November 15th, 2018 Edition

Blacks take leadership positions in Democratic Caucus

Pierson: ‘It’s an opportunity for us to look at our message and strategize’

State Rep.

(D-Normandy) vice chair, state Rep. Barbara Washington (D-Kansas City) secretary, state Rep. Brandon Ellington (D-Kansas City) whip, and state Rep. Daron McGhee (D-Kansas City) assistant minority leader.

Pierson, the new caucus chair, has served only one term — but it was an eventful term that

Presiding Bishop and Chief Apostle Charles Edward Blake Sr. delivered a message to the faithful at America’s Center on Sunday, November 11 during the Church of God In Christ’s 111th annual Holy Convocation.

gave him the confidence to seek a leadership role.

“Being added to the Budget Committee midway through my second year was a steep learning curve, and then being added to the Special Investigative Committee investigating the governor sped up my knowledge,” Pierson told The American “I built up relationships and trust within the caucus and felt comfortable asking them for the opportunity to serve them in this way.”

Serving ‘the least of these’ 111th annual Holy Convocation sheds light on COGIC outreach

By Kenya Vaughn Of The St. Louis American

County Police rejects MOU from ESOP

Black police association claims members face ‘retaliation,’ police commissioner denies it

By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American

n “It’s a reality of retaliation. They are already being targeted.”

– Sgt. Heather Taylor, president of the Ethical Society of Police

Though several black St. Louis County police officers have recently filed complaints and lawsuits regarding discrimination within the department, Police Chief Jon Belmar has refused to sign an agreement with a police organization that would help represent minority officers in such cases. The Ethical Society of Police has represented minority (and some white) officers in the City of St. Louis since 1972, and this summer it established a chapter in the county. So far, about 60 members have joined. But Belmar stated that he will not sign a memorandum of agreement recognizing the organization because the department already has an exclusive collective bargaining agreement with the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP), in a Nov. 1 letter to the Ethical

n “Love is giving. In the Word it says, ‘God so loved the world, that he gave…’ so we give to our community.”

– Bishop Lawrence M. Wooten

Before 8 a.m. Friday morning, thousands were already seated in The Dome at America’s Center for the Annual Women’s Day Worship Service that was part of the Church of God In Christ’s 111th annual Holy Convocation programming. Dressed to the nines, they showed no signs of fatigue from the morning, noon and night praise and worship festivities that had been carrying on all week throughout America’s Center. Tens of thousands of saints convened in St. Louis from all over the world to sing, pray, preach, shout and dance while

conducting church business. At Convocation, they express the faith of the more than six million in 100 nations that make up the COGIC Church – and serve under the current leadership of Presiding Bishop and Chief Apostle Charles Edward Blake Sr. – just as they have done for more than 110 years.

Even after nearly a decade in St. Louis, the Convocation was a sight to behold. Some of the biggest names in the faith community

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

To an unprecedented degree, African Americans have been voted into leadership positions in the Democratic Party in the Missouri Legislature. On November 8, members of the Missouri Legislative Black Caucus took five of the seven Democratic Caucus leadership positions. State Rep. Tommie Pierson Jr. (D-Bellefontaine Neighbors) was elected caucus chair, state Rep. Kevin Windham

Photo by Wiley Price

Tommie Pierson Jr.

Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade welcome baby girl

Gabrielle Union and her husband Dwyane Wade are now proud parents of a “miracle baby” girl after secretly hiring a surrogate mother to carry the tot for them.

Union revealed via Twitter on Thursday, November 8 that her daughter had been born one day earlier.

“A LOVELY DAY.

We are sleepless and delirious but so excited to share that our little miracle baby arrived last night via surrogate and 11/7 will forever be etched in our hearts as the most loveliest of all the lovely

days,” Union tweeted. “Welcome to the party sweet girl! (sic)”

The post also included some lyrics to the Bill Withers song ‘Lovely Day’, as well as three pictures of the happy couple with their new bundle of joy.

The happy news came after Union recently revealed she suffers from adenomyosis - a form of endometriosis which only occurs in the uterus - which has left her infertile and caused her to experience several miscarriages.

“Towards the end of my fertility journey, I finally got some answers,” Union said.

“Everyone said, ‘you’re a career woman, you’ve prioritized your career, you waited too long and now you’re just too old to have a kid – and that’s on you for wanting a career.’ The reality is I actually have adenomyosis.”

Adenomyosis causes the uterus to become enlarged, and sufferers may also be plagued with heavy and painful periods and chronic pelvic pain.

The only cure for the condition is to undergo a hysterectomy, in which the uterus is removed.

“The gag is I had it in my early 20s,” Union added.

“Instead of diagnosing me, [doctors] were like ‘Oh you have periods that last 9 or 10 days and you’re bleeding through overnight pads ... perhaps there’s something more there.’ Every doctor I saw was like, ‘let me put you on birth control.’ ”

“The pill can mask all kinds of things. It is amazing at preventing pregnancy; not so great with addressing adenomyosis.”

Prince’s estate awarded $4M for unauthorized song release

According to The Blast, the estate of late music star Prince has won a judgment just shy of $4 million against a producer who allegedly released a few songs after his death without permission.

According to court documents obtained by The Blast, George Ian Boxill was ordered to pay the estate $3,960,287.65 for damages, costs and attorney’s fees.

to vacate the award and the estate has asked the court to confirm the judgment.

The Blast is reporting that a judge has yet to officially sign off on the ruling.

An arbitrator ruled in August that Boxill breached his contract with the estate when he attempted to release an EP called “Deliverance” last year. The arbitrator awarded the estate $3 million for the breach with the rest of the money to cover their fees.

Boxill was also ordered to return all Prince materials he obtained through his work for Prince to the estate.

The producer has filed documents to attempt

Matt Barnes granted restraining order against Gloria Govan

Matt Barnes obtained an 18-month restraining order against his ex Gloria Govan, claiming she’s a physical danger to him. The restraining order was granted through May 2020 – but does not extend to the kids because the judge doesn’t believe Govan poses a danger to them.

During last week’s hearing, the judge reportedly ruled Govan will get regular visitation – including every other weekend from Friday until Monday morning. She is also allowed to have dinner with the kids every Wednesday evening.

The judge also ordered Govan to complete 26 sessions of anger management and 10 parenting classes.

Sources: The Blast, TMZ.com, Twitter.com, People.com, Celebretainment.com

Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade

Gloria Govan

St. Louis County NAACP names John Gaskin III president

Longtime president Esther Haywood becomes president emeritus

American staff

The St. Louis County NAACP has a new president with the appointment of John Gaskin III to serve as the youngest president in the branch’s 75-year history. Gaskin, 26, was elected by acclamation on Thursday, November 8 Gaskin has been active with the NAACP since the age of 9. He has an NAACP National Board of Directors member since 2012 and a Midwest Region IV representative of the national board.

a key way,” Gaskin said.

“As a lifelong NAACPer, I understand deeply that the work of the organization is done in the field at a grass roots level.

I look forward to building coalitions and working more regionally with other groups that want to move our civil rights agenda forward.”

n “I am truly humbled to walk in the footsteps of incredible civil rights giants such as Frankie M. Freeman, Margaret Bush Wilson, Ina Boon, and now Esther Haywood.”

– John Gaskin III

Locally, Gaskin has recently served as the St. Louis County NAACP Freedom Fund Leadership Dinner chairman and as the Diversity and Minority Outreach coordinator for the St. Louis Economic Development Partnership.

“I am deeply honored to have an opportunity to serve America’s oldest and largest civil rights organization in such

Esther Haywood, an active NAACP leader in various national and local positions for nearly five decades, will end her 25-year run as branch president, but will stay on with emeritus status.

“In my role as president emeritus I am hopeful that I will now have more time to dedicate to strengthening Lincoln University in Jefferson City and working collectively with area women and girls through the NAACP’s Project WIN (women in the NAACP),” Haywood said.

“Our branch is on solid footing and will be in the hands of a visionary leader who was

John Gaskin III answered questions at a press conference on Friday, November 9 when he was announced as the St. Louis County NAACP’s new president.

trained by the NAACP since birth. With the support of our executive leadership team and other civic and business leaders, our branch will continue to prosper and support its new president.”

Gaskin included Haywood in a list of leaders he humbly follows.

“I am truly humbled to walk in the footsteps of incredible civil rights giants such as Frankie M. Freeman, Margaret Bush Wilson, Ina Boon, and

now Esther Haywood,” Gaskin said. A slate of executive officers for the branch was elected along with Gaskin: John Bowman, first vice president; Andreal Hoosman, second vice president; Kenneth Murdock, third vice president; Maggie Strong, treasurer; Harriet Weaver, assistant treasurer; Lula Hall, secretary; and Phyllis Knight, assistant secretary.

A brief history of black American survival

The movie “The Green Book” is named for the “Negro Motorist Green Book,” a segregation-era road travel guide book to help African Americans dealing with racial discrimination and Jim Crow laws, such as whites-only garages, restaurants and hotels.

First published in 1936, the Green Book was the brainchild of a Harlem-based postal carrier named Victor Hugo Green. Like most Africans Americans in the mid20th century, Green had grown weary of the discrimination blacks faced whenever they ventured outside their neighborhoods.

Whites-only policies meant that black travelers often couldn’t find safe places to eat and sleep, and so-called Sundown Towns, municipalities that banned blacks after dark, were scattered across the country.

The “Negro Motorist Green Book” in its 1948 edition provided a rundown of hotels, guest houses, service stations, drug stores, taverns, barber shops and restaurants that were known to be safe ports of call for African-American travelers.

The “Green Book” listed establishments in segregationist strongholds such as Alabama and Mississippi, but its reach also extended from Connecticut to California – any place where its readers might face prejudice or danger because of their skin color. With Jim Crow still looming over much of the country, a motto on the guide’s cover also doubled as a warning: “Carry your ‘Green Book’ with you because you may need it.”

The publishers were optimists. “There will be a day sometime in the near future when this guide will not have to be published,” they wrote. “That is when we as a race will have equal opportunities and privileges in the United States. It will be a great day for us to suspend this publication, for then we can go wherever we please and without embarrassment.”

The last edition was published in 1966, but so many of our parents, grandparents and ancestors yet struggle with the painful memories associated with traveling through the Jim Crow South and with memories of Sundown Towns in this area and other Northern cities and towns.

If and when you watch the movie, please remember that this is a movie, and no matter how good the acting, remember that it is acting.

Please watch the Bernie Hayes TV program Saturday night at 10 p.m. and Sunday evenings at 5:30 p.m. on NLEC-TV Ch. 24.2. I can be reached by fax at (314) 8373369, on e-mail at berhay@swbell.net or on Twitter @ berhay.

Photo by Wiley Price

Bernie Hayes

Editorial /CommEntary

Trump attacks black women because he fears us

It is our duty to speak out against the disturbing, disrespectful and alarming treatment of black women by President Donald Trump. At rallies, Trump continues to harass and ridicule U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters (D-California), a native of Kinloch, with his rallying cry, “Oh, Maxine, Maxine Waters –low IQ.” He is fixated on this powerful black woman, who will soon become the head of the House Financial Services Committee and have the authority to subpoena his tax returns. Rightly, he fears her greatly.

More recently, Trump went on a rampage against three highly respected black women journalists with white supremacist tropes. He dismissed April Ryan (White House correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks and a contributor to CNN), commanding her to sit down repeatedly. He taunted Yamiche Alcindor (White House correspondent for PBS and contributor to NBC and MSNBC), absurdly calling her “racist” in some weird inversion and projection of his own character failings. Then Trump attacked Abby Phillip (CNN reporter and former Washington Post journalist), contemptuously telling her, “You always ask such stupid questions” after she asked him if he wanted Matthew Whittaker, Trump’s appointee as acting attorney general, to “rein in” special counsel Robert Mueller.

Needless to say, it’s part of Trump’s “distract and rule” strategy to undermine the press in general. In the same news cycle when he publicly degraded and attacked these three respected black women journalists, Trump also slandered and revoked the White House credentials of Jim Acosta, a Latino reporter for CNN, who challenged Trump’s false characterization of a caravan of refugees as “an invasion” from the South. But Trump finds particular sport in humiliating black women professionals who dare to challenge him and speak critically of him. It’s the perfect opportunity for his racism and sexism to converge.

Not surprisingly, there is historical precedent for presidential disregard for black women journalists. Alice Allison Dunnigan, the first African-American woman journalist to receive White House credentials, stated in her autobiography, “I might say the White House seemed ‘hell-bent’ on gagging me, as far as questions on civil rights were concerned.

President Eisenhower always left me standing like the invisible man. The white reporters began to notice the snub, and one day one of them asked, ‘Do you realize how many times you were on your feet today asking for recognition?’ When I replied that I hadn’t counted, he replied, ‘Fifteen times.’”

Under Trump’s presidency, the country has regressed a century in its public discourse around race and women. It’s horrific to contemplate how far we have fallen in the two years since Michelle Obama was first lady of the United States and Barack Obama was president. Ron DeSantis was elected Florida governor after his racist slander of Andrew Gillum, his Democratic opponent, whom he said would “monkey up” the state if elected. Even more amazingly, U.S. Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith (R-Mississippi) has not retracted her statement that she wouldn’t turn down “a front seat at a public hanging” as she faces Mike Espy, a black Democrat, in a special election in Mississippi – a state with a notorious history of lynching black men.

From the nation’s highest office, Trump has empowered racists and misogynists high and low to say – and do – what they mostly had been keeping to themselves. We know that lives have been and will be lost as a result. There also is incalculable damage being done to the self-esteem and dignity of our black children to hear this kind of talk coming from the president of the United States. How do we explain to our daughters that those who ignore and belittle black women are dead wrong and acting inappropriately, when the elected president of the United States behaves this way and gets away with it? This is why we must speak out – loud and forcefully – against Trump’s demeaning treatment of AfricanAmerican women. We must speak our truth and call Trump out as the racist and misogynist that he is. And we must remember, also and always, the truth of our power. The most reliable voters against Trump and the Republican Party that enables him are black women. Trump attacks and seeks to demean us, like the coward he is, because he fears us. In that, if only that, he is correct. He should fear us and the power of our vote, because we, especially black women, are coming, as demonstrated in the recent election cycle, to get him at the ballot box.

Democrats elected the most diverse group of candidates ever

By Tom Perez For The St.

Louis American

On November 6, Democrats elected the most diverse group of candidates in our party’s history. Voters across the country sent a loud and clear message that our leaders should represent the diversity of our country. Michelle Lujan Grisham was elected as the first Latina Democratic governor, while Sylvia Garcia and Veronica Escobar became Texas’ first two Latina congresswomen. We sent the first Native American women to Congress in Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids, the first Muslim women to Congress in Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, and the youngest women ever to be elected to Congress in Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Abby Finkenauer. Ayanna Pressley and Jahana Hayes both made history as the first-ever African-American women elected to Congress from all of New England, while Lauren Underwood became the first AfricanAmerican woman elected to serve Illinois’ 14th District. New York elected Tish James as its first African-American woman attorney general, and

Jared Polis became the nation’s first openly gay man elected governor and Colorado’s first Jewish governor. And military veterans like Mikie Sherrill and Elaine Luria flipped at least six House seats from red to blue.

These are just a few highlights from a historic night – and the results are still coming in. From Andy Kim to Gina Ortiz Jones, several inspiring candidates are still locked in tight races that are still too close to call. And in Georgia, we stand fully behind Stacey Abrams as she continues to fight for victory in the face of unprecedented voter suppression efforts by Brian Kemp and Georgia Republicans. Even in races where we didn’t come out ahead, voters turned out in record numbers to support candidates who shared their values. In Florida, Andrew Gillum ran an inspiring campaign that energized millions of Floridians and sparked hope across the

Sunshine State. Andrew is a rising Democratic star, and he gives me confidence that our party’s future is bright in Florida and across the country. Representation matters. When the people we entrust with political power reflect the great diversity of the people they represent, we are stronger as a nation. The DNC was proud to support such a historic slate of candidates in races from the school board to the Senate across the country. And make no mistake: the diversity of our candidates, our organizers, and our voters were key to flipping the House and electing Democrats up and down the ballot. Democrats believe diversity is our nation’s strength, and we look forward to lifting up Democrats from every background as we work to win even more elections in the future.

Democrats put hope on the ballot on November 6, and that’s why the American people elected Democratic candidates across the country. We never backed down from our values of inclusion and opportunity, because we know that those are not only our party’s values, they’re America’s values.

Tom Perez is chair of the DNC.

Donald Trump actually is as American as the Pilgrims

By Charles Jaco

For The St. Louis American

Any country founded by religious fanatics, refugees and hucksters needs a good creation myth to take the edge off the truth, and America found one courtesy of Ronald Reagan by way of Jesus Christ.

According Matthew 5:14, Jesus supposedly said, “You are the light of the world. A city set upon a hill cannot be hidden.”

Puritan leader John Winthrop picked up the theme in 1630, when he told settlers headed for the Massachusetts Bay Colony, “We shall be as a city upon a hill. The eyes of all people are upon us.” Ronald Reagan made it a recurring theme in his speeches, beginning in 1974, when he quoted the Puritan and then said, “We are indeed, and we are today, the last best hope of men on Earth.”

Today that shining city on a hill is a grubby metropolis where the rich live in polished high rises protected by private security, while the rest of us ferret around the dingy streets for any crumbs that may have fallen off their balconies as we fondle our pocket screens filled with images of our fearless leader, glowing like a Halloween pumpkin carved with a hatchet, telling us that people who don’t look like the white Christian majority are dangerous.

Luckily, guns are as available as minimum-wage jobs, so political fanatics or maladjusted loners can pinkmist complete strangers without conscience or a pesky waiting period

Reagan was a genial con man, hoping Winthrop’s words would make us so warm and fuzzy at the idea of America that we would never notice he was picking our pockets, but he was closer to the truth than he realized.

John Winthrop was both a religious fanatic who hated democracy and a corporate shill for the Massachusetts Bay Company, which was formed to exploit New England’s resources for the British Crown by getting as many settlers to the Massachusetts Bay colony as quickly as possible. Winthrop was part of a caravan of illegal migrants (at least as far as the Natives were concerned) sailing to America 1,000 strong, the largest single movement of Europeans to the New World yet attempted.

Correction

In last week’s Sports EYE, Kenyatta Williams was misidentified as the mother of the wrong youth in the MICDS/ Parkway North controversy. Her son is Carter Williams. We regret the error.

Condolences to the Jewish community

On behalf of the St. Louis NAACP, I extend our heartfelt condolences to our families and friends within the Jewish community. It cannot go unsaid that with the establishment of the Third Reich in 1933, German

Winthrop spent 12 years as governor of the colony and meant it when he said, “Democracy is the meanest and worst of all forms of government.” He persecuted and banished religious opponents, ordered raids that wiped out the Pequot Indian tribe, restricted the rights and movement of nonPuritan immigrants, ignored the growing slave trade, and ordered investigations into people accused of witchcraft. A half-century later, his decisions were the partial basis for mass executions during the Salem Witch Trials.

Winthrop and company were the first American authoritarians, so it makes sense that Reagan, whose administration paved the road to the hellscape we now live in, would quote Winthrop and claim his words were uplifting and not a call to rid the “shining city” of heretics and troublemakers. After all, the modern white Christian American Taliban first got a workout as the Moral Majority by campaigning fervidly for Reagan.

Reagan and the conservative movement gutted unions, caused wages to stagnate, gave tax cuts to the rich that both hobbled the economy and led to the mammoth wealth inequality that threatens to tear 21st century America apart, and pitched it all as “individual liberty” as earnestly as a cartrunk salesman trying to pass off oven doors as the newest high-def TVs.

Starting with Reagan, the American middle class began a slow decline, while wealth inequality began to rise. The National Bureau of Economic Research in 2017 found that men’s median lifetime income has declined between 10 percent and 19 percent from Reagan until now. When Reagan took office, the top one percent in America controlled roughly 24 percent of the nation’s wealth. Now they control 45 percent. When Reagan took office, roughly 20 percent of American workers belonged to labor unions. The number now is around half that.

You don’t need me to tell you where this all ends up 38 years later. We’re living it. But it’s not just conservative economics and tax cuts that led us to the border of dystopia. Trump’s authoritarian desire to control government as a means of silencing his critics is an old American tradition, but its recent incarnation began under George W. bush, following 9/11 and leading up to the Iraq invasion.

leaders proclaimed the rebirth of the Volksgemeinschaft dividing the population into two groups: “national comrades,” who belonged to the Volksgemeinschaft, and the Gemeinschaftsfremde “community aliens” who did not. And the same sort of hate was prevalent last year when white supremacists in Charlottesville invoked the classic imagery of Nazis racist terror with a torchlight march, chanting, “Jews will not replace us.” And that hatred was present when worshippers attending services at a Pittsburgh synagogue were slaughtered, in the bloodiest act of antiSemitism in American history.

Authoritarians from Mussolini to Putin have always placed law and order at the top of the societal pyramid. After 9/11, Americans honored the police, firefighters, and first responders who died, as well as the military that invaded Afghanistan searching for Osama bin Laden, but that honor quickly turned into fetishizing anyone who wore a uniform. We were told they were all heroes, every last one of them, and that was that, as if putting on a uniform automatically changed the person wearing it from a human capable of greed and cruelty, as well as kindness and sacrifice, and turned him or her into a demigod. Just before and immediately after the Iraq invasion in 2003, the “shut up and salute” syndrome became a national standard. Ever since, everyone in uniform has become a hero who should be thanked for their service. But what seems superficially polite is actually pernicious. French filmmaker Jean Genet once said, “Fascism is theatre,” and even though the British punk movement of the ‘70s coined the term “Nazi chic” as a goof, there’s truth in the humor: fascist movements always glorify order, racial purity, and uniforms. The authoritarian architype extends to small-town cops, like Darren Wilson. Accusing him of murder or manslaughter in the death of Michael Brown in Ferguson was seen as an insult to the very concept of order and the thin blue line. So with economic policies that favor the rich, twisted language equating individual liberty with sociopathic policy, and authoritarianism glorifying order over everything, we end up with Trump. John Winthrop would have understood and approved. Charles Jaco is a journalist, author, and activist. Follow him on Twitter at @ charlesjaco1.

