1
1
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
3
“ eXcellence is a state of mind. It is the unfailing drive that refuses mediocrity and embraces magnificence . eXcellence is the 2nd wind that overcomes exhaustion ... And, the evidence of our connection to God.” — c. dArObi
All Rights Reserved DaRobi House, LLC Copyright 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013
3
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
5
CONTENTS 2012/2013 Annual Magazine and Business Directory
Premier Edition Volume 1 No.3
pAgE 6 7
2012 Black xcellence Awards Winners, Order your Collectors copy Publishers Page
9
HUMBLE HOMETOWN HERO Robbie Rhodes
10
Justice is the only Option Glyniss McGinty
12
Photo Pages 2012 Black Xcellence Awards
14
Who is Kendyl Morgan?
15
The King of Swing, Jerry Palmer
16-17
Taste of Xcellence Savory, Tasty, and Just Good .
19
21 22
The Intelligent Criminal Rodderick Reed . He’s got a story to tell.
BLACK
Love
23
The River runs Deep Rev. Elijah Hill on Black Religion
24
Now is the Time ! Real Estate advice from DaJuana Miller
26
27
The Real Cowboy of Color True Legend Award Winner...Cleo Hearns The Lotus Experience Heart to heart with Marveta Johnson 5
www.blackXcellence.com
CONGRATULATIONS The Black Xcellence AWARDS is very needed in our community. Showing young people examples of high achievement, regardless of the circumstances is important. We encourage you and support your efforts to make a global impact on racial equality and economic opportunity. Pro Care Home Care & Sitter Services Company is a home health agency licensed to provide services in the State of Texas. Since 1991 we have been servicing Dallas Fort Worth and surrounding counties.
Home Care services are in high demand. We must realize that sometimes you can not do it alone.
Call us at 817 817--478 478--3108
“At Pro Care, We Care!� WWW. PROCAREHOMECARE.COM MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
7
7
www.blackXcellence.com
Winners of The 2012 Black Xcellence Awards Order Your Favorite Collectors Edition $39.95 www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
MESSAGE 9
From Our Publisher
“Living in Faith is not always easy to do do.. However, the reward of trusting the spirit of God is absolutely amazing.”
I
n the last 365 days, life for me, has
been very testing. Our country is sluggishly prying its way out of one of the most horrific financial times of its existence. And, for some reason at the beginning of the quarter, I believed that somehow that greatly affected me. Fortunately, my ignorance does not supersede the will of God. Bleak times such as these are essentially ideal for choosing leaders. Individuals that push, pray, meditate, and press on rise to the top in times like this. Thought leaders, entrepreneurs, artistic hustlers, and the highly motivated are quite stimulated by the challenge of it all. Believers and followers of Christ, Allah, Buddha, and/or any other official name of the god they serve study to sharpen their religious belief, which in turn, sharpens their perspective.
. Historically, great inventions, movements, ideals, music, movies, manuscripts, and other momentous creations come out of oppression, depression, and recession recession..
It is in difficult times, such as this, that the “cream” of excellence rises to the top
With that being said, the majority of this issue highlights the close of our previous winners and mainly focuses on following one’s DESTINY.
TO ALL OF THE MANY SUPPORTERS, STAFF, CONTRIBUTORS, SPONSORS, and Spiritual WARRIORS. THE FOLLOWING IS A LIST Of names I would like to recognize:
GOD, The Creator JESUS CHRIST MANY ANCESTORS My Parents NAPOLEON & TERESA DAVIS MR. T.LYNN REDMOND Late LONNIE FAYE REDMOND Kailon, Willie, Lord, Miracle, Chelsea, Tomias, Colby, TroyRissa, Asia, and Ashton, KAMETHIA DAVIS & DEKELIA DAVIS The entire Davis, Parker, Wooten and Scruggs Family
If some how I missed your name charge it to my (exhausted) head not my heart. Marveta Johnson Kalauna Hall VIZION ALEXANDER Chef JESSE WATERS
TORRENCE WILLIAMS Photographer Angela Hooks, Antonio Johnson Tina James Elijah Hill All Rights Reserved 2013 Black Xcellence Magazine is printed annually and updated quarterly online.
Despite the odds, obstacles , and/or confrontations... Enjoy! Claudia DaRobi DaRobi House, LLC
www.darobihouse.com 9
www.blackXcellence.com
Robbie Rhodes “ He comes off as quiet and modest, but the Fort Worth (Texas) Southwest wide receiver was not surprised when folks started to move him up their recruiting rankings. When he learned he was considered one of the top receiver prospects in the country, Rhodes was thankful. But he was never shocked.” says Max Olsen of ESPN Recruiting Nation. Robbie is best known now a-days for his record breaking season at Southwest High School. or perhaps being the Top Football Recruit at Baylor University. However, ask any sports fan in his hometown of Fort Worth and they will tell you. This kid could dunk in the 7th grade. Basketball star, 2012 UIL State Champion in track and of coarse football. But the greatest accomplishment of all is he still earns the title
HUMBLE Hometown HERO.
