It has been a labor of love since 2001 when Dean Melvin left his successful job as a car salesman to manage the Omni Cinemas 8 movie theater. He took on the task of turning the bankrupt business around, never planning on one day buying the theater. Since he worked at the theater earlier in the 1990s, he knew it had potential. No stranger to the industry Melvin started working in theaters when he was a teenager. His first theater job was at Eutaw Theater. He later managed a Raleigh drive-in when he was 18.  Now, Melvin owns the entire Omni Family Entertainment Center off Sycamore Dairy Road that includes the movie theater, the family video arcade and both the indoor and outdoor mini-golf courses.

Melvin does not credit his ability to turn around a failing business with any special entrepreneurial talents or insight. He says he simply did what he could, believing in himself and his employees to make the Omni a place where Fayetteville families can come for affordable quality entertainment.

The theater he came back to manage was a mess, Melvin said. The building itself was in need of major repairs and updating, and the place was dirty. But the previous management team left the movie projectors, which were state-of-the-art machines at the time. He knew as long as he had those projectors, he could show Fayetteville audiences quality movies. It was a start; the rest would follow with hard work and dedication. 

“It is a constant process of upgrading and improving,” Melvin said. “You just can’t keep doing what you’re doing to keep up.”

He has since upgraded the Omni’s projectors to digital ones. Melvin invested in the Omni’s first digital projector to show Avatar. It cost $75,000. Ongoing systematic upgrades and improvements are his method for ensuring that the Omni keeps on pace with other area entertainment venues.

 “As a small business we save a lot of money by doing a lot ourselves – painting, pressure washing, we do things in stages,” he said. “We’re a discount theater but we are just as good as they are for picture and sound,” he said. Melvin is very proud that the Omni can rival any movie complex in town for sound and picture quality. He realizes it is more than an investment, it is a necessity. Providing the most enjoyable entertainment experience for his patrons is his highest priority. “You’re gonna have competition,” he said. “Competition keeps you on your feet.” However, he doesn’t allow competition to dictate his business model or intimidate him into making risky financial decisions. “The bottom line is: you gotta pay attention to what other guys are doing,” Melvin said, “But stay on course with what you’re doing. You get better or get beat.”

After his success in turning the theater around, Melvin purchased it in 2003.  He then took over the entire Plaza in 2004, with tenants in some of the business space.

“I figured I was already paying so much for the theater,” he said of the initial $6.2 million purchase. For three years, he was solely responsible for the hefty $56,000 mortgage payment due each month until he could get bank financing. With a proven track record and good credit, this financing allowed Melvin to continue expanding. “It only took one guy to believe in us.” Melvin acquired Mountasia Mini-Golf Course in 2007, then the arcade in 2011. He renovated, modernized and up-fitted both, making incremental improvements as he could afford them. He bought new games and designed and constructed a new concessions area. He added a party room and began offering party packages. He also added a clean and comfortable parent waiting area. All of Melvin’s ideas and innovations are specifically intended and designed to provide area families a fun, safe and affordable entertainment experience. Adding and improving on site amenities increases business, which increases revenue, allowing even more improvements and innovations. Last year, Melvin invested $300,000 to upgrade seating in every one of his theater auditoriums. Decades-old worn cloth seats were replaced with large roomy high-quality leather rocking chairs. In addition, by removing several rows of seating, he widened the aisles substantially, allowing for more legroom and comfort. No doubt, it has been a proven model that has paid off for Melvin’s small business. “We’re doing better every year,” he said.  “We’re trying to bring the masses in,” he added. And that means providing a clean and comfortable environment for customers to enjoy the movie experience at a low-affordable discounted price without sacrificing quality. “We charge less, but we still want you to have the same experience as a first-run theater.”

Melvin’s obvious success doesn’t mean he’s through. Far from it. He is a visionary and sees many other potential entrepreneurial opportunities for the Omni Plaza and the 25-year-old movie theater. 

“You better be prepared to do a lot of stuff yourself when you’re in business for yourself,” he said. “It’s still a challenge to make a profit and pay your bills.” He mentions the $7,000 monthly electric bill he pays during summer months when the theater is busiest as one of the expenses he learned to plan for as he grew his business. He had to learn about such bills and a variety of taxes throughout the years.

 “When you’re in business you have to be very aware of potential problems and how to figure things out,” he said. “With little or no education, I’ve done well with the business part. I’ve made mistakes, but I think we’ve done well.”

Dean Melvin is a true entrepreneur. He has no business degree or formal education. He did not even finish high school. He attended the school of hard knocks when he went off to manage his first theatre in Raleigh. “That was my college, taking over that drive-in,” Melvin said. “I learned about business.” 

He applied much of that learning when he returned to the Omni.

“It’s been a long journey since coming back in 2001,” Melvin said of his now-successful and profitable business. His management team consists of mostly younger adults while his operation and maintenance teams are mostly older and more experienced personnel. It has proven to be a good balance, providing the younger employees with mentorship and plenty of opportunities to prove themselves capable and responsible. Melvin admits he has no grand strategy for hiring. However, he expects excellence and loyalty and he gets it. 

Jessica Diaz, 25, is the Omni Plaza Manager. She has worked for Melvin at the Omni for more than ten years and is responsible for managing employees throughout the Plaza. She is empowered to solve problems identified by customers and make operational decisions. Dean Melvin appreciates hard work and honesty. He knows that people will work harder when their efforts are noticed and rewarded. 

“We’re not perfect, we do make mistakes, but it’s all about serving our customers. I know how to handle different situations with customers or employees,” said Diaz. She credits Melvin’s management style for teaching her how to multi-task and preparing her to take on a management position. Another Omni Plaza manager, Jonathon Barcinas, 22, started out as an usher cleaning the theaters five years ago. He moved up to game technician at the arcade after Melvin found out he enjoyed working on cars in his spare time. Taking initiative and doing quality work got him promoted to managing the arcade. “I was offered manager pretty early,” Barcinas said. It is an experience he credits with providing him the life skills that are helping him in his college studies. “Dean delegates and rewards initiative. Working next to Dean, I’ve learned how to keep up with things … how to find a solution and fix a problem. I used to be in a little egg shell before I started working here. Now, I have people skills and customer service skills. I have learned to talk to people,” Barcinas added. 

Investing in people is as important to Melvin as investing in his business. Providing outstanding quality customer service is the key to making the Omni Family Amusement Center a place where people want to go with their families. Undoubtedly, Melvin is a hands-on manager and he expects only the best from his employees.

As tempting as it might sound to hibernate behind closed doors after a long week, don’t make that mistake. June 24 is 4th Friday, which coincides with Fayetteville after 5. That means, in addition to art exhibits and activities downtown, there is a concert, too. And, it’s free! What’s not to love?

If you missed the Art’s Council’s opening of the Public Works exhibit, now is the perfect time to check it out. What makes this exhibit so refreshing is that all of the artists are local, and no submission was declined. Anyone with an inkling of creativity and the gumption to submit a piece has a place on the walls of the Arts Council Gallery. Don’t take that to mean the work is subpar. The Public Works exhibit features pieces worthy of any professional gallery — along with an inspiring selection by local youth and hobbyists. More than the pieces themselves, this exhibit is a peek at the artistic spirit that inhabits this community and that deserves a look. For more information about the Arts Council and the 4th Friday exhibit, visit www.theartscouncil.com.

Art isn’t just for grown-ups. In fact, the smallest among us are often the ones with the most creative outlooks and active imaginations. Fascinate-U Children’s Museum taps into that on a regular basis, but on 4th Friday’s,the activities are free. From 7-9 p.m., Fascinate-U invites families to enjoy an evening filled with kid-centered activities celebrating art and culture. Bubbles, hula hoops and sidewalk chalk await. Throw in a little imagination and some outdoor space and it has the makings of a perfect fun-filled summer evening.

Most people equate libraries with books, and the local libraries do have them. But that’s just a fraction of what the Cumberland County Public Library and Information Center system offers. This 4th Friday, come meet some of the areas local authors — in person. Talk to them. Ask questions. Make a connection. Readers, writers and anyone who loves a good story will find something here. It’s at Headquarters Library from 7-9 p.m. at 300 Maiden Lane.

Local artist co-op, Cape Fear Studios opens its Annual National 2-D art exhibit on June 24. Artists from across the country compete for space on the walls of the main gallery. If art is about perspective, there is plenty here. Come see just how much perspective fits into just two dimensions. Visit www.capefearstudios.com for more information.

Right next door to Cape Fear Studios is another gold mine. The Fayetteville Area Transportation and Local History Museum is brimming with artifacts and information about local history. The exhibits changed out this year, so chances are even local die-hard historians will find something they’ve not seen before. Call 433-1457 for details.

Like a cold drink on a scorching day, a summer Friday night just begs for music on the lawn as the sun sinks in the sky. 20 Ride, a Zac Brown tribute band, headlines Fayetteville after Five in Festival Park. Gates open around 5:30 p.m., and the music starts around 7 p.m. Shake off the worries of last week and take a turn dancing on the promenade. There will be food vendors and beverages for sale. Bring your family, your friends, your neighbors (and maybe a blanket to sit on) and ease into the weekend. 

Michelle’s Jazz & Comedy Entertainment, LLC is bringing its much anticipated Jazz Showcase to town on Saturday, June 18 at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m. at the Metropolitan Room in downtown Fayetteville.  

“When I moved here two years ago, there was no jazz at all,” said Michelle Ingram, promoter and owner of Michelle’s Jazz & Comedy Entertainment, LLC. “I’ve been doing this for a while in California, Florida and Denver, and basically I decided that I would start bringing jazz here to see how it goes along with the city.” 

Ingram added that this is the first show in a series consisting of two comedy shows, a Latin Jazz Explosion and a Jazzy Christmas special. 

The showcase features Grammy Award winner Norman Connors and the Starship Orchestra, Theo Valentin, Mike Eley, Pete Everett and the Total Package Band, Sam Rucker, Willie Bradley and Kwabena Dinizulu. 

“Norman Connors does his shows and he sings the songs that he wrote and produced for artists,” said Ingram. “He discovered Phyllis Hyman so Theo Valentin will sing most of the songs that Connors wrote for her.” 

Ingram added that they will play all kinds of Jazz as well as instrumental music and it will be a cool show.       