While our faith moves us to extend the right hand of fellowship to those that hate, we all must continue to fight for the freedom stolen in a Pittsburgh synagogue. Our heads are bowed and our hearts are saying, “O Lord, grant that this night we may sleep in peace. And that in the morning our awakening may also be in peace. May our daytime be cloaked in your peace. Protect us and inspire us to think and act only out of love. Keep far from us all evil; may our paths be free from all obstacles from when we go out until we return home.”

Adolphus M. Pruitt II, president St. Louis City NAACP

Columnist Charles Jaco

Columnist Tom Perez

NAACP soliciting Spingarn Award nominations

The NAACP National Board of Directors is soliciting nominations for the 104th Spingarn Award. All nominations must be submitted, in writing, on or before December 31. The medal, which was instituted in 1914 by the late J. E. Spingarn, then NAACP chairman, is awarded to a man or woman of African descent and American citizenship who has made the highest achievement during the preceding year or years, as well as consideration of an overall body of work by an individual.

Former medalists include the late Maya Angelou, Harry Belafonte, the late Julian Bond, the late Ruby Dee, the late John Hope Franklin, the late Frankie Muse Freeman, the late Dorothy I. Height, the late Lena Horne, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Quincy Jones, Congressman John Lewis, the late Gordon Parks, Sidney Poitier, Cicely Tyson and Oprah Winfrey.

Nominations must include a detailed, current biographical profile of the nominee, highlighting relevant activities and achievements. Supporting and verifying documents such as news clippings, honors received, etc., should also be attached. This information should be clearly typewritten or printed, as it must be reproduced.

Nominations should be addressed to: The Spingarn Medal Award Committee, Attention: Mrs. Mildred B. Roxborough, , 50 Broadway, 31st Fl., New York, NY 10004. Must be postmarked by December 31.

There is still hope for all of us

By Leyla Fern King For The St. Louis American

Shabbat Shalom. I’m a member of the 14th class of Cultural Leadership’s yearlong high school leadership program. Cultural Leadership is a program run here in St. Louis that facilitates discussion around diversity, inclusion, and activism among a diverse group of high school sophomores and juniors who apply to be part of the program.

Specifically, we seek to understand life and the world around us through black and Jewish lenses. We meet at least once a month as a group to have thought-provoking conversation and learn about history and culture.

In September, we came here to B’nai Amoona to learn about Yom Kippur, Rosh Hashanah, and Sukkot. We were welcomed and loved by this community with open arms, something we are more than grateful for.

Unfortunately, not everyone is as loving as your community, especially not to minority groups, such as Jewish people and people of color. Recently, there have been way too many hate crimes committed against both groups of people – unforgivable acts that paint a picture of America that we are not proud or fond of.

In times like these, when hate seems to engulf the world around us, it’s easy to feel as though hate is all the world has to offer. But we cannot emphasize enough how important it is to keep demonstrating love for each other and to show that there is still hope for all of us.

This gathering is hope. Cultural Leadership is hope. I am hope. We all are hope. We must remember that there are people all over America, like us, who will not stand for hate crimes, who will not let hatred win.

This gathering is hope because in a dark time we have come together to support each other and those on Squirrel Hill at the Tree of Life congregation. Just as easily as we have come together today, we could have fallen apart. We could have stayed home, loathing America and the person who had so much hate in him he had to force it upon other people. But we didn’t, because love must trump hate.

The past few months that we have been a part of Cultural Leadership, the importance of love and activism have been emphasized greatly, two things that are essential at a time like this. We must speak up against violence and injustice, such as the tragedy at the Tree of Life Congregation. We must love and support each other. We must remain hopeful.

We are lucky that Cultural Leadership allows us to know such a wonderfully diverse group of people and that we get to spend our Saturday night at this equally wonderful gathering. Thank you for having us. Thank you for showing us and the rest of the world love. Thank you for being hope.

Edited from remarks delivered Saturday, November 3 at Congregation B’nai Amoona at a service commemorating the victims at Tree of Life Congregation in the Squirrel Hill neighborhood of Pittsburgh.

Dr. Henry Givens Jr. signed copies of his book (written with Dave Lange) “Taming Troubled Waters: Dr. Henry Givens Jr. and the Transformation of Harris-Stowe State University” at the university on Sunday, October 21.

A book for Dr. Givens

Leyla Fern King

Photo by Wiley Price

Continued from A1

visited the city. But as they gathered this year under the theme of “The Church Seasoning The World,” the faithful were reminded that COGIC serves those Jesus referred to as “the least of these.” Evangelist Mother Frances Kelley, national director of COGIC’s Intercessory Prayer Ministry, delivered the Women’s Day message. She told how she was led to Christ through COGIC when she was married to “the owner of the biggest nightclub in Detroit.”

She lived in a mansion and casually visited a “tiny storefront sanctified church” as she sought spiritual comfort while her marriage was in turmoil.

Late one night, the doorbell rang. She was being served with an eviction order.

“I said, ‘When?’” Kelley said. “He said, ‘Now.’ It was 39 degrees. I had been to New York and lived on Central Park West. I worked at The Apollo. I opened for Billie Holliday. And there I was being put out in 39 degree weather in Detroit. And I don’t mean just put out. I mean the furniture outdoors on the ground.”

She also had a baby in a crib. Kelley begged the authorities not to put her out on the street with her baby. She was allowed to call for help.

CAUCUS

Continued from A1

Only two caucus leaders now are not black: state Rep. Crystal Quade (D-Springfield) was elected minority leader and state Rep. Sarah Unsicker (D-Kirkwood) policy chair. African Americans also were elected to leadership positions in the Senate Democratic Caucus. State Senator-elect Karla May (D-St. Louis) was elected chair and

son moved into their attic. The deacon’s wife had one condition in exchange for her hospitality: at 10 a.m. she would call Kelley down for prayer time.

“That’s how I learned to call on Him!” Kelley said, moved to a shout. “I didn’t have church clothes. I had holes in my stockings. My son ate cornflakes three times a day sometimes. But I had to get up and pray in her house. I learned how to call on Jesus. Then, I realized, I could pray by myself.”

A church that gives

Just as the deacon and his wife saved Mother Kelley decades ago, Williams Temple Senior Pastor and COGIC General Board member Bishop Lawrence M. Wooten sat under a tent at the corner of Union Boulevard and Dr. Martin Luther King Drive in the bitter cold with the warmest smile on his face. He never once shivered as he watched hundreds line up to receive blessings on behalf of COGIC at its annual Christmas in November event.

“Jesus met the needs of the people, that’s what it’s all about, “ Wooten said. “We’ve had mothers to stand out here cry, because without this they would have had no Christmas. We just want to be a blessing.” Wooten said the COGIC ministry is about meeting both bodily and spiritual needs.

“You can’t tell a man, ‘I need you to receive the Lord’ and he’s hungry,” Wooten said. “If you see a brother hungry, feed him. Jesus said, ‘I must go where the need is,’ and I’m just so glad to be out here helping people get their needs met. Wooten also pointed out the various resources offered during Convocation: worship night and day, but also legal clinics, health fairs, classes on how to start a business, and a job fair. He mentioned COGIC Cares Children’s Charity that helps young people in developing nations.

A native of Memphis, she had nobody in Detroit to call. “I just stood there in the door watching them take out thousand-dollar chairs,” Kelley said. “I had a 16-room home – and this gambling, numbersrunning, bookie husband of mine had everything in it that you could want. And I had all of that snatched right out from me.”

state Senator Jamilah Nasheed (D-St. Louis) whip, and state Senator Shalon Kiki Curls D-Kansas City) was re-elected assistant minority leader. State Senator Gina Walsh (D-Bellefontaine Neighbors) was re-elected as state Senate minority leader. Pierson said now is the time for the Missouri Democratic Party to look to new leaders and new ideas as the person at the top of the party, U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, was soundly defeated by Republican Josh Hawley on

She tried to call her husband and got no answer. “But let me tell you what God will do,” Kelley exclaimed. A deacon from that little sanctified storefront church –who lived on the other side of town –happened to be driving by with his 16-year-old son in

a big empty truck as she stood at the door. He asked her what was happening. She sobbed her way through her story. The deacon asked, “Is your phone still on?” He then called his wife and told her that “Sister Kelley has been put out.” He and his teenage son made three trips to get Kelley and her infant

n “It’s an opportunity for us as a party to look at our message and strategize how to best move forward as a party.”

– state Rep. Tommie Pierson Jr.

November 6.

“It’s an opportunity for us as a party to look at our message and strategize how to best move forward as a party,” Pierson said. “This position provides an opportunity for me to be involved in that discussion.”

Roberts to chair black caucus

The Missouri Black Legislative Caucus elected its leadership on Sunday,

“Love is giving,” Wooten said. “In the Word it says, ‘God so loved the world, that he gave…’ so we give to our community.”

An hour after the event was supposed to be end, volunteers were still handing out care packages that included toys and groceries.

“We are trying to touch everybody in this region – and in the world,” he said. This year it was announced that after 11 years in St. Louis, the Holy Convocation will return to COGIC’s international headquarters in Memphis starting in 2021 and remain there through 2023. “Memphis has special significance in the spiritual and cultural life of COGIC,” Blake said in a statement, “and we are pleased to return to the place of our origin.”

November 11. State Rep. Steven Roberts Jr. (D- St. Louis) will serve as chair, state Rep.–Elect Ashley Manlove (D-Kansas City) as vice-chair, state Rep. Richard Brown (D-Kansas City) as treasurer, and state Rep.-Elect LaKeysha Bosley (D-St. Louis) as secretary. As chair, Roberts is responsible for leading the caucus in backing legislation designed to advance the priorities of the African American community. Roberts served as the treasurer in the last session. Caucus members collectively represent nearly 1 million Missouri citizens in the state’s urban areas. State Rep. Cora Faith Walker (D-Ferguson) resigned from the caucus when Roberts was elected chair. She and Roberts have sued one another in the aftermath of Walker alleging that Roberts raped her in 2016. Roberts claimed their relations were consensual, and a special prosecutor assigned to the

Photo by Wiley Price

A sacred dancer performed before Presiding Bishop and Chief Apostle Charles Edward Blake Sr. and other elders during the Church of God In Christ’s 111th annual Holy Convocation on Sunday, November 11 at America’s Center.

ESOP

Continued from A1

Society.

However, the organization is not seeking collective bargaining rights, just a seat at the table in decision-making, said Sgt. Heather Taylor, president of the Ethical Society Police and a homicide detective in St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department.

“They don’t want us there because they know we will be vocal, and we have facts that the police department is covering up corruption,” Taylor said. “Most police departments don’t want that. That’s what it’s really about.”

In response to ESOP’s claims, a spokesman for Belmar provided the text of his Nov. 1 response declining ESOP’s proposed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). While thanking ESOP for its help “in recruitment and community engagement,” Belmar stated that the FOP was the statecertified bargaining unit for department personnel.

Taylor said ESOP doesn’t have a written agreement with

LIBRARY

Continued from A1

Saturday, October 27. Sorth was inspired to find a way for the library to help adults graduate from high school when she learned there are 90,000 adults over the age of 25 in the St. Louis region without high school diplomas. Thanks to Sorth, library staff, the St. Louis County Library Foundation and other community partners, there are now 10 fewer. Meet the St. Louis County Library Class of 2018. Jessica Bishop wants to work in real estate. Angie Brown wanted to finish the education she had started. Kristopher Curtiss sees

the city police department because they already have a well-established working relationship with the police union and director of personnel. She said it became apparent that they would need an agreement in the county when even small requests were met with resistance and communication became irregular.

About 20 elected officials, members of the clergy and former police officers spoke at the St. Louis County Council meeting on Tuesday, November 13 to demand that Belmar sign the agreement. Neither Belmar nor County Executive Steve Stenger was present. Council members Hazel Erby and Rochelle Walton Gray voiced their support and vowed to set up a meeting where Belmar would answer to council members about his lack of support for ESOP, Erby said.

“It’s a serious matter,” Erby told The American. “I am aware of the retaliation against police officers who spoke up in support of Nikki Brown. I think we need to get it done right away.”

Former county officer Nikki Brown recently left the department because she

a high school diploma as a stepping stone. Erin Fendler believes it’s never too late to improve yourself. Tabatha Graham plans to pursue nursing. Nakeisha Lawson wants to develop a different narrative for herself. Brittany Robinson was encouraged by her kids. Pamela Timms was celebrated at the ceremony by family visiting from four states, including California. Kierra Jones wept as she gave her salutatorian address. “The most important thing we all learned,” she said, “is that we all deserve a second chance.”

Jacoby Ford wept as she gave her valedictorian address. “It was hard,” she said, “but I did achieve it. We can finally go to jobs and say, ‘I have my high school diploma.’”

St. Louis Police Sgt. Heather Taylor, president of the Ethical Society of Police, spoke with the media after addressing the St. Louis County Council on Tuesday, November 13. To her right is Rev. Darryl Gray, community liaison for the organization.

was experiencing racial and sexual bias, she claimed. She was a member of the county’s police union, FOP Lodge 111.

However, when Brown filed an equal employment opportunity complaint with the Missouri

St. Louis Community College agrees. A representative from the college surprised them all with a scholarship for three free credit hours of college. Christopher Fletcher, manager of student admissions and registration at the college, praised the library for the “ingenuity” of its new program.

Sorth said her partner at Career Online High School had never seen a college offer any kind of scholarship to its new graduates – and that another community partner already is stepping up to make a similar offer to the next graduating class.

Having got a new taste of education, the graduates want more. There was much buzz at the ceremony and after party — a joyous affair full of

Human Rights Commission, Brown didn’t feel that she would receive fair legal representation from the FOP, who was also representing the other side, Taylor said.

“African Americans reached

children crying, “Mommy!” as they dove into the folds of a graduation gown — about what comes next.

Ricqui Brooks, who coordinates the new program for the library, told them she is still here to help.

“If you need help filling out college applications or financial aid forms,” Brooks said, “call me.”

As keynote speaker Yemi Akande-Bartsch, president and CEO of Focus St. Louis, told them, “This is just the beginning.”

The library has scholarships available for Career Online High School and encourages more people to apply. Interested students should apply at www.slcl.org/cohs or email cohs@slcl.org.

out to us and said, ‘We need help,’” Taylor said. “They reached out for a reason.” Taylor said that Belmar and the five-member St. Louis County Board of Police Commissioners are ignoring the fact that the department has problems with racial issues.

The American spoke with police commission chair Roland Corvington, who is African-American, and asked him if he was concerned about inclusion and diversity in the department.

Corvington responded, “I think over the past years, Chief Belmar has demonstrated his support for diversity and inclusion within the police department and in terms of community engagement.”

The American told Corvington that minority officers have stated that they are being ignored and fear they will be retaliated against for joining ESOP.

“I would beg to differ,” Corvington said. “They are not being ignored, nor will they be retaliated against.”

When asked if he was personally supportive of signing an agreement, he said, “The FOP is the exclusive bargaining agent, and we will

continue our relationship with the Ethical Society of Police absent of an MOU.” Erby noted that the fivemember police commission, appointed by the county executive, recently started identifying itself as a “civilian oversight board.” Erby said it’s misleading and the board only started using the terminology after the community started asking for an independent civilian oversight board that would be critical of police work.

“That ‘citizen oversight board’ never said a word to address what was going on in Ferguson,” Erby said of the commission.

ESOP is asking all regional police officers, city and county, to rescind their union membership until the county police department signs a formal agreement recognizing the existence of ESOP as a local association of police officers.

Taylor said that minority county officers don’t just have a fear of retaliation for joining the Ethical Society. “It’s a reality of retaliation,” she said. “They are already being targeted.”

The St. Louis County Library graduated its inaugural Career Online High School Graduation Class at library headquarters on Saturday, October 27.

Photo by Wiley Price

Photo by Wiley Price

With or without the Democratic Party

The Democrats flipped the U.S. House of Representatives in the midterm elections. Now we have a divided Congress because the GOP has control of the Senate. And while political pundits proclaimed the elections were a referendum on Trump and his Republican Party, it was as much a referendum on the Democrats.

Voters set a record with an estimated 113 million voters coming out to make their voices heard. Another 36 million voted early, also a record. Over a hundred women will take office in many capacities across the country – another record. Voters put some new kinds of faces in office. States elected the first Native Americans, first Muslims, first openly gay, first blacks, first Latinos. This kind of racial and religious diversity will only make a difference if those elected share a humanistic worldview through a feminist, anti-racist and anti-homophobic lens.

I truly hope that voter turnout and this kind of diversity become a trend. Having an organized force of informed and empowered voters plus progressive-thinking elected officials is a powerful combination.

For the last decade, I have joined others in calling out the lack of vision and strategy of

the Democratic Party. Polls are showing that African-American voters, still the party’s most loyal constituent base, are not just disenchanted by the Dems but feel disenfranchised.

Last year Brilliant Corners Research presented its polling results to the Congressional Black Caucus underscoring that 63 percent of black voters think the Dems take them for granted. There was an apology from Tom Perez, chairman of the Democratic National Committee. This is an old, empty repentance with no corrective action. Black voters are slowly moving away from the party and, in some cases, moving away from electoral politics as a viable vehicle for democratic participation.

U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill (D-Missouri) and the Democratic Party knew that she’d be in the fight of her political life this time around. Josh Hawley hadn’t been in office a year as state attorney general before he smelled the blood of wounded prey. The young, conservative whippersnapper was encouraged by his party to take on McCaskill and got its unwavering support.

McCaskill’s strategy? She embarked on a state tour of 50 town halls to white, Republican-majority areas. Her goal was to “go out of my way to places where I’m not that popular.” A cursory look at some predominantly white St. Louis city wards showed that they were also places where Claire was not all that popular. She wasted time and money on voters she admitted “have never and will never vote for me.” Dems seem to be clueless about how to select and support candidates (particularly those of color), how to value and engage their constituents, or how to strategically counter the red steamroller coming at us. Thanks to tone-deaf Democratic Party leaders, key seats are being lost all over the country. Missouri is now flaming red with a supermajority Republican state assembly and governor. Only the state auditor prevails as the sole statewide Democratic elected official. Up-and-coming young, progressive candidates aren’t waiting around to kiss the ring of the Democratic Party. Check out winners like U.S. Repelect Alexandra Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York), who ran a left, grassroots campaign, beat the incumbent Democrat and went on to become the youngest person elected to Congress at 29.

Statewide coalitions are effectively filling the organizing void left by the Democrats. These broad coalitions are rooted in community struggles and are doing the base-building work among voters that Dems abandoned. Their victories included restoring the voting rights of felons (Florida), raising the minimum wage (Missouri), Medicaid Expansion (Indiana, Utah, Nebraska), and gender antidiscrimination (Massachusetts). Tricks, statutes and laws have been put into place by the GOP to suppress the votes of the Democratic Party’s constituency, yet the Dems seem have no defense strategy. That trick the conservatives pulled in North Dakota was unconscionable – at the last minute, requiring physical addresses for all tribal voters instead of their traditional postal boxes. Anyone could have predicted the Georgia secretary of state and gubernatorial candidate Brian Kemp would suppress votes. The Georgia Democratic Party and the DNC should have been screaming to the next galaxy calling for his immediate recusal. Voters want more democracy, not less. They want less corruption and more accountability. They want commitment to a political platform that includes the issues and values for their families and communities and not those of corporate interests. The midterm elections show that we must build upon our strengths, re-charge and re-tool our strategy and tactics. We need to stay woke with a 2020 vision, figuratively and literally. Communities need to step back and think about how we’re going to advance political power in this current climate – with or without the Democratic Party.

Columnist Jamala Rogers

The Democrats’ dilemma: progressives or pandering?

Charles Jaco – journalist, author, and activist (on Twitter at @charlesjaco1) – who took down U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill’s Republican challenger Todd Akin six years ago in a bruising broadcast interview, came out of retirement to write for The American before the November 6 general election and has stuck with it. He penned this guest Political EYE.

In deep-red rural and exurban Missouri, the Democrats’ progressive economic and political policies are pretty popular, while the Democrats themselves are toxic. Democrats can change that if they would go back to being 1938 Democrats and abandon 2018 support for minority rights, abortion rights, and gun control.

Rural and suburban whiteflight Missouri voters often aren’t conservatives as much as they are racist religious populists. They’ve given control of state government to a GOP super-majority, purged all Democrats from statewide offices except for auditor, and tossed out centerright Democratic U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill in favor of Republican Josh Hawley, a pro-Trump theocrat who has said sexual assaults are due to the sexual revolution of the 1960s, and that contraception is the same thing as abortion.

rich-free-enterprise economics have destroyed rural and small-town Missouri the same way they’ve impoverished urban areas. Unions have been gutted, wages have stagnated, corporate capitalists have shipped good jobs overseas, and full employment means holding down two jobs at minimum wage without benefits. Small-town downtowns have been hollowed out, and a wave of Chinese or Big Pharma-produced opioids have killed or addicted people looking for something to numb the pain.

