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St. Louis mayoral race holds lessons for Black candidates

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Katie Everette Johnson passes at 94 Was civil rights trailblazer

by Christian Morrow Courier Staff Writer

When she learned she was to be honored as a Legacy Award winner at the New Pittsburgh Courier’s 2015 Women of Excellence event, Katie Everette Johnson said she had to be talked into accepting. Seeking credit was not what she was about.

“I don’t see myself as being a Legacy Award winner,” she said. “I never talked about the things I’ve done. I’ve been to the White House three times (while Lyndon Johnson was in office). Poor people

“She was a quiet storm—she just did things and you never knew. I’ll bet half of the people of color at the Port Authority don’t know it was her work that got them there.”

TWANDA CARLISLE NAACP Pittsburgh Office Manager

were being short-changed so much and we wanted his administration to set up programs to counteract that. It’s just not something you brag about. It’s something God does himself.”

On March 8, God took her home. After a lifetime of fighting for justice and opportunity for African Americans, Johnson died peacefully. She was 94.

Johnson said she began her civil rights mission at an early age, learning from the SEE JOHNSON A5

KATIE EVERETTE JOHNSON

State to comply with Real ID law

by Christian Morrow Courier Staff Writer

The hallmark of totalitarian regimes is the constant monitoring of their citizens––most ably depicted in films of Cold War eastern Europe or Nazi Germany by a uniformed official approaching a people at train or bus stations and asking, “May I see your papers please?”

After June 6, if you need some tax forms from the federal building Downtown, you’d better be able to produce “papers” that comply with Real ID Act requirements—or you won’t be al-

IN MEMORY OF—Family members and friends held candles and prayed at the Wilkinsburg vigil. (Photo by J.L. Martello)

Vigil marks anniversary of Wilkinsburg massacre

by Christian Morrow Courier Staff Writer

Prayer, songs and sorrow marked the one-year anniversary of the ambush shooting that claimed the lives of five adults and an unborn child at a backyard barbecue.

In addition to the candles held by the 40 or so neighbors and friends who came in remembrance, candles were lit on a table for each of the victims: Jerry Shelton, 35, Tina Shelton, 37,

Brittany Powell, 27, Shada Mahone, 26, Chanetta Powell, 25, and her unborn son, Demetrius.

Lakeesha Harris, a cousin, said she wants everyone to continue to pray for the families. “It was important for me to be here, “ she said. “It was a beautiful turnout, and the message is ‘We Shall Overcome.’”

Though it has been a year, Jessica Shelton—mother of three of the victims—was too distraught to attend. In a short statement released

to WPXI-TV, she said she cannot focus on that day.

“I just want (to) let my children RIP. (I) don’t want to focus on that horrible day. I appreciate all that want to tribute to March 9, but that day changed my whole life. Knowing that I won’t have my children with me from that day on, (I) don’t want my grandchildren to remember what took place on that day.”

What took place was, in the words of Allegheny County District Attorney

Stephen Zappala, “an execution,” that was “planned, calculated and brutal.”

The victims were among about 15 people who were enjoying a cookout in the backyard of a home on Franklin Avenue when Cheron Shelton and Robert Thomas allegedly approached from the rear of the yard and an adjacent alley and began shooting.

Prosecutors suspect the target was Lamont PowSEE VIGIL A4

lowed in.

And if you are planning to fly anywhere in the land of the free on business or vacation after Jan. 22, 2018, and still don’t have a compliant driver’s license or ID, you don’t fly, anywhere.

These scenarios would already be a problem for Pennsylvanians, had the January compliance deadline not been extended.

The Real ID Act was passed in 2005 to comply with a Clinton Era executive order to coordinate improved security at federal facilities following the 1995 SEE ID A5

URA approves Peduto affordable housing directives, water fix

by Christian Morrow Courier Staff Writer

The board of the Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh has approved several measures related to Mayor Bill Peduto’s executive order on increasing the availability of affordable housing in the city.

The measures were among the recommendations forwarded to the mayor by the Affordable Housing Task

Force and include setting up forums to train developers on how to access a 4 percent Low Income Housing Tax Credit; establishing a database of local affordable housing; creating policies for selling public land or extending public support to projects that include affordable housing; setting up guidelines for affordable housing in the disposition SEE URA A5

Mosby to take over at Coro

by Christian Morrow Courier Staff Writer

Though somewhat saddened to be leaving her post as executive director of Strong Women Strong Girls Pittsburgh, Sabrina Saunders Mosby said she is looking forward to her new position, beginning April 3, as president and CEO of Coro Pittsburgh.

“I’ve been a supporter of the work they are doing at Coro for several years,” she said. “I’ve seen the growth,” she said. “One of my priorities will be to find ways to increase the probability that the people we train stay in the region. It’s im-

portant and something we need to focus on.”

The Coro Center for Civic Leadership–Pittsburgh was founded in 1999 and is one of five independent organizations that offer Coro’s values-based, experiential leadership training.

Mosby sees her new post as part of a natural progression.

Prior to serving three years as executive director at SWSG—the nationally recognized mentoring program for elementary school girls to develop social-emotional and leadership skills, high ambitions––Mosby served as director of Education and Youth Develop-

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ment at the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh and as Youth Policy manager in the Office of the Mayor in Pittsburgh.

“Here we focus on girls and mentoring, but the volunteer base we engage with in colleges and Coro do similar things,” she said.

“When I look at the work I’ll be doing in the community, it made me think of the journey—with African American youth at the Urban League, then with SWSG, those are the same communities we’re serving.

And now developing leaders in those communities SEE MOSBY A4

NEXT STEP—Sabrina Saunders Mosby at Coro Pittsburgh’s offices, on the South Side, where she will take over as president and CEO, April 3. (photo by J.L. Martello)

Ulish Carter says

Youth are beginning to show themselves Opinion B3

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INTERNATIONAL

MARCH 15-21, 2017

Obama books to be published worldwide, from Ireland to India NEW YORK (AP)—The publishing of the upcoming books by Barack and Michelle Obama will be a global event.

Penguin Random House announced Monday that it has lined up publishers from Ireland to South Africa for the two books, to be released by the Crown imprint in the U.S. and Canada.

Titles and release dates have not been announced.

The advance from Penguin Random House for the former president and first lady, whose popularity extends well beyond the U.S., is widely believed to be tens of millions of dollars.

Penguin Random House acquired the books jointly last month.

The publisher has Spanish-language editions

POWER COUPLE—In this Sept. 17, 2016, file photo, President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama wave at the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s 46th Annual Legislative Conference Phoenix Awards Dinner in Washington. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File) planned for Spain, Mexico and several countries in South America. English editions will come out in

the United Kingdom, Australia, India and elsewhere.

Deals for other countries are still pending.

Nigeria’s president resuming work after weeks overseas ABUJA, Nigeria (AP)— Nigeria’s president is officially getting back to work after nearly two months in London on medical leave.

President Muhammadu Buhari’s aide Femi Adesina tweets that Buhari has signed a letter informing the National Assembly “of his resumption of duty from today.”

The president returned to Nigeria on Friday but left Vice President Yemi Osinbajo in charge of Africa’s most populous nation over the weekend as he rested.

The government has not explained what is ailing the 74-year-old president, who has made reference to blood transfusions and said he had not been so sick in decades.

Buhari on Friday said further medical checkups will be needed in the coming weeks.

BACK TO WORK—In this photo released by the Nigeria State House, Nigeria President Muhammadu Buhari, speaks at the presidential palace upon his arrival from medical vacation in Abuja, Nigeria, Friday, March 10, 2017. (Sunday Aghaeze/Nigeria State House via AP) Concerns have grown that he is not fit to resume power.

Report: African women ahead as lawmakers, but face violence

UNITED NATIONS (AP) —African women have made significant progress including higher female participation in many legislatures than in Britain and the United States _ but women on the continent also face “daunting” challenges in high rates of sexual violence, maternal mortality and HIV infections, said a report released March 7.

Across the continent, the report said, constitutions, laws and policies enshrine the principle of equality

and non-discrimination and economic, social and cultural rights for women.

However, gaps in legislation and policies as well as a lack of implementation and enforcement reinforce discrimination against women, it said. For example, the report said Burundi, Guinea, Congo, Kenya, Mali, Sudan and Tanzania “all have family and personal codes that discriminate against women in issues of marriage” and only five countries in Africa have an absolute

prohibition on marriage for girls under age 18.

The report by the U.N. human rights office, UN Women and the African Union special investigator on women’s rights makes a series of recommendations to promote gender equality.

U.N. human rights chief Zeid Ra’ad al-Hussein warned in a message March 7 that “in too many countries, we are now seeing a backlash against women’s rights, a backlash that hurts us all. In Burundi, Zeid said, “a law on violence against women is progressive in many ways as it criminalizes marital rape and prohibits harmful practices. However, the law also pins the blame on a woman who suffers gender-based violence for her “indecent dress” or “immoral behavior.”

On the plus side, the report on “Women’s Rights in Africa” said that “women are more economically active in Africa particularly as farmers, workers and entrepreneurs than anywhere else in the world.”

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This Week In Black History

For the week of Feb. 15-21 March 15 1911—Kappa Alpha Psi, one of the nation’s leading Black fraternities, is founded on this day on the campus of Indiana University by 10 young men led by Elder W. Diggs and Byron K. Armstrong.

1942—The 93rd Infantry is activated and assigned to combat in the Pacific. It thus became the first African American division formed during World War II. 1897—The 55th Congress convenes with one Black member remaining in the legislative body—George White of North GEORGE WHITE Carolina. All the Black political progress made during Reconstruction had been snatched away after the Hayes-Tilden Compromise of 1887. By 1890 states throughout the South had effectively taken away the right of Blacks to vote with schemes ranging from literacy tests to poll taxes to Whites-only primaries.

As a result, Blacks were forced from elected office. When White’s term expired in 1901, there would not be another African American elected to Congress for 27 years and he would come from the North—Oscar DePriest of the Southside of Chicago (1st Congressional District of Illinois).

March 16 1827—The first Black-owned and operated newspaper in America begins publishing. It was Freedom’s Journal. It published weekly in New York City from 1827 to 1829. Editors John Russwurm and Samuel Cornish declared as their mission: “We wish to plead our own cause. Too long have others spoken for us.”

March 17 1806—Norbert Rillieux, one of the earliest Black chemical engineers in America or Europe, was born on this day in 1806. The product of a wealthy French plantation owner in New Orleans and his Black mistress, Rillieux was given his freedom and sent to Paris, France, to be educated. He is best known for his invenNORBERT RILLIEUX tion of the “multiple evaporation process” which revolutionized the sugar and paper industries. It also saved the lives of many who had previously labored in extremely dangerous conditions. Rillieux returned to the U.S., but as conditions for free Blacks deteriorated prior to the Civil War, he went back to Paris and died there in 1894.

1999—Maurice Ashley, a Jamaican immigrant living in Brooklyn, becomes the first Black grandmaster in modern chess history.

March 18 1933—The first Black woman elected mayor of a Mississippi town, Unita Blackwell, was born on this day in Lula, Miss.

The former field worker with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee became mayor of Mayersville, Miss., in 1977.

1963—Singer-actress Vanessa Williams, was born on this day in Millwood, N.Y. In 1983, Williams became the first African American woman to win the title of Miss America VANESSA WILLIAMS (Miss America 1984). Williams was forced to resign a few weeks prior to the end of her reign on July 22, 1984 due to a scandal surrounding the publication of unauthorized nude photographs in Penthouse magazine. In 2015, 32 years after being crowned and during the Miss America 2016 pageant (where she was serving as head judge), Miss America CEO Sam Haskell apologized to Williams for what was said to her during the events of 1984.

1970—Actress and rapper Queen Latifah was born on this day in 1970.

March 19 1620—The first Black child born in America, William Tucker, was probably born on this date in Jamestown, Va. However, some controversy surrounds the exact date.

What we know for sure is that he was the son of two of the first Africans brought to America as indentured servants in August 1619—Anthony (Antonio) and Isabella. We also know he was baptized on Jan. 3, 1624. Further, there is debate as to whether his last name was actually “Tucker.” It seems that many historians simply assumed that the child was given the last name of the man on whose plantation his parents worked. While this would later become the practice on many plantations, there is no documentation that Anthony and Isabella actually gave their son the last name of Tucker.

1919—Singer Nat King Cole is born in Montgomery, Ala. In addition to his considerable talents as a singer, Cole—the father of Natalie Cole—was the first Black American performer with his own syndicated radio program and later a netNAT KING COLE work television variety show. The TV started at 15 minutes, expanded to half-an-hour, but was then dropped due to lack of White advertiser support.

March 20 1852—The leading Black nationalist of the 1800s Martin R. Delany publishes his manifesto entitled “The Condition, Elevation, Emigration and Destiny of the Colored People of the United States.” Delany, who fought in the Civil War to end slavery, became frustrated with American racism and argued that Blacks were “a nation within a nation” who should consider returning to their Africa MARTIN R. DELANY homeland. Delany, who became a doctor, would later advance an argument for reparations saying, “They [Whites] had been our oppressors and injurers. They obstructed our progress to the high positions of civilization. And now it is their bounden duty to make full amends for the injuries thus inflicted upon an unoffending people.” Delany died in Wilberforce, Ohio, in 1885.

1852—“Uncle Tom’s Cabin,” a novel by Harriet Beecher Stowe, is published in Boston and becomes a national bestseller.

The novel was based in part on a real life Maryland slave named Josiah Henson. Many considered Henson the arch type “Uncle Tom” who was over accommodating to Whites and accepting of his condition as a slave. Revisionist historians have treated HenUNCLE TOM’S CABIN son more kindly suggesting he was simply being pragmatic and actually helped other slaves.

1883—Jan Matzeliger receives a patent for the “shoe lasting” machine, which would revolutionize the shoe industry, significantly reduce the cost of shoes and make Lynn, Mass., the shoe-making capital of the world. Matzeliger was born in Dutch Guiana (today’s Surinam) and arrived in America at 18 or 19 speaking very little English. His invention would eventually enable an entire shoe to be produced in 60 seconds by one machine. The patent was purchased by the United Shoe Company.

Unfortunately, Matzeliger died at 37 before he was able to realize any of the enormous profits produced by his invention.

1957—Filmmaker Spike Lee is born in Brooklyn, N.Y. March 21 1955—Walter White dies. As head of the NAACP, White was perhaps the most prominent and powerful civil rights leader of the first half of the 20th century. The light complexioned, blueSPIKE LEE eyed White became somewhat of a legend in 1919 when he “passed for White” in order to investigate the notorious Elaine, Ark., race riot when marauding bands of Whites killed more than 200 Blacks. He barely escaped with his life when news of his true identity leaked out.

1960—The Sharpsville Massacre occurs, in then Whiteruled South Africa, when police fired on Blacks protesting the country’s “pass laws,” which greatly restricted the movement WALTER WHITE of the majority African population. At least 67 demonstrators were killed and 186 injured or wounded.

1965—The historic Selma to Montgomery March calling for full voting rights for African-Americans begins under federal protection. The original march had actually started on March 7. But the more than 600 demonstrators were attacked with clubs and tear gas by state and local police at the Edmund Pettus Bridge. Organizers, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., then went to court to get confirmation of their Constitutional right to demonstrate. The court battle was won and the march resumed under federal protection on March 21. Five months later President Lyndon Johnson signed the historic 1965 Voting Rights Act. 2010—The U.S. House of Representatives passes President Obama’s signature legislation—Health Care Reform by a 219 to 212 vote. No Republican voted for SELMA TO MONTGOMERY MARCH the measure.

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MARCH 15-21, 2017

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St. Louis mayoral race holds lessons for Black candidates

by Errin Haines Whack and Jim Salter Associated Press Writers

ST. LOUIS (AP)—A generation after St. Louis elected its first African-American mayor, many in the Black community are convinced that unchecked egos cost them the chance to regain leadership of the racially divided city.

Lyda Krewson, 64, a White alderwoman, defeated Black city Treasurer Tishaura Jones by fewer than 900 votes in Tuesday’s all-important Democratic primary. St. Louis is heavily Democratic, and Krewson will be the overwhelming favorite in the April 4 general election.

Krewson dominated in mostly White south St. Louis, while Jones and two other Black candidates split the vote on the predominantly Black north side, an outcome that holds an all-too-familiar lesson for Black political hopefuls in major U.S. cities: Pitting African-Americans against each other can jeopardize the chances of any one of them winning against a strong White contender.

Overall I felt like ego, pa-

triarchy and sexism were the things that were leading the other candidates not to want to get out of the race,” Jones said in an interview. “At some point we have to stop fighting each other and try to come together because now we are looking at four more years of policies that we all claim that we didn’t want.”

Krewson was the favorite all along and was endorsed by four-term Mayor Francis Slay, who is White and chose not to seek a fifth term. Jones, 45, surged over the campaign’s final days, thanks in part to celebrity endorsements from the likes of actresses Jada Pinkett Smith and Issa Rae, and a scathing letter rejecting an interview request from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and decrying racism in the city.

In the end, Krewson carried 32 percent of the vote in the seven-person race to Jones’ 30 percent. Aldermanic President Lewis Reed was third with 18 percent, followed by Alderman Antonio French with 16 percent. Reed and French are Black. Blacks make up 49 percent of St. Louis’ 316,000 residents, Whites 44 percent.

White woman’s use of Mardi Gras krewe Blackface stirs debate

by Kevin McGill Associated Press Writer

NEW ORLEANS (AP)— There’s Blackface—the racist, minstrel-show practice of Whites imitating Blacks.

And there’s Blackface— Black Mardi Gras revelers donning outlandish garb to poke fun at that racism.

And then there’s Blackface—modern-day Whites wearing paint and accompanying New Orleans’ Black Zulu krewe.

But as New Orleanian Ann Tuennerman found out last month, that third Blackface can still offend people in a big way.

It wasn’t just the picture on her Facebook page show-

ing her with painted face and Zulu Krewe regalia— an image captured by her husband, Paul Tuennerman, as he made a video recording at the Zulu den.

There was also the accompanying comment: “As he said, ‘Throw a little Blackface on and you lose all your Media Skills.’ He did his best as the interviewer.”

Criticism soon erupted on Facebook. Some were upset at the comment—deeming it racially offensive—but not so much at the Blackface get-up. Others were upset at both.

“It is 2017,” said one critical post. “No reason for adults or anyone to still be putting on Blackface, even if tradition.”

The Tuennermans, both White, are founders of Tales of the Cocktail, an annual event that draws thousands in the alcoholic beverage industry to New Orleans every year.

Both Tuennermans immediately accepted responsibility, acknowledged the racial insensitivity and the pain it caused and tried to make amends.

In an online apology last week, Paul Tuennerman announced his resignation from Tales of the Cocktail.

He said his comments had been meant to tease his “camera-shy wife” but that he realized in retrospect they were “hurtful and just plain dumb.”

