Festival weekend was nearly washed out by Hurricane Matthew. Festivalgoers braved strong winds, heavy rains, power outages and the beginning of historic flooding in downtown Fayetteville to take part in a sold-out opening night.

If a hurricane couldn’t cancel the IMFF, there was little chance that a pandemic could.

Instead, IMFF founders Jan Johnson and Pat Wright put their heads together with the festival board of directors to devise a way to continue the festival while reducing health risks associated with in-person audiences.

The solution is a fully virtual event for 2020. All films will be streamed online through a virtual portal. Anyone who purchases a ticket or pass can watch from the comfort and safety of their own home on a computer or television using common apps for streaming.

While some festivalgoers will miss the experience of viewing films on the big screen in one of the traditional venues, Johnson and Wright said the virtual experience has opened up a lot of possibilities for this year and for future festivals, too.

“It’s been exciting learning this new interface,” Johnson said of the process to prepare the virtual venues on the internet site and upload trailers and interviews with filmmakers.

What audiences will see is a streamlined online site that can be searched and selected as easy as ordering any product online.

“If you can turn on your computer, you can watch the films,” Wright said. “Or hook up your computer to the TV, whatever you are comfortable with.”

Festivalgoers can watch trailers and select which films to see, Johnson said.

The virtual experience and online platform allow viewers to watch all of the films if they choose — something that wasn’t possible during past festivals. At four traditional venues, viewers would choose which films or blocks of films to see over a weekend. Using the online platform, viewers have a week to watch as many of the films as they choose.

“Before, each person had to buy a ticket,” Johnson said. With a virtual festival, you buy a pass and can watch films for the entire run of the festival.

There is still a schedule this year, but all films will open on Saturday, at different times. After they are shown, they will be available online and viewers can rewatch them if they want.

Passes are available at VIP, “Three Fer” and student rates. A VIP pass is sold online at $100 and will give access to all films after their scheduled showtime until the festival ends at 11:59 p.m. on Oct. 16. Student and “Three Fer” passes are sold online for $25 each. Viewers can choose to purchase single viewing tickets and can purchase anytime during the festival.

There are more than 60 films in this year’s festival, including opening night’s “Finding Manny,” a documentary directed by Kacey Cox. The movie is inspired by the book “Carved in Stone” and tells the story of Holocaust survivor Manny Drukier, who jumped from a Nazi “death train” at the age of 16 and found refuge in a home for orphans. Drukier was tracked down 71 years later by a German researcher who invited him to return to the orphanage, now a school, to share his story.

“It is a fantastic film,” Johnson said. “The kind of film that makes you laugh and cry.”

In the documentary, as Manny Drukier revisits places that hold some of his darkest memories, he tries to reconcile the past so that he can educate the future.
This sentiment is similar to the motto Johnson and Wright have for the festival — “film inspires change.”

“This is again the season of year and time of our lives we can take a look at how we’re going forward,” Johnson said.

Creating and sharing films can inform and enlighten us — and others — to different experiences, customs and cultures, Wright said. It is a benefit to taking part in a film festival that offers diverse film topics from around the world.

“We get to watch all these films from all over the world,” Wright said. “It’s a way to make our world a little bit smaller and work on these issues that face us.”

One benefit of a virtual festival is that filmmakers can provide Q&A videos to run after the films, Wright said. So far, more than two-thirds of the films will have accompanying Q&As. This introduces viewers to filmmakers and gives some insight to how the films were made.

One Q&A available is from local filmmakers Brian Adam Kline and Nicki Hart who made “Live Vid,” in the Shorts Block: Love.

“It’s about a woman dealing with COVID-19, and I thought Brian’s script was hilarious,” Hart said of the film that takes places in the early stages of the pandemic.

“She is locked down with her husband in her apartment,” Hart said. “She had a social life and friends. Now, all of a sudden, they’re forced to be cooped up and she has no other way to talk to her friends than in a live chat room.”

In the film, viewers see the character talking to her friends, and the responses of her friends, typed out on screen. “She’s really telling them how she’s really feeling,” Hart said.

Making the film was a rewarding experience, Hart said. A veteran of local live theater, this was Hart’s first film to be released to the public. It is also her first producing credit.

Kline, who has directed Hart in multiple shows at the Gilbert Theater, approached her with the script earlier this year.

“In this crazy time of COVID-19, we wanted to do something to make people laugh,” Hart said. “I’m proud of it. It’s a small film, but it’s still impactful. We make you laugh with this film, but we explore that dark underbelly of COVID-19.”