Raising the minimum wage and rejecting right-to-work holds out the real promise of putting more money in the pockets of people whose towns have been turned into zombies by voodoo economics. The progressive voter initiative to take drawing state legislative boundaries out of the hands of career politicians got traction because it was pitched as a campaign against political elites. And medical marijuana passed because rural America, like the rest of the country, has been smoking weed for decades.

was when he casually saluted a Marine with a cup of coffee after disembarking from his helicopter.”

A St. Louis-area elected Democrat told me most of the blame for the midterm wipeout belongs to McCaskill’s rightof-center politics and trying too hard to play to the rural vote, saying, “Democrats, including people of color, are pretty angry with her, going back to her [Brett] Kavanaugh and abortion comments. They may have skipped voting on her race.”

fundraising power, and unyielding determination to stand up for the principles that have always defined our party.” Coming out of the Democrats taking back the House in the midterm elections, Clay’s support for Pelosi is both sensible and savvy. In all likelihood, Pelosi is leaving at her own time on her own terms (in two years, most expect), and Clay’s early and public support of her leadership should net him consideration in committee appointments.

But those same voters rejected an anti-union rightto-work law, voted to reform state legislative re-districting by giving the job to a professional demographer, approved raising the state’s minimum wage by an overwhelming majority, and green-lit medical marijuana. Missouri’s conservative freemarket GOP establishment opposed all of them and were ignored by its base voters.

The explanation is pretty straightforward. Republican trickle-down-cut-taxes-for-the-

All of those were progressive initiatives, but they were also populist: I’ll take power away from fat cats, raise my wages, join a union if I’m lucky enough, and maybe I can even get a prescription and stop smoking skunky ditch weed. They all would have failed if the word “Democrat” were attached to any of them. Decades of on-point messaging by the GOP and propaganda from Fox News and radio and internet flamethrowers have painted Dems as a party that wants to take away guns and slaughter fetuses and is filled with un-American black and brown radicals who want revenge against white people.

Since the majority of white rural Missouri voters

agree, while at the same time supporting progressive economic policies, Democrats have a dilemma that comes down to three choices.

Democrats can field white candidates in rural areas who are pro-gun and anti-abortion. Or they can stick with the party’s principles and resign themselves to not winning much of anything outside of St. Louis, Kansas City, and Columbia, home to the University of Missouri. Or they can hold fast to principle, try to slowly chip away at GOP support, and get the economic policies they want by simply putting them on the ballot.

Progressive activist Patricia Scott lives and works in fire engine-red Poplar Bluff, in the state’s southeast corner, and thinks pandering to rural proTrumpers might be a waste of time. “It’s about abortion and guns. Nothing else seems to matter,” she said. “One of their main complaints is that people in the city just don’t understand us here in the country. They want to take all the money and not give us any for infrastructure or schools. They feel folks in the city talk down

and disparage them.”

McCaskill did her best to meet with them, holding dozens of town halls in rural Missouri. She still lost. A pro-McCaskill activist in Springfield largely agrees. He doesn’t want his name used because, in proTrump southwest Missouri, speaking out can get you fired, assaulted, or harassed.

“Abortion is all many rural ‘Christians’ need to vote against Democrats,” he said. “And don’t discount misogyny as a factor against Claire, either. The big national issues kill us in rural areas: abortion, LGBTQ rights, ‘Antifa radicals.’ Republicans have successfully messaged us-against-them and stoked class and racial distrust.”

In Poplar Bluff, Scott agreed that racism is a huge factor. “Many of the people I’ve canvassed hated Obama and made it clear to me it was because he was black,” she said. “Trump didn’t visit the graves of Americans killed in World War I because of a little rain. Nary a word from my Republican friends. But I heard for weeks how disrespectful [President Barack] Obama

There may be something to that. The medical marijuana initiative had 52,000 more votes than were cast in the McCaskill-Hawley U.S. Senate race. The proposition to raise Missouri’s minimum wage attracted 43,000 more voters than the Senate contest. Even the wonky re-districting amendment got 7,500 more votes than were cast for U.S. Senate.

But despite all the people who opted out of voting for senator, Democrats still have to decide what to do about rural voters whose racist, religious, and/or pro-gun positions mean they’ll vote for Republicans, no matter what.

Local Democrats running in those areas may be doomed by the culture war demographics of bigotry. But statewide Democrats need to give nonracist pro-choice gun control voters a reason to turn out in huge numbers. Pandering to Republicans isn’t it.

New – and old –leaders for Dems

U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay (D-St. Louis) circulated a letter to the House Democratic Caucus on Tuesday, November 13 rallying support for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California). He spoke up – rightly – for Pelosi’s “strategic skills, unprecedented

Bill Scher also wrote sensibly and strategically in Politico urging progressives who need visibly evidence of new leadership for the Democrats to fight to oust Majority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Maryland). As Scher noted, Hoyer has antagonized progressive activists by “advocating for fiscal restraint of Social Security and Medicare, chiding protesters for confrontational tactics and pressuring left-wing candidates to bow out of swingdistrict House races.” At 79, Hoyer is one year older than the much more valuable Pelosi. Democrats should appease progressives and empower youth by backing a younger, more progressive Democrat for whip.

Speaking of new and welcome progressive leadership, Yvette Simpson will succeed Jim Dean as chief executive, of Democracy for America, the grass-roots progressive organization founded by Dean’s brother Howard Dean. Simpson, the former Cincinnati City Council member and mayoral candidate, served as the organization’s federal electoral manager during the second half of 2018, working to recruit and support a strong, diverse slate of federal candidates in the midterm elections – many of whom will be sworn in as newly elected members of Congress in January, after she moves up at DFA on January 1.

Investing in the future of finance

Proudly headquartered in St. Louis, we’re committed to making the region a better place to live, learn, and work. It starts with educational excellence. The Wells Fargo Finance Education Center at Harris-Stowe State University reflects an ongoing educational partnership. The virtual trading floor and interactive skills laboratory give business students invaluable experience and a distinct edge in pursuing investment careers.

Visit wfa.com/community to find out how we’re supporting St. Louis.

Building better every day.

By Cyril D. Loum For The St. Louis American

Part of a year-long series, presented by The American and the Brown School at Washington University, on changing the narratives and outcomes of young black males in St. Louis.

Upon arrival in the United States, my parents had their funding as missionaries discontinued because they chose to be with their children away from a war-torn country. This meant that our food came from food banks and clothing from coops, which ended up providing us with the necessary resources to survive.

Survival also was based on many other aspects. Most impactful were my parents’ conception of who I was, the education I received, and employment and housing opportunities. These factors eventually helped shape me into someone who strives to enhance communities.

I will never forget my parents always echoing to me that I could be anything I wanted to be if I worked hard. My other childhood mentors included my brothers, young adults in my community, teachers, business professionals, and workingclass people. They were all leaders in their own right. As

a young child, I started noting that leadership is one skill that could help uplift an impoverished community. As an individual who received these tools, it was most effective when the agencies or individuals providing these tools understood the dynamic of the neighborhood as an embodiment of their culture. This culture that was part of my life moved me to attain a bachelor’s degree in Communication and Political Science and a master’s degree in Legal Studies. Then I wanted to give back to the community that shaped me. Communities should be revived in a holistic manner. One organization or several individuals coming together cannot bring the change that is needed within underserved communities. We need numerous agencies to collaborate for the better good, with their caring expertise to bring forth the change that the community itself is requesting and not what we the experts

desire. African Americans who apply for conventional mortgage loans are 2.5 times more likely to be denied than nonHispanic whites, according to Home Mortgage Disclosure Act data analyzed by the Center for Investigative Reporting. Also in 2017, we saw that the steepest homeownership decline occurred in black communities, where the percentage of homeowners dropped to 42.2 percent.

Based on this data, Caring Ministries in St. Louis developed a model that empowers individuals within the community to have the necessary tools needed to purchase a customized home with immediate equity. Owning your home is not only fulfilling to the individual but also allows for wealth accumulation and economic growth in a city. Our main goal as we develop these communities is to stabilize them, working with agencies and individuals who understand the dynamic of the neighborhood from a cultural context. These forgotten communities can be revived.

Cyril D. Loum is the executive director of Caring Ministries, Inc., which helps to stabilize communities by providing affordable homeownership for the underserved communities, and an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University’s

WITH HEART

One of the best ways to reduce waste during the holiday season is to wrap your mind around some reusable traditions:

•Insist on helping clean the dishes in exchange for not using plastic cutlery or paper plates this year. Offer to help with laundry as well to encourage not using paper napkins / placemats.

•Use food dye and craft supplies to turn a clean sock into your own stocking. Or cut and sew your own from an old pillow case.

•Craft your own seasonal centerpiece to decorate each family gathering around the table. Use found materials such as different c olored leaves and pinecones for a natural look.

•Do not waste any food! W hen your family has more leftovers than they can eat, share with others less fortunate.

•Instead of buying holiday-themed candies, learn to make treats from scratch. T his can save money, resources and calories / sugar.

•Spend time with family and friends who y ou know don’t get to spend a lot of time with others each holiday season. If you can, bring them something homemade to spread cheer. Donate coats that don’t fit to t hose in need. Consider serving a meal at a local shelter.

•W rap your gifts this year in old newsapers. Ask others to do the same!

• Shop local! Buy gifts and produce in your neighborhood.

Black and Blue Wave in Illinois

As rapper Ice Cube might say, the November 6 midterm elections turned out to be “a good day” for Democrats, nationally, and for the Illinois Democratic Party in particular, including black candidates in the Land of Lincoln.

Democrats seized control of the U.S. House, gaining between 35-40 seats, racked up historic firsts in terms of unprecedented numbers of women of color and LGBTQ candidates who ran for office and, in the process, gained the power to neutralize the Trump administration’s agenda of dismantling Obamacare, hostility toward immigrants, and lack of transparency relative to his possible collusion with Russia.

create jobs and attract companies to the state and bring back stability to our state, which will be the progenitor of jobs and encouraging people to come… when we create jobs we bring revenue to the state without raising taxes.”

So, how does he plan to do it?

Pritzker has made it no secret that he wants to legalize the sale of marijuana for recreational use, which would bring in an estimated $300-750 million in added revenue to the state.

In Illinois, J.B. Pritzker led a Democratic black and blue tidal wave of sorts, becoming the governorelect by soundly defeating Governor Bruce Rauner by nearly 15 percentage points.

And on Pritzker’s coattails rode a record number of AfricanAmerican statewide winners including Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton, Attorney General Kwame Raoul and Secretary of State Jesse White.

With Pritzker’s ascent to the governor’s office on January 14 comes an end to the contentious and, oftentimes, adversarial relationship between state House Speaker Mike Madigan and the governor’s office which resulted in zero progress for the state under Rauner’s lackluster tenure.

Pritzker has, at least, a congenial relationship with Madigan and plans to hit the ground running, with his top priority being a balanced budget.

Following his election, Pritzker stated, “We want to have a budget that helps us

In addition, Pritzker wants to have more inclusion of black and brown entrepreneurs in the planning and licensing of dispensaries to sell the legalized weed.

On the employment front, Pritzker wants to boost the minimum wage to $15 per hour, while creating tax incentives to attract and retain large corporations.

He would also like to explore the possibility of legalizing sports betting and expanding casino gambling throughout the state.

It’s an ambitious agenda, to say the least. But it’s feasible when a sitting governor is working in concert with the speaker and legislature versus being engaged in the futile power struggle that Rauner waged (and lost) during his failed leadership of the state.

And with Illinois teetering on the verge of insolvency, in part, due to a legacy of corruption, out-of-control property taxes, political in-fighting and a fouryear tug-o-war between Rauner and Madigan, change is good. Let’s just hope that it’s the kind of positive and lasting change that Illinois has been hoping and praying for.

Email: jtingram_1960@ yahoo.com; Twitter@

Ethical Society hosts Thanksgiving potluck

The Ethical Society of St. Louis will host its annual Thanksgiving potluck from 1-3 p.m. Thursday, November 22, at 9001 Clayton Rd. All are welcome.

Each individual or family is invited to bring the one dish without which it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving for them. Turkey and gravy will be

provided for the nominal fee of $3 per person. Vegetarian options will also be served. Walter Vesper, an Ethical Society member who helped start the potluck, said this is a wonderful opportunity to invite a single friend, a senior, a college student or even a stranger for good food and camaraderie.

“Nobody wants to be alone on Thanksgiving,” Vesper said. “Why cook 10 dishes when you can get by preparing only one?”

The Ethical Society of St. Louis is a Humanist congregation where people come together to explore the biggest questions of life without reference to scripture,

religion or God. To learn more, visit www.ethicalstl.org Reservations are not required for the Thanksgiving potluck, and last-minute attendees are welcome. Volunteers are needed. To volunteer or learn more about the potluck, contact Vesper at wvesper@mchsi.com.

Columnist

James Ingram

Ethical Society of St. Louis, 9001 Clayton Rd.

Kahalia Adams named 2019 Youth of the Year

Boys & Girls Clubs raises over $400K at gala

American staff

Kahalia Adams, age 17, was named 2019 Youth of the Year by the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis. A junior at Parkway North High School, Adams has been a member at the Herbert Hoover Club for 10 years. She also won the Wanda

Kahalia Adams, 2019 Youth of the Year for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis, with club President Flint Fowler and a check denoting her scholarship award.

and Michael DeHaven Boys & Girls Clubs Youth of the Year scholarship for $5,000 – and, a Honda Accord courtesy of Frank Leta Automotive Group. She finished ahead of Danielle Kain, Fatuma Euli and Jennifer Sandford, who also were awarded scholarships.

“Being a member gives me the opportunity to be around like-minded individuals who aspire to be more than their current situations,” Adams said in her speech at the Great Futures Gala, held on Friday, November 9 at the Chase Park

In Loving Memory of

Carolyn (Green) Turner

Plaza.

“The club impacted my life tremendously by giving me a controlled environment to thrive in. I believe that my divine purpose involves leading my generation by example, while setting the tone for the youth and the elders by carrying myself with the respect and dignity I expect from others. These things would be unattainable for me without the guidance of the club. The club has not only shaped me into the young lady I am, but it is grooming me for the type of woman that I want to become.”

Once she graduates from high school, she plans to attend Jackson State University.

“We are so proud of all of this year’s participants who took the time to complete a challenging yet worthwhile process,” said Flint Fowler, president of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis. “All possess the ability and ambition to be successful, and, should be recognized for their leadership, service, academic achievements and commitment to live a healthy lifestyle.”

The club raised over $400,000 at the gala.

For more information on the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater St. Louis, visit www.bgcstl.org.

Annie Malone Historical Society receives $100K donation

American staff

The Annie Malone Historical Society is taking an anonymous $100,000 donation as an opportunity to start a Challenge Grant Campaign in an effort to purchase a property at Delmar and Pendleton and renovate it as a permanent home for the organization.

The proposed a facility would house a small museum in honor of Annie M. Turnbo Pope Malone, a pioneer in the black hair care and beauty industry based here in St. Louis and later in Chicago, as well as a community resource building.

“Some of the programs planned for the facility include a GED and financial literacy program, a Saturday morning reading and story time for children, and a space for local artists to display their work on a rotating basis,” said Linda M. Nance, founding president of

the society, which is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.

This November marks the 100th anniversary of the opening of Malone’s Poro College and manufacturing facility.

n “A little help from a lot of people is what will make this great thing happen.”

– Linda M. Nance, founding president of the society

“We are asking everyone to get involved – barber shops, beauty shops, churches, individuals, businesses, corporations, fraternities, sororities,

and a variety of clubs and social groups,” Nance said.

“For those who can afford to, a $100 contribution celebrating the 100th anniversary of the opening would be great, but a little help from a lot of people is what will make this great thing happen.”

Also, a Call to Conscience, an interactive theatre group, will present “Celebrating the Power of Dreams,” a play about Malone, at 2 p.m. Saturday, November 17 and Sunday, November 18 at the Missouri History Museum in Forrest Park. Admission to the play is free and open to the public. Contributions to the Annie Malone Historical Society can be made at www.anniemalonehistoricalsociety.org or via mail at P. O. Box 210794 St. Louis, MO 63121. For more information, visit the website, call at (314) 229-0808 or email anniemalonehistory@att.net.

Students at Annie T. Malone’s Poro College, donated to the Smithsonian Institution by Lucille Brown, a 1915 graduate.

Strengthening community-based initiatives

Dr. Will Ross, the new principal officer for Community Partnerships at Washington University School

hosts impromptu gatherings for Washington University medical students at his Central West End

Dr. Will Ross to lead Community Partnerships for WUSTL School of Medicine

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

Dr. Will Ross has expanded his role at Washington University School of Medicine as associate dean for Diversity Programs to include also serving as principal officer for Community Partnerships. Dr. Ross also is professor of Medicine in the Division of Nephrology.

“The position of principal officer for Community Partnerships offers a unique opportunity to coordinate and strengthen community-based initiatives that improve health, particularly in our under-resourced

Medicate Pharmacy opens in Centreville

SIHF Healthcare extended its partnership with Medicate Pharmacy to include a location at its health center at 6000 Bond Avenue in Centreville, Illinois. Medicate is a fullservice pharmacy and a home/ facility medical equipment provider with locations in the Metro East. Left to right: Meredith Johnson, health center manager, SIHF Healthcare in Centreville; Mike Schaltenbrand, owner, Medicate Pharmacy; Larry McCulley, president and CEO, SIHF Healthcare; Patrice Howard, vice president of quality and performance, SIHF Healthcare; Marceo Haywood, pharmacy program manager, SIHF Healthcare.

n “We hope to create and sustain a region-wide approach, based on the collective impact model, that will promote health equity and reduce health disparities.”

– Dr. Will Ross

communities,” Dr. Ross told The American

“We will focus on some of the intractable health issues in our community,

such as high infant mortality rates, along with racial disparities in cancer, diabetes, and behavioral health.”

In his expanded role, Dr. Ross will work in conjunction with programs already active in the area evolving from the Institute of Public Health, Institute for Clinical and Translational Sciences, Siteman Cancer Center, the Gephardt Institute, BJC Healthcare, and other key stakeholders to enhance programs and strategies that address the health needs of our community. New initiatives will be developed in collaboration

See ROSS, A15

Black boys and men need to talk – and be heard

By Curtis O’Dwyer

For The St. Louis American

To survive represents an early lesson taught to black males in St. Louis.

As an infant and toddler, you learn principle number one: don’t cry; it’s a sign of weakness. In elementary school, you acquire principle number two: if someone hits you, hit them back. In middle school, you learn the art and skill to play the dozens, a game of verbal combat. In high school, expectations shift to displaying social and emotional IQ in settings such as school, sports, and jobs.

Culturally, it has been important to raise black boys this way, so they are equipped to withstand and overcome the challenges unique to their identity. Each lesson is given with good intent because it ensures protection. However, the development of this resiliency creates an emotional dissonance between a black boy’s perception of what it means to be strong and the experience necessary to comfortably express vulnerable feelings.

Curtis O’Dwyer

As a society, we have advanced in our understanding of mental health related to a child’s development and behavior. Sadly, these research lessons have not diffused across generational barriers. Older generations believe the emphatic words of Frederick Douglass: “better to raise strong boys than repair broken men.” As a result, many black boys suppress emotions that could lead to perceptions of weakness.

The current pathway to manhood socializes boys to bury feminine emotions (i.e. empathetic, sensitive, or friendly), fearing boys will become fragile. They are taught to display stoic, independent, and dominant character when experiencing fear, disappointment, sadness, or any other vulnerable feeling. Neglecting to acknowledge negative feelings builds frustration, leading to depression, isolation, problematic behaviors, and violence. We must help our black boys release the pressures of life disturbing them by teaching emotional intelligence in addition to grit.

n We do not have to wait until our boys display anger, signs of depression, drug abuse, develop high blood pressure, or any other condition to hear them.

I recognized the importance of this selfawareness in 2014 during my first year of graduate school at Washington University in St. Louis. Wash. U is a globally prestigious institution known for its academic rigor and research. Three-quarters of the undergraduate student population pursue multiple majors and/or degrees. The school climate was intimidating and stressful for me. Additionally, the student and faculty population is predominantly white. Collectively, these factors required navigating a setting and culture foreign to my life’s experiences.

As many people of color existing under white canopies, I often felt like an impostor. I determined that working harder to prove I was as academically capable as my white counterparts and more than a product of affirmative action was the proper course. I wondered if I’d be considered a sellout to my culture if I dressed preppy and business casual. Would I fit in wearing urban gear?

Nonetheless, in spite of the internal conflicts, I continued to carry on with things as normal. This challenge was minor compared

of Medicine, often

home.

Photo by Whitney Curtis

State Rep. Cora Faith Walker

BJC hosts

‘Meet the Recruiter’ for military, veterans

BJC HealthCare will host a “Meet the Recruiter” reception for military members, veterans and spouses from 4-7 p.m. Monday, November 19, at the BJC Learning Institute, 8300 Eager Rd.

Guests will meet recruiters and hiring managers for clinical and non-clinical roles and hear from military veterans who now serve patients and communities at BJC.

BJC has received several awards for its commitment to supporting employees who are members of the National Guard or military reserve. It hosts a BJC Veterans Connection employee group, which brings together employees who have served and are currently serving in the military for community service and social events. Visit www.BJC. org/MilitaryReception to learn more and to register. Visit BJC.jobs to apply for jobs.

ROSS

Continued from A14

with community leaders and organizations from the city and county.

Cora Faith Walker recognized as Champion of Community Health

State Rep. Cora Faith Walker (D-Ferguson) was honored by the Missouri Primary Care Association with a 2018 Champion of Community Health Centers Award for her work as a legislator on health care

issues.