“I have classic hits that we always play which are ‘Betcha By Golly Wow’, ‘Valentine Love’, ‘This Is Your Life and You Are My Starship’,”said Connors, drummer, composer and producer. “I have 30 albums and I am celebrating my 43rd year as a recording artist.” Connors added that the audience should expect some dynamic singing from his vocalist Theo Valentin and dynamic playing from his band, The Starship Orchestra. 

Connors has been playing music since the tender age of 3. He met Miles Davis at the age of 13. Davis treated Norman like a son. “I met all these great people before I even started recording,” said Connors. “Miles Davis is my mentor, and I used to go to his house every day.” 

Connors added that he had a great education from a classical standpoint at Juilliard School of Music, the streets and from knowing some of the greatest musicians in the world that took a liking to him. 

Connors has discovered and produced Jean Carne, Angela Bofill, Phyllis Hyman, Norman Brown, Glenn Jones and many others. He is currently working on an album with 16 discs, which is his 40-plus year anniversary CD. “I have been working on this album for four years and we will finish it July 18,” said Connors. “Hopefully, the album will come out in September.”       

Tickets are $60 in advance and $65 at the door, which includes complimentary appetizers and one drink. The Metropolitan Room is located at 109 Green Street. For more information, call 302-8809.  

Cumberland County Senior Resident Superior Court Judge Jim Ammons will step down and another judge will hear the cases of four convicted murderers. 

Quintel Augustine, Tilmon Golphin, Marcus Robinson and Christina Walters were the only convicts in North Carolina to have their death sentences commuted under the Racial Justice Act. The four inmates were removed from death row by former Superior Court Judge Greg Weeks and resentenced to life in prison without parole. They persuaded Weeks that their prosecutors illegally blocked African-Americans from serving on their juries, thereby invoking the now defunct Racial Justice Act. 

Cumberland County Assistant District Attorney Rob Thompson is asking that the four defendants remain on death row. He argues that a 2013 act that repealed the controversial law no longer provides them a shield. The North Carolina Supreme Court decided in December that Weeks made errors that biased the cases against the prosecutors who were trying to keep the four defendants on death row. The Supreme court also said Judge Weeks should not have allowed Augustine, Golphin and Walters to present their claims as a group. The high court said their cases should have been conducted separately. Weeks decisions were remanded to Cumberland County Superior Court where Judge Ammons would normally have heard the case. 

Robinson, Augustine and Walters were in the courtroom for the hearing. Golphin chose not to appear, but his lawyers were there on his behalf. The lawyers alleged that Ammons would be unfair to their clients. They pointed out that Ammons has a close relationship with law enforcement, including the fact that his brother-in-law used to be the head of the N.C. Highway Patrol. 

“I have sworn to administer judgment without favoritism to anyone or to the state. I will not violate those oaths for anyone or anything,” Ammons said.  

But he volunteered to let another judge decide the case. Defense lawyers Jay Ferguson, Malcolm Hunter and Ken Rose insisted it was illegal for the state to put their clients back on death row, calling it a form of unconstitutional double-jeopardy but they were put back on death row at Central Prison.

The defendants were all involved in notorious local murders. Golphin and his younger brother, Kevin Golphin, shot and killed Cumberland County Deputy Sheriff David Hathcock and State Trooper Ed Lowry during a traffic stop on Interstate 95 in 1997. Quintel Augustine was convicted of murdering Fayetteville Police Officer Roy Turner Jr. on a street corner near downtown in 2001. Robinson and an accomplice kidnapped, robbed and murdered teenager Erik Tornblom in 1991. Christina Walters led a gang that kidnapped three women and shot them execution-style in a gang-related initiation. Tracy Lambert and Susan Moore died. The third victim, who was dumped on the Fort Bragg Reservation survived. 

Ammons did not prosecute or preside over the trials in any of the cases.

Local law enforcement agencies are conducting sobriety checkpoints on average of once a month. The check points are “dedicated to promoting highway safety awareness to reduce the number of traffic crashes and fatalities,” Police Lt. Stacey Smith told Up & Coming Weekly. Smith commands the police traffic enforcement division. On Friday, June 10, an estimated 50 police officers from Fayetteville, Hope Mills and Spring Lake and N.C. Highway Patrolmen joined forces for the most recent Booze It and Lose It campaign. The sobriety checkpoint was conducted on Hope Mills Road near Queensdale Drive, a straight stretch of roadway that gave police an unobstructed view of traffic. 

The Governor’s Highway Safety Program sponsors the Booze it and Lose Itprogram. According to a news release from the Governor’s office, “the goal of the checkpoints is to educate the public on the dangers of impaired driving and to reduce the amount of impaired drivers on the roadway.” The recent local roadblock was a five-hour event from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. Traffic along Hope Mills Road was reduced to one lane in each direction as dozens of officers coordinated speaking with motorists as they drove into the cordon of orange traffic cones. During a one-hour period, an average of 10 cars a minute passed through the check point, according to calculations made by Up & Coming Weekly on the scene. That translates into about 600 cars an hour during the first couple of hours. Traffic is lighter after midnight, but the chance of stopping drunk drivers is greater then.

City police say that, on average, fewer than a dozen drivers are charged with DWI during the check points. 

“I’m thrilled to death that the checkpoints don’t result in more arrests than they do,” said Police Chief Harold Medlock. 

He believes educating motorists about the dangers and liability of driving while impaired has paid off. 

“Typically we make dozens of arrests for no operators’ licenses, revoked licenses and suspensions,” Smith said. According to the Booze It & Lose It brochure prepared by the Governor’s Highway Safety Program, a drunk driver kills someone every 45 minutes on average. One out of every three car accident deaths involving teenagers is related to alcohol. And automobile accidents are the number one cause of death among teens.

These frightening statistics underscore the importance of being sober while driving. Those who drive drunk and hurt or kill others can be charged with murder in some circumstances. They can also be sued by those who were injured or by surviving family members. The Booze It & Lose It campaign brochure also explains some of the risks of being arrested for DWI. Even for a first conviction, a driver can have his driver’s license revoked for a year, be fined between $200 and $4,000 and spend between one day and 24 months in jail.

Valor, honor, integrity — even a soldier’s rank — came into play during consideration of awarding the Medal of Honor to Staff Sgt. Earl D. Plumlee.

In August 2013, Taliban insurgents launched a fierce attack on a coalition forward operating base in Afghanistan. A 400-pound car bomb breached a wall and 10 enemy attackers armed with suicide vests, rifle hand grenades and grenade launchers poured through the wall. Then a Staff Sgt., Plumlee, a Green Beret with the Army’s 1st Special Forces Group (Airborne), was among those who engaged the Taliban fighters. Enemy attackers were no more than 20 feet away during portions of the battle, according to military documents describing the event. Plumlee was credited with killing several attackers at point-blank range, using both small arms and hand grenades.

Several soldiers earned awards after the battle. But it’s the award that was denied to Plumlee — the Medal of Honor — that drew the attention of the Defense Department Inspector General’s office. Even though Plumlee was recommended for the Medal of Honor by the head of a Special Operations Task Force in Afghanistan, he didn’t receive the nation’s highest military honor for heroism. Last month, Plumlee instead was awarded the Silver Star Medal, which is two notches below the Medal of Honor. 

While under consideration for the Medal of Honor, the Army’s Criminal Investigation Command looked into an allegation that Plumlee illegally tried to sell a rifle scope online. The allegation was not substantiated. The Washington Post, which first reported this story, suggested that service leaders only want squeaky-clean soldiers to receive the Medal of Honor. The Inspector General’s findings provide a unique glimpse into just how subjective decisions surrounding awards for valor can be. The Inspector General concluded there was no evidence that anyone used the CID investigation to downgrade the Medal of Honor recommendation. The report provided new details about how the decision was reached. In Afghanistan, the Medal of Honor recommendation received approval from senior generals including Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford who is now Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Army Gen. Mark Milley who later became Commanding General, Forces Command at Fort Bragg and is now Army Chief of Staff.  

The issue was taken up by the service’s Senior Army Decorations Board with two three-star generals and the top enlisted soldier in the service (the Sergeant Major of the Army) serving as voting members. Two of the board members recommended the Silver Star Medal, while another recommended the Distinguished Service Cross, one notch below the Medal of Honor, as more appropriate. One of the voting members said his decision not to recommend the Medal of Honor came down in large part to one thing: Plumlee’s rank. A then-staff sergeant,  Plumlee was expected to perform as a leader rather than “a private who would be seized by the moment and take extremely valorous and courageous action,” one board member said, according to the report. The awarding of the Silver Star Medal was eventually agreed upon by the board and received a positive recommendation from Gen. Raymond Odierno who was Chief of Staff of the Army. Army Secretary John McHugh approved the recommendation. Sgt. 1st Class Plumlee received the Silver Star Medal on May 1. 

June is the month for local high school graduation ceremonies. Cumberland County Sheriff Earl “Moose” Butler and Commissioner Larry Lancaster announce yet another commencement. The Cumberland County Detention Center has produced its first High School Equivalency Program graduates. The sheriff didn’t say how many inmates participated. A year ago, the sheriff’s office proposed to County Commissioners that an educational program be funded for jail inmates who were interested in working toward earning high school equivalency certificates. 

They approved the project and Global Learning Center won the contract to teach the school three times a year. Cumberland County School Board member and career educator Donna Vann spearheaded the project, according to Lancaster. The concept of an educational program in the jail is to educate the inmates “to make them more marketable in the workforce, lessening the likelihood of repeating criminal activity,” said Sheriff Butler. Inmates were pre-tested and those who were accepted attended classes twice a day for 10 weeks. The students took tests along the way to assure that they retained the material and were prepared for the state exam. At the conclusion of the course of study, a test administrator and a proctor from Fayetteville Technical Community College administered the final exam. The first four jail inmates-turned-students passed the exam. “While other students are in the program and working toward completion of the equivalency program, this is a wonderful start to a good program,” Chief Deputy Ennis Wright said.   

 

Reserve Officer Charged With Hate Crimes 

A reserve U.S. Army Officer is in the custody of the Army Criminal Investigation Division at Fort Bragg after being charged with hate crimes in Hoke County. Maj. Russell Thomas Langford, 36, of Fayetteville, posted a $60,000 bond and was turned over to the CID.  A Raeford native, Langford earned a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Appalachian State University in 2002 before joining the Army Reserve. He has been a full-time reservist since 2008.