Ann Tuennerman has offered online apologies and took part in a live Facebook

discussion on race with Ashtin Berry, a local African-American bartender who objected to her post.

Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club lore holds that the club’s traditions go back to around 1909 and a group of Black laborers known as The Tramps. Tramps members also are believed to have been part of one of the Black community’s Benevolent Aid Societies, formed to provide financial help for members who became ill.

Group members are believed to have seen a vaudeville-era musical comedy show that included a skit about an African king. They adopted the Zulu name and costume, leading to incorporation of the Zulu Social Aid and Pleasure Club in 1916.

Mardi Gras historians say the organization’s parades on the back streets of New Orleans developed into a kind of satirical nose-thumbing at White, high society Mardi Gras “krewes,” when New Orleans and its celebrations were strictly segregated and a Black organization would never have been allowed on a main parade route.

Zulu membership declined during the 1960s civil rights struggles, according to a history on the club’s website. “Dressing in a grass skirt and donning a Black face were seen as being demeaning,” it said.

But the club has bounced back. A seat on a float is coveted—Tuennerman said she paid $1,400 in dues for the privilege.

And the Blackface, grassskirt tradition continues.

So far, the club hasn’t addressed the Tuennerman controversy.

Questions were referred to Danatus King, a former New Orleans NAACP president and the attorney for the club.

He dismissed the flap as a matter between the Tuennermans. “Zulu has no response to that domestic matter,” he said.

Ann Tuennerman, meanwhile, has taken part in a great deal of online soul-searching, including the Facebook discussion with Berry.

Does she regret donning Zulu garb—a club requirement for riders of all races?

“I do not, as it was respectful to the organization to wear their traditional costume when riding in their parade,” she said.

TISHAURA O. JONES (Photo by Wiley Price/St.Louis American) St. Louis University political scientist Ken Warren said that if just one of the competitive Black candidates had dropped out, Jones would have won, perhaps easily.

“The fact that the Black community did not rally around one candidate makes it clear they spoiled their chances of being represented by a Black mayor,” Warren said.

To thin the field of candidates, a city needs an influential Black political elite capable of discouraging weaker contenders from running, said Emory University political scientist Michael Leo Owens.

“Evidently, in a place like

St. Louis, that’s clearly absent,” Owens said.

Some African-American leaders saw early on that unity was their best hope.

In December, Donald Suggs, publisher of the St. Louis American, a Black weekly newspaper, called a meeting of the Black candidates and urged them to unite behind a single candidate.

The appeal had little effect.

St. Louis has had two Black mayors, the first one elected in 1993, the second in 1997.

Around the U.S., it is difficult for Black politicians to win statewide elections, and often the highest job they can aspire to with any hope of success is mayor or

congressman. As a result, such contests are often crowded with Black candidates.

But large Black populations don’t always translate into Black leadership—a situation attributed in part to voters’ habit of casting their ballots along racial lines.

Chicago, the city that gave rise to President Barack Obama and has a Black population of about 900,000, has had only one Black mayor, Harold Washington Jr., in the 1980s.

In 2015, Memphis elected its first White mayor in 24 years. Detroit and New Orleans, which are 82 percent and 67 percent Black respectively, have White mayors.

Conversely, Baltimore, which is 64 percent Black, has elected three Black women as mayor in the past decade. Washington, D.C., which is 60 percent Black, has chosen a Black mayor in every election since 1974.

Similarly, Atlanta, which is 55 percent Black, has had an unbroken line of Black mayors stretching back four decades.

“There is a framework here and there are a group

of individuals who have been involved on a consistent basis in the politics of Atlanta,” said Mayor Kasim Reed, who was first elected in 2007, when he defeated a White woman by just 715 votes.

Reed pointed to longtime political lions Andrew Young—who also served as mayor—and Rep. John Lewis as among those who enjoy popularity and influence and are courted by Black candidates for their crucial endorsements.

“That does lend a stability and an order,” Reed said.

Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League and former mayor of New Orleans, said the lesson from St. Louis is that Blacks must act more strategically if the election of an African-American mayor is important to them.

“There’s got to be some political give-and-take and compromises made,” Morial said. “A candidate who’s serious has to have the political skills to clear the field—or at least diminish it.”Jones agreed.

“This is insane,” she said.

“We cannot continue to tear each other down and expect a different result.”

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METRO

MARCH 15-21, 2017

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

PPS named Great District for Great Teachers PITTSBURGH PUBLIC SCHOOLS—The National Council on Teacher Quality, a national leader on teacher issues—has named Pittsburgh Public Schools a winner in its first-ever Great Districts for Great Teachers initiative. NCTQ chose Pittsburgh Public Schools (PPS) after a rigorous 18-month evaluation of data, policies and teacher input, that included surveys and focus groups with over 300 PPS teachers, proving the District is a national leader in developing

and caring for great teachers, so that they, in turn, can deliver great instruction to their students.

“Great Districts for Great Teachers is a celebration of great teaching,” said Kate Walsh, President of NCTQ. “We celebrate the hard, often politically challenging efforts by a special group of school districts who have managed to put together policies and practices that make them great places for great teachers to work.”

“We are honored that NCTQ selected us as one

its first Great Districts for Great Teachers,” said Superintendent Anthony Hamlet “We are especially pleased that this award recognizes the tremendous work of our administrators to identify and support great teachers and of our great teachers themselves.”

NCTQ developed the criteria for this honor based on its experience stretching over a decade analyzing district human capital policies and practices as well as input from teachers and other education leaders. The eight

Vigil marks anniversary of Wilkinsburg massacre

UNITY AGAINST VIOLENCE—Many residents of Wilkinsburg came out to the vigil to morn the lives of those who were lost on March 9, 2018. (Photo by J. L. Martello) CONTINUED FROM A1

ell—unrelated to the victims—who survived the ambush.

Vigil organizer Janet Hellner-Burris, of the Christian Church of Wilkinsburg, understands why Jessica Shelton and other relatives declined to attend the vigil.

“As someone who’s lost a family member to violence, I know this is a long journey,” she said. “It’s not over after a year—so we will not leave this community. We will stay with them and walk with them.”

Hellner-Burris added that

the turnout was inspirational and showed the real Wilkinsburg.

“This is the real Wilkinsburg we saw tonight. Often, we don’t get to show this side of Wilkinsburg,” she said. “This neighborhood has been extraordinary. We want people to recognize that this is how you respond to an act of violence or hatred—you respond with love and some physical act of goodness.”

Wilkinsburg Council President Maurita Garrett agreed that the community

showed its strength.

“Wilkinsburg is resilient.

We’re able to bounce back from things and our community is, at all times, a healing community,” she said. “We can’t let this define us—we have to take time out to honor those who lost their lives and the families that are effected.

So, while recognizing what happened a year ago, and honoring their lives, we have to continue forward in their legacy.”

(J.L. Martello contributed to this story.)

winners excelled on five criteria that research suggests connect to effective teaching—compensation, professional support, effective management and operations, career and leadership opportunities, and support services for students.

Pittsburgh Public Schools scored in the top 25 percent of districts in the Com-

pensation and Career and Leadership Opportunities areas and the second tier (top 50-75 percent of districts) in Management and Operations. The District fell in the third tier (25-50 percent of districts) for Professional Support and Support for Students, two areas of focus within the District’s five-year strategic plan.

CHICAGO, Ill. (BlackNews.com)—BlackDoctor. org (BDO), the leading online health destination for Black consumers, is definitively on the path to changing the face of health and getting every family in Black America healthy based on recent findings from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and the National Cancer Institute. For the first time, premature death rates have declined in the U.S. among Blacks, according to a comprehensive study of premature death rates for the entire U.S. population from 1999 to 2014.

African Americans have higher incidences of nearly every major disease and condition, as well as shorter life spans overall. According to the American Cancer Society, African Americans have the highest death rate “of any racial and ethnic group in the U.S. for most cancers.” These include prostate, colorectal (colon) and breast cancers.

Researchers from the study believe the decline in premature death rates reflects successes in public health efforts to improve diagnosis and treatment during the course of the study. Since 2005, when BDO was launched, the focus has been on raising awareness which in concert with many other public health efforts has resulted in this good news.

BDO reaches more than 40 million readers monthly and is the primary destination for Black health news and life-saving information.

“For the first time in my lifetime, Black deaths have decreased; that’s great news. I am delighted that BlackDoctor.org has been a strong advocate to achieve this kind of outcome,” said Reggie Ware, founder and CEO of BlackDoctor.org.

“Our content helps people modify behavior, and it’s rewarding that national data reflects what our internal and third-party research has shown for years.”

Decline in Black premature deaths

Mosby to head Coro CONTINUED FROM A1

and bring their training to work in neighborhoods like Garfield and the North Side––the continuum is very clear.”

During Mosby’s tenure, SWSG: •Grew from 26 to 43 partner sites and from serving 425 to 640 girls annually; •Added Robert Morris University to its existing five university chapters, including University of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Mellon University, Carlow University, Point Park University and Duquesne University; and •Increased its volunteer base from 140 to 200 college mentors. Doubled its Strong Leaders program to include more than100 professional mentors. Significantly increased corporate and individual contributions.

And, she’s not done yet.

I’m still full-steamahead here,” she said. “In fact, I’m onboarding interim executive director Lee Ann Munger, the former executive director at Pow-

erLink, while the board continues its candidate search. She’s an experienced nonprofit director and I’m very pleased to have her here.”

Mosby becomes Coro’s fifth CEO, following Diana Bucco, president of the Buhl Foundation; Paul Leger, City of Pittsburgh finance director; Sala Udin, former Pittsburgh City Council member; and Greg Crowley, who started with Coro in 2004 as director of research, became a vice president in 2008 and has served as President and CEO since 2012.

Crowley is moving to Hanover, N.H., where his wife, Dr. Amber Barnato, has been recruited to serve as the Richard and Susan Levy Professor of Health Policy and Clinical Practice at the Dartmouth Medical School.

“I had some overlap time with Greg before he left and its been great,” said Mosby.

“And he’s doing what we hope all men would do— putting the women in his life first.”

Community Calendar Career Center Open House

MARCH 15-- Brightwood Career Institute in Pittsburgh will host a Spring Fling for the community from 10:30 a.m.-1 p.m. at its campus, 933 Penn Ave. The event is free and open to the public with food, giveaways and spring-themed activities for all ages. Attendees are also invited to enjoy program-related activities, campus tours and program demonstrations. For more information about Brightwood Career Institute in Pittsburgh, visit https:// brightwoodcareer.edu/pittsburgh-pa.

Young, Gifted & Black Ticket Deadline

MARCH 17—Tickets for this year’s Young, Gifted & Black Awards must be purchased by this date. The event itself will be held APRIL 1, 12 p.m. at the Doubletree Hotel by Hilton in Monroeville, 101 Mall Blvd., Monroeville. Come celebrate 10 young adults for their service and commitment to their communities and professions. The guest speaker is John Franklin of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture. Television and Radio host Chris Moore will MC. For more information, call 412-731-1161.

College Open House

MARCH 19—CCAC will host an Open House, at the Foerster Student Services Center, 808 Ridge Avenue, on the North Side.

Tours of the campus will include a Taste of CCAC, a food journey through the ethnic neighborhoods of Pittsburgh. Attendees will be able to sample a variety of foods from local neighborhoods as they move through the buildings on the campus. Participants will be able to meet with an advisor, register for classes and complete financial aid. For more information, call 412-237-4603.

Open Stage Night

MARCH 20—The Community College of Allegheny County, North Campus will present an open stage night, hosted by Greg Joseph of The Clarks from 7-9 p.m. on the Atrium stage, CCAC at 8701 Perry Highway in McCandless. For additional information, call 412.369.3725.

U.S. Postal Stamp Dedication

MARCH 21--The Dorothy I Height USPS Postage Stamp Dedication Ceremony will be held at 1 p.m., at the Rankin Christian Center, 230 Third Ave., a center Dr. Height integrated. Dr. Height was raised in Rankin. The ceremony will also include the swearing in of Penny Graves, the new African American female Post Master for Braddock, Pa.

Speaker Event

MARCH 21—The Community College of Allegheny County’s Allegheny Campus will present nationally known speaker Muhibb Dyer, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and from 4 to 7 p.m. in the Foerster Student Services Center Auditorium, 808 Ridge Ave. On the North Side. A question and answer period will follow the presentations, and a reception will take place after both sessions, which are open to students, educators and the community.

Steel City Codefest

MARCH 31-APRIL 7—The Urban Redevelopment Authority of Pittsburgh has announced the fifth annual Steel City Codefest (Codefest) will be a week-long event, with optional evening work sessions during the City of Pittsburgh’s Inclusive Innovation Week. Codefest begins with a kickoff event from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, March 31, at Alloy 26, located at 100 South Commons, Pittsburgh, PA 15212. It concludes with an event celebrating inclusive tech advancements, guest speakers, and awards from 4-7 p.m. on Friday, April 7, at the Ace Hotel, 120 S. Whitfield St, Pittsburgh, PA 15206. For more information, contact Jennifer Wilhelm, Manager, Innovation and Entrepreneurship 412-255-6580 jwilhelm@ura.org.

Free Homebuyer Workshop

APRIL 5—The Mon Valley Initiative and the Braddock Economic Development Corp. Will host “Buying Your Own Home: You Hold the Key” will be held at 6:30 p.m. April 5 at The Overlook, 416A Overlook Way in Braddock, on the old UPMC Braddock Hospital site between Braddock Avenue and Holland Avenue. Jonathan Weaver, a housing counselor with Mon Valley Initiative, will talk about the steps that first-time homebuyers should consider. Light refreshments will be served. To register, call 412-464-4000, extension 4008, or email jweaver@monvalleyinitiative.com.

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Katie Everette Johnson passes at 94 CONTINUED FROM A1

books her Sunday school teacher mother used for class. When she joined the Urban League in the 1940s, civil rights was her job.

While there, she and fellow workers organized sitins to desegregate a popular downtown eatery. The cooks, she said, would routinely and visibly, spit in their food. Johnson had an equally visible response.

“We just ate around it,” she said.

In 1954, she organized the Urban League’s National Conference in Pittsburgh-the first time it was held here. And along with the NAACP, helped to get the first Black engineer hired at a major city firm, and the first Black female hired at Bell Telephone.

In 1973, Johnson was hired by Port Authority Transit (PATransit), now Port Authority of Allegheny County, in the Media Relations department and was later promoted to manager of the Office of Equal Opportunity, a position she held until retirement on March 1, 1993.

While at PAT, her duties included monitoring the recruitment, hiring and pro-

motion of Black employees, and seeing that authority contracts included Minority-, Women- and Disadvantaged Business Enterprises. She also is credited with creating Classroom on Wheels, a program where PAT drivers visited local schools to explain transportation and their jobs to students, in an effort, to address the problem of kids disrespecting bus drivers.

“The union jumped all over me for getting the drivers involved. But the drivers liked it and so did the kids,” she told Courier writer Genea Webb in 2015.

“It stopped all of the misbehavior that was happening on the buses. God helped me make the teachings different at each school.

The kids learned a lot, PAT learned a lot and I learned a lot, too.”

Even after retiring, Johnson continued to represent the Authority at the annual Spirit of King Awards it sponsored with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Kingsley Association and the New Pittsburgh Courier. And of course, she continued fighting for justice.

Twanda Carlisle, who manages the NAACP Pitts-

burgh office for her mother, Branch President Connie Parker, said Johnson left an indelible mark on Pittsburgh.

“The NAACP truly mourns the loss of Katie Everette Johnson,” said Carlisle. “She was a pioneer is so many ways, She, my mother and Kathy Irvis started the Black Women’s Political Crusade back in the 1970s, and that’s what sparked my interest in politics. She was a quiet storm-she just did things and you never knew. I’ll bet half the people of color at the Port Authority don’t know it was her work that got them there. She fought the good fight and has won her reward.”

Johnson, a longtime devoted member of Bethel AME Church in the Hill– and trustee since 1959–also served on the boards of Indiana University of Pennsylvania; the National Association of Negro Business and Professional Women’s Club; the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation Advisory Committee; Dwelling House Savings and Loan Association, and Pittsburgh Job Corp.

Services will be held

URA approves Mayor Peduto affordable directives, water fix CONTINUED FROM A1

of properties through the Pittsburgh Land Bank; and setting up a committee to establish tenant protections for affordable housing projects.

In a related move, the Authority also approved a $450,000 grant and a $179,620 loan to help the Lawrenceville Corporation set up a Community Land Trust and create permanent affordable housing units, beginning with construction of six for-sale homes and rehabilitation of one other for-sale home.

“Based on the CLT structure, the homes are guaranteed to be permanently affordable,” said Authority Housing Director Tim Cummings, reading from the director’s report.

“Through the use of a ground-lease, CLTs set a maximum resale price designed to give homeowners a return on their investment, while also ensuring that future homebuyers at the same income level have access to affordable homeownership.”

The board also approved an agreement with Dollar Bank to underwrite funding for low-income to replace old, deteriorating lead water lines. Reading from his report, Authority Executive Director Robert Rubinstein said, by order of the state Department of Environmental Protection, the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority must annually replace about 1,450 lead water service lines it owns in the public right of way.

“Property owners with lead lines will be given at least a 45-day notice when PWSA plans to replace the public service line. PWSA is encouraging customers to replace their private line while PWSA

MAYOR BILL PEDUTO is replacing their lead service line in public space,” he said. “The street and sidewalk will already be dug up by PWSA, so this would significantly reduce the customer’s expense for the remaining private replacement.”

The Replace Old Lead Lines program would provide financial assistance to homeowners with incomes below 120 percent of the Area Median Income for replacement of privately owned lead lines leading into their homes.

The city is also petitioning the state legislature to change current law to allow PWSA employees to also do the home water line replace-

ment work—as they will be doing the right-of-way replacement already. Current law restricts authority employees from working on private property.

In other business, the board also approved setting aside $100,000 for the evaluation, clean up and stabilization of the Larimer School, which it purchased from developer Emmett Miles last year. The massive building has been envisioned as a senior housing and community services hub for the surrounding community, but none of the previous owners had been able to raise the funding needed to renovate the historic building.

March 16, at 12 p.m., at Visitation is to begin at 10 Cemetery. Arrangements Bethel AME Church, 2720 a.m. at Bethel Interment are by Jones Funeral Webster Ave., Pgh., 15219. will follow at Allegheny Home.

State to comply with Real ID law CONTINUED FROM A1

Oklahoma City bombing.

Compliant or “enhanced” IDs require a Radio Frequency Identification chip that can call up data on the cardholder when scanned.

Such RFID chips can be tracked and hacked.

Calling it a “disaster for privacy rights” and citing cost estimates of $100 million to implement and $40 million annually to maintain compliance with the database requirements to track individuals, the Pennsylvania legislature– supported by the American Civil Liberties Union– passed Act 38 in 2012 that prevented the state from issuing compliant IDs. Though it was initially thought that the refusal of 16 states to comply would doom the act, the federal machinery ground ahead.

