February 8th, 2018 Edition

‘Shaw brawl’ cools down at 8th Ward debate

Special aldermanic election is Tuesday, February 13

By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American

After weeks of enduring what some have called

Brawl” on social media between

and Paul Fehler supporters, residents said the 8th Ward aldermanic candidate forum on February 5 was surprisingly friendly, tame, and even a bit boring. No brawling occurred as about 200 to 250 people packed the Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association’s forum, which was held at Rehabilitation Services for the Blind.

“When this all began, I kept hearing that Shaw was lucky to have such highly respected, dedicated, competent, committed people to represent our

Photo by Wiley Price

Paul Fehler listened to Annie Rice speak at the 8th Ward aldermanic candidate forum organized by the Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association’s forum on February 5 at Rehabilitation Services for the Blind. The special election is Tuesday, February 13.

Kicking off Black History Month

Judges, prosecutors speak up for Bostic

Ask U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in case of 16-year-old sentenced to die in prison

By Rebecca Rivas

Of The St. Louis American

Twenty-six former judges and prosecutors on January 25 asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in the case of an AfricanAmerican St. Louis man who was sentenced to die in prison when he was 16.

Bobby Bostic and a friend committed a pair of armed robberies in St. Louis just before Christmas in 1995. Two people were shot at, but not harmed. Though only 16, Bostic was tried as an adult and sentenced to

EPA proposes West Lake Landfill clean-up

Expected to cost $236M and take five years to implement

By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s long-awaited announcement on how it plans to clean up the illegally dumped radioactive waste in the West Lake Landfill has some touting a victory and others vowing to fight harder than ever.

On February 1, EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt announced a proposed remedy to excavate and remove “all the radioactive material that poses a risk to public health” from the landfill, a Superfund site in Bridgeton. Pruitt also proposed “a permanent cap” to go over the radioactive waste that will remain at the site. The remedy,

Treasurer: ‘This is harassment, alderman’

241 years in prison. He is up for parole in 2091, when he would be 112 years old.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Missouri has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse the decision of the Missouri Supreme Court, which upheld Bostic’s sentence. The group submitted an amicus curiae in support of Bostic and includes two former U.S. solicitors general, a former chief justice of the Missouri Supreme Court and two state attorneys general. The judge who issued Bostic’s sentence made it clear that he would “die in the department of corrections” because “nobody in this room is going to be alive” when he becomes eligible for parole. In the amicus brief, the judges and

St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura O. Jones testified to the Board of Aldermen’s Streets, Traffic and Refuse Committee on Tuesday, February 6 about their ongoing Parking Commission dispute as her attorney, Matthew Hans, observed.

Photo by Wiley Price

Photo by Wiley Price

African-American members of the St. Louis Board of Aldermen prepare to raise the Pan-African flag at City Hall for the start of Black History Month on February 1.

Bobby Bostic

Gary Owen, Will Packer, Packer speak up and Mo’Nique claps back

Comedian and ‘Think Like a Man’ co-star Gary Owen has come to the defense of the film’s producer, Will Packer, after Mo’Nique came for Packer in the continuing drama that stemmed from Mo’Nique’s request that the black community boycott Netflix. She accused the streaming network of lowballing her, as opposed to white and male counterparts.

After entertainment journalist Jawn Murray read an email he said came from film producer Will Packer, Mo’Nique clapped back at Packer – which compelled Owen to respond with an Instagram video.

“Man, Mo’Nique don’t stop – she blames everybody,” Owen said. It’s Oprah, it’s Lee Daniels, it’s Tyler Perry, it’s Netflix. Now it’s Will Packer. “She went too far when she started blaming him. He put you in a movie, ‘Almost Christmas,’ when nobody else was putting you in movies. He stuck his neck out

for you. I’m not gonna sit back and let you slander my friend’s name like that.”

Owen then went so far as to say that Mo’Nique is sabotaging her own career.

“Sometimes you have to take accountability for yourself,” Owen said. “It’s you. What can you do to change? Stop blaming everybody else for your [expletive] Mo’Nique. This [expletive] is getting old.”

After remaining silent during the exchange between Murry, Mo’Nique and her husband/ manager, Sidney Hicks, Packer responded to Owen’s post by thanking him for his support and essentially blaming Hicks for the severed ties with Mo’Nique.

“I have so much respect for actors because their jobs are extremely challenging,” Packer said. “I can understand when their behavior is…less than desirable sometimes. But you’re only as strong as your representation. If you choose to have someone speak for you that damages your relationships in this industry, that’s your fault – no one else’s.”

Mo’Nique didn’t pass on the opportunity to clap back at Owen.

“Gary, I hope

you fight as hard for your AfricanAmerican wife and daughter for the inequities they face,” Mo’Nique said.

“For all the black people you say he’s helped, why are you speaking for them? We don’t need a spokesperson.”

Coko and husband call it quits

SWV lead singer Coko Clemons is splitting from her husband of 15 years. She made the announcement on her personal website, Hot CoKo.

nothing! For the sake of our son we will do our best to co-parent. We’re not enemies, we’re just two people that fell out of love.

Life after divorce kind of scares me, but I have to be strong for myself and my son. God’s got me, and I’m surrounded by a great group of family and friends that hold me down. My village!! I am blessed and highly favored!!”

Remy Ma gives Vincent Herbert the boot

An excerpt from the statement reads as

“We always thought we’d be together forever! Through the good, the bad, the ugly, the ups and the downs...we’d still be married. But, things don’t always work out the way we plan or hope.

After 15 years of marriage, my husband and I have decided to call it quits. Our fairytale has come to an end. I’ll definitely miss him! But life goes on and I have to make the best of it. I wish him all the best in his future. I pray that he will lack

In November, rapper Remy Ma hired Tamar Braxton’s estranged husband, Vincent Herbert, to manager her career. According to TMZ.com, Remy has axed Herbert.

The celebrity news and gossip site said Remy Ma fired Vincent Herbert after he failed to live up to his grandiose promises and neglected basic manager duties like scheduling studio time and booking appearances.

A TMZ source claims Herbert is more focused on repairing his marriage to Braxton than managing his artists.

Sources: TMZ.com, Twitter.com, Instagram. com, HotCoko.com

Will Packer

North County residents get answers at town hall

New laws and policecommunity issues discussed

By Sandra Jordan Of The St. Louis American

Residents of North St. Louis County communities got a chance to find out about laws and legislation affecting them, in addition to answers on where to direct police concerns, during a town hall meeting held Sunday, January 21 at Christ Our Redeemer AME Church in Black Jack, pastored by Rev. Dr. Roger Richardson. The meeting was sponsored the church’s Lay Organization, St. Louis County Councilwoman Rochelle Walton Gray and her husband, state Rep. Alan Gray (D-75).

The first guest spoke on behalf of the Missouri Department of Conservation to encourage residents to find out the benefits of the department and to utilize those recreational areas. Missouri residents pay a one-eighth cent tax for those areas, which provide hunting, fishing and conservation areas. The department also publishes two free magazines, one for kids and the other geared for adults, and both are available by subscription.

Sylvia Stevenson, owner of Stevenson’s tax Service, spoke about upcoming federal tax changes going into effect next year for 2018 tax filings. Unlike tax cuts and changes for corporate taxes, Stevenson reminded attendees the changes for individual tax filings are temporary and expire in 2025.

St. Louis County Police Lieutenant Colonel Troy Doyle listened to some residents who felt they were mistreated by a responding officer, were potentially put in harm’s way after an officer arrived at their door when they reported a suspicious incident (and requested not to have an officer come to their door), or were stopped for no reason other than being a black man driving a Mercedes. Doyle apologized

shifts, depending on what is going on at the time, and will work from four tenets: prediction, prevention, pursuit, and partnerships.

“Proactive patrols of high-crime areas, working with other investigative units within the police departments, conducting various surveillance and sting operations in the community” are the techniques Doyle said the SRU will use.

Doyle said he is planning to meet with clergy in North County to find areas of collaboration and that county police is also creating a Community Advisory Board.

St. Louis County Police Captain Guy Means discussed laws pertaining to carrying knives, firearms and having controlled substances. He also talked about who can carry firearms and places where you cannot carry. That includes airports, sports arenas, hospitals, police stations, within 25 feet of polling sites on Election Day, detention facilities, courthouses, in government meetings, places that serve liquor, child care facilities, schools, riverboat gaming operations, churches and places of religious worship, and on private property, if posted.

and about record expungement.

“If you should have trouble voting, memorize the number 866-OURVOTE (687-8683). That’s the voter protection number for Missouri,” Mott Oxford said.

She said the Secretary of State’s office is the resource to help voters obtain proper voter identification.

“If you know anyone who doesn’t have a photo ID, the state is supposed to help pay for them to get one,” Mott Oxford said. “Make them aware that they are going to need a photo ID in the future and help them walk through the process, because that’s one of the issues. There’s a lot of people out there that have big challenges in taking care of getting their photo ID.” She used obtaining their birth certificate as an example.

“These days, you need your birth certificate in order to get your photo ID,” she said. “They may need some help with that, and the state is supposed to help pay for the expenses of that. Call up the Secretary of State’s office and tell them we need some help getting this straightened out so this person can get their photo ID.”

for their experiences and encouraged individuals to report those incidents.

“The only way we become aware is that you have to let us know those types of things,” Doyle said. “Even if you didn’t get the officer’s name or badge number, even if you give us the day and the approximate time, we can pretty much narrow it down.”

However, he also warned against confronting officers.

“Whenever you get stopped by law enforcement – let’s say, for example, that you come across a police officer that is plain old outright ignorant for whatever reason – even if you know that he or she is wrong, I still encourage you don’t challenge that officer, because your goal is to get home safe,” Doyle said. “Afterwards, we can file complaints, we can get the NAACP, we can get the clergy, get our legislature, get our people involved. But your goal is to get home safe.”

Doyle also brought residents up-to-

date on upcoming county police activities, including purchasing a new computer system to track crime better, the installation of dashboard cameras, expanding bias training for police officers, and the development of a new Special Response Unit (SRU) to fight crime.

Doyle said while patrol officers respond to radio calls, the SRU will be staffed by one lieutenant, three sergeants and 24 officers from different parts of the county. “If you are stuck out on a call, you cannot actively patrol the neighborhoods,” Doyle said. “We are going to do targeted enforcement of street-level crimes; we are going to deal with a lot of quality-of-life issues, and we are going to target persistent offenders who negatively impact the community.”

Doyle said the SRU will target that small percentage of individuals who are causing the most harm. Unit staff will work various times and various

After the police presentation, Jeanette Mott Oxford, executive director of social justice organization Empower Missouri, informed residents of state initiatives that should be on their radar. That included SB 561, a state Senate bill that would establish work requirements for people in order to receive food stamps.

“I am not saying you shouldn’t work; people should work if they can. But the problem is, people that are poor enough to get food stamps often have lives that are so complicated – trying to take care of utility disconnection notices, trying to get around without their own transportation – it’s just lots of challenges,” Mott Oxford said. “They may have an exception that may mean they should not be cut off from food stamps, but there will be mistakes made and people will lose their food stamps who really need them, and that impacts everybody that’s in the whole household, including the kids.”

She also talked about the Real ID, how to get a photo identification, which is required to vote in the state,

Contact Secretary of State John R. Ashcroft’s office by phone at (573) 751-4936 or email info@sos.mo.gov. Voters can find out more information and request help obtaining a free photo ID at https://s1.sos.mo.gov/ voteridhelp.

Related to expungement, Mott Oxford said SB 588 passed in 2017, which created the ability for people to get crimes expunged from their record, which can help job seekers, or professional licensing, for example. It went into effect on January 1.

“It allows the person who was arrested but not sentenced to apply for expungement. It allows a person to petition over the course of a lifetime, for the expungement of records for any number of infractions,” Mott Oxford said. “If you have a bunch of parking tickets or small, low-level things, you can get those taken off your record. She said that “two misdemeanor offenses or ordinance violations that carry jail time and no more than one felony offense” may be expunged. Previously, people had to wait 20 years for a felony offense and 10 years for misdemeanors before they could petition for expungement.

Photo by Sandra Jordan

St. Louis County Police Lieutenant Colonel Troy Doyle answered a wide range of questions and shared much news about county police a town hall meeting held Sunday, January 21 at Christ Our Redeemer AME Church in Black Jack, sponsored the church’s Lay Organization, St. Louis County Councilwoman Rochelle Walton Gray and her husband, state Rep. Alan Gray (D-75).

Editorial /CommEntary

The American endorses Annie Rice for 8th Ward alderman

It was not difficult to decide on our endorsement for 8th Ward alderman in the special election on Tuesday, February 13. On Friday, we reached out to both candidates, Democratic nominee Paul Fehler and Independent candidate Annie Rice, to ask them the same questions. We requested their answers by Monday morning. Rice responded in detail (as reported in this week’s Political EYE); Fehler ignored us. When approached by a St. Louis American reporter at a public forum on Monday, Fehler said he received the questions but had “not had a chance” to respond because things were too “hectic.” It took him awhile to give even these fragmentary answers because he kept dodging our reporter.

By contrast, on Tuesday 8th Ward Republican Committeeman Michael Chance posted a set of questions for the two candidates on the Shaw Neighborhood Facebook page. Rice responded first, followed by Fehler, just five hours after the questions were posted. It is now five days after Fehler received our questions, and he still has not answered. If you are reading this newspaper, we must conclude, Paul Fehler does not think he owes you any answers. In fact, the Democratic nominee for the 8th Ward seat thinks the Republican committeeman for his ward is more deserving of his answers than the readers of the most widely-read black-owned newspaper in this city or state.

For all of his posturing – with the help of many, but not all, elected Democrats – as the true Democrat in this race, we believe Fehler has a strategy in ignoring a black-owned newspaper with a progressive political agenda while answering a Republican in his ward. His opponent is a much more openly progressive candidate. When Fehler actually shares his views on issues – that is to say, when anyone other than The St. Louis American is asking him questions – he talks a good liberal game. But based on track records, Rice has been there and Fehler has not. Rice opposed Proposition P, a regressive sales-tax increase to boost Public Safety salaries, as did the ward majority. Like Steve Conway, the long-term 8th Ward alderman who was appointed city assessor by Mayor Lyda Krewson, Fehler voted for the measure. Rice has been a visible presence at police accountability protests, which earned her the support of state Rep. Bruce Franks Jr. Fehler is supported by the St. Louis Police Officers Association. Rice voted for Tishaura O. Jones in the mayoral race, where Jones took

a whopping 48 percent of the ward’s vote in a crowded field with three other competitive candidates. Fehler counts Mayor Krewson, who won only 30 percent of the ward’s vote, among his campaign donors.

More importantly, Fehler shares political handlers with Krewson and embattled Democratic County Executive Steve Stenger. In his last campaign filing before the election, Fehler reported a debt of more than $9,000 to Show Me Victories, a department of the Kelley Group, which ran the campaigns of Stenger and Krewson. We believe Fehler is acting on the advice of his regressive Democratic handlers in ignoring our questions for five days (and counting) but answering a Republican committeeman in five hours.

Why? The ward’s opposition to Prop P and support of Tishaura Jones over Krewson shows its voting Democrat majority is progressive. However, the near South Side ward has some Republicans, and we believe that the Kelley Group and Fehler are angling for those voters in an effort to defeat a more progressive opponent in Rice. The Republican who performed best in the 2016 General Election, Josh Hawley, garnered 1,079 votes (or 17 percent of the ward’s electorate). Fehler, the purportedly authentic Democrat candidate for Conway’s seat, knows if he gets those 1,000-plus conservative votes, he likely wins this election over a more progressive Democrat. So he is ignoring a majority bloc of the Democratic Party’s base – blacks and progressives of any background – but had answers for a Republican.

Progressive voters in the 8th Ward do not want to send another backward-looking Democrat in liberal costume to the Board of Aldermen. They do not want someone who owes the odious Kelley Group nearly $10,000 to represent them on the city’s legislative body. Also, the Missouri Democratic Party needs to be taught a lesson – selling out blacks and progressives to coddle white conservatives is a losing strategy that cost Democrats the White House and Missouri’s Governor’s Mansion. The American is often supportive of Democratic candidates; however, our commitment to the community’s interests override any preference for any political party. It is time for (another) wake-up call for stuck-in-the-past Democrats and their losing strategies. We strongly and unequivocally endorse ANNIE RICE FOR 8TH WARD ALDERMAN

Ferguson Police Department is moving forward with reforms

By Chief Delrish L. Moss

For The St. Louis American For the City of Ferguson, 2017 was a year of both solid accomplishment and essential foundation building. As a city, we ended the year with a 22 percent reduction in “Part One Crime” – an FBI category for serious crimes that occur with regularity in all areas of the country and are likely to be reported to police – and we achieved a 14 percent reduction in violent crime, despite substantial personnel shortages created by historic levels of attrition.

Like cities across the nation, we have also experienced a slight uptick in homicides, which more often involve direct relationships between the victims and offenders and are more difficult to prevent.

We are working to continue these decreases in crime through a combination of increased community engagement, new and innovative approaches to crime reduction, and good oldfashioned police methods.

We have also successfully policed numerous public events including demonstrations, the Ferguson Concert Series, the Annual 5K Twilight Run, the Street Fest and the Northern Lights Parade. The greatest indicator of the positive direction of the City of Ferguson is the increase in applicants for the position of police officer, and the strengthening of the working relationship between the members of the United States Justice Department team, the new independent monitor, and City of Ferguson, who are all striving to create worthwhile and lasting reforms for the

Ferguson Police Department.

To appreciate these accomplishments, it is worth looking back at where we were just a few years ago.

For nearly four years, the national image of the Ferguson Police Department had been largely formed by stories about adversarial encounters between our officers and members of the public and the civil unrest that followed the shooting death of Michael Brown. These incidents dominated the news coverage of the Police Department, overshadowing the hard work of the men and women of the department that had resulted in significant crime reductions.

It has now been a few months shy of two years since I became chief of police in Ferguson. On the very day that I was sworn in, two opposing factions” staged rallies in front of police headquarters that were a clear indicator of the deep divide that this city has worked so hard over the past few years to overcome.

In the months preceding my hiring, the U.S. Department of Justice had initiated an investigation into a number of practices that were cause for concern. The issue of civil unrest was a constant theme in the local, national, and international media. Recently, a number of surrounding cities experienced demonstrations similar to those of 2014, but the two in Ferguson were largely without incident and they were

As I See It - A Forum for Community Issues

The tale of two marijuana bills

By Kennard Williams For The St. Louis American

Throughout the fall of 2017, the legislation committee at the St. Louis Board of Aldermen saw the introduction of two bills pertaining to the usage of marijuana.

Board Bill 180, sponsored by Alderwoman Megan Ellyia Green, seeks to address decriminalization of marijuana by limiting the ability of police officers to enforce city ordinances prohibiting its use. This limitation would have been restricted only to people in their own homes, and not public use or in a vehicle. The National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) supported this bill. It also received a letter of support from The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU).

The other bill, Board Bill 193, sponsored by aldermanic President Lewis Reed, seeks to only lower the fine associated with being charged with possession of up to 35 grams of marijuana.

When compared to each other, it becomes clear that Reed’s bill does absolutely nothing to address the decriminalization of marijuana. So, it begs the question: Why did Reed’s marijuana legislation reach perfection first, despite Green’s bill being created first and having a much more direct manner of addressing the issue?

To understand this,

one must look at how city government has worked over the years. While some of the complications that arose in the first committee hearing of BB180 stemmed from things such as an employee protections section (since removed), the biggest source of pushback was the fear of retaliation from Jefferson City. Other alderpeople feared a mobilization of the Missouri Highway Patrol or the seizure of control of the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. While such fear is very real, the opportunism of playing off of that fear is real as well.

We know decriminalization reduces mass incarceration and significantly reduces the profiteering that motivates the endless expansion of the prison state, which heavily impacts the black community. Unfortunately, instead of showing courage and fighting oppressive systems that destroy the lives of their constituents by supporting the implementation of key sections of BB180, black caucus members are flocking to endorse the ineffectual bill BB193 and the posturing associated with it.

Letters to the editor

Nothing ‘pro-life’ about attacking healthcare

The day after another failed vote on an unconstitutional abortion ban, Donald Trump’s State of the Union comes at a time when the anti-choice GOP is obsessed with attacking our reproductive rights like never before. Trump and the Republican Party he leads are working overtime to ban abortion and chip away at the reproductive rights of Missouri women.

a vast departure from some of the events in our past.

Since coming to Ferguson, my primary concern was to demonstrate the Police Department’s commitment to integrity and professionalism. To this end, we have been working with the community, the U.S. Department of Justice, and the independent monitor to implement what I believe will be the most progressive policies in the region when it comes to training, police accountability, hiring standards, and use of force.

We are also working diligently to equip all of our police officers and dispatchers with the latest and most effective tools available, and we have completed a total retooling of our internal investigations process to include a review by the Ferguson Civilian Review Board, which was established a little over a year ago. This board is made up of concerned citizens who are tasked with reviewing law enforcement actions and citizen complaints to make sure that the Ferguson Police Department remains both accountable and responsible to our citizens.

As we continue to move forward with our reforms, we need the community’s continued assistance, patience and understanding. We take our commitment to serve and protect our city very seriously, and these reductions in crime are proof that we are working to do everything we can to live up to the challenge of making Ferguson one of the safest cities in the nation.

Delrish L. Moss is chief of police for the City of Ferguson Police Department.

Donald Trump and the anti-choice GOP could not be more out-of-step with the challenges Missouri families confront every day. There is nothing “pro-life” about attacking the healthcare of thousands of Missouri women and families, and rolling back our reproductive rights at every turn. Seven in 10 Americans support legal and accessible abortion, including the majority of Missouri residents that stand on the side of reproductive freedom.

NARAL Missouri members are ready to fight back, and as the midterms approach we’ll keep mobilizing and organizing to elect pro-choice champions to fight for us and our shared values.

Alison Dreith, executive director

NARAL Pro-Choice Missouri St. Louis

Trump puts Obama’s progress at risk

Donald Trump continues to take credit for the strong economy he inherited from President Obama. But instead of rewarding American workers for fueling our nation’s prosperity, Trump and Republicans in Congress have given massive tax cuts to big corporations and the top 1 percent at the expense of the middle class – all while workers at companies like Carrier and Harley-Davidson continue to lose their jobs. Meanwhile, African-American unemployment saw the largest increase in years, despite Trump’s claims during the State of the Union that his policies were helping African-American

Voters in St. Louis have seen this move before, whether they realize it or not, most notably concerning the minimum wage. Lyda Krewson, then the 28th Ward alderwoman, was recorded as “absent” when the vote came up in 2015. While it’s hard to imagine what could have been important enough to miss a vote in support of low-wage workers in St. Louis, Krewson, once elected mayor, found the will to speak up in support of the minimum wage increase. Unsurprisingly, her courage coincided with the state stepping in. Only at this point was it safe for Krewson to openly stand behind a $12 minimum wage and fall into a loose definition of a Democrat. While BB193 passed this Friday, one thing remains true. The only thing half-baked about this marijuana legislation is any suggestion that it comes anywhere close to being radical, progressive or even helpful. Instead, Reed’s bill is yet another tired, performative, distraction that addresses the symptoms of a problem rather than the problem itself, while providing a safe platform for the bill’s sponsor. I urge you to contact your alderperson and tell them to push a marijuana decriminalization bill that actually serves constituents in the city. Kennard Williams is an organizer and activist in St. Louis.

families. We should be building an economy that works for all, not rigging it to serve the rich.

The Trump administration’s policies are putting at risk all of the progress we made under Barack Obama.

Tom Perez, chair DNC Washington, D.C.

The true state of the union

President Trump’s alternative reality was on full display in the State of the Union address. He simultaneously invented fake economic facts while ignoring the deep wounds and divisions that he has inflicted on the American people.

While the 1 percent and corporations have benefited greatly from the Trump economy and the rising stock market, working Americans have not. His Trump Taxscam is accelerating the transfer of wealth from the middle class to the fortunate few while over 86 million American families will receive a tax increase. The president also failed to make any real commitment to fighting drug addiction and supporting expanded drug treatment. That is a critical failure to lead.

I am willing to work with the president if he truly wants to lower the price of prescription drugs, pass a second chance act to help former offenders, and increase vocational education, especially for young people in inner cities. But sadly, the president continues his assault on the freedom of the press; an independent judiciary; the Federal Bureau of Investigation; and our intelligence community. He continues to deepen his moral deficit that diminishes him, demeans his high office, and weakens our nation at home and abroad. That is the true state of the union.

U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay Washington, D.C.

Columnist Kennard Williams

Columnist Delrish L. Moss

Hazelwood East choir to perform in Texas

Free Brazilian martial arts demonstration

Local martial arts group Capoeira St. Louis will give an all-ages, all-skill-levels demonstration and workshop 7 p.m. Monday, February 12 at the Richmond Heights Community Center and Memorial Library, 8001 Dale Ave. Capoeira, which was developed in 16th century Brazil, incorporates kicks, acrobatics, and dance elements set to music. Combatants are called “players;” instead of fighting, participants tag each other in to “play” the free-flowing game of capoeira. The public is invited to this unique demonstration and workshop. No experience is necessary. No registration required. For more information, contact Richmond Heights Memorial Library staff at 314-645-6202, or follow the Library’s Facebook page at: http://www.facebook. com/rhmlibrary.