Langford allegedly left bacon at a Hoke County mosque and brandished a handgun. Pork products are sometimes used to insult Muslims, whose faith prohibits eating pork. According to detectives in Hoke County, he threatened to kill Muslims. Members of Masjid Al Madina told authorities Langf ord made death threats to at least one parishioner. “He told people at the mosque that he would kill them and bury them behind the mosque,” said Capt. John Kivett of the Sheriff’s Office. “He brandished a weapon while he was on the property.” Later one of the members was followed home, but was not harmed. 

Langford’s mugshot shows him wearing a green military style t-shirt with the likeness of an assault rifle on it.  Authorities found three loaded hand guns, hundreds of rounds of ammunition and some knives in his vehicle, Kivett said. The soldier was charged with ethnic intimidation, assault with a deadly weapon, going armed to the terror of the public, communicating threats, stalking and disorderly conduct. The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations said the act constituted a desecration of a place of worship. The Council said the man Langford followed home is a Muslim Army chaplain at Fort Bragg. 

 

City Recommits to Urban Ministry     

Since 1993, the Fayetteville Urban Ministry has helped an estimated 4,000 low-income residents repair their homes. They call it the Nehemiah Project named after the Hebrew leader of the fifth century B.C. who lead the rebuilding of Jerusalem after Babylonian captivity. Urban Ministry’s mission is “to show God’s compassion for our neighbors in need, and thus build our community together,” according to its website. Individual projects typically range from replacing roofs and exterior painting to fixing steps and handrails. In 1994, the program assumed the Emergency Home Repair Program from the City of Fayetteville’s Community Development Department. Nehemiah partners with local contractors, the Re-Store Warehouse and dozens of volunteers from local churches to work on behalf of this community’s elderly and low-income population. The Nehemiah program is one of Urban Ministry’s four areas of concentration.

Fayetteville City Council split in support of funding the project at $300,000 in the coming fiscal year. Some council members had proposed cutting the budget by $100,000 in favor of other programs. Voting to provide full funding were Chalmers McDougald, Ted Mohn, Larry Wright, Bill Crisp, Jim Arp and Bobby Hurst. Mayor Nat Robertson, Mayor Pro Tem Mitch Colvin and councilmembers Kirk deViere and Kathy Jensen opposed.

 

Opioid Awareness Task Force    

Sixteen local agencies have joined forces to bring attention to the abuse of opioids in Cumberland County. “This is a public health epidemic and one that is uniquely American,” said Dr. Sanjay Gupta, CNN chief medical correspondent. Opiates include Demerol, Percocet, Hydrocodone, Morphine, Oxycodone and Heroin. In Fayetteville, Mayor Nat Robertson and Director Elizabeth Goolsby of the VA Medical Center, are bringing together local and state leaders in an Opioid Abuse and Awareness Task Force. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration describes prescription opioids as “powerful pain-reducing medications … that have both benefits as well as potentially serious risks.” The FDA adds “… these medications can help manage pain when prescribed for the right condition and when used properly. But when misused they can cause serious harm, including addiction, overdose and death.” The local group’s focus is to reduce opioid overdoses, educate physicians who prescribe opioids and bring public awareness to opioid addiction. “Opioid use and its consequences is a community problem that will take a community response to address,” said Mayor Robertson. 

 

 

 

Reducing Teen Pregnancy         

The Cumberland County Department of Public Health hopes to reduce the county’s teen pregnancy rate with the employment of two additional health educator positions. It’s part of the North Carolina Youth Connected Project to address teen pregnancy in Cumberland and Onslow counties. Over the next five year, $508,000 will cover the salaries and benefits of the two educators. The goal is to cut teen pregnancy rates in half by 2020. The program seeks to replicates the success of the same program in Gaston County where the teen pregnancy rate decreased by 40 percent. 

The Cumberland County Health Department will receive coaching on best practices in adolescent medicine and funding to become a pregnancy prevention hub in the community. Cumberland County ranks 18th in the state and Onslow County ranks second in the number of reported teen pregnancies in 2014, the most recent year for which data is available. N.C. Youth Connected is an initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Adolescent Health. 

In an atmosphere replete with allegations of discrimination regarding black victims where the evidence is questionable, now comes a case that is absolutely discrimination. In early May 2016, the Cumberland County School Board voted 6-2-1 for Vernon Aldridge to replace Leon Mack as the school system’s activities director. Aldridge is white and Mack is black. Board members Carrie Sutton and Judy Musgrave, both black, voted against Aldridge. They also voted against his appointment when it came before the personnel committee on which they serve. Alicia Chisolm, black board member, abstained from voting when the full board considered this appointment. Mack, the outgoing activities director, is retiring. 

The possibility of discrimination shows up in the reasons given for the “no” votes by Sutton and Musgrave. Their thinking is reported by Catherine Pritchard, The Fayetteville Observerstaff writer, in an article headlined, “School board taps Vernon Aldridge as activities director amid controversy.” Pritchard writes:

“Sutton said then she couldn’t support Aldridge’s appointment because she felt the school system should have looked harder to find a qualified minority candidate for the job. She said she believed black students, particularly young males, need to see black people in leadership positions to imagine their own future possibilities.

Asked then if she agreed with Sutton’s position, Musgrave said she did. Later, she said she was agreeing that the school system needs more minorities in leadership position in general. She said her opposition to Aldridge was because she didn’t feel he was qualified, not because he is white.

Given what Pritchard reports as reasons given for the actions of Sutton and Musgrave, a bit of information on identifying discrimination follows. From FindLaw under “Discrimination in the Workplace:”

The primary federal laws that address racial discrimination in the workplace fall under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. In large part, the section often referred to simply as “Title VII” prohibits employers from: 1) failing or refusing to hire an employee based on their race; 2) firing or disciplining an employee because of their race; 3) paying an employee less or providing them fewer benefits on account of their race; 4) failing to provide benefits, promotions, or opportunities, to an employee because of their race; 5) improperly classifying or segregating employees or applicants by race. 

Examining Carrie Sutton’s explanation as to the reason for her vote in light of this quote from FindLaw, cries “discrimination.” By Sutton’s admission, her vote was based on Vernon Aldridge being white and not black. Because of his race, she voted not to hire him. Under Title VII, that is discrimination.

As for Judy Musgrave saying her vote had nothing to do with race but with Aldridge not being qualified, she should be required to explain the reasons for that position. The explanation is needed because her comment comes in conjunction with Sutton’s discriminatory votes. I can find no evidence she has been called on to make her case. There is silence. 

Back to Sutton and her stated reason for voting against Aldridge.  Imagine Sutton being white and Aldridge black. If the races of these two people were reversed there would be an outcry of major proportions and it would likely be led by media and organizations that claim great interest in freeing our society of discriminatory practices. Instead, with very few exceptions, there is silence across this city and county.

Be on notice, silence in cases such as this is dangerous. People who sense the wrong, but are quiet because of fear eventually respond. That response is not necessarily violent. It could simply be packing up and moving to another area or putting their children in private schools; thereby, allowing public schools to suffer. This city and nation are crying out for leaders who are thoughtful, fair to all and have the courage of convictions to deal forthrightly with difficult issues. 

Dealing forthrightly with difficult issues often requires individuals in positions of leadership to move beyond talking and do some hard work. What I see time and time again, is “passing the buck.” Carrie Sutton’s reason for voting “no” to the assignment of a white person to a position being vacated by a black man reflects some “buck passing.” She holds “the system should have looked harder to find a minority candidate.” What is the responsibility of blacks in positions of leadership and all black Americans when it comes to working together to prepare our own so they qualify for positions of high responsibility? Instead of doing the hard work of preparation, of lifting one another, the resounding chorus is for the “system” to handle it. Too often the “system” is expected to go against the rules and even defy common sense in order to calm opposing or demanding voices.

On preparing our own, here is how it looks. During my teenage years, Daddy was a building contractor. He built single-family homes as well as repaired homes in and around Camilla, Georgia. When I was about 13, he started taking me to job sites, especially during the summer. I worked, but also learned a bit about building. By the end of my junior year in high school, he had left building. That summer Daddy told me he and I were going to build a house for a lady on the eastside of Camilla. 

The first day on the job, he went to purchase building materials and left me at the house site. When Daddy returned I was sleeping in the wheelbarrow. He woke me up but as I lie in that wheelbarrow, Daddy stood near my feet, looking into my eyes. He explained that his reason for contracting to build that house was so I would have work for the summer. He never raised his voice… just gave me a brief overview of life and what it demands of a person. I got up and over the summer we built that house. I got an education on building and on living.

I spent the next summer working tobacco fields in the state of Connecticut. After the first year of college, it was back to Camilla. I went looking for a summer job. Public housing was under construction and I went there. This was the summer of 1966. Segregation was still alive and well in Camilla. I asked the white project foreman for a job and told him I could do carpentry. He did not believe me. I said, “Let me work a couple of days and if I don’t measure up, I’ll leave with no argument.” I worked the whole summer cutting fascia boards and other lumber pieces that were then installed by a white carpenter. 

Daddy prepared me for that job and so much more of the successes I have known in life. He had to invest in me, struggle some with me and call me to account. There were no TV cameras, no newspaper reporters telling what this black father did for his son. Except that I tell the story, nobody would know.

I tell it now only to illustrate what I believe is needed in our time. That is, for black Americans to break free of calling on the “system” to fix all that we see as ailing us. Further, be careful not to attempt manipulation of the “system” against others as in Vernon Aldridge’s case where I hold there is discrimination. Instead, follow Daddy’s example and be about helping one another prepare to lay hold of the many available opportunities. 

School’s OUT!

Those words gladden the hearts of restless students and scare the daylights out of some parents who have to figure out what their children are going to do for nearly three months. The lucky ones are in family situations where parents can spend long, lazy summer days with their little darlings. The not-so-fortunate families must scramble for, piece together and finance various activities or daycare to make sure the children are occupied, happy and safe until the school bell rings again. The really unfortunate families just cross their fingers and try to get through the summer alive.

We all know that what we once thought of as the typical American nuclear family — dad bringing home the bacon and mom keeping the home fires burning — is a fond memory. Two incomes, which means two working parents, have become both the norm and a necessity. The New York Times reported earlier this month that only about one fourth of American children now have a parent waiting for them at home after school and during the 10 or 11 weeks that children are out of school for summer vacation. Says KJ Dell’Antonia in The Times, “For the rest of us, the children are off, the parents are not. We can indulge our annual illusion of children filling joyful hours with sprinkler romps and robotics camps or we can admit the reality.”