Now, the legislature plans to concede. Governor Tom Wolf, State Senate President Pro Tempore Joe Scarnati and Majority Leader Jake Corman wrote to the Department of Homeland Security noting that legislation repealing Act 38 was introduced in both houses.

The state won the extension on the last day of the Obama administration.

In a separate letter, House Speaker Mike Turzai and

GOV. TOM WOLF Majority Leader Dave Reed said, while they still have concerns, they would work to “ensure compliance in a reasonable and cost-effective manner to make sure Pennsylvanians have continued access to federal buildings and air travel.”

The DHS said the state’s “commitment to comply” could afford it additional extensions. But beyond, PennDOT’s $40 million estimate from five years ago, there is no indication yet how much it will cost Pennsylvanians to replace their

driver’s licenses and IDs–and they wouldn’t need to if they have, say, a passport.

On March 2, however, the Aviation Council of Pennsylvania said that residents could end up spending nearly $1 billion on passports, if they do not receive compliant driver’s licenses–which almost everyone uses for identification purposes.

And with the average resident flying only once a year, it said, spending $100-$150 for a passport is an unneeded hardship.

“These are very concerning numbers,” said council executive director Debra Bowman. “If Pennsylvania does not act quickly, businesses, families and residents in every corner of the state are going to be severely impacted. Most of us rely on driver’s licenses to serve as our main form of identification. Not being able to use them when we fly is going to be extremely problematic.”

ENTERTAINER New Pittsburgh Courier

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www.newpittsburghcourier.com

‘Dreamgirls’…

Cover To Cover

‘My Brown Baby’

Continues Pgh Musical Theater’s season

by Terri Schlichenmeyer by Genea L. Webb For New Pittsburgh Courier

For New Pittsburgh Courier

Raising a child is quite a challenge.

When they’re small, you feel as though the entire world is dangerous. As they grow, you waffle between encouragement and fear, wings for them and tears for you. Teenagers, well, they’re a whole separate category and in the new book “My Brown Baby” by Denene Millner, some parents have even more to worry about.

It’s not an overgeneralization to say that all moms want the same things for their kids: kindness, honesty, trustworthiness, success, love, to mention a few. Every mom teaches those things, but, says Millner, African American mothers parent their kids differently than other mothers.

It often starts when a brown baby is born.

When her first daughter entered the world, Millner says

Monteze Freeland is excited to be portraying Curtis Taylor Jr. in Pittsburgh Musical Theater’s rendition of “Dreamgirls.”

“I was introduced to ‘Dreamgirls’ in middle school when I received the cast album for Christmas and truly changed my artistry. It was glamorous and lush. Then in high school, the full concert version came out, which blew my mind because I didn’t know there was so much music left out of the original cast album. I never saw myself as Curtis, ironically my dream role in the show is Marty—played expertly in our production by Jason Shavers—but that I’m in Curtis’ shoes I have to say he’s a very complex man who likes to keep me up all night.”

“Dreamgirls,” which will run at the Byham Theater through Sunday, March 19, tells the story of hopeful starlets Deena Jones, Effie White and Lorrell Robinson as the Dreamettes when ambitious manager Curtis discovers them and lands the girls a gig as backup singers to charismatic singer James “Thunder” Early. Early molds the impressionable girls rising career. Jones and White fight when Jones is chosen as the Dreamettes lead singer due to her attractiveness instead of the full-figured White and the group’s dreams of stardom begin to disentangle almost before it began.

The fascination with “Dreamgirls” began on Broadway in the 1980s on Broadway starring Jennifer Holliday as Effie to the 2000s movie version that featured Beyonce as Jones and Jennifer Hudson as White.

Freeland promises that PMT’s production of the iconic musical will resonate with audiences.

The theater’s Bob Durkin uses his past experience working with the show’s original creators to help the Pittsburgh cast understand the “Dreamgirls” characters.

“Audiences are going to see a spirit of working

that, though she was married, insured, and well-employed, the hospital treated her reprehensibly and she had to be vocal about it—something that she says other mothers of color have experienced. She was also criticized for wanting to breast-feed her child, and again for breast-feeding as long as she did.

Millner, a mother of two young women, remembers the joys—oh, the joys!—and the aggravations of having small daughters. Raising brown girls means teaching them to love their curly hair and their “bubble-butts.” It means making them understand that they might never have straight blonde hair, but that boys will still like them.

It’s showing them how to love their bodies by loving yours.

Raising older children of color means being sure they understand their history, so they know why certain rap songs are inappropriate.

It’s giving them confidence to explore, swim, bike (but not too far) and play to win.

No matter how hard it is to find a bedspread with Black ballerinas on it, it means you keep looking. You’ll particularly need to teach confidence. You’ll learn to heed some advice, ignore others, and either reach for your own mother or miss her fiercely. And if, like Millner’s stepson, your child is a boy who’s almost a man, raising him means making sure he knows the warnings…

Much like morning sickness, weight gain and pregnancy, advice arrives right along with the announcement of a new baby. Some of it’s crazy-talk, while some of it—like what’s inside “My Brown Baby”—is absolutely useful.

While the shelves are full to bursting with pregnancy and childrearing books, Millner tackles the subject from a different angle, one that’s perhaps more rare and that speaks directly to parents without a lot of fuss. Millner uses humor, but it’s clear when she’s being serious; she’s also common-sense and offers a nice mix of old-school, modern ideas, and new viewpoints on things your Mama never had to consider. (“My Brown Baby” by Denene Millner, c.2017, Bolden, $16/$22.95 Canada, 272 pages.)

DREAMGIRLS

MONTEZE FREELAND

to win that is palpable through the entire cast,” said Freeland. We are all excited and humbled to just be in the room but secure enough to go out there and show out! They will hopefully see that what we do comes with a lot of bumps, bruises and heartache. The real show is always backstage and the audience will now get a glimpse of that,” said Freeland, a Baltimore native who graduated from Point Park University with a bachelor’s degree in acting.

Freeland was bitten by the acting bug after being plucked out of the ensemble of a play at age six and given the lead of the play with just a few weeks to prepare.

That’s when he found his voice.

“I knew I could do it when I tried it and the world didn’t end,” he said. “I believe that the process is the product and I am always trying to do better than I did yesterday so the work never ends. I am blessed to

do what I love but it’s really knowing that for a few hours I am taking people away from their issues and problems and giving them hope. My gift is not me to receive but for me to give and that’s the greatest fulfillment.”

When he isn’t working, Freeland enjoys watching the Baltimore Ravens, cutting up with friends over good food, writing and directing plays, and listening to Patti LaBelle. He works as a public school teacher teaching theater and playwriting as well.

His advice for aspiring entertainers is sage yet simple: “Ask other actors and actresses questions, take the note, be kind and most importantly do not compare your journey to the person next to you.

What God has for you is for you and you have to make the absolute best from it.”

(Tickets for “Dreamgirls” can be purchased by calling 412-4566666 or by visiting trustarts.org.)

Calloway’s ‘How Do You Rock Your Age’ campaign LOS ANGELES—In support of Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day, actress Vanessa Bell Calloway officially launched HowDoYouRockYourAge.com and among the first women to answer the question with a post was Tina Knowles Lawson.

Turning age 60 on March 20, Calloway decided to celebrate her sexy 60th birth-

day by providing women a platform to share photos and life-stories of achieving mental, physical and spiritual wellness. The goal of the campaign is to inspire women to fight agism by rejecting all stereotypes and archaic notions of what it means for the female gender to grow older.

“I want to celebrate aging! I refuse to lie, stay silent, feel embarrassed or

VANESSA BELL CALLOWAY

ashamed because I’m a aging woman—especially in Hollywood,” writes Calloway on HowDoYouRockYourAge.com. “I will embrace and own being 60 because as I always say, If I don’t turn 60 I’ll never be a beautiful feisty 90 year old one day!”

Calloway hopes women

will learn to love their age along with “every wrinkle, bump and lump that comes with it,” which is a powerful statement from a woman working in an image driven industry. She even offers her insights on life, a sort of Poor Richards Almanac filled with her proverbial sayings, in

BEAUTY COMES WITH AGE––Vanessa Bell Calloway’s “This Is My Sexty” campaign is part of the actresses 60th birthday celebration and is a salute to Women’s History Month.

the “60 Things I Know For Sure” section of the website.

Currently, Calloway stars in the hit series “Saints & Sinners” (Bounce) and recently joined the cast of the STARZ hit “Survivor’s Remorse” in a recurring role. Married for 20 years to doctor Anthony Calloway, she is a mother of two daughters who are both alumni of Spelman College.

All three Calloway women are members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority.

TINA KNOWLES LAWSON

LIFESTYLES New Pittsburgh Courier

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www.newpittsburghcourier.com

Debbie Norrell

Lifestyles Report

In my travels...

It’s almost spring

A POEM FOR PEACE—Dominique Green

STAND TOGETHER—Giordon Dixon

The Fifth Art and Talent Show for Peace

by Debbie Norrell Lifestyles Editor

On March 4, The Sanctuary Project presented The Fifth Art and Talent Show for Peace at the Homewood Library Auditorium. The participants were youth from Homewood and Wilkins-

ARTISTS FOR PEACE

,

The weather has been quite a tease. We have been baited with 60 degree days that have allowed us to go out without a heavy winter coat.

As of this writing, we have turned the clocks forward and lost an hour of sleep, but it is lighter longer. In the past few weeks, some favorite retail establishments have announced their closing or have actually closed. Via social media, I found that the pastry shop Vanilla closed on Sunday, March 12, and the lighting store next to it, Typhoon, is closing as well. I had been to each location a few times and was disappointed to find out that they will no longer be on in that little corner of Braddock Avenue.

According to its Facebook page, Vanilla Pastry Studio owner April Gruver will be joining Common Plea Catering in the Strip District. Voted “best cupcakes in Pittsburgh” two years in a row by WPXI viewers, the bakery uses all-natural ingredients to produce a range of cakes, cupcakes, cake pops and other treats.

From what I understand from many friends who made regular visits to Vanilla, it will be missed. Reportedly, Charles Spiegel for Men will be closing its Squirrel Hill store. Let’s hope someone caught a sale.

What’s going on? Are we doing too much shopping on line and forcing these great stores to close their doors?

In the meantime, for those of you who love shopping at Ross Dress for Less, a new one opened over a week ago at The Waterfront.

Here is something for the foodies in the area. A new restaurant opened last week, March 6. Eddie V’s in the Union Trust Building is now open for business. It is known for seasonal, prime seafood flown in daily; premium, hand-carved steaks; and smooth jazz. Along with prime seafood, premium steaks are hand-cut from the finest, specialty-aged, center-cut beef available, ensuring peak flavor. The diverse dinner menu offers signature dishes, including crab fried rice, jumbo lump crab cakes, Georges bank scallops, Chilean sea bass, Parmesan sole, a 10 oz. Prime New York strip, and a flaming “bananas foster” butter cake for dessert. Menu items can be paired with selections from an award-winning, worldclass wine list of more than 300 options. Additionally, live jazz is played nightly by locally acclaimed musicians in the restaurant’s V Lounge, where guests can mingle and sample cocktails, including the happy hour menu.

I paid a visit to Eddie V’s last Wednesday and had a great time. The service was superb and the live jazz was wonderful. I chose the lamb chops and my friend, Carol, had the New York Strip. We loved the sides and please save room for dessert. We shared a berry cobbler with vanilla ice cream. Put this restaurant on your must visit list for good times and special occasions.

It’s that time of year when my schedule starts to fill up. If you want coverage for your event, please notify me when your dates are firm. Send me an email with request for coverage in the subject line. See you there.

A POEM FOR PEACE—Kaya Regus

(Email the columnist debbienorrell@aol.com)

A SONG FOR PEACE—Santana Crumbley burg. The Art and Talent Show for Peace is dedicated to the families and neighbors impacted by the March 9, 2016, tragic shooting in Wilkinsburg; is in memory of all who have died from gun violence on our streets; and pays tribute to all those who are working for peace in our churches, congregations, schools businesses, social service agencies, police, borough and families.

Reverend Eric McIntosh, pastor of St. James Episcopal Church of Penn Hills, served as the master of ceremonies for the two-part talent show while Andre Scott, pastoral assistant at Mulberry Community Church, served as talent coach and STORY OF CIVIL RIGHTS LEADERS— Frank Till- Antoinette Robinson man III ,of Christian Church of Wilkinsburg, served as the art coach. After each youth performed or displayed their art, they were given helpful critique by the coaches. Each p a rt icip a nt was a winner and received certificates thanking them for their talent.

Each year, the organization presents a teacher’s award, this year’s winner was Ann Douglas of Pittsburgh Urban Christian School.

The church award was presented to Covenant A POEM FOR PEACE—K’aijaha A POEM FOR PEACE—Jacoby Dupree Church of Gomez

ARTISTS FOR PEACE

Pittsburgh and St. Marks AME. This award is given to the church that brings the most participants to the talent show. This year it was a tie. Each talent entry had to be centered on “peace.” When one youth was asked to explain what peace meant to him, he said, “Peace is walking down the street without fear of having your shoes stolen.”

The mission of the Wilkinsburg Sanctuary Project is to create dynamic, life changing opportunities for teenage youth of Wilkinsburg, and to eliminate youth and young adult violence as well as to create a positive perception of Wilkinsburg as a vibrant, dynamic and safe community to live, work and worship.

ORIGINAL POEM—Annie Ruzanic reciting her original piece as Andre Scott looks on.

GIVE THE DRUMMER SOME—Ronald Williams Jr. (Photos by Debbie Norrell)

RELIGION

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NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

Praise & Worship ST. BENEDICT THE MOOR CATHOLIC CHURCH Crawford & Centre Ave. Pgh., PA 15219 412-281-3141 Mass Sunday 9:00 A.M. & 12:00 P.M. Sunday (Gospel Choir Mass) 12:00 P.M. www.stbtmchurch.org

METROPOLITAN BAPTIST CHURCH 22 Sampsonia Street, Northside Pittsburgh, PA 15212 412-231-2554 FAX 412-231-6395 Rev. Lacy F. Richardson, Ph.D., Pastor Church School.................................9:30 A.M. Worship Service.................8:00 & 10:45 A.M. Bible Study/ Prayer Wednesday...................6:30/7:30 P.M. www.metropolitanbaptistchurch.com metropolitanbaptist2224@gmail.com

EMPOWERED LADIES (Photos by Jackie McDonald)

East Liberty Presbyterian Church Rev. Dr. Randy Bush, Senior Pastor 412-441-3800 116 S. Highland Ave., Pittsburgh, PA 15206

www.cathedralofhope.com

Journey Worship........8:45 a.m.

Sanctuary Worship........11 a.m.

New Destiny CME Church 1018 Bidwell St. Pittsburgh, PA 15233 412-231-7882 Rev. Kornelus Neal, pastor The Rt. Rev. Marvin Thomas Sr., presiding bishop Sunday School....................................9 A.M. Morning Worship Service............11:00 A.M.

To have your church included in the Praise & Worship section contact Ashley Johnson at 412-481-8302 ext. 128 for ad rates.

Join our growing Praise and Worship Church Community For rate information, call 412481-8302, ext.

128.

Church Circuit Lent Fish Fry

EVERY FRIDAY—First AME Church, 177 Mitchell Ave., Clairton will host its Lent Fish Fry every Friday in March and April 7 and 14. Fish Dinners and Sandwiches/$8 and $6. Eat in or take out; fun and fellowship together. Call 412-233-5837 for information. Rev. Linda Moore is pastor.

Trinity AME Fish Fry!

EVERY FRIDAY IN MARCH—Trinity AME Church, 2700 Wylie Ave., Hill District, will host its Fish Fry. For more information, call 412-621-9750. (Pre-orders are available.)

International Holiday

MARCH 19—The Mt. Olivet Baptist Church Educational Board will host its annual International Holiday. It will feature the brotherhood program, which has been representing a cross section of cultures, races, religions and ethnic backgrounds for 50 years. Proceeds will support the church’s projects that provide financial aid to youth education beyond high school. Professor Johnathan White will be the keynote speaker. For more information, call 412-4713326.

Spiritual Retreat

MARCH 31—The Mercy Parish Nurse and Health Ministry Program, part of Pittsburgh Mercy and Trinity

Health, serving in the tradition of the Sisters of Mercy, will host a two-day, overnight, spiritual retreat called “Listening and Becoming Free,” starting at 4 p.m. at Kearns Spirituality Center, 9000 Babcock Blvd., in Allison Park, Pa. For more information, contact Amy B. Armanious at ParishNurse@pittsburghmercy.org or 412-232-7151.

Ladies making a difference... at Pentecostal Temple COGIC

International Prayer Breakfast

APRIL 1—Mercy Acts International will host its Second Annual Prayer Breakfast at 9 a.m. at the Double Tree Hotel, 101 Mall Blvd., Monroeville. The guest preacher will be Rev. Glenn Grayson, Wesley Center AMEZ; Rev. Barbara Gunn, Mt. Caramel Baptist Church, will be the minister of ceremonies; and Brendan Williams of Kingdom Light Ministries International will be the psalmist.

For more information, call 412-338-1447.

FIRST LADY BARBARA MANN

ORLANA DARKINS DREWERY

Priscilla Shirer Simulcast

APRIL 8—The women of Bethany Baptist Church, 7745 Tioga St., will host the Priscilla Shirer Simulcast from 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

Reservations are required.

Call 412-241-0677, for more information.

(For church news or events please send one paragraph with who, what, when, where and why, 2 weeks in advance with a contact person and phone number to newsroom@newpittsburghcourier.com)

EVANGELIST DONYA PARKER is holding a poster board depicting the recognizable signs and progression of human trafficking.

by Jackie McDonald For New Pittsburgh Courier

Mercy Acts International

Annual Prayer Breakfast

“God’s Love In Action” Sat., April 1, 2016, 9:00 A.M. Double Tree Hotel, Monroeville, PA

First Lady Barbara Mann and the Council of Christian Women of Pentecostal Temple COGIC, in East Liberty, are off and running into 2017 with their Saturday informal gatherings.

The biblically-based meetings taking place each Saturday are strategically planned to minister, inform, enhance, and ignite the faith and gifts God has bestowed upon the sisterhood.

Recognizing that today’s family structure and personal values are constantly being challenged and redefined, the Council of Christian Women endeavor to prepare the ladies, both young and matured, to deal with the vicissitudes of life by way of sharing testimonies, experiences and demonstrations from notable ministers and

professionals throughout the Pittsburgh community.

Orlana Darkins Drewery, communications director at Mt. Ararat Baptist Church and president of the Darkins Group, recently shared a passionate and inspiring testimony of her spiritual growth and business success.

Evangelist Donya Parker shared the warning signs and recognition of human trafficking in our community. Other contributors included Dr. Amelia Gennari, UPMC Board certified geriatrician and medical director, and Sonya Toler, public information officer of the Pittsburgh Public Safety Department.