Ferguson seeks input on police accountability policies

The Ferguson Police Department is hosting public forums to discuss accountability policies and collect community input: 3-5 p.m. Sunday, February 11 at Ferguson Community Center, 1050 Smith Ave; and 6:30-8:30 p.m. Monday, February 12 at the Urban League, 9420 West Florissant Blvd. You can also email your input on police accountability policies to Community.Ferguson@crt.usdoj. gov.

YWCA seeks Leaders of Distinction nominations

Do you know a woman who is making significant contributions in the workplace or the community? Nominate her to be a YWCA Leader of Distinction. YWCA Metro St. Louis honors women for their contributions in categories like Corporate Management, Entrepreneurship, Science and Technology, The Arts, Philanthropy and Racial Justice. The women chosen are leaders in their fields and personify the YWCA mission of eliminating racism and empowering women. The deadline April 15. Nomination forms are at www.ywcastlouis.org. Or mail to Amy Frey, YWCA Metro St. Louis, 3820 West Pine Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63108 or email afrey@ywcastlouis.org.

We must unite behind black women

By Dorothy Dempsey For The St. Louis

American

We have Me Too, women’s marches, and different organizations all defending women’s rights. It is good that women are coming forward to acknowledge the dreadful atrocities committed against them, but this only brings more to light the horrific Injustices toward black women.

n Black people must rise up, they must awaken from their slumber in the “everything is going to be all right” mentality. Everything is not all right.

All the things that are happening to women today are devastating, but they wane in comparison to what black women in America have had to endure. Many black women in America were treated like cattle, raped, brutalized and forced to bear children at the master’s will. Their children were taken away as if the women never birthed them into the world. They had to watch their children grow up without fathers and become slaves just like them. Their children were not allowed to read or write, the same sin waged against their parents. Their fathers had no defense against white men. Black fathers lived in daily threat of their lives and were like nothing in the eyes of the white men. Black women and men are still considered inferior today, despite their achievements and the hardships they have overcome. Despite all of this, black people must rise up, they must awaken from their slumber in the “everything is going to be all right” mentality. Everything is not all right. We are on the threshold of devastation of our basic humanity. There can be no rights until the rights of all women and men become an issue. Women of color need to be marching more than ever for women’s rights and should be advocating for voting rights, registration, and going out to vote in every election. We need to be united like never before. We need to be a force and a wall against the oppressors that seek to hold us back.

The Hazelwood East High School Girls’ Choir, under the direction of Robert Swingler, choir director, was recently selected to perform at the National School Boards Association Annual Conference in San Antonio, Texas on April 8. The national association represents state school boards associations and their more than 90,000 local school board members.

Dorothy Dempsey

8TH WARD

ward,” said Shaw resident Chip Meyers, who declined to say which candidate he was supporting.

“Now each one is being demonized by the supporters of the other – on both sides. It seems to have laid bare some of the layers of division in the community.”

The special election to replace longtime Alderman Steve Conway, who was appointed as city assessor in November, takes place on Tuesday, February 13. Fehler is the Democratic nominee, and Rice is the Independent candidate. Both are Democratic committeemen for the 8th Ward.

At the Monday night forum, the two candidates agreed on just about everything.

“Even to the point that they agreed with the other person for the exact same reasons that the other person stated,” Meyers said, which was why he found it boring.

On the issues, they were both against privatizing the airport and continuing to use blanket tax abatements in the 8th Ward. They were both for incentivizing affordable housing and implementing participatory budgeting, a process that would allow residents to vote in informal elections on how to use ward funds. They both saw flaws in the current plans for a city/ county merger and ward redistricting, and thus are against moving forward with those plans.

They gave different answers on a couple of questions, and one was regarding the College Kids Children’s Savings Account program, which city Treasurer Tishaura O. Jones implemented in 2015. In the lightning round, the candidates were asked if they agreed with using residual parking revenue

LANDFILL

Continued from A1

Continued from A1 which he called “Excavation Plus,” is expected to cost $236 million and take five years to implement.

for the program – which gives incoming Saint Louis Public Schools and charter school kindergartners saving accounts with a starting balance of $50. Rice said yes. Fehler said, “The funding mechanism I’m unsure of, but the perpetuation of the program, yes.”

They were then asked if they agreed with expanding the program to include any student in the city, not just public school students. Rice said no, and Fehler said yes. In another question, they were asked if they agreed with using public funds to recruit or support sports teams. Rice said no. Fehler said that it was two different questions. He said no to using public funds for recruiting sports teams. However, he said, “to support, there could exist a condition where we could do that.”

For supporters, it seems to come down to the way they say things, what they emphasize and their past actions.

Fehler is a professional data cruncher who would fully analyze the issues, his supporters said, and he plans on being a “fulltime alderman” with office hours when people can meet with him. Rice is a natural legislator because of her background as an immigration lawyer and has a more visionary approach, her supporters said.

“Both of the candidates did a good job answering questions,” said Shaw resident Sarah Stout. “While it seems like Paul would be successful in doing what the aldermen have always done, I am supporting Annie because I believe she will both be able to do that and move us forward in a positive way toward an equitable 8th Ward and a more equitable St. Louis.”

Public safety was one area where the two showed some style differences at the forum.

Rice said on Monday morning she had a “two-hour really energetic meeting” with Captain Michael

“The people of the St. Louis region deserve clarity and answers with respect to the remediation of the West Lake Landfill,” Pruitt said. “I promised them an answer, and today I am making good on that commitment.”

Deeba, commander of the Second Police District. They discussed a “huge potential for partnership” in addressing the ward’s most crime-ridden areas. For instance, Rice said residents can learn how to aid the officers by being very specific when calling 911.

Fehler agreed that neighborhood participation is essential to dropping crime rates. Being in the Shaw neighborhood for the past 12 years, he’s seen the number of personal and property crime incidents cut in half every three years.

“In nine short years, it was one eighth of where it was when I moved in,” said Fehler, who has been the chair of the neighborhood association’s public safety committee for five years.

“This was not because of any single individual or any one good idea, it was because neighbors were working together to address it. We have to address crime at the root causes, but this is not an eitheror. It’s a but-and.”

Rice set herself apart from Fehler when she spoke directly about police brutality.

“One of the things that

However, the Missouri Coalition for the Environment, a nonprofit that has long been demanding action from the federal agency, was not sold on the plan.

“Partial removal is not acceptable,” said Ed Smith, policy director for the organization. “It means high levels of radioactivity will be left behind with the potential for water or airborne contamination into the future, creating unnecessary long-term risks to the St. Louis region.”

people know about me is that I have been active in protests against police brutality here in the city,” Rice said. “And that is something that the captain expressed admiration for. He understands that our police department works best when we hold them accountable and we’re working together.”

Meyers said that the issue of public safety is a big divider among supporters.

One faction believes that there needs to be more police and stricter enforcement. Another faction believes in longer-term solutions and addressing the root causes of crime, using things like youth engagement programs, Meyers said.

“That seems to be one of the fault lines,” Meyers said. “I would think that Paul supporters fall into the former, but there are exceptions on all sides.”

At the forum, the two candidates agreed on public safety policy overall, Meyers said, but “it’s a difference of emphasis.”

Elected officials chime in Several elected officials either attended or watched

The coalition is encouraging people throughout St. Louis “to rise up and flood the EPA with public comments” to have the agency fully remove the radioactive threat and dispose of it offsite.

Just STL Moms, the resident group that has fought tirelessly for the cleanup, said the community had

the forum’s livestream. The consensus was that both candidates performed well.

“What I appreciated most was Annie’s thoughtful response to working on immigrant rights and civil rights issues if elected to the board,” said 15th Ward

Alderwoman Megan Ellyia Green. “We need more aldermen with a strong understanding of policy and the big picture structural changes that have to happen to create for a more just St. Louis for all who live here.”

Alderman John CollinsMuhammad of the 21st Ward endorsed Fehler largely because he was the Democratic nominee and his understanding of the issues, he said.

“I think that both of them are great,” Muhammad said.

“I just think that Paul would do the best job at the local level. I would rather see Annie as a state legislator. I think her ideas, tactics and overall viewpoint on legislation, I think that it’s at a state level, not a local level.”

Muhammad said that economic development is

been anticipating Pruitt’s announcement since early December, when the landfill was listed as one of Superfund’s top sites to receive “intense and immediate action.”

Although the radioactive waste was dumped in the 1970s, the landfill has been classified a Superfund site since 1990.

“We, the community, have been waiting over a quarter of a century for a safe and permanent solution to the radioactive waste at the landfill,” said Just STL Moms co-founder Karen Nickel. “A remedy at this site was long overdue. However, there is no mention of relocation of vulnerable families with children. One thing is certain, relocation options must happen before the first shovel of dirt is moved.”

Originally, EPA proposed only a 5 percent partial removal, the group said, but the proposal now consists of about 70 percent. However, this amount can potentially increase – never decrease – as the process and public comment period proceeds, the group said.

one issue that sets the two candidates apart.

“Each ward wants to be developed,” Muhammad said. “Each ward wants tax incentives, and each ward wants to grow, and I think that Paul understands that because he understands development and community.”

State Rep. Bruce Franks Jr., who supports Rice, said that with the amount of divisiveness in the ward right now, he was happy to see the respect between the two candidates.

When asked about how they would unify the ward after the election, Fehler said that he greatly respected Rice and her supporters.

“It’s absolutely the case that we will be great friends after this,” Fehler said. “I’ve seen divisive things happen in the ward before, and I’ve seen people come back together.” Rice said they were elected as committeemen on two different tickets last spring, but they have been able to work well together for the ward.

“We both have the best interest of the ward at heart,” Rice said, “and we hope that you do too.”

into shelters or to evacuate, according to an emergency plan that St. Louis County issued in 2014. Those who live in Bridgeton, Hazelwood, Maryland Heights, the Village of Champ and the City of St. Charles are directly affected, the plan states.

Bridgeton Landfill, LLC – one of the currently designated Potentially Responsible Parties for the West Lake Landfill – stated that it was pleased that the EPA is issuing a proposed plan for the site.

“From here, we will participate fully during the EPA’s comment period, as well as engage vigorously with the EPA and the other PRPs to ensure that the final remedy performed is based on science, and is fully protective of human health, including onsite workers performing any remedy, the community, and the environment,” according to the company’s statement.

“We consider 70-plus percent removal of the waste a victory and step in the right direction,” said co-founder Dawn Chapman. “Our goals, along with relocating the residents, have always been getting the radioactive waste out of the Missouri River floodplain and away from the threat of the underground fire.”

In December 2010, an underground smoldering chemical reaction was detected in the north quarry of the inactive 52-acre Bridgeton Landfill. This landfill is adjacent to the West Lake Landfill, and they are located northwest of the I-70 and I-270 interchange.

The chemical reaction is particularly dangerous because over the years it has been getting closer to the wastes from 1940s atomic bomb production that are buried only an estimated 700 feet away in West Lake Landfill.

If that happens, toxic fumes – and possibly particulate matter – could spread throughout the region and potentially force people

Bridgeton Landfill, LLC is a subsidiary of Republic Services, Inc. Republic acquired the owner of the West Lake Landfill as part of a large corporate merger in 2008, shortly after the EPA issued its original record of decision.

U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay (D-Missouri) said the EPA’s announcement “is a huge victory for our long-suffering community and it is a major step towards long-delayed environmental justice.” He noted that this is a 75-year old problem that dates back to the federal government’s Manhattan Project.

“The United States government created this waste,” Clay said, “and we have a responsibility to clean it up.” Pruitt said the “Proposed Plan and Administrative Record” will be issued soon and available for public review and comment.

State Sen. Maria Chappelle-Nadal, who has worked closely with the community on the issue, said, “It’s a good day for the good guys and girls.”

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt

Rosemary Johnson and Dianna Powell talk with a health care agency representative during the Jennings Community Health Fair.

Photo by Wiley Price

JONES

Continued from A1

who has previously challenged the committee’s subpoenas.

While Boyd had subpoenaed the treasurer to appear at the February 6 meeting, Jones maintained that she was appearing voluntarily.

After the two exchanged tense greetings, Boyd inquired about the presence of Jones’ attorney, Matthew Hans.

“You are a litigant in an active lawsuit against my office,” Jones said. “Therefore, I have the right to be represented.”

Boyd ultimately agreed to allow Jones’ lawyer to stay, but the two continued to clash over legal issues. Their conflict over the Parking Commission derives from a lawsuit Boyd joined aiming to bring the commission under municipal, rather than county, control. This would remove control of the commission from Jones’ office and allow the city to access its millions of dollars in reserve funds.

Since Boyd signed onto the lawsuit, alongside the St. Louis mayor’s office, the Parking Commission has not held meetings. As the chairman of

BOSTIC

Continued from A1

prosecutors argue that Bostic is a prime example of the reasoning behind the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Graham v. Florida in 2010. Graham held that sentences of life without possibility of parole for juvenile nonhomicide offenders violate the Eighth Amendment. States must provide a “meaningful opportunity to obtain release based on demonstrated maturity and rehabilitation,” the case concluded.

“Mr. Bostic’s case exemplifies the bases for requiring that juveniles be

the Streets Committee, Boyd is a member of the commission, and Jones said she has received legal advice advising her not to hold meetings until Boyd’s perceived conflict of interest – suing to end the jurisdiction of the body he sits on – is revolved.

Jones reiterated her reasoning for that decision at the meeting, but Boyd was unconvinced.

“You’ve been advised by your attorneys to willfully and knowingly violate the law?”

Boyd asked.

Boyd said city law requires the Parking Commission to meet once a month and the city counselor’s office has weighed in to say he does not have a conflict of interest. Jones argued that state law trumps city law. She later said Missouri Attorney General Joshua Hawley is on her side in the dispute, since Boyd’s argument would undermine state supremacy over local municipalities.

Many supporters of Jones attended the meeting to express their discontentment with Boyd. When Boyd asked Jones to disclose the hourly rate of pay for her attorney, the audience expressed loud disapproval. When he said his concerns were about following

given a meaningful opportunity to obtain release,” said Jennifer Merrigan, an attorney at the nonprofit, public-interest law practice The Phillips Black Project and counsel for the amici.

It’s been 21 years since Bostic’s crime, and he has been a model prisoner, Merrigan said. He has completed numerous institutional programs focused on rehabilitation and restorative justice. He has sought out countless educational opportunities, obtaining his high school equivalency test in 1998, a paralegal diploma in 2010, and completing college courses in victim advocacy and business studies.

“Despite this substantial and

the proper process, they chorused, “It’s personal!”

Boyd also asked Jones about an order of protection she filed against him, alleging harassment.

“You spent money on this order for protection, so was it heard?” Boyd asked.

A judge dismissed the case without hearing it on February 4.

“If we didn’t have this lawsuit and we weren’t in this particular situation right now, I wouldn’t have had to seek that remedy,” Jones said. “This is harassment, alderman. This is harassment, and I’m tired

significant growth, maturity and rehabilitation, under Missouri law, Mr. Bostic will forever be denied the opportunity to demonstrate that ‘the bad acts he committed as a teenager are not representative of his true character,’” the group stated in the amicus brief, quoting from the Graham case. “States should not be permitted to circumvent Graham’s mandate in this fashion.”

The vast majority of states that have addressed the issue have held that Graham applies to aggregate term-of-years sentences that exceed a young offender’s lifespan. Missouri has recently joined the small minority of states that refuses to apply Graham to cases like

of coming in front of your kangaroo court every week, because we have work to do in our office.”

Boyd argued the Parking Commission should return to having regular meetings. While Jones’ response to the lawsuit has not interfered with any of the regular operations of the commission, such as issuing tickets or operating parking meters, it has prevented the introduction of new business.

Boyd argued that when a police officer or firefighter sues the city, they do not stop going to work.

“The city is sued often,

these, reasoning that Graham prohibits sentences formally labeled life without parole imposed for a single offense, not a term-of-years sentence imposed for multiple offenses.

“A small group of outlier jurisdictions are overwhelmingly responsible for the imposition of juvenile life without parole sentences,” said attorney John Mills, citing prior research by Phillips Black. “We hope the court’s review will return the rule of law to cases like Mr. Bostic’s. Rank formalism, where the constitutionality of a sentence turns on its label instead of its effect, cannot stand.”

The brief also argues that states including Missouri have been permitted to circumvent

Upgrade at Ameren Illinois

On Friday Jan. 26, Ameren Illinois unveiled a major upgrade to its operating center in East St. Louis. Chairman and President Richard J. Mark, other company officials, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin and local leaders officially re-opened the facility.

and we cannot shut down government operations because the city is sued or there is a lawsuit pending,” Boyd said.

Boyd ended the discussion by asking that Jones provide the committee with copies of all legal contracts and all legal expenditures by the treasurer’s office.

“Let the record show that we voluntarily came and the subpoena is facially invalid,” Jones said.

Her supporters applauded, and later broke into a spontaneous chant outside the meeting room: “Hey, hey! Ho, ho! Alderman Boyd has got to

Graham in another important way: by punishing juvenile offenders more harshly because of their youth.

Bostic was charged as an accomplice in the robberies, and witnesses testified that then-18-yearold Donald Hutson was the primary actor. Upon arrest, Bostic immediately gave a confession, while Hutson refused to cooperate and received a 30-year sentence.

At sentencing, Bostic caved to peer pressure, listening to the other juveniles who convinced him not to take a plea, according to the brief.

go!”

Jones said the subpoena is invalid because it was attested to by an interim clerk who has not been approved by the full Board of Aldermen.

Jones said she believes the conflict derives from a personal grudge Boyd holds against her; she has outperformed him in citywide elections for treasurer and mayor. She also said she hopes to reach a settlement in the lawsuit and return to regular meetings.

“We are elected to do a job of serving the people, and this does not serve the people,” Jones said.

The judge told him at the sentencing, “I saw your lawyer and people from his office trying to talk to you, and you dismissed them because you knew more than these trained legal minds because of your brilliant friends in the workhouse who wouldn’t be there if they were so smart.”

The brief argues that the judge acknowledged his limited maturity and insight.

Quoting the judge, the brief states, “The judge again turned one of the reasons to provide juveniles with protection into a reason to punish him: ‘Before I go through this, I hope this will be a message to the other young men and women out there. Listen to your families or your lawyers, otherwise you will face the consequences of your actions.’”

Photo by Wiley Price

The Stockley verdict

protest and white allies of abolition

No doubt there were people of German descent participating in the protests in St. Charles on Oktoberfest – as was this woman, on September 22, 2017 – and there were also those wishing that the protests had never come to St. Charles – that’s America.

German liberals were key to abolishing slavery in Missouri

By Cecilia Nadal

For The St. Louis American

When peaceful and diverse protestors disrupted the German festival Oktoberfest in St. Charles County to bring attention to issues of social justice and the acquittal of former police officer Jason Stokely for the murder of Anthony Lamar Smith, there were interesting parallels and ironies with the history of Germans in Missouri. In 1848 a number of protests and rebellions emerged all over the European continent including Germany. Germans involved in the protests wanted liberty and equality from an autocratic society then under the control of

See PROTEST, A11

McMillan honored for civil rights work

Michael P. McMillan, president and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, was inducted into the International Civil Rights Walk of Fame in Atlanta on Thursday, January 18. This award was created by Xernona Clayton, founder of the Trumpet Awards and formerly an executive member of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s staff. “It is a permanent testimony to those who have dedicated themselves to the progress of our people and to this nation,” Clayton said of the award, and McMillan “is consistent with the values and accomplishments worthy of this honor.”

The ‘Father of Black Psychology’ passes

Dr. Joseph L. White, age 84

Special to The American Psychologist and activist Joseph L. White –whose trailblazing work revolutionized the way African Americans are understood in psychology and was affectionately referred to as the “godfather” of his field by students, mentees and colleagues – died Nov. 21, 2017 at the age of 84. At the height of the Civil Rights Movement, White emerged as a powerful voice of change: challenging psychologists to understand better the unique experiences of ethnic minorities. He is widely considered a pioneer in the contemporary field of Black Psychology and, in 1968, he helped found the Association of Black Psychologists (ABPsi).

His seminal article in Ebony magazine in 1970, “Toward a Black Psychology,” also was

Presenting sPonsors

instrumental in beginning the modern era of African-American and ethnic psychology, and it helped to define and frame the discourse in that field of study. It was that article that earned him the distinguished honor of being forever referred to as “the father of Black Psychology.”

“Throughout his life, Dr. Joseph L. White has stood on the side of social justice, and directed the activities of his psychological and academic endeavors with visions of hope and possibility for transforming dark yesterdays into brighter tomorrows,” said Thomas A. Parham, a past ABPsi president and vice chancellor of student affairs at University of California, Irvine, where White served as a professor of psychology and psychiatry since 1969.

“He taught us with his heart and soul, he mentored us, he nurtured us and he guided us,

Dr. Joseph L. White

because that is part of the culture he helped create.”

Defining a black psychology

Black Psychology explains, organizes and

See WHITE, A10

‘Shackled hands can make fists’

Askia Muhammad publishes ‘The Autobiography of Charles 67X’

By Brenda D. Muhammad For The Final Call

Who in the world is Charles 67X?

Born Charles K. Moreland Jr., in Indianola, Mississippi, he exchanged the “slave name” “Moreland” for the Nation of Islam’s “X,” as in “unknown quantity,” as in “ex-Negro,” as in “Charles 67X.”

He’s now Askia Muhammad, a poet and photojournalist, and he’s used beauty and skill in “The Autobiography of Charles 67X” to weave readers through more than six decades of perplexities of unresolved institutional racism and his methods to challenge and defy it.

This explosive collection of poetry and photographs follows Muhammad on a remarkable journey through his early life of self-development, that awakens the boundaries of his social, spiritual and political consciousness.

Armed with love for his mother and grandmother during a period of social and political unrest, Muhammad recalls his childhood paper route and even the terror of 3 a.m. beatings; selling the Muhammad Speaks newspaper, and attending Garvey Day Parades. His writing is revealing, transparent and painful, yet he manages to create a simple exegesis of poetry that flows like music, warming the soul, evoking painful memories and a peace that comes from the mastery of life. He shares with readers a stunning story of family, human hardships, social breakthroughs, survival, and his love for black girls, as seen in “Prime Time Poem.” He lived life His Way. His works are deep and turbulent. He is unmoving, unbreakable, following his own path, yet like “Spade” the “Ninja,” in his “Anthony Houston” poem, he is not afraid.

Muhammad’s “Whisky A-Go- Go,” is both entertaining and rhythmic. He deliberately examines the political climate of the 1960s and the American culture that takes him from the dark shadows of being a young Negro living in the dramatic Civil Rights Era to one that rewards him and other black journalists with “full employment” after the murder of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. in 1968.

In “Assassination,” Muhammad captures our thoughts; quiets our minds; evokes fear and memories of what happens to great men and women who are freedom fighters.

“I’ll remember even shackled hands can, often do, make fists,” Muhammad reflects in his “Old Age” poem referring to his San Jose State University classmates Tommie

Photo by Vincent Lang

Askia Muhammad

Black History MontH celeBrations

February 1-28, Exploration

Center: African American Inventors, drop in to the children’s room each week to learn about a different inventor who changed history with their ideas and complete hands on activities. St. Louis County Library –Indian Trails Branch. St. Louis Public Library 8400 Delport Dr. St. Louis, MO 63114.

February 1-28, Freedom Quilt, Celebrate Black History Month by adding your own square to the freedom quilt. St. Louis County Library –Jamestown Bluffs Branch, 4153 N. Highway 67 Florissant, MO 63034.

February 1-28, Black History Scavenger Hunt, stop by the teen area each week to complete various scavenger hunts and other activities. Turn in your completed scavenger hunt to the front desk to receive a prize. For ages 12-17. St. Louis County Library – Jamestown Bluffs Branch, 4153 N. Highway 67 Florissant, MO 63034

February 1-28, Freedom Quilt, St. Louis County Library – Oak Bend Branch, 842 S. Holmes Ave. St. Louis, MO 63122.

Date: February 1-28, African American Author & Illustrator Scavenger Hunt, Celebrate Black History

Month with a scavenger hunt for famous black authors and illustrators. St. Louis County Library – Daniel Boone Branch, 300 Clarkson Rd. Ellisville, MO 63011.

February 2, 9, &23, 10 a.m. Lap Time, Stories, songs and play time to help develop early literacy skills. Ordinary objects created by extraordinary African American inventors will be featured each week. St. Louis County Library –Rock Road Branch, 10267 St. Charles Rock Rd. St. Ann, MO 63074.

Feb. 4 – 25, Metro Theater Company and Jazz St. Louis present Bud, Not Buddy Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Sq., 63108. For more information, visit www.metroplays.org.

Thurs., Feb. 8, 11 a.m. & Fri., Feb. 9, 6 p.m., Saint Louis Art Museum Romare Bearden Graduate Fellow Jade Powers will discuss “Beautiful Utility: An Appreciation for Aesthetics.” One Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park, Saint Louis, Missouri 63110. For more information, visit www.slam.org.