“
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
11
Glynis Adams McGinty is a self motivated individual. As a child she was faced with many challenges after her mother passed. Though, it was difficult, failure is not and has never been an option. With the help of her step step--father, Glynis, graduated at the top her class at 16 years old. She entered the Thurgood Marshall School of Law at the age of 19. At the time, she was the youngest student to matriculate through this program. After graduating from Law School, she established a solo law practice in 1988, concentrating in Criminal Law. In addition to her practice, she is also the Associate Judge for the North Richland Hills Municipal Court and serves as the Senior Court Judge for the North Richland Hills Teen Court for over 15 years. She was formerly an Adjunct Professor for Tarrant County Junior College where she taught introductory Criminal Justice courses. Attorney McGinty is affiliated with TARRANT COUNTY BAR ASSOCIATION FORT WORTH REPUBLICAN WOMEN, Past CHAIRMAN LITERACY COMMITTEE TARRANT COUNTY CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER ASSOCIATION FORT WORTH OPTIMIST CLUB LINCOLN COUNCIL PHI ALPHA DELTA LEGAL FRATERNITY, GREENER CHAPTER CLERK TARRANT COUNTY BLACK BAR ASSO. FT WORTH BLACK WOMEN LAWYER ASS. ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA SORORITY, INC., ZETA MU CHAPTER
Attorney Glynis McGinty
In a world where African American female attorneys are often intimidating and sometimes referred to as "Bulldog" in the court room, Glynis is not in anyway offended. She makes it no secret that she completely respects the principals and laws in which our legal system was built upon. As an attorney, it is her first concern to protect the rights of her client to the fullest extent of the law. So essentially having Attorney Glynis McGinty on your side in the courtroom is a blessing.
11
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
M. Anthony GOLSON
13
When I think of the word dedication, I think of Mr. Michael Golson, SR. Mr. Golson has spent 27 years of his life in domestic and international law enforcement, building coalitions and leading change. Currently, he serves as an Assistant Special Agent in Charge, Dallas Field Division for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. His impressive resume shows a proven track record of operational excellence, fiscal prudence and new technology implementation. To say the least, this man is equipped with the knowledge to serve his country in the security industry. He changed the agency into an innovative, progressive agency.
& Associates, LLC 501 Crownpoint Ln. Arlington, Texas 76002
972.965.6010
In our conversation, Mr. Golson says the reputation he wants to precede him is “I deal with things in its appropriate place.” When it is time to step up he does. It is important to Mr. Golson to lead by serving. He is apart of the team he leads. He is dedicated to making sure every member of his team has all of the tools they need to succeed, including, his support. In our conversation, Mr. Golson reflects on when the most horrific tragedy in modern times visited the United States of America, September 11, 2000. He was a National Enforcement Agent. His job was to supervise civilians and other agents, it was a job nobody wanted to do because of the chaos of our nation. Now, Mr. Golson serves as a Corporate and Community Security Enforcement Officer. The ideal client for him is: Community Organizations, Churches, Leaders of neighborhood watch.
Michael Golson, Sr. will host a special training session of safety and security at our Woman of Wisdom Safety Seminar
Stay Tuned for the “Women of Wisdom” Safety seminar sponsored by Black Xcellence.com 13
www.blackXcellence.com
An Exclusive Glimpse at last years Black Xcellence Awards
December 2013
MAY/JUNE 2013
Save the Date!
Black Xcellencewww.blackXcellence.com Awards
An Exclusive Glimpse at last years Black Xcellence Awards 15
December 2013 Save the Date! 15
Black Xcellence Awards www.blackXcellence.com
n a g r o M l y d n e K
You might ask, “ Who is Kendyl Morgan?� This young lady is a powerhouse songbird that prefers to hum the sounds of Gospel, Pop, and a little R&B every chance she gets. A native of Valencia, Ca, Kendyl graced the stage with a tribute for Claudia DaRobi at the 2012Black Xcellence Awards. She is currently working on her debut album. Keep your ears to the ground.