“Live Vid” is also semi-finalist in the Peak International Film Festival, but Hart is proud that her collaboration with Kline was accepted in the IMFF.

“Indigo Moon has a great following and reputation,” she said. “It’s a great, great thing we can claim, culturally, to have a film festival in this town.”

This year’s festival will have Jury and Audience awards that will be presented online after the festival is complete. Viewers will have the opportunity to vote on awards in categories at the end of viewing blocks.

Much of the transition to a virtual festival was made possible by a grant from the Arts Council of Fayetteville Cumberland County, Johnson said.

The 5th Annual Indigo Moon Film Festival will take place Oct. 9-16. To purchase tickets/passes or learn more about viewing, visit
https://www.indigomoonfilmfestival.com/

 

 

 

 

 

 

The North Carolina Supreme Court has ruled that three death row inmates will have their sentences reduced to life in prison through the state’s now-defunct Racial Justice Act.

The 2009 law allowed death row inmates to go through an appeal process to receive life without parole if they could prove racial bias was a significant factor in their original death sentences. The law was repealed in 2013.

The American Civil Liberties Union represented Christina Walters, Tilmon Golphin and Quintel Augustine in the original hearings in Cumberland County.

Walters, who led a Fayetteville street gang, was convicted of the 1998 murders of 18-year-old Tracy Lambert and 21-year-old Susan Moore and the attempted murder of Debra Cheeseborough.

Augustine was convicted of killing Fayetteville police Officer Roy Turner Jr. in November 2001.

Golphin killed State Highway Patrol Trooper Ed Lowry and Cumberland County Deputy Sheriff David Hathcock during an I-95 traffic stop in September 1997.

Superior Court Judge Gregory Weeks, in 2012, cited a “wealth of evidence” of racially biased jury selection in all three cases.

 

Pictured: North Carolina Supreme Court

There are real moments of insight and clarity on late night TV if you will only look. Once upon a time, in a galaxy pretty close to ours, came such a moment of clarity. Heck, it was our very own Milky Way galaxy while I happened to be watching a rerun of “Highway Patrol.”

“Highway Patrol” was a 1950s show featuring Sgt. Dan Matthews. Sgt. Dan seldom took off his hat and usually killed a bad guy in the last five minutes of the program. Right after Dan killed the bad guy, a commercial came on selling gold-plated fake buffalo head nickels for only $9.99 each. Each household was strictly limited to being able to buy five fake nickels. What got me interested was the tag line: “AVOID DISAPPOINTMENTS AND FUTURE REGRETS. You must order now!” The low, low price could only be guaranteed for five days due to the ever-increasing cost of gold plating and unlimited suckers with credit cards.

I certainly wanted to avoid disappointments and future regrets. Who wouldn’t want to avoid disappointments and future regrets? If buying a fake gold-plated nickel is a vaccine against future regrets sign me up. If $50 worth of junk will avoid disappointment in the Year of Our Lord 2020, that is a small price to pay. I began pondering, was there a character in Greek mythology who had encountered disappointments and future regrets? Sure enough, consider the story of Paris, the instigator of the Trojan War. Instead of buying a fake gold-plated drachma, he had snatched Helen of Sparta winding up with the Trojan Horse at the gates of his city.

Paris had a colorful background. His baby daddy was King Priam of Troy and his momma was Hecuba. Right before giving birth to Paris, Hecuba had a bad dream that she was going to give birth to a burning torch. Yikes! The oracle cyphered this meant the new baby would end up destroying Troy. King Priam ordered his Flunky to kill the newborn Paris. The Flunky took Paris up to a hill but couldn’t kill a baby. He just left the baby on the hill hoping Paris would have the good sense to die.

Fortunately for Paris, a lactating Momma Bear lumbered along and nursed him back to health. The Flunky came back about a week later hoping to bring Paris’ body back to show the King. As Gomer would say, “Surprise, surprise, surprise!” Paris was still alive. The Flunky decided to adopt Paris. Then the troubles began. (Trigger warning to PETA fans) To prove to Priam that Paris was dead, the Flunky brought Priam a dog tongue claiming it was from Paris.

The gods decided to have a Miss Olympus Beauty pageant to decide who was the most beautiful goddess of them all. The three finalists were Hera, Aphrodite and Athena. Zeus the King of the gods, was asked by the bevy of beauties to decide who was the best looking. Zeus wasn’t King for nothing. He knew whomever he picked, that the other two would hate him. So he delegated the judging to Paris. Paris was no dummy either. He had each of the goddesses undress so he could decide who was the best looking. Miraculously they were all so beautiful he could not decide. Each goddess then tried to bribe him to choose her as Queen of the Hop. Ultimately Aphrodite’s bribe won when she offered Paris the most beautiful woman on Earth, Helen of Sparta.