Ultimately, ladies are directed to Biblical scripture for specific answers and leave the events, some with tears of joy, enlightened, empowered with knowledge and encouraged.

New gospel releases JJ HAIRSTON We are looking to feature our positive youth in the church communities. You can e-mail, fax or mail their bios and photo to:

New Pittsburgh Courier 315 E. Carson St. Pittsburgh, PA 15219 Fax: 412-481-1360 email: newsroom@newpittsburghcourier.com

Rev. Glenn G. Grayson Guest Preacher

Rev. Barbara Gunn Minister of Ceremonies

Proceeds go to water for Flint, MI and Haiti Donation: $25.00/person Ticket deadline: March 16, 2017 For more information: (412) 338-1447

Sounds of REVIVAL

PEOPLE

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

CORO LEADERSHIP HONOREES—The Coro Pittsburgh recently handed out its annual Leadership Awards at the DoubleTree Hotel, Downtown. It recognizes those who have made significant accomplishments by modeling Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s inclusive approach. Honorees, from left: John M. Wallace Jr., Hashan Jamil, Leah Lizarodo and James Doyle. (Photos by J. L. Martello)

MARCH 15-21, 2017

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SHOW OF SUPPORT—With his award, honoree John M. Wallace Jr., PhD, center, with family, friends and coworkers.

Young, Black and Excellent: Simone Quinerly

by Merecedes J. Howze For New Pittsburgh Courier

Name: Simone Quinerly Age: 26 Occupation: Chief executive officer and accountant of Quinerly Financial Group The last day to file taxes is April 18 and CEO Simone Quinerly has taken initiatives to best serve the community in accounting and tax preparation.

Quinerly Financial Group, started in 2015,

provides an abundance of tax services for all kinds of people, including small businesses, non-profit organizations and individuals.

To kick off tax season, Quinerly created a popup tax shop at the Trevor James Experience, on the North Side, where individuals in a familiar relaxing atmosphere were able get answers for 2016 tax returns.

“Using high-skilled accountants, we ensure that

CCAC administrator Pickett receives Giving Back Award PITTSBURGH—Clyde Wilson Pickett, special assistant to the president for Diversity & Inclusion at the Community College of Allegheny County, received a 2017 Giving Back Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine, the oldest and largest diversity and inclusion publication in higher education. The award honors college and university administrators who go above and beyond their everyday leadership duties and “give back” to their campuses and communities. Pickett will be featured along with 38 other recipients in the April 2017 Leadership Support and Giving Back issue of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine.

“The Giving Back Award is being awarded to leaders of institutions of higher education who exemplify what it truly means to ‘give back’ to others,” said Holly Mendelson, publisher of INSIGHT Into Diversity magazine. “These administrators are role models, and we honor their efforts to promote diversity and inclusion on their campuses and in their communities.”

CLYDE WILSON PICKETT Award recipients were nominated by colleagues and selected by the magazine based on their outstanding demonstration of social responsibility; involvement with students, faculty, staff and the community; and commitment to serving underrepresented populations. Each honoree is recognized for his or her passion, dedication and support for diversity and inclusion.

Pickett is also a past New Pittsburgh Courier 50 Men of Excellence recipient and BMe leader.

(Courtesy of the Community College of Allegheny County.)

this work it is a smooth and painless transition, so clients are able to focus on their missions, and leave the heavy accounting work to us,” said Quinerly.

Additionally, the financial group provides bookkeeping, cash management, credit readiness, payroll, and financial management.

Quinerly offers accounting system design and implementation, tax preparation, IRS Correspondence, local level quarterly fillings and grant readiness for non-profit organizations.

“Sick of the economic status of African Americans, I am dedicating my career to becoming a guru in the financial sector so I can teach others and help them manage and obtain wealth,” said Quinerly. “I get excited watching my clients conquer each objective. I love educating business owners and teaching them techniques that can help them save money for their business.”

Quinerly and her financial group have plans on expansion. Soon, the group will launch a financial series and create a training center that will feature three workshops to helping small businesses. She also has plans to start a financial non-profit campaign to obtain financial backing to provide a discount in the form of a grant to non-profit clients

SIMONE QUINERLY (Photo by Merecedes J. Howze) to help mitigate some of the costs.

“Our financial workshop will ensure that small businesses are getting the help they need to start a

successful business endeavor,” said Quinerly.

Also, she is creating an online portal for tax season, which will allow tax preparations in Florida, North Carolina, Chicago and New York.

Quinerly is a member of the Leadership Development Initiative (LDI)Class XXIII, where she serves on the steering committee and leads the finance committee. She also serves as the treasurer for The Door Campaign, a non-profit that provides resources for youth affected by generational poverty in the Pittsburgh, and is a board member for 5A Elite Youth Empowerment.

Quinerly, who graduated from Pittsburgh Schenley in 2008, earned a bachelor’s degree in financial services and accounting from Edinboro University.

While at Edinboro, she received the President’s Award for dedicated leadership service. She was only the second African American woman to be elected student government president, managing a $1.8 million budget and helping in the expansion of the university.

Currently, she is pursuing a master’s in accountancy at the University of Pittsburgh and her Certified Public Accountant (CPA) license.

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MARCH 15-21, 2017

PEOPLE

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

City celebrates Blacks in public safety

HONOREES—Allegheny County Police Assistant Superintendent Maurita Bryant and Pittsburgh Chief of Bureau of Fire Darryl Jones.

HONOREE—Lisa Epps, a Pittsburgh firewoman, was one of the EXHIBIT—Chief Darryl Jones and Lisa Epps, both of the Pittsburgh many Black public safety workers being honored.

Bureau of Fire, checking out the public safety exhibit.

CERTIFICATES—Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto presenting certificates to Maurita Bryant, Allegheny CELEBRATING BLACK HISTORY—From left: Jim Griffin, Allegheny County Executive Rich Fitzgerald, County Police assistant superintendent, and Darryl Jones, chief of the Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire.

Maurita Bryant, Darryl Jones and Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto.

PROUD TO BE OF SERVICE––Several public safety officers and employees posing during the Black History Month “A Salute to First PROUD MOM––Amera Gilchrist, a Pittsburgh paramedic, with her Responders” exhibit opening at the City-County Building. (Photos by J. L. Martello) 9-year-old daughter, Ma-Ali Gilchrist.

“A Salute to First Responders,” an exhibit showcasing the accomplishments of outstanding African American police, fire and EMS through a collection of photographs and other memorabilia, was displayed in the lobby of the City-County building throughout the month of February to honor those who serve the public.

The exhibit, which served as part of the City of Pittsburgh’s 2017 celebration of Black History Month, was presented by Citiparks in affiliation with Heinz History Center, Carnegie Museums of Pittsburgh, Carnegie Library and Dollar Bank. The exhibit was sponsored by WAMO 100.

The event included a ceremony featuring remarks by mayor Bill Peduto and others, as well as refreshments and musical entertainment by Bobby Short.

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9 bills where you Michelyn Tinor is new national sales can cut a better deal director at VisitPITTSBURGH (AP)—The word “bills” used to be synonymous with “fixed expenses.” But there’s nothing fixed about many of the bills a typical household pays today.

Some bills have introductory rates that expire, shooting monthly costs skyward. Others offer secret discounts or upgrades to those in the know. Providers constantly tweak their plans and pricing, which means long-term customers can overpay by hundreds of dollars a year.

“It’s like airline seating pricing,” says Steven McKean, founder and CEO of BillShark, a bill negotiating service based in Boston. “I wouldn’t say (people) are overcharged, but I would just say that the pricing is very opaque.”

BillShark calculates Americans could save $50 billion a year by haggling over their bills for cell phone service, home security, internet and pay television. The company, like its competitors BillFixers of Nashville, Tennessee, and BillCutterz of Corpus Christi, Texas, offers to negotiate for consumers in exchange for 40 percent to 50 percent of the savings.

The savings can total LIZ WESTON hundreds or even thousands of dollars. McKean said his negotiators cut bills by an average of $320 each, with annual savings ranging from $250 for home security to $300 for TV, phone and Internet bundles to $360 for cell phone bills.

Some of the biggest savings right now can be found in cell phone plans as a price war roils the industry, says BillFixers founder Ben Kurland. “A lot of the cell phone providers have introduced multiple plans just this year,” he says. “If you have a cell plan that’s more than 6 months old, you may not be on the most efficient plan for you anymore.”

In addition to cell phone plans, bill negotiators say the following services often have plenty of room for negotiation: •Pay television (cable or satellite) •Landline phones •Internet •Alarm systems •Storage units •Satellite radio •Bottled water delivery •Gym memberships What these bills have in common is competition: In most areas, there’s another provider that you can hire.

You also can opt out, at least theoretically. It’s typically much harder to tell your electric company that you can do without lights.

Most BillShark customers would rather stick with the service they have than deal with the sometimes considerable hassles of changing providers, McKean says.

“They don’t want to rip out their DVR, and they don’t want new equipment, and they don’t want to sit around (waiting to) set up all this stuff,” he says. “They just want a lower price.”

Sometimes a competitor’s deals are so much better that it’s worth the switch, he says. That’s particularly true for cell phone providers, who are paying customers’ early termination fees and offering other bounties to switch.

“They’re all desperate to steal each other’s clients,” Kurland says. “Switching providers a lot of times just comes with an instant payoff, and then over the long term, as long as you switch smart, you’ll find that you can save money month after month.”

Knowing you have that kind of leverage can help you negotiate better deals. Here are the steps: •Gather competitors’ offers. These may be touted on the providers’ websites, or you may have to call and ask what the best deals are for new customers. Make sure you nail down the details, such as the speed of the internet service and which teleSEE 9 BILLS B2

P I T T S B U R G H — Vi s i t PITTSBURGH, the official tourism promotion agency for Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, has hired Michelyn (Mikey) Tinor as its new National Sales Director.

In this position, Ms. Tinor is responsible for promoting Pittsburgh as a destination to host meetings and conventions from a wide-ranging territory. She will work with the social, multicultural, ethnic, religious and fraternal markets, as well as government agencies and associations based in the southeast U.S. “We’re very excited to welcome Michelyn to VisitPITTSBURGH,” said Karl Pietrzak, vice president

of convention sales. “Her proven sales experience will be valuable in securing top-notch conventions in these key markets.”

Previously, Ms. Tinor worked in pharmaceutical sales for 10 years at Pfizer Inc. She also owns and operates an online web show, pghspot.com, where she interviews leaders, innovators and small business owners who are making an impact in the community.

Ms. Tinor is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh with a B.A. degree in Journalism and English Writing. She is also working on her Masters of Arts degree in Journalism at Point Park University.

MICHELYN TINOR

Wells Fargo commits $60 billion to increase Black homeownership

by Stacy M. Brown For New Pittsburgh Courier

(NNPA)—Wells Fargo & Company has set aside a staggering $60 billion to lend to at least 250,000 Black homeowners by the year 2027.

Metropolitan Atlanta’s second-largest bank also pledged to increase the diversity of its home lending sales team and spend another $15 million to give financial education and counseling over the next 10 years.

The announcement came at a Tuesday press conference in Atlanta that was attended by representatives from several organizations including the National Urban League, the NAACP and the National Newspaper Publishers Association—an organization comprised of 211 African American-owned newspapers and media companies.

“The National Newspaper Publishers Association enthusiastically salutes Wells Fargo Home Mortgage Division for taking steps forward to promote and to advance African-American homeownership,” said NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr.

“As we conclude celebrating 2017 Black History Month, it is aspirational for Wells Fargo to offer $60 billion in loan accessibility specifically for African-Americans who want to purchase and own a home.”

Chavis continued: “This is unprecedented in the mortgage lending space in the United States. Millions of African-American families will now be able to strive more effectively to own a home. This is also about economic justice.”

Chavis said that the

NNPA intends to work directly with Wells Fargo to raise public awareness about this new initiative to substantially assist African-Americans to be homeowners across America.”

The banking giant’s commitment was hailed as a direct action to help address the lower homeownership rates in the Black community and it follows Wells Fargo’s announcement to address Hispanic homeownership rates in 2015.

Further, officials said the company’s commitment

seeks to increase the diversity of the Wells Fargo Home Lending sales team, and support the effort with $15 million to support a variety of initiatives that promote financial education and counseling over the next 10 years.

“Wells Fargo’s $60 billion lending goal can contribute to economic growth by making responsible homeownership possible for more African-Americans in communities across the counSEE WELLS B2

State AGs ask Education Secretary DeVos to protect federal financial student aid An old adage teaches, ‘if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again.’ In recent months, the troubled Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools (ACICS) tried and lost two legal attempts to recover eligibility for federal education funds.

But don’t be surprised if a third ACICS effort soon makes its way to the desk of U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos. Secretary DeVos brings to her position a long record of support for private education. The vast majority of schools formerly accredited by ACICS were private, for-profit colleges.

If ACICS sounds familiar to readers, there’s a reason. In December 2016, then-Education Secretary John B. King ruled that the educational accreditor would no longer be recognized by the department. That action also meant that none of ACICS’ 240 institutions would have access to federal funds – including the 17 institutions that have been sued by either state or federal officials for defrauding students and other deceptive practices.

Last year, shortly before Christmas and on Dec. 21, ACICS’ request for a temporary restraining order was denied. Then in late February, DC’s U.S. District Judge Reggie B. Walton refused to rescind the Education Department’s ruling.

So what would make ACICS and its institutions so determined to have federal funding restored?

The answer is money. Each year, $129 billion is spent on federal student aid. In just

one year—2015—AC“We are deeply ICS schools received Charlene Crowell concerned that rollnearly $5 billion in backs of these protaxpayer dollars. It tections would again is also legal for up to signal ‘open season’ 90 percent of for-profon students for the it college revenues to worst actors among come from Title IV for-profit post-secfederal aid. If veterondary schools,” ans’ financial aid is wrote the AGs. “Over added to that of Title the past 15 years, IV, taxpayer dollars millions of students can subsidize even more than 90 percent have been defrauded by unscrupulous of for-profit revenues. for-profit post-secondary schools. With These and other concerns have now led accreditors asleep at the wheel, State Atto attorneys general from 17 states and torneys General Offices have stepped in to the District of Columbia sharing their col- stop some of the worst abuses.” lective concerns directly with Secretary “Many schools inflated job placement DeVos. Among those signing the commu- numbers and/or promised career services nique were Attorneys General (AGs) rep- resources that did not exist,” continued resenting largely populated states such as the AGs. “Many students were placed in Illinois, Maryland, New York, North Caro- loans that the schools knew from expelina and Pennsylvania. rience their graduates could not pay…In Noting their support to protect students short, the entire for-profit education sysand taxpayers, the AGs letter alerted the tem was failing students and taxpayers.” new Secretary to three specific and major The Gainful Employment Rule is deconcerns: signed to ensure that programs equip 1. How for-profit schools have harmed graduates with skills and employment opstudent borrowers; portunities that enable them to success2. Why vigorous oversight of accreditors fully repay their student loans. Should is in the best interests of taxpayers and annual loan payments be more than 30 students; and percent of discretionary income or 12 per3. The importance of preserving two de- cent of earnings in two out of three conpartmental rules—the Gainful Employ- secutive years, the educational program ment Rule and the Borrower Defense to loses access to Title IV federal student Repayment rule set to go into effect at loans and grants. mid-year.

Similarly, the Borrower Defense to Re-

Commentary

payment Rule, set to take effect on July 1, provides legal recourse for students who were harmed by for-profit colleges.

Many of the issues raised in the 7-page letter to Secretary DeVos were noted in an earlier report prepared and released last fall by the Office of Senator Elizabeth Warren. “[T]his taxpayer investment is wasted when student aid funds are funneled to sham colleges—many of which operate as for-profit entities that use federal student aid dollars to enrich top executives.

Meanwhile, students are left with a shoddy education and a staggering debt load, unable to rely on their education to secure a job that will help them responsibly repay their loans,” states the report.

“The title of a recent Century Foundation report characterizes the situation we find ourselves in perfectly: The For-Profit College Story: Scandal, Regulate, Forget, Repeat,” said Robin Howarth, a senior researcher with the Center for Responsible Lending specializing in student loans and related debt. “We now have the opportunity to break this vicious cycle that is so costly to students and taxpayers. It’s imperative that we keep the pressure on for-profit colleges through prudent regulation and oversight thus avoiding a repeat of past abuses.”

(Charlene Crowell is the communications deputy director with the Center for Responsible Lending. She can be reached at Charlene.crowell@responsiblelending.org.)

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BUSINESS

MARCH 15-21, 2017

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

Statewide educational group holds annual conference

by Diane I. Daniels For New Pittsburgh Courier

Since its inception in 1970, the Pennsylvania Black Conference on Higher Education, Inc. has been carrying out its mission of providing programs and services helping to ensure postsecondary educational needs and aspirations of African Americans are met.

A vital resource in the development and empowerment of African Americans to pursue higher education, during its 47th annual conference recently held in Monroeville, the group awarded seven graduate and undergraduate students from the Commonwealth and two seniors from local high schools $1000 scholarships.

“This is a high point of what we do,” said long time PBCOHE Scholarship Committee Chairperson Brenda Sanders De’de,’ Annually awarding scholarships to the most talented undergraduate and graduate African American students in the Commonwealth.”

While thanking the PBCOHE scholarship committee and the Haymon Family, the funders of her scholarship, Marishika K. Wright a graduate student at Kutztown University of Pennsylvania said, “One of my continuing goals in higher education, and for going into the profession of Higher Education is to make a difference for the students who I do and will potentially serve. Everything that I have been able to accomplish the past year has been a testament to the mission statement I set forth for myself after graduating from Clarion University.

“Her life’s mission she noted is to inspire. “To inspire myself to be the best I can be while assessing my growth along the way. No matter the highs or lows,

READY FOR THE FUTURE—Scholarship committee representative, Shantia McCoy-Jones, Tijuana Prescott, Etor Ndinyah, Armani Davis, Jeffrey Camp, Marishika Wright, Mercy Kroh and Dr. John B. Craig; PBCOHE President.

I will hold myself accountable. “Accountable for my actions, the consequences, and the outcomes. I will share with humility by collaborating and share to enhance my knowledge. My mission is to inspire and grow into the young professional that I am. I have dreamt it. I believe it and I have claimed it!”

The Esther-Jafari Haymon International Student Scholarship was presented by Francene and Elmer Haymon in honor of their mother, the first chairperson of the scholarship committee.

Other scholarships are named after the Honorable K. Leroy Irvis the first Black Speaker of the House of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Civil Rights Leader and founder of PBCOHE. W. Terrell Jones the 17th PBCOHE president and vice provost for educational equality at Pennsylvania State University.

Robert D. Lynch the seventh president of the PBCOHE and retiree from Lock Haven University.