Sat., Feb. 10, 10 a.m., World of Reading: Multicultural Fair. Explore the world through crafts, music and dance for all ages. Kirkwood Public Library, 140 E. Jefferson Ave.,

63122. For more information, visit www.kirkwoodpubliclibrary.org.

Sun., Feb. 11, 2 p.m., Race and the Blues in St. Louis: The Present. The Stage at KDHX, 3524 Washington Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www.facebook.com.

Thurs., Feb. 15, 11 a.m. & Fri., Feb. 16, 6 p.m., Saint Louis Art Museum presents Nichole N. Bridges, associate curator of African art to discuss “Curator’s Choice: African Art on View,” Saint Louis Art Museum, One Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park, Saint Louis, Missouri 63110. For more information, visit www. slam.org.

Sun., Feb. 18, 1:15 p.m. & 3:10 p.m., The St. Louis Public Library will celebrate Black History Month with featured speaker Rev. Jesse Jackson, Christ Church Cathedral, 1210 Locust St. Each engagement is free and open to the public, but reservations are required at https:// www.brownpapertickets.com/ event/3201803. Tickets should be presented at the door in paper or electronic form.

Sun., Feb. 18, 6 p.m. (5 p.m. doors), Community Women Against Hardship’s Black History Month Celebration featuring legendary pianist

Sun., Feb. 18, 6 p.m. (5 p.m. doors), Community Women Against Hardship’s Black History Month Celebration featuring legendary pianist

Harold and Dorothy Steward Center for Jazz. All proceeds benefit their Health and Wellness Programming.

Johnny O’Neal, Harold and Dorothy Steward Center for Jazz. All proceeds benefit their Health and Wellness Programming. All tickets available via the Jazz St. Louis Box Office, 3536 Washington or by calling (314) 571-6000.

Sat., Feb. 24, 2 p.m., The Saint Louis Art Museum will screen “The Black Power Mixtape, 1967-1975” as part of its Black History Month programming, Saint Louis Art Museum, One Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park, Saint Louis, Missouri 63110. Tickets

available in person or at metrotix.com.

Sun., Feb. 25, 2 p.m., The Saint Louis Art Museum will screen “I Am Not Your Negro” as part of its Black History Month programming, Saint Louis Art Museum, One Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park, Saint Louis, Missouri 63110. Tickets available in person or at metrotix.com.

Through February 28, Portfolio Gallery’s presentation of All Colors Visual Arts Invitational & Juried Exhibition, the exhibition

features the work of invited African-American and juried artists from across the country. St. Louis Artists’ Guild, 12 North Jackson Ave., 63105. For more information, visit www.stlouisartistsguild.org.

Thursdays in February Missouri Humanities Council presents A View of African American History and Culture. Henry Givens Jr. Admin Building, Harris Stowe, 3026 Laclede Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www. mohumanities.org/educationprograms.

Johnny O’Neal,

facilitates the understanding of the cognitive, emotional, behavioral and spiritual behavior of African-descent peoples. White had argued that the lifestyles of African Americans could not be understood or explained by using the traditional theories that explain the behavior of white people. So in the 1960s, he and others set into motion an ethos for Black Psychology that provided a new and revolutionary model that continues to influence African-American cultural and intellectual life to this day.

“Essentially, Joe was critiquing traditional psychology’s arrogance in believing that it was the norm against which all people and their cultures should be measured and telling black people that ‘you cannot seek validation from people who are oppressing you,’” said Parham, who is among the many who cite White as an influential mentor.

First black psychologist he had ever seen

Joseph L. White was born in Lincoln, Nebraska, on Dec. 19, 1932, and was raised in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Upon completing his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at San Francisco State he was accepted into the doctoral program at Michigan State University in clinical psychology. He became the first African American at Michigan State to receive his Ph.D. in clinical psychology in 1961, and in his words, became the first black psychologist he

had ever seen.

During his career, White was a part of the faculty and administration at both California State University, Long Beach and his alma mater San Francisco State University. He later joined the faculty at UCI in 1969. At the time of his passing, he was a professor emeritus at UCI, where he served as a teacher, author,

supervising psychologist, mentor, and director of ethnic studies and cross-cultural programs.

Champion of diversity on college campuses

He’s also remembered as a champion of diversity on college campuses. During his

n “Dr. White was a renowned scholar and will be remembered for his pioneering work in clinical psychology. But like all great professors his most enduring contribution is that he touched so many lives as a mentor and a teacher.”

– Condoleezza Rice

time at Long Beach, White helped found the state’s Educational Opportunities Program (EOP), which grew into a statewide program providing supportive pathways for disadvantaged students to study at CSU campuses.

Through his personal mentoring, White has inspired countless black, white, Asian and Latino students to excel in academia and pursue advanced degrees.

White was appointed to the California State Psychology Licensing Board by Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. and served as chairman for three years. He also served as a member of the Board of Trustees of The Menninger Foundation in Topeka,

Kansas. He has received the Distinguished Psychologist Award from the Association of Black Psychologists, the Citation of Achievement in Psychology and Community Service from President Clinton in 1994, the Helms award for mentoring from the Winter Roundtable.

Influential writings

White is the author and co-author of several influential papers and books including: “The Psychology of Blacks: An AfricanAmerican Perspective” (1990; 1984); “The Troubled Adolescent” (1989); “Black Man Emerging: Facing the Past and Seizing a Future in America” (December 1998), and the co-author with Parham and Adisa Ajamu of the 1999 (3rd Ed), and the 2011 (4th Ed) of the “Psychology of Blacks Books,” and the 2006 edited volume with Michael Connor on “Black Fathers: An Invisible Presence in America.” He is survived by his wife Lois White of Irvine, California; three daughters Dr. Lori Suzanne White, Mrs. Lynn White Kell, and Dr. Lisa Diane White; his former wife Myrtle Escort White; his beloved sonsin-laws Anthony Tillman and Kevin Kell; his brother Gerald “Bunky” White; his aunt Estella “Betty” Lee, and a host of beloved cousins, colleagues, students and extended family.

Continued from A7

Smith and John Carlos who raised clench fists at the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. His poetry includes commentary on economics, education, politics, labor, law, religion, entertainment, and

war. He reminds readers that black men fought in every American war, and yet are still without full citizenship in this country, in now the 21st Century. Muhammad is gentle, yet fierce and determined; explosive and loving at the same time. He’s laid back, giving, watchful; seeking high intelligence. Defiance labeled him as persona non-grata. However, he is equally yoked

with the humane attributes of a round-the-way Mississippi boy. He is Askia; Brother Askia Muhammad. There are more than three dozen original photographs in this volume, including: The Rev. Andrew Young, Mrs. Coretta Scott King: Waiting, Planning, Patient. Visionaries determined to be free. Unafraid, Black, Bold. A mixture of comforting hues from the heavens.

Dr. Carlton Goodlett and Journalist Ethel Payne: Renowned journalists in January 1975 at the home of Virgin Islands Governor Cyril James. Beautiful, intellectual media people. Born to tell it like it is; Destined to be heard. Cesar Chavez: “Freedom is best experienced through participation and selfdetermination, and free men and women instinctively prefer democratic change to any other

means,” Cesar Chavez, He Showed Us The Way. Barack Obama: This photo, had it been shown or published a decade ago, would have literally changed the outcome of the 2008 presidential election. It depicts a warm and friendly encounter between Illinois Senator Barack Obama and Nation of Islam Minister Louis Farrakhan taken at a Congressional Black Caucus meeting at the U.S. Capitol in

2005. The Autobiography of Charles 67X by Askia Muhammad, available in bookstores and on Amazon: charles67x@gmail.com.

Sister Brenda D. Muhammad is the Mid-Atlantic and Eastern Regional Student Protocol director for The Nation of Islam, in Washington, D.C. She is a contributing writer for The Final Call newspaper, and also a professor of Communication.

BLACK HISTORY

HOW THEIR LIFE CHANGED YOURS

Dr. Robert Boyd was born into slavery on July 8, 1855, near Pulaski, Tennessee. In 1866, his mother took him to Nashville to live with an internationally known physician, Dr. Eve. During his stay with Dr. Eve, young Robert enrolled in night classes at Fisk University. The medical department at Central Tennessee College invited Boyd to their school in 1880, after seeing his efforts at Fisk. He graduated with honors two years later. After spending some time teaching in Mississippi, Dr. Boyd returned to Nashville and graduated in 1887 with a Doctor of Dental Surgery degree from Meharry Medical College. Dr. Boyd opened his own practice and provided services to his underserved community. After city officials suddenly barred Meharry students from learning opportunities at a local facility, Dr. Boyd opened Mercy Hospital, in 1900. Mercy Hospital was opened to students and patients of all races.

How His Life Changed Yours

Dr. Boyd was alarmed by the high mortality rate in the black community. He wrote a paper about the causes and prevention of illness and lectured all over central Tennessee, in churches and other public forums, about the importance of proper health care. Around that same time, Dr. Boyd and some of his colleagues were becoming increasingly frustrated by their exclusion from the American Medical Association and other similar medical professional groups. They formed their own organization called the National Medical Association and Dr. Boyd was its first president, in 1895. His legacy continues to inspire young medical students today because of his passion for his community and unwillingness to accept any obstacles that were in his way.

Centene Corporation presents His Life

Meharry Medical College

Austria. The protestors were not successful and were forced to seek exile. Many of these freedom fighters, known as the “Forty-Eighters,” came to America with well debated ideas of what democracy should look like in practice. They were disgusted by the existence of slavery in America and found it to be a complete contradiction. The German Forty-Eighters continued their activism by becoming key leaders in the abolitionist movement across the nation and in Missouri. Prominent German activists, such as Henry Boenstein and Franz Sigel, came to Missouri as a result of earlier immigration by such liberal Germans as Arnold Krekel, Friedrich Munch, Eduard Muhl and Carl Strehly. Educated and accustomed to presenting their case, these men passionately argued against slavery, mobilizing other German immigrants in Missouri and elsewhere. Their advocacy was important to counterbalancing those who supported slavery and their influence in the Republican Party was significant. (The Republican Party was pro-abolition in those days.)

Not all Germans in Missouri agreed fully agreed with the Forty-Eighters. Some Germans were caught in the middle, especially the farmers who needed workers in rural Missouri. Though they did not agree with slavery, they saw no way to work around the fact that they needed workers. As a result, many German farmers compromised their principles, looking more to the practical side of the problem. There was also a sense of insecurity from some Germans about their own position as legal citizens if they were to take a public stand against slavery. Would this position put their own people at a disadvantage? In spite of a lack of

consensus, Forty-Eighters like Friedrich Munch wrote prolifically and fiercely against slavery in support of the Union. Munch not only challenged Southern slaveholders but revealed the way that the North was both compromised and hypocritical in its position on slavery. While the North argued against slavery, it did not necessarily want integration once slaves were freed, nor did the North stop the importation of slaves. Munch points out that Lincoln and others wanted a separation between blacks and whites. Eventually, in spite of his opposition, Munch proposed sending African Americans to Florida as a compromise with his detractors. Hermann, Missouri became ground zero for the abolition of slavery in Missouri, as Sydney Norton points out. She says the Forty-Eighters’ efforts in

n In spite of a lack of consensus, FortyEighters like Friedrich Munch wrote prolifically and fiercely against slavery in support of the Union.

Hermann were “an unusual phenomenon since Missouri had entered into the Union as a slave state and there was little vocal opposition among the Anglo-American population during these early years.”

In 1852, Arnold Krekel founded the St. Charles Demokrat, a liberal newspaper that brought Germans together with a sense of unity and became a prominent voice for antislavery. When the Civil War started, it was the leadership of Judge Krekel that mobilized Germans as “the St. Charles Home Guard” blocking Confederate soldiers from a takeover of the region north of the Missouri River. Judge Krekel remained steadfast in his support of political and social equality for African

Americans.

In 1865, it was Krekel who presided on the Missouri Constitutional Convention signing into law the freeing of all slaves. Against much opposition, he petitioned that the word “white” be removed from the constitution. When the 56th U.S. Colored Infantry asserted that blacks had the right to full political citizenship Krekel supported their petition. It is noteworthy that, despite Krekel’s best efforts, AfricanAmerican men in Missouri did not receive the right to vote until 1870, and both black and white women were excluded from voting until 1920.

The contributions of German immigrants to St. Louis and Missouri are enormous. We have schools, streets, churches and many businesses that contributed over time to the cultural and social fabric of our region. If statues are removed to erase the horrible memories of the Confederacy, then perhaps we might consider replacing them with statues that remind us of the moral courage of people like Judge Arnold Krekel who believed in equality and social justice that was color-blind and was not afraid to bring that message to his own community with passion and conviction.

No doubt there were people of German descent participating in the protests in St. Charles on Oktoberfest and there were also those wishing that the protests had never come to St. Charles – that’s America!

Knowing about Judge Krekel and the German Forty-Eighters enriches our understanding of how diverse leaders have fought for our democracy. It is important to acknowledge the history of contributions of different cultural groups to our community and the complexity that comes with fighting for social justice.

Judge Krekel, the FortyEighters and St. Louis protestors have an inextricable connection – a passion to correct what is unjust.

Cecilia Nadal is executive director/producer at Gitana Productions.

Christian Hospital opens acute care unit with private rooms

Johanna Crawford, RN, BSN, manager of Christian Hospital’s Acute Care Medical Unit (AMCU), cuts the ribbon at the third-floor open house on February 1 to officially open the doors to Christian Hospital’s new $5 million AMCU. She was joined by hospital President Rick Stevens, other hospital and BJC HealthCare staff and leadership, and community leaders. The celebration, in partnership with the Greater North County Chamber of Commerce, drew more than 150 people and included tours of the newly renovated and expanded unit that now has 29 new private patient rooms and is the first step in converting the hospital tower to all private rooms. The new AMCU began caring for patients February 5.

Family-friendly care for BJC patients

Hospital opens new Parkview Towers to expand care for mothers, babies and cancer patients

By Sandra Jordan Of The St. Louis American

Some of the most complex medical cases at Barnes-Jewish Hospital are moving into BJC HealthCare’s new Parkview Towers, designed for optimum patient care and family comfort. BJC took into account design ideas and input from more than 750 people, including patients, family, physicians, nurses, and nonclinical staff on how people and patients would experience the new spaces. When you go inside the new expansion, a check-in desk is located in front of separate elevators which take visitors to the either the Women and Infants Center or Siteman Cancer Center. Each floor has themes, corresponding colors, original artwork, and patient exercise

n “The focus is to make sure the patients are comfortable and they can have their family members there, and there’s room for everyone.”

– George A. Macones, M.D.

rooms. The new configuration brings mothers who have high-risk or complicated labor and deliveries much closer to their babies. Previously, mothers and infants were housed at two separate locations, and some of the

babies had to be separated from their moms and brought over to Children’s, said F. Sessions Cole, M.D., chief medical officer at St. Louis Children’s Hospital. The neonatal intensive care unit at St. Louis Children’s Hospital was expanded, and a skywalk connects it to labor and delivery in Parkview Towers.

“While it is geared to have all the resources and people, medicines and machines available for both the mother and baby, regardless of the problem for the highrisk moms, you can be a low-risk mom and deliver here and have complete control over what’s going to happen to you,” Dr. Cole said. “But, if you have an unanticipated or

By Denise Hooks-Anderson, M.D. Of The St. Louis American

Though January is traditionally the month that we start making resolutions about how we will be different in the upcoming year, I think we should consider making February our month of focused introspection and selfevaluation. We should ask ourselves during this time: What changes will I make to improve my health?

When contemplating lifestyle changes, my patients always seem to ask me: “Well, doc, where do I begin?” You start at the beginning. An excellent starting point is scheduling a routine physical with your primary care provider. This visit with the doctor will include a history, an examination, and recommendations for future labs and tests.

n Not sharing family history is a major problem in most families, but this ridiculous practice must stop if we want our families to exist in the future.

The history that the doctor obtains is vital in determining risk factors for diseases such hypertension, diabetes, cancers, and high cholesterol. For instance, having a family history of a cardiovascular illness increases your risk of developing conditions such as heart attacks, heart failure, and strokes. When obtaining this history from family members, it also is important to know the age at which your loved one developed the disease. Not sharing family history is a major problem in most families, but this ridiculous practice must stop if we want our families to exist in the future.

After a thorough history is obtained, the provider then examines the patient from top to bottom to identify any abnormal findings. For example, the vital signs (temperature, weight, blood pressure, pulse, and BMI) can provide a great deal of insight on your state of health. Patients with a BMI (body mass index) greater than or equal to 30 are considered obese. Being overweight is a major risk factor for diabetes. Therefore, knowing this information allows the patient and the provider to establish some type of program to help prevent unwanted illnesses

How to prevent tooth decay in babies

New parents have a lot on their plates when heading home from the hospital for the first time. It can be overwhelming trying to remember everything that needs to be done. Do we have enough diapers? Are we feeding him or her enough? How much is enough sleep? All of these issues are important, but don’t forget about their oral health, too. Young infants can get baby bottle tooth decay if their teeth are exposed to drinks with high sugar for extended periods of time. To prevent your little one from experiencing this type of tooth decay, the health experts at Envolve, an integrated healthcare solutions company, are pleased to share five practices to protect your child.

1. Wipe Gums. After each feeding, grab a piece of gauze or a wet washcloth and clean your little one’s gums to remove bacteria

buildup. Avoid being too rough and just dab the material gently around their gums.

2. Don’t Dip. Never coat children’s pacifiers with honey or sugar to get them to use it. This creates an oral environment that encourages infection and promotes tooth decay. Instead, always give freshly washed pacifiers to protect gums and teeth.

3. Begin Brushing. Once the first tooth emerges, start with a child-sized soft toothbrush and use a tiny amount of kidfriendly toothpaste. Don’t forget to use non-fluoride toothpaste until they’re able to spit on their own. It’s also recommended to schedule the first dentist appointment when the first tooth emerges but no later than the first birthday.

See BABIES, A13

See BJC, A13

Denise HooksAnderson, MD

Photo by Wiley Price

Working with Haitians to save the lives of children all over the world

By Patricia B. Wolff, M.D.

For The St. Louis American

In reply to President Trump’s recent statement disparaging Haiti, I would like to share my observations of the continual improvement in Haiti in the last 29 years that I have been working there.

I am a pediatrician who has volunteered in Haiti for 29 years. I have personally witnessed a huge amount of progress in Haiti in that time. From 1988 to 2003, I treated sick children in a village clinic. But it became clear to me that the problem of sick children would never be resolved with medical

BJC

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unpredicted problem, we can help you with that too, because all the other resources are right here.”

For mothers in active labor, there is a separate private hallway to walk and progress their labor. There are six tub rooms. Each patient room has garden views and is designed to be family-friendly and to keep mother and baby together –which helps in breastfeeding.

“That’s really what the focus is – to make sure the patients are comfortable and they can have their family members there, and there’s room for everyone,” said George A. Macones, M.D., a Washington University obstetrician/ gynecologist and division chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. “All private rooms, beautiful amenities – we want to make it a great experience. If it is a complicated pregnancy, we still want people to have a beautiful birth experience they will remember forever.”

Dr. Macones said everything that the mom or the baby needs is right in the room. The technology in each patient the room is helpful for both medical staff and patients.

“There is going to be a system when somebody walks into the room, an employee or a physician, their picture will come up on the TV with who they are and what their role is,” Dr. Macones said. “Because there are a lot of us, and we are in and out all of the time and it’s very confusing, so it is going to be nice for patients to know.”

Both towers are bathed in light and designed to reduce patient distractions, to provide privacy and comfort and to provide accommodations for family members.

Accommodations, in addition to the patient, are one bed and a-half. “The couch pulls out to a bed for a person to sleep comfortably, and then somebody can sleep in the recliner if they need to,” said Donna Ware, director of Planning and Design for BJC –“which is a huge benefit.”

At the expanded Siteman Cancer Center space, there are private patient rooms and accommodations for family, including areas to use

ANDERSON

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secondary to elevated blood sugars. Other physical findings – such as swollen ankles, darkened skin around the neck, and a lack of sensation on the feet – are all signs of congestive heart failure and diabetes. Following the exam, your

care because their underlying problem was that they were malnourished. And they were malnourished because their parents had no jobs and no money. So, in 2003 Meds & Food for Kids (MFK) began to employ Haitians to make a ready-to-use therapeutic treatment (Medika Mamba/ Plumpy’nut) product for malnutrition in Haiti. In 2012 we built a big factory with donor funds to make a much larger amount of this product and began selling it at cost to UNICEF, USAID, the World Food Program and many other mission groups in Haiti. This life-saving product

n I am humbled by Haitian persistence in the face of adversity and their ability to make do with so little. There is much we can learn.

made by MFK’s 65 Haitian workers has not only treated thousands of children in Haiti but has now been exported to 14 countries on behalf of UNICEF. Our employees work hard and are committed to educate their children, gain skills and improve their country. These employees are responsible for saving the lives of over 300,000 children around the world.

When I first arrived in Haiti in 1988, there were few good roads, almost everyone was thin, and many people had no shoes. Only a minority of children were in school. Now roads are improved, malnutrition has been cut in half, almost everyone has shoes, and a majority of children attend school for at least a few years. These improvements

have been coming without stop despite earthquakes and hurricanes. The pace of improvement has been accelerated by cell phones and the internet, but mainly because of the resilience, hard work, and optimism of the Haitian people. I am awed by the children doing their schoolwork under the gas station lights every evening because there is no electricity at home. I admire the parents who skimp and save to pay school fees because they know that education is the key to a better future. I am inspired by neighbors who fix their own streets and provide their own

security. I am amazed that Haitian organize themselves into their own small credit unions because commercial bank loans are unaffordable. I am humbled by Haitian persistence in the face of adversity and their ability to make do with so little. There is much we can learn from people who live in such difficult circumstances and continue to have a vibrant family and community life.

computers, laundry facilities, showers, and kitchen areas for visitors, as well as quiet areas overlooking Forest Park.

“The thing I think is best is the patient-centeredness and the integration of technology,” said Tim Eberlein, M.D., director of the Alvin J. Siteman Cancer Center and surgeon-in-chief at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. “A lot of that you don’t see if, but you experience it if you are a patient. When you walk in, it’s not about me, the doctor. It’s about you, the patient.”

The televisions serve as communication and information hubs, to order meals, and to receive patient education prior to discharge. Through employee badges, patients will always know who is coming into their room and who is talking to them. Their picture also will appear on the TV screen.

“The communication is much more direct and focused, and it will be much better for the patients,” said Dr.

doctor will then discuss recommendations and probably order various laboratory tests. Such tests may include a lipid panel and blood sugar. When fasting, your total cholesterol should be less than 200 and your blood sugar should be less than 100. And depending upon the results of those, additional testing may be warranted. Now at this point, your participation as a patient is even more crucial. Once

Eberlein, who is the Bixby Professor of Surgery, chair of the surgery department, and the Spencer T. and Ann W. Olin Distinguished Professor at the School of Medicine.

He said one of the big advantages of the new building is the consolidation of cancer treatment.

“The operating rooms, colorectal, GYN, urology and endocrine sarcoma, melanoma, head and neck, all that will be done here,” Dr. Eberlein said. “And the patients will be where our medical oncology patients are currently. When medical oncology moves into this building, then we’ll renovate the Schoenberg Pavilion, and then cancer will be the

dominant component of the north campus.”

He said there are also some plans to move things around in the nearby Center for Advanced Medicine to expand outpatient cancer services.

n “You can be a low-risk mom and deliver here and have complete control. But, if you have an unanticipated or unpredicted problem, we can help you with that too.”

– F. Sessions Cole, M.D.

“If you are a patient, if you are a family member and you come in and you have an outpatient visit, and they say, ‘We should admit you into the hospital,’ it’s going to be a whole lot easier than the northsouth kind of thing that had been going on,” Eberlein said. “That’s a byproduct of what has happened with consolidating cancer care here.”

Barnes-Jewish Hospital’s new 12-story Parkview Tower is 558,000 square feet with

these findings are addressed, an immediate action plan is necessary. Diet changes, increased exercise, and more frequent monitoring is generally the course of action. However, I have known patients to ignore early warning signs and later present with full-blown disease or end-organ damage. At that point, it is too late.

Denise Hooks-Anderson,

M.D., is assistant professor at SLUCare Family Medicine and The St. Louis American’s medical accuracy editor. Email yourhealthmatters@ stlamerican.com.

BABIES

Continued from A12

4. Limit Snacking. When your child is able to handle

406 parking spaces. It includes 160 private rooms and 10 bone marrow transplant ICU beds, patient exercise rooms in the Siteman Cancer Center space. It has 52 obstetrics inpatient beds, 18 labor and delivery rooms, 12 women’s assessment rooms, two cesarean-section rooms and one fetal surgery operating room in the Woman and Infants Center space. Other space for adult patients includes 15 inpatient ICU beds, 12 operating rooms, and five interventional rooms.