She was cited for leading efforts in the 2018 legislative session to extend Medicaid coverage for postpartum moms who are in need of substance use disorder services and for working with a group of

legislators to find a bipartisan solution that was eventually signed into law and will help fight the opioid epidemic in Missouri.

The Champion of Community Health Centers Award is given to individuals

who serve in the legislative or administrative branches of city, county, state, or federal government or other public and private organization who have demonstrated outstanding support of the community health center

model and are committed to increasing health care access for all and to public service with a willingness to help communities improve health access.

Members of the McCluer High School Key Club and Army JROTC, along with their faculty sponsors, teamed up to fight hunger by participating in World Food Day, held at John Burroughs High School. The students worked hard for three hours, and together the two groups packaged over 1,200 meals.

“In considering community partnership to be essential to our overall education and diversity and inclusion efforts, we will now be capitalizing on the long history of Will’s contributions, as well as his talents and inspiration, to foster an even more profound impact in the coming years,” the School of Medicine stated. Community engagement was recognized as a major focus area for the medical center at the June 2015 Senior Leadership Retreat on Diversity and Inclusion. In addition, at the June 2018 Curriculum Renewal Retreat for the School of Medicine, community engagement and advocacy were identified as critical future directions for the education of its medical students and residents.

O’DWYER

Continued from A14 to those in my past and the classroom challenges ahead. However, within four months of starting my program, I began to experience adverse health effects for the sake of displaying strength under difficult conditions.

Unbeknownst to me at the time, the 20-pound weight loss, irritable bowel symptoms, daily migraines, and sensations of tingling, numbness, and hot and cold I experienced in my feet were due to anxiety.

Dr. Ross earned a bachelor’s degree from Yale University and his medical degree from Washington University. He completed an internal medicine residency at Vanderbilt University, a renal fellowship at Washington University, and a master’s degree in public health at Saint Louis University. Over the past two decades he has recruited and developed a diverse workforce of medical

I originally sought help from medical doctors. All of the test results came back normal. I was directed to counseling. Initially I was apprehensive. No one in my circle ever needed counseling. To my limited viewpoint, counseling was either for women or people who are “crazy.” Through sessions with a counselor, I found peace. I shared the stigmas marring my sense of confidence as a black man. The neutrality of the relationship allowed me to talk in honest fashion without feeling judged. The counselor displayed good listening ability while also raising questions

students, residents and faculty while promoting health equity locally, nationally and globally.

He is a co-founder of the Barnes-Jewish Hospital Center for Diversity and Cultural Competence and served on the task force that created the Washington University Institute for Public Health, while serving as co-director of the new MD/MPH program. He was vice chair of the Washington University Commission on Diversity and Inclusion. He has been instrumental in redesigning local access to health care for the underserved as the founder of the Saturday Neighborhood Health Clinic and co-founder of Casa de Salud Latino Health Center. Dr. Ross is also a founding member

and offering insight and advice.

Overall, my experience allowed me to develop the emotional repertoire needed to translate my feelings into words – a skill less emphasized in lessons of black manhood. Yet, combined with university mentors, church members, and family support, the counseling sessions proved to be therapeutic, and my health improved.

I am now an advocate for ensuring professional counseling services are more accessible to people in low-income communities. Washington University provided each student nine free

of the Collegiate School of Medicine and Bioscience, a magnet health professions high school in St. Louis.

Dr. Ross previously served as the chief medical officer and director of ambulatory clinics for the St. Louis Regional Medical Center, the last public hospital in St. Louis. In 1997 he was appointed a charter and founding member of the St. Louis Regional Health Commission, which has leveraged over $400 million dollars to St. Louis to maintain an integrated network of safety net primary care clinics and public health services.

He served as chairman of the Board of Directors of the Missouri Foundation for Health. He is currently

one-hour counseling sessions per academic year, so I had to schedule wisely. I couldn’t afford to pay for additional sessions. Many individuals may find themselves struggling with the affordability of counseling as, unlike at Wash. U, most counseling services are not free. Additionally, for most insurance companies to cover counseling services, a diagnosis must be made. Therefore, common issues which people seek professional counseling for – stress management, relationship problems, grief, and life coaching – may not meet the criteria for a diagnosis

chairman of the St. Louis City Board of Health and a past member of the Center for Disease Control’s Health Disparities Committee.

He has won numerous awards including the State of Missouri Martin Luther King Distinguished Service in Medicine Award, the Health Literacy Missouri Trailblazer Award, the Samuel Goldstein Leadership in Medical Education Award, the Humanism in Medicine Award, the Robert and Gerry Virgil Ethic of Service Award and the St. Louis American Foundation’s 2010 Stellar Performer in Health Care Award.

“My whole goal, both here at the medical school and going

covered by insurance. This would then leave an individual having to pay for counseling sessions out of pocket. If this financial divider is removed, however, then more people may consider this option for the care they need.

Counseling can yield better health and wellness outcomes for people of color. In addition, I affirm and honor black-space support groups where blacks can empathize with each other’s struggle and receive encouragement. I believe the sooner boys learn it is important to exercise strength through vulnerable communication of their

nationally, is to try and move medical schools to provide more service opportunities,” Dr. Ross told The American in 2010. “That way, students can go out in the community, provide care in the community and feel a part of that community.”

Now, he has a mandate to put this kind of community engagement into thorough practice throughout the medical school. As Dr. Ross told The American about the new opportunity, “We hope to create and sustain a regionwide approach, based on the collective impact model, that will promote health equity and reduce health disparities.” Contact Dr. Ross at https:// diversity.med.wustl.edu.

thoughts and feelings, then the stronger and healthier they will be as men. We do not have to wait until our boys display anger, signs of depression, drug abuse, develop high blood pressure, or any other condition to hear them. Their voices should be heard before significant physical health challenges emerge. And we must recognize that strong men may at times be broken, and broken men can be repaired.

Curtis O’Dwyer is a 7th grade science teacher at Nipher Middle School in Kirkwood.

McCluer High students fight hunger

Healthy Kids Kids

Sensible Thanksgiving Eating

Nutrition Challenge:

Thanksgiving is a day that we take a moment and remember the things/people that we are thankful to have in our lives. But let’s be honest, many Thanksgiving celebrations also include food – and a lot of it! But if you remember just a few simple tips, you can enjoy the day without the extra calories (and uncomfortably full stomach).

Follow the Meal With a Walk!

Being Thankful WALK!

Why not start a new tradition this year? After your Thanksgiving dinner, have your family take a walk around the neighborhood. This is a great way to spend time with your relatives, see who’s in town for the holiday, and can help prevent the all-too-common post meal stomachache. Walking aids digestion, keeps you away

Thanksgiving is a great time to remember all of the people/things that have had a positive impact on your life.

Why not have each person around the table say one (or two or three!) thing(s) that they are

> Remembering week seven’s divided-plate lesson, try to fill at least half of your plate with healthy vegetables/fruits.

> Eat slowly. That way you’ll know when you’re full before you’ve overdone it.

> Limit desserts; choose just one. Or if you want to try a few different kinds, ask for a small “sample” of each.

> Can you think of any other tips?

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

from the dessert table and even helps with that afterdinner slump that affects many people after a big meal. In addition, getting up and moving will get your body back into calorieburning mode.

What are some other ways to be “active” after your Thanksgiving dinner?

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

thankful for, before you begin eating? You could even make a game out of it: each person writes down what they’re thankful for on a small card. Someone then reads each card as the group guesses who wrote it.

Learning Standards: HPE 2, NH 4

Leftover Turkey Bites

Ingredients:

Sliced leftover turkey

Shredded cheddar cheese

Leftover cranberries (or sauce)

Wheat crackers

Directions: Top the cracker with cheese followed by the turkey and a small dot of cranberry sauce. Enjoy cold, or warm in a medium-heat oven to melt the cheese.

Shawnee Palmer, Owner and Primary Therapist

Where do you work? I am the owner and primary therapist at Alpine’s Empowerment Agency.

Where did you go to school? I graduated from Springfield High School. I then earned a Bachelor of Social Work degree from the University of Illinois at Springfield in Springfield, Illinois, and a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Denver in Denver, Colorado. What does a therapist do? I work with kids and adults helping them talk and play through their issues with fun and mindful activities. Some of those activities involve using UNO cards, Play Doh, Kinetic Sand, glitter, calming music and slime. Why did you choose this career? I chose this career because I enjoy helping other people overcome challenges that are difficult for them to do on their own.

What is your favorite part of the job you have? My favorite part is having my clients tell me that the time that I spent with them helped them make a change in their own lives for the better. I’ve seen clients overcome bullying at school and learn to better control their emotions so that they are less affected by the trauma bullying causes. I’ve helped clients become more outspoken with others about their feelings and seeking help to solve problems.

Learning Standards: HPE6, NH3

“Questions or comments? Contact Cathy Sewell csewell@stlamerican.com or 314-289-5422

Visit

CLASSROOM SPOTLIGHT

In

newspaper’s STEM page. Avant Elementary is in the East St. Louis School District.

SCIENCE CORNER

Photosynthesis comes from the combination of two Greek words “photo,” which means light, and “synthesis,” which means to put things together.

Photosynthesis is the process that plants use to create their food. Plants put together light, water, and carbon dioxide to produce oxygen and other organic compounds. It is an example of how people and plants help each other. People breathe in the oxygen produced by the plants and exhale carbon dioxide, which the plants need in order to survive.

The process of photosynthesis begins

SCIENCE INVESTIGATION

What Is Photosynthesis !

with the absorption of water into the roots of the plants. Xylem carries this water to the leaves. Carbon dioxide in the air enters the plant cells that contain chlorophyll. Chlorophyll allows plants to use the energy in light to convert carbon dioxide to their food. Oxygen is released into the air during photosynthesis.

Learning Standards: I can read nonfiction text for main idea and supporting details.

Create your own museum with a collection of seeds from different types of fruits and vegetables.

Materials Needed:

• Paper Towels • Large Glass Jars • 2 or More Packets of Different Fast-Sprouting Seeds (such as lima beans, zucchini, radish, sunflower, zinnia, radish, lettuce, marigold, chives or basil) • Labels

• Pencil or Marker • Aluminum Foil

What To Do:

q Label the jars to identify the different types of seeds used.

w Moisten the paper towels with just enough water to make them damp and place them inside the jars.

e Carefully place each type of seed between the damp paper towel and the side of the glass jar. You should be able to observe the seeds through the glass.

“Plant” a solid foundation of math skills Make a Seed Museum!

You can use a garden area to review several math concepts.

Number and Operations. Plant lettuce seeds and carefully keep track of the number planted. As the seeds begin to grow, count the number of seedlings. Use these two numbers to calculate the germination rate (number of seedlings divided by number of seeds planted, multiplied by 100).

Algebra. Use algebraic formulas to compute ratios, such as the amount of fertilizer to add per quart or liter of water. (You will need a fertilizer package with directions so you can convert the information.)

r Cover the outside of the jar with aluminum foil and keep the jar in a warm, dry place.

t Every day, remove the foil and observe the seeds. Keep the paper towels moist, and replace the foil after you finish your observations.

y Compare the ways in which the different types of seeds sprout.

Variation: You can repeat this procedure using the same type of seed in 5 different jars. One jar can be kept in the light, one in the dark. You can add different levels of water, etc. With this method, you can evaluate how the variables affect the seed growth.

Learning Standards: I can follow sequential directions to complete a procedure. I can make observations and analyze results.

Attributes. Collect various dry bean seeds or plant leaves, and sort them by size, shape, color, and number.

Geometry. Complete a scavenger hunt in a garden. Look for objects representing different geometric shapes such as circles, squares, cones, cylinders, and triangles.

Learning Standards: I can add, subtract, multiply, and divide to solve a problem. I can sort items by similar attributes.

SCIENCE STARS

AFRICAN-AMERICAN AGRONOMIST & PROFESSOR: Gebisa Ejeta

Dr. Gebisa Ejeta was born and raised in a small, rural area located in west central Ethiopia. In 1973, he earned his bachelor’s degree in plant sciences from Alemaya College. Ejeta then moved to the US to attend graduate school at Purdue University, earning a degree in plant breeding and genetics. Six years later, he went to Sudan to research sorghum, which is a major source of grain that is also used to make a sweetener. Many African regions depend on this crop to feed their people and their livestock.

In 1984, he returned to Purdue as an assistant professor in the agronomy department. Agronomy is the science of soil management and crop production. From there, he moved on to the agriculture faculty, focusing on African agricultural research and development, particularly sorghum. He developed different types of sorghum that could tolerate drought (lack of water), cold temperatures, weeds, and various diseases that can harm plants.

Ejeta has served on many research and review panels and committees, such as the International Agricultural Research Center, Rockefeller Foundation, Food and Agricultural Organization, and United Nations. He has also received several awards, including the 2009 World Food Prize and the National Medal of Honor from the president of Ethiopia.

Learning Standards: I can read a biography of a person who has made contributions to the fields of science, math, and technology.

MAP CORNER

Use the newspaper to complete these activities to sharpen your skills for the MAP test.

Activity One —

Describe It: Clip ten adjectives from the advertising section of the

Paste these onto your paper and beside each write one synonym and one antonym. (Alternate — instead of cutting/pasting, you can list each word and page number on a sheet of paper to do this exercise.)

Activity Two — Types of Sentences: Find two examples of each of the four kinds of sentences: interrogative, declarative, exclamatory, and imperative.

Learning Standards: I can use the newspaper to locate information. I can identify adjectives, synonyms, and antonyms. I can identify the four types of sentences.

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: nie@stlamerican.com.

Mrs. Kristy Roesch’s 4th grade class, Avant Elementary students Nelson Orozco, Jordin Jackson and Chelsea Taylor perform a science investigation found in the

Photo: Wiley Price / St. Louis American

The tiniest tree in the world is the Dwarf Willow, found in Greenland. Its size is about two inches.

The Saguaro cactus of the Arizona Desert grows less than one inch

Ejeta receiving the World Food Prize in 2009.

The world’s largest flower is the Rafflesia arnoldi. It can grow to the size of an umbrella.

WE ARE HEARTLAND COCA-COLA BOTTLING COMPANY1 OF 68 INDEPENDENT BOTTLERS KEEPING THE COCA-COLA COMPANY LOCAL ACROSS NEARLY EVERY CORNER OF THE COUNTRY. WE’RE PROUD TO BE PART OF THE COMMUNITIES WE SERVE.

Business

‘Diversity and

inclusion

are intertwined into the culture’

Maryville University to receive 2018 Corporate Diversity Award

Ozzie Smith will receive a 2018 Musial Award. The Major League Baseball Hall of Fame shortstop will be recognized for the impact he is having on area young people and veterans through his work with PGA REACH, the legacy program of the 100th PGA Championship. The Musial Awards celebrate the year’s greatest moments of sportsmanship and those in sports who embody class and character.

J. Danielle Carr received the 2018 President’s Award from the Black Women Lawyers Association of Greater Chicago for her efforts and dedication as chair of the organization’s Scholarship Board. The association works to identify and address issues unique to AfricanAmerican women lawyers and judges. She is director of Diversity and Inclusion at national law firm Polsinelli.

Sarah Hulsey was promoted to branch manager at Electro Savings Credit Union. She previously held the positions of teller, member service representative and assistant branch manager. Her continued achievement is due to her outstanding performance results, desire to grow professionally and commitment to serving members. Established in 1941 by the employees of Union Electric Company (now Ameren), the credit union is owned by and works for its members.

By Rebecca Rivas

Of The St. Louis American

On a Monday morning, Maryville University junior Jordan Davis was monitoring a wall-size, digital map of the world – and it looked like he was watching the next world war unfold. Attack lines were flying across the screen every second.

“This is a live threat map, which tracks all the attackers in the world and shows live cyber-attacks by IP address,” said Davis, who is majoring in cyber security.

“After going through the cyber security program at Maryville, I am much more aware of what’s going on in the world. And while it’s at first frightening, it’s helpful to know what the problem is so you know how to prevent it.” Davis, an African-American student, has a full scholarship as a Donald M. Suggs Scholar, and he plans on pursuing a career in software engineering.

n “People of different backgrounds engaging across differences in critical dialogue on our campus really does help move and shape our institution.”

– Turan Mullins, assistant dean for diversity and inclusion

“At Maryville, you’re going to learn what you wouldn’t learn at a different campus,” Davis said. “Diversity and inclusion is so important here that it’s intertwined into the culture of Maryville and not just the classrooms.”

That is the message that university leaders have been trying to drive home for the last five years as part of the university’s strategic plan.

“It’s kind of hard to have diverse conversations when you don’t have a diverse group of people on campus,” said Turan Mullins, assistant dean for diversity and inclusion. “And so we knew that was a critical part of this plan. To be able to have people of different backgrounds engaging across differences in critical dialogue on our campus really does help move and shape our institution.”

Because of its efforts and progress, Maryville University will receive the 2018 Corporate Diversity Award at the St. Louis American Foundation’s 19th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon on Friday, November 30.

“The United States is struggling with issues of race, ethnicity and diversity, and it has been for a very, very long time,” said Mark Lombardi, the university’s president.

Tyler Davis joined 23 City Blocks Hospitality Group as pastry chef for The Chocolate Pig, which opened November 8 in the Cortex District. He gained national attention when he appeared on the Food Network’s third season of Halloween Baking Championship. He was nominated for Feast Magazine’s Top Pastry Chef of the Year and has facilitated pop-up dinners at Brennan’s in the Central West End.

Danielle O’Neal published her first children’s book, “Coily Kinky Curly Afro Princess.” The book features uplifting poems and fun illustrations of different hairstyles, such as updo, braiding and Afro hairstyles. Her mission for her book is to inspire and uplift little black girls to love their natural hair. The book was inspired by a news story about a little black girl receiving discipline for wearing her natural hair at school.

Ted J. Gatlin Jr. joined Creative Reaction Lab as program manager. He is primarily charged with educating and supporting youth leadership to address racial inequities impacting black and Latinx populations through an equitycentered form of creative problem solving (equity-centered community design). This creates a youth-led,

Danielle O’Neal

J. Danielle Carr

Ted J. Gatlin Jr.

Tyler Davis

Ozzie Smith

Sarah Hulsey

Photo by Wiley Price

“Diversity and inclusion is so important here that it’s intertwined into the culture of Maryville and not just the classrooms,” said Jordan Davis, a junior. Maryville University will receive the 2018 Corporate Diversity Award at the St. Louis American Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon on Friday, November 30.

Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

KAI Design & Build acquires Volk Construction Company

African American-owned national firm acquires established local general

By Chris King Of The St.

Louis

American

KAI Design & Build

acquired St. Louis-based Volk Construction Company, adding an established local general contractor to the African American-owned national design and build firm headquartered in St. Louis. Volk will complete current contractual commitments with its owners, subcontractors and suppliers, then all new opportunities as of October 1 will proceed under KAI Design.

KAI President Michael Kennedy Jr. said the acquisition provides KAI’s clients with a greater pool of construction expertise and talent, while KAI Design offers a greater depth of integrated design. Volk has worked in the Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology Clinical Center for Imaging Research, Washington University School of Medicine Genome Sequencing Data Center, Christian Hospital Northeast Emergency Department renovation, and the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis 6th Floor renovation, among many

other local projects.

“Volk Construction Company has earned a reputation in St. Louis for

KAI

President Michael Kennedy Jr. (center) with David Volk Jr. and Melanie Volk

treating subcontractors and owners fairly and equitably,” Kennedy said. “Their dedication to quality

workmanship, ethics and safety is unsurpassed in the industry.”

David Volk Jr. took over his family company’s in 1995 after working over 40 years in a variety positions at the company founded by R. David Volk Sr., his father, who started the company 51 years ago.

Volk Jr. said that evolution in the architecture, engineering and construction field has brought innovative technologies, enhanced means and methods, and greater collaboration with customers, staff, architects and engineers, subcontractors and suppliers, making this a good move for his company.

“In short, our industry has become much more efficient,” Volk Jr. “This modern model of efficiency and collaboration is exactly what has driven Volk to become part of KAI Design & Build.

The combination of Volk’s heritage and commitment to St. Louis combined with KAI’s progressive approach

contractor

n “Our industry has become much more efficient. This modern model of efficiency and collaboration is exactly what has driven Volk to become part of KAI Design & Build.” – David Volk Jr.

to collaborative design and construction solutions aligns perfectly and will create a powerful platform to meet the evolving needs of our industry and national customer base.” said Volk Jr. He said his daughter Melanie Volk, a project engineer with the company, and other company leaders are were “excited” about doing business as part of KAI. For more information about KAI Design & Build, visit www.kai-db.com or call 314241-8188.

Bank merger calls for community benefits agreement

By Elisabeth Risch

For The St. Louis American

Decades of redlining and disinvestment in our region’s communities of color don’t just disappear overnight. It takes a concerted effort to reinvest and provide access to financial services for families and communities. It requires a change in practices and policies, and accountability to ensure that our financial

system operates with values of equity and fairness. The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), passed in 1977 as a way to combat redlining, is one of those accountability tools. Under the CRA, banks have an affirmative obligation to meet the credit needs of all communities, especially low- and moderate-income communities. The CRA is one of the biggest tools providing investments and access to

mainstream financial services for lower income families and communities. It’s one of the only ways we can ensure that credit flows to communities that were formerly redlined.