He is credited for building the PBCOHE Student Leadership Development Institute. And the 10th PBCOHE President John S. Shropshire, Dean of Enrollment Management at Clarion University. He was the first African American

elected to a county commissioner in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

“I love this part of the conference,” said John B. Craig PhD PBCOHE president.

“I am extremely pleased to congratulate the awardees.”

He acknowledged that over $100,000 has been awarded to students throughout the years and commended the Haymon family for their continued contributions.

In addition to Wright, scholarship awardees included Jeffery R. Camp a sophomore attending Delaware County Community College, Armani A. Davis a graduate student attending Robert Morris University, Shantia M. McCoy-Jones a graduate student attending Widener University, Mercy S. Kroh a senior attending Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania, Etor R.A. Ndinyah a Clarion University of Pennsylvania junior and Tijuana R. Prescott a sophomore attending Thaddeus Stevens College of Technology.

Judith A. W. Thomas High School senior scholarship awardees were Courtney M. Thomas from Barack Obama Academy of International Studies and Danaia M. Winbush from City Charter High School.

She plans to attend Carlow University or the University of Pittsburgh-Johnstown

and Thomas plans to attend Temple University.

A second-time president of PBCOHE and member of the Conference since 2002, Craig outlined the 2016/17 goals of the PBCOHE as strengthening its presence in Harrisburg to enable them to influence legislation that directly effects students of color mainly Blacks in higher education. Their second goal he says is too sure up and do more in tandem with their K through12 partners to increase the pipeline for young people who are going to college.

A third initiative, which ties into the group’s 30-yearold undergraduate Student Leadership Development Institute is to develop a student ambassadors program to groom young people coming to the Institute to be PBCOHE ambassadors at their colleges and universities. Serving as their eyes and ears and communicating with students, faculty and staff advancing the PBCOHE mission. A goal Craig says they are moving in the right direction with and proud of, is developing more strategic alliances with organizations across the state. “Groups like the State Chapter of the NAACP, the Philadelphia College Prep Roundtable, Pittsburgh’s NEED and a similar type group in Harrisburg,” he said.

For 2017/18 Craig said they are developing a robust marketing plan and fundraising campaign. “Our goal is to raise enough funds to cover the cost of the yearly scholarships and support other initiatives like the assistance we provide to the Zebilla School in Northern Ghana. Our $1000 donation pays full tuition for 20 students yearly.”

Pleased with the outcome of this year’s conference which had the theme Inclusion: The New Face of Affirmative Action? Dr. Richard Arnold, a conference planning committee member, past PBCOHE president and retired administrator of Edinboro University said inclusion is different than affirmative action. “Our aim was for the conference to explore critical questions like what is the future of Affirmative Action in higher education. With everything that is going on in society today the consensus of the planning committee was that it’s time to relook at the new face of inclusion. And to raise the issue if schools are still committed to and working towards inclusion and what does it look like today on the campuses throughout the state of Pennsylvania.”

Dr. Lorie Ann Johnson-Osho and Jamika Williams this year’s conference co-chairs pointed out that 47 years ago, when Irvis

9 bills where you can cut a better deal CONTINUED FROM B3

vision channels are included, for example.

•Call your provider. Let the telephone representative know, right away, that you’re thinking of switching to a competitor or canceling the service if you can’t get a better deal. That typically means a transfer to the customer retention department, which often has more leeway to adjust your bill. Keep an open mind as you talk; there are many ways to cut the cost of cable, for example, not just negotiating the price.

•Tell them what you know.

Companies have caught on to empty threats to cancel, Kurland says. “But if you call up and you say, ‘Hey, this is the other provider on my street, and this is the new price that they’re offering. I know that your new customer pricing is even lower than that. Why don’t we strike a deal?’” Kurland says. “Then you’re talking their language.”

•Don’t accept the first offer.

If “Can’t you do any better than that?” doesn’t produce a deeper discount, tell them you’ll sleep on it. That may produce another price break, or you may get a different agent the next day who’s more eager to deal.

•Get clear on expiration dates. Any discounts you negotiate may expire in a few months. To help you keep getting the best deals, enter the expiration dates on your calendar with a reminder to restart negotiations before your bill jumps up again.

•Think bigger. Monthly bills such as mortgages and car insurance aren’t negotiable in the same way, but you can and should revisit those rates at least annually. The savings could be bigger than all your smaller bills put together.

(This column was provided to The Associated Press by the personal finance website NerdWallet. Liz Weston is a certified financial planner and columnist at NerdWallet.)

Wells Fargo CONTINUED FROM B3

try,” Brad Blackwell, executive vice president and head of housing policy and homeownership growth strategies for Wells Fargo, said in a statement. “We are proud to be the first mortgage lender to make a public commitment to help increase African-American homeownership. And, we are grateful for the support of key housing and civil rights organizations, who work alongside us to increase economic prosperity in our communities,” Blackwell said.

The company has also pledged to continue to improve diversity of its sales team, including increasing the number of Black home mortgage consultants, noting that they’ll dedicate $15 million to support a variety of initiatives that

promote financial education and counseling for African-American homebuyers.

The African-American lending commitment is the second initiative from the company’s Housing Policy and Homeownership Growth Strategies group, a Wells Fargo Home Lending team advancing homeownership for minorities, firsttime homebuyers and low- to moderate-income customers.

“Homeownership has become an indispensable part of being a full participant in American society,” National Urban League President and CEO Marc H. Morial said in a statement.

Morial continued: “An erosion of homeownership rates among African Americans represents not only a devastating financial loss but a barrier to full participation in the American dream.”

founded the Conference that one of his main goals was to examine the impact of state and federal educational policies on persons of color within the state and advocate for greater access for minority students, faculty and staff.

PBCOHE consist of African Americans and other underrepresented professionals from the public and private sector, education, business, social services, law, and government agencies that have a deep commitment to improving and ensuring the education of underrepresented students.

The group focuses on key issues affecting the future of higher education and provides input to the various sectors of government, education and community leaders that impact the lives of underrepresented groups at Pennsylvania colleges and universities.

PBCOHE also provides support and professional development opportunities through its scholarship program, the annual conference, the Robert D. Lynch Student Leadership Development Institute, the Institute for Educational Management and Leadership and the Pennsylvania Black Conference on Higher Education Journal.

BUSINESS CALENDAR Career Center Open House

MARCH 15—Brightwood Career Institute in Pittsburgh will host a Spring Fling for the community from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the campus located at 933 Penn Ave. The event is free and open to the public with food, giveaways and springthemed activities for all ages. Attendees are also invited to enjoy program-related activities, campus tours and program demonstrations.

For more information about Brightwood Career Institute in Pittsburgh, visit https://brightwoodcareer.edu/ pittsburgh-pa.

PowerBreakfast

MARCH 17—The African American Chamber of Commerce of Western Pennsylvania will host its third PowerBreakfast meeting of the year, 7:30 a.m. at the Rivers Club in Oxford Center, Downtown. The speaker will be Pittsburgh Mayor Bill Peduto.

Free Homebuyer Workshop

APRIL 5—The Mon Valley Initiative and the Braddock Economic Development Corp. Will host “Buying Your Own Home: You Hold the Key” will be held at 6:30 p.m. April 5 at The Overlook, 416A Overlook Way in Braddock, on the old UPMC Braddock Hospital site between Braddock Avenue and Holland Avenue. Jonathan Weaver, a housing counselor with Mon Valley Initiative, will talk about the steps that first-time homebuyers should consider. Light refreshments will be served. To register, call 412-464-4000, extension 4008, or email jweaver@monvalleyinitiative.com.

Business Energy Efficiency Grants

THROUGH APRIL 15—The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection has to $1,000,000 of grant funding available in the 13th year of the Commonwealth’s Small Business Advantage Grant Program for small businesses that adopt or acquire equipment or processes that promote pollution prevention and/or energy efficiency projects. Applicants must be a for-profit corporation, limited liability corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship or other legal entity with 100 or fewer full-time employees. Businesses can apply for 50 percent matching funds of up to $9,500 to adopt or acquire energy-efficient or pollution-prevention equipment or procedures. Funding is eligible for those costs incurred between July 25, 2016 and June 30, 2017.

For more information, contact the Small Business Ombudsman’s Office at 717-772-5160.

Invention Showcase

JUNE 13 to 15—INPEX, the country’s largest inventor showcase returns to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center with an opening night party and a rooftop Beer Garden networking event at Sienna Mercato. Both are open to exhibitors and business attendees. For the complete schedule and to register, visit www.inpex. com

OPINION

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

MARCH 15-21, 2017

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Youth are beginning to show themselves

Guest Editorial

Carson’s revisionist history on slavery What was Dr. Ben Carson thinking?

Carson likened slaves to immigrants who choose to come to the United States while addressing employees at the Department of Housing and Urban Development on Monday.

“There were other immigrants who came in the bottom of slave ships, who worked even longer, even harder, for less, but they, too, had a dream that one day their sons, daughters, grandsons, granddaughters, great-grandsons, great-granddaughters might pursue prosperity and happiness in this land,” said Carson, who is Black.

“And do you know of all the nations in the world, this one, the United States of America, is the only one big enough and great enough to allow all those people to realize their dream? And this is our opportunity to enhance that dream,” said Carson, who was confirmed to lead HUD earlier this month.

Carson’s comments are insulting and offensive because he was equating voluntary immigration with involuntary servitude.

Carson, a renowned retired neurosurgeon, knows medicine, but appears not to know and understand the history of slavery.

Carson apparently needs a history lesson.

According to Encyclopedia Britannica: “The Atlantic passage (or Middle Passage) was notorious for its brutality and for the overcrowded, unsanitary conditions on slave ships, in which hundreds of Africans were packed tightly into tiers below decks for a voyage of about 5,000 miles. They were typically chained together, and usually the low ceilings did not permit them to sit upright. The heat was intolerable, and the oxygen levels became so low that candles would not burn. Because crews feared insurrection, the Africans were allowed to go outside on the upper decks for only a few hours each day. Historians estimate that between 15 and 25 percent of the African slaves bound for the Americas died aboard slave ships. “ The brutal, inhumane treatment of the enslaved continued once brought to this land.

“Laws known as the slave codes regulated the slave system to promote absolute control by the master and complete submission by the slave. Under these laws the slave was chattel—a piece of property and a source of labor that could be bought and sold like an animal. The slave was allowed no stable family life and little privacy.

Slaves were prohibited by law from learning to read or write.”

This is not the first time that Carson has minimized the horrors of slavery through outrageous comparisons.

In 2013, Carson said that the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare—the Obama administration’s landmark healthcare law—was the worst thing “since slavery.”

“You know Obamacare is really, I think, the worst thing that has happened in this nation since slavery,” Carson said at the Values Voter Summit in Washington. “And it is in a way, it is slavery in a way, because it is making all of us subservient to the government, and it was never about health care. It was about control.”

He also compared abortion to slavery in an interview with NBC during his 2016 presidential run.

Carson’s cavalier language on slavery is offensive and needs to stop.

(Reprinted from the Philadelphia Tribune)

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Where are the young people?

This is a question many older, fading organizations are asking because of the lack of young people at their functions; other gatherings have shown that there are young people who are concerned, but don’t believe the current organizations are able to address their concerns.

Young people have many of the same concerns as older people––affordable housing; a living wage so they can eat on a regular basis as well as keep a roof over their heads; education or training so as to get and retain a job with livable wage.

These issues are also critical in curtailing the street and domestic violence. If our young people can see more Black people making livable wages on legal jobs, then they would be more willing to work toward the education and training needed for a well paying job.

However, if they are going to have to go down the same path as their parents, and other adults in the community, of having to work two and three jobs to make ends meet, why not the illegal jobs?

A new group headed by Gregory Coleman calling themselves RNDRT (Reaching New Dreams and Recognizing Talent) was recently formed and their first event turnout was very impressive. No, there weren’t hundreds, but, judging by the photos, there were nearly a hundred, which few other organizations have been able to attract.

The major focus of the group is to stop the violence in the streets by focusing young people’s attention to more positive things and events.

Coleman stated that there’s nothing wrong with partying and having a good time, but it’s only temporary.

They want to guide young people toward proper education and training that leads to jobs and long-term happiness.

Young people also showed up in large numbers at the North Side Youth Entrepreneurial Pitch Community Launch Event sponsored, and presented, by One Northside, Northside Narratives and other groups. There were more than 40 youth funded projects presented to

Ulish Carter

Just Sayin’ the nearly packed house of young Black people, males and females, who are concerned about their future.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the negatives that we overlook the positives.

I was talking to a friend, recently, and he stated that we are never going to stop the violence in the streets and the lack of education in the schools until we straighten out our homes. The problems in the streets and at school, and even at jobs, are coming from the homes, the lack of morality and discipline in the home.

He has a point, but he’s right and wrong.

I remember going to school in the South, not understanding why I needed an education because all we, as Black people, could look forward to was working in the fields, janitors, or whatever low level jobs the White man didn’t want. But I knew there had to be something better.

I remember going to school in the North where things were better, but not much, yet, a lot of Black kids weren’t geared toward education because all they saw around them were Blacks working at low level, low paying jobs, if you could even get one. Yet, I knew there had to be something better.

We can’t afford to wait until all or a majority of our homes are together to demand jobs and quality education for our kids.

If you have a class of 20 and only five are seeking an education, then we need to do whatever is necessary to make sure those five receive an education and/or training for a good job while we are working with the other 15. Sure we are going to lose some, but we must be able to help those who want help now. My home

was a long way from being perfect, but I knew dropping out of school wasn’t the answer.

I was able to get a college degree, not because my family or I had the money, nor because I was any brighter than my brothers or sisters, or the many in my class that didn’t. I got an education because of the protests, marches, rallies and demonstrations, and the court battles led by Thurgood Marshall that opened doors for Blacks. Through the grace of God, I was able to squeeze through one of those doors.

Thank God that there are far more opportunities for my children and grandchildren than there were for me; but that means nothing if we don’t take advantage of them. To continue to take advantage, we need more people fighting to keep doors open and to open more closed doors for those who are willing to not accept no.

Yes, we have a long ways to go and are losing ground rapidly, but we can’t let President Trump, the Republican Party, the Democratic Party, or anyone or anything else stand in our way of a high quality education/training for a living wage job. It’s not the parents, it has to be the child’s pursuit or ambition to succeed.

Speaking of President Trump, all the news stations were locked in on his firing of the 40 plus U.S. Attorneys, last week, which is the same thing most new presidents do. But the media focused on Trump’s firing of Preet Bharara, in New York, after asking him to stay on. My problem is not just Trump, but a system that is set up where people are fired because of their political views and not their qualifications. Two or three wrongs don’t make a right. It was wrong for President Clinton, President Bush, President Obama and President Trump.

It was also wrong for the media to spend so much time on this instead of the health care issue which is going to affect millions of people, mostly the poor and Blacks, if it isn’t properly repaired.

(Ulish Carter is the managing editor of the New Pittsburgh Courier.)

Let’s hear it for the ladies!

(TriceEdneyWire.com)—“Do you ask what we can do? Unite and build a store of your own. Do you ask where is the money? We have spent more than enough for nonsense.”—Maria Stewart “When it comes to success the choice is simple. You can either stand up and be counted or lie down and be counted out!”—Maggie Lena Walker “Let the Afro-American depend on no party, but on himself, for his salvation. Let him continue toward education, and above all, put money in his purse.”—Ida B. Wells Over the years, many Black women have stood, spoken out and fought against mistreatment; they have also advocated for Black people to use our economic resources to empower ourselves and propel us on to self-sufficiency. Last week, I selected three strong Black men, this week it’s three strong Black women.

Maria Stewart was an educator, abolitionist and author, but she was also an advocate for Black self-sufficiency. A contemporary and personal friend of David Walker, author of “David Walker’s Appeal,” Maria, spoke passionately to our people in attempts to guide us from dependency to independence. “Her dedication to fighting Black oppression through teaching, writing, and MARIA STEWART speaking was relentless. (PBS.org)” It took strength to shoulder and promote the issues Maria fielded in the mid1860s. She is one of many in the pantheon of Black women who were not timid when it came to espousing her beliefs in support of Black people.

Maggie Lena Walker was the first female to charter and successfully preside over a bank, the St. Luke Penny Savings Bank, in Richmond, Va. Maggie founded the St. Luke Herald newsletter and she opened a department store for Black women in 1905. She ran for superintendent of Public Instruction on the Republican ballot, but was defeated and was instrumental in keeping her bank open through the great depression by merging it with two other banks in 1929. Cooperative economics? Strategic alliance? Working collectively for the good of the whole? Sound familiar? Maggie’s spirited and determined leadership takes a backseat to no one and should be held up as an example of what we must do, even today, to help ourselves.

because we have men and women of old that showed us the way.

Our women worked as housekeepers, journalists, teachers, bankers and other occupations, but they understood, advocated and practiced basic economic empowerment principles. They knew that unless Black folks established a solid economic foundation, we would never have the power we need to become self-reliant.

Ida B. Wells, after enduring a horrenWhat’s it going to take to get us ordous childhood––losing both her par- ganized and moving in the right dients within 24 hours and her young- rection? Will we continue to languish est brother to yellow fever––went on in meaningless rhetorical gymnasto be one of the most feared journal- tics espoused by talking heads, polists and bravest women in the histo- iticians, organizational leaders, and ry of this country. This gun-toting, amongst ourselves? Or, will we cast original “sister souljah” wielded a pen off the mundane, the nonsensical, with the aplomb of any expert in the and the time consuming back-andfield of journalism. Long before Sister forth that continue to keep us at staRosa Parks did her thing, in 1884, this tus quo? diminutive, but strong Black woman Maria, Maggie and Ida B. did not refused to move from her seat in the settle, sell out or give in to the so“ladies” section of a train to one that cial pressures they faced in the 19th was reserved for Negroes. Wells, who century. This is the 21st century, we was referred to in the Memphis news- have tremendously more resources paper as the “Darkey Damsel,” sued than they did, yet, we are still allowing ourselves to go through much the same as they did.

They already paid the bill for what we should be enjoying today.

All we have to do is take our appropriate place in this society, despite any and all resistance, carve out a niche and control IDA B. WELLS-BARNETT MAGGIE LENA WALKER it, and not get the train company and won, only to caught in the snares of jealousy and have her victory overturned by the selfishness. state supreme court.

After 45 years of watching the selfThese are the kinds of examples we ishness of his brothers and sisters, must share with our young people W.E.B. DuBois said, “I assumed that and hold in high esteem, especial- with knowledge, sacrifice would auly when it comes to being conscien- tomatically follow. There were espetiously consciousness about what it cially sharp young persons [at Fisk means to be Black in America. Too University] with the distinct and often, as Carter G. Woodson warned, single-minded idea of seeing what we choose “mis-leaders” instead of they could get…for themselves, and authentic leaders. We must do better nobody else.”

James Clingman

Commentary

Letters to the editor for publication The New Pittsburgh Courier welcomes all responsible viewpoints for publication. All letters should be typewritten and contain writer’s address and phone number for verification. All letters will be edited for clarity and length.