The 12-story St. Louis Children’s Hospital expansion is 222,000 square feet, with 96 pediatric beds and 40 private neonatal intensive care unit beds connected to the labor and delivery area in Parkview Tower via a pedestrian bridge. It adds space for other pediatric services, including intensive care and bone marrow transplantation, a new ambulatory procedure center, helipad, an ECMO technology elevator and a second Ronald

solid food, get in the habit of choosing snacks that are sugar-free or unsweetened. Read ingredient labels to find out if the items contain sugar or starches, which turn into sugar. Sugary snacks include candy, mints, cookies, soda and juices. Healthier, teeth-friendly snack choices are fruits and vegetables, low-fat cheese and water.

5. Schedule Check-ups

McDonald Family Room. Medical oncology patients began moving into the new Siteman Cancer Center space the weekend of February 3, and patients are moving into the Women and Infants area this weekend February 10. The old areas will be redesigned as single patient rooms, where possible, and lodging for out of town guests.

“Siteman is unique in that we actually care for patients from all 50 states, so if you are from a long distance away, you’re not going to have the opportunity to say, ‘I’m going to go home and change clothes, take a shower, then come back,’” Eberlein said. “And not all of our patients can pay for all those kinds of amenities.”

Dr. Eberlein said a $10 million Hope Lodge fundraising project with the American Cancer Society will fund that project.

It’s hard to spot tooth decay in infants without a full dental examination since specific equipment and technology is needed. Small, white spots can appear on their gums above the upper front teeth but they may not be visible to you. If you suspect your child has these symptoms, contact a pediatric dentist for medical attention for early treatment and prevent further damage.

Patricia B. Wolff, M.D., is founder and executive director of Meds & Food for Kids in Quartier Morin, Haiti.

Photo by Wiley Price

F. Sessions Cole M.D., chief medical officer at St. Louis Children’s Hospital and George A. Macones M.D., division chief of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Barnes-Jewish Hospital show off one of the private rooms for mothers and their baby in the new Parkview Tower located on Parkview Place, just east of Kingshighway Blvd.

Healthy Kids Kids

Nutrition Challenge:

Watch the Salt!

We all know that salt can sometimes “bring out” the flavors of some foods. But like many other things, we have to remember moderation. Kids should limit their salt (sodium) intake to 1,200 – 1,500 mgs. But according to a recent study by the CDC

(Centers for Disease Control), the average American kid averages more than 3,300 mgs each day!

Too much sodium contributes to high blood pressure and other health problems. It also can make you swell, making your face, hands and legs look puffy. The next time you’re looking for a snack or meal item, note the sodium content on the label! You’ll feel and look better.

Learning Standards: HPE 1, HPE 2, HPE 5, NH 1, NH 5

Dealing With Injuries

Safety In Numbers

If you injure yourself while exercising (or even just walking around), an ice pack is usually one of the best ways to treat the initial pain and swelling.

Talk to a nurse or doctor about your injury if the pain is severe, or if you don’t feel better within a day or two. Let him or her know what you were doing when you first felt the pain.

Anytime you are walking to the store, school or anywhere, take a friend along! Not only can it be more fun, it is safer to be with a group of friends than walking alone. Also, avoid shortcuts that include

If you’re told to “take it easy” for a while, follow the doctor’s orders. Sometimes you just need to let your body heal. Pushing yourself before you’re ready could actually cause your body to take even longer to mend itself and feel better.

Learning Standards: HPE 2, HPE 7, NH 7

dark, empty alleys, parking lots or buildings. Instead, choose a route that is filled with other people that are also out walking.

Learning Standards: HPE 2, HPE 5, NH 1, NH 5

Healthy Snacks

Apple Peel Sticks

Ingredients: Peels from 6 apples, 1/2 tsp cinnaomon, 4 Tbsp sugar

Directions: Sprinkle the peels with a few drops of water to moisten. Toss the peels with the cinnamon sugar mix and spread them in a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake in a 250 degree oven until lightly crisp (about two and a half hours). Cool before serving.

of Behavioral Management from Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona.

What does a national certified psychotherapist/ licensed clinical social worker do? I work with fathers to build healthy relationships with their children, so he can have a positive influence in their lives. I work with children and adults who have had tragedy in their past, allowing them to become productive individuals.

Why did you choose this career? I am able to establish a good rapport with clients to assist them to feel comfortable in talking about concerns regarding their lives. The ability to connect with people is a great asset and my love and compassion to help improve their lives is a God given ability. What is your favorite part of the job you have? The favorite part of my job is providing services to families and children who are underserved in our community or forgotten by society. I always tell clients, “no one can stop you but you.”

Learning Standards: HPE 6, NH 3

The Saint Louis Zoo is currently accepting applications for Zoo ALIVE, our teen volunteer program. High school students 15 and older may apply. As a Zoo ALIVE volunteer, you can share your love of animals with our diverse audiences by helping at classes, camps, overnights, birthday parties, and special events. Volunteers can also participate in group conservation activities, camping trips, and more. This is a year-round program for dedicated and responsible teens.

For more information, visit stlzoo.org/education.

Eddie McCaskill, LCSW, LPC, NCC

CLASSROOM SPOTLIGHT

Ms. Cureton’s 4th Grade Class

Annette Officer

Elementary

At Annette Officer Elementary in the East St. Louis School District, 4th grade teacher

Lucretia Cureton shows students

Vernon Lowery III, Kimorrae Harris and Pierre Walton Jr. how to work a science experiment using the newspaper’s STEM page. Photo by Wiley Price Teachers, if you are using the St. Louis American’s NIE program and would like to nominate your class for a Classroom Spotlight, please email: csewell@ stlamerican.com

SCIENCE CORNER

Have you ever watched a weather forecast and wondered what the meteorologist was really saying? Read on to learn about some of the terms used in a weather forecast.

Just Exactly What Is Meterology?

High Pressure System: A high pressure system is a whirling mass of dry, light air that usually brings mild weather and light winds.

SCIENCE STARS

METEROLOGIST AND EDUCATOR— June Bacon-Bercey

June Bacon-Bercey is famous for her work in meteorology. She was born Oct. 23, 1932, in Wichita, Kansas. As a child, she was very interested in science. In 1954, she graduated with honors from the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), with degrees in math and meteorology.

Bacon-Bercey worked for the National Weather Service in Washington, D.C. Her weather forecasting charts were put into use worldwide. She also worked as a consultant with the Sperry Rand Corporation, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Agency (NOAA) and the National Broadcast Company (NBC), and worked as a TV weathercaster in New York. Her expertise put her in high demand. She was the first African-American woman to be given the National Weather Association’s “seal of approval” for excellence in television weathercasting.

Front: A front is a line of separation between a warm and cold air mass. It usually results in stormy weather and temperature changes. When there is a cold front, the cold air replaces the warmer air, and the temperature drops. When there is a warm front, the warmer air replaces the cooler air and the temperature rises.

Doppler radar: The Doppler radar can detect precipitation, wind direction and speed. Weather forecasters use the Doppler radar to detect severe thunderstorms and tornadoes. Humidity: Humidity is the amount of water vapor in the air.

SCIENCE INVESTIGATION

A rain gauge measures the amount of rainfall.

Although you can purchase a rain gauge, you can also make your own.

Materials Needed:

1 Clear Jar (at least one quart)

Clear Waterproof Tape

A Ruler

Process:

q Place the ruler inside the jar. Be sure the ruler is even with the bottom of the jar and the inch markings are visible from the outside.

w Tape the ruler securely inside the jar.

e Place the rain gauge outside in an open area.

MATH CONNECTION

Meteorologists must have a strong grasp of patterns. For this activity, you will collect data about the weather for one week. You will use this data to answer some questions.

Low Pressure System: A low pressure system is a whirling mass of warm, moist air that usually brings stormy weather and strong winds.

Barometer: A barometer is used to measure pressure in the atmosphere.

Want to learn more weather terminology and symbols? Check out: http://www.weatherwizkids.com/ weather-forecasting.htm

Learning Standards: I can read a nonfiction article to learn new vocabulary.

r Check the rain gauge every day at the same time and record the amount of rainfall.

t Empty the rain gauge daily.

Record your observations in your notebook. Compare your results with the class.

Note: It is fun to have a rain gauge at home and at school. You can compare the amount of rainfall at each location. Try placing the rain gauge in different locations and see how it impacts the amount of rain collected.

Learning Standards: I can follow directions to complete a project. I can compare and analyze results.

Weekly Weather Data

Which day had the highest temperature?

_______________ Which day had the lowest temperature? ________________ Which day had the biggest span in the temperature range?________________ What was the average high temperature of the week? _________________ What was the average low temperature of the week?_________________

Learning Standards: I can add, subtract, multiply and divide to solve a problem. I can collect data and analyze patterns.

DID YOU KNOW?

Since 1990, Bacon-Bercey has been focusing on education. She has developed science lessons for textbook companies. It is her goal to attract women and minorities to study science, and she has developed a scholarship to make their education possible.

Learn more about June Bacon-Bercey and her Accomplishments: http://www.sfgate.com/ bayarea/article/Substitute-Science-Teacher-Is-aMeteorology-3240651.php

Learning Standards: I can read a biography to learn about accomplishments in math, science, and technology.

Good writers must be able to see situations from many different perspectives. This is called a point of view. In this activity, you will consider a situation from three different perspectives.

In the winter, outside recess time is sometimes shortened (or eliminated) at school due to the temperature. Consider this decision from the point of view of the parent, the teacher, and yourself (the student). Now, pretend you are the parent and write a letter to your teacher explaining why your child should have a full or shortened outside recess. Next, pretend you are the teacher. Write a paragraph explaining why you would or would not give your students a full-length outdoor recess. Finally, write a paragraph from your perspective. Should your outdoor recess time last the full amount? Should it be shortened or eliminated? Why?

DearMs.Matthews, Iamtheparentof Akeshainyour4th gradeclass. I know it is winter and hardforchildrentobe outsidetoexercise,but Akesha does better with somephysicalactivity duringtheday. Iamhopingyouwill consideraddingsome exercise to the schedule ifpossible. Thanks,RhondaWright

In the News: Select an article in the newspaper. Discuss the perspective of the author. Would the article change if it was written from another person’s point of view?

Learning Standards: I can use point of view in a writing sample. I can write for a specific purpose and audience.

One of the science textbooks BaconBercey has published.

National Weather Service Radar Mosaic from Feb. 2, 2013.

Q&A with Annie Rice, 8th Ward aldermanic candidate

On Friday, The St. Louis American reached out to both candidates for 8th Ward alderman in the special election on Tuesday, February 13 to ask them the same questions, requesting answers by Monday morning. Democratic nominee Paul Fehler did not respond. Annie Rice, the Independent candidate, answered as follows. At a forum on Monday, February 5, the American asked Fehler if he received the questions.

“I did,” Fehler said. “It’s been such a hectic last week.”

The American started to ask another question, but Fehler quickly moved away to speak to someone else. The American waited until he was through with that conversation to ask if he had ignored the email, and he said, “No, I have not had a chance. We’ll make some time to talk.”

Then he moved away again. The following day, the 8th Ward Republican Committeeman Michael Chance posted a set of questions on the Shaw Neighborhood Facebook page that he wanted to see answered. Rice responded first, followed by Fehler, just five hours after the questions went up. Fehler has not responded to the American’s multiple attempts to reach him for two weeks.

least $7 million of the local tax revenue goes to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund?

Annie Rice: The city must fully, legally fund the Affordable Housing Trust fund, and my understanding is that $7 million would recoup the city’s underfunding the legal minimum for the past few years. At a time when our city is in deep financial crisis, we need to be mindful of the expenditures we undertake. But affordable housing is an absolutely necessary investment for this city, and I am committed to advocating and voting for affordable housing and the programs the AHTF funds, such as the Center for Women in Transition, and the Northside Youth and Senior Service Center, as a strong foundation for a financial stable and prosperous city.

reforms do you see necessary at the police department?

The American: Police Chief John Hayden has said that he is interested in making anti-bias, anti-racism training mandatory for officers, but he has not yet researched the cost or process to do this. What can you do as an alderman to help make this happen?

The St. Louis American: The Affordable Housing Trust Fund is supposed to receive $5 million every year from the local use tax revenue, but it has been underfunded since 2011. With the passage of Prop 1, the use tax revenue has increased by about $4 million annually.

Affordable housing advocates are calling aldermen to allocate this money into the trust fund –for a total of at least $7 million. Will you advocate for and use your vote to make sure that at

Annie Rice: Our city is full of community resources that we can use to work towards a police department that recognizes and addresses its racial biases, while simultaneously educating our citizens. St. Louis’ colleges and universities utilize such trainings and adapting them for our police officers, public safety officials, and citizens is a necessary step forward. I will work to facilitate these relationships and encourage the exchange of resources and trainings in order to move this city forward and strongly advocate SLMPD do what is necessary to implement this training.

The American: What kind of

Annie Rice: I am glad that State Auditor Nicole Galloway is pursuing the audit that hardworking citizens and aldermen pushed for and got across the line. Whatever we learn, it is important to have transparency about our financial situation, especially in the largest portion of the budget – public safety. I believe that the Ferguson Commission Report does a tremendous job in detailing necessary police reforms, from a comprehensive plan to respond to civil demonstrations, to engaging officers in the community, to empowering our minority recruitment program.

The American: Would you use your influence and/or vote to shut down the Workhouse?

Annie Rice: Yes. The Workhouse as a jail is a blight on our city. We need comprehensive criminal justice reform to either close the Workhouse or use it to offer better paths of rehabilitation. Many of those who await trial in the Workhouse are held on drug-related offenses. Our city, and our state, is facing

Annie Rice is running for 8th Ward alderman in the special election on Tuesday, February 13 as an Independent.

a crisis when it comes to heroin and opioid abuse. With significant renovations, I would be interested in exploring whether the property could be repurposed to serve as a drug treatment facility, or its resources could be repurposed to help us combat these epidemics. Let’s reallocate funds in the public safety budget to address this crisis as the public health issue that it is.

The American: What would you do to make sure that the city is offering 24-hour homeless services?

Annie Rice: We need a walk-in shelter and we need long-term policy to help our unhoused residents with more stable solutions. Housing policies are important, but there must also be adequate beds available in extreme temperatures for those who are not housed. This winter has shown us that the city is not addressing this crisis to match the need. Groups like St. Louis Winter Outreach who have been working for years in emergency situations to save lives are teaming up with other groups Mama Cat and the Potbangerz who work every day to make sure people are fed, as well as nonprofits and churches who have selflessly opened their doors this winter, and they need to be the ones leading these conversations as we move forward in implementing effective solutions. The mayor’s first meeting with these leaders seemed to open lines of communication and advocacy for needs, and I would encourage those meetings to continue.

The American: Will you uphold the current system in the 8th Ward where renovated homes north of Flora regularly receive 10-year tax abatements and five-year tax abatements

for new homes south of Flora?

(Steve Conway mentioned this at a neighborhood meeting last year, and it’s documented in the minutes sent out by the Shaw Neighborhood Improvement Association.)

Annie Rice: No. Blanket tax abatement approval in the Shaw neighborhood has passed its prime. Tax abatements are useful when there is a need, but without demonstrating a real need, such as significant renovations to help an elderly couple stay in their long-term home, then we cannot keep asking neighbors to bear the burden of tax incentives.

The American: What kind of reforms do you see necessary for tax incentive use in St. Louis city?

Annie Rice: $700 million in tax revenue was forgone from 2010-2014 in our use of TIFs and tax abatements, and though some were needed and have worked well, continuing to give away tax incentives at this level will have dire consequences for our city. We are a city that has many local, community assets, affordable living, and we should not be giving away funding for our public schools and city services while asking long-time residents to pick up the slack with increased sales and property taxes. We need a city plan that has strong guidelines for when tax incentives can be considered, and claw-back provisions when developments do not meet their responsibilities. That plan needs to include a racial equity lens, and a formal assessment of the impact of development on lower-income and more vulnerable residents and should allow for strong Community Benefits Agreements.

The American: Do you support the privatization of the airport?

Annie Rice: No. The city should not be selling off its assets.

The American: Of the current members on the Board of Aldermen, who do you see as a potential mentor or model for you, if you are elected? Why?

Annie Rice: I admire a lot of the work Alderman

Terry Kennedy has done in his tenure at the board, and I am fortunate to already have strong relationships with Aldermen Megan Green, Dan Guenther, Christine Ingrassia, Cara Spencer and Sharon Tyus. Their hard work and bold leadership are great examples to follow, and I know that the most important thing for me is to make sure I meet the needs of the people of the 8th Ward and St. Louis as a whole.

The American: President Reed and Alderwoman Green sponsored very different marijuana bills this session. Which would you have supported and why?

Annie Rice: I believe cities can lead and can be bold, and Alderman Green’s path forward with Board Bill 180 seems the most promising in my view. Even though marijuana possession is only a municipal ticket, those tickets can prevent residents from access to student loans, access to gainful employment, and housing. We have far more significant problems in St. Louis that law enforcement is trying to tackle, and continuing to criminalize marijuana possession is hurting –particularly our communities of color – more than it is having any positive effect.

The American: Do you support a city/county merger or the city’s re-entry into St. Louis County as its 91st municipality? Annie Rice: Not with any plan that has been set forth yet. There is no plan that I have seen that adequately addresses the concerns that St. Louis city residents have, or adequately deals with the challenges that are particular to our city. I recognize that two closely-knit counties competing on a number of shared fronts creates a situation where one raising the salaries of public servants forces the other to do the same, and there is need for coordination on issues that affect us across boundaries, but those can be addressed without a full merger. Until there is a plan that justly addresses the concerns of St. Louis city and doesn’t solely benefit interests in the county, there is no path forward here.

Black-owned funeral home opens in South St. Louis

Henry Funeral and Cremation Services on December 22 in the former Gebken-Benz Mortuary, located at 2842 Meramec St. in South St. Louis. He believes he is the only black funeral home owner in South St. Louis.

Brandon

Henry acquired Gebken-Benz

Mortuary, which opened in 1886

By Sophie Hurwitz For The St. Louis American

Brandon Henry, age 32, opened his own funeral home on December 22, Henry Funeral and Cremation Services, which made him (as far as he knows) the youngest funeral home owner in St. Louis, as well as the only AfricanAmerican funeral director in South St. Louis. But, although he is bringing something new to the industry, he’s also standing on the shoulders of an enormous legacy – that of the GebkenBenz Mortuary, whose building he took over. Gebken-Benz Mortuary was founded in 1886 and the building Henry acquired from the Benz family has been standing since 1904, so Henry spent much of his first month there renovating –“Giving it a little TLC,” as he said. He excitedly pointed out some of the architectural features

n “We’ve just made it a little bit more contemporary, if there is such a thing as making a funeral home contemporary.”

– Brandon Henry

of the Meramec Street building – arched plaster ceilings, large wooden doors, and stained glass with little hourglasses on it. However, Henry has changed some features of the building, such as removing the dated carpet from the hallway and repainting some of the rooms.

“We’ve just made it a little bit more

contemporary, if there is such a thing as making a funeral home contemporary,” Henry said.

Though Henry is young, he has a long history in the funeral services business, dating back to when he was 17 years old. As a high school student, he interned at Wade Funeral Home.

“I guess the passion for serving people just evolved from there,” he said. “So I just kind of went on services and just learned about how to treat people in services, and what went on at a funeral home.”

After high school, he became a St. Louis County police officer, and continued in that job for 7 years. After Ferguson, however, he changed his mind about how he wanted to serve his community: through funeral services.

As Henry was on the hunt for a way back

See HENRY, B6

SLU and Urban League to host job fair for ex-offenders

Employers encouraged to sign up to meet potential employees on April 10

By Jessica Karins For The St. Louis American

Saint Louis University and the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis are partnering on a project to help address unemployment for those with a criminal record: the Partnership for Success Career Fair, which will be held at Chaifetz Arena on April 10.

The event, the first of its kind in over a decade for the St. Louis area, will attempt to bring together ex-offenders with employment opportunities with the hopes of reducing recidivism.

“Data show that employment can make a difference in reducing crime rates,” Saint Louis University (SLU) said in a press release. “The vast majority of ex-offenders whose parole was revoked were unemployed at the time of their violation, and an unemployed ex-offender is significantly more likely to return to prison than an ex-offender who has a job.” SLU and the Urban League are receiving

n “It is a privilege for us … to prepare people who have been incarcerated to gain the healing, resiliency and skills they need to live the lives for which we believe God has created them.”

– Christopher Collins, SLU

Parole Office, the U.S. Department of Justice, and the Missouri Department of Corrections.

According to the event’s organizers, they expect to draw dozens of employers from a variety of industries who are looking to hire. The organizers are promoting the benefits of hiring ex-offenders, including tax credits and federally funded health insurance, to encourage participation.

In addition to this program with ex-offenders, SLU also provides services for those currently in prison. Since 2008, SLU faculty and students have taught classes at a state facility in Bonne Terre and a federal correctional institution in Greenville, Illinois for inmates and staff members, helping more than 4,500 people work towards degrees.

Christopher Collins, the assistant to the president for mission and identity at SLU and a Jesuit priest, said these programs are part of the university’s Catholic-inspired mission.

Lawrence E. Thomas was elected board chair of Forest Park Forever. He is a partner at Edward Jones, where he recently celebrated his 40th anniversary, and a longtime member of Forest Park Forever’s Board of Directors and Executive Committee. The board is comprised of regional leaders who all believe in the importance of caring for Forest Park now and for generations to come.

Jacqueline K. Dace was appointed interim executive director of the National Blues Museum. She has served as director of internal affairs with the National Blues Museum since February 2016. She will remain as interim until the Board of Directors conduct a nationwide search for replacement for Dion Brown, who announced his resignation earlier this month.

Bishop Elijah H. Hankerson III was unanimously elected and installed as the president of the St Louis Metropolitan Clergy Coalition.

Along with this role, at 45, he serves as the youngest jurisdictional bishop in the Church Of God In Christ (COGIC), overseeing 65 churches in Missouri and the Midwest. As the local pastor of Life Center International COGIC, Hankerson’s agenda will focus on crime reduction, education, economic development, and social justice.

Teresa Williams was appointed director of TRiO Student Support Services at Washington University in St. Louis. TRiO is a federally funded program that provides supplementary financial support and academic coaching for students who are low-income, the first in their families to attend college, or have a physical or learning disability. A former TRiO student, she is a veteran higher education administrator

George R. Cotton Sr. was appointed senior vice president of Development at the Charles H. Wright Museum of African American History in Detroit, Michigan. The Wright Museum is the nation’s second largest cultural institution focusing on African and African American Education and History. Cotton is a former University City School Board president and also served as professional development facilitator to the Saint Louis Public Schools.

Anniece Spencer will receive a 2018 State Award for Excellence from the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. She works for Medtronic in the intensive insulin management diabetes division as a diabetes clinical manager and district speaker. She earned her Doctor of Nursing Practice degree, Advanced Diabetes Management Concentration, from The University of Alabama Birmingham. She is a native of St. Louis and graduate of Hazelwood East High School.

Lawrence E. Thomas

Bishop Elijah H. Hankerson III

Anniece Spencer

George R. Cotton Sr.

Jacqueline K. Dace

Teresa Williams

Brandon Henry opened

Photo by Wiley Price

Why is the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau turning against consumers?

By Charlene Crowell

St. Louis American

For The

In the wake of a recent series of anti-consumer actions taken by Mick Mulvaney, the Trump-appointed Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s acting director, a bicameral call for accountability was released on January 31. Led by Congresswoman Maxine Waters of California and Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, two other Congressional Black Caucus Members, Congressmen Keith Ellison (MN) and Al Green (TX), joined Senators Richard Blumenthal (CT) and Jeff Merkley (OR) as signatories. Together, the group of lawmakers seek to know what prompted Mulvaney’s actions as well as his ties to the payday lending industry.

A January 31 letter calls into question the following specific actions that have occurred over the past month:

• Halting implementation of the agency’s final rule preventing abusive payday lending (the Payday Rule);

• Announcement of the Bureau’s intention to initiate a rulemaking process that appears designed to weaken the Payday Rule;

• Withdrawing a bureau lawsuit against four online payday lenders who allegedly misled customers on interest rates that spanned a low of 440 percent to as high as 950 percent; and

determine consumers’ choices –including those that are harmful and predatory. He also wants financial businesses to have more input on determining what regulations CFPB should use in their supervision and monitoring.

As CFPB’s acting director, Mulvaney also wrote a letter to Federal Reserve Chairwoman Janet Yellen advising that “for Second Quarter of Fiscal Year 2018, the Bureau is requesting $0.”

Mulvaney added, “While this approximately $145 million may not make much of a dent in the deficit, the men and women at the bureau are proud to do their part to be responsible stewards of taxpayer dollars.”

• Ending an investigation of World Acceptance Corporation, a high-cost installment lender that began in 2014 after consumers complained of unaffordable loans and aggressive collection practices.

n Instead of regulating financial services, Mulvaney prefers allowing private enterprise to determine consumers’ choices.

“For too long, some payday, auto title, and installment lenders have taken advantage of American workers who need a little extra money to pay an unexpected medical bill or fix their car,” wrote the lawmakers. “For too many families, one unexpected

expense or tight week traps them in a cycle of debt that lasts months or years…The rule finalized by the CFPB last October was carefully balanced to end that cycle of debt while ensuring that borrowers retain

access to needed credit.”