The St. Louis Equal Housing and Community Reinvestment Alliance (SLEHCRA) is a coalition

of nonprofit and community organizations working to hold banks accountable to the CRA and increase investment in lowincome communities and communities of color. With threats of weakening the CRA now, we are calling for a strong CRA and for banks to specify clearly how they are meeting their obligations to serve the whole community. Recently, Busey Bank announced it was buying The Bank of Edwardsville. Our coalition is calling for Busey to develop a community benefits agreement that details out how it plans to meet the needs of the community after the merger as part of their responsibility to the CRA. Two years ago, our coalition met with Busey Bank when it entered the St. Louis market by buying Pulaski Bank, and its leaders assured us the positive record of Pulaski

Bank would continue. Now, we see in the data and in many of our experiences that Busey’s performance has significantly worsened over the last two years. Its mortgage lending to low- and moderateincome borrowers has fallen well below its regional peers – a significant fall from Pulaski Bank’s position as a market leader. In contrast, the Bank of Edwardsville is an innovative leader in serving the needs of the community, including successes with specific products, loans, investments, and services.

It is because of the concerning track record of Busey Bank and the need to preserve and expand the leadership of the Bank of Edwardsville that we need to see a community benefits agreement (CBA). The bank will also be among the top 10 banks in the St. Louis region after the merger. Busey Bank leaders said they want to maintain Bank

of Edwardsville’s positive record in the community and leverage the strengths of both organizations. We agree that this is an opportunity to leverage the strength of a larger bank to expand Bank of Edwardsville’s successes. However, our coalition needs to see clear and specific measurable commitments for exactly how Busey Bank will continue this. We need a community benefits agreement. This call to Busey Bank is why the CRA is so important and needs to be strengthened. We need tools to hold banks like Busey Bank accountable to their responsibility to serve all parts of the community, especially when they are expanding into a much larger bank. The CRA gives us this accountability tool, but there are threats to weaken the CRA.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency, one of the federal banking regulators, is taking comments right now on changing the CRA. We need to let them know that any changes to CRA need to strengthen it and live up to the spirit and intent of itproviding access to credit and capital for low and moderate income communities and communities of color. Whether it is reinvesting in distressed neighborhoods or encouraging lenders to offer products that meet low and moderate income borrowers’ needs, the CRA plays an important role in increasing homeownership rates, giving small businesses access to needed capital, revitalizing neighborhoods, encouraging lenders to hire staff that reflects the community, supporting financial education and more. Without the CRA, a report by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) estimates that Missouri’s first congressional district could lose up $300 million in mortgage and small business lending.

The city and the region cannot afford to lose any more lending, services, and investments in our communities. We cannot lose one of the strongest tools to ensure that banks are serving our community fairly and equitably. We need a strong CRA and clear commitments to the community from the region’s leading financial institutions.

Visit ncrc.org/ TreasureCRA to learn more.

Elisabeth Risch is the co-chair of the SLEHCRA and the assistant director at the Metropolitan St. Louis Equal Housing and Opportunity Council.

Elisabeth Risch

n “What happened, happened. We’re trying to move on and just play basketball.”

— Kevin Durant, on postgame incident with teammate Draymond Green

Sports

PreP FooTball noTebook

Semifinals underway

CBC at Joplin; Blue Springs at Rockhurst

The Missouri Class 6 state playoffs have reached the semifinals stage with three familiar names in high school football along with one newcomer who has crashed the party.

Perennial state powers CBC, Blue Springs and Kansas City Rockhurst have strong winning traditions that have continued well into recent years.

The newcomer to the scene is Joplin, who will host defending state champion CBC on Saturday at 3 p.m.

Joplin Parkwood was a force in the early 1980’s as they won state titles in 1981 and 1984. That first state title team was led by star quarterback Alan Cockrell, who played college football at Tennessee and Major League Baseball for the Colorado Rockies.

Joplin earned their semifinal bid with an impressive 49-14 victory over Kirkwood in the District 2 championship game last weekend. CBC continued its dominance with a 63-28 victory over Metro Catholic Conference rival DeSmet in the District 1 championship game.

Senior running back Bryan Bradford of CBC rushed for 200 yards and scored five touchdowns to lead the Cadets’ attack. Bradford got things started early with a 71-yard touchdown romp in the first minute of the game.

Quarterback Brett Gabbert passed for 297 yards and two touchdowns and wide receiver Julian Williams caught five passes for 103 yards and an electrifying 63-yard catch and run for a score near the end of the first half. Senior linebacker Elijah Robinson registered three quarterback sacks for the Cadets.

Here is a look at the pairings for this weekend’s state playoffs:

Jimmy “Buckets” is finally on the move. Monday, the Minnesota Timberwolves officially traded Jimmy Butler and Justin Patton to the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Robert Covington Dario Saric Jerryd Bayless and a 2022 second-round pick. The deal ends an uncomfortable and strange saga for the Timberwolves. After demanding a trade in the offseason, Butler was openly critical of both teammates and coaches. Tom Thibodeau, coach and team president of the Timberwolves, thought the franchise could work through the issues with Butler. After a 5-9 start, it became evident that the situation would not work out. Because Butler’s discontentment was so public, the T-Wolves were working out of a position of weakness. It is surprising though that the team was unable to extract a firstround pick to move the fourtime NBA All-Star.

The word around the league is that Thibodeau coveted players who could contribute right away more than draft picks. That explains why the team turned down multiple offers from the Houston Rockets (amongst other teams). Once included Eric Gordon, Nene and two future first-round picks. Another included a whopping four firstround picks. Despite the slow start, the Rockets are expected to be one of the top teams in the league for years to come. It makes sense that Timberwolves officials were not overly excited about obtaining a bunch of late first-round picks that might as well be second-rounders. Covington and Saric are talented, young players who should both be solid additions to the Minnesota rotation. The 6-foot-9 Covington is a prototypical, modern 3-and-D player. The 6-foot-10 Saric is a point-forward type of player with a penchant for dropping dimes. He reminds me a bit of Toni Kukoc

Earl Austin Jr.

See PREP, B5

Sistrunk

Ishmael H. Sistrunk

Senior tailback Bryan Bradford (3) scored six touchdowns Friday, Nov. 9, 2018 against DeSmet in the Missouri Class 4 District 1 final at CBC. Brown rushed for 200 yards while averaging almost 12 yards per carry. The Cadets defeated the Spartans of DeSmet 63-28. CBC will play at Joplin (10-2), Friday in the Class 6 semifinals.

Jimmy Butler and Ben Simmons are now two parts of one of the most talented trios in the NBA. Alongside Joel Embiid, the 76ers are now poised to make a serious run at the Eastern Conference title.

Photo by Wiley Price

SportS EyE

With Alvin A. Reid

Monday Night Football game cries out for anthem protests

Fifty years ago, Americans John Carlos and Tommie Smith raised black glove covered fists on the medal podium as the anthem played during the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City. They were stripped of their medals and ordered to leave the Olympic Village.

If ever there was a time and place for an anthem protest by black players, it would have been Monday night.

The Monday Night Football game featuring the 9-1 Kansas City Chiefs and the 9-1 Los Angeles Rams will be must-see TV and will draw one of the season’s largest viewing audiences. Part of the NFL’s International Series, the game was to be played in Mexico City.

know that despite the persistence of systemic racism in this country, to include the recent proliferation of ‘living while black’ incidents, we see fewer and fewer players demonstrating during the anthem.”

St. Louis recently had its own ‘living-while-black” episode when a white woman called the police on a black man for simply trying to enter his own apartment building.

Poor field conditions and hints that some players might refuse to play led the NFL to move the game to Los Angeles. The Rams had sacrificed a home game to play in Mexico.

I hope a few players would have seized on this opportunity to raise a fist during the anthem. I hope they still will on Monday night, if only to recognize the courage of Carlos and Williams.

“Look, we’ve just recognized the 50th anniversary of Tommie Smith and John Carlos’ bold protest of raising their fists during the national anthem; yet Colin Kaepernick (was) and other NFL players are protesting several of same issues that Smith and Carlos (were) in the 1960s,” said author and attorney Kaia Wright “It’s truly unsettling to

The latest “dying-whileblack” fatality happened last week in a Chicago suburb when a black security guard was gunned down by a police officer. The security guard was protecting patrons of a bar by apprehending a suspect that had fired a gun at another man. When police arrived, they saw a black man with a knee in the back of the suspect and holding a gun on him – which he was licensed to carry. The police officer shot the black man as people were screaming “he’s a security officer!!”

Wright’s website, CourageUnder-Fire.com, features media coverage of anthem protests throughout the country at sporting and social events.

“With more than half the 2018 NFL season completed, I’m concerned about the significant reduction in players demonstrating during the anthem,” he said.

“Nike made a bold statement by using Kaepernick in its 30th anniversary of the “Just Do It” campaign. While critics were quick to call out Nike’s demise, the company’s stock price – and sales – rose dramatically, generating more

than $6 billion since the ad campaign began.

“Nike just introduced a Kaepernick shirt retailing at $50, which sold-out in hours. What this tells me is that Kaepernick has more supporters than the NFL and his haters want to believe.”

Wright, who has served as an Army attorney and resides in Tampa, holds degrees from Hampton University, the University of South Carolina, the University of London and The Judge Advocate General’s Legal Center & School.

The time is right, and history is on the side of any player – black or white – who raises a fist during the anthem on Monday night.

Revisiting the MICDS episode

In last week’s Sports Eye, I identified Kenyatta Williams as Parkway North player Jalani Williams mother which is incorrect. She is Vikings’ player Carter Williams mother.

Sylena Williams is Jalani’s mother. A heartfelt apology for the error. After the ordeal the players were forced to deal with on the field and the aftermath, in which MICDS immediately swept the ugly racial incident under the rug, the last thing these folks needed was me messing up.

A person with knowledge

of both teams tells me that the after-game scuffle could have been a misunderstanding. The MICDS coach who was speaking with the Parkway North’s Williams as the game was ending could have been giving him words of encouragement, I’m told.

Several Parkway North coaches did not realize that and became quite upset. Visit YouTube and search “MICDS Parkway North” to view part of the skirmish.

KSDK aired a report last week in which players and parents from Parkway North discuss the racist taunts. A player discussed part of a video which he says shows him pointing at a player that dropped a N-word on him after a tackle and him notifying a referee.

Some black MICDS parents/ fans alleged they were called “Trump Lovers” and “Uncle Toms” by Parkway North fans.

MICDS released a statement we ran last week. Parkway North later released a statement, as well.

“We are saddened by the events from (the Nov. 3) game. They have detracted from what would have otherwise been a positive and highly competitive high school playoff football experience.

“Racial slurs and verbal taunts spoken by anyone are extremely disappointing and upsetting because they have no place in athletic events or anywhere in society. Our Viking football team, their parents and the Parkway North community are understandably frustrated, and they are hurting.”

Kenyatta Williams and other Parkway North parents appreciated the American’s effort to tell their story.

“Thank you so much for putting our voice and truth out there. It has to be said,” she said.

Wizards woes

The Washington Wizards stumbled out of block to start the NBA season 4-9, including a 117-109 win over Orlando on Monday night.

Twice this season, St. Louis area native Bradley Beal and his teammates were booed off their home court after embarrassing losses. There is talk of trades and firing coach Scott Brooks

The Wizards have a stretch of home games against sub.500 teams during the next week that could help turn things around – or lead to major roster changes.

“I don’t think we can afford to look at anybody’s record right now and critique them and whatever their record might be because we’re under .500,” Beal said. “It’s important. We’ve got four more at home during this stretch and we’ve got to get all of them.

Definitely one at a time.”

Washington played pitiful 1-11 Cleveland on Wednesday night, and hopefully won.

The Wizards then play Brooklyn, Portland and the L.A. Clippers. Either they start winning or start preparing for a shakeup.

By the way, before the Minnesota Timberwolves traded disgruntled star Jimmy Butler to the Philadelphia 76ers, there were rumors that Beal could have been dealt for Butler.

If Washington tanks, Beal could certainly still be traded.

Tatum to New Orleans?

Patrick McAvoy of the New England Sports Network is pushing for the Boston Celtics to acquire superstar center Anthony Davis from the New Orleans Pelicans “and should be willing to offer a

king’s ransom.”

“Any deal between the Celtics and the Pelicans involving Davis will likely include at least one of Jayson Tatum or Jaylen Brown, together with future draft picks,” he said.

The Celtics have also been sluggish to begin the season, posting a 7-6 record after losing 4-of-5 games.

Tatum has been a bright spot, averaging 16.1 points, 2,5 assists and seven rebounds per game. He is topping his per game averages from last year in all three categories.

Sooner or later, New Orleans is going to lose that franchise. St. Louis could be a nice fit and how cool would it be for Tatum to play in his hometown. But that’s a few years down the road. Right now, winning a MLS franchise is on the front burner around here.

The Reid Roundup MLB Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith will be honored at the 2018 Musial Awards at the Stifel Theatre on Saturday, Nov. 17. Named for Hall of Famer Stan Musial, the awards honor some of the greatest moments and individuals who embodied extraordinary sportsmanship and character over the

and

of Famer

Thome, Sister Jean Dolores Schmidt, chaplain of Loyola University in Chicago and Jordan Bohannon, an Iowa point guard who intentionally missed a free throw to preserve the record of the late Iowa basketball star Chris Street Sister Jean got her first national exposure during the Missouri Valley Conference Tournament in St. Louis before Loyola became the darlings of the NCAA Tournament… Jalani Williams is set to announce his school of choice on Friday. It has come down to Missouri or LSU… Teryl Austin has interviewed for several NFL head coaching jobs over the last few offseasons as a leading minority candidate. He learned he had no job on Monday when he was relieved of his duties as Cincinnati Bengals defensive coordinator… After the New York Jets got bombed at home 41-10 by the lowly Buffalo Bills, head coach Todd Bowles days are numbered and will likely join Hue Jackson as a fired black coach when the season end… Speaking of Jackson, he reportedly is joining the Bengals staff.

Alvin A. Reid was honored as the 2017 “Best Sports Columnist – Weeklies” in the Missouri Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest and is a New York Times contributor. He is a panelist on the Nine Network program, Donnybrook, a weekly contributor to “The Charlie Tuna Show” on KFNS and appears monthly on “The Dave Glover Show” on 97.1 Talk.” His Twitter handle is @aareid1.

Alvin A. Reid

Americans John Carlos and Tommie Smith raised black glove covered fists in the air on the medal podium as the anthem played during the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City.

you could win a prize, but it’s probably not happening. At least the T-Wolves acquired some talent in the deal. There was a 100% chance that Butler would’ve left in free agency (probably earlier) if a deal hadn’t been struck. Plus, one would have to expect a little addition by way of subtraction involved in removing the toxic agent out of the Minnesota locker room.

With the deal completed, the big question is now whether Butler can help the 76ers get over the hump in the Eastern Conference. Alongside Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons Butler gives the 76ers three bona fide All-Star caliber players in the starting lineup. Whereas I didn’t believe the Sixers were ready to make a legitimate run in the East before the deal, now they are ready.

The Celtics, Raptors, Bucks and Sixers can duke it out for the Eastern crown like an exhilarating episode of Game of Thrones. Whichever team can remain healthy and get on a hot streak towards the end of the season may emerge victorious. It will be exciting to see how the East shakes out.

Trouble for GSW?

Jimmy Butler isn’t the only player stirring up trouble in the NBA. The Golden State Warriors suspended Draymond Green for one game for “conduct detrimental to the team” after a verbal altercation between Green and Kevin Durant

The dust-up happened Monday night during a close game with the Los Angeles Clippers. With the game tied and just second left on the clock, Green rebounded a missed Clippers shot, ignored Durant’s calls for the basketball, dribbled down the court and lost the ball. The Warriors were unable to get up a shot attempt and the game went into overtime (which they eventually lost).

Durant yelled at Green for not passing him the ball. Green responded like you would expect Draymond Green to respond. He went OFF on Durant. According to ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith, Green questioned Durant’s commit-

PREP

Continued from C7

Class 6 (Semifinals)

CBC at Joplin, Saturday, 3 p.m. Blue Springs at Rockhurst, Saturday, 1 p.m.

Class 5 (Quarterfinals) Jackson at Vianney, Saturday, 1 p.m. Lebanon at Carthage, Friday, 7 p.m. Fort Zumwalt North at Battle, Friday, 7 p.m. Fort Osage at Staley, Saturday, 1 p.m.

Class 4 (Quarterfinals) Ladue vs. West Plains at Kirkwood, Saturday, 1 p.m.

ment to the team due to his free agent status. It was also clear from the video that Green called Durant out of his name several times during the heated altercation.

Two key circumstances likely played into the Warriors’ decision to suspend Green for one game without pay. First, the team obviously would like to re-sign Durant. Secondly, Durant is notoriously thinskinned. Look no further than his “I’m not talking to you” All-Star episode with Russell Westbrook or the fact that he often takes time out to argue with trolls and detractors on the internet.

The organization had to take a stand against Green’s outburst if it wants to have any chance at keeping KD in The

Camdenton at Webb City, Saturday, 1 p.m. MICDS at Hannibal, Saturday, 1 p.m. Warrensburg at Smithville, Friday, 7 p.m.

Class 3 (Quarterfinals) Lutheran North at Caruthersville, Friday, 7 p.m. Blair Oaks at Clark County, Saturday, 1 p.m. Ava at Lamar, Saturday, 1 p.m. Summit Christian at Lathrop, Saturday, 1 p.m.

Top Individual Performances from last weekend

• Senior Bryan Bradford of CBC rushed for 200 yards and five touchdowns in the Cadets

Bay. Personally, I have had a hunch that this season would be Durant’s last with the Warriors. Obviously this situation doesn’t help. However, I fully expect Green to apologize once he returns to the team and the squad will get back to its winning ways. It was telling though that DeMarcus Cousins was the primary player trying to calm down Green during the altercation. If the Warriors are fussing and fighting without “Boogie” in uniform, what will happen once the volatile center joins the mix?

Circus Mayweather off, Spence vs Garcia on

Last week, I discussed the

victory over DeSmet.

• Senior Jameson Williams of Cardinal Ritter had four receptions for 152 yards and two touchdowns in the Lions’ victory over Lutheran South.

• Junior quarterback Mekhi Hagens of Cardinal Ritter threw four touchdown passes in the Lions’ victory over Lutheran South.

• Junior Terryion Cooper of Trinity had 133 yards on only three carries and two touchdowns in a victory over St. Charles West.

• Senior Graham Bundy of MICDS scored three touchdowns and kicked a field goal in the Rams’ victory over

fight announcement for a fight between Floyd Mayweather Jr. and kickboxer Tenshin Nasukawa. A day after the article was released, Mayweather announced that he was pulling out of the fight. A week later? There are rumors that the fight could be back on. We just have to wait and see.

You know what? If you play around with circuses, you’re bound to look like a clown. My bad.

Why waste time and energy trying to figure out what sideshow Mayweather will be a part of next when real fights are being made between elite fighters such as Errol Spence and Mikey Garcia Spence (24-0-0, 21 KO) will defend his IBF welterweight title against Garcia on March

Hazelwood East. *Sophomore Chris Childs of Lutheran North scored five rushing touchdowns in the Crusaders’ victory over Lift for Life. Illinois seasons come to a close

The four remaining teams from the metro east were all defeated in last weekend’s Illinois state playoffs after advancing to the state quarterfinals. Edwardsville fell to Lincoln Way in the Class 8A, East St. Louis fell to Chicago Mt. Carmel in the Class 7A while Highland and Cahokia were defeated in the Class 5A state playoffs by Joliet Catholic and Hillcrest, respectively.

16 in at the Dallas Cowboys’ stadium in Arlington, Texas. Garcia (39-0-0, 30 KO) holds the IBF and WBC world lightweight titles but will move up two divisions to try to add another belt around his waist.

I’ll save my analysis for closer to fight time, but kudos to Garcia for calling out the bigger, stronger opponent and backing up his talk by signing on the dotted line when the opportunity arose.

Kevin Durant and Draymond Green (shown here in a previous spat) had a verbal altercation during Monday night’s game versus the Los Angeles Clippers. Green was suspended for one game without pay after he questioned Durant’s contract status and commitment to the team.

fight will headline the

The sophomore forward led the Bombers to the Class 2 state championship last weekend at the Soccer Park. In the state championship game against St. Charles West, Gates scored a goal in opening minutes of a 3-1 Bombers victory. He also scored the game’s only goal in a 1-0 victory over Monett in the

state semifinals. For the season, Gates scored 41 points on 16 goals and nine assists. He was credited with five game-winning goals as the Bombers finished their championship season with an 18-6-1 record. As a freshman, Gates scored 27 points on eight goals and 11 assists.

The

first Fox Sports PPV card as networks scramble to pick up some of the void left by the departure of HBO from the fight scene. Follow Ishmael and In the Clutch on Twitter @ishcreates. Also, subscribe to The St. Louis American’s YouTube page to catch episodes of Sports Break with Ishmael and Melvin Moore.

MARYVILLE

continued from page B1

“Even amidst all the events going on today in the political climate, it is very important for universities, for organizations, for companies and for communities to lead the way in really addressing these issues and eventually hopefully solving them. Because that’s what this is all about.”

In the past five years, Maryville has intentionally and strategically worked toward a more diverse student population, Lombardi said. Since 2013, its enrollment of traditional students from underrepresented populations has increased to 23 percent of the total – doubling the number since 2008. More than 25 percent of Maryville’s firstyear class in 2016-17 and 2018 has identified as students of color.

Since 2013, the number of diverse faculty and staff has increased 50 percent. Its senior-level leadership, which numbers some 40 positions, currently includes 14 people of color.

University staff members undergo professional development to exam their own cultural bias, and they are urged to use Maryville’s various resources to become more culturally competent all year long, said Laura Ross, associate director of the Finch Center for Teaching and Learning.

This past year, the center led a group reading of “Tears We Cannot Stop: A Sermon to White America” by Michael Eric Dyson. Ross participated and found the experience to be profound.