Address all letters to: Letters to the Editor New Pittsburgh Courier, 315 East Carson Street Pittsburgh, Pa. 15219 You may fax your letter to 412-481-1360, or via e-mail to letters@newpittsburghcourier.com

B4

MARCH 15-21, 2017

An attack on education (TriceEdneyWire.com)—The effort to repeal and replace health care is generating headlines, and the attempt to investigate our 45th President’s Russia connections is of high importance. The specious claim that President Barack Obama wiretapped Trump Tower, too, has generated interest, largely because it is unprecedented for one President to accuse another of a felony, and because 45 has absolutely no proof that President Obama has done any such thing.

While President Obama, with a multimillion dollar book deal tucked into his pocket, is living his life like its golden, 45 has indulged in several public tantrums, with episodic moments of calm.

Too many of us have been riveted to the drama, while there is a more quiet revolution happening in Congress, with the approval of the White House.

There has been an attack on education, with legislation being introduced as early as Jan. 23. That legislation, HR 610, is titled the Choices in Education Act. It would repeal the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965, and limits the authority of the Department of Education so that it should only award block grants to states. It also sets up a voucher system. If states do not comply with the rules of this legislation, they would be ineligible for block grants.

The legislation would also repeal nutritional standards for the national school breakfast and lunch programs,

Julianne Malveaux

Commentary which were set by the No Hungry Kids Act of 2012. Schools would no longer be required, as First Lady Michelle Obama advocated, to increase the availability of fruits, vegetables, and other healthy foods at lunch. Are we going back to the days when Ronald Reagan declared that ketchup should be considered a vegetable? Seems like it!

The 1965 legislation was passed as civil rights legislation, providing more opportunities to a broader range of children, including disabled children (with requirements to make provisions for disabled children). It requires reporting around issues like the achievement gap, bullying, and underperforming schools. All of these provisions would be eliminated if HR 610 were passed.

Actually, the entire public education sector could be eliminated if HR 610 is passed.

Not to be bested by legislation that would limit the reach of the Department of Education, Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., has introduce a sentence-long piece of legislation. HR 899 reads, in total, “The Department of Education shall terminate on December 31, 2018.” Of course, Massie hasn’t put the thought into considering how things like Pell grants would be administered, or would he eliminate those, too? HBCUs are part of the education budget. What would that mean for us?

The bill has been cosponsored by several of Massie’s colleagues. It speaks to a national antipathy to education, so that even as we hunger for jobs, and elected 45 so that he could “create” them, we are prepared to limit pathways to job preparation. Efforts to eliminate the Department of Education are, at best, shortsighted.

Even though he nominated the extremely limited Betsy DeVos as Secretary of Education, 45’s pre-campaign policy book advocated the elimination of the Department of Education. Is the hidden agenda to run the department into the ground to the point that elimination is the only option? Onenote Betsy, with her focus on school choice, must be gratified, especially by HR 610.

The Department of Education is one of the lowest-spending government agencies. Eliminating it could save taxpayers more than $68 billion enough, perhaps, to “build a wall.” Of course 45 is finding lots of other fund sources for the wall, with proposed cuts from the Coast Guard and The State Department.

The good news about this odious proposed legislation is that it has not passed. It has been referred to the House Education and the Workforce Committee, and after vetted by the committee, must also be approved by the Senate. But these bills need not even come out of committee if opponents are vocal. Check out www.edworkforce.house.gov to find out who is on this committee. Call and write them and tell them that you support the 1965 legislation, as most recently amended, and that the Department of Education should not be eliminated. This is an opportunity to unleash our voices and resist Trumpism.

The big headlines are riveting, but we need to look at the fine print. If you spent an hour reading the Congressional Record and looking at the devilment these Republicans are up to daily, you would be repulsed. Let’s turn repulsion into resistance.

(Julianne Malveaux is an economist, author, and Founder of Economic Education For more info visit www.juliannemalveaux.com)

FORUM

Can’t win if we fail to run In the early years sons participate in of my 1950s politi- Louis ‘Hop’ Kendrick the destruction of cal activism, it beother Blacks over came apparent to my 85 years and me “colored folks” these negative were shut out of the acts still occur in political process. It 2017. I will nevwas a dual situation er forget the late of the White men in Allegheny County power who denied Sheriff was runus an opportunity ning for reelection to participate and the colored folks, who and there was a meeting held in a Hill suffered from the residue of slavery, and District church and the preacher’s son dared not to dream that Mr. Jim and Mr. introduced him. The church was filled Charlie, the power brokers of the Lower with Black men and women and Sheriff Hill District, should be opposed even if it Coon was summoned to the pulpit with meant colored folks becoming equal. The some of the most humiliating words I White men and the Blacks would point had ever heard: “Sheriff coon, come on their fingers at me and say, “Boy it’s al- up and speak to your coons.” The sheriff ways been this way.” almost fainted; the people clapped and As young as I was at 18, I must have fell out laughing. had a hearing problem or a severe lack I took issue with the insulting remarks of understanding, because I absolute- and was asked to leave or be forced to ly refused to accept those thoughts or leave, I have always wondered how many actions. In those years it was extreme- of those in attendance agreed with me. ly difficult for others and me to stay Over the years I have ran and supportfocused on the positive change that we ed Blacks who aspire to public office, but understood must occur if we are to move the first question that generally arises upward. I witnessed over the genera- from some is why do they run, they can’t tions some extremely difficult and detri- win, they can’t raise any money etc. Too mental actions by Blacks against Blacks many Blacks in 2017 never question why and I would ask God what is wrong with any White candidate runs for any public us? What is happening to us? A friend of office. I contend the main reason is that mine, who is now deceased would answer the slavery mentality still has a hold on that the remnants of slavery transcend- too many of us, just as it did when I was ed the centuries and had a devastating 18. An overwhelming number of us still affect on too many of us. It took many believe that Mr. Mr. Jim and Mr. Charlie years for me to agree with this expla- deserve the right to be in charge.

(Louis “Hop” Kendrick is a contributor to the nation for some of our grievous actions.

I have personally witnessed Black per- Forum page.)

To Tell The Truth

Moral outrage, moral opposition, and when Trump contemplates war A passage attributof its target. ed to Mark Twain J. Pharoah Doss If there was ever goes, “When I was a a time the innoboy of 14, my father cent needed a morwas so ignorant I al opposition to incould hardly stand vasion by “citizens to have the old man of the world” this around. But when was it but it never I got to be 21, I was materialized. astonished at how Success in Afmuch the old man ghanistan and the had learned in seven years.” lack of serious opposition to the invasion It was the boy that grew in understand- encouraged the Bush/Cheney admining not the father. The passage points istration to invade Iraq, which was a out how conceit in one’s own knowledge separate issue, but they figured if they or moral position prevents the introspec- connected Iraq to 9/11 and Afghanistan tion needed for maturity.

America’s moral outrage will continue in Social movements are no different. their favor.

Do you remember the anti-war moveThat didn’t work. ment during the Bush/Cheney years?

So the anti-war movement was morally This anti-war movement made it clear outraged because of the falsehoods that they supported the troops, but not the led to the invasion of Iraq. Once again invasion of Iraq. They didn’t want to be the moral outrage over lies is not the associated with their predecessor’s mis- same as moral opposition to war. treatment of soldiers that returned from Of course during the Presidential priVietnam. So they corrected that behav- mary candidates who wanted to get rid ior, but they failed to understand the of the moral outrage like their predecesdifference between moral outrage and sors did by ending the draft promised moral opposition. to pull the troops from Iraq. Senator Now, the moral dilemma was different Barack Obama won the presidency and between the generations. the first thing he did was send more The first generation lived during the troops to Afghanistan. And there was time of the draft and they didn’t feel no opposition to escalating the “Bush morally obligated to participate in a civil doctrine” due to the President’s promise war in another country. Their moral out- to withdraw troops in Iraq, and the anrage was against the draft, which is not ti-war movement vanished. the same thing as moral opposition to President Obama kept his promise military intervention. This generation and withdrew from Iraq, but at the end was fractured between the “drafted” and of his presidency a White House correthe “draft dodger”. This led to a horrific spondent for the New York Times stated climax at Kent State University when that President Obama has an unexpectthe National Guard shot and killed dem- ed legacy of two full terms at war. He onstrators that were opposed to Presi- wrote: Obama, the anti-war candidate, dent Nixon’s expansion of the Vietnam would have a longer tour of duty as a War effort into Cambodia. wartime president than FDR, LBJ, and So to prevent this moral outrage the Nixon. He also said when President draft was ended and America has an Obama accepted the Nobel Peace Prize all-volunteer army.

Obama declared that humanity needNow the Bush/Cheney administration ed to reconcile “two seemingly irreconinvaded Afghanistan before they invad- cilable truths—that war is sometimes ed Iraq. The Afghan invasion was based necessary, and war at some level is an on the “Bush doctrine”. This unprece- expression of human folly.” dented doctrine sanctioned the invasion Former President Obama’s right, but of sovereign states for harboring terror- the problem is President Trump inheritists. At the time no serious opposition to ed these conflicts and if he begins to esthe invasion formed because American’s calate them all anti-war moral outrage were still morally outraged over 9/11. will be ignored, labeled as partisan, imPlus, the ruling Afghan government mature, or folly because a serious moral wasn’t recognized by the majority of the opposition to war failed to develop when world’s nations. So the unprecedented it was needed.

(J. Pharoah Doss is a contributor to the New language of the “Bush doctrine” was overlooked because of the insignificance Pittsburgh Courier.)

Commentary

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

Marc H. Morial

To Be Equal

Repeat offense: Private prisons resurrection represents pay-to-play (TriceEdneyWire.com)—“The degree of civilization in a society can be judged by entering its prisons.”—Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Russian Novelist, “The House of the Dead,” 1862 Twenty-four hours after the election of Donald Trump as this nation’s 45th president, the stock prices of privately run prisons in this country soared. And this reversal of fortune came as no surprise to private prison operators—or criminal justice reform advocates. With Trump in the White House, privately owned prison companies rightly presumed that they had a staunch ally of their business model and motives in 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

As a candidate, Trump publically praised and supported private prisons. During a town hall meeting, Trump said, “I do think we can do a lot of privatization and private prisons. It seems to work a lot better.”

With his appointment of Jeff Sessions—a well-known criminal justice hardliner—as attorney general, his words of praise and support would inevitably transform into the torrent of policies we have been confronted with since his inauguration that absolutely reverse hard fought for strides in criminal justice reform.

Only six months ago, private prison operators were fighting for their fiscal survival after Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates issued a memo in August that directed the Federal Bureau of Prisons to phase out its use and reliance on private prisons. Yates’ memorandum was issued on the heels of a report that concluded private prisons provided limited cost savings—if any; that they were less safe for both inmates and prison staff than in federally run prisons; and, that due to a number of policy initiatives—including reducing excessive drug offense sentencing guidelines for low-level drug defendants—the number of people in federal prisons has been on a decline over the last four years, eliminating the need for private prisons.

Yet, the stock prices of the two largest private prison operators, CoreCivic (formerly known as the Corrections Corporation of America) and Geo Group, have skyrocketed since Election Day. CoreCivic, which donated $250,000 to Trump’s inauguration events, has seen its share prices shoot up 140 percent. Geo Group, which also donated $250,000 towards Trump’s inaugural events, along with another $225,000 donated by a Geo Group subsidiary to a pro-Trump super PAC, has seen a near 100 percent rise in its share prices. The corporations even enjoyed another profit boosting bump after Sessions’ Senate confirmation.

If the fortunes of private prison operators are direct reflections of the harshness or equitableness of our nation’s criminal justice policies, than it is safe to assume that the Trump administration means to put into effect policies that make America’s federal prisons full again.

Private prison operators stand at the ready to profit from policies that embrace large-scale incarceration. CoreCivic and Geo Group both stand to profit mightily from increased immigration enforcement. Not only do both companies run the majority of for-profit prisons, but they also own facilities used to detain undocumented immigrants.

Last year, over 60 percent of Homeland Security detainees were reportedly held in privately owned prisons. Trump has also called for the construction of more jails along the Mexico/United States border to accommodate the expected upsurge in our nation’s detainee population. Recently, the White House signaled “greater enforcement” of federal laws against recreational marijuana use, which could translate into greater numbers of inmates in our federal prisons.

All it took was a one-paragraph memorandum addressed to the acting director of the Federal Bureau of Prisons, for Sessions to reverse the previous administration’s directives on for-profit prisons: “I hereby rescind the memorandum dated August 18, 2016, sent to you by former Deputy Attorney General Sally Q. Yates, entitled “Reducing our Use of Private Prisons.”

In that memorandum, former DAG Yates directed ‘that, as each contract reaches the end of its term, the Bureau should either decline to renew that contract or substantially reduce its scope in a manner consistent with law and the overall decline of the Bureau’s inmate population.’ The memorandum changed long-standing policy and practice, and impaired the Bureau’s ability to meet the future needs of the federal correctional system. Therefore, I direct the Bureau to return to its previous approach.”

This 14-word statement of rationale should send a chill down your spine: “impaired the Bureau’s ability to meet the future needs of the federal correctional system.” You may diverge from Sessions on policy, but you cannot fault his logic. As long as we the people complacently allow the Trump administration to criminalize and harshly penalize low-level crimes, and engage in the mass arrests and detention of undocumented immigrants in our name, the administration will need the extra bed space to warehouse all those bodies.

CLASSIFIED New Pittsburgh Courier

B5

MARCH 15-21, 2017

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StarsHR, Inc. has Software Engineer position in Pittsburgh, PA & unanticipated locations throughout the U.S. to participate in entire project life cycle process, spanning design, develop, modify, review, and test of computer applications software or specialized utility programs. Send resumes to: S. Walavalkar 1700 North Highland Road, Suite 200, Pittsburgh, PA. 15241.

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COURIER CLASSIFIEDS… THE ONLY WAY TO GO!

Job Title: Capital Planning Administrator Department: Planning Reports To: Manager, Capital Planning Programs FLSA Status: Exempt Grade: 9 Approved By: Richard Belotti, Vice President, Planning Approved Date: February 28, 2017

SUMMARY Under the general direction of the Capital Planning Manager, assists in the coordination of capital planning programs for the Allegheny County Airport Authority including federal grants, the Passenger Facility Charge program, and multi-year capital planning coordination with federal agencies for both Pittsburgh International Airport and Allegheny County Airport.

RESPONSIBILITIES Assist in preparing and coordinating PIT and AGC annual Five (5)- ear Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) updates for submittal to the FAA, based on, but not limited to: airport master system plans, joint planning conferences, safety inspection reports, pavement condition surveys, airport asset management data, current airport capital budgets and strategic financial plans, and in accordance with the current FAA Airport Capital Improvement Plan (ACIP) Order 5100.39A and all applicable FAA Guidance, Policy, and Federal Register Notices.

Prepare for and coordinate the annual PIT and AGC Five (5)- ear CIP update review meetings with the FAA in Harrisburg.

Assist with coordination of multiple annual PIT and AGC FAA Capital Development and Planning Airport Improvement Program (AIP) Grant required pre-application submittals, FAA HARADO coordination, application submittals, award acceptances, annual submittals, and close-outs, ensuring compliance with the current FAA AIP Order 5100.38D and all applicable FAA Guidance, Policy, and Federal Register Notices.

Prepare and coordinate annual or less frequent PIT FAA Passenger Facility Charge (PFC) pre-application submittals, FAA HARADO and PIT Air Carrier coordination, application submittals, approval implementation, quarterly and annual submittals, and close-outs in accordance with the current FAA PFC Order 5500.1B and all applicable FAA Guidance, Policy, and Federal Register Notices.

Prepare and coordinate the submittal of all required CIP, AIP, and PFC related ACAA Board Administrative Action Requests and assist with briefings for senior staff.

Act as the FAA CIP, AIP, and PFC initial point of contact for the ACAA, maintaining a positive professional working relationship between the ACAA and the FAA Harrisburg District Office, and for all outside CIP AIP and PFC inquiries referred from other ACAA Departments.

Assist the ACAA Planning Administrative Coordinator with the filing of all CIP, AIP, and PFC related documents in the ACAA Document Management System and in the Planning Department files; and RESPONSIBILITIES Cont’d •Performs other related tasks as assigned or required.

•Some travel a few times per year required.

KNOWLEDGE/SKILLS & ABILITIES (KSA): nowledge of Federal and State grant application process.

Capital budget analysis, preparation and the overall capital improvement plan.

PFC program in conjunction with FAA and the airlines.

Microsoft Office applications including Outlook, Word, and Excel. .D. Edwards computer software.

Develop and maintain relationships with appropriate agencies that deal with federal and state grants.

Understand state and federal regulations and procedures to be able to resolve problems.

•Communicate effectively both orally and in writing.

Use interpersonal skills to interact with all levels of personnel.

Basic professional knowledge arising from a pertinent degree program, and capable of carrying out assignments typical of the profession with limited guidance and review.

KEY COMPETENCIES Communication - Proactively conveys a clear, convincing, and timely message; Communicates effectively using two way communication through strong verbal, written, and listening skills Strategic Thinking - Thinks big picture ; Forward thinking and adept at seeing future outcomes and results; Commits to a course of action to accomplish individual, team and organizational goals Team Builder - Recognizes the value of team work and being an effective contributor to the team that drives desired results •Customer Centricity - Aware of customer needs and the prioritization of our customers both internal and external; Makes decisions with customer in mind; Builds strong customer relationships REQUIREMENTS The following requirements list the minimum education training experience required to qualify for this job. An equivalent combination of education and or experience may be accepted.

4-yr. college degree in Airport Management, Business Finance Planning, Project Accounting Management, or similar majors.

At least 3 years of professional work experience (Airport employment preferred).

SUPERVISION EXERCISED/ RECEIVED None Receive general guidance from Manager, Capital Planning Programs PHYSICAL DEMANDS The physical demands that are described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects, tools, or controls; reach with hands and arms; and talk or hear. The employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; climb or balance; and stoop, kneel, crouch, or crawl. The employee must occasionally lift and or move up to 25 pounds. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

CONDITIONS: While performing the duties of this job, the employee is seldom exposed to moving mechanical parts that exceed those of standard office equipment.

The noise level in the work environment is generally moderate.

MEDICAL EXAMINATION: Employment is contingent upon the results of a physical examination performed by our examining physician.

PRE-EMPLOYMENT DRUG TESTING: Employment is contingent upon the results of a pre-employment drug screening.

PRE-EMPLOYMENT BACKGROUND INVESTIGATION: Ability to successfully pass a thorough investigation consisting of a criminal history check (including but not limited to the requirements of TSR 1542.209), verification of prior employment and performance, reference and credentials checks, and in some cases credit history.