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform Act that created the CFPB intended for it to be an independent agency, charged with serving as the consumer’s financial cop-on-the-beat. Its director was to be nominated by the President and confirmed by the Senate to a five-year term of service. Additionally, CFPB was to secure its funding directly from the Federal Reserve Bank, rather than through Congress’ annual appropriations process that could enable powerful special interests to restrict necessary funding.

Even though he Dodd-Frank Act also a defined succession plan for an acting director in the event of personnel changes, two people were appointed to this same role. One, Leandra English, was lawfully appointed by the now-departed Director Richard Cordray, while another, Mulvaney, was appointed by President Trump.

The lawmakers’ letter is addressed to both appointees.

An appellate federal court will eventually decide who should be the legal acting director; but in the interim, Mulvaney leads CFPB while retaining his position as director of the Office of Management and Budget.

In his prior role as a South Carolina congressman, he co-sponsored a bill to eliminate the CFPB and accepted nearly $63,000 in campaign donations from payday lenders. These donations included $4,500 from World Acceptance Corporation’s political action committee.

“The CFPB spent five years honing the Payday Rule, conducting research and reviewing over one million comments from all types of stakeholders: from payday lender, to state regulators, to faith leaders,” wrote ranking members Warren and Waters.

Now Mulvaney oversees the daily operations of the same bureau that returned $12 billion to nearly 30 million consumers in about six years. Instead of regulating financial services, this acting director prefers allowing private enterprise to

When the federal deficit is hundreds of trillions of dollars, it strains credulity to believe that $145 million will lighten the nation’s debt. But an emerging pattern of the current Administration is to allow lengthy delays that could eventually become denials. As this column has previously reported, key consumer protections in student loans have been delayed as well, and through the Congressional Review Act, a rule that would have allowed consumers to have their own day in court to resolve financial and credit issues has also been rejected. Moreover, Mulvaney directed the CFPB to delay implementation of its prepaid card rule that was designed to help stop abusive fees for users. If sparing taxpayers unnecessary costs is the guiding force, then why has both the CFPB and Department of Education rejected earlier negotiated rulemaking and begun the process anew – at taxpayers’ expense?

“I certainly understand the desire to protect taxpayer dollars,” said Debbie Goldstein, executive vice president with the Center for Responsible Lending, “but I think the mission of the CFPB is to protect the taxpayers, the American people, from lenders who target them for high-cost and unaffordable loans. And the best way to save Americans millions of dollars is by preventing predatory lending, not by draining the CFPB’s resources.”

Charlene Crowell is the Center for Responsible Lending’s communications deputy director. She can be reached at charlene.crowell@ responsiblelending.org.

Free tax preparation Feb. 13

In partnership with the National Association of Black Accountants, Inc. (NABA), 1st Financial Federal Credit Union and St. Louis Community College, St. Louis Comptroller Darlene Green is sponsoring free tax preparations and banking consultations for lowto-moderate wage earners, senior citizens and people with disabilities.

The event will be held Tuesday, February 13 at the William J. Harrison Education Center, located at 3140 Cass Ave. Client sign-ins begin at 3:30 p.m.

JOB FAIR

continued from page B1

“It is a privilege for us not only to host this career fair but also to continue through several of our initiatives to prepare people who have been incarcerated to gain the healing, resiliency and skills they need to flourish to live the lives for which we believe God has created them,” Collins said.

Michael P. McMillan, president and CEO of the

Tax preparers certified through the IRS VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) program will assist clients with 2017 income tax returns and applying for all qualifying tax credits, including earned income tax credits (EITC) and tax credits for seniors and those with disabilities. All 2017 federal and state (including Missouri, Illinois and other states) returns will be electronically filed. Additionally, 1st Financial Federal Credit Union representatives will offer opportunities for opening free savings and checking accounts and provide consultations on other banking services. Taxpayers should bring all required materials with them to the preparation, including all W-2 and 1099 forms, valid identification, social security cards or taxpayer identification numbers for all family members, and other materials. For more information, call 314-657-3422; for a full list of items to bring or to find other IRS VITA walk-in dates and locations, visit www.naba-stl. org/vita/.

n Employers can reserve a booth at the ex-offenders job fair on Tuesday, April 10 by calling 636-489-5400.

Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, said his organization was excited about the opportunities provided through participation in the job fair.

“Through the Urban League Save Our Sons program, we

have worked diligently to provide comprehensive services to this population as well,” McMillan said. “We hope to make significant progress through this career fair.” The job fair will be held from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Tuesday, April 10. Participants are required to come with resumes and proof of completion of job training. Employers can reserve a booth at the event by calling 636-4895400.

“You’ve got LeBron James over in that locker room. What else the man need to do? Don’t take it for granted, man, don’t take it for granted.”

– Chris Paul

Sports

Whitfield’s Watson rolls on

signee

Whitfield High senior standout Torrence Watson has been a premier scorer throughout his prep career. In the past few weeks, the 6’5” Watson has gone above and beyond the call of duty in the scoring department as he closes out his stellar career with a flourish. A University of Missouri signee, Watson has averaged a whopping 41.5 points in the Warriors’ past five games.

Watson’s biggest performance came last week when he scored a career-high 58 points in a 78-66 victory over DeSmet. He also scored 40 points in a victory over Pinckneyville (Illinois) at the Bank of O’Fallon Shootout last Friday night. There was also a 45-point performance against Pattonville and 37 more points against Sikeston at the MFA Oil Break Time Shootout in Columbia on his future home court at Mizzou.

For the season, Watson is averaging 31 points a game to lead the St. Louis metro area in scoring. He has also reached two big scoring milestones this season. He scored his 2,000th career point on Dec. 11 in a victory over Lift for Life in a game in which he scored 50 points. Watson surpassed the 2,500-point mark in the victory over Pinckneyville.

St. Mary’s goes back to back St. Mary’s ventured on the road last weekend on back to back nights and came away with a couple of impressive victories. On Friday night, the Dragons travelled to Quincy, Illinois to take on Quincy Notre Dame and scored an impressive 83-50 victory. Senior guard Lavell Harris scored 15 points to lead the Dragons, followed by senior Antonio Burks

STL sports fans celebrate Patriots loss

While 103 million people (a 7 percent drop from last year) were glued to what was apparently a thrilling, captivating Super Bowl game, my thoughts were far from football. I was busy helping my nephew, Sidney Keys III, run his monthly Books N Bros meeting in Ferguson. Instead of seeing stiff arms, spin moves, diving catches and perfectly-placed throws, I was with a bunch of 10-,11- and 12-year-old boys reading Kareem Abdul-Jabbar’s What Color Is My World?

The Lost History of African-American Inventors. We also witnessed an excellent inspirational speech from motivational speaker Tony Thompson (no relation to the well-known KWAME CEO).

Don’t worry. This article isn’t an attack on your level of “wokeness” if you watched the Super Bowl, as you’ll soon discover. After I returned home and got settled, the game was entering its final minutes. This was apparent due to the buzz of text and group chat messages that lit up my phone like a Christmas tree. A friend who had essentially wagered a mortgage payment on the Eagles was getting antsy. The underdog Eagles were winning, but Tom Brady was about to get the ball back with a few minutes remaining. If you don’t know how that story usually ends, just ask the Atlanta Falcons.

I found myself at a crossroads. I hadn’t watched or really even thought about the game until that point. But my curiosity was building. For those outside the 314, the prospect of watching Brady and the Patriots lose a Super Bowl is only second to a Cardinals World Series victory in terms of exciting scenarios for St. Louis sports fans. Add in the drama of my friend risking homelessness on a sports hunch and my pro-Kaepernick spirit wasn’t strong enough to keep me away from the game’s

didn’t matter who the Patriots were facing, I wanted them to lose. So when Brady coughed up the pigskin with 2:13 remaining, there

final three minutes. Now I don’t have any particular affinity (or disdain) for the Philadelphia Eagles. For those few minutes, though, I rooted for the Eagles as if Ezekiel Elliott Sheldon Richardson, Jeremy Maclin, Bradley Beal, Jayson Tatum, Larry Hughes Nelly and SZA were all on the Philly roster. It See CLUTCH, B7

Earl Austin Jr.

Ishmael H. Sistrunk

Photo by Wiley Price

SportS EyE

With Alvin A. Reid

Mizzou, KU hopefully headed for a historic NCAA Tournament collision

You’re probably about to read more about Kansas basketball than you care to in the next few minutes, but trust me – this is a Missouri basketball feature.

KU came into the season ranked in the Top 5 of most national polls and was a Final Four favorite for many college hoops pundits, including Jay Bilas of ESPN.

The Jayhawks lacked inside depth, but with five-star freshman center/forward Billy Preston poised to help out, a thin, eight-man rotation for coach Bill Self didn’t seem too great an obstacle to overcome.

But Preston turned out to be the Jayhawk that never really was. He played in the exhibition game against Missouri, but was held out of the victory over Kentucky in Chicago in early November because he missed classes.

think the Selection Committee would have made this happen if Mizzou had advanced to the tournament, regardless of the exhibition game in late October.

He was then involved in a single-car accident on Jayhawk Boulevard (the heart of the KU campus) that left two tires on his Dodge Charger flat. The car was towed. So was Preston’s KU career.

He never played again as the school – and then the NCAA –addressed who the car’s owner is and how Preston ended up behind its wheel. Days became weeks, then weeks became two months. He practiced and traveled with the team, but never played.

He signed with the professional team BC Igokea in Bosnia. KU has been an up-and-down team with a seven-man rotation ever since.

I told you all that to tell you this. Missouri and KU are destined to play in the 2018 NCAA Tournament. I

All Missouri has to do is make the tournament. Well, KU also has to regroup after its third home loss of the season – a shocker to an undermanned Oklahoma State team last Saturday – and hold at least a No. 3 seed entering the tournament. Joe Lunardi’s weekly Bracketology breakdown for ESPN currently has Missouri as the No. 10 seed in the Midwest Region. The Tigers would play the No. 7 Michigan Wolverines in Wichita. The winner would take on the winner of No. 2 seed KU and 15th seed UC Santa Barbara.

Missouri’s late season charge includes a road victory at Alabama and last week’s home win over Kentucky. KU has a challenging schedule ahead, which includes road games at Texas Tech and Iowa State and home tilts against Oklahoma, Texas and West Virginia.

KU could easily slide in its seeding – while also failing to win an NCAA record 14 consecutive conference titles. The Jayhawks are tied with John Wooden era UCLA teams with 13 straight.

If they tumble, it could impact the Mizzou-KU tournament game. The Tigers have done their part to set up the matchup. They need to not drop a game to an underdog. KU must do the same. Both teams might lose their spot in Wichita and be sent to other regions. They might meet in a Sweet 16 game. But

my guess is KU and Mizzou will spend a March Madness afternoon or evening trying to knock each other out of the tournament.

I didn’t want to play

Missouri in the exhibition game. I’d enjoy playing them in the tournament. They deserve it and so do long-suffering Tigers fans.

Oh. KU will win.

The first big story

In fall of 1977, a guy named Dan Brogan and I were members of the Kirkwood Call newspaper staff. Recognized as the best high school newspaper in the nation for several years running, we were anxious to win similar recognition.

Kirkwood High School had a staff member that had been an All-American high school basketball player during his years as a Pioneer, and was now serving as an assistant wrestling coach.

Brogan and I interviewed coaches and the athletic director and the former player. I was a basketball manager for coach Paul Meyer, who was the varsity head coach.

He and the other coaches were honest in saying that there simply was not a position for assistant coaches for either the sophomore or varsity teams. Back then, if you had had two paid coaches, you were lucky.

The story which ran in the Call carried the headline “A Needless Waste of Basketball Talent.”

It won statewide recognition as the Best Sports Story of the year as judged by the Missouri Press Association. It also won the newspaper valuable points

and helped the Call again be named the nation’s best.

Three years later in the summer of 1981, Brogan and I were interns with the Cincinnati Enquirer. He attended Indiana and I was at KU.

I spent the next 11 years working with Gannett, which owned the Enquirer and Brogan worked for the Chicago Tribune and then created Denver magazine.

We both remember that first award-winning piece of work. And we’ll never forget who the subject of the article was.

It was Charles “Cookie” Thornton

Lankford on HOF ballot

I’ve been harping on this for two years, and now the local media is finally on board.

Suddenly, it has been realized that Ray Lankford was not only absent from the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame – he hadn’t even been nominated. What a crock of you-knowwhat.

Lankford is on the ballot this year along with returning nominees Keith Hernandez Scott Rolen and Jason Isringhausen. Other first-time ballot members are Vince Coleman, Lee Smith and John Tudor

I don’t trust Cardinal fans to select Lankford over Hernandez, Rolen or Isringhausen. I think it will be up to the front office and the red-ribbon committee to

honor Lankford in 2018. He’s the most deserving of all the players on the ballot based on what he accomplished as a long-time Cardinal. I’ve run these statistics once (or twice) a year since 2016, so here is why Lankford’s snub is ridiculous. Lankford is the only Cardinal to hit 20 home runs and steal 20 bases in more than one season –he accomplished the feat five times (1992, 1995 –1998.) He was among the Cardinal Top 10 in home runs (third with 228), stolen bases (fifth with 250), runs scored (eighth with 928), runs batted in (eighth with 829), and bases on balls (fourth with 780) when he retired. Lankford hit more home runs at Busch Stadium II (123) than any other player. He closed his career with a pinch-hit home run in his final Major League at bat on October 3, 2004.

Alvin A. Reid was honored as the 2017 “Best Sports Columnist – Weeklies” in the Missouri Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest. He is a panelist on the Nine Network program, Donnybrook, is a weekly contributor to “The Charlie Tuna Show” on KFNS and can also be heard on Frank Cusumano’s “The Press Box.” His Twitter handle is @aareid1.

Alvin A. Reid

Five-star freshman center/forward Billy Preston’s irresponsible behavior led to his departure from the University of Kansas. His loss has left the Kansas Jayhawks with only a seven-man rotation that could threaten their string of 13 straight conference titles.

traffic lights were torn down outside City Hall, and a couple of windows at Macy’s were shattered,” Boren wrote. “A few fights broke out, the awning outside the RitzCarlton collapsed, and a car was flipped on its side. One fan ate horse manure. (Frankly, worth its own headline.)”

However, Boren noted how, at the time, only four people had been arrested by police. His efforts to downplay the scene were backed up by the mayor of Philadelphia, Jim Kenney “The knucklehead contingent was extremely small,” Mayor Kenney said Tuesday during a news conference about Thursday’s parade, which is expected to draw millions to the city. “The media focuses obviously on the negative.”

If those individuals had taken the streets with Black Lives Matter signs instead of Eagles jerseys, we all know that the responses of the police, mayor and media would’ve been much different.

Never trust the Patriots

As if America needed another reason to despise the Patriots, Offensive Coordinator Josh McDaniels pulled a DeAndre Jordan on the Indianapolis Colts.

Tuesday morning the Colts announced that McDaniels would be the new coach of the franchise. The Colts officially signed Matt Eberflus (defensive coordinator), Jerry Schuplinski (quarterbacks coach) and Dave DeGuglielmois (offensive line coach) to contracts, after they were offered positions by McDaniels.

Later in the evening, the Colts dropped a bomb and released the following statement regarding the McDaniel’s hire:

“After agreeing to contract terms to become the Indianapolis Colts’ new head coach, New England Patriots assistant coach Josh McDaniels this evening informed us that he would not be joining our team. Although we are surprised and disappointed, we will resume our head coaching search immediately and find the right fit to lead our team and organization on and off the field.” McDaniels backed out.

Apparently, when

PREP

Continued from B5 with 12 points and senior Miles Jones with 10 points. The following night, St. Mary’s ventured to Southeast Missouri to took a 75-58 victory over host Charleston in the featured game of the Sixth Man Shootout. The Dragons had three different high scorers as junior guard Yuri Collins and senior forward Yahuza Rasas scored 16 points and senior forward Dominic Mitchell added 14 points. St. Mary’s enters the week with a 19-3 record.

Vashon goes 2-1 in DC

The Vashon Wolverines ventured east to participate in the loaded St. James Invitational Tournament in Hagerstown, Maryland, which featured some of the top prep school programs in the nation. Vashon went 2-1 for the weekend and came away with the consolation championship. In the opener, they dropped a 70-61 decision to St. Benedict’s Prep (New Jersey), the No. 4 team in the country. The Wolverines came back to defeat Benedictine Prep 73-61 and Our Savior New American School 66-65 to win the consolation bracket. Junior guard Mario McKinney was named to the All-Tournament Team. He scored a game-high 30 points in a great performance against St. Benedict’s in the opening game.

Incarnate Word dominates the field at Webster

MICDS girls win the Lindbergh Tournament

Congratulations to the

on winning the

McDaniels went back to Boston to clear out his office, he was talked into staying in New England by Patriots’ owner Robert Kraft and Head Coach Bill Belichick. Kraft offered to pay him more money. Belichick offered to take McDaniels under his wing, essentially grooming the OC as his successor. The move is embarrassing for all parties involved. The

Defending Class 4 girls state champion Incarnate Word dominated an excellent field of teams in winning the Webster Winter Challenge title last weekend. The Red Knights won their three games by an average margin of nearly 30 points a game. In the championship game, IWA defeated Kirkwood 76-42 as senior forward Nakayla Jackson-Morris scored 23 points en route to earning MVP honors for the tournament. In the semifinals, IWA defeated St. Joseph’s 73-53 as senior guard Sonya Morris scored 29 points, including eight 3-pointers. In the opening game, the Red Knights defeated Washington 72-39 as senior forward Rickie Woltman scored 21 points.

Colts look like fools for publicizing the hire and scheduling a press conference before they had ink on paper. The assistants, who left other teams to coach for McDaniels, were left hanging. McDaniels, who served as the St. Louis Rams’ offensive coordinator under Steve Spagnuolo, looks indecisive and insensitive.

According to Frank Schwab of Yahoo Sports, McDaniel’s

KK enters the record books

Senior girls’ standout KK Rodriguez of Webster Groves set a couple of records at last weekend’s Webster Winter Classic in leading the Stateswomen to the consolation championship. The Tulsa University signee scored 34 points in a victory over Parkway Central to set a new school single-game scoring record. She also finished the three-game tournament with 89 points, which is also a new record. Rodriguez’ big scoring weekend propelled her to the top spot in the St. Louis metro area among scoring leaders.

PreP AThLeTe of The Week

E.J. Bellinger

Fort Zumwalt South – Boys Basketball

The 6’4” junior guard averaged 28 points in three victories last week as the Bulldogs improved their record to 18-2.

Bellinger had 27 points, six rebounds, three assists and three steals in a 62-52 victory over Washington. He also had 27 points, 10 rebounds and three steals in a 71-68 victory over Holt, plus he had 30 points and 11

rebounds in a 56-46 victory over Fort Zumwalt East. For the season, Bellinger is averaging 25.4 points a game, which is third in the St. Louis area in scoring. He is also averaging 8.4 rebounds a game while shooting 52 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range and 81 percent from the free throw line.

Philly fans riot after the Eagles improbable victory of the New England Patriots. Despite looting, destruction of traffic lights and property, police only arrested a handful of rowdy rioters.

agent, Bob LaMonte, severed his ties with the coach following the fiasco.

After “Deflate-gate,” “Spygate” and now this McDaniels’ debacle, everybody should know that you should never trust the Patriots.

Follow Ishmael and In the Clutch on Twitter @ IshmaelSistrunk

Hazelwood Central closes season with big games

Hazelwood Central’s boys enter the week with an impressive record of 20-1, but the Hawks have a host of big games in the month of February as they get ready for a postseason run.

On Friday night, the Hawks will host Columbia Rock Bridge, who like the Hawks, have only one loss. On back-toback nights of Feb. 20 and 21, Hazelwood Central will host defending Class 5 champion Webster Groves, then visit defending Class 4 state champion.

The freshman guard from Pattonville High has been a major spark in SWIC’s run to a 17-3 mark this season. The 5’10” Williams had 18 points, four rebounds and 13 assists in a 125-92 victory over Lewis & Clark. He added nine points, 12 assists and four steals in a 109-66 victory over Rend Lake and followed up with 11 points and 14 assists in a 98-94

victory over Olney Central. For the season, Williams is averaging 12.1 points, 2.7 rebounds and 8.3 assists a game while shooting 46 percent from the field, 40 percent from 3-point range and 74 percent from the free throw line. Williams was an All-State performer at Pattonville after leading the Pirates to a Class 5 district championship last season.

Arielle Jackson

UMSL – Women’s Basketball

The junior guard from Kansas City, Kansas enjoyed two excellent games in leading the Tritons to two victories last week.

The 5’5” Jackson scored a career-high 21 points, which included three of four from 3-point range, in a victory over WisconsinParkside. She followed up with a team-high 16 points in a 66-63 victory over Lewis. For the season, Jackson

Southwestern Illinois College – Basketball is averaging 12.3 points, 2.5 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.1 steals for the Tritons, who are in first place in their division of the Great Lakes Valley Conference. Last season, Jackson was a junior college standout at Johnson County Community College, where she led them to a 33-3 record and a berth in the NJCAA national championship game.

MICDS girls’ basketball team

championship of the Lindbergh Tournament last week. The Rams defeated Marquette and Francis Howell in the first two rounds, then defeated Ladue 66-57 in the championship game to improve their record to 15-3. The team members are (left to right) Ivy Pease, Lindsay Parks, Landys Hughes, Jordyn Brooks, Kayla Work, Jessica Brooks, Megan Smith, Olivia Proctor and Krysten Hughes. MICDS is coached by Scott Small.

HENRY

continued from page B1

into the business, fate brought him to Larry and Kay Benz, the couple who had recently put the former Gebken-Benz funeral home on the market.

His wife’s family lives in South St. Louis, and leaving a family function he drove past the building. He was inspired to contact the family about the status of the property is – just days after they decided to sell the building.

“I got this message, and I don’t know who he is, I don’t know anything about him,” Kay Benz said, “Then he came in, and this relationship just clicked. We could sit with Brandon for hours and just yak yak yak – about the industry, and how it’s changed, and our families.”

When Kay, Henry and Larry Benz sit together, their conversation flies back and forth, referencing people in the neighborhood, different funeral home directors, and how their children are doing (Henry’s first child was born while he was in negotiations to buy the building).

“We’ve had other people come in that were funeral directors, a couple of them, and it was just like, ‘No, we don’t really want this,’” Larry Benz said. With Henry, by contrast, he said, “We could tell what kind of funeral director he would be. Not a fly-by-night guy.”

Though the Benz family legacy in funeral services will not be carried on by their own sons (who now work in business and IT), they were able to find someone to carry the 131-year legacy of the Gebken-Benz funeral home into the 21st century. Henry plans to add some things to the funeral home to make it more amenable to millenials, such as wi-fi. “You go anywhere else, you just expect a business to have wi-fi,” Henry said. “And most other funeral homes don’t have wi-fi. They may not even know what wi-fi is.” Henry and the Benzes have

talked at length about changes in the funeral industry over the years. They agree that the amount of time spent on visitation tends to be shorter now, and that cremations are more popular. But, as Kay Benz puts it, “The traditional funeral’s always been going on, and still is.”

Henry is aware of his role as a supporter of families going through one of the hardest things to do: laying a loved one to rest. As such an important part of the community, he spent much of his first month on the job getting as involved with the neighborhood around him as possible.

“Historically, one of the first businesses that an AfricanAmerican person could have was funeral services,” he said. “So, typically, people kind of knew who the local funeral director was in the St. Louis area. Funeral directors were

n “You go anywhere else, you just expect a business to have wi-fi. And most other funeral homes don’t have wi-fi. They may not even know what wi-fi is.”

– Brandon Henry

kind of known as the pillars of the African-American community due to that fact, and being involved in the churches.”

Henry is trying to be that pillar of the community by meeting with all neighbors and knocking on doors. (He spoke with the principal of the school down the road the day after his interview with The American.)

“By me being the only African-American funeral director in South St. Louis, I think it’s very imperative that we be a business that is

involved with education, and involved with other issues that may deal with the community in this neighborhood,” Henry said.

That community involvement has already extended to his hiring people from the neighborhood.

“I had a lady across the street, she knew that we were new and she just wanted to know what she could do,” Henry said. “She was like, ‘I can clean, or something!’ So she came by yesterday and cleaned the funeral home, so

we’re already hiring people in the neighborhood. She was a godsend.”

For Kay and Larry Benz, letting go of Larry’s greatgrandfather’s funeral home has been emotional. Larry grew up around the funeral business, and then watched his own children grow up in and around Gebken-Benz funeral home.

“They grew up playing funeral director,” he said. But they are enjoying not having to care for the property anymore.

“Just, like, the other day, it was calling for ice, and I was thinking, ‘Boy, I don’t have to run down and throw salt down,’” Larry laughed, and Henry interjected, “I mean, you still could if you want to! Don’t let me stop you.”

“I left you a couple bags of salt back there,” Benz said, to which Henry replied, “I know, and they came in handy!”

It’s not just maintenance tips

Kay believed in Henry the second she met

“We knew it, when he walked in the door. We kept thinking, this is gonna work. It’ll take a little while, but this is gonna work.”