“We had the opportunity to listen to some of our colleagues of color and some of the prejudices that they have experienced,” Ross said. “And, as a white-identifying faculty member, I had the opportunity to really start adjusting my lens and become a better ally, a better colleague, and even it affected the way I parent. So professional development

isn’t just about how we treat our students in the classroom or a curriculum, it really is about personal growth so we can be the best us we can be at Maryville.”

The university also aims to expand access to higher education for all students. It leads programs to prepare K-12 students for college success. It also provides scholarship opportunities for underserved students. Its Multicultural Scholars program has grown by 54 percent in the last year to 82 scholars.

In 2015, Maryville established one Donald M. Suggs Scholarship, which provides full tuition and room/ board for undergraduate, academically strong students from groups traditionally underrepresented in higher education; it now serves five students. Beginning in Fall 2018, the university committed to awarding a second Suggs Scholarship each year. The Martin T. Lombardi Scholarship, which provides 50 percent tuition for talented African-American students, was created in 2016 by a gift from Maryville University President Mark Lombardi and currently serves six students. Multicultural endowed scholarships are the central

focus of Maryville’s capital campaign, with the goal of reaching a $50 million endowment for underrepresented students.

And to help make college affordable, the university announced a tuition freeze for the 2018-2019 academic year, marking the third time in four years that Maryville has frozen tuition and fees.

“We want every student who graduates from Maryville University to understand, appreciate and be aware of the enormous diversity of the American experience,” Lombardi said, “They are going to be part of the solution to the human challenges that we face, not just in St. Louis, not just in America, but across the world.”

The 19th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon will be held Friday, November 30 at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel St. Louis, with a networking reception at 11 a.m. and luncheon program at noon. Tickets are $100 for Preferred/ VIP seating and $75 for general admission. Call 314-533-8000 or visit www. stlamerican.com for more information or to purchase tickets.

Financial Focus

By Courtney Bond Walters

The key to consistent investing? Paying yourself first

Consistency is a key ingredient of success in many activities – including investing. And one technique that can help you become a more consistent investor is paying yourself first

Many people have the best of intentions when it comes to investing. They know how important is it to put money away for long-term goals, especially the goal of a comfortable retirement. Yet they may only invest sporadically. Why? Because they wait until they’ve taken care of all the bills – mortgage, utilities, car payments and so on – before they feel comfortable enough to write a check for their investments. And by the time they reach that point, they might even decide there’s something more fun to do with what’s left of their money. How can you avoid falling into this habit of intermittent investing? By paying yourself first. Each month, have your bank move money from your checking or savings account into the investments of your choice. By taking this hassle-free approach, rather

than counting on your ability to send a check, you can help ensure you actually do contribute to your investments, month after month. By moving the money automatically, you probably won’t miss it, and, like most people who follow this technique, you will find ways to economize, as needed, to make up for whatever you’re investing. You already may be doing something quite similar if you have a 401(k) or other retirement plan at work. You choose a percentage of your earnings to go into your plan, and the money is taken out of your paycheck. (And if you’re fortunate, your employer will match some of your contributions, too.) But even if you do have a 401(k), you’re probably

Photo by Wiley Price

Maryville University junior Jordan Davis monitors cyber attacks in the Cyber Fusion Center, a student-run and faculty-managed security operations center.

Living It

to STL

By Kenya Vaughn

“I remember coming to St. Louis when I used to sing Bobby Valentino’s part on ‘Mrs. Officer,’” Drake told the crowd at Enterprise Center on Saturday, November 10.

That was ten years ago, when he was an unknown teen actor-turnedsinger/rapper from Toronto endorsed by Lil Wayne – the biggest name in hip-hop at the time. A decade after being a substitute during Wayne’s shows, Drake (joined by rap trio Migos) now has the star power to sell-out the entire Enterprise Center with less than a month’s notice.

“I’m so glad we added this [expletive] show,” Drake said. “Having 18,000 of y’all sell this show out in three weeks – and come out here and [expletive] with me like this – makes me love what I do.”

n The energy was electric for the entire duration of Drake’s high impact show. The performance and the special effects left fans in awe.

The St. Louis leg of the Aubrey and The Migos tour was announced mid-October as a last-minute addition to the tail end of the tour – and a pleasant surprise that neither Drake or the fans were going to take for granted by the time he greeted the sold-out crowd on November 10. The energy was electric for the entire duration of Drake’s high impact show. The performance and the special effects left fans in awe. He gave them state of the art pyrotechnics, a floating Ferrari, tiny drone lights that were guided to feel like fairies were accompanying Drake for a couple of his R&B selections as he made his way around the massive stage that took up much of the floor – and visual effects that seem reserved for the female pop diva blockbuster tours of late.

Drake left nothing to be desired during his high-impact show that ran through more than 30 of his hits and featured stunning visual effects for the St. Louis leg of the

Migos emerged with a medley of hits that included “Hannah Montana,” “Pipe It Up,” “Handsome and Wealthy,” “Slippery” and “Mama Told Me.”

Chamber Project St. Louis diversifies the voices of classical music

Samuel Coleridge-Taylor

By American Staff

With its annual gala, The Black Rep has developed a winning formula by mixing an awards presentation, fellowship with longtime supporters and subscribers, topped off with a beloved musical adapted for concert performance.

As it has since the inaugural gala in 2015, year-three took place on November 3at Washington University’s 560 Music Center. Audiences enjoyed a star-studded performance of “Gospel at Colonus” after American Publisher and Executive Editor Donald M. Suggs and Andreal Hoosman of Haywood Hoosman Realty and H & H Brokerage Group received the Frankie Muse Freeman Spirit Award.

Broadway veteran and Kansas City native Stephen McKinley Henderson – who costarred alongside Academy Award winners Denzel Washington and Viola Davis in the Tony Award-winning stage revival and Oscarwinning film adaptation of August Wilson’s

C5

Gala co-chair Keith Williamson with Black Rep founder and Producing Director Ron Himes, Woodie King Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award recipient Stephen McKinley Henderson and award namesake Woodie King Jr. at the 3rd Annual Black Rep Gala on Saturday, November 3rd at Washington University’s 560 Music Center.

By Chris King Of The

St. Louis American

Chamber Project St. Louis’ next program is themed “Rediscovery,” though most local listeners will be making their first discovery of work by this diverse, under-programmed group of composers performed live.

On the program: “Clarinet Quintet” by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor (1875-1912), whose mother was English and father of African-American heritage; “Nonet in Eb major” by Louise Farrenc (1804-1875), a French woman composer propelled to fame by this work who fell back into obscurity after her death; and the world premiere of “Redescubrimiento: A Dominican in St. Louis” by Darwin Aquino, who is – you guessed it – a Hispanic composer from the Dominican Republic living in St. Louis.

n “‘Rediscovery’ highlights music by two composers who were perhaps a little overlooked because of race or gender.”

– Dana Hotle, Chamber Project St. Louis

“All of our concerts are themed,” said Dana Hotle, a clarinetist who cofounded Chamber Project St. Louis and serves as its executive director.

“Sometimes we start with a piece or a composer, and from there we build a concert around a theme.

‘Rediscovery’ highlights music by two composers who were perhaps a little overlooked because of race or gender.”

That was Coleridge-Taylor and Farrenc.

“To build on that, we commissioned a new piece by Darwin Aquino, who recently moved to St. Louis from the Dominican Republican,” Hotle said. “We are going to perform a piece inspired by his experience of moving to St. Louis from the Dominican Republic and how it’s been for him to live in St. Louis.” Aquino’s piece will be performed as a world premiere; the other compositions are new to Chamber Project St. Louis – and, possibly, to St. Louis, one of the nation’s strongest cities for classical music, though little work by women or composers of color is ever performed by, say, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra.

“We focus on the diversity of voices in classical music,” Hotle said. “Usually, classical

See CHAMBER, C5

Of The St. Louis American

Aubrey and The Migos Saturday night at Enterprise Center.

Photos by Lawrence Bryant

Photo by Maurice Meredith

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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.

holiday haps

Sat., Nov. 17, 3 p.m., The Ameren Missouri Festival of Lights. Kiener Plaza, 601 Market St., 63101. For more information, visit www. christmasinstlouis.com.

Thur., Nov. 22, 8:45 a.m., Thanksgiving Day Parade. 20th St. and Market, 63103. For more information, visit www.christmasinstlouis.com.

Tues., Nov. 27, 5:30 p.m., Operation Food Search’s Holiday Rap ‘N Pack Volunteers will sort winter coats and pack food while enjoying music, food, and more. 1644 Lotsie Blvd., 63132. For more information, visit www. operationfoodsearch.org.

Fri., Nov. 30, 7 p.m., Hip Hop Nutcracker. Fox Theatre, 527 N Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www. fabulousfox.com.

Sat., Dec. 1, 1 p.m., The St. Louis Children’s Choirs Holiday Concert. With special guests Ambassadors of Harmony. Powell Hall, 718 N. Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www.slso. org.

Sat., Dec. 1, 6 p.m., Breakaway Productions & Witherspoon Entertainment present Holiday Jazz Featuring Marion Meadows, Alex Bugnon, and Mark Harris II. Sun Theatre, 3625 Grandel Sq., 63108. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

Sun., Dec. 2, 5 p.m., Cirque Musica Holiday presents Wonderland. Family Arena, 2002 Arena Parkway, 63303. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.

Sun., Dec. 2, 3 p.m., UMSL Music presents Jazz for the Holidays. Touhill Performing Arts Center, 1 University

Blvd., 63121. For more information, visit www.touhill. org.

Dec. 2 – 3, Moscow Ballet’s Great Russian Nutcracker: Dove of Peace Tour. Fox Theatre, 527 N. Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www.fabulousfox.com.

Tues., Dec. 4, 7:30 p.m., A Magical Cirque Christmas Experience the magic of Christmas with dazzling illusions and breathtaking cirque artists, performing to all your favorite holiday music. Fox Theatre, 527 N. Grand Blvd., 63103.

Thur., Dec. 6, 7 p.m., A Charlie Brown Christmas Live on Stage. Stifel Theatre, 1400 Market St., 63103. For more information, visit www. stifeltheatre.com.

concerts

Thur., Nov. 15, Stifel Theatre presents Maxwell: 50 Intimate Nights Live With special guest Marsha Ambrosius. 1400 Market St., 63103. For more information, visit www.stifeltheatre.com.

Sat., Nov. 17, 7 p.m., The Sheldon’s Rhythm & Jazz Series presents Dee Dee Bridgewater and the Memphis Soulphony. 3548 Washington Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

Sun., Nov. 18, 3 p.m., Intercultural Music Initiative presents the African Descent Composers for Winds. IMI Chamber Players with special guest Titus Underwood. Parkway United Church of Christ, 2841 N. Ballas Rd., 63131. For more information, visit www.facebook.com.

Sun., Nov. 18, 6 p.m., A Night of Soul Searching presents The Hamiltones 4195 Manchester Ave., 63110. For more information, visit

The Guide

Kenya Vaughn recommends

St. Louis Public Library hosts St. Louis native and acclaimed author Jabari Asim. For more information, see LITERARY.

www.thereadyroom.com.

Mon., Nov. 19, 8 p.m., Pop’s Nightclub presents Lil Yachty. 401 Monsanto Ave., Sauget, IL. 62201. For more information, visitwww. popsrocks.com.

Wed., Nov. 21, 8 p.m., State Property Now or Never Reunion Tour. The Pageant, 6161 Delmar Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www. ticketmaster.com.

Sat., Nov. 24, 7:30 p.m., Urban Vibe presents Thanksgiving Soul Jam feat. The Whispers. Stifel Theatre, 1400 Market St., 63103. For more information, visit www. ticketmaster.com.

Sun., Dec. 2, 3 p.m., Sheldon Concert Hall presents Lynne Fiddmont: Power of Love Concert. 3648 Washington Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

Thur., Dec. 13, 7:30 p.m., Live Nation presents Justin Timberlake: The Man of the Woods Tour. Enterprise Center, 1401 Clark Ave., 63103. For more information,

visit www.enterprisecenter. com.

local gigs

Sat., Nov. 17, 7 & 9 p.m., The Soulful, Saxy Sounds of Jeanette Harris. .Zack, 3224 Locust St., 63103. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

Sun., Nov. 18, 3 p.m., Intercultural Music Initiative presents the African Descent Composers for Winds. IMI Chamber Players with special guest Titus Underwood. Parkway United Church of Christ, 2841 N. Ballas Rd., 63131. For more information, visit www.facebook.com.

Sun., Nov. 18, 6 p.m., For Lovers Only: A Tribute to Babyface & El DeBarge Performance by KC The 4th Son. Voce, 212 South Tucker Blvd., 63102. For more information, visit www. PurplePass.com.

Sat., Dec. 1, 6 p.m., Breakaway Productions & Witherspoon Entertainment present Holiday Jazz Featuring Marion Meadows,

their products and services. Legacy Books and Café, 5249 Delmar Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.

Sat., Nov. 17, 7 p.m., Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc Nu Chi Chapter 63rd Annual Founders’ Day Celebration. Keynote speaker Harry Lennix. Main Street Brewing Co., 6435 W. Main St., Belleville, IL. 62226. For more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.

Sat., Nov. 17, 8 p.m., Pretty Faces of Lupus Fundraiser 70s and 80s Disco Bash. The Flex Entertainment Center, 8314 Olive Blvd., 63130. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Sun., Nov. 18, 6 p.m., Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. , Metro St. Louis Chapters present the All Black Experience. Ballpark Village, 601 Clark Ave., 63102. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Thur., Nov. 22, 10 p.m., Black Ceaser and Frat House Entertainment presents STL Fashion Affair. Marquee, 1911 Locust St., 63103. For more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.

Alex Bugnon, and Mark Harris II. Sun Theatre, 3625 Grandel Sq., 63108. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com.

Sat., Dec. 1, 7 p.m., In RetroSpect: A Tribute to Tony! Toni! Toné!, Ledisi & Angie Stone. Voce, 212 S. Tucker Blvd., 63102. For more information, call (314) 4884196.

Nov. 30 – Dec. 2, JPEK Creative Works Theatre presents A Diva’s Dedication A tribute to Whitney Houston, Patti Labelle, Gladys Knight, and Mariah Carey. .Zack, 3224 Locust St., 63103. For more information, visit www. metrotix.com. and Mariah Carey. .Zack, 3224 Locust St., 63103. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.

special events

Sat., Nov. 17, 12 p.m., Girls with Goals presents Black Business Expo. A space for more than 30 black owned businesses and organizations to network and showcase

Fri., Nov. 23, 2 p.m., Black Owned Black Friday Pop Up Market. Black makers, artists, creatives, and brands. The Luminary, 2701 Cherokee St., 63118. For more information, visit www. facebook.com.

Fri., Nov. 23, 2 p.m., Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Epsilon Lambda Chapter presents the All Black Phriday Party. 3615 19 h St., 63107. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Sat., Nov. 24, 12 p.m., Small Business Saturday Expo. Come out for multiple vendors, speakers, live music, and more. Holiday Inn Downtown, 811 N. Ninth St., 63101. For more information, visit www. stlnaturalhairexpo.com.

Tues., Nov. 27, 7:30 a.m., MicroFinancing Partners in Africa’s Inaugural Women for Women Giving Tuesday Breakfast. William Shearburn Gallery, 665 S. Skinker Blvd., 63105. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Thur., Nov. 29, 6 p.m., 2nd

Annual YWCA Shop for a Cause. The Vault Luxury Resale, 2325 S. Brentwood Blvd., 63144. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Fri., Nov. 30, 11 a.m.

The St. Louis American Foundation’s 19th annual Salute to Excellence in Business Awards & Networking Luncheon, RitzCarlton Hotel St. Louis, with a networking reception at 11 a.m. and luncheon program at noon. Call 314-533-8000 or visit www.stlamerican. com for more information or to purchase tickets.

Sat., Dec. 1, 9 p.m., Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Epsilon Lambda and Delta Epsilon Lambda Chapters present Founders Weekend Party. Dos Salas, 1919 Washington Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Sat., Dec. 8, 2 & 7 p.m., The Original Harlem Globetrotters. Enterprise Center, 1401 Clark Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www.enterprisecenter. com.

literary

Mon., Nov. 12, 7 p.m., St. Louis County Library hosts author Jane Sherron de Hart, author of Ruth Bader Ginsburg: A Life 1640 S. Lindbergh Blvd., 63131. For more information, visit www. slcl.org.

Thur., Nov. 15, 4:30 p.m., Faculty Book Talk: Tabea Linhard and Timothy Parsons. Co-editors of Mapping Migration, Identity, and Space, will lead a panel discussion about the book. Olin Library, WashU, 1 Brookings Dr., 63130. For more information, visit www. library.wustl.edu.

Tues., Nov. 27, 7 p.m., Left Bank Books hosts author Michelle Purdy, author of Transforming the Elite: Black Students and the Desegregation of Private Schools. With Professor Lerone Martin. 399 N. Euclid Ave., 63108. For more information, visit www.leftbank.com.

Wed., Nov. 28, 7 p.m., St. Louis Public Library hosts author Jabari Asim, author of We Can’t Breathe: On Black Lives, White Lies, and the Art of Survival. Schlafly Branch, 225 N. Euclid Ave., 63108. For more information, visit www.slpl.org.

comedy

Sun., Nov. 18, 7 p.m., Code Red Entertainment presents the Lil Duval Comedy Laughaganza. Ambassador, 9800 Halls Ferry Rd., 63136. For more information, visit www.metrotix.com.

Tues., Nov. 20, 7:30 p.m., Impractical Jokers: The Cranjis McBasketball World Comedy Tour. Enterprise Center, 1401 Clark Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www.ticketmaster.com.

Kenya Vaughn recommends

Nov. 23 – 24, Helium Comedy Club presents Michael Blackson. 1151 St. Louis Galleria St., 63117. Sat., Nov. 24, 8 p.m., Eddie B: Teachers Only Comedy Tour. Blanche M. Touhill Performing Arts Center, 1 University Blvd., 63121. For more information, visit www. touhill.org.

Nov. 30 – Dec. 1,8 &10:15 p.m., The Laugh Lounge presents Tony Tone. 11208 W. Florissant Ave., 63033. For more information, visit www.thelaughloungestl.com.

theatre

Sat., Nov. 17, 7 p.m., The Girl Who Never Cried. A single mother of three who longed for a good man finds the true beast behind the suit and scriptures of the man she’s found. HarrisStowe State University, 3026 Laclede Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Nov. 17 – 18, A Call to Conscience, Inc. and Annie Malone Historical Society present Celebrating the Power of Dreams: The Annie Malone Story. Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www. anniemalonehistoricalsociety. org.

Through Nov. 25, Fox Theatre presents Disney’s Aladdin. 527 N Grand Blvd., 63103. For more information, visit www.fabulousfox.com.

Fri., Nov. 30, 8 p.m., Meet Me at the Muny. Celebrate 100 years of musical theater

featuring numbers from the many Broadway shows that have made their way to the Muny stage. Missouri History Museum, 5700 Lindell Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www.charischorus.org.

art

Thur., Nov. 15, 4:30 p.m., Opening Reception for University City High School: Figures & Grisaille. COCA, 524 Trinity Ave., 63130. For more information, visit www.cocastl.org.

Fri., Nov. 16, 6 p.m., Gateway Men’s Chorus invites you to Wine + Art 2018. Centene Center for the Arts, 3547 Olive St., 63103. For more information, visit www.gmcstl.org.

Sun., Dec. 2, 4 p.m., Mena Darre Photography presents The Seasons of Melanin Photography Exhibition Exodus Art Gallery, 5075 Delmar Blvd., 63108. For more information, visit www. menadarrephotography.com.

Through February 10, Kehinde Wiley: Saint Louis, Saint Louis Art Museum. One Fine Arts Drive, Forest Park. For more information, call (314) 721-0072 or visit http:// www.slam.org/exhibitions/ kehinde-wiley.php

lectures and workshops

Thur., Nov. 15, 7 p.m., Missouri History Museum presents Restorative Justice and Community Healing. Dr. Fania Davis, discusses changing schools

and communities through restorative practices. 5700 Lindell Blvd., 63112. For more information, visit www. mohistory.org.

Fri., Nov. 16, 8:30 a.m., Talking Transit Event to Highlight Transit Security Best Practices. St. Louis Regional Chamber Collaboration Center, One Metropolitan Square, 63102. For more information, call (314) 231-7272

Tues., Nov. 20, 5 p.m., Grace Hill Women’s Business Center presents a Legal

Clinic. Meet with an attorney from Legal Services of Eastern Missouri to discuss business related questions. 2125 Bissell St., 63107. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Fri., Nov. 30, 10 a.m., Meet the Judges. Gain a better understanding of the role of the judge in the legal process, and attend a Q&A with the Judges. Thomas F. Eagleton Courthouse, 111 South 11th St., 63102. For more information, call (314) 8624859.

Fri., Nov. 16, 6 p.m., Kierra KiKi Sheard with God’s Chosen and Michael Lampkin. San Francisco Temple Christian Assembly, 10191 Halls Ferry Rd., 63137. For more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.

Sun., Nov. 25, 10 a.m., Newstead Avenue Missionary Baptist Church invites you to Family and Friends Day. 4370 N. Market St., 63113. For more information, call (314) 3714436.

Nov. 29 – Dec. 1, Live Church Women’s Conference 2018: Sarah’s Daughter. Event includes service, workshop classes, brunch and more. 215 N. Shepley Dr.,63137. For more information, visit www. eventbrite.com.

Nov. 30 – Dec. 1, Washington Tabernacle Missionary Baptist Church invites you to the Transformative Summit for St. Louis Area Women: God’s Girls Gathering to Grow, Glow & Go in Christ 3200 Washington Ave., 63103. For more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.