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INVITATION TO BIDDERS THE PITTSBURGH WATER AND SEWER AUTHORITY ADVERTISEMENT

The Allegheny County Airport Authority Airport has an opening for the Vice President of Engineering at the Pittsburgh International Airport. Complete information about this position is available at http:// www.flypittsburgh.com/ACAA_ employment The advertisement period ends on March 24 2016.

The Allegheny County Airport Authority offers a competitive compensation package.

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Non-profit CDC seeking experienced candidates for: Assistant Real Estate Director and Real Estate Project Manager Min 2 rs experience in community organizing, real estate development or related field RE UIRED. Details at www.pittsburghnorthside. com. Resume cover letter due 3-17-17 email only to resumes@ pittsburghnorthside.com.

FACILITIES MAINTENANCE SUPERVISOR

The Allegheny County Airport Authority Airport has an opening for a Facilities Maintenance Supervisor at the Pittsburgh International Airport. Complete information about this position is available at http:// www.flypittsburgh.com/ACAA_ employment The advertisement period ends on March 24 2017.

The Allegheny County Airport Authority offers a competitive compensation package.

EOE M F D V.

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

Local Government Academy (LGA), a non-profit organization that develops excellence in local government through education, is seeking an Executive Director to lead the organization’s long-term strategic direction, oversee program development and implementation, drive fund development efforts, shape communications, and manage daily operations. ey ualifications: 5 years of non-profit, management-level experience including leading fundraising efforts; 5 years of local government management operations administration; B.S. in Business, Public Administration, Planning or similar area of study. Please email resume to: drea@localgovernmentacademy.org

LEGAL ADVERTISING Legal Notices

Estate of HILDA S. BALOG, deceased of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, anuary 25, 2017 No. 02-17-01235, Linda E. Watson, c o udith A. Lehnowsky, Attorney, 820 Evergreen Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15209 412821-0441 Estate of JOHN R. SIEBER, deceased of O’Hara Township, PA No. 02-17-01181, oan H. Sieber, Executrix, 300 Fox Chapel Road, Apt. 204, Pittsburgh, PA 15238. R.M. Entwisle, III, & George T. Snyder, Attys., 125 1st Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15222 Estate of VINCENT J. COLOSIMO, deceased of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, February 1, 2017 No. 02-17-01261, Tiffany McDowell c o udith A. Lehnowsky, Attorney, 820 Evergreen Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15209 412821-0441 Estate of JAN JAY EGER, deceased of McCandless, No. 00721, of 2017 Thecla M. Spiker Eger, 1803 South Villa Dr., Gibsonia, PA 15044 or to Michael . Saldamarco, Esq., Ste. 100, 908 Perry HW , Pittsburgh, PA 15229

To place a display ad in the New Pittsburgh Courier call 412-481-8302 ext. 128 or 129

Electronic Proposals will be received online at the Port Authority of Allegheny County’s Ebusiness website (http://ebusiness.port authority.org).

Proposals bid submittals will be due 11:00 AM on April 12, 2017 and will be read at 11:15 AM., the same day, at Port Authority’s Heinz location (345 Sixth Avenue, Third Floor, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 152222527), for the following: Electronic Proposal - Ebusiness website (http://ebusiness.portauthority.org) B160431AR Aerosol Spray Coatings B161092AR Air Brake Compressors-Coach B161097AER Underground Traction Power Cable No bidder may withdraw a submitted Proposal for a period of 75 days after the scheduled time for opening of the sealed bids.

A Pre-Bid Conference will be held on each of the above items at 10:00am on March 28, 2017 in Port Authority’s Public Meeting Room (345 Sixth Avenue, Fifth Floor, Pittsburgh, PA). Attendance at this meeting is not mandatory, but is strongly encouraged. Questions regarding any of the above bids will not be entertained by the Port Authority within 48 hours of the scheduled bid opening.

These contracts may be subject to a financial assistance contract between Port Authority of Allegheny County and the United States Department of Transportation.

The Contractor will be required to comply with all applicable Equal Employment Opportunity laws and regulations.

Contractor is responsible for expenses related to acquiring a performance bond and insurance where applicable. All items are to be FOB delivered unless other i e pecifie C t f r elivery, bond, and insurance shall be included in bidder’s proposal pricing.

Port Authority of Allegheny County hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively insure that in regard to any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, disadvantaged business enterprise will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, or national origin in consideration for an award.

The Board of Port Authority reserves the right to reject any or all bids.

ALLEGHENY COUNTY SANITARY AUTHORITY LEGAL NOTICE Sealed Bids for Contract 1671: BIOSOLIDS MANAGEMENT SERVICES shall be received at the office of the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority, 3300 Preble Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA 15233, until 2:00 P.M., Prevailing Time, April 12, 2017, and then shall be publicly opened and read.

ALCOSAN encourages businesses owned and operated by minorities and women to submit Bids or to participate as subcontractors or suppliers to successful Bidders.

Successful Bidders are to use minority and women’s businesses to the fullest extent possible.

A mandatory Pre-Bid Meeting and tour of the related Plant facilities will be held at the Plant on Monday, March 20, 2017 at 10:00 A.M., Prevailing Time. Prospective Bidders must attend this Meeting.

Bidding Documents may be examined and obtained at the office of the Authority. Bid Security shall be furnished by providing with the Bid a Certified Check or Bid Bond in the amount of 10,000.00.

Any questions regarding the Bidding Documents should be directed to Arthur M. Tamilia, Esq., Director of Environmental Compliance, at (412) 734-8718.

The Authority reserves the right to reject any or all Bids, to waive any informality in any Bid, and to accept any Bid, should it be deemed in the interests of the Authority to do so.

ALLEGHENY COUNTY SANITARY AUTHORITY Arthur M. Tamilia, Esq. Director of Environmental Compliance

SEPARATE and SEALED BIDS for the following solicitation, will be received by the Office of Procurement, Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority, 1200 Penn Ave., Second Floor, Pittsburgh, PA 15222, until 2:00 PM Prevailing Time April 6, 2017. Bids must be received in the hands of and clocked in by a PWSA Procurement Officer in sufficient time prior to the opening in order for a bid to be considered.

INVITATIONS FOR BIDS (IFB) FOR 2017 Water Relay Contract PWSA PROJECT NO. 2017-325-101-0 The project includes the reconstruction and relay of the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority (PWSA) public water system including water mains, valves, service connections, and hydrants.

All bids must be submitted in accordance with the solicitation that can be obtained by sending an e-mail to cjuratovic@pgh2o.com. There will be no charge for the solicitation, as it will be sent via e-mail. All questions relating to the solicitation itself shall be directed to im Tracey, Contract Specialist, via e-mail: jtracey@pgh2o.com, no later than March 30, 2017.

Bids must be accompanied by a Bid Bond in the amount of Ten Percent (10 ) of the bid for the project under construction. Said Bond shall be duly and legally executed with a Surety or Trust Company which has complied with City Ordinances Resolutions relating thereto. A Performance Bond and Labor and Material Bond in the amount of 100 of the contract value for each awarded project will be required after award.

The Contractor must assure that employees and applicants for employment are not discriminated against because of their race, color, religion, sexual preference, sex, or national origin.

The bidders will be required to submit the package of certifications included with the contract documents relating to Equal Employment Opportunity.

The Authority reserves the right to withhold the award of the Contract for a period of 60 days after the opening of the bids.

The Authority reserves the right to reject any or all proposals, and to waive any informality or minor irregularity in any bid or bids. The Authority also retains the right to investigate the qualifications of bidders prior to any award and to award contracts only to contractors who, in the sole judgment of the Pittsburgh Water and Sewer Authority, are qualified and equipped to properly execute the specified work.

ROBERT WEIMAR, INTERIM EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR THE PITTSBURGH WATER AND SEWER AUTHORITY

ADVERTISEMENT

Sealed bid proposals are hereby solicited for the Community College of Allegheny County, 800 Allegheny Avenue, Pittsburgh PA 15233 (412.237.3020) on the following items: RFP 3088 Endpoint Protection Solution (IT Security) Proposals will be received at the Purchasing Department until 2:00 P.M. Prevailing Time on Tuesday, March 21, 2017.

The CCAC Purchasing Department is now publishing all bids via the CCAC website at https://www. ccac.edu/Bid-RFP_Opportuni ties.aspx. It will be each vendor’s responsibility to monitor the bid activity within the given website ( Bid and RFP Opportunities ) and ensure compliance with all applicable bid documents inclusive of any issued addenda. Failure to incorporate any applicable addenda in the final submittal may result in the rejection of your bid.

The Board of Trustees reserves the right to reject any and all bids.

The Community College of Allegheny County is an Affirmative Action Equal Employment Opportunity Employer and encourages bids from Minority Disadvantaged owned businesses.

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LEGAL ADVERTISING

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Bids/Proposals

Bids/Proposals

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH INVITATION FOR BIDS (IFB) FOR ELECTRICAL SUPPORT AUTHORITY WIDE REBID IFB# 300-05-17 Rebid The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP) hereby request proposals from qualified Firms or Individuals capable of providing the following service(s): ELECTRICAL SUPPORT AUTHORITY WIDE REBID IFB# 300-05-17 Rebid The documents will be available no later than March 6, 2017 and signed, sealed bids will be accepted until 10:00 a.m. on March 24, 2017 at which time they will be Time and Date Stamped at 100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, at which time they will be opened and read aloud.

Parties or individuals interested in responding may download a copy of the Solicitation from the Business Opportunities page of www.HACP. org.

Questions or inquiries should be directed to: Kim Detrick Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Procurement Department 100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200 Pittsburgh, PA 15219 412-456-5116 Opt 1 A pre bid meeting will be held: Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Procurement Dept.

100 Ross Street 2nd. Fl. Ste. 200 Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Thursday, March 16, 2017 10:00 A.M. The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh strongly encourages certified minority business enterprises and women business enterprises to respond to this solicitation.

HACP’s has revised their website. As part of those revisions, vendors must now register and log-in, in order to view and download IFB/RFPs documentation.

Caster D. Binion, Executive Director Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh

THE URBAN ACADEMY OF GREATER PITTSBURGH CHARTER SCHOOL

HACP conducts business in accordance with all federal, state, and local civil rights laws, including but not limited to Title VII, the Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act, The PA Human Relations Act, etc. and does not discriminate against any individuals protected by these statutes.

NOTICE TO PROPOSERS REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR NORTH SHORE RIVERFRONT PARK INSPECTION SERVICES

The Sports & Exhibition Authority will receive proposals for inspection services for the North Shore Riverfront Park as identified below.

The Request for Proposals may be obtained after the date identified below from Taylor Blice: Emailtblice@pgh-sea.com.

Project: Inspection Services for North Shore Riverfront Park RFP Available: March 8, 2017 Date/Location for Proposals: 2:00 PM, Wednesday, March 29, 2017, Sports & Exhibition Authority, Attn: Taylor Blice, 171 10th Street, 2nd Floor Pittsburgh, PA 15222

NOTICE TO BIDDERS

Sealed bids will be received by the Upper St. Clair Township School District in the Administrative Offices, 1820 McLaughlin Run Road, Upper St. Clair, PA 15241 until 11:00 am, prevailing time, April 5, 2017, and will be opened at the same hour.

Bids are requested for various supplies including: Art, home economics, industrial arts and lumber, music, physical education, science, and theatre.

Instructions along with specifications may be obtained upon application at the office of Mr. Scott P. Burchill, Director of Business & Finance, at the above address.

Upper St. Clair School District reserves the right to reject any or all bids.

Scott P. Burchill, Secretary BOARD OF SCHOOL DIRECTORS

OFFICIAL ADVERTISEMENT THE BOARD OF PUBLIC EDUCATION of the SCHOOL DISTRICT OF PITTSBURGH

Sealed proposals shall be deposited at the Administration Building, Room 251, 341 South Bellefield Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15213, on April 4, 2017, until 2:00 P.M., local prevailing time for the following: Pittsburgh Langley K-8 Foundation Waterproofing & Classroom Renovations General, Plumbing, Mechanical, Electrical and Asbestos Primes Documents available: March 7, 2017 Pittsburgh Phillips K-5 Restroom, Lobby & Safety Renovations General, Plumbing, Mechanical, Electrical and Asbestos Primes Documents available: March 10, 2017 Project Manual and Drawings will be available for purchase at Modern Reproductions (412-488-7700), 127 McKean Street, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15219 between 9:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. The cost of the Project Manual Documents is non-refundable. Project details and dates are described in each project manual.

We are an equal rights and opportunity school district.

Sealed bids will be received in the Office of the Chief Operating Officer, 437 Turrett Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 until 11 o’clock A.M., Friday, March 31, 2017 and will be opened at the same hour in the charter school CONFERENCE ROOM for the services of a Food Services Company to provide breakfast and lunch for the school.

A firm fixed price contract award will be made in writing to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder.

The contract will be awarded to the responsible firm whose proposal is most advantageous to the program, with price and other factors considered.

Please email bconey@urbanacademypgh.org to retrieve the bid documents.

The Board of Trustees of the charter school reserves the right to reject any and all bids, or select a single item from any bid.

Brandon D. Coney Chief Operating Officer We are an equal rights and opportunity Charter School

OFFICIAL ADVERTISEMENT THE BOARD OF PUBLIC EDUCATION of the SCHOOL DISTRICT OF PITTSBURGH

Sealed proposals shall be deposited at the Administration Building, Room 251, 341 South Bellefield Avenue, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15213, on April 4, 2017, until 2:00 P.M., local prevailing time for the following: Pittsburgh Colfax K-8 Restroom Renovations Asbestos Abatement Prime Contract Project Manual and Drawings are available for purchase at Modern Reproductions (412-488-7700), 127 McKean Street, Pittsburgh, Pa., 15219 between 9:00 A.M. and 4:00 P.M. The cost of the Project Manual Documents is non-refundable.

Project details and dates are described in each project manual.

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DISCLAIMER

The New Pittsburgh Courier is not responsible for any advice given

by Soul Reader advertisers.

To place a display ad in the New Pittsburgh Courier call 412-481-8302 ext. 128 or 129

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LEGAL ADVERTISING

LEGAL ADVERTISING

LEGAL ADVERTISING

Bids/Proposals

Legal Notices

Legal Notices

HOUSING AUTHORITY OF THE CITY OF PITTSBURGH INVITATION FOR BIDS (IFB) FOR FIRE HOSE INSPECTION AND REPLACEMENT AUTHORITY WIDE IFB# 300-12-17 The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh (HACP) hereby request proposals from qualified Firms or Individuals capable of providing the following service(s): FIRE HOSE INSPECTION AND REPLACEMENT AUTHORITY WIDE IFB# 300-12-17 The documents will be available no later than March 6, 2017 and signed, sealed bids will be accepted until 11:00 a.m. on March 24, 3017 at which time they will be Time and Date Stamped at 100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, at which time they will be opened and read aloud.

Parties or individuals interested in responding may download a copy of the Solicitation from the Business Opportunities page of www.HACP. org.

Questions or inquiries should be directed to: Kim Detrick Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Procurement Department 100 Ross Street 2nd Floor, Suite 200 Pittsburgh, PA 15219 412-456-5116 Opt 1 A pre bid meeting will be held: Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh Procurement Dept.

100 Ross Street 2nd. Fl. Ste. 200 Pittsburgh, PA 15213 Thursday, March 16, 2017 11:00 A.M. The Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh strongly encourages certified minority business enterprises and women business enterprises to respond to this solicitation.

HACP’s has revised their website. As part of those revisions, vendors must now register and log-in, in order to view and download IFB/RFPs documentation.

Caster D. Binion, Executive Director Housing Authority of the City of Pittsburgh

HACP conducts business in accordance with all federal, state, and local civil rights laws, including but not limited to Title VII, the Fair Housing Act, Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act, The PA Human Relations Act, etc. and does not discriminate against any individuals protected by these statutes.

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NOTICE OF FINDING OF NO SIGNFICANT IMPACT AND NOTICE OF INTENT TO REQUEST RELEASE OF FUNDS

March 15, 2017 City of Pittsburgh-Dept. of City Planning 200 Ross Street 2nd Floor Pittsburgh, Pa. 15219 412-255-2211 This notice shall satisfy procedural requirements for activities to be undertaken by the City of Pittsburgh.

REQUEST FOR RELEASE OF FUNDS On or about March 31, 2017 the City of Pittsburgh will submit a request to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to release federal funds under Title 1 of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974 as amended for a real estate project. The development, Oakland Affordable Living is the preservation of 24 existing affordable housing units known as Allequippa Place located at 2561 Allequippa Street in six (6) two -story apartment buildings. The development will also include the new construction of a 25-unit apartment building needed for affordable housing in Oakland. The building will be located on property addresses 2528 through 2544 Wadsworth Street. Both components of the development are in the City of Pittsburgh’s West Oakland neighborhood. The unit configuration for the Allequippa Place units will include 12 two-bedroom and 12 three-bedroom units. The Wadsworth location will include 24 one-bedroom units and one three-bedroom unit. The units for the entire development will range from 635 to 1,285 square feet. For Wadsworth, there are 19 parking spaces, two of which are ADA accessible. There are 12 spaces at Allequippa Place. The developer of the project is Quippa Limited Partnership (Oakland Planning and Development Corporation “OPDC”). The developer was successful in securing an allocation of 2016 Low Income Housing Tax Credits through the Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency (PHFA). The projected Federal funding sources include 2015, 2016 & 2017 HOME Investment Funds and 2017 Community Block Grant Funds (CDBG). The projected total development cost is $16 million.

FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT The City of Pittsburgh has determined that the project will have no significant impact on the human environment. Therefore, an Environmental Impact Statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) is not required. Additional project information is contained in the Environmental Review Record (ERR) on file at 200 Ross Street, 2ND Floor Pittsburgh, Pa. 15219 and may be examined or copied weekdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

PUBLIC COMMENTS Any individual, group, or agency may submit written comments on the ERR to: Mike Petrucci City of Pittsburgh, 200 Ross Street Pittsburgh, PA 15219 (412) 255-2211 All comments received by March 30, 2017, will be considered by the City of Pittsburgh prior to authorizing submission of a request for release of funds.

Comments should specify which Notice they are addressing.

ENVIRONMENTAL CERTIFICATION The City of Pittsburgh certifies to HUD that William Peduto in his capacity as Mayor, City of Pittsburgh, consents to accept the jurisdiction of the Federal Courts if an action is brought to enforce responsibilities in relation to the environmental review process and that these responsibilities have been satisfied. HUD’s approval of the certification satisfies its responsibilities under NEPA and related laws and authorities and allows the Urban Redevelopment Authority to use development funds.