That reality is that our traditional school calendar no longer fits the way most families now live today and that figuring out what children do over long weeks of summer is both difficult — almost impossible in some places and with some families — and expensive. The Times’ analysis found that two summers ago, parents expected to spend an average of $958 per child for camps, childcare and other summer expenses. The Dicksons are blessed with three Precious Jewels, and even though they are long past school age, I remember the stress of summer — what are they going to do, how much will it cost, who will drive them to and fro, how much TV is too much TV? One of my favorite photographs is of a Precious Jewel in a crowd of other campers “graduating” from a week-long day camp in Mazarick Park — a line of elementary schoolers wearing paper plates on their heads secured by strips colorful yarn. As dear as that photo is, I also remember having to leave work to pick up my camper and a friend’s child from Mazarick Park and take them home.

Keeping the Precious Jewels occupied and with luck learning something and safe during the summer months was challenging for the Dickson grownups, but we managed as do millions of other American families. The real issue, though, is that many families simply cannot.

The Times chronicled several of those.

A mother in Durham works in a daycare center, but she cannot afford to send her own 6-six-year-old there. Her only option for at least a portion of the summer is to leave him with his 12-year-old sister, who, naturally enough, resents having to babysit for weeks on end. Leaving children 6 to 12 alone, now termed “self-care,” rises during the summer months, and can be dangerous, even criminal. A mother in South Carolina was arrested two summers ago when she left her 9-year-old in a park while she went to work. Friends and relatives fill in for many working parents, and not always graciously, sparking family resentments. 

There are as many childcare arrangements as there are families who need them.

The long American summer break is a holdover from the days when school age children were needed for work on family farms, a rare situation now that most people reside in urban areas. European nations also have a summer break from school, but it is generally shorter, about six weeks. Not surprisingly, European children lose less academic ground over the summer than American children do, so that schools spend less time reviewing last year’s material when they do go back into session.

In other words, their so called “summer slide” is shorter and less steep than is ours.

So what to do?

We hear periodic calls for longer school years and shorter summers. Some schools, including some in Cumberland County, operate year-round, with more, but shorter breaks, lessening the slide. But let’s be realistic — there is no groundswell of support to do away with our traditional summer. 

What we can do is support more investment in educational summer programs, both in schools that might otherwise go unused and in other recreational programs. It is better for children who at best might just be bored and at worst might be in physical danger.

Besides, you might really enjoy the sight of your Precious Jewel wearing a paper plate on his head.

The editorial page writer for the Fayetteville Observer, Tim White, did little to enhance the confidence we have in our local daily newspaper, whose mission is getting to the truth or uplifting the image of the Fayetteville community. Matter of fact, what it did is confirm the speculation that White and our daily newspaper are out of touch with the citizens of the community. 

I’m referring to White’s editorial “PWC War Is Over and All Is Well” that appeared in the Sunday, June 5, edition of the paper. Here, not only did he present a mea culpa in regards to his stance and commentary concerning our local utility, PWC, and its lawsuit with City of Fayetteville, but, he doubled down on just how badly he miscalculated the circumstances, environment and controversy that surrounded then City Manager Ted Voorhees — all of which ultimately resulted in Voorhees’ termination by the City Council. Yeah, White admitted he never saw it coming. Surprise, surprise! He continued his quest for exoneration the next day by appearing on WFNC’s morning show with Goldie for a segment of True Confessions where he was either seeking forgiveness or asking for absolution. Either way, admitting you are wrong can be a humbling experience. However, in White’s case, his arrogance has always trumped humility. 

This being the case, it was no surprise to many of us that he went off mark siding viciously against the Mayor, our hometown utility and in assessing the intentions and competency of the former city manager. Again, no surprises here. For White to analyze our community, report on our community or pass judgement on our community, he must first know and understand our community. Pretty simple concept, yes? Fayetteville and Cumberland County are a community of revolving and evolving residents. 

You do not have to be from Fayetteville to embrace it and love it. We are a community where everyone’s welcome. Acceptance and hospitality is our southern nature, and, it doesn’t take long for someone to know who the players are and what the community’s issues, programs, policies, initiatives and priorities are. These are essential for defining, establishing and maintaining our quality of life. This is true if you live here and take a sincere interest in the community. However, if you don’t live here, it’s extremely difficult to maintain a healthy and knowledgeable perspective. And, in this community, many people feel as I do that one loses the right to criticize or pass judgement on our community’s internal, civic, social or governmental affairs if they DON’T live here, especially, when they are employed as a journalist by the local newspaper and double if they are the editorial page editor. 

And, that is where White miscued. He listened to the whispers of strangers. He took his information second-hand so when it came to understanding and empathizing with PWC’s plight with the City of Fayetteville, someone else made him their mouthpiece. This is also why he was caught unaware when the City Council terminated Voorhees. White was blinded by someone else’s light shining on the brilliant Ted Voorhees who also had someone whispering in his ear. Not a good journalistic testimonial when you miss the mark so conspicuously that you are compelled to admit it publically in hopes of salvaging credibility in the community you are supposed to be serving. 

Well, there are simple explanations for all of this. Tim White is not incompetent. Simply put, he does not live here! He is not a part of the Fayetteville, Fort Bragg and Cumberland County community; hence, has little insight into what we are all about or what we value and hold near and dear. Why should he? How could he? White lives two counties away from here in Chatham County. Yes, that’s approximately 58 miles from Fayetteville, or, a one hour and fifteen minute drive (and that’s on a good day). This is not to say White is a bad person or that he is not a good writer. He just should not be in a position to negatively criticize and pass judgement on the community if he doesn’t live here and where the impact of his editorial influence doesn’t affect him, his family, his community or his property values 58 miles away. 

In Chatham County White doesn’t have to be accountable to local readers, residents or face his constituents. Ninety percent of the community wouldn’t recognize him on the street. You won’t see him at a Chamber of Commerce event, 4th Friday, at a Kiwanis Club meeting, at the Cape Fear Regional Theatre, a Crown Coliseum event or SwampDogs’ baseball game. You won’t see him shopping downtown or run into him at a restaurant or see him casually shopping at the Harris Teeter. 

So, when you screw up and misread vitally important community issues like that of PWC and Voorhees it becomes pretty conspicuous he is disconnected and making headlines based mostly on second-hand information. Unfortunately for us, his sources are not only unreliable but they all have their own personal agendas not aligned with the welfare of the overall community. White is not alone. WRAL TV has fallen victim to the same journalistic malaise. They have already exposed and conveyed their true journalistic worth and sense of fairness with their sloppy and irresponsible reporting involving Cumberland County’s Clerk of Court Kim Tucker. However, we expect they will continue contributing money and sponsoring local community events in hopes of purchasing our affections and the illusion of community inclusiveness. 

Like White, they have people whispering in their ears directing and misdirecting what’s reported to the public. Also, like White, they too do not live here. No, we should be using media resources to tell the truth, convey the facts to our citizens, uplift our community and enhance Fayetteville’s image. Can this be done under the gaze of fair and competent reporting and journalism? Sure it can. First step, the media must get engaged with the community and make its own decisions and assessments. If they feel they must take sides on an issue, then investigate it and report the facts. At least the residents will be educated on the issues that affect them. Don’t expect things to change here anytime soon. At least now you better understand why things are the way they are. See ya at Harris Teeter! Thank you for reading the Up & Coming Weekly.

This summer the Smith Lake Recreation Area has numerous outdoor activities to offer the whole family. It can provide a safe and entertaining environment that can offer a change of pace from days at home or in the office. One such activity is the Beach and Wake Zone Cable Park, which is open to the public for the season until September 5. The Beach is a relaxing place to enjoy some sun and sand without the hours spent in the car to get there. Concessions are available for purchase and the water is tested weekly to ensure a safe and pleasant beach experience. The Wake Zone Cable Park is a water skiing system that allows new and professional wakeboarders to glide across smooth waters without the need for a boat. It is a state-of-the-art system that makes water sports available for all skill levels. The general entry fee is $10.

Movie Night Under the Stars is a free way to bring the wonder of the outdoors into summer vacation. On June 11 the movie scheduled is Big Hero 6. On August 13, it is Hotel Transylvania 2.In addition to these family-friendly movies, there will be door prize giveaways and concessions available for purchase. The gates open at 8 p.m. and the show starts at 9 p.m. Audience members are invited to bring blankets and chairs to make the viewing experience more comfortable. This event is open to the public. 

For Department of Defense ID card holders and their guests, Smith Lake Recreation also offers an Outdoor Education Program. On June 11, Talon Tales features live birds that are native to the area. Experts explain what makes hawks and other birds of prey so incredible. July 9, the program is titled Snake Truths. Real live snakes will be available for audience members to meet and touch. August 6 is all about Skulls and Skins.  This focuses on native wildlife and the animals’ lifestyles. If you dare, check out the skulls and furs Smith Lake has on hand. There is no cost for this event and it begins at 11 a.m. These engaging and educational programs are thanks to a collaboration with the North Carolina State Parks. All of the animals presented are native to North Carolina.  

DoD ID Card Holders and guests are also invited to Paint Night.  June 16 is Adult Paint Night. Attendees 18 and up  are invited to create their rendition of a tulip. Concessions will be available for purchase. For those 21 and over there is also beer and wine for sale. June 23 is Children Paint Night. The subject is an owl. This event is intended for children 10 years and older. Children under the age of 16 must be accompanied by a parent or guardian. Concessions will be available for purchase. The cost of participating is $35 per person. This fee includes a 16”x20” canvas, acrylic paints, brushes and a smock. Registration is required for this event. 

For more information on all the events and opportunities through the Smith Lake Recreation Area, visit the following website:  http://bragg.armymwr.com/us/bragg/ft-bragg-events/movie-night-under-stars?eID=466116. 

Let me be totally honest about this.

I have never met a potato chip, taco chip, corn chip or any such chip that I did not like. Wait! Full disclosure — that I did not actually love!! The crispiness! The saltiness! Perfection!

Now, I love a good chocolate chip cookie with nuts, too. If I could order it, my last meal would include chips of some sort — probably Ripples or Fritos — since salt and calories would not be issues at that point.

Most of us probably feel this way about something we should not consume, at least not often, and I guard against falling into the chip bag by not keeping them in the house. This works — most of the time.

Thank goodness, we have outside assistance to help save us from ourselves.

Bless its bureaucratic little heart, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has just issued new guidelines about salt consumption. The agency aims to cut Americans’ average salt consumption by a third with a goal of reducing heart attacks and strokes. This goal is particularly meaningful among mature folks like me, who — as one of my friend’s doctors told her — are
“less young.” 