Sat., Dec. 1, 6 p.m., David Peaston Foundation presents the Golden Girls Gospel Concert: Looking Back to Leap Forward. Feat. Zella Jackson Price, Ethel Foster and Ruth Latchison. Christ the King United Church of Christ, 11370 Old Halls Ferry Rd., 63033. For more information, visit www.eventbrite.com.

film

Nov. 16, Widows starring Viola Davis and Cynthia Erivo opens in theaters nationwide.

Nov. 21, The Green Book starring Mahershala Ali opens in theatres nationwide. Nov. 21, Creed II starring Michael B. Jordan opens in theaters nationwide.

A Night of Soul Searching presents The Hamiltones at The Ready Room. See CONCERTS for details.

Continued from C1

But before Drake mesmerized, show opener Roy Woods – a Toronto singer/ rapper signed to Drake’s OVO Sounds label – kicked off the night with plenty of charisma and potential. He gave a nod to the special place he holds for the city because of his introduction to hip-hop.

“This is my first time stepping foot in St. Louis and I’m so happy you showed me love,” Woods said, after proving his potential by his refusal to be intimidated by the massive stage and matching crowd. “The first rap album I ever listened to was from St. Louis. Nelly’s ‘Country Grammar’ was the first rap album I ever heard – so it means a lot for y’all to show me so much love in St. Louis my first time here.”

After a much longer than expected intermission, Migos emerged with a medley of hits that included “Hannah Montana,” “Pipe It Up,” “Handsome and Wealthy,” “Slippery” and “Mama Told Me.” The group has grown leaps and bounds since they emerged on the hip-hop scene with respect to stage presence and energy, but still leave something to be desired. The Migos fans seemed to feel as if the segment was especially brief. And with hits like “Stir Fry” and “Bad and Boujee” missing from the lineup, they seemed a bit disgruntled as the lights came up.

What they didn’t know is that the trio would be given another segment – which allowed Drake a moment to catch his breath during his marathon of a performance. Offset, Takeoff and Quavo fared much better their second time around. Partly because they reserved their biggest hits for part two, but mostly because they enjoyed the crowd’s residual energy from the headliner who never seemed to slow down from the

moment he stepped on stage.

Drake managed to squeeze in a massive number of hits from his prolific catalog by way of medleys and snippets.

But his latest concert illustrated just how hard he has been grinding since he burst on the scene because of the songs that he was forced to leave off the list – even with a performance that stretched towards two hours. There were as many hits missing as there was performed – but he never let audience feel like they missed a thing as he gave them more than 30 selections to sing along with that ranged from the R&B of “Hotline Bling” traditional rap by way of “All Me” and “Blessings” and “Fake Love” to the Reggaeton of “Controlla,” his Rihanna feature “Work” and “One Dance.”

Drake is a musical chameleon that can transition from the trap style of

“Jumpman” to crooning his “Don’t Matter to Me” while working in the chorus of Michael Jackson’s “Rock With You.”

One of the most impressive technical elements of the show was when the stage became his Instagram feed for “In My Feelings,” a nod to the song that became a social media dance sensation thanks to Instagram personality Shiggy –and was co-opted by the likes of Will Smith, Ciara and St. Louis’ own television and film star Sterling K. Brown. Drake gave fans each of his many musical incarnations as a token of love for their unwavering support before closing with “God’s Plan.” “Thank you, St. Louis, for [expletive] with me,” Drake said. “This is why I’ll be coming back here for as long as I’m doing this –for the rest of my life.”

Drake

Photo by Lawrence Bryant

Kyle Lombard, violin, will be featured on the “Clarinet Quintet” by Samuel ColeridgeTaylor and is a core member of Chamber Project St. Louis.

Jane Price (violin), Valentina Takova (cello) and Mary Reed (bass).

Continued from C1

music is music by dead white guys. We focus on diversifying the voices of who wrote the music and who is performing the music.”

One of the violinists on the “Rediscovery” program, Kyle Lombard, is African-American. Hotle will play clarinet, including the featured role on Coleridge-Taylor’s quintet. Hotle’s two cofounders who remain with the project, Jennifer Gartley (flute) and Laura Reycraft (viola), will perform.

The other players are Xiomara Mass (oboe), Ellen Conners (bassoon), Trica Jostlein (horn),

As for the commission, the Chamber Project St. Louis leaders met Aquino performing with Winter Opera St. Louis, where he serves as musical director. He also is musical director for the Música Sacra concert series in Santo Domingo, director of orchestral studies at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, and the current conductor-in-residence for the Washington University Symphony Orchestra.

“He is a great, friendly guy,” Hotle said. “We have known him few years but we didn’t know he was a composer. When we found out he was a composer, we said, ‘We should commission you.’”

Chamber Project St. Louis will perform “Rediscovery” at 7:30 p.m. Friday, November 16 at the 560 Music Center, 560 Trinity Ave. in University City. Tickets are $5 for students (includes two soda) and $15 general admission (includes complimentary wine, beer and soda).

“We like a casual environment where you can get a drink,” Hotle said. “We get rid of the stuffy stuff that goes with classical music. We keep the parts we like and skip the parts we don’t like.”

For advance tickets, visit https://tinyurl.com/ Chamber-Rediscovery. For more information, visit http:// chamberprojectstl.org/.

Continued from C1

“Fences,” was presented with the Woodie King Jr. Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the field of theatre.

King was on hand to present Henderson with the award.

“I’m grateful to the Black Rep for this award – and for all they have done to keep August Wilson’s work alive,” Henderson told The American a few weeks ahead of receiving his award. “August was a genius when it came to telling our stories. And Ron, and everybody at the Black Rep, have gone above and beyond in doing their part to make sure his genius continues into the next generation.”

Ted Lange of “Love Boat” fame portrayed Preacher Oedipus and created an instant connection with patrons with his opening monologue. Immediately afterward, they were taken to church with the soulful sounds of Black Rep favorites such as J. Samuel Davis, Leslie Johnson, Chuck Flowers, Tre’von Griffith Amber Rose and Herman Gordon.

Famed actor Antonio Fargas, Rusty Watson and St. Louis native and current Temptations

member CJ Jefferson joined more than 40 powerhouse voices under the direction of Black Rep founder and Producing Director Ron Himes and the musical direction of Charles Creath and Dello Thedford.

“I’ve probably have seen The Gospel at Colonus at least seven times and this year’s adaptation [for The Gala] was the best ever,” said Keith Antoine Willis. “The cast members and musicians were tight and flawless! The audience – both young and old – were engaged and connected the entire evening. The concert production reminded me of a Sunday morning service at any black church in America.”

Spire, Centene, Edward Jones, Enterprise Holding, Inc., Hilton St. Louis At The Ballpark, Major Brands, and Wells Fargo served as corporate sponsors for the event – which was co-chaired by Gisele Marcus, Keith Williamson and Hank Webber.

The proceeds from the evening benefited The Rep’s Education and Community Programs. “Ron Himes and staff are to be commended for another memorable evening of phenomenal theatre excellence,” Willis added.

The Black Rep’s 42nd Season will continue with “Canfield Drive” by Kristen Adele

Calhoun and Michael Thomas Walker, January 9-27, 2019; “Milk Like Sugar” by Kirsten Greenidge, February 13 –March 3, 2019; and conclude with “Nina Simone: Four Women” by Christina Ham, May 15 – June 2, 2019. For season tickets and/or additional information, call (314)534-3807 or visit www.TheBlackRep.org

Photo courtesy of World Chess Hall of Fame

Staging Annie Malone

By Linda Jo Smith

For The St. Louis American

Since 2012, A Call to Conscience Interactive Theater for Social Change (C2C) has staged plays that dramatize historical themes dealing with the struggles of the oppressed. So when C2C cofounder Linda M. Nance suggested that we partner with her organization, the Annie Malone Historical Society (AMHS), to dramatize a retrospective of Annie M. Pope Turnbo Malone and the building of Poro College here in St. Louis, C2C cofounder and artistic director Fannie Lebby and I were eager take on this amazing project.

Poro College officially opened its doors 100 years ago this month. We are delighted to present “Celebrating the Power of Dreams: The Annie Malone Story” at the Missouri History Museum on November 17 and 18.

Recent statistics show that African-American employment is on the rise, yet underemployment and low wages continue to perpetuate economic disparity. Because C2C’s mission is to serve as a catalyst for activism, we embrace the opportunity to celebrate and theatrically illustrate the power of Malone’s entrepreneurial fortitude and her commitment to the people in her community.

Despite racist practices in St. Louis, Malone showed her determination in the face of Jim Crow. Though African Americans were allowed to rent and own residential property in the Ville, to purchase a large parcel of land as she did in 1917 – without bank financing – to build a beauty college for “race” women was inconceivable. We must educate ourselves and celebrate the achievements of our foremothers and forefathers, for it is in that celebration that we find our inspiration to believe and achieve.

“Malone wasn’t solely focused on teaching women how to be successful businesswomen selling the Poro products,” said Nance, “but to be active participants in their community. She encouraged the ladies to buy property, invest in stocks and bonds, and to become politically involved.”

By 1926 the Poro College beauty empire employed 175 people. Franchises in North and South America, Africa, the Caribbean, Canada, and the Philippines employed another 75,000 women.

Though extremely wealthy, Malone lived modestly, giving thousands of dollars to the Pine Street YMCA and the Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, D.C. She also donated money to the St. Louis Colored Orphans Home, where she served as president of the board of directors from 1919 to 1943. With her help, in 1922 the organization bought a facility at 2612 Goode Ave. It was renamed the Annie Malone Children and Family Service Center in her honor.

Nance founded the AMHS in 2012, but she has been collecting newspaper stories, personal interviews, and memorabilia about Malone since the early 2000s. The AMHS’s mission is “to compile and disseminate a body of information that will fairly depict the extraordinary business

Annie M. Pope Turnbo Malone is the subject of a new play, “Celebrating the Power of Dreams: The Annie Malone Story,” that will be performed at the Missouri History Museum on November 17 and 18.

acumen, the inspiring dedication to community, and the generous commitment to philanthropic endeavors made by Annie M. Turnbo Pope Malone.” Linda Nance and Linda F. Jones, vice president of AMHS, give local and national lectures that highlight Malone’s legacy.

“Celebrating the Power of Dreams” by Mariah Richardson, an award-winning playwright from St. Louis, is based on the writings and research of Nance and Jones. This research provides the basis for a powerful, educational, and entertaining dramatization that gives prominence to Malone’s amazing contributions to education, philanthropy, and women of color in St. Louis, in America, and throughout the world.

“Celebrating the Power of Dreams: The Annie Malone Story” will take place at the Missouri History Museum on November 17 and 18 at 2 p.m. The event is free and open to the public.

Linda Jo Smith is executive director of A Call to Conscience Inc.

Beyond Mapping Decline

There are an estimated 25,000 abandoned structures throughout St. Louis. Community development organizations, legal clinics, and neighborhood nonprofits are working together with city officials to address this substantial problem. The symposium “Beyond Mapping Decline” will create a thought-provoking space for scholars and community advocates to discuss racism, poverty, and post-industrial decline.

Nneka N’namdi of Fight Blight Bmore and representatives from St. Louis-area initiatives will encourage St. Louisans to think about how they can empower themselves and their neighbors to break down the lasting legacy of housing inequality. N’namdi hopes that, as a result of this collaboration, “St. Louis, Baltimore, and other cities with concentrations of blight will know that people living in blighted communities will be the best resource for resolving the issue.”

“Beyond Mapping Decline: Fighting a Lasting Legacy” will take place at the Missouri History Museum on Saturday, December 8, and Sunday, December 9, from 1 to 5 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. Visit www.mohistory.org for more information.

– Shakia Gullette

Guest Columnist

Linda Jo Smith

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• Carrying multiples

Changing the path for moms-to-be addicted to opioids

their babies. “We don’t know exactly why Centering outcomes are better, but we think it’s partly because we have more time to de-stress and talk through peoples’ concerns and, most importantly, the moms and families support each other,” Garrett said. The CenteringPregnancy® program is ideal for pregnant women who have healthy, low-risk pregnancies. For more information about the program and to find out if you are eligible to participate, call 314-768-8797 or email Jessica Garrett at jessica.garrett@ssmhealth.com. Or, find the program on Facebook @CenteringStMarysSTL.

There is a well-known African proverb that says “it takes a village to raise a child.” In the United States, though, many parents find pregnancy and raising children to be isolating and lonely. Creating a “village” to support expecting moms is the idea behind the CenteringPregnancy,® a specialized prenatal care program offered at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital.CenteringPregnancy® includes 10 group visits and as many private visits as needed. During group visits, women (and often times their support people) meet with a SLUCare certified nurse midwife and eight to ten other women who are all due around the same time. Visits include a private check-up with the nurse midwife and group conversation about self-care, pregnancy, childbirth, infant care and more. Appointment times range from 90 minutes to two hours. “We think the best thing that we do in Centering is offer an environment where peer-to-peer support can grow and thrive,” said Jess Garrett, nurse and program coordinator. “Group wisdom is real and people supporting each other is powerful.”Centering moms often say they feel better prepared for childbirth and caring for themselves and their new baby. They also report higher satisfaction with their care –there is no waiting room time with CenteringPregnancy®. Studies have shown some important health benefits associated with the CenteringPregnancy® model of prenatal care. There is a lower incidence of preterm birth among Centering families than the general population. Centering moms are also less likely to need a C-section and more likely to breastfeed

services to access necessary resources such as housing, and support in developing and enhancing parenting, life and job skills necessary to support mothers in maintaining their sobriety.

The WISH Center represents the vision of Jaye Shyken, M.D., FACOG, WISH Clinic Director, a maternal and fetal medicine specialist, who has led innovative efforts to provide comprehensive care for pregnant women affected by substance use disorders in Missouri for more than two decades. If you know someone who needs the help of the WISH Center, visit www. ssmhealth.com or call 314-768-8230.

The WISH Center (Women and Infant Substance Help), located at SSM Health St. Mary’s Hospital –St. Louis, provides comprehensive, highrisk maternity care for women who are dependent on opioid drugs. It is the first, and remains the only center of its kind in Missouri. The number of babies born dependent on opioid drugs has increased dramatically in recent years. In 2012, nearly 22,000 newborns in the U.S. were treated for opioid withdrawal, according to one study. When a babies are born dependent on drugs, they develop something called neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). Symptoms include high-pitched crying, tight muscle tone, hyperactive reflexes, seizures, sneezing and gastrointestinal problems. Depending on the severity of their symptoms, babies may be treated with medications such as morphine and they often require longer and more costly hospital stays than healthy babies. The WISH Center helps expectant moms by helping them commit to beginning a chemical dependency treatment program which includes receiving prescribed buprenorphine or methadone from a federally licensed program. Then throughout the patient’s pregnancy, the WISH Center utilizes a multidisciplinary team of providers, including a maternal fetal medicine specialist, three nurse practitioners who are trained in high-risk obstetrics, nurses, a nurse coordinator, social workers and a dedicated OB pharmacist to meet all of the patients’ needs. They also coordinate with behavioral medicine therapists.The help doesn’t stop once the baby is born. Medicaid coverage expires at 60 days postpartum, making it difficult for many women to continue treatment as they adjust to the addition of a newborn to their family. WISH Center social workers help new mothers access ongoing substance abuse treatment. The team is working to develop a full two-year program that would continue care for new moms after the baby is born, when the risk for relapse is greatest. This includes partnering with outside organizations and wrap-around

resources needed to provide appropriate support for new moms.

women who truly understood what I was going through.”

“For many moms, talking with a peer may be the first time she feels truly understood. The field of support for women who suffer perinatal mood and anxiety disorders is small but growing here in the St. Louis Metro Area,” Martino-Sexton said.

For more information about the MOMS Line or to volunteer, call 314-768-8570.

Up to 80 percent of new mothers experience mild mood changes, often referred to as the “baby blues.” The symptoms, which may include tearfulness, irritability, anxiety and sadness often occur in the days right after childbirth and may last for a few hours or as long as one to two weeks after delivery. These feelings usually go away on their own and do not generally require treatment from a health care provider. If the symptoms do not go away or get worse after two weeks, the new mother may be experiencing some form of perinatal mood and anxiety disorder (more commonly referred to as postpartum depression).

Martino-Sexton says the first step toward feeling better is to talk about your experience with someone who will understand and support your path to getting well. That’s where the MOMS Line comes in. Volunteers go through a comprehensive postpartum peer coach training program and ongoing training to give them the tools and

The MOMS Line is the only peer-support program in St. Louis for pregnant and new moms who are experiencing depression, anxiety and other mental health issues. According to Kim Martino-Sexton, director of the MOMS Line, the program is a revitalization of a former program, Mother-to-Mother, which closed in 2013. “Pregnant and postpartum women affected by depression, anxiety, baby blues deserve a safe and supportive place to call to get connected to peers and professionals that really ‘get it’ and truly understand how to help them heal,” Martino-Sexton said. “As a woman who suffered with postpartum depression, I know firsthand how hard it can be to find people to help. Even my OB/GYN gave me a proverbial ‘pat on the head’ and told me all women feel this way, just keep pushing on. This was three months postpartum when I was clearly suffering from postpartum depression and needed help. My healing began when I started attending a peer-led moms support group. Looking back, I am so grateful for those

The “baby blues” are reality for thousands of pregnant and new moms. Often, moms feel like they have nowhere to turn. There is a resource called the MOMS Line, a peer-supported help line for pregnant and new moms in the St. Louis area. The MOMS Line (314-768-MOMS) is staffed by trained volunteers –postpartum peer coaches –who have personal experience with postpartum sadness, irritability, anxiety or depression, and have recovered. The goal is to provide compassionate and respectful support, in addition to resources and a warm connection to perinatal behavioral health professionals when needed.

Celebrations

Anniversary Birthdays

Pastor Arlene B. and Elder Kenneth W. McClendon will celebrate their 44th wedding anniversary on November 17. Apostle Pastor and Elder are the founders of Chronicles Christian Center Church. Their family includes Dr. Ingrid D. McClendon Carter, son-in-law Antonio Carter, granddaughter

Toni Danielle Carter and daughter Iris K. McClendon. Elder retired from the Navy after 20 years and was also employed by General Motors for over 30 years. Pastor is a licensed barber and instructor.

Reunions

All reunion announcements can be viewed online!

Beaumont Class of 1971 is holding a happy hour “Road to 50” Kick-off and 50/50 Raffle fundraiser on Friday,

December 7, 2018. It will be held at Déjà Vu ll, 2805 Target Drive, St. Louis, Mo. 63136 from 5:30-7:30 pm. All classes are invited to attend. For more information, send email to Gladys Smith at beaumontalumni1971@aol. com.

Beaumont Class of 1978 40th Reunion Extravaganza Save the Date: October 5-7, 2018. Call or text Marietta Shegog Shelby at 314-799-5296 for further details.

Northwest Class of 1979

is planning on cruising for our 40th class reunion and would love for you to join us!

Date to sail is set for July 20, 2019 and you can feel free to contact: Duane Daniels at 314-568-2057 or Howard Day at 414-698-4261 for further information. Please don’t miss the boat!

Soldan Class of 1979 is planning its 40th year reunion for the weekend of August 2-3, 2019. Yearlong reunion activities will begin with a kickoff at Soldan High School Homecoming on Saturday,

Nelson Thomas, Sr. celebrated his 90th birthday on November 10. Mr. Thomas is CEO of Reliable Funeral Home and has served families in the community for five decades. He is not only a loving and devoted husband but a father, grandfather, greatgrandfather, brother, uncle, and so many other things to others that he has come to know.

Happy 10th Birthday to Ayanna Nunn on November 21! Daddy loves you!

Happy 27th Birthday to Sleepy Brooks on November 17, from Mommy, Mr. Jason, and Julianna! May you have many blessed more!

October 13, 2018 prior to the game at 1 p.m. For more information or to assist with reunion activities, please email at: soldanclassof1979@gmail. com or call Barbara at 314 456-3391.

Sumner Class of 1979 will hold its “Bulldogs Rock the Boat” BIG 4-0 Reunion Cruise, June 22-27, 2019. For further information, email your contact information to sumner1979@ymail.com or call 314-406-4309. Join our Facebook group at Sumner High Class of ‘79.