OBJECTIONS TO RELEASE OF FUNDS HUD will accept objections to its release of funds and the City of Pittsburgh certification for a period of fifteen days following the anticipated submission date or its actual receipt of the request (whichever is later) only if they are on one of the following bases: (a) the certification was not executed by the Certifying Officer of the City of Pittsburgh; (b) the City of Pittsburgh has omitted a step or failed to make a decision or finding required by HUD regulations at 24 CFR part 58; (c) the grant recipient or other participants in the development process have committed funds, incurred costs or undertaken activities not authorized by 24 CFR Part 58 before approval of a release of funds by HUD; or (d) another Federal agency acting pursuant to 40 CFR Part 1504 has submitted a written finding that the project is unsatisfactory from the standpoint of environmental quality. Objections must be prepared and submitted in accordance with the required procedures (24 CFR Part 58, Sec. 58.76) and shall be addressed to U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Community Planning and Development Division The Moorhead Federal Building 1000 Liberty Ave.-10th floor Pittsburgh, Pa. 15222 Potential objectors should contact HUD to verify the actual last day of the objection period.

William Peduto Mayor City of Pittsburgh

America’s Best Weekly 315 East Carson Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15219

Classifieds 412-481-8302 Ext. 140

E-mail: ads@newpittsburghcourier.com Deadline/Closing/Cancellation Schedule for copy, corrections, and cancellations: Friday noon preceding Wednesday publication

SPORTS New Pittsburgh Courier

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MARCH 15-21, 2017

www.newpittsburghcourier.com

by Aubrey Bruce For New Pittsburgh Courier

The Pittsburgh Pirates are looking….good, real good. All of the naysayers, haters and doomsday purveyors, (including me) have been a bit taken aback after the Bucs’ went on a sort of “miniature” house cleaning after 2016.

But hold up, as of Monday March 12, 2017, the Pirates sat atop the National “grapefruit” League with a 12-4 record. That fact might be a premature celebration due to the fact that many of the top teams may be looking a bit closer at their own minor league prospects being as though their starting lineups may be close to being set, especially for teams like the 2016 MLB World Champion Chicago Cubs who are currently sitting near the bottom of the NL “grapefruit” League with a less than stellar, 5-8 record. However, know this, the Cubs will be more than ready to defend their championship come opening day.

The drought is over for the Cubs. As for two former Pirates, infielder/outfielder Sean Rodriguez and pitcher Francisco Liriano who in the past were very stabilizing players both on and off the field are in fact no longer a part of the Pi-

Inside Conditions…Rough ‘n’ ready rates organization. The Pirates faithful and the media that covers them will have to wait until the regular season begins to see how these offseason moves play out and what affect it will have on the productivity of Pittsburgh.

Currently, the services of Sean Rodriguez might be missed in regards to having a player available as an extra infielder in light of the Visa difficulties that the Pirates regular third baseman, Jung Ho Kang is experiencing regarding receiving permission to leave his native South Korea to travel to the United States to join the Pirates squad.

Kang has a chance to be a great player but it seems that he might have a few “behavioral” issues that may need to be addressed before the situation spirals totally out of control. If the Pirates starting shortstop Jordy Mercer or the Bucs’ starting second baseman Josh Harrison or starting third baseman former Cardinal David Freese were injured, Sean Rodriguez could step in and play all three positions probably at or above average. He and Josh Harrison are truly “utility” men.

As the entire sports world probably now knows former Pirates centerfielder Andrew McCutchen will

FROM CENTER TO RIGHT—Pirates moving Andrew McCutchen from centerfield to rightfield. be now patrolling the hallowed right field grounds of the Pirates that have been sanctified, glorified and eternalized by the late great Pittsburgh Pirates legend Roberto Clemente, Arriba, Arriba! The move

by Pirates manager Clint Hurdle was both gutsy and brilliant because both

critics and allies have pointed out that although McCutchen could play centerfield for any team in the MLB National or American League.

However, former Pirates leftfielder now centerfielder Starling Marte could be the starting centerfielder for any professional baseball team

in the “universe!”

There seems to be some ghost static coming through the long dead Emerson radio that my dad listened to baseball games on late at night. I can still imagine the smell of cherry pipe tobacco wafting slowly through the air.

Through the “white noise”

I hear a faint melody and lyrics: “the bucs’ are going all the way, all the way this, beat em bucs. The late Pirates’ broadcaster Bob Prince is yelling just after he has had a dose of his “medicine.” “We need a bloop and a blast. There’s a bug on the rug. He struck him out by a gnat’s eyelash.” Pirates’ legend the late Willie Stargell had a restaurant located in Pittsburgh’s hill District.

After every Stargell home run the patrons would receive a free chicken dinner prompting Bob Price to exclaim: “there’s chicken on the hill.”

The ultimate “dark mojo” that could be put on the opposition was Bob Prince’s home grown curse: “the green weenie.”

The window is slowly closing for a Pirates championship: they had better get out the green weenies and let a few bugs loose on the rug because in the crisp days of spring, the dog days of summer, and the cool evenings of autumn, the Pirates have to win more games, a lot more games than they lose.

Sounds simple but it’s complicated. Winners aren’t born winners are made.

(Aubrey Bruce can be reached at: abruce@newpittsburghcourier.com or 412-583-6741. Follow him on Twitter@ultrascribe.)

WPIAL tournament roundup

LYNDON HENDERSON of Monessen is a smooth sophomore who GIA THORPE of Winchester-Thurston scored 16 points in the Bears scored 13 points in the Greyhounds win over Imani Christian in the KEAIRA WALKER of Chartiers-Houston chipped in with 10 points 52-41 win over Cornell in the WPIAL Class A championship game.

WPIAL Class A championship game.

(Photos by William McBride) in the win over Vincentian in the WPIAL AA championship game.

by Bill Neal For New Pittsburgh Courier

:10—The Pitt Men’s Basketball team shot their final “3” of the season as they took it on their glass chin from Virginia.

A team they split home and home with during the regular season. A tough season to be sure, but I for one enjoyed it. Sure you want the hometown boys to win, but I just love the game. That being said, here’s your “Inside the Ten”…Top 10 Problems Pitt had to deal with: #1 Lack of a true point guard. No dis to Jamel Artis, but true point guards can make the difference. #2 Jamel Artis, who is a natural 2/3 played the point well, but it did prevent him from being his best at his true position. I think he deserves props for taking one for the team! #3 No inside presence… no inside scoring!!! #4 No consistent three point shooter. Cam Johnson was good on occasion, but not the dagger you need. #5 A very, very, very weak bench. No one to blame really. It was what it was. #6 A clear and apparent disconnect between the coach and the players. My guess is…”

If you keep throwing your players under the bus, they’ll stop showing up to ride it.

I’m just sayin’! #7 Let’s not forget this is the ACC boys and girls. They played some good teams and several NBA caliber players. #8 I know it happens on both sides, but they lost three games on some very bad officiating. The Notre Dame game here to be exact. #9 Don’t get it twisted.

The players don’t get away clean. There’s this thing called D-Fence…and if played

Overtime

with the force of “Kong,” can Hawkins to come home for cure a multitude of sins! the induction. Not easy to #10 Last, but not least, not do, but I’m trying.) enough cheerleader and :08—Tell me again how dance team time on the you keep forgetting about court. What? Oh, like you the genius that was the weren’t thinking it too. Yes, great Curtis Mayfield? Of you were, but you wanted course “Superfly,” but are me to say it. (Hey, I’m 64. you forgetting about “Back I’m not dead!!!) to the World,” “Gypsy Wom:09—Here’s your almost en,” “Stone Junkie,” “We’re final list for the 2017 Cona Winner,” “Keep on Pushnie Hawkins Summer ing,” and the 50 plus hits by Basketball League Hall the Impressions, including of Fame Inductions: Nate “Amen”…c’mon ya’ll!

Duck—Homewood Horses :07—So, you all rememCoach Ringo Saunders— ber Leslie Goodman right?

Bump Yes Joe Barlow—The She used to be one of, and BILL NEAL Dons Kevin Price—Rankin the director of, the Truly Gangsters Brian Carroll—Future Stars Yours Models…yes, you do…ok, so if you Eric Carter—Homewood Horses Corey remember Leslie you have to rememGadson—Clairton’s Finest Jimmy Nich- ber her modeling partner Crystal…you ols—Heatwave Hosea Champayne— remember how Crystal used to rock the Rankin Gangsters Mark Hassell—Cosmic house…well anyway, Crystal’s husband Echoes Gary Nelson—The DonsVince Gee-Gee said, “What about us?” Meaning, Lackner—The Lawyers Dave Burrs— why doesn’t anybody talk about the cats Big’s Storm Shawn Harvey—Heatwave that the legends like Macklin, Clancy, Rico Appendanza—Rico’s Boys Kenny Kennedy, and Clarke practiced against Lewis—Bump Yes [All inductees please every day to become great? Well “Gee” note you have to call me to be counted in. here’s to the legend makers everywhere…

412-628-4856] These great athletes will they make the difference!!! be inducted at the 43rd Annual Willie :06—Your Pittsburgh Pirates kick it off “Pops” Stargell Pittsburgh MVP Awards, April 3rd against the Boston Red Socks Wednesday, May 31, at the fabulous Sa- and the home opener is Friday April 7th voy restaurant, at 6 p.m. Tickets are $50 against the Atlanta Braves. and will benefit Achieving Greatness Safe :05—Lawrence Timmons gone to Miami, Summer programs. (Keep this on the Landry Jones still here signed for three down-low, but I’m trying to get Connie years. What’s wrong with this picture?

:04—I know it’s wishful thinking, but adding Terrelle Pryor and Darrelle Revis to the line-up works for me. Let’s win the ring next year. “All Hands on Deck!” :03—If you’re not following the Taylor Allderdice Dragons, you are truly missing a basketball good time. The Dice rolled over North Hills and the final score was kinder than the game. But the story continues to be the emergence of point guard Jahi Ogbonna.

The 5’10” senior guard was almost perfect with a team high 22 points and most importantly great floor management, slick assists, key steals and stellar defense against a very good Nick Smith who had a game high 27 for N.H.—but let’s not forget the two super sophs Jackson Blaufeld (18 points) and Bobby Clifford (20 points) and of course the show time set of Tyler Williams (15 points). :02—If you don’t know by now, you’re the only one in town that doesn’t know. Starting Friday, March 31, we’ll be “Stompin at the Savoy” every Friday, 9 p.m. - 2 a.m.

Dancin’…eatin’…and drinkin’…the way it used to be! $10 cover, Dress to Impress, 35 and older, valet or street parking, cash bar, cash kitchen, VIP celebs, special VIP reserved seating. Call 412-292-1753, special group party call 412-628-4856.

Brought to you by B.N.P.B. Productions. :01—Final count in on Ed Gainey’s Old School Music vote: #1—Earth, Wind & Fire—148; Temptations—142…What is wrong with you people. #2—Aretha Franklin—202; Anita Baker—179…

Win that one. #3—Luther—196; Teddy —127. Looks like Ed knows his music! ~ GAME OVER ~

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MARCH 15-21, 2017

NEW PITTSBURGH COURIER

Pick up your Courier at these locations WESTERN AREA: CRAFTON BEVERAGE CRAFTON/INGRAM SHOPPING CENTER GIANT EAGLE CRAFTON/INGRAM SHOPPING CENTER SHEETZ #353 5400 CAMPBELL’S RUN RD SHOP N’ SAVE #1686 2103 NOBLESTOWN RD SAFRANS SUPER MKT 429 WALNUT ST GIANT EAGLE #74 PARKWAY CENTER MALL SOUTHERN AREA: KEN’S 216 BELTZHOOVER AVE NELSON’S 92 SYLVANIA AVE GIANT EAGLE #61 2021 WHARTON AVE COGO’S 2400 EAST CARSON ST COGO’S 925 EAST CARSON ST DAILY MART 1125 ARLINGTON AVE SHOP N’ SAVE CARRICK SOUTH EASTERN AREA: SUPER STOP 403 KENMAWR AVE CARL’S CAFE 337 FIFTH AVE COMET NEWS 540 BRADDOCK AVE PUFFS DISCOUNT TOBACCO 1722 GREENSBUR AVE A-PLUS SUNOCO 7403 WASHINGTON ST COGO’S 1050 BRINTON RD COGO’S 2003 S BRADDOCK AVE EDGEWOOD EXPRESS 253 EDGEWOOD AVE BRAD EXPRESS 1101 S BRADDOCK AVE GIANT EAGLE #619 1705 S. BRADDOCK AVE CVS 7406 CHURCH ST HANINI MARKET 1105 SWISSVALE AVE DUKE’S SUNOCO 825 DUQUESNE BLVD 7-11 818 N. DUQUESNE BLVD GIANT EAGLE #6379 420 EAST WATERFRONT DR GIANT EAGLE— MCKEESPORT 3812 O’NEILL BLVD J & S FOOD MART 625 W GRANT AVE RITE AID PHARMACY 100 WILLIAM MARKS DR GIANT EAGLE 1356 HOFFMAN BLVD BP GAS STATION LYSLE & WALNUT DS FOODMART 929 UNION ST RITE AID PHARMACY 725 LYSLE BLVD CHARLIE’S CORNER STORE 500 LOCUST ST NEIGHBORHOOD DOLLAR 333 5TH AVE GIANT EAGLE #38 1901 MURRAY AVE JACK’S E 8TH AVE EASTERN AREA: WATERWORKS GIANT EAGLE #72 1005 FREEPORT RD— DIVINE HAIR STUDIO

10 DUFF RD GIANT EAGLE 9001 FRANKSTOWN RD GIANT EAGLE #78 230 RODI RD BP GAS STATION 11835 FRANKSTOWN RD THE SPOT 11675 FRANKSTOWN RD MASH MINI MART 4341 OLD WM. PENN HWY GIANT EAGLE #60 4004 MONROEVILLE BLVD GIANT EAGLE #76 AMES PLAZA, ROUTE 22 GET IT QUICK 500 GARDEN CITY DESTINY’S HAIR SALON 408 RODI RD PUFF’S DISCOUNT TOBACCO 10991 FRANKSTOWN RD SHOP N SAVE 3335 WILLIAM PENN HWY SHEETZ 3457 WILLIAM PENN HWY GETGO 10525 FRANKSTOWN RD CVS PHARMACY 10600 FRANKSTOWN RD SHELL OIL 7619 BAUM BLVD KIWI SUNOCO FRANKSTOWN AVE WILLIAM PENN SMOKE SHOP II 132 NORTH HIGHLAND AVE MARATHON GAS 6680 FRANKSTOWN AVE PENN AIKEN DAIRY 5401 PENN AVE GIANT EAGLE #17 6320 SHAKESPEARE ST HOMEWOOD MARKET 7201 FRANKSTOWN AVE SALIK HARDWARE 607 NORTH HOMEWOOD AVE NEGLEY A PLUS 123 NORTH NEGLEY AVE BAKER’S 7203 HAMILTON & STERRETT AVES DORSEY’S RECORDS 7614 FRANKSTOWN AVE HOSPITAL CORNER 4201 PENN AVE PEOPLES GROCERY 5136 PENN AVE A&M MARKET 5224 PENN AVE A-PLUS MINI MART 7701 PENN AVE WOOD & PENN 902 WOOD ST AL’S FISH & CHICKEN 1000 PENN AVE SAVE A LOT 725 ROSS AVE CVS PHARMACY 520 PENN AVE GETGO 408 PENN AVE QUICK STOP LIBERTY 3349 LIBERTY AVE K-2 CONVENIENT STORE 4900 PENN AVE SHUR SAVE 4120 MAIN ST SHELL GAS 6701 FRANKSTOWN RD UNIMART 5724 ELLSWORTH AVE GIANT EAGLE #77 254 YOST BLVD PUFF’S DISCOUNT TOBACCO 234 YOST BLVD SPEEDY MART 2131 ARDMORE BLVD SQUIRREL HILL NEWS 5804 FORBES AVE MURRAY AVE. NEWS 2024 MURRAY AVE GIANT EAGLE MURRAY AVE & LORETTA ST DISCOUNT TOBACCO & NEWS 1929 MURRAY AVE

UNIVERSITY OF PGH BOOKSTORE 4000 5TH AVE DANA’S BAKERY 720 N. HOMEWOOD AVE DA STORE 606 & 1/2 N. HOMEWOOD AVE BONUS TIRE SERVICE 4349 VERONA RD KANDY CAFE 4291 VERONA RD GIANT EAGLE SHADYSIDE 550 CENTRE AVE MARATHON GAS 4010 PENN AVE STANTON NEGLEY DRUG 804 N. NEGLEY AVE RON’S CORNER DRUG MT. CARMEL RD CENTRAL AREA: GET GO #64 4924 BAUM BLVD SCHWARTZ MARKET 1901 5TH AVE SMOKER FRIENDLY 906 5TH AVE

500 GRANT ST FABER COE & GREGG FIFTH AVE. PLACE FABER COE & GREGG 600 GRANT ST NIELSEN’S STORES #09 GRANT ST— ONE OXFORD CENTER NIELSEN’S STORES #13 437 SEVENTH AVE— KOPPERS BUILDING 9TH & PENN NEWS-NUMBERS 136 PENN AVE EXTRA EXTRA NEWS 413 SEVENTH AVE UTSAV NEWS 400 CHERRY WAY C&C NEWS 2 PPG PLACE NEWSTAND SIXTH & WOOD ONE STOP 300 SIXTH & WOOD EDDIE’S SNACKS 262 5TH AVE BIG DADDY 465 FORBES AVE 711 SMITHFIELD 420 SMITHFIELD ST

HILL DISTRICT: NORTHERN AREA: WONG’S MARKET 2170 CENTRE AVE ANN’S MARKET 2316 WEBSTER AVE A-PLUS MINI MART 2350 CENTRE AVE UJAMMA BOUTIQUE 1901 CENTRE AVE K LEROY IRVIS TOWERS 715 MERCER ST SHOP & SAVE SUPERMARKET 1850 CENTRE AVE ABE’S MARKET 1860 CENTRE AVE WYLIE TOBACCO 2152 WYLIE AVE DOWNTOWN: KWIK-E-MART 212-10TH ST 7-11 #167 643 LIBERTY AVE 7-11 #165 SIXTH & PENN AVE 7-11 #170 429 WOOD ST ESTER’S SNAX FEDERAL BUILDING, 2ND FL SMITHFIELD NEWS 115 SMITHFIELD ST FABER COE & GREGG

W. N. GROCERY 1018 NORTH AVE. NORTH SIDE BEER & BEVERAGE 1304 FEDERAL ST ALLEGHENY GIFT SHOP—AGH HOSPITAL 320 EAST NORTH AVE GIANT EAGLE #652 318 CEDAR AVE 7-11 #158 1001 WESTERN AVE RICHEY’S BARBER SHOP 1207 N. FRANKLIN ST QUIK-IT 820 PENNSYLVANIA AVE RITE AID #3459 802 PENNSYLVANIA AVE MARSHALL SHELL 1500 SPRING GARDEN AVE SWINKO’S MARKET 2535 PERYSVILLE AVE MERCY STREET EXPRESS 6 MERCY ST HARV’S EXXON 2501 BRIGHTON RD QUICK SCHWARTZ 3235 BRIGHTON RD HANINI MARKET 3245 BRIGHTON RD

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