If we prepare most of our food at home and keep the saltshaker in the cabinet, salt is not so much of a problem. But if we eat a lot of prepared foods, including both packaged items and restaurant meals, salt can be the elephant in the room that no one wants to see. This statistic shocked me a bit, but the FDA says that more than 70 percent of salt in the average American diet comes from packaged and prepared foods. 

Sadly, this includes my beloved chips, in all their glorious manifestations.

The good news is that along with heat and humidity, summer brings us its bounty of fresh fruits and vegetables — berries, melons, tomatoes, beans, peas, corn and so much more. All colorful, all easy to eat fresh or to enjoy with minimal preparation like spreading mayonnaise on bread for a tomato sandwich and all what we should be eating and serving those near and dear.

No need to get in a lather about this. There are not salt police peeping in our kitchen window. The FDA is simply working with the food industry to improve our health.  

It is trying to protect us from ourselves.

Closer to home, East Carolina and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill have teamed up on a national study that has found strong support for raising the minimum legal age to buy tobacco products. This comes from the university system of the state where not so long ago, tobacco was the undisputed king of all agricultural products.

The study is expected to give legislators across the country political cover for raising the legal age from 18 to 21. “With these findings, policy makers and public health advocates can move forward knowing that people in their states support raising the minimum age for selling tobacco products,” says Adam Goldstein of the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Shockingly, at least to me, the Campaign for Tobacco Free Kids says that every day 2,500 children in the United States try their first cigarette and that another 580 of them become daily smokers.

Raising the minimum age may be a tougher sell in North Carolina than in some other states.

A Greeneville doctor and member of the North Carolina House of Representatives says, “I don’t know that North Carolina is necessarily ready to take it up, but it’s an issue that needs to be taken up. We are paying millions and millions in healthcare dollars because of the effects of tobacco use, and 90 percent of lifelong smokers start before the age of 18.”

Another stab at protecting us from us.

My favorite and probably a doomed recent protective effort comes from New Hanover County where the local school board is considering a policy regarding leggings and skinny jeans. Should they be worn only under a long shirt or a dress that covers the rear end?

It is not entirely clear who or what is being protected here? Teenagers from pants too tight to allow ventilation or which cut off blood flow? Those around them from the sight of pants so tight nothing is left to the imagination? 

No need to worry too much right now, though. 

Social media erupted when a school board committee even discussed the skinny pants matter, and it is off the table for the moment. It seems that teenagers — and probably some of their parents — are loath to have limitations on fashion choices for the school day.

My hunch, as I sit here at my computer fighting off a chip attack, is that we weak and frail human beings can always benefit from outside guidance about our various choices.

We just don’t want anyone to take away those choices.

During the summer, it is easy to get caught up in fun outdoor adventures, camps and other activities. However, all that summer fun often means that mental exercise is neglected. Reading is a fun and effective way to keep the mind working so that all the knowledge from the previous school year doesn’t vanish. Public libraries in the area focus on encouraging the entire family to keep reading during the summer with Summer Reading Programs. These programs have events, incentives and prizes to encourage the already rewarding activity. 

The Cumberland County Public Library invites students to challenge themselves to read just as the Olympic athletes are challenging themselves to be their very best. Readers from birth through grade five can receive prizes for turning in their reading charts, which are filled out at home. Teens in grades 6-12 are also invited to challenge themselves to read this summer. There are also minute-to-win-it events that feature fun games like a life-sized Hungry-Hungry Hippo. There are also learning-focused activities like yoga and chess and fun prizes to win for participating. The summer fun doesn’t have to stop there. Reading is important for all ages. “This year it’s all about fitness and excercise and being active. We have a series called ‘train like’  and it looks at  how to train like different things — an athlete,  a ninja,  a soldier. We have a lot of special guests coming in the teach kids about what it’s like to do their job,” said  Selena Beckman-Harned, administrative program officer of community relations at the Cumberland County Public Library and Information Center. “I think it is a great opportunity for everyone in our community to learn more about what the library has to offer than just books.”  

The library is also offering an adult summer reading program to “exercise your mind.” For more information, visit the following site: http://cumberland.lib.nc.libguides.com/src. 

 Fort Bragg also hosts a summer reading program at the Throckmorton Library. The staff wants to help children establish a lifelong habit of reading. This year’s theme is “Read for the Win.” It is a celebration of sports and achievement. Beginning June 1 readers can win prizes for the completion of reading logs. The program also includes some awesome events. On June 15, at 11 a.m., don’t miss Team Spirit: Read for the Win Extravaganza. Wear your favorite team’s shirt and enjoy an obstacle course and fun music. June 11 and 25 it’s the 64 Squares:  Learn to Play Chess from 1 p.m. until 3 p.m. Ages 6 and up can learn to play chess. Scaly Survivors on June 22 at 10 a.m. and 11 a.m. features live reptiles presented by the North Carolina Aquarium at Fort Fisher. Math Pirates takes place  on Mondays at 10 a.m. Space is limited to 20 students per session, but it helps kids remember and retain math skills in a fun and exciting way. June 13 is for first graders. June 20 is for second graders. June 27 is for third graders.   Young adults from ages 13 to 18 are also invited to come to School’s Out, Now What? on Friday, June 24 at 2 p.m. This program helps students learn how to get involved in the community and offers programs to build a successful summer and a successful future. All events are free and open to the public. For more information visit:  http://bragg.armymwr.com/us/bragg/ft-bragg-events/summer-reading-program?eID=499551.

Reading is a way to learn about any topic. It unlocks worlds of information and the libraries make it easy and affordable to find an interesting topic to explore. It is important not to let all the learning and hard work of the school year evaporate in the  summer heat. 

Gilbert Theater

Now in its third decade, Gilbert Theater offers a season filled with drama, tradition and history for 2016 and 2017. 

Artistic Director Robyne Parrish is looking forward to what the season holds. “I would say this is our best season yet! I tried to chose something for everyone, while still keeping with the Gilbert tradition and mission to bring plays that are innovative and out of the box to the Fayetteville community,” she said. “... As my fifth and final season, I look forward to this amazing line up and the directors and artists involved in making it a success.”

The season opens with Steel Magnolias on Sept. 23. This play showcases the friendships of a small group of women in a small Louisiana town. The story is based on author Robert Harling’s experience of his sister’s death. The play will be directed by Robert Harling.

Gilbert Theater changed up the traditional Christmas production last year. Instead of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol, audiences turned out for It’s a Wonderful Lifeby James Rogers. This year, It’s a Wonderful Lifereturns Nov. 26-Dec. 18, directed by Robyne Parrish. 

This play tells the story of George Baily. Family obligations and civic duties weigh heavily on Bailey and as he seeks escape from what he considers a mundane existence, his guardian angel visits him on Christmas Eve, giving Bailey a peek at what the world would have been like without him.

Jan. 27- Feb. 12, August Osage County takes the stage. When the family patriarch goes missing, family converges on the homestead in Osage County, Oklahoma. Frustration and weaknesses bring the family’s disfunction bubbling to the surface as they wade through the crisis. Matt Bullock is set to direct the play.

Secret Garden opens on March 24 and runs through April 9. Eleven-year old Mary is orphaned. She is sent to live with relatives she’s never met on a lonely estate. With the help of a young gardener, Mary blossoms, bringing new life to the estate as well as the garden and her relationships with her relatives.

The Diary of Anne Frank closes the season. From May 26 - June 4, relive the World War II experiences of Anne Frank and her family as they struggle to escape the Nazis. The Franks and another family share tight living quarters in an attic. Constant fear of discovery and certain death make for tense living arrangements. Brian Kline is set to direct the play.

For more information about Gilbert Theater and the other programs it offers, visit www.gilberttheater.com or by calling 678-7186.

Cape Fear Regional Theatre

Earlier this year, Fayetteville’s Cape Fear Regional Theatre announced its 2016-2017 Season line-up. The season begins in September and runs through next May. This next season includes award winners and a classic up for its first run at CFRT. Theater-goers can also expect to see a mermaid, a hound and even the King and The Man In Black.

The season opens with Million Dollar Quartet, which runs from Sept. 15 – Oct. 2. The Tony Award-winning Broadway musical is inspired by the true story of the famed recording session where Sam Phillips, the “Father of Rock ‘n’ Roll” brought together icons Johnny Cash, Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis and Elvis Presley for one unforgettable night. 

“Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more,” is a familiar line from Shakespeare’s Henry V,which is scheduled to run Oct.  27 – Nov. 13. This legendary story takes center stage at CFRT for the very first time in a provocative production with contemporary resonances, said Tom Quaintance, CFRT Artistic Director. “This play has been set in many different times,” he said. “It explains why we go to war with themes of exploring the different elements of leadership and war.” In this drama, the young monarch is confronted by the ferocity of war and proves his worth as a man and king. He pursues the glories of his nation and his reign, but at a cost to his land, his subjects and his conscience. 

The serious drama is followed by something on a lighter note as a special event performance of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson will run at CFRT from Dec. 1-18. In the Christmas classic, a couple struggling to put on a church Christmas pageant is faced with casting the Herdman kids, who are feared by children and parents alike. The Herdmans bring mayhem, and some fun, as they collide with the Christmas story head on! The CFRT production has been a staple to Fayetteville’s holiday season for more than 25 years. 

Disney’s The Little Mermaid will ring in 2017 with performances from Jan.  19 – Feb. 12.

In a magical kingdom beneath the sea, a young mermaid named Ariel longs to leave her ocean home to live in the world above. Based on the beloved Hans Christian Andersen story and the classic animated film, it is a love story for the ages. 

Pulitzer Prize winner Lynn Nottage’s Intimate Apparel is a moving and intimate story that confronts race and religion. It runs March 2–9. The play is the recipient of the American Theatre Critics and New York Drama Critics’ Circle Awards for Best Play. In this drama, set in turn-of-the-century New York, Esther, a black seamstress, lives in a boarding house for women. Esther sews intimate apparel for clients who range from wealthy white patrons to prostitutes. Her skills and discretion are in demand. Over the years, Esther has managed to stuff money into her quilt, which she plans to use to open a beauty parlor where black women will be treated as well as white women.

“It is one of the best scripts I’ve seen in the last 15 years,” said Quaintance. “In this story of a seamstress in New York City in 1905, the cut and color of one’s dress, not to mention color of your skin, could determine who you could marry.”