Let me tell you, Helen was a doll baby. However, there was a catch. Helen was already married to King Menelaus of Sparta. Paris snuck into Menelaus’ palace and snatched up Helen. Then off he ran with her. Helen became smitten with Paris. They went back to Troy to live happily ever after. But there was another catch. Menelaus wanted her back pronto. He gathered up an army of angry Greeks and hightailed it to Troy. Paris refused to give up Helen, noting possession was 9/10s of the law. Menelaus replied to Paris, quoting Bugs Bunny saying “Of course you know, this means war!” Turned out it was the Trojan War.

A whole bunch of fighting, stabbing, dueling and slaying ensued between the Greek and Trojan armies. Lots of Greek heroes ended up dead including Achilles who got an arrow right slam into his ankle. His ankle was the only place he could be killed. When Achilles was a baby, his Momma dipped him into a magic stream that would protect him from all wounds. She held him by his ankle when she dunked him. Medically, this meant his ankle didn’t get wet resulting in an unprotected spot. As luck would have it, Paris’ arrow hit him right in the wrong ankle resulting in Achilles expiring. That is why you have Achilles tendons in your feet to this very day.

The Greeks hung around Troy for about 10 years doing siege stuff that didn’t work. Finally, the Greeks built a giant wooden horse to trick the Trojans into thinking the Greeks had given up. The Greeks filled up the horse with soldiers, leaving a note saying the horse was a gift and that they were going back to Greece. The Trojans saw the horse, read the note, and believed they had won. Counting their chickens before they were hatched, the Trojans hauled the horse into Troy to celebrate. Once inside the gates, the Greeks popped out of the horse and wiped out the city of Troy. Hence the old saying, beware of Greeks bearing gifts.

So, what have we learned today? Once again, not much. While you should never look a gift horse in the mouth, buying a fake buffalo head nickel might lead you to avoid disappointment and future regrets. Neither Steve Reeves or any dogs were harmed during the writing of this column.

The coronavirus pandemic has created many challenges for every part of our daily lives. If you’re a parent like me, you’re probably well aware of the difficulties with remote learning. Unfortunately, these difficulties have impacted some families more than others.

Last month, I heard from parents and school administrators in our community about their concerns that special needs children were not able to access caregiving services during remote learning. This was due to a loophole that restricts families with special needs children from having respite care during the school day. This is an appropriate safeguard during normal times when students are able to attend school. But in a pandemic when children may be kept at home, these safeguards would not allow the program's intended purposes to work to provide care for children and relief for parents.

As soon as I heard about this issue, I got to work. I immediately urged the Trump Administration to take action to rectify this situation and get support for special needs children in our community. After directly appealing to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Administrator Seema Verma, I am thrilled to report that last week, CMS granted a waiver for North Carolina to provide home and community-based services for these at-risk children.

This would not have happened without parents reaching out to my office and is just part of my job to work on behalf of everyone in our community to solve problems. While the COVID-19 pandemic has created many challenges, families with special needs children deserve the peace-of-mind that they can continue to access caregiving services during this time. As we continue to address the coronavirus, I am committed to getting our community the resources we need so that ALL children can succeed.

In addition to supporting students at this time, I also remain focused on rebuilding our economy.

Also last week, I was proud to announce a $13.1 million Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements Grant award from the U.S. Department of Transportation for the Aberdeen Carolina & Western Railway.

I have had the pleasure of touring the ACWR rail operations based in Montgomery County. A lifeline throughout our entire region, the ACWR is critical to transporting goods and supporting jobs across the 8th District and our state.

Last week’s announced grant will enable many growth opportunities, particularly in rural areas, between Moore, Montgomery, Stanly, Cabarrus and Mecklenburg Counties. The funding will greatly improve ACWR's infrastructure and freight operations and will attract new industry and jobs into this service area.

It was a thrill to call ACWR Railway President Julie White to tell her the grant was awarded. Julie told me this grant was a “game changer” that will allow critical improvements to the rail line that will benefit farms and other businesses throughout our region. I am also excited about the impact this will have on bringing new jobs to our community.

As your Congressman, I will continue to fight for common sense solutions to rebuild our economy, renew the American dream for all Americans and restore our way of life. You can count on me to keep coming to work every day on your behalf, staying focused on public health, and doing whatever it takes to emerge from this time stronger than ever.

Picture: A loophole prevented families with special needs students from accessing caregiver services during remote learning. After appealing to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, North Carolina was granted a waiver.