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
King of Swing 17
According to DFWswingdance.com, Jerry Palmer first got his taste of swingout dancing from the Stepper’s Club in Grand Prairie, TX where he would go and just watch people dance and be amazed at how well this dance looked between two partners. He decided to take swing lessons and graduated from Coaches Corner where Cheryl Head was the instructor. He later moved over to Gold Rush for more advanced moves with Tommy Pye (Terrible T). After graduating Jerry started dancing at Club Life in Dallas and would get many stares and compliments from people wanting to know about this dance called swingout. He first started teaching swingout at the Diamond Club for the swingout organization Dallas Swingout Society. He later followed Cheryl Head and taught at Coaches Corner for 1 year. He then moved on to Club Blue and Stone Trail where he graduated many students for 7 years. Often times you will hear Jerry Palmer’s name mentioned on all the radio stations as “The King of Swing”. His mainstream radio publicity first started when he would go dance at the Adams Mark Hotel for the Oasis Radio Jazz events in Dallas. Jerry would later branch out into Houston, Oklahoma and Louisiana where he shared the instructors dance floor with Steppin Instruction Dre at a Club called Cobol in Houston, TX. His accomplishments not only include graduating over 2000 students but winning 1st place in the Annual Swing Dance Competition held in Washington, DC.
On the Spot Auto Detail
940.231.3976 17
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
19
19
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
21
21
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
23
23
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
25
25
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
CLEO HEARNS 27
The Real Cowboy of Color
performance by the Circle L5 Mounted Drill Team, who were all neatly dressed in black and white button downs, flying various banners that matched their shirts. After their performance, I caught up with two of the drill team members Donnie and Chandler who were still full of adrenaline right after their exceptionally executed routine.. Later in the show there was also another drill team from Ft. Worth, TX. The lovely ladies all matched perfectly in their fluffy ball-style gowns that were red and black with lace accents. Other entertainment for the evening included the beautiful Ms. Imaj, daughter of Miami Vice’s Philip Michael Thomas, who graced the stage with a couple of traditional hymns that the crowd was able to sing along to. After a brief intermission it was show time when the Coed Ribbon Roping competition began. I must say this was the least action packed event of the evening, and as such, probably the only one I would have the guts to try. One thing I found particularly interesting was that most of the participants were family.
As
I approached the entrance of
included Nationwide, Cowgirls Rock TShirts, Social Ice Winesicles, and Frank Frazier Arts.
The Invitational Black Rodeo, I had only one expectation in mind, “This place is going to stink”. Not in the sense of being boring or unpleasant in any way, but that since there would be all sorts of livestock involved, that the smell would be stuck in my nostrils for weeks. Nevertheless, I was ecstatic because this was my first Rodeo!
Once inside the coliseum, all were ushered to their respective sections and seated by the very courteous and efficient rodeo staff. As everything was starting to settle down, everyone had taken their seats, and the first round of Cowboy Bull Riding began. A strong looking fellow by the name of Anthony Butler was first in the competition with an appearance of a warInside there were a plethora of booths rior primed and ready for battle. The gate lined up against the wall. Attendees scur- flung open and within about 4 bucks of ried past from station to station picking up the raging bull, Butler was in the sand souvenirs and sweet treats of all sorts. right beneath the bull’s hind hoofs. He Contrary to my presumption, the aroma in scrambled out of the pin just before the the lobby wasn’t as dreadful as I had im- hind legs of the beast came down and agined. The smell of fresh funnel cakes, pummeled him. It was then that I came to hotdogs, popcorn, cheeseburgers, BBQ, the realization that there is certainly a nachos, and salted pretzels did a wonder- degree of danger involved in participating ful job at overpowering the smell of the in this competition. animal waste on the other side of the wall. The main concessions were provided by Next up was a coordinated and spirited Campbell Concessions, but other vendors 27
When you talk about
family and rodeo in the same sentence, you have to mention the Hearn family. The leader of which is Mr. Cleo Hearn, founder of the Black Rodeo. He was bouncing around the entire time smiling, hugging, and shaking hands with everyone in sight. His two sons Robbie and Wendell were both participants in the show. Even his young granddaughter, Rachel, found herself doing a little riding and wrangling during a few of the not so dangerous events.
www.blackXcellence.com
A friend of the family, Stephen Reagor of Tulsa, OK was fresh out of the pin when I reached him for comment. He informed me that this was his first year back and that he was excited at the good turnout of attendees this year. He too has been around the rodeo all his life and at 29 years old has had 20 years of rodeo experience. His father and Mr. Hearn are very good friends, and have been for over 40 years. Right after speaking with him, everyone’s attention was called to the pin as the Hearn family honored another of their lifetime friends, Mr. Arby Littlesoilder, with a very special birthday gift. For being incremental to the success of the event, they awarded him a Medicine Half Pint Horse white and light tan coat.