Next, get ready for a joyful, mischievous comedy thriller when Baskerville: A Sherlock Homes Mysteryruns April 6-23. Quaintance said Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s timeless classic will come to life in this comedy about everyone’s favorite detective solving his most notorious case. The play is from the acclaimed author of Lend Me A Tenorand The Three Musketeers.

To finish up the 2016-2017 season, CFRT takes us back to America in 1963, surrounded by the turmoil of the JFK assassination and the Civil Rights Movement for Caroline, Or Change, which runs May 11-28. In a Jewish household in Louisiana, a fragile but beautiful friendship develops between a divorced African-American maid and the family’s 8-year-old son.

Virtually sung-through, in styles ranging from Motown to Yiddish Klezmer, this story brings together the incredible talents of Kushner (Angels in America) and Tesori (Thoroughly Modern Millie) to create a multi-Tony-nomination show that is about both major issues of the nation and personal issues of the household, and how they interact. 

To purchase season tickets or individual tickets, call 910.323.4233 or buy online at www.cfrt.org. Discounts are available for seniors, military, students or groups of five or more.

Some municipalities provide seasonal curbside loose-leaf collection. Fayetteville does. Leaves not only pose a problem for the storm drainage system. They also harm the water quality of local rivers and streams. Decomposing leaves release nutrients that can cause harmful algae to grow and bloom, which lead to fish kills by robbing the water of oxygen.

Fayetteville is among the communities in North Carolina recognized as ‘tree cities’ by the National Arbor Day Foundation. The trees produce a lot of leaves and pine needles. Managing falling leaves is a year-round effort for the City of Fayetteville. “Most people bag or containerize their leaves, but during leaf season we expand our routes from 10 to 12,” said Environmental Services Director Jerry Dietzen. His agency picks up bagged leaves. Recreation and Parks, on the other hand, is responsible for loose-leaf collection in the fall and winter.  The actual leaf season depends on the weather and climate based on when the leaves fall, but typically it runs from late October through mid-February. The Parks Department operates five one-man vacuum trucks and assigns them to the 148-square mile city according to postal zip codes. Budget cuts have reduced the city’s ability to vacuum the leaves to only once during the season and that’s the way it’s going to remain. City Council has decided to add two more vacuum trucks and crews this year. The loose leaf collection season will likely be shorted by a few weeks, and apparently won’t begin until early December, ending in mid-February. 

Residents are asked to place leaves and pine straw on or behind the curb away from storm drains and out of the road. Leaves left in the street can cause storm water pollution and may obstruct the storm drainage system, resulting in flooding. Understanding the rules is more challenging for local residents than in some cities because Fayetteville is a transient community. Half the homes are rentals, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, and tenants don’t always know the proper way to dispose of yard debris. 

“The transient turnover is always a problem,” said Dietzen. 

Except during leaf collection season, leaves and pine straw must be bagged or containerized for pickup. They’re picked up weekly. If loose leaves are left at the street out of season, offending residents will be notified and given 10 days to bag them. Then, they’ll be charged $75, and the city will gather up the leaves. “Free trash bags are made available year round at city fire stations and recreation centers” according to Recreations and Parks Director Michael Gibson. Brown roll-out carts designed for yard trash can be purchased from the city for $53. The carts become the property of the residents and have a 10-year warranty.

In Fayetteville, it’s illegal to rake or blow leaves into the street.     

Most communities have resigned themselves to professional panhandling as a way of life for some of their citizens. Ordinances governing panhandling are not always the answer to the problem. “Most researchers and practitioners seem to agree that the enforcement of laws prohibiting panhandling plays only a part in controlling the problem,” according to the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing. Fayetteville Police Chief Harold Medlock agrees with Brandt J. Goldstein’s (1993) study of panhandling in New Haven, Conn., that “public education to discourage people from giving money to panhandlers and adequate social services for panhandlers are the other essential components of an effective and comprehensive response.”

First and foremost, people must stop enabling beggars. “Panhandling is not the fault of the police or court system … it’s caused by people who give them money,” Medlock says. Fayetteville city ordinances ban panhandling after dark and near certain establishments. Panhandlers are not supposed to stand on roadway medians or shoulders. And the practice is banned altogether in the downtown area. Last year, the Downtown Alliance launched a drop=box program asking that people who are inclined to give money to the homeless do so by dropping their change in one of the boxes. The money is turned over to agencies which assist the homeless. Not all panhandlers are homeless. Some are professionals capable of earning “several hundred dollars a week,” according to Chief Medlock. 

Police must place dealing with panhandlers in perspective with all the other things cops do every day. Warning panhandlers and ordering them to “move along” are perhaps the most common police responses to panhandling. Again, according to the Center for Problem-Oriented Policing, “many police officers develop working relationships with regular panhandlers. They generally do not view panhandling as a serious matter, and are reluctant to devote the time necessary to arrest and book offenders. Moreover, most officers realize that panhandlers are unlikely to either appear in court or pay a fine. 

Prosecutors and judges are unlikely to view isolated panhandling cases as serious matters. 

“I do not recall seeing many of those cases in our District Courts, but we do see some. In cases where homeless people are arrested and are in jail, they will often plead guilty and be sentenced to time served by the Judge,” District Attorney Billy West told Up & Coming Weekly.  

 

Police body cameras “increase officer safety and reduce department liability,” according to Law & Order Magazine.The Fayetteville Police Department’s 300 uniformed patrol officers wear them, as do Hope Mills and Spring Lake officers. Cumberland County Sheriff Earl “Moose” Butler does not plan on equipping his patrol deputies with body cameras. The sheriff notes that body-worn cameras remove officers from the videos whereas car-mounted cameras do not. “No need for a body camera. It only shows one perspective,” said Butler’s spokesman Sgt. Sean Swain. “All of our marked cars have cameras and we are not looking to go to body cameras.” Body cameras have been embraced by some law enforcement agencies following controversial interactions between officers and suspects. Fayetteville police cruisers and State Highway Patrol cars are also equipped with dash cams. The Fayetteville Police Department has spent more than a million dollars on body cameras, most of it grant money. The cameras are worn on officers’ glasses or uniform collars. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

New Secretary of the Army              

Eric K. Fanning was appointed Secretary of the Army by President Obama on May 18, making him the highest-ranking openly gay official ever at the Pentagon. As Secretary of the Army, he has statutory responsibility for all matters relating to the United States Army: manpower, personnel, reserve affairs, installations, environmental issues, weapons systems and equipment acquisition, communications and financial management. President Obama designated Fanning Acting Secretary of the Army in November 2015. In the Senate, a voice vote ended a confirmation process that had been delayed for months by a Republican who wanted assurances that detainees from Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, would not be sent to his state. Senator Pat Roberts of Kansas said his concerns had been resolved. Fanning, 47, has held high-ranking posts across the armed services, including as Air Force under-secretary and deputy under-secretary of the Navy. He has also served as Chief of Staff to Defense Secretary Ashton B. Carter. He is a graduate of Dartmouth College.

 

 

 

 

 

Business School Educator Honored         

Methodist University has named its Reeves School of Business Professor of the Year. He is Bob Bruns, associate director of the Golf Management Program at Methodist. Dr. Kimberly Scruton, dean of the business school, made the announcement. All 26 faculty members are eligible for the award, which was established in 2015. It’s intended “to honor an outstanding professor who has demonstrated extraordinary dedication to teaching,” said Scruton. The award includes a plaque with the honoree’s name inscribed on a perpetual plaque housed in the business school. “His students are very supportive of his teaching; he’s one who requires a very high standard of all of his students,” according to those who nominated Bruns. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Multi-County Public Health Grant   

A collaborative partnership between the public health departments of Cumberland, Hoke, Montgomery and Richmond counties has been awarded a $1.5 million grant from the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. The grant will fund implementation of strategies to lower infant mortality and improve birth outcomes. The four-county partnership will receive $500,000 each year from June 2016 through May 2019. Cumberland County’s infant mortality rate of 9 per 1,000 births is well above the state average of 7.2 per 1,000 births. 

The health departments will use the Ten Steps for Successful Breastfeeding strategy to combat infant mortality.  Improved birth outcomes will see the expansion of the Long Active Reversible Contraceptives (LARCs) program, which is already in place at the health departments. Parental smoking cessation and reducing secondhand smoke exposure will be emphasized to improve the health of children ages one to five. 

“We are excited about this opportunity to collaborate with Hoke, Montgomery and Richmond to implement evidence-based strategies across our communities,” said Buck Wilson, Cumberland County Public Health Director. 

 

 

 

Cyber Sex and Children

Detectives pursuing a tip found that a juvenile had been duped into sending compromising photos with a hand held device to a person he believed to be a young woman. The youth traded pictures with the sender. Then, he was told to release his Instagram password or the photos would be sent to his classmates and parents. The sheriff’s office got the tip three months ago, and its Internet Crimes against Children Task Force began investigating.

“Forensic extraction of data on the victim’s device... led detectives to a classmate at Freedom Christian Academy,” said Sheriff’s Sgt. Sean Swain. Detectives executed a search warrant on May 20 at the suspect’s home on Chestnut Street off East Russell Street near downtown Fayetteville. Deputies seized a computer and other electronic devices believed to have been used by the suspect. They found other young people had also been victimized. Sixteen-year-old William Alan Buie was arrested and charged with 45 counts of sexual exploitation and extortion. His bond was set at $215,000. 

 

 

 

 

 

Sprint Voyager Refurbished                  

A Fayetteville cell phone tower, unique for its clever disguise, has gotten a makeover. The award-winning ‘Sprint Voyager’ tower has a new paint job for the first time in the structure’s 14 years of existence. The Voyager sculpture itself tops the tower which overlooks the Rowan Street bridge downtown. It will be even more prominent when a new overpass replaces the bridge in a couple of years. People new to our area have likely wondered about the unique aeronautical looking structure that tops the colorful pole. Art intersected with functionality when former Fayetteville artist Tom Grubb unveiled his sculpture. At the dedication, Grubb sky-walked to the tip of the 128-foot tower to affix his 1,000-pound rotating sculpture while suspended from a hoisting device. “It was the first tower with public art required as a condition” of its construction, said former City Manager Roger Stancil at the unveiling in October, 2002.    

Up & Coming Weeklylooked into the history of the tower and found that Sprint hasn’t owned it for many years which likely explains why it had been neglected. The new owners are Crown Castle of Houston, Texas. The company confirmed its obligation, and committed to paint the tower. Crown Castle owns more than 40,000 towers in the United States. It’s the leader in the shared wireless infrastructure industry.