Henry also sees this as a match made in heaven: “I walked in and, well, you can feel the love in this building.”

Henry Funeral and Cremation Services, located at 2842 Meramec St. in South St. Louis, is hosting an Open House 4-7 p.m. on Saturday, February 10. For more information, visit http:// henrystl.com/ or call 314-7529300.

Brandon and Guankita Henry acquired Gebken-Benz Mortuary – which opened in 1886 – from Larry and Kay Benz and on December 22 opened Henry Funeral and Cremation Services at 2842

Meramec St. in South St. Louis.

being passed on from Benz to Henry – Henry says that many of the families who have come to Gebken-Benz funeral home for generations have called and said they still want to work with him.

him.

Photo by Wiley Price

Mane attraction

Kat Reynolds’ latest curation intersects art and the complex beauty of black hair

By V. Lang For The St. Louis American

I often hear so many black Americans speak of how they do not understand the purpose of fine art and steer clear of art-related events because of their disconnection to its intent. The purpose of art has been explained in detail through many forums. But in simplicity, I find art’s purpose is to evoke thought-based conversations with others or within self – based on the familiar and unfamiliar. As one begins to read the curatorial statement in the program guide of “Mane ‘N Tail,” so begins the conversation.

“One can argue that the beauty supply, as its own unique ecosystem, is one of the first art stores young black woman encounter,” the statement reads.

For Kedira Pelloquin, those thoughts were rooted in explorations of the capitalist system associated with the establishments that cater to black beauty but are not owned by blacks, along with the political processes that encourage

this trend. It was these types of conversations that St. Louis-based artist Katherine Simone Reynolds envisioned when curating “Mane ‘n Tail,” which is currently on display at The Luminary through March 8.

Upon entering the exhibition space, a pleasant scent fills the air. The familiar scent is so instantly recognizable that it makes for a whisk down memory lane. For some of the ladies present during the opening reception, it took them back to early mornings in their grandmothers’ kitchen, or a front porch down the street for a neighbor“HOOD” beautician hook-up at the last minute – and a reminder to a few gentlemen of what exactly took their female relatives so long in the bathroom growing up. “Mane ‘n Tail” evoked a myriad of conversations revolved around black beauty. Black viewers answered the many questions amongst white attendees –including the purpose of this fountain of pink liquid that lent flowing aromatic notes of lilac and lavender through the air. The fountain of Luster’s Pink Oil Moisturizer left guests rav-

Pamela Council’s “Tenderheaded” is among the featured installations of the ‘Mane ‘n Tail’ exhibition curated by Kat Reynolds, which is currently on display at The Luminary through March 8.

ing. It was an installation by Pamela Council entitled, “Tenderheaded.”

The exhibition is named after the equine shampoo that later became a hair care staple in black households across the country. “It investigates the intersectionality of this beauty exchange,” Reynolds said of the exhibition. “How the Beauty Supply manipulates the way women of color feel about themselves, as well as the purchasers of beauty and the people and spaces that supply it.”

Works by 10 artists are featured in “Mane ‘n Tail.” Among the highlights include SHENEQUA’s, “MY HAIR MY CROWN,” a soft sculpture, composed of cotton synthetic hair and satin rollers be immediately connect the black viewer to the familiar. In

See ART, C5

‘Standing Up for Civil Rights in St. Louis’

Black History Month book talk highlights local contributions to the movement

By Kenya Vaughn

Of The St. Louis American

During the thick of the unrest in Ferguson, conversations were held about the St. Louis region “finally” standing up for injustice. When protests to the Jason Stockley verdict got underway this fall, some assumed that the actions were fueled by Ferguson and the activism associated with the region is a fresh phenomenon. Those who think recent protests are anomaly will get the opportunity to hear otherwise when authors Melanie Adams and Amanda Doyle visit the St. Louis County Library’s Florissant Valley Branch this Saturday afternoon (Feb. 10) to discuss their book “Standing Up for Civil Rights in St. Louis.” The talk is presented as part of the Library’s Black History Month programming and is

really

as our

to educate the next generation on civil rights history,” Adams told St. Louis Public Radio back in November. The book, produced by Missouri Historical Press, is aimed at teaching St. Louis’ history

Melanie Adams and Amanda Doyle will discuss their book

“Standing Up for Civil Rights in St. Louis” at 2 p.m. on Saturday, February 10 at the Florissant Valley Branch Library.

of protest to elementary and middle school students, and is a companion piece for the comprehensive Missouri History Exhibition #1 in Civil Rights: The African American

See RIGHTS, C5

February 3, 1943 –February 1, 2018

Had lived in St. Louis since the 1970s

By Gloria S. Ross For St. Louis Public Radio

Dennis Edwards of the Temptations died Thursday, February 1 just days before his 75th birthday after a career that spanned more than five decades. Edwards, who replaced David Ruffin in the soul group in 1968, had made his home in the St. Louis area since the 1970s. Edwards was the first new member to join the Temptations – the “sixth Tempt” – and led the group’s transformation from love songs to the psychedelic soul sound – and led Motown Records to its first Grammy Award with “Cloud Nine.”

The Temptations – the successful combination of Ruffin, Eddie Kendricks, Paul Williams, Melvin Franklin and Otis Williams – were dubbed the “Classic Five.” But as the sixth man – and one of the most memorable and beloved voices – Edwards was treated like an original. In 2013, he was included in the Grammy’s Lifetime Achievement Award given to the Temptations. Edwards began singing in his father’s Alabama church when he was a toddler. The family moved to Detroit when Edwards was in grade school. There he continued to sing in a church where his father was pastor, eventually becoming choir director. As a teenager, he attended the Detroit Conservatory of Music. Before the mighty Temptations, there were the Mighty Clouds of Joy. He sang with the gospel group and liberally borrowed the stylings of its lead singer, Joe Ligon. Like Ligon, his strong baritone was often punctuated with wails of joy or anguish. It was the perfect voice for a group named Dennis Edwards and the Fireballs, which he formed in 1961, over the objections of his very religious mother.

“When I first started, I would come to the house, and I would bring money and mom wouldn’t take it,” he recalled to the Alabama NewsCenter in 2016. “She said it was the devil’s money.”

The Fireballs quickly recorded a single on the International Soulville Records label titled “I Didn’t Have to (But I Did),” with “Johnnie on the Spot” on the flip side. His nascent recording career was quickly interrupted by U.S. Army service. While See EDWARDS, C4

Photo courtesy of Bernie Ilson, Inc. Dennis Edwards with the Temptations in a 1968 publicity photo

How to place a calendar listing

1. Email your listing to calendar@stlamerican. com OR

2. Visit the calendar section on stlamerican.com and place your listing

Calendar listings are free of charge, are edited for space and run on a space-available basis.

concerts

Through Feb. 8, Jazz St. Louis presents Keyon Harrold. Jazz at the Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www.jazzstl.org.

Sat., Feb. 10, 7:30 p.m., Jazz St. Louis presents Jazz Memories of Michael Jackson. Jazz at the Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave., 63103.

Sun., Feb. 11, 3 p.m., The Saint Louis Chamber Chorus presents Love Dances, St. Louis Chamber Chorus, Concert 4. 560 Music Center, 560 Trinity Ave., 63130. For more information, visit www. chamberchorus.org.

Sun., Feb. 11, 5 p.m., PreValentine Blues Show feat. Skeet Rodgers & ICBB Band. 8911 Natural Bridge Rd., 63121. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Tues., Feb. 13, 8 p.m., Delmar Hall presents PnB Rock. 6133 Delmar Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www.delmarhall.com.

Feb. 14 – 17, 7:30 & 9:30 p.m., Jazz St. Louis presents Alicia Olatuja. Jazz at the Bistro.

Fri., Feb. 16, 7:30 p.m., St. Louis Music Festival featuring 112, Guy with Teddy Riley, Next, Jagged Edge and Ginuwine, Chaifetz Arena. For more information, visit www. ticketmaster.com

Fri., Feb. 23, 8 p.m., Mvstermind with Jordan Ward, Brock Seals, Najii Person. Delmar Hall, 6133 Delmar Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www. delmarhall.com.

Feb. 29 – Mar. 3, Jazz St.

Louis presents the Sean Jones Quartet. Jazz at the Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave., 63103.

local gigs

Sat., Feb. 10, 7:30 p.m., Jazz St. Louis presents Jazz Memories of Michael Jackson. Jazz at the Bistro, 3536 Washington Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www.jazzstl.org.

Sat., Feb. 10, 2 p.m., A PreValentine’s Day Celebration feat. Tim Cunningham and Courtney Loveless Moore Proceeds benefit the Sumner High Science Department Enrichment Program and other programs. Henry Givens Administrative Building, Harris Stowe, 3026 Laclede Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Sun., Feb. 11, 3 p.m., The Saint Louis Chamber Chorus presents Love Dances, St. Louis Chamber Chorus, Concert 4. 560 Music Center, 560 Trinity Ave., 63130. For more information, visit www. chamberchorus.org.

Feb. 13 – 14, The Sheldon Coffee Concert Series presents Brian Owens: Love Songs. 3648 Washington Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

Thur., Feb. 15, 7 p.m., St. Louis Public Library presents a Gene Jackson Concert. Central Branch, 1301 Olive St., 63103. For more information, visit www.slpl. org.

special events

Feb. 8 – 11, 2018 Progressive® Insurance St. Louis Boat & Sports show Featuring more than 400 of the

Kenya Vaughn recommends

latest model boats, the newest marine products, and outdoor gear. America’s Center, 701 Convention Plaza, 63101. For more information, visit www. stlouisboatshow.com.

Fri., Feb. 9, 9 a.m., St. Louis Zoo 2018 Job Fair. Information on 2018 spring, summer and fall seasonal employment, plus an opportunity for a screening interview. 1 Government Dr., 63110. For more information, visit www.stlzoo.org/ employment.

Sat., Feb. 10, 2 & 7:30 p.m., The St. Louis Cultural Flamenco Society presents Valentine’s Day a la Flamenca. New, creative music and flamenco dance styles from Spain. Sheldon, 3648 Washington Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.

Tues., Feb. 13, 11 a.m., National Career Fairs presents St. Louis Career Fair Live Hiring Event. Double Tree Westport, 1973 Craigshire Rd., 63146. For more information, visit www. nationalcareerfairs.com.

Tues., Feb. 13, 4 p.m., Showcasing the “E” in STEM. Youth will be exposed to hands-on engineering activities facilitated by NSBE. Mathews-Dickey Boys’ & Girls’ Club, 4245 N. Kingshighway Blvd., 63115. For more information or to RSVP, visit www.dstslmac. com/stem.

Tues., Feb. 13, 6:30 p.m., Monsanto Family YMCA invites you to a Valentine’s Day Ball – Dinner & Dance Performance by the Dirty Muggs. River City Casino Ballroom, 777 River City Casino Blvd., 63125. For more information, call (314) 3674646.

Tues., Feb. 13, 5:30 p.m., Connect With St. Louis: Young Professional Change Makers. We’ll explore different paths to leadership - in your career, in the community and in the civic space. Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar Blvd., 63110. For more information, visit www.focusstl.org/events.

Feb. 13 – 14, 7:30 p.m., The Price Is Right Live. The host

for the evening will be Todd Newton. Prizes may include appliances, vacations and possibly a new car. Fabulous Fox Theatre, 527 N. Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

Fri., Feb. 16, 4 p.m., The Engineering Center of St. Louis presents Engineers Career Fair & Happy Hour. 4359 Lindell Blvd., 63108. For more information or to register, visit www. engineeringcenter.org.

Sat., Feb. 17, 6:30 p.m., Legal Services of Eastern Missouri invites you to the Justice for All Ball. Join us for dinner, entertainment, and both live and silent auctions. Hyatt Regency, 315 Chestnut St., 63102. For more information, visit www. lsem.org.

Sun., Feb. 18, 1:15 p.m. & 3:10 p.m., The St. Louis Public Library will celebrate Black History Month with featured speaker Rev. Jesse Jackson, Christ Church Cathedral, 1210 Locust St. Each engagement is free and open to the public, but reservations are required at https://www. brownpapertickets.com/ event/3201803. Tickets should be presented at the door in paper or electronic form.

Sun., Feb. 18, 6 p.m. (5 p.m. doors), Community Women Against Hardship’s Black History Month Celebration featuring legendary pianist Johnny O’Neal, Harold and Dorothy Steward Center for Jazz. All proceeds benefit their Health and Wellness Programming. All tickets available via the Jazz St. Louis Box Office, 3536 Washington or by calling (314) 571-6000.

Fri., Feb. 23, 3 p.m., The Engineering Center of St. Louis presents Student Discovery and College Fair. High school students can explore the field of engineering with leading STEM companies and speak to college recruiters.

Sat., Feb. 24, 5 p.m., Take Action St. Louis 2nd Annual Black Tie Gala. The OC, 4436 Olive St., 63108. For more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.

Sun., Feb. 25, 1 p.m., Sumner Alumni Association 15th Annual Alumni

Round Up, Sumner High School Auditorium, 4245 St. Ferdinand.

literary

Thur., Feb. 8, 7 p.m., St. Louis County Library hosts Dr. Jonathan Quick, author of The End of Epidemics: The Looming Threat to Humanity and How to Stop It Library Headquarters, 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd., 63131. For more information, visit www. slcl.org.

Sat., Feb. 10, 10 a.m., World of Reading: Multicultural Fair. Explore the world through crafts, music and dance for all ages. Kirkwood Public Library, 140 E. Jefferson Ave., 63122. For more information, visit www. kirkwoodpubliclibrary.org.

Mon., Feb. 12, 7 p.m., Left Bank Books hosts Morgan Jerkins, author of This Will Be My Undoing: Living at the Intersection of Black, Female, and Feminist in (White) America. 399 N. Euclid Ave., 63108. For more information, visit www.left-bank.com.

Sat., Feb. 17, 2 p.m., Kirkwood Public Library hosts Jan Jacobi, author of Young Lincoln. A novel about the childhood and young adult years of Abraham Lincoln. 140 E. Jefferson Ave., 63122. Tues., Feb. 20, 7 p.m., St. Louis County Library hosts Tayari Jones, author of An American Marriage. Celestial and Roy are the embodiment of the American Dream until Roy is sentenced to twelve years in prison.

Thur., Feb. 22, 7 p.m., Left Bank Books hosts Jeffrey Haas, author of The Assassination of Fred Hampton: How the FBI and the Chicago Police Murdered a Black Panther

Sat., Feb. 24, 3 p.m., The Honorable Betty Thompson Book Signing. Join us also for a black history program and documentary screening. 1204 Washington Ave., Ste. 100, 63103. For more information, call (314) 862-5344.

comedy

Wed., Feb. 14, 7 p.m., Diamond Ent. Shows presents a Valentine’s Day Comedy Show. The Ambassador, 9800 Halls Ferry Rd., 63136. For

St. Louis County Library hosts Tayari Jones, author of ‘An American Marriage.’ See LITERARY for details

more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

theatre

Thur., Feb. 8, 6:30 p.m.,

Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Live: King for a Day! A brand-new adventure in the Neighborhood of MakeBelieve where Daniel learns what it takes to be King. Peabody Opera House, 1400 Market St., 63101. For more information, visit www. ticketmaster.com.

Through Feb. 11, Fontbonne University Theatre presents Principal Principle. Kay Josephs quits her corporate job to teach English in an urban high school. Mustard Seed Theatre, 6800 Wydown Blvd., 63105. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.

Sat., Feb. 17, 2 p.m., Slaying Dragons presents Look Away The story of a friendship that develops between two women joined by mutual suffering. Rock Road Branch, St. Louis Public Library, 10267 St. Charles Rock Rd., 63074. For more information, visit www. slayingdragons.org.

Feb. 23 – 25, JPEK CreativeWorks Theatre presents The Meeting Stage Play. A depiction of the supposed meeting of Malcolm X and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., as they debate social problems. Kranzberg Arts Center, 501 N. Grand, 63103. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.

Feb. 24 – 25, 2 p.m., “I, Dred Scott, A Musical. The story of Dred and Harriet Scott and their two daughters’ fight for freedom. Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www.mohistory.org.

Through Feb. 25, Metro Theater Company and Jazz St. Louis present Bud, Not Buddy. Follow ten-year-old Bud as he sets off on a journey to find his father who he believes is leading a traveling

jazz band. Grandel Theatre, 3610 Grandel Sq., 63108. For more information, visit www. metroplays.org.

art

Fri., Feb. 9, 6 p.m., In Living Color Opening Reception. The exhibit is a group art show featuring works from 10 artists. TechArtista, 4818 Washington Blvd., 63108. For more information, call (314) 898-0933 or visit www. facebook.com.

Sat., Feb. 10, 6 p.m., St. Louis Reconciliation Network presents HeARTS for Racial Reconciliation St. Louis ArtWorks, 5959 Delmar Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Fri., Feb. 16, 5 p.m., Dario Calmese’s ‘Amongst Friends’ Exhibition Opening. Using Lana Turner’s wardrobe, Calmese digs deeper into the idea of the black church as an activator. projects+gallery, 4733 McPherson Ave., 63108. For more information, visit www.projects-gallery.com.

Through February 28, Portfolio Gallery’s presentation of All Colors Visual Arts Invitational & Juried Exhibition, the exhibition features the work of invited African-American and juried artists from across the country. St. Louis Artists’ Guild, 12 North Jackson Ave., 63105. For more information, visit www.stlouisartistsguild. org.

lectures and workshops

Fri., Feb. 9, 2:30 p.m., Misguided and Misdiagnosed: Mental Health and the Criminal Justice System. Brown School, Washington University, 1 Brookings Dr., 63130. For more information, visit www.

misguidedandmisdiagnosed. eventbrite.com

Sat., Feb. 10, 10 a.m., Hyde Park “Finest 15” Property Workshop. Make a Land Registration Authority vacant building in Hyde Park your Home or learn how to purchase, and rehab properties. Mission St. Louis Office, 3108 N. Grand, 63107. For more information, visit www. hydeparkneighbors.org.

Sat., Feb. 10, 11 a.m., Community Empowerment Workshop Series with MCBA: Voting Rights. 100 Black Men of Metro St. Louis, 4631 Delmar Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www. moundcitybar.com.

Sun., Feb. 11, 2 p.m., Race and the Blues in St. Louis: The Present. The Stage at

3515 Shackelford Rd., 63031. For more information or to register, visit www.eventbrite. com.

Mon., Feb. 19, 6:30 p.m., Multicultural Center & International Student Affairs at Webster University invite you to a lecture by Tarana Burke, founder of the “Me Too” Campaign. Repertory Theatre of St. Louis, 130 Edgar Rd., 63119. For more information, visit www. facebook.com.

Tues., Feb. 20, 5 p.m., Grace Hill Women’s Business Center and Legal Services of Eastern Missouri present a Legal Clinic. Discuss any legal questions or concerns, relating to business. 2125 Bissell St., 63107. For more information or to register, visit www.eventbrite.com.

Tues., Feb. 20, 6 p.m., Confluence SSN presents Assessing the Ferguson Effect. A discussion of the social and political consequences of the 2014 civil unrest in Ferguson. Ferguson Brewing Company, 418 S. Florissant Rd., 63135. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

KDHX, 3524 Washington Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www. facebook.com.

Mon., Feb. 12, 5:30 p.m., SCORE presents How to Start a Not-For-Profit Business. Anheuser-Busch Hall, Fontbonne, 6800 Wydown Blvd., 63105. For more information, visit www. stlouis.score.org.

Thur., Feb. 15, 11 a.m., Influential African Americans with Disabilities. St. Louis Community College at Florissant Valley, 3400 Pershall Rd., 63135. For more information, visit www. facebook.com.

Thur., Feb. 15, 6:30 p.m., Breaking the Chain Of Human Trafficking Workshop. Trinity Church,

Thur., Feb. 22, 6:30 p.m., Dred Scott: The History You Never Knew. Hear the story of Dred and Harriet Scott, as told by their great-great granddaughter, Lynne Jackson. Maplewood Public Library, 7550 Lohmeyer, 63143. For more information, visit www. maplewoodpubliclibrary.com.

Fri., Feb. 23, 7 p.m., St. Louis County Library invites you to Black History Celebration Keynote Speaker Event with Judge Jimmie Edwards. Library Headquarters, 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd., 63131. For more information, visit www. slcl.org.

Tues., Feb. 27, 7 p.m., Free Your Mind: The Psychological Dismantling of Oppression. Dr. Kira Hudson Banks discusses appropriated

racial oppression and racial identity development. Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www. mohistory.org.

Thursdays in February, Missouri Humanities Council presents A View of African American History and Culture. Henry Givens Jr. Admin Building, Harris Stowe, 3026 Laclede Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www. mohumanities.org/educationprograms.

health

Fri., Feb. 16, 4 p.m., Glennon Style. Children’s and adult fashion show to raise money for the Cardinal Glennon Therapy Department. The Ritz-Carlton St. Louis, 100 Carondelet Plaza, 63105. For more information, visit www. glennon.org/style.

Sat., Feb. 17, 10 a.m., Alzheimer’s Association Caregiver Support Group, Friendly Temple Missionary Baptist Church Campus, Friendly Village, 5545 Wells Ave., St. Louis, MO 63112. To register, call 1-800-272-3900.

spiritual

Sun., Feb. 11, 10 a.m., St. Paul AME 177th Church Anniversary featuring guest speaker Bishop Spencer Booker, St. Paul AME Church, 1260 Hamilton Ave. For more information, call (314) 3858900.

Mar. 18, 3:30 p.m. New Salem MB Church 90th Anniversary, 1905 Arlington, St. Louis MO 63112.

film

Fri., Feb. 16, Black Panther starring Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Sterling K. Brown and more opens in theatres nationwide.

‘Black Panther’ starring Chadwick Boseman, Michael B. Jordan, Lupita Nyong’o, Sterling K. Brown and more opens in theatres nationwide. For more information, see FILM.

Kenya Vaughn recommends

stationed in Dachau, Germany, where one of the largest Nazi concentration camps had been located, a friend sent him the single, “My Girl” by the Temptations. He knew after he was discharged, he would go home to Detroit and straight to Motown Records.

In 1966, he headed to Hitsville USA, as Berry Gordy’s studio was nicknamed. He was assigned to the Contours after the group’s lead singer became ill. The following year, the Contours opened several times for the Temptations, by now a successful recording group with a burgeoning portfolio of hits.

David Ruffin, with whom Edwards had become close friends, was slowly losing his bearings to cocaine. After

failing to show up for an engagement on June 27, 1968, Ruffin was fired; the next day, Edwards was hired. He said it did not affect his friendship with Ruffin,

n Edwards led the Temptations from love songs to the psychedelic soul sound – and led Motown Records to its first Grammy Award with “Cloud Nine.”

who continued to show up at concerts, and often stole the microphone and the show. Edwards disputed the contentious scene in the

1998 TV miniseries “The Temptations,” where he was played by Charles Ley. He insisted that he cooperated in his own upstaging at concerts.

“’My Girl’ was always the last song of the show and David would come down out of the audience and sing it,” he told the Asheville (North Carolina) Daily Planet in 2012, “and the others guys (in the group) would get so mad” at both of them.

His biggest concern when he joined the group was mastering the intricate choreography and that signature Temptation Walk. He quickly learned that it wasn’t as difficult as it appeared; it was all about timing and practice.

Edwards spent the next nine years helping to make the Temptations one of the most successful groups in the world. He led the Temptations into its social consciousness season with a new, psychedelic soul sound and Motown to its first Grammy with the group’s classic “Cloud Nine” in 1968. He led “Papa Was a Rolling Stone,” which netted the group three Grammys in 1972.

Edwards attributed the power of the song to having recorded it in anger and grief; his father had just died and he visualized the song differently than the producer. He angrily capitulated to the wishes of Norman Whitfield, who produced most of the group’s hits. He preferred the production style of his friend Smokey Robinson, who wrote many of the Temptations’ early songs. He later grudgingly admitted that Whitfield was right that time.

His lead of songs like “Runaway Child, Running Wild,” “Psychedelic Shack,” “Masterpiece” and “Ball of Confusion” helped cement the group’s funk and rock credentials.

Despite his star power, Edwards was hired and fired by the Temptations three times. It was always about money, he said. He first left in 1977, when the group moved from Motown to the Atlantic label. He returned in 1979 when

they rejoined Motown and was part of the 1982 reunion tour. The reunion album spawned the chart-topping single “Standing on the Top,” written and produced by Rick James, who also shared lead vocals with Ruffin, Kendricks and Edwards.

He left the group again in 1983, when Motown gave him a real shot as a solo artist. In 1984, he scored not a solo, but one of the all-time great duets, “Don’t Look Any Further” with Siedah Garrett. He followed it up with the equally sensual “(You’re My) Aphrodisiac,” which became a top 20 R&B single. He recorded “Coolin’ Out,” which may have foreshadowed the cooling of his solo career. He returned to the Temptations in 1987, before making his final exit in 1989, the year he was inducted along with original Temptations into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

Edwards later formed The

Temptations Review, which started a fight over use of the Temptations’ name with Otis Williams, the last original Tempt. The two spent years and hundreds of thousands of dollars in the fight. Against the advice of their attorneys, after a chance encounter, the two old friends decided to settle the name issue then and there.