Another mentionable family we had the honor of meeting was the Hatley family. We have to crown them the most spirited family of the evening since I had a flash back of a high school pep rally as their warrior Queen, Ms. Keedra Hatley shot into the pin with her top that was the same orange from the hottest part of the flame. Finally, the moment that everyone had been waiting for. The final round of Bull Riding was commencing and the winner of the grand prize, $25,000 was about to compete. The crowd was going ballistic at this point. I was starting to hope that whoever won the money would have some security to escort them home. As I reflected on the days events, one thing was fore certain, the most obvious fact about the rodeo is that it is undeniably an event that the whole family can enjoy.
MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com
29
Marveta “Lotus” Johnson
N
ever Give Up. That is the title of a book I have grown to
love. The author, Joyce Meyer, is an extremely inspirational individual that has a knack for encouragement. In that book she refers to individuals such as Winston Churchill, The Wright Brothers, and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., as examples of people that changed the course of history because they refused to give up. After being out of school for over fifteen years, I found myself at a University in pursuit of a better life as I aggressively worked towards an Associate in Business Administration. Excitement, fear, nervousness, intimidation and inadequacy are the emotions that visited me on that day. It did not take long for me to realize a new love had been added to my life, a love for education. In May of 2007 I walked across the stage at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee WI, acknowledging I completed my task, superseded my original goal, to receive my Bachelors in Business Management. May 19, 2007 will forever be embedded in my memory.
congratulations, you have an awesome opportunity to make changes in your life that will assist you in reaching your goals. When preparing the speech I delivered at my commencement ceremony, I did a search on the internet to find out who the oldest person in history was to receive a degree. Nola Ochs received her Bachelor’s degree in History at 95 years old. It took Ms. Ochs 30 years to reach that goal. Think about it, it would have been admirable if she would have accomplished her goal in 5 years. That would have made her a 70 year old graduate. She took a bit longer than the traditional 5 years, however, even more noteworthy; she stayed the course for 30 years. She obviously, refused to give up. The next time you have an opportunity to attend a graduation ceremony, take a look around you. All of the individuals that you see dressed in a cap and gown took that leap of faith. They decided to press towards their goal and never give up.
“ Today, I encourage you to never give up. Take a moment and reflect. As you assess your life decide if you are comfortable with where you are. If you can answer yes, congratulations you have arrived at a place many people never see. If your answer is no, congratulations, you have an awesome opportunity to make changes in your life that will assist you in reaching your goals.“
The challenge was presented to the student speaker to address the following statement, “How did your educational experience influence your personal and professional life.” My direct answer to that is, personally, I have come into the knowledge that any task that is set before me I can accomplish as long as I never give up. An individual will always come out on top if they stay the course. On November 27 of that same year, I walked into another univer- It has set the tone for my household. My children will pursue their sity for the first time. Foundations of Problem-Based Learning set dreams with an example in their mother that dreams really do the tone for my life for the 15 months to follow. Excitement revis- come true. ited me as I began my journey. At the end of the day I found myself outside waiting for my ride reflecting on my experience. I Professionally, my experience in classrooms with instructors that waited, as all the other students and staff left the building one by have a passion for education has ignited something in me to want one, as security left and the doors were locked. Finally, one into be a “lifetime learner”. My original goal was to get a degree in structor came out and saw I was sitting outside in the cold and he hopes of moving up the corporate ladder. Now, I find myself asked me if I needed a ride. I wanted to say no but the truth of the longing to be amongst individuals that have so many challenges matter was, I did need a ride. So I gratefully accepted. As we rode and obstacles, such as I did, encouraging them to go after their we talked and he encouraged. When we pulled up in front of my goals, confidently, aggressively and diligently. I simply want to be house, his words to me were “don’t give up”. I said thank you, a cheerleader in their corner telling them they can make it. Whethwiped the tears from my eyes and went inside. er it be in the classroom setting, part of the student service diviI continued my strode that lead me to the day when I received my Master’s degree in Business Administration. I did not give up. My journey to that day had been nothing short of awesome. The workload was great, the expectations were elevated and the reward is without description. Today, I encourage you to never give up. Take a moment and reflect. As you assess your life decide if you are comfortable with where you are. If you can answer yes, congratulations you have arrived at a place many people never see. If your answer is no,
29
sion, in administration, or in community settings, I have to be a part of assisting other’s to reach their goals. The university of determination produces a body of individuals that stand out from the rest. There is a glow that precedes them and a confidence that follows close behind. Relationships are developed that make a student desire to hold on. No, it was not easy. No, nobody tried to make it easy. Yes, it got frustrating however the end result is, when you do not give up, when we did not give up we can pass the threshold together knowing that whatever happens in life we are winners.
www.blackXcellence.com
MAY/JUNE 2013
naacouturephotography.com
www.blackXcellence.com
31
31
www.blackXcellence.com
Call for more info
1.877.261.0301
Treat yourself‌.1st Glass on us! MAY/JUNE 2013
www.blackXcellence.com