 

 

 

CORRECTION

Last week’s News Digest article on the promotion of Captain Tandra Adams to Chief  Jailer in the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office should have read that she is “the first African-American woman to serve as Chief  Jailer.” 

Three summers ago in Fayetteville, the Special Operations Forces (SOF) K-9 Memorial Foundation unveiled a bronze life-sized likeness of a Belgian Malinois, dressed in full combat gear. The memorial is believed to be the only one of its kind dedicated to special operations K-9s in the world. It’s on the parade field of the Airborne and Special Operations Museum. Fifty-eight stone pavers created from North Carolina granite bear the names, countries of origin and years the dogs died. The Belgian Malinois, like the German shepherd, is a popular working dog in military and police service. It’s a bit smaller, has shorter hair and has greater endurance than shepherds. The Belgian Malinois exhibits energy levels that are among the highest of all dog breeds. “Like their human counter-parts, special operations multi-purpose canines are specially selected, trained and equipped to serve in roles not expected of the traditional military working dog,” said Chuck Yerry, President of the SOF K-9 Memorial Foundation. The Foundation honors the canines each year on Memorial Day. They share the same risks as the troops, suffering injuries and sometimes death on the battlefields. “They’ve given their lives for their country and we are grateful to be able to honor them,” said Paul Galloway, the Airborne and Special Operations Museum Foundation’s executive director. Crystal Blasjo and her son, Talon, attended this year’s Memorial Day ceremony. Blasjo’s husband, Aaron, and his dog, Hunter, were killed in action on May 29, 2011. She and her son placed flags for Aaron and Hunter. 

Throughout the course of the long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, coalition troops relied on military working dogs to help keep them safe. The dogs are trained to detect explosives, to find illegal drugs, to search for missing comrades or target enemy combatants. Not only are they active on the front lines, but they also serve as therapy dogs and service dogs. Not much is known about the Navy SEALs who stormed Osama bin Laden’s compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, but a few details are coming out about one of them. He has four legs and a highly trained nose. According to The New York Times, one member of the commando team that killed bin Laden was “what may be the nation’s most courageous dog.” Almost nothing is known about the animal, and even military sources weren’t clear about its breed, telling the Times it was probably either a German Shepherd or a Belgian Malinois. The Guardian reports that “the unidentified canine was lowered into the compound from a helicopter while strapped to a human member of the team.”  A dog would have been essential in the raid to protect soldiers from explosive devices. According to the Times, dogs “have proved far better than people or machines at quickly finding bombs,” including improvised explosive devices, which were responsible for two-thirds of all casualties in the Iraq and Afghanistan wars. 

Everyone who knows me knows I love baseball and would like to see a professional minor league team and a brand new stadium in our community. But, do I think it will ever happen? Frankly, no. At least not any time soon. Why? Two words: history and money. Nobody knows baseball better than retired Fayetteville Observer sports writer Thad Mumau. As a baseball lover himself, he sent us the following letter that pretty much expresses our feelings about the subject. I want to share it with you. There is no doubt that we will both be there in the stands if the powers-that-be can make this a reality. What do you think? Our special thanks to Thad and thank you for reading Up & Coming Weekly.

Bill, it is amusing to me that whenever the subject of minor league baseball in Fayetteville comes up folks’ memories go haywire. Of course, I realize that is always the way... we remember what/how we want to remember. There probably is not a more avid baseball fan in this area than I, but my memory is not warped when it comes to local support thereof. I was here in 1956 -- the last summer of the old Highlanders -- when Fayetteville won the Carolina League championship and fans were treated to the likes of Curt Flood, Leon Wagner and Willie McCovey (when High Point and Danville came to town). Yet, a paltry 200 or so fannies were in the seats at Pittman Stadium when the Highlanders were winning the playoffs.

My dad took me to every single home game out there (up until the last one when I missed after having my tonsils taken out).

When you talk to anyone about that era, they say, “Yeah, the crowds were great... ballpark was full of people.” Similar responses are evoked about the more recent Fayetteville Generals. Before anyone erects a girder out Murchison Road way, someone else had better sell some season and half-season tickets

The foundation necessary for success will not be the one at the proposed stadium site. It will be the one built at the box office. As I imagine you know -- but not many others think about this -- the selling point of a minor league baseball team is having the opportunity to watch players you may see on Saturday afternoon. To do that, a person needs to attend several games... not just the season opener or the July 4 fireworks game. Seeing a bunch of games gives a person the chance to see many players, including opposing ones, some of whose names will be recalled in a few years while sitting in front of the TV.

I feel the city’s approach is not a good one. Instead of flushing money down the toilet to make themselves feel like they are doing something, council or baseball committee members should round up some high school kids, order some snazzy FAY BASEBALL caps for them to wear and put them at prominent locations handing out fliers that encourage buying season and half-season tickets. Maybe even have folks sign a petition pledging their willingness to do so... means nothing, of course, but might promote some enthusiasm and future commitment to purchase those tickets.

I emailed these ideas to the Mayer months ago, and his reply was “Yeah, yeah great stuff,” and that was that.

I am not looking for attention or credit. At nearly 70 I’m past that. I just recall from personal experience that neither the Highlanders nor the Generals drew well (despite what people remember or say they do) and that all the rah-rahing today will mean nothing after a losing streak leaves that shiny new stadium practically empty on a weeknight in July.

Respectfully, Thad Mumau.

On Saturday, June 4, the hottest ticket in town returns to Festival  Park – wailing blues and ice cold libations as the Blues-N-Brews Festival kicks off summer.

The Blues-N-Brews Festival, now in its 13th year, is the major annual fundraiser for the Cape Fear Regional Theatre. The  CFRT’s dedicated volunteers and staff know how to put on a show, and this year’s Blues-N-Brews promises to be one for the books.

Co-chaired by Jenny deViere and Kelly Meyers, the event has grown again, adding some new things, but remaining true to what has made it such a success:  A commitment to bringing the best craft beers and hottest blues to the community.

More than 100 beers are on tap, with some old favorites and a few new ones mixed in.

“We are really excited about adding Fainting Goat Brewery out of Holly Springs,” said deViere. “They are brining a new beer called Bucked Up, which we think people are really going to like.”

She noted that there is a very good mix of beers on tap, with brewers coming from across the state, as well as traditional beers like Guinness and Yuengling.

“We are finding that a lot of craft beers are distributed by big name beer distributors, so we are able to bring a really good mix of beers to the party,” she explained. 

Brewers participating in the event include:  Abita Brewing Company, Anheuser Busch, Aviator Brewing Company, Blind Squirrel Brewery, Blue Moon Brewery, Blue Point Brewing Company, Bold Rock Hard Cider, Boulevard Brewing Company, Broken Barrel Brewery, Bull City Cider Works, Carolina Brewing Company, Constellation Brands, Crazy Mountain Brewing Company, Dirt Bag Ales, Empire Distributors of NC, Inc., Foothills Brewing Company, Goose Island Beer Company, Great Lakes Brewing, Green Man Brewery, Grupo Modelo Brewery, Hi Wire Brewing Company, Huske Hardware House, Left Coast Brewing & Lucky Buddha Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company, MillerCoors Brewing Company, Natty Greene’s Brewing Company, , New Belgium Brewing Company, Oskar Blues Brewing Company, Railhouse Brewery, Resignation Brewery, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, Sweetwater Brewery, Tenth and Blake Beer Company, The Mash House Brewing Company, Triangle Brewing Company, White Rabbit Brewing Company, White Street Brewing Company and Yuengling Brewing Company.

As always, you can expect some great food vendors to be on hand to satisfy your hunger throughout the event. This year’s vendors include:  Kinlaw’s Fried Chicken, Hot Diggidy Dog, The Honey Baked Ham Café and Papa John’s Pizza. Remember to bring cash with you, because while you can buy merchandise and your tickets with your plastic, you can only buy food with cash.

Speaking of merchandise, CFRT is offering a great variety of merchandise from event T-shirts and trucker hats. 

“The T-shirts are really nice and a lot of fun and the trucker hats are going to go fast,” said deViere.

Of course, the other big draw is the music. Main stage acts are Randy McAllister and the Scrappiest Band in the Mother Land and the Blues Doctors. 

Randy McAllister is one of the premier singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalists to emerge from Texas. Heartbreak, humor, high hair and tall Texas tales all play a part in his songwriting. His music has been hailed as original and innovative. While comparisons are not easy, it has been said that his music is a cross between Doug Sahm, John Hiatt and Delbert McClinton, with a blues man’s background and sensibilities thrown into the mix.

Adam Gussow and Alan Gross, better known as The Blues Doctors, are a Mississippi-based blues combo that plays a mix of down-home Delta standards and urban grooves from the Texas-to-Chicago axis with some New Orleans funk thrown in. They’re a two-man band with a full-on sound:  Gussow on harmonica and drumset, Gross on guitar, with both men sharing vocal duties. Roosters Happy Hour, their debut album, spent many weeks in the #1 position on Amazon’s “Hot New Releases in Acoustic Blues” chart and hit #10 on the Living Blues national radio airplay chart.

Gussow was dubbed “one of the world’s finest blues harmonica players” according to Philadelphia blues DJ Jonny Meister and is best known for his 25-year partnership with Mississippi-born guitarist and one-man-band Sterling “Mr. Satan” Magee as the duo Satan and Adam. Gross’s credits include a decade’s work with Mississippi bluesman Terry “Harmonica” Bean and stints with hill country performers R.L. Boyce, Kenny Kimbrough, Lightning Malcolm and Eric Deaton.

Gusso and Gross were recommended for the gig by a patron of last year’s Blues-N-Brews. According to deViere, one of the former attendees, who is a big blues fan, sent the organizers of the event a message on Facebook letting them know about Gussow and his great sound.

“We gave him a call and listened to his music and were blown away,” said deViere. 

The Blues Doctors are the opening act and will take the stage at 5 and play until 7 p.m., with McAllister and company playing until 9 p.m. when the event ends.

Attendees will also get a taste of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, the show currently playing at the theatre. When the festival ends at 9 p.m., attendees are invited to travel up the hill to watch the late-night showing of Hedwig at the CFRT.

“This is the only late night show, and we think it will be a lot of fun,” said deViere.

In addition to the music and the brews, there are also a number of games that will entertain throughout the afternoon. The games section was added to the event two years ago and has continued to grow. Expect the traditional corn hole, beer pong and relay races, but this year, you can also look forward to bucket ball and life-size Jenga. Who wouldn’t want to play that? Participants can win cool prize packs (including tickets to Hedwig) for winning at the games.