Until shortly before his death, Edwards continued to tour with his Temptations Review.

By his own admission, he had not lived a pristine life, but he outlived four of the five original members of the Temptations, all of whom died before their 53rd birthday.

“We dibbled and dabbled with alcohol and drugs. But it’s important for people to know if you change your lifestyle and wake up, there is hope,” he told the St. Louis Post-Dispatch “I had a mother who prayed for me, and prayer changes everything.”

His mother didn’t just pray,

she took action. She had moved to St. Louis and her son was living in Hollywood. During the ’70s, she decided that Edwards needed a lifestyle change. She told him she was dying.

“She fooled me here,” he said. “She had my room all fixed up.”

When his mother actually became ill shortly after she’d tricked him into a visit, he moved to St. Louis to be with her. He never left, later declaring that St. Louis was the best thing that ever happened to him.

Survivors include Issa Pointer, a daughter from his marriage to Ruth Pointer of the Pointer Sisters, and Denise Edwards, a daughter with his former wife Brenda Edwards. Gloria S. Ross is the head of Okara Communications and AfterWords, an obituarywriting and design service. Reprinted with permission from news.stlpublicradio.org.

Dennis Edwards and The Temptations Review

RIGHTS

Continued from C1

Freedom Struggle in St. Louis.

Like the exhibition, the book details the rich history of activism and efforts for equality that date back before the Civil War and carries the readers through the relentless protests that got underway with the death of Michael Brown on August 9, 2014.

“Things that are happening right now will one day be history, so the decisions we make and the conversations we have matter,” Doyle said.

The history of St. Louis as a city rooted in activism dates back almost as far as the city itself, according to Gwen Moore, curator for the “#1 in Civil Rights” exhibition curator, and curator of urban landscape and community identity for The Missouri History Museum.

“Not only did we have a civil rights movement, but we had a robust Civil Rights movement – and one that had a

national impact,” Moore said.

“A personal goal for me was to show that – and that there were important people who made a lot of sacrifices and they were pretty much lost to history.”

At the threshold that leads to the exhibition, a banner with a quote from a St. Louis American editorial, written by founding publisher Judge Nathan B. Young, hangs at the front door of the Exhibition. “The quote says, ‘If you want the real history of the Civil Rights Movement in this country, you will start in St. Louis.”

The exhibition’s name is derived from that editorial, which was printed in 1963.

“Judge Young said the first demonstration in North America happened here in St. Louis in 1819 – when free blacks and their white allies stood on the steps of the Old Courthouse protesting the fact that Missouri was entering the union as a slave state,” Moore said. “He said this was the first open protest related to Civil Rights on the continent.”

“Standing Up For Civil Rights” provides young readers with background to

well-known figures featured in the exhibition such as Dred Scott, Lloyd Gaines, Frankie Muse Freeman and Margaret Bush Wilson. Also featured are unsung heroes like Henry Winfield Wheeler, better known as “Mr. Civil Rights,” and Norman Seay.

The book lends insight to the nearly two centuries of direct action our region has contributed to the cause of equality that rippled throughout – with events that led to systemic change in the fight against racism.

“Not only did St. Louis have a civil rights movement, but we had a robust civil rights movement,” Moore said. “And one that had a national impact.”

The St. Louis County Library Black History Celebration presentation of Melanie Adams and Amanda Doyle, authors of “Standing Up for Civil Rights in St. Louis,” will take place at 2 p.m. on Saturday, February 10, at the Florissant Valley Library, 195 New Florissant Rd., Florissant, Mo. 63031. For more information, visit www.slcl.org or call (314) 9943300.

April 16 deadline for a full-ride scholarship for black student from STL

Online applications are now open for a new full-ride scholarship opportunity for African-American students from the City of St. Louis with significant financial need.

Marita Malone, PhD established a namesake scholarship through the Scholarship Foundation of St. Louis with a $100,000 gift because she “wants to create opportunities for students of color from the city to realize their full potential.” The Marita Malone Scholarship will cover the cost of college attendance, including tuition, room and board, and other expenses each academic year for up to four

ART

Continued from C1

contrast, Rachel Youn’s “NATURESCAPE: Self Care Stimulation” will evoke more complex thoughts and may be a missed connection for those unfamiliar with contemporary art. Yvonne Osei’s “Extensions” video will connect with anyone who has ever had their hair braided, as it simultaneously shows us the

years. Malone is a retired FBI special agent who subsequently was a lecturer and assistant professor at several universities. She understands first-hand the power of education, having received a scholarship that allowed her to progress in her studies. Both her work in criminal justice and her teaching at the postsecondary level have made her well familiar with the challenges young people face navigating their way beyond high school.

The deadline to submit applications is April 16. To review additional requirements for this scholarship opportunity,

pride and confidence within the black woman.

I strongly encourage all to go and explore this amazing exhibition, as Reynolds’ curation gives Black Americans that feel disconnected from art, a much needed, relatable and interactive fine art experience.

“Mane ‘n Tail” is on display Wednesday through Saturday 12pm -6pm. Through March 8 at The Luminary, 2701 Cherokee Street. St. Louis Mo. 63118. For more information, visit http://theluminaryarts.

visit https://tinyurl.com/ y7bb5qut or contact The Scholarship Foundation of St. Louis at (314) 725-7990.

com/exhibitions/mane-n-tail or email: info@theluminaryarts. com. Please note: there is some explicit content in the rear gallery that may not be suitable for children. A screening of the 2008 black cinema cult classic “A Good Day to be Black and Sexy” and post-film discussion will take place at 7 p.m. on Friday, February 9 at The Luminary in conjunction with “Mane ‘n Tail.”

Marita Malone, PhD

A chimney topper’s tale

Salvaging one treasure from the rubble of Mill Creek Valley

By Adam Kloppe For The St. Louis American

On February 16, 1959, the first buildings started to fall in the historic St. Louis neighborhood known as Mill Creek Valley. Located where today you would find the eastern part of Saint Louis University’s campus and the Wells Fargo campus, for years this neighborhood had been the center of African-American life in St. Louis.

More than 20,000 people lived there. Mill Creek Valley also had shops, banks, restaurants, offices, and entertainment venues. During the days of segregated baseball, it was home to the powerhouse St. Louis Stars and Stars Park, one of the largest Negro Leagues baseball stadiums in America. The People’s Finance Building—the headquarters of many leading African-American businesses in St. Louis—was located there too. People could spend their entire lives in that single neighborhood. So why did the destruction of Mill Creek Valley occur? Its demolition had been years in the making.

In 1954, St. Louis Mayor Raymond Tucker had proposed a plan to raze the more than 400 square acres that stood between SLU and Union Station as part of the city’s post-World War II revitalization. In order to get voters onboard, the city promised that the federal government would foot most of the demolition bill (which happened) and that new businesses and property developers would leap at the chance to turn an area many considered blighted into a glittering modern neighborhood (which did not happen). In 1955 city voters approved the measure, but it was four more years before buildings started to come down.

The demolition happened quickly. In the space of a few years only a few structures remained standing, including the old Vashon High School, which is now part of the HarrisStowe State University campus. Everything else

was demolished with bulldozers and wrecking balls, and very little of the neighborhood was preserved for posterity. The land sat vacant for years following the demolition, and St. Louis residents gave the area a sarcastic nickname that hinted at the destruction that had leveled Mill Creek Valley: “Hiroshima Flats.”

As our exhibition team members quickly found out when they went looking for objects to display in the “Panoramas of the City” exhibition, it was difficult to find any piece of Mill Creek Valley that still remained. The exhibit features a panoramic photograph from 1930 that was taken in the heart of Mill Creek Valley, close to the intersection of Market and Beaumont streets. Today that intersection sits on the Wells Fargo campus, but the photo in “Panoramas” reveals a vibrant neighborhood filled with hotels, meeting halls, and apartment buildings. We knew that merely sharing a single photograph wouldn’t be enough to tell Mill Creek Valley’s story. To convey a more complete picture of the neighborhood, we wanted to obtain an actual architectural object— something from the buildings that once stood there. Besides a few bricks, we weren’t able to find much.

That is, until we reached out to Larry Giles, the president of the National Building Arts Foundation, based in Sauget, Illinois. Luckily for us, Giles had a few chimney toppers in his warehouse of architectural treasures—chimney toppers that once stood atop buildings in Mill Creek Valley. However, we couldn’t determine exactly which buildings the chimney toppers came from. They were rescued by a local collector who persuaded the workers involved in the neighborhood’s demolition to save a few of the toppers. It is only because of this collector’s interest that the chimney topper was spared. The chimney topper you see in the “Panoramas” exhibit is one that Giles and his team were kind enough to let us use for the exhibit. We feel extraordinarily fortunate to have it—after all, it is a physical reminder of a space that no longer exists, a space that was destroyed in the name of progress. If you want to see this chimney topper for yourself, come and visit “Panoramas of the City,” which is on display at the Missouri History Museum until August 12. Admission is free.

Adam Kloppe is public historian at the Missouri History Museum.

Mayor Raymond Tucker and civic leader Sidney Maestre on a rooftop overlooking an area of Mill Creek Valley slated for clearance, 1956. Missouri Historical Society Collections.

Anniversary

Happy Anniversary wishes to Mr. Jerry Graham and Rev. Dr. Doris Graham, celebrating their 53rd wedding anniversary on January 31. Still in love and abundantly blessed by God. Jerry retired as a chef at Jefferson Smurfit Corporation and Doris as an educator for St. Louis Public Schools.

Reunions

Alabama State University Hornets, alumni, families and friends in the St. Louis area. The Alabama State University Alumni Chapter of St. Louis will have a meeting on Saturday, March 3, 2018 at 1:30pm at the St. Louis

Celebrations

County Library - Rock Road Branch 10267 St. Charles Rock Road, St. Ann, MO 63074.

Beaumont Class of 1968 will celebrate its 50-year reunion June 8-10,2018. Yes, Class ‘68 will begin Milestone celebration 6th month on 8th day. Our 2018 meetings in preparation will be held at STL County library located 7606 Natural Bridge at 1:00 p.m.. Dates are (Saturdays) February 17, March 17, April 21, May 19 and June 2. For more information call (314) 8698312 or email bhsco1968@ att.net. Pass the word and lets celebrate!

Beaumont High Class of 1973 will hold its 45th reunion Aug. 10-12, 2018! Any questions, please call Rita (314)241-5419.

Homer G. Phillips and St. Louis Municipal School of Nursing is planning an all class reunion in June 2018. Please send your name, address and telephone number to: Homer G. Phillips Nurses Alumni, Inc., P.O. Box 8033 St. Louis, Missouri 63156.

McKinley Class of 1978 will celebrate its 40-year reunion July 27-29, 2018 at the Embassy Suites-Airport. For more information please contact Barbara Lindsey,

Birthdays

Happy 90th Birthday to Theonis K. Guyton! A celebration of her service and leadership is planned on February 4 from 1:30-4 pm at Scruggs Memorial CME Church, 3860 Cook Avenue.

Happy 100th Birthday Mama Rosie Moore! She celebrated this remarkable milestone on January 7.

Happy 12th Birthday to our first born, Miss Jenesis-Cemone, on January 25! Diamonds shine but daughter you glow! Watching you grow has been the greatest gift. Keep being the cheerful and loving girl you are, and stay real to the girl in the mirror. May all your wishes come true!

Barbara_Lindsey@icloud.com or Marvin Woods, mwoods@ projectcontrolsgroup.com , (314) 647-0707.

Northwest High Class of 1978 is planning its 40-year reunion for next year. If you have any questions please contact Sly at (314) 397-0311 or email us at northwestbluedevils@78gmail. com. Check us out on Facebook Northwest High School-Class of 1978.

Soldan Class of 1978 is planning their 40th class reunion. The dates are June 1, 2 and 3. For more information: call (314) 413-9088.

Sumner Alumni Association hosts its 15th Annual Membership Round-Up Sunday, February 25, 2018, 1-4 pm at Sumner High School with Theme “Showcase Your Talent”. Contact B. Louis at (314) 385-9843 or email: sumneralumniassn@yahoo.com or to Showcase Your Talent on program (provide contact info and your talent). J. House, Chairperson (314) 420-3442.

University City Class of 1978 will hold its 40th reunion May 25-27, 2018. For more information please email ucityhs1978@gmail.com

Do you have a celebration you’re proud of? If so we would like to share your good news with our readers. Whether it’s a birth, wedding, engagement announcement, anniversary, retirement or birthday, send your photos and a brief announcement (50 words or less) to us and we may include it in our paper and website – AT NO COST – as space is available Photos will not be returned. Send your announcements to: kdaniel@stlamerican. com or mail to: St. Louis American Celebrations c/o Kate

St.

MO 63103 Deadline is 10 a.m. on Friday. If you’d like your class to be featured in a reunion profile, email or mail photos to us. Our email address is: reunions@ stlamerican.com

Swag Snap of the Week

Are you ready for Young Leaders? Exactly one week from today, I will be suited and booted amongst some of the most spectacular movers and shakers the region has to offer thanks to the St. Louis American Foundation’s 8th Annual Salute to Young Leaders Networking Reception and Awards Ceremony at The Four Seasons. I name-dropped every one of the 20 honorees last week. If you missed that, your bad. Just know that there are some serious power players in the mix. And to make matters better, my own personal guru Rebeccah Bennett will be serving as mistress of ceremonies. Happy belated birthday Rebeccah! Every time I talk to her I find myself on a path towards personal and spiritual healing – and all she has said is hello. Anybody who has been in her company for the briefest of exchanges can co-sign that she changes lives with her wisdom and infectious positive energy. I’m apologizing in advance for the corny Bruno Mars reference, but it’s going to be 24K Magic on the sixth floor of the Four Seasons, so get your tickets and be ready to be inspired. We’ll get started at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, February 15. Visit www.stlamerican.com or call (314) 533-8000 for more information. Art. Y’all may or may not care to hear about it, but I stole away some time to kick with the creatives at Urb Arts for the opening reception for the King Pleazure Annual Exhibition Friday night. I got a chance to finally see a denim creation of Vaughn Davis – a local artist on the rise that I’m certain is destined to do big things. I also got a chance to check out some pieces by Brooklyn Kingsboro as well as support the artistic endeavors of our own Lawrence Bryant and Vincent Lang – who had some nice prints to be included in the exhibition. LB’s were NSFP (Not Safe For Partyline) but were fly nonetheless. The exhibition is up at Urb Arts through the end of the month.

Jammin’ into the 90s. I Already knew that James Biko, the artist formerly known as Nappy DJ Needles, had it all the way live at The Ready Room when the gentleman checking IDs at the door was singing along to Soul For Real’s “Candy Rain” and doing the upper body choreography with his one free hand. Keep in mind he looked like a villain from “Sons of Anarchy” with a big beard, tattoos and a biker t-shirt. I got my entire life when I made my way to his station and he started singing – on cue and on pitch mind you – “My love…do you ever dream of…candy coated raindrops” and made his fingers sprinkle like rain. I got near the dance floor and – as I expected – folks were getting it in! When somebody throws a 90s inspired anything, the folks party like its 1999. You can’t help but love it. Silk shirts, shoulder pads, bedazzled bomber jackets and matching ballcaps. The folks were in full “Different World” drag – Dwayne Wayne glasses and all – as they danced like no one was watching. I wish it hadn’t slipped my mind to ask that young woman where she got her Gibaud jeans from, but I was too caught up in the groove thanks to DJ Nico. Girl, you really got it in. I’ll be checking for you on the tables from here on out! I had a ball up in there, do you hear me – and so did everyone else.

Jaquees and company. On Saturday I went to support RockHouse Ent. and see R&B singer Jaquees at The Pageant after missing his visit last year. Normally I could care less about who gets up to open the show, but I must say I was quietly engaged with the performances – starting with Jones Boy Having his stage girls cater to him like he was Morris Day was way too extra. But he sounded good and had some good music. Roisee was serving Xtina Aguilera realness with that outfit. I was expecting her to bust out with a “Wanna get dirtayyy…” I was disappointed that she didn’t. And while I can’t say that I subscribe to those platinum blonde box braids on the top of his head, but Damou Williams’ little set wasn’t bad either. Folks felt a kind away about the serious lag time between the final featured performer and the headliner. Believe or not (probably not) I wasn’t one of them. I stretched out on that church bench by the left stage door and caught me a nice nap. It was long enough where folks had the right to be bothered, but if I hadn’t had that rest, I don’t think I would have made it to see Blvck Spvde at Blank Space. I’ll get into that in a second. But first let me tell y’all about Jaquees. I know plenty of y’all have never heard of him, but he has a straight-up dedicated following in The Lou. And I’m talking “know all the words to his songs and his little dance routines.” He’s a singer that looks like a rapper. Actually, the best way to describe him is Ginuwine trapped in Lil Wayne’s body. I know it sounds strange, but the ladies loved it. He had an athletic suit that looked like something St. Louis’ own Erik Kilpatrick used to warm up in as Jackson on “The White Shadow.” His fangirls apparently thought the snug little thing looked great. He sounded better than I expected and managed to keep the crowd’s attention for his whole performance. Blvck Spvde sings. Speaking of Blvck Spvde, it was late in the midnight hour when he stepped on stage at Blank Space for the St. Louis leg of his Blvck Spvde Writes Tour. He should have called the tour “Blvck Spvde Sings” because that’s almost all he did for the entire set – and I’m not the least bit mad about it. I’ve been saying that Spvde is the male Lauryn Hill for a minute – at least the past eight years. He proved me right with that phenomenal show. I can’t wait for the new project to drop, and trust that I will keep y’all posted.

Shanieka and Tiana ran on through the Ready Room Friday for That 90’s Jam

Lexus and Autumn came through to check out Honey Camille perform live during Fem Fest 4 @2720 Cherokee Saturday night

James Biko and the Soulition DJs had Jalessa vibing down memory lane all night long during That 90’s Jam Friday @ The Ready Room

Kimmie, Tiffany and Raven made sure they were on deck for the turn up for the Aquarius installment of the Zodiac Party Saturday night @ OBar

Super Bowl LI was wrapping up as Boe and Big Sunny got ready for another round of wings Sunday @Aromas

The bass was bumping through the Ready Room and Dominique Ashleigh and LaKriesha were dressed to party @That 90’s Jam Friday

Marquita and Anthony at the opening reception for Too African For America, Too American For Africa, Too Black For Earth @Magnify Gallery Saturday

The crowd was arriving for the BLVCK WRITES TOUR as BlvckSpade and Leonsays took a minute to take in the moment Saturday @ Blank Space

Marshida, Earl and Brandice stopped by the King Pleazure art exhibit @ UrbArts Friday

The Marquee started to fill up as Phil Dollaz and hip-hop star Dream Doll rolled in to get the party cracking Friday night.

Photos by V. Lang

Bates hosted Fem Fest 4 which gave OG Rach and more than fifty other females the chance to grace the stage @2720 Cherokee Saturday

bonus & much more! Please call 314-822-8158 or go online to register www.algonquinnurses.com

PART-TIME OASIS

EXERSTART FACILITATOR

Share your passion for health and set your own schedule as a parttime Oasis ExerStart Facilitator. Lead older adults in low-intensity exercises. Classes are held twice weekly throughout the metro area. Training and class materials provided. Training from noon to 5 p.m. Feb. 22-23 at Northwest HealthCare Community Room 1225 Graham Rd., Florissant. Call Sara Paige at 314-862-2933, Ext. 24.

ATTORNEY

Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, Inc. (LSEM), a non-profit law firm that provides free legal assistance to people living with low income/low opportunity, seeks an attorney to work in its Community and Economic Development Program. For more information, see the full posting at www.lsem.org. Interested candidates should submit their resume and cover letter by February 18, 2018 to John Early, Director of Human Resources & Operations at jgearly@lsem.org.

DIRECTOR –UNDERWRITING OPERATIONS

Manage the workflow and day-to-day operations of designated Underwriting Operations units. This will include; management, coordination, and evolution of applicable staff to cultivate career development utilizing annual performance reviews and hiring of additional personnel who strengthen our corporate culture within the Underwriting Department, and the prioritization and oversight of all associated business functions critical to ensuring business needs and service standards are met.

To apply, please visit: www.safetynational.com and click on the Careers tab.

CHEMISTRY TEACHER

St. Joseph’s Academy, a Catholic college preparatory high school for young women in St. Louis, Missouri, is seeking a Chemistry teacher for the 2018-19 school year. Qualified applicants should have Missouri teacher certification. A focus in Chemistry, as well as a Master’s degree, are preferred. Interested candidates may email a cover letter and a resume to jsteinhart@sja1840.org

Legal Services of Eastern Missouri, Inc. (LSEM), a non-profit law firm that provides free legal assistance to persons living with low income/low opportunity, seeks a part-time attorney (24 hours/week) to work in the LSEM St. Louis office’s family law/ domestic violence program known as the Lasting Solutions Program, in all substantive aspects of family law in Missouri. For more information and application instructions, please go to www.lsem.org.

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

Tower Grove Park is seeking a qualified Director of Development.

Additional information about this position can be found at: www.towergrovepark.org.

EVALUATION AND RESEARCH SPECIALIST

Deadline to apply is February 12, 2018. Tower Grove Park is an Equal Opportunity Employer. LOCAL

EXECUTIVE ASSISTANT

Seeking Candidate with Exec. Asst. or Secretarial experience. Full-Time, Benefits, Competitive Wage, Vacation, Holiday & Sick Pay. See Full Job Description and Apply at www.royalbanksofmo.com

Groves School District is looking to fill various teaching positions at the high school level. We are seeking certified teachers in the following subjects: - English - Math - Science For more information and to apply, visit: http://www.webster.k12.mo.us (Employment Opportunities)

ARCHS, a highly respected not-for-profit funding agency, is seeking a full-time Evaluation and Research Specialist with a dynamic data informed approach to grant management and measurement. This position is responsible for supporting an effective system that monitors the progress, impacts, and successes of ARCHS’ 30 funded initiatives. Candidates must demonstrate exemplary technical skills related to logic models, qualitative and quantitative research/analysis, data management/analysis, field observation, and grant/report writing. Requirements: Minimum of bachelor’s degree, master’s degree a plus; 5+ year experience; documented portfolio of evaluation/research/ grant writing work; highly organized; deadline focused; outgoing; inquisitive; a strong coach, writer, and editor. ARCHS’ offers a full benefit package including 401(k) match. Be prepared to provide portfolio of work upon request. EMAIL initial letter of application, resume, and salary history by February 23, 2018 to careers@stlarchs.org or FAX to ARCHS’ HR, 314-289-5670. No phone calls please.

REINSURANCE CLAIMS ANALYST

Responsible for handling assigned claims from initial assignment to closure as well as provide assistance in various administrative functions associated with the Treaty Reinsurance LOB.

To apply, please visit: www.safetynational.com and click on the Careers tab.

POLICE OFFICER

The City of Richmond Heights is accepting applications for Police Officer. Apply at www.richmondheights.org by Thursday, March 1, 2018. EOE

The United Way of Greater St. Louis is seeking a Financial Stability Coordinator. Please visit our website at http://www. stl.unitedway.org under our careers section for a complete job description. No phone calls please.

Plumbers & Pipefitter’s Local Union #562 will be accepting applications for our 2018 Plumbers Apprenticeship Program. You may fill out your application and read our standards between the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Monday through Friday starting March 1, 2018 through March 14, 2018. This process will take about one hour. Applications will be available at our Training Center, 1084 Kenran Industrial Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63137. You must be 18 years of age or older, have a high school diploma or a G.E.D to complete an application. A drug-screening test will be required for employment. Random drug and alcohol testing are required thereafter. Please No Phone Calls

CAPITAL PROJECTS SUPERVISOR

This is an exempt, supervisory position responsible for the coordination and management of the daily operations of the department. Provides direction to the department through implementation of established organizational policies and program directives. Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Engineering, Architecture or Construction Management and at least 5-7 years of progressively responsible management experience related to the duties of this position. Salary $75,096 Annually. Apply or send resume to: St. Louis Housing Authority, HR Division, 3520 Page Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63106 by 5:00 p.m., February 16, 2018 via website www.slha.org or email athomas@ slha.org. A Drug Free Work Place/EOE.

PHYSICS TEACHER

St. Joseph’s Academy, a Catholic college preparatory high school for young women in St. Louis, Missouri, is seeking a Physics teacher for the 2018-19 school year. Qualified applicants should have Missouri teacher certification. A focus in Physics, as well as a Master’s degree, are preferred. Interested candidates may email a cover letter and a resume to jsteinhart@sja1840.org

COORDINATOR –

PSA PREMIUM AUDIT

The Premium Audit Coordinator will work both collaboratively and independently to meet corporate objectives and goals related to the accurate and timely completion of excess premium audits. The Coordinator will conduct audit processes for applicable excess accounts, substantiating the accuracy of policy classifications, exposure base, exposure information, inclusions / exclusions, status of subcontractors, etc. The Coordinator will also facilitate the order process for applicable excess accounts. To apply, please visit: www.safetynational.com and click on the Careers tab.

BID NOTICE

January 23, 2018

Solicitation for Bids (SFB) for: Large tenant improvement 4 story building 100,000 + Sq. Ft within the city of St. Louis

Bids Wanted Bid documents can be obtained by emailing abright@dbsi-inc.com Any questions will be answered Monday through Friday between 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM. Construction documents can also be obtained by the link below. The bid walk will be 2/6/2018 at 8:00 AM. Bids are due 2/16/2018 at 12:00 PM CT. The anticipated start date of construction will be 2/26/18 and completion by 6/1/18. A majority of the work will be awarded to union preference, although all interested parties will be considered

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/70awtps7axlqpc2/AACVEGWAzonYBjYKxnpSd7rpa?dl=0

DBSI Inc

ST. LOUIS COMMUNITY COLLEGE

St. Louis Community College will receive separate sealed bids for Contract No. F 18 601, Replace Chiller Controls, St. Louis Community College at Meramec, until 2:00 p.m. local time Tuesday, March 6, 2018. Bids will be publicly opened and read aloud at the office of the Manager of Engineering and Design, 300 South Broadway (Room 423, Fourth Floor). Specifications and bid forms may be obtained from the Manager’s office at the above address, or by calling (314) 539-5015.

VOLUNTARY

WALKTHROUGH:

February 23, 2018, 8:00 a.m. at Meramec Facilities Building

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR TRAINING SERVICES

East-West Gateway Council of Governments is seeking a qualified consultant to provide a GIS Training Course. Funding for this project will be provided by the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security. Proposals due 2:00 p.m. March 5, 2018. Late proposals will be returned. Details can be obtained at www.ewgateway.org or by calling 314-421-4220 ext. 208.

ADVERTISEMENT FOR BID

Sealed Bids for the construction of the 2017 STREET IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT PAGEDALE, MISSOURI will be received by the City Clerk at the office of City Clerk until 11:00 A.M.(Local Time) on March 1st at which time the received bids will be publicly opened and read aloud. Bids received after that time will be returned unopened.

Copies of the Bid Documents, Contract Drawings, and Specifications may be examined at the following locations:

Palladian Consulting Engineers City of Pagedale 8706 Gravois Rd. City Hall St. Louis, MO 63123 1420 Ferguson Ave. Phone - (314) 638-9998 Pagedale, MO 63133 McGraw-Hill Dodge www.construction.com Eplan room www.eplanbidding.com

This Contract, 2017 PAGEDALE STREET IMPROVEMENTS PROJECT, PAGEDALE, MISSOURI provides for the construction, supplying, installation and placement into successful operation of the following work:

1. Woodruff Ave. - Rotomill, apply tack coat and 2” asphalt overlay, Also, remove and replace 6” high asphalt curb and adjust manholes to grade.

2. Joseph Ave. - Rotomill, apply tack coat and 2” asphalt overlay.

3. Nixon Ave. - Rotomill, apply tack coat and 2” asphalt overlay. Also, remove and replace 6” high asphalt curb and adjust manholes to grade.

4. Primrose Ave. - Rotomill, apply tack coat and 2” asphalt overlay, including street sections around grass island at end of street. Also, remove and replace 6” asphalt curb including curb around grass island. Also, adjust manholes to grade.

5. Engelholm Ave. (Between 1449 Engelholm Ave. And St. Charles Rock Rd.) - Rotomill, apply tack coat and 2” asphalt overlay. Also, adjust manholes to grade.

6. Engelholm Court and Engelcrest Drive - Remove and replace sections of existing 6” thick concrete pavement, includes dowels. The sections to be removed and replaced have been marked with pink paint.

Copies of the Bid Documents, Contract Drawings and Specifications may be obtained for Bidding purposes from the Engineer, (Palladian Consulting Engineers, LLC) upon deposit of ($35.00) Thirty-Five Dollars for each set of documents. Deposits are nonrefundable.

Bidders must be contractors qualified to do business and licensed in accordance with all applicable laws of this State and local governments where the project is located.

The work is to be commenced within (30) Thirty calendar days after the Date-of-Agreement. Completion of the Work is required within (90) Ninety consecutive calendar days following the Date stated in the Notice-to-Proceed at the Site.

A Certified Check or a Bid Bond satisfactory to the Owner in the amount of not less than five percent (5%) of the total Bid Price must accompany each Bid. A Contract will be awarded to the low responsive, responsible Bidder unless all Bids are rejected.

The successful Bidder will be required to furnish a Performance Bond and a Labor and Material Payment Bond guaranteeing faithful performance and the payment of all bills and obligations arising from the performance of the Contract.

Bids will be received on a LUMP SUM basis.

Missouri State Statutes 144.062, effective August 28, 1994, allows for a sales tax exemption to contractors constructing, repairing or remodeling facilities or purchasing personal property and materials to be incorporated into and consumed in the construction of projects for a tax exemption entity. The tax exempt entity shall furnish a signed exemption certification authorizing such purchases for the construction, repair or remodeling project to each contractor and/or subcontractor.

Enrollment in Federal Work Authorization Program

Bidders are informed that pursuant to Section 285.530, RSMo, as a condition of the award of any contract in excess of five thousand dollars ($5,000.00), the successful bidder shall, by sworn affidavit and provision of documentation, affirm its enrollment and participation in a federal work authorization program with respect to the employees working in connection to the contracted services. Successful bidders shall also sign an affidavit affirming that it does not knowingly employ any person who is an unauthorized alien in connection to the contracted services.

Safety Training

Bidders are informed that the Project is subject to the requirements of Section 292.675, RSMo, which requires all contractors or subcontractors doing work on the Project to provide, and require its on-site employees to complete, a ten (10) hour course in construction safety and health approved by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) or a similar program approved by the Missouri Department of Labor and Industrial Relations which is at least as stringent as an approved OSHA program. The training must be completed within sixty (60) days of the date work on the Project commences. On-site employees found on the worksite without documentation of the required training shall have twenty (20) days to produce such documentation.

The Owner reserves the right to waive any informalities or to reject any or all Bids and to waive irregularities therein, and all Bidders must agree that such rejection shall be without liability on the part of the Owner for any damage or claim brought by any Bidder because of such rejections, and the filing of any bid in response to this invitation shall constitute an agreement of the Bidder to these conditions.

Bidders on this work will be required to comply with the President’s Executive Order No. 11246. Requirements for Bidders and Contractors under this order and other regulations are contained in these documents.

This activity is funded in whole or in part with Community Development Block Grant Funds pursuant to Title I of the Housing and Community Development Act of 1974, as amended. All applicable federal regulations shall be in full force and effect.

Date ________________________ By: /s/ Fran Stevens City Clerk

SEALED BIDS

for

ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS

The ST. LOUIS AREA AGENCY ON AGING (SLAAA) is seeking bids for the FY 2019 Senior Program (Senior Center Services) for the SLAAA Service Areas 3 & 4 within the City of St. Louis. Bid packets may be downloaded from the SLAAA Website (www.SLAAA.org)

All sealed Bids must be received at the SLAAA office not later than 9:00am, Feb 20, 2018.

The City of St. Louis reserves the right to accept or reject any or all responses, waive any technicalities, or to cancel this request in part or in its entirety.

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

Great Rivers Greenway is soliciting the following RFQs: Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Planning due March 2, 2018. Geographic Information System (GIS) Services due March 9, 2018

Full RFQs can be found at https://greatriversgreenway.org/jobs-bids/ Great Rivers Greenway reserves the right to reject any or all proposals. EOE

SEALED BIDS

County, Missouri, Project No. Y1803-01 will be received by FMDC, State of MO, UNTIL 1:30 PM, 3/1/2018. For specific project information and ordering plans, go to: http://oa.mo. gov/ facilities

Public Notice of Single Source Procurement

Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is proposing to procure: Flygt CP-3127 submersible pump. The District is proposing single source procurement to Vandevanter Engineering Co. for this equipment because they are exclusive representative for this area. Any inquiries should be sent to ltreat@stlmsd.com.

Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

INVITATION TO BID

Project No. O171201 will be received by FMDC, State of MO, UNTIL 1:30 PM, 3/1/2018. For specific project information and ordering plans, go to: http://oa.mo. gov/ facilities

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Sealed bids for Glencullen Neighborhood Improvement District Street Replacement,St. Louis County Project No. CR-1710, will be received at the Office of the Director of Procurement for the County of St. Louis, County Government Center Administration Building, 41 South Central Avenue, 8th Floor, Clayton, Missouri 63105, until 2:00 p.m. on February 21, 2018.

Plans and specifications will be available on February 5, 2018 from the St. Louis County Web Site (www.stlouisco.com), or by contacting County Blue Reprographics, Inc., 1449 Strassner Drive, St. Louis, Missouri 63144, (314) 961-3800.

DIRECTOR OF PROCUREMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES ST. LOUIS, COUNTY

McCarthy Building Companies, Inc. is proud to be an equal opportunity and affirmative action emp

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The St. Louis Economic Development Partnership (the “Partnership”) has issued an open request for qualifications from a wide variety of professional services/consulting firms for various projects initiated in 2018. This is an “Open RFQ” from which the Partnership may refer during the year, as projects become available.

The Partnership will accept qualifications throughout 2018. Qualifications should include the information indicated in the Request for Qualifications (“RFQ”), which may be obtained from the Partnership’s web site at www.stlpartnership.com. Qualifications may be sent by email to hbean@ stlpartnership.com. DBE, MBE, and WBE firms are encouraged to bid.

This RFQ shall not be construed as an offer. Submission of qualifications does not obligate the Partnership to consider a responding firm for any project or contract. Any questions should be directed to Howl Bean II at (314) 615-7663 or hbean@stlpartnership.com.

NOTICE- CHANGE OF NAME JUDGEMENT From Erinn Christopher Brown/ To Erinn Christopher French NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal Opportunity Employer

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Sealed bids for Lucas Hunt Road, St. Louis County Project No. AR-1469 will be received at the Office of the Director of Procurement for the County of St. Louis, County Government Center Administration Building, 41 South Central Avenue, 8th Floor, Clayton, Missouri 63105, until 2:00 p.m. on February 21, 2018

Plans and specifications will be available on January 29, 2018 from the St. Louis County Web Site (www.stlouisco.com), or by contacting County Blue Reprographics, Inc., 1449 Strassner Drive, St. Louis, Missouri 63144, (314) 961-3800.

DIRECTOR OF PROCUREMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES ST. LOUIS, COUNTY

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Sealed bids for Kehrs Mill Road ARS Infrastructure, St. Louis County Project No.AR-1481, will be received at the Office of the Director of Procurement for the County of St. Louis, County Government Center Administration Building, 41 South Central Avenue, 8th Floor, Clayton, Missouri 63105, until 2:00 p.m. on February 21, 2018.

Plans and specifications will be available on January 29, 2018 from the St. Louis County Web Site (www.stlouisco.com), or by contacting County Blue Reprographics, Inc., 1449 Strassner Drive, St. Louis, Missouri 63144, (314) 961-3800.

DIRECTOR OF PROCUREMENT AND ADMINISTRATIVE SERVICES ST. LOUIS, COUNTY

Paric Corporation is seeking proposals for the following project: Scottrade Center Capital ImprovementsDemolition.

The improvement plan includes at this time the following project: - Space for future Administrative Offices

A walk thru will be held on Thursday, February 8, 2018 between 9am and 11am. We will meet at the 15th Street Entrance.

Bids will be due on February 22, 2018 at 2:00pm

This project must adhere to the City of St. Louis Mayor’s Executive Order #47 requiring the following enterprise participation: 25% MBE business and 5% WBE business participation.

This project must adhere to the City of St. Louis Ordinance 69427 requiring the following Workforce participation: 25% Minority, 5% Women workforce, 15% Apprentice workforce, and 20% City Resident workforce participation.

For any questions or if you would like to find out more detailed information on this opportunity, please contact Ruben Guzman at 636-561-9563 or rmguzman@paric.com. All bids should be delivered to Paric via e-mail (bids@ paric.com) or fax (636-561-9501).

Plans, Renderings, and RFP’s will be available to view at

Main office at

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS FOR TRAINING SERVICES

East-West Gateway Council of Governments is seeking a qualified consultant to provide a SPSS Training Course. Funding for this project will be provided by the U.S. Dept. of Homeland Security. Proposals due 2:00 p.m. March 6, 2018. Late proposals will be returned. Details can be obtained at www.ewgateway.org or by calling 314-421-4220 ext. 208.

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Notice is hereby given that The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (District) will receive sealed bids for Althea - Aster Storm Sewer under Letting No. 11364-015.1, at this office, 2350 Market Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63103, until 02:00 PM on Tuesday, March 13, 2018, at a place designated. Bids will be received only from companies that are pre-qualified by the District’s Engineering Department for: SEWER CONSTRUCTION – St. Louis County drainlayer’s license required Plans and Specifications are available for free electronic download. Please go to MSD’s website and look for a link to “ELECTRONIC PLANROOM.” Plans and Specifications are also available for viewing or purchase at Cross Rhodes Reprographics located at 1712 Macklind Avenue, St. Louis MO 63110. All bidders

Public Notice of Single Source Procurement

Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is proposing to procure: Sulzer AFP 1001 M430/4 pump. The District is proposing single source procurement to Municipal Equipment Company for this equipment because they are the exclusive representative for the Eastern Missouri area. Any inquiries should be sent to ltreat@stlmsd.com.

Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

Public Notice of Single Source Procurement

Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is proposing to procure: Flygt CP-3127 submersible pump. The District is proposing single source procurement to Vandevanter Engineering Co. for this equipment because they are exclusive representative for this area. Any inquiries should be sent to ltreat@stlmsd.com.

Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

Massman-Alberici, a Joint Venture, is soliciting proposals for the Terminal Railroad Association of St. Louis project for the Merchants Bridge Main Span Replacement, East and West Approach Retrofit, East Approach site work and turnout/ crossover construction as part of the Merchants Bridge Improvements project between St. Louis, MO and Venice, IL. The Letting date is 2/21/18 by 2:00 PM. Please email estimating@massman. net your intent, work scope and subsequent proposal by 2/19/18 by 5:00 PM. DBE Goal is 10%. DBE’s must be MoDOT or IDOT certified. Subcontract/ Supplier work scope includes Bearings, Concrete Demolition, Drilled Shaft Casings, Electrical/ Navigational Lighting, Embankment, Excavation, Hauling, Micropile, Misc. Metals, Precast Wall Panels, Reinforcing Steel/ Rebar, Sheetpile, Structural Steel, Tension Bars, Track & Ballast, and Waterproofing. For all technical questions respond to John Kelley, jkelley@ massman.net, 913-291-2600. Proposals / Quotations please send to the Estimating Department, estimating@massman.net.

METROPOLITAN ST. LOUIS SEWER DISTRICT

Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is accepting proposals in the Purchasing Division, 2350 Market Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63103-2555 until 10:00 a.m. on March 9th, 2018 to contract with a company for: Enterprise Content Management & Services Software System.

Specifications and bid forms may be obtained from www.stlmsd.com, click on the “MSD AT WORK” link, (bid opportunities). The bid document will be identified as 9296 RFP. If you do not have access to the internet, call 314.768.2735 to request a copy of this bid.

Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

www.stlamerican.com

BID NOTICE

The Saint Louis Zoo intends to replace our existing poster board menus with digital menu boards in six-eight restaurants throughout Zoo grounds. All monitors must be commercial grade and have a minimum 3-year hardware warranty. Players must be BrightSign HD1023 players. Bid must include costs of monitors, players, mounts, enclosures, any software licensing, and any ancillary equipment needed for equipment to work and cover the needs of running the boards. See the Zoo Website for additional information and Bid Docs. https://www.stlzoo.org/ about/contact/vendoropportunities/

between 8:30 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., or by calling (314) 426-8184. This SFB may also be obtained by visiting our website at www.flystl.com/ business/contact-opportunites.

Robert Salarano Airport Properties Division Manager

SEALED BIDS for HVAC

PUBLISHER’S NOTICE:

Advertised herein is subject to the Federal Fair Housing Act, which makes it illegal to advertise any preference, imitation, or discrimination because of race,color, religion, sex, handicap, familial\status, or national origin, or intention to make any such preference,limitation, or discrimination.“We will not knowingly accept any advertising for real estate which is in violation of the law. All persons are hereby informed that all dwellings advertised are

on an equal opportunity basis.”

Angelita at 314-289-5430 to place your

Upgrades, Troop CService Center, Park Hills, Missouri, Project No. R1601-01 will be received by FMDC, State of MO, UNTIL 1:30 PM, 3/22/2018. For specific project information and ordering plans, go to: http://oa.mo. gov/ facilities

and 20% City Resident workforce participation.

Questions should be directed to Terry Turnbeaugh at 636-561-9890 or tlturnbeaugh@paric.com

PARIC CORPORATION IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

ADVERTISEMENT FOR PROPOSALS

The City of St. Peters is seeking proposals for the “18-127 - Centennial Greenway Phase 4 Federal Project No. TAP-7305(618)” until 2:00 p.m. local time, March 2, 2018. This will be a Non-Public opening. The purpose of this project is to provide construction phase services and prepare all required plans and specifications required to acquire needed property rights and bid the construction of an 11’ wide shared use path on the north side of McClay Road from McClay Village Drive to Hackman Road.

The RFQ can be received by sending a request to Bids@stpetersmo.net and specifying in the subject line “18-127 Centennial Greenway Phase 4 TAP-7305(618)”, or by obtaining at City of St. Peters, One St. Peters Centre Boulevard, St. Peters, Missouri 63376 beginning February 12, 2018.

If your firm would like to be considered for providing these consulting services, please prepare a Technical Proposal. This proposal should include any information which might help us in the selection process, such as the persons or team you would assign to each project, the backgrounds of those individuals, and other projects your company has recently completed or are now active. The proposal shall be submitted in quadruplicate, in a sealed container, and clearly marked with the Consultant’s name and “City of St. Peters – Centennial Greenway Phase 4 TAP-7305(618)”. The proposal must be received by the City of St. Peters Purchasing Department by 2:00 p.m., local time, March 2, 2018. All questions regarding the project and proposal submittal are to be submitted via e-mail to Bids@stpetersmo.net and specify in the subject line “RFQ – Centennial Greenway Phase 4 TAP-7305(618)”, or by mail to City of St. Peters, One St. Peters Centre Boulevard, St. Peters, Missouri 63376 before noon local time, February 23, 2018.

The City of St. Peters will evaluate firms based on a) experience and competence, b) the capacity of the firm to perform the work in the timeframe needed, c) past performance, and d) proximity to and familiarity with the project area. (23 CFR 172 Administration of Engineering & Design Related Service Contracts and RSMo 8.285 through 8.291).

Once a proposal is selected, a contract will be negotiated, with the firm, based on a mutually agreed upon scope of services. This project has received federal reimbursement funding through the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) administered by the East-West Gateway Coordinating Council of Governments. A DBE goal of 12% has been determined by Missouri Department of Transportation for the Preliminary Engineering portion of the project.

DBE firms must be listed in the MRCC DBE Directory located on MoDOT’s website at www.modot.gov, in order to be counted as participation towards an established DBE Goal. We encourage DBE firms to submit proposals as prime consultants for any project they feel can be managed by their firm.

It is required that your firm’s Statement of Qualification (RSMo 8.285 through 8.291) and an Affidavit of Compliance with the federal work authorization program along with a copy of your firm’s E-Verify Memorandum of Understanding (15 CSR 60-15.020) be submitted with your firm’s technical proposal and with your firm’s Letter of Interest. It is also required that your firm be prequalified with MoDOT and listed in MoDOT’s Approved Consultant Prequalification List.

The City reserves the right to waive any informality and to accept the proposal most advantageous to the City.

Rev. Robert Earl Houston answers call at Mercy Seat MB Church

Central West End congregation celebrating 100th year of ministry

American staff

Mercy Seat Missionary Baptist Church, which is celebrating its 100th year of ministry in 2018, has extended a call to Rev. Robert Earl Houston to serve as their pastor. Pastor Houston began his duties and preached his first sermon, “What It Means To Be a Servant” from Acts 28:1-10, on Sunday, December 10, 2017 during the 10 a.m. Morning Worship.

Prior to arriving at Mercy Seat, Pastor Houston pastored congregations in his hometown, Portland, Oregon; Fresno, California; San Diego, California; Nashville, Tennessee (as an assistant pastor); and most recently in Frankfort, Kentucky. He was called to preach at the age of 17 while a member of New Hope Missionary Baptist Church in Portland and is also a musician (he plays piano and organ).

Pastor Houston is the author of “See You

In The Morning,” a collection of funeral messages, and has appeared in publications including Gospel Today Magazine and Bishop Magazine. He has served as the editor of the American Baptist newspaper, one of the oldest African-American publications in the nation, and served as board chairman for the past seven years. He was quoted on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives by Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee in her tribute to the late Rev. A. Louis Patterson. He is the founder of www. sermonsharingservice.com and his blog, www. roberthouston.org.

Denominationally, he has served as a state convention president and vice president, district vice-moderator, the first general secretary in two districts in California, Congress dean, Publishing Board chairman, Ministers Conference chairman, PNBC National Board member, NAACP member, and was the special assistant to the president of the National Missionary Baptist Convention of America, which included oversight of their website. In Frankfort, he was the chairman

of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Celebration for six years. He is married to Jessica Georgette Houston of Sacramento, California.

Mercy Seat invites you to come and hear our pastor each Sunday morning at 10:00 a.m. Installation Services are pending. Mercy Seat is located at 4424 Washington Blvd. (Rev. James Brown Avenue) in the Central West End. Its 100th Church Anniversary activities will culminate on Sunday, July 22.

Impact of religion and racial pride on classroom discrimination

Two important factors seem to explain black American adolescents’ experiences with teacher-based racial discrimination – religiosity and racial pride, finds a new study from the Brown School at Washington University in St. Louis.

“Overall, for both African-American and Caribbean black adolescents, experiencing teacher-based racial discrimination in the classroom was associated with not feeling like they belong at school, or less school bonding,” said Sheretta Butler-Barnes, assistant professor at the Brown School. “Also, for

Rev. Robert Earl Houston and First Lady Jessica Georgette Houston of Mercy Seat Missionary Baptist Church, located at 4424 Washington Blvd. (Rev. James Brown Avenue) in the Central West End.

both groups, subjective religiosity, such as using religion to cope with stressors in day to day life, was associated with higher school bonding.”

Butler-Barnes is lead author of “TeacherBased Racial Discrimination: The Role of Racial Pride and Religiosity Among African American and Caribbean Black Adolescents,” published this month in the journal Race and Social Problems.

The paper draws on a nationally representative sample of African Americans and Caribbean black adolescents within the United States.

“For African-American adolescents, perceiving more racial discrimination from teachers and reporting lower racial pride beliefs was associated with less school bonding,” Butler-Barnes said. “So not having racial pride was very harmful in school settings where teachers were being more discriminatory.”

However, the findings for Caribbean black adolescents suggests that moderate levels of religiosity and reporting higher rates of teacher discrimination was associated with less school bonding.

“These findings are counterintuitive because one would think that religious beliefs are helpful when encountering discrimination,” she said. “We think that for Caribbean black adolescents that combating racial discrimination experiences may be taxing despite their religious beliefs. It also can be a result of their unique histories within the United States.”

She also points out that teachers’ discriminatory behavior, such as teachers acting as if black students aren’t smart and acting afraid of students based on their racial ethnic background, can have negative consequences on black Americans sense of belonging at school.

The Message

Face it: You are forgiven

How many of you repent, but remain in a guilty fearful state of mind because you really don’t believe God will forgive? If there was ever a challenge of faith, this is it.

Deep down inside, you can’t really live a life of spiritual freedom, because you have never thought God would really forgive you for all that sinning you used to do and sometimes long for, even today. I believe you and I are dealing with another clever trick of the devil. If you really don’t believe you’ve been forgiven, you keep asking God to forgive you. If you keep asking for something that is already done, the mere prayer insults the God who took care of this for you. Enter the devil. Since you cannot accept your own forgiveness, you cannot stand on the faith you profess in God. Hence, you cannot live the life God has cleared for you to embark upon. That’s a hypocrite. Enter Jesus. He took care of that. You are forgiven. Your faith in Him allows you to accept that forgiveness and move on in freedom, which brings you courage for the testimony (yours) that undoubtedly will help others. The ensuing behavior change in you lets the world know your faith is real. That’s a believer. Some might say that’s a soldier for the Lord. Anyway you look at it, the basis rests in the belief in who Jesus was, what He did, why He did it and who He did it for – i.e., you and me and anybody who looks like us.

Face it. You are forgiven; not because I say so, but because Christ says so. Deal with it please. With it this truth comes a peace that defies understanding and a peace that surely will set you free.

It does not matter your degree of sin, your quantity or your perceived propensity to sin again. Christ did not and does not discriminate on that basis. Remember, you had nothing to do with this. God’s grace is what I’m talking about.

That forgiveness thing should resonate in the soul when it collides with that grace thing. It’s up to us, you and me, to accept it. And when we do, something wonderful happens. You begin to see yourself as God sees you.

You begin to understand the beauty of salvation and oddly enough, you truly want others to understand this gift also. Your testimony takes shape and your words are then shaped around the blessing that is Jesus Christ.

Columnist James Washington