Anstead’s  Tobacco Company is returning as the premier sponsor of the event. In addition to a cigar bar, the company is bringing in cigar experts who can help people match their cigars to their brews and can provide education on cigars.

Those who want some extra perks can purchase VIP tickets, which include a private tasting, free eats provided by The Mash House, early entry at 4 p.m., judge the beer tasting contest, access  to a private game area, private lawn and covered seating, complimentary Blues-N-Brews merchandise and unlimited open-beer tasting.  VIP tickets are $75.

All attendees must purchase tickets. General admission is $35 in advance or $40 at the door. Non-drinking tickets are $15. While children are welcome, this is not a children’s event and there are no children’s activities. Those under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent at all times. Tickets can be purchased at the gate, but attendees are encouraged to purchase tickets early as they sell fast. Tickets are available for purchase at the CFRT Box Office Tuesday – Friday from 1-6 p.m.  For more information, call 910.323.4233 or go by the CFRT at  1209 Hay Street.

The Vagina Monologuespremiered in 1996. It is an episodic play written by Eve Ensler. As the name suggests, this play focuses on women and their experiences.  

“Each monologue deals with an aspect of the feminine experience — so I relate to ALL of the monologues in some way or another as a woman,” Robyne Parrish the artistic director and co-education director of the Gilbert Theater said. “Frankly, because I have a vagina, I can empathize with all of the characters no matter what the subject matter or theme of the monologue. And of course, all of the themes are as important today as when the play was written in the ‘90s. One recurring theme in the play is that the vagina is a tool of empowerment for the female; the ultimate embodiment of individuality. I think we (women) can all agree that this will never change.” 

The play is set to open at Gilbert Theater on June 3.

Despite being written in the late ‘90s, these monologues have maintained relevance. The Gilbert Theater took a bold step and added an extra layer to the modern and local political relevance of the play. This production takes a stand for for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual Ally Community. 

“For one thing, we are featuring a transgender character in our Vagina Monologues. This is very important to us at the Gilbert Theater — clearly a major issue in our society today and particularly in North Carolina what with the HB2 bill screaming through our lives,” Parrish said. “Most transgender people face discrimination every day — before HB2 and once it is demolished. We embrace the trans community and will represent them in a way that is thoughtful and meaningful. Our trans character was born in the body of a man and identifies as a woman. She has fully transitioned as the play begins.”

The Vagina Monologues is not just for women, however. These stories are relevant for the entire community. And beyond being a powerful political statement, this is also an entertaining work of art. Parrish specifically says that men “Should absolutely see the play. They will laugh a lot and learn a lot. It is an important work to see if you never have. The cast is strong and powerful — some of our best local ladies. Bring your wife or girlfriend for a fun and powerful evening at the theater and listen.”

Ensler’s work is empowering, real and important but also entertaining and relatable.  When she first wrote The Vagina Monologuesshe was directly addressing a taboo subject, but it is through art that pushes the envelope and challenges the status quo that society and the community can progress. “Some of the ladies of my mothers generation and beyond don’t even like to SAY the word vagina,” Parrish explained. “It is considered a very private word and very private place. But of course, breaking out of this prison of silence is exactly Eve Ensler’s wish… I would say to the women of our community — be brave! Come out and support your local artists and just experience the words. You will identify. You will see yourself in the mix. Don’t be afraid of the vagina!”

The Vagina Monologues are at the Gilbert Theater from June 3-12. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.gilberttheater.com or call 678.7186. 

The Fayetteville Kiwanis Club’s Annual Talent Night is on June 11 at the Caper Fear Regional Theatre. While it is indeed a night of top-notch talent and entertainment, it is also a good time for the entertainers who work so hard to make the cut. This annual event is much anticipated throughout the year and offers something for the participants as well as the community. 

The Kiwanis Club of Fayetteville is a civic organization chartered in 1921, and has been working diligently to better the community ever since. The annual Talent Night is a local tradition that dates back over 60 years. 

“Talent at the Talent Showcase is absolutely amazing,” said Bill Bowman, chair of Talent Showcase and publisher of Up & Coming Weekly. “Talented students in grades kindergarten through 12th grade perform in several categories for the opportunity to win more than $2,000 in scholarship and prizes.” The first place winner in each division will receive a trophy and $100 cash; second place winner in each division will receive a trophy and $50 cash; third place winner in each division will receive a trophy and $25 cash. Four music scholarships will be awarded for voice, strings, piano and band instrument — a $150 value. The 2016 overall winner will receive a trophy and $200 cash. 

Even though Talent Night is a night full of fun and family entertainment, it also serves a greater purpose, which is the sponsorship of the Kiwanis Youth Service Projects. Proceeds from Talent Night are used to support local youth in Cumberland County. One such program is Terrific Kids, which is the largest in the country. In this program, members of the committee present more than 31,000 Terrific Kids awards each year. This program promotes self-esteem by encouraging and then rewarding good behavior with bumper stickers, pencils and bicycles. Kiwanians work closely with teachers, who select Terrific Kids twice a month. 

The Reading is Fun Program, which is geared towards 4- and 5-year-old preschoolers provides more than 4,000 books to students across the county. Books are distributed to children enrolled in Head Start and Chapter One programs. Kiwanis members read to the children as well as donate books to them. Also The Kiwanis Club of Fayetteville, in conjunction with the Fayetteville Department of Parks and Recreation, sponsors Youth League Baseball at Honeycutt Park and Recreation Center. Kiwanians coach many of the teams, are game announcers and sell, purchase and erect outfield advertising signs. 

Auditions for this year’s Talent Night are on Saturday, June 4 beginning at 9 a.m. at the Honeycutt Recreation Center. 

“Good things last,” said Bowman. “This is a great launching point and I’m glad to be able to help foster this type of enrichment. Some of the past winners have gone on to do some exceptional things and have performed on some the world’s biggest stages, like Broadway, St. Louis Philharmonic Orchestra, Boston Pops and American Ballad.”

For more information about this event and others, check out The Fayetteville Kiwanis website at www.fayettevillekiwanis.org.

A panel of city and county elected officials wants to get a proposed consolidated emergency 911 service off dead center. The ill-defined plan has languished for many years mainly because of turf issues and cost. But now, it appears local governments want to get the plan off the shelf. “I’d like to get the ball rolling before I leave office,” said veteran County Commissioner Kenneth Edge. He is not seeking re-election and his term expires in December.

The City-County Liaison Committee is unanimously recommending that a joint subcommittee be established to work out details of merging local emergency 911 operations. The county’s call center is located in the law enforcement building. The city’s emergency dispatch center is located in city hall. They work closely together, but EMS calls in the city must be transferred to the county. They use separate, mostly incompatible two-way radio systems which would be expensive to replace. County Commissioner Jimmy Keefe pointed out that rapidly changing technologies will have to be dealt with. 

The three city representatives indicated there is a willingness among council members to move forward with consolidation. 

“Anytime we can share services that benefit the citizens, I think there’s going to be interest,” Committee Chairman Mitch Colvin said. He, Mayor Nat Robertson and Councilman Jim Arp are the city’s representatives on the liaison committee. County Commission Chairman Marshall Faircloth and Commissioner Glen Adams are also members along with Edge.

Other considerations for merging the systems include resolving wage differences for employees and city/county cost sharing, as well as site acquisition and construction of a building to house the equipment for an operations center of more than 100 employees. A hardened 40 thousand square-foot building that meets FEMA threat assessment standards would be needed to protect against natural and manmade forces, according to Schrader Group Architect Tom Forsberg. He is among the consultants hired by the county to research consolidation. The cost of such a building hasn’t been determined but three rural sites recommended for the facility could cost upwards of $30 million. State and federal grants are available through the Department of Homeland Security and other sources. But, local governments will likely have to share the cost which is something neither agency has discussed in detail.

It’s recommended that joint 911 operations be managed by an executive steering committee appointed by county commissioners and city council. There is no timetable for the subcommittee to be named and get to work. Commissioner Edge noted the project has been kicked around for years and isn’t likely to get off the ground soon.

    The City of Fayetteville’s dispute with its Public Works Commission may soon be a thing of the past. PWC filed  suit against the city asking the court for a declaratory judgment defining once and for all the operating relationship between the bodies. Superior Court Judge Allen Baddour, Jr. ruled that under current law PWC has the protections of a public authority. That means the city-owned utility enjoys nearly total autonomy, and its governing board does not answer to City Council. The judge’s 16-page order confirms the legislature’s intent in establishing the Public Works Commission more than a century ago. And Baddour found that “the general assembly, in consolidating and re-codifying the PWC Charter in 1979, intended for the PWC to continue to have the same authority…” 

The unusual dispute has lingered for two years, provoked initially by former City Manager Ted Voorhees. He and a 6-4 city council majority interpreted the city charter as giving council more day-to-day authority over PWC than had ever been exercised by the board. The utility commission decided to file the lawsuit to reconcile the disputed differences. Last year’s election changed the council majority and Voorhees was forced to resign following a closed council meeting. 

City Council met in closed session again last week but took no action afterward. Mayor Nat Robertson tells Up & Coming Weekly, however, that in the last minute of the hour-long meeting, Council made a decision not to appeal the judgment. The city has 30 days to decide whether to do that. Robertson says City Attorney Karen McDonald should have advised the council, in keeping with the Open Meetings law, that its decision should have been made public when the regular meeting resumed. Robertson appears to have succeeded in winning a council consensus, having said earlier that “I look forward to a renewed relationship with the PWC Board and know that we will be able to continue to work together even better since the courts have defined our roles. Council has decided to come together with PWC to find common ground we can agree on.” He says a starting point would be a review of House Bil 392, which included concessions not in the judge’s order. The bill was referred to the Senate and rests in committee pending further action which was put on hold during the judge’s deliberations. The mayor said the council vote to review and revise the house bill was “nearly unanimous.” He would not identify members who prefer appealing the decision. 

Public Works Commissioner Wade Fowler, a former City Council member, said “I believe the issue had to be settled by someone in authority. I was prepared to live with whatever the decision was,” Veteran Councilman Bill Crisp is among those who prefer appealing the judge’s decision to a higher court. The court order clarified that PWC is obligated to make annual transfers of funds to the city in keeping with an agreement that has been in effect since 2008.  Baddour declared that as a public authority, PWC is independent of city government even as it applies to budgeting.