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 Daniel 2315 Pine St. St. Louis, MO 63103 FREE OF CHARGE

Reunion notices are free of charge and based on space availability. We prefer that notices be emailed to us! However, notices may also be sent by mail to: Kate Daniel, 2315 Pine St., St. Louis, 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

Ride or die for Drizzy. The biggest hip-hop show to hit the STL in a minute made its way to Enterprise Center Saturday night in the form of Aubrey and The Migos And I must say I got all of my life. Drake’s OVO protégé Roy Woods was first to hit the stage. I must say that I was beaming with STL pride when he went on and on about how Nelly was his first taste of hip-hop and “Country Grammar” was the first rap album he ever heard. Then I felt geriatric and elderly when I realized that he was only 5 years old when the record came out. I tolerated the Migos and sang along here and there. What? I didn’t play Candy Crush or go to the bathroom or anything. Now I understand that folks ride for them. They are their authentic selves – from their silky little blouses and silly sunglasses – but I’m not going to pretend like they are not regular at best, like some of y’all do. Now I will say, they make some catchy tunes, like few in the post-mumble rap but really still mumble rap generation. But that’s about all I have to give along the lines of a compliment. But I’m not the least bit mad that y’all love them like you do. I had my little guilty pleasure music – I just didn’t act like it was genius. But that Drizzy is another story. I got my whole life from his portion of the show. He wore me out with how he worked that stage nonstop. He did not come to play. I was so into the show that he served up that I didn’t realize when I was riding over to the Hush party that half of my favorite Drake jams didn’t even make the concert set list. In all honesty, Drake is one of the hardest working men in hip-hop – well in music period. I didn’t realize just how prolific he was until I thought about the fact that he did 30 songs Saturday night and has enough hits to do another 30…well at least 20. I have to say that I’m not a fan of his tattoos, but he was in great shape and repping the beard gang in the best way. I can’t say that I considered Drake attractive until Saturday night. He showed St. Louis plenty of love on stage and off too by putting a dent in Louie’s menu and hitting up Flamingo Bowl – which is mentor Lil Wayne patronized on more than one occasion during visits to St. Louis. Anything but Hush. Niddy might need to name his rotating Hush party something else after Saturday night at The Marquee, because the secret was out and there was nothing quiet about the star-studded set. First of all, it was so ______________(insert new slang for bananas) that they had Locust Street shut all the way down from 20th to 22nd. As I was trying to find a space and thought I would end up at Union Station or The Olive Bar, I thought, “Is Drizzy up in here or something.” I was close. I heard the early lines looked like Walmart’s 50-inch Smart TV line on Black Friday. I found out why when I stepped inside and saw the Migos standing up in VIP mouthing along to their songs with an uncanny resemblance to the performance they gave fans when they hit the stage with Aubrey. And just as they were leaving the building, the one and-only Chance The Rapper was stepping in. That’s right, two separate A-listers in one night. It was epic to say the least. And don’t even get me started to naming the St. Louis stars or I will have to use the rest of Partyline for this item.

Light crowd, lovely show for Ladies night out. Me and 38 of my favorite – okay, maybe 1,038 – R&B lovers made Chaifetz Arena the place to be as we perched to listen to our favorite new jack throwbacks for the Ladies Night Out Tour starring Teddy Riley (and featuring David Hollister and two new anonymous dudes to fill out Blackstreet) and Keith Sweat. Even though he made no secret about being none too pleased with being perched back by the soundboard, DJ Kut still got it all the way in on the tables. The show got started off with Kansas City crooner Lavelle. Folks were like, “who is that?” when he was announced. But when he hit the stage, everyone (including me) was thoroughly impressed with his vocal chops and charisma. And Teddy Riley had me like “go ‘head Mr. New Jack Swing” when he gave a show within the show before Dave Hollister and the alleged Blackstreet came out. Keith Sweat was begging and whining as usual – and also as usual the folks were all the way into it.

The Memphis connection. I’m sorry, but I can no longer call it a coincidence that my favorite Memphis rap duo just so happens to be in St. Louis at the same time as a certain church denomination with headquarters in Memphis. Look, y’all can say that Koolaid has made 8Ball and MJG his annual birthday act (happy birthday Koolaid!), but this has happened outside of his birthday and I’ve counted seven of the nine years that this church’s annual convention has come to town and The Space Age Pimps have come to do a show. I’m not saying that either of them are elders or anything like that. I’m just saying it would be foolish at this point to call it a coincidence. I’m not judging. I will go to the ends of the earth to see 8Ball and MJG. And I made it my business to stay until after 3 a.m. so that I could catch every sip of their show Friday night at The Marquee.

STL doing big things. I’m in the mood to issue a few shout-outs for folks from my town doing big things – both inside the region’s limits and abroad. First, let me shout out super producer Metro Boomin’ for his debut solo album entering at number one on the Billboard 200. Yes…that’s right, the biggest album on Billboard belongs to St. Louis’ own. Also, I want to give a shout out to The Love Jones Band, who will be backing Grammy Award-nominated former Floetry songstress Marsha Ambrosious for a special guest performance on Friday, November 16 from 5-7 p.m. at BB’s. Yes, you are reading this correctly. She said it on Facebook herself – I forgave her for calling our city St. Louie considering her accent and all. If you love her soulful yodels, this will be the perfect opportunity to get up close and personal. I’m sure this show will sell out. Did I ever tell y’all about the time I ran into her mama going to town on a bag of flaming hot Cheetos in the middle of Walgreens in New Orleans during ESSENCE Festival? I saw her pop open that bag, take it to the head and answer the phone with a British accent and not lose a chip or choke to death. I was genuinely impressed to the point where I was like, “They have a Northside in Liverpool, England too!” Anyway. Can’t wait to see her daughter featured for my boo Maxwell on Thursday at Stifel –and take center stage with Love Jones at BB’s on Friday.

Leslie, Regina and Lawanda @ Ladies Night Out Friday night @ Chaifetz Arena

Joe Edwards clocked another epic celeb snapshot when superstar Drake stopped by Flamingo Bowl while in town for the STL leg of the Aubrey and The Migos tour

Constance, Farrah and Stacey join in the fun of DELUX Magazine’s Power 100 Reunion Game Night two weeks ago @ Brennan’s

The Diversity Gallery family was as warm and welcoming as always for their Super Soul Sunday Pop Up Shop Event

Du, 8 Ball and MJG helped KoolAid celebrate his b-day with a special rap show that featured dirty south hip-hop veterans Friday night @ The Marquee

Tiffany and Jocelyn gave rave reviews to “Green Book” at the 27th Annual Whitaker St. Louis International Film Festival Sunday @ The Tivoli

Shonnah and Helen grooved to the Ladies Night Out concert starring Blackstreet and Keith Sweat Friday night @ Chaifetz Arena

DJ Shay Money, Mai Lee and Princess Stormm @ The Hush Party Saturday night @ The Marquee

Kelly and Triky were among the influencers in the place for the Hush Party Saturday @ The Marquee

Lauron and Golliday got dolled up for Hush Saturday night @ The Marquee

Chance The Rapper and super promoter LooseCannon S.L.I.M. were in the building for the latest Hush Party Saturday night at Marquee. Rap trio Migos also came through Hush after taking the stage at the sold-out Aubrey and The Migos show at Enterprise Center.

St. LouiS american Career Center

MARKETING COMMUNICATIONS SPECIALIST

license $28,401.00 (W-4). Starting salary with a CDL/B license $29,666.00 (W-5)

Applicants need to have a current valid driver license. Applications are available at Jennings City Hall, 2120 Hord Ave. or at www.cityofjennings.org.

NO RESUMES ACCEPTED WITHOUT COMPLETION OF OUR APPLICATION! Completed applications may be mailed, emailed to jobs@cityofjennings.org, or faxed to 314-388-3999. Applications will be accepted until Tuesday November 27, 2018 at 5:00 p.m. CST.

CLIENT SERVICES ADMINISTRATOR:

Local Nonprofit seeking full-time Client Services Administrator to manage the internal office duties for a home repair program serving seniors in the city of St. Louis.

CAPITAL PROJECTS MANAGER

Responsible for the coordination and management of the daily operations of the department. Oversees and directs the coordination of capital projects and contract administration of construction contracts. Bachelor’s Degree in Business, Engineering, Architecture or Construction Management and at least 5-7 years of progressively responsible management experience.

Salary $76,973 - $91,433 Annually. Apply or send resume to: St. Louis Housing Authority, HR Division, 3520 Page Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63106 by 5:00 p.m., November 26, 2018 via website www.slha.org or email athomas@slha.org.

A Drug Free Work Place/EOE.

WORKING GROUP COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER

Must have a Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent from a four year college or university in Communications, Journalism, Public Relations or related field; or four years related experience and/or training; or equivalent combination of education and experience. Prior experience in a public housing agency or local government office preferred. Must possess a demonstrated use of intermediate to advanced skills in writing and design software packages (word processing, spreadsheets, vector based graphics, desktop publishing programs and photo manipulation programs). Salary $51,034 - $63,083 Annually. Apply or send resume to: St. Louis Housing Authority, HR Division, 3520 Page Blvd., St. Louis, MO 63106 by 5:00 p.m., November 26, 2018 via website www.slha.org or email athomas@slha.org

A Drug Free Work Place/EOE.

FAMILY DRUG COURT COMMUNITY SUPPORT WORKER

HANDYMAN NEEDED

Handyman needed for city apartment complex. The job pays $10 per hr. Carpentry, plumbing, painting and drywall experience preferred. To inquire call Tim 314-319-8597

Provide client counseling including federal, state, and local government procurement assistance. Conduct assessments of client needs. Additionally, develop and conduct workshops in a variety of areas of procurement focused on small businesses including women owned small businesses, HUBZone small businesses, and service disabled veteran owned small businesses.

Area to be served includes St. Louis metro area and surrounding counties and a Master’s degree with two years’ business/contract experience required.

This is a University of Missouri Extension position. You can find the link http://extension.missouri.edu/about/ jobs.aspx

of Alton, IL Must have been a full-time Police Officer See website for further requirements and application www.cityofaltonil.com/careers

Responsibilities include managing client applications and approvals, overseeing billing and invoicing for work orders, and tracking and reporting data and outcomes.

Applicants should possess at minimum an associate’s degree and at least 1 year related experience. Interested applicants should submit a cover letter and resume to todd.martin@missionstl.org, by November 30, 2018.

Mission: St. Louis is an EOE

PARAMEDICS

Mehlville Fire Protection District is accepting applications for the position of CRITICAL CARE PARAMEDIC

Starting $56,294; $60,294 w/CCP-C $84,344 after 4 years Benefits include health insurance, pension, tuition reimbursement, sick leave, attendance bonus, vacation, life & disability, holiday pay, uniform allowance, wellness benefits

REQUIRED: EMT-P certification through the State of Missouri

PREFERRED: CCP-C or FP-C certification Applications accepted September 24 – October 31, 2018, weekdays 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Headquarters, 11020 Mueller Rd. 63123. Download application packet at www.mehlvillefire.com Equal Opportunity Employer.

ATTORNEY

The Missouri Department of Transportation (MoDOT) has a vacancy for a staff attorney in its St. Louis Regional Counsel’s Office located in Chesterfield, Missouri. The position would be primarily responsible for handling litigation in the areas of eminent domain, general and fleet vehicle tort liability, and workers’ compensation, as well as a limited office practice.

Requirements include: a Juris Doctor degree and membership in good standing with the Missouri Bar Association. Excellent research, writing and communication skills are preferred. This is an entry-level position, which has a starting salary of $49,680/year - $50,820/year. MoDOT also offers an excellent personal leave, medical and retirement benefits package. Moderate overnight and out of state travel is required. An on-line application with resume and copies of official undergraduate and law school transcripts must be submitted by December 10, 2018 at www.modot.org, under “Career Opportunities”.

MoDOT is an equal employment opportunity and affirmative action employer.

Join the Airport Advisory Working Group as the Communications Manager. Develop a strategy for communications and interaction with the public on the activities of the Airport Advisory Working Group.

The position reports directly to the Airport Advisory Working Group and is employed by St. Louis Development Corporation (SLDC). This is a fully grant funded, full-time and benefit eligible position. SLDC offers a full range of benefits including deferred comp, 401(a), and medical insurance. SLDC is an equal opportunity employer and values a diverse workforce.

To apply online and see a full job description go to: http://www.stlouis-mo.gov/sldc/ and click on “Careers at SLDC.”

CORRECTIONAL OFFICER

The City of Jennings is accepting applications for Correctional Officers. Duties entail working a 12-hour shift, which includes booking, processing and supervising prisoners. Must be a high school graduate or have a GED; 21 years of age and have no disqualifying criminal history. Valid driver’s license required. Starting salary $30,571.00 (C8C).

Interested applicants must complete a Corrections application, which is available at Jennings City Hall, 2120 Hord Ave. or online at www.cityofjennings.org. NO

RESUMES ACCEPTED WITHOUT A COMPLETED APPLICATION!

Returned application must include a current record check from St. Louis City and County Police Dept. and a valid driver’s license. Application deadline is November 16, 2018 at 5:00 p.m.

Family Court of St. Louis County is seeking to enter into a professional service agreement for a Community Support Worker in the Court’s Child Protective Services Department and acts as an officer of the Court. These services are grant-funded through the Drug Court Coordinating Commission from July 1, 2018 to June 30, 2019, with a possibility for renewal. Work involves serving a client caseload by assessing and providing on-going support in the areas of life skills, medical needs, housing, employment, substance abuse treatment referrals/information, parenting and financial management. The professional service agreement is funded at $16.19/ hour working up to 25 hours/week. A one year commitment to the position is highly preferred. Qualifications: Graduation from an accredited college or university with a Bachelor’s degree in Social Work, or a related social/behavioral science is preferred. Plus, one year of professional work experience performing community support; one year of experience involving chemical dependency preferred; or any equivalent combination of education, training and experience. NOTE: All selected individuals will be required to submit to a background check. To apply (position open until filled), please send a resume, along with a cover letter to the following address: Contract Community Support Worker, Attn: Human Resources Department, Family Court of St. Louis County, 105 S. Central Ave., Clayton, MO 63105. EOE. Please contact the Human Resources Department at 615-4471 (voice) or RelayMO 711 or 800 735-2966 if you need any accommodations in the application process, or if you would like this posting in an alternative format.

VOCATIONAL REHABILITATION COUNSELOR

The State of Missouri is accepting applications for a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor in the St. Louis area. Starting salary is $38,808-$40,776. View job description, benefits and application instructions at https://dese.applicantpro. com/jobs/application instructions at https://dese.applicantpro.com/jobs/

ASSISTANT - PSAPOLICY OPERATIONS

Responsible for monitoring and follow through of service related requests for the Policy Operations unit, and tracking all Primary Workers’ Compensation, Commercial Auto, and General Liability transactions to include: New Business, Renewals, Endorsements, Cancellations, Reinstatements and Non-renewals. This position includes the accuracy in which transactions are issued and distributed to our customers.To apply, please visit: https://www. safetynational.com/careers-page/

Investigate and troubleshoot hardware and software problems. Install computers, peripheral equipment, O/S images, and software as required. Associate degree, technical school diploma, or equivalent experience in computing, networking, information technology. Posting closes 11/18. Apply at www.fergflor.org

RECRUITER

Safety National has an opening for a newly created position to join our talent acquisition team. The ideal candidate will have at least 2 years’ experience as a recruiter in the Insurance/Financial services industry with an emphasis in IT recruitment. Safety National is recognized as a Best Place to Work in Insurance by Business Insurance Magazine and as a Top Work Place in St. Louis, MO by the St. Louis Post Dispatch! To apply, please visit: https://www.safetynational.com/ careers-page/

PUBLIC NOTICE

Donald Maggi, Inc. is accepting bids from

Disadvantaged Business Enterprises for subcontracting opportunities on the Wastewater Treatment Facility located in Belle MO 65103

Bid Date and Time: November 19 2018 at 2:00 pm

Plans and specifications are available for purchase from: Integrity Engineering 1714 E 10th St Rolla MO for purchase/ Full Set $175, Half Set $125 or a CD $50

Or may be inspected at our office at 13104 South US Hwy 63, Rolla, Missouri 65401

Our telephone number is 573-364-7733, fax 573-341-5065. An Equal Opportunity Employer. Email: maggiconst@gmail.com Any items than can be emailed will be upon request. Donald Maggi, Inc.

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

PHASE 4

November 14, 2018

The Board of Trustees of the St. Louis County Library District (the “Library District”) requests the submission of responses for qualifications from qualified firms to provide Facilities Master Plan Phase 4 Architectural and Engineering Services and/or As-Needed Architectural and Engineering Services to the Board of Trustees as described in this Request for Qualifications.

The Response must be received no later than 3:00 p.m. C.T., on November 28, 2018 by:

Steve Hunter, Assistant Director St. Louis County Library District 1640 South Lindbergh St. Louis, Missouri 63131

For more information please see the RFQ on the Library’s website at https://www.slcl.org/bid-opportunities.

REQUEST FOR BIDS

PINNACLE CONTRACTING

Union Station Restaurants: Trainshed and 1894 Cafe 201 S. 18th Street St. Louis, MO. 63103 Due date: Wednesday December 5, 2018 at 2:00 pm

METROPOLITAN ST. LOUIS SEWER DISTRICT

Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District will receive RFQ’s in the Purchasing Division, 2350 Market Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63103-2555 until 10:00 a.m. on December 14, 2018 to contract with a company for: Check Valve Purchase for Bonfils Pump Station. 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 9665 RFQ. 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.

TO ADVERTISE YOUR BIDS, BID NOTICES, PUBLIC NOTICES, RFT’S OR PROPOSALS Email ahouston@stlamerican.com

Pre-bid walkthrough: November 20th at 2pm, and November 27th at 10am. Wear PPE (hard hat, safety vest, and eye protection) and park in the south parking lot. Meet at the front steps of the former Hard Rock Café.

Description: Pinnacle Contracting is accepting bids for the buildout of two spaces at Union Station. The first space is 7,587 SF at the 1st floor that will be a restaurant and bar called the Trainshed. The second space is 4,509 SF at the 2nd floor and will also be a restaurant and bar called the 1894 Café. Email bids to bids@pinnaclecontracting.com. Call or email Keana Flanders for the link to the plans and specs at 314-783-8000 ext. 2 or keana@pinnaclecontracting.com.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS:

Site and related work to construct a masonry restroom at Tilles Park 9551 Litzinger Rd. IFB: 201810-657-PR, due December 3, 2018, 1 PM, Demien Const. Co. 636.332.550 / Fax 636.332.5465 / Call for Email.

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 December 18th, 2018 to contract with a company for: Janitorial Services for Coldwater Creek Treatment Plant.

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 9666 RFQ. 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.

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Notice is hereby given that The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (District) will receive sealed bids for Tina Terrace Drive Storm Sewer under Letting No. 11407-015.1, at this office, 2350 Market Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63103, until 02:00 PM on Thursday, December 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 must obtain a set of plans and specifications in order to submit a bid in the name of the entity submitting the bid. The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

BID PROPOSAL

KCI Construction requests subcontract proposals from MBE, WBE, DBE, Veteran Owned Business and SDVE businesses for the Medical Science Building – Research Vivarium Upgrade and Maintenance, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO. Project #CP180641

Plans and specifications are available

• To view electronically at no charge from: http://operations-webapps.missouri.edu/pdc/ adsite/ad.html.

• To view at our Camdenton office: 5505 Old South 5, Camdenton, MO 65020

• By a Dropbox Link from jmorrow@kciconstruction.com

Subcontractor bids are due by 12:30 p.m. Thursday, December 13, 2018. You may email bids to jmorrow@kciconstruction.com or send a fax to 573-346-9739. Please call if you have any questions: 314-200-6496.

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Notice is hereby given that The Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District (District) will receive sealed bids for FF-18 Villa Dorado - LacklandPage Sanitary Relief (Adie Rd to Villa Dorado Dr) under Letting No. 10018-015.1, at this office, 2350 Market Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63103, until 02:00 PM on Thursday, December 20, 2018, at a place designated. Bids will be received only from companies that

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

METROPOLITAN ST. LOUIS SEWER DISTRICT

Notice is hereby given

BID PROPOSAL

Great Rivers Greenway is seeking qualifications for a process designer, facilitator & strategic planner for the Chouteau Greenway project. Check https://greatriversgreenway. org/jobs-bids/ and submit by November 29, 2018.

INVITATION TO BID

TARLTON CORPORATION invites you to submit a bid proposal for the Primate Canopy Trails for the Saint Louis Zoo located at 1 Government Drive, St. Louis MO. This project will consist of demolition of the Former Seal Lion Arena and associated structures, demolition of site paving, as well as fence and tree removal. Additionally, fill and grading in place of the former structure, replacement of a portion of the Perimeter Security fence, and seeding the site area are also included. Coordination with adjacent simultaneous train tunnel remediation project and tree protection are also required.

Pre-bid meeting and site inspection will be held on November 13, 2018 at 2 p.m. in The Living World Building on Government Drive in Forest Park, Lower Level - Monsanto Lecture Theater.

The MBE/WBE participation goal for this project is 25% MBE and 5% WBE.

Subbids are requested by 12 p.m. on November 26, 2018. These should be emailed to bids@tarltoncorp.com. Any questions, please contact Scott Snyders at 314.633.3358 or SWS@tarltoncorp.com.

Drawings, Specifications, and Bid Documents explaining the requirements for bidding and performing the work will be made available at the following locations

Tarlton’s Building Connected site: https://app.buildingconnected.com/public/55b2997ad17b3807006f2618/projects/5be33fd7123371001ea25751

Cross Rhodes Reprographics located at 1712 Macklind, St. Louis, MO 63110

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Paric Corporation is seeking proposals for the following project: The Trainshed Restaurant located at St. Louis Union Station.

The project consists of restaurant build out with MEPFP scopes being design build.

Bids for this project are due on December 6th at 12:00 PM.

For any questions or would like to find out more detailed information on this opportunity, please contact Theresa Stout at 636-561-9500 or tmstout@paric.com.

All bids should be delivered to Paric via e-mail (bids@paric.com) or fax (636-561-9501).

Plans and specifications will be available to view at Paric’s Main office at 77 Westport Plaza, Suite 250, St. Louis, MO 63146.

PARIC CORPORATION IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The St. Louis City Family Court is seeking proposals from medical doctors to provide medical services to detained youth in the Detention Center. Proposals should be submitted by 4:00 p.m. on November 16, 2018, but position is open until filled. Interested providers may obtain the Proposal Specifications by accessing www.stlcitycircuitcourt.com then check for RFPs

Public Notice of Single Source Procurement

Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is proposing to procure: ONBOARDING AND PERFORMANCE SOFTWARE. NEOGOV was used for the service. Any inquiries should be sent to gjamison@stlmsd.com.

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

NOTICE TO CONTRACTORS

Paric Corporation is seeking proposals for the following project: 1894 Café located at St. Louis Union Station.

The project consists of restaurant build out with MEPFP scopes being design build.

Bids for this project are due on December 6th at 12:00 PM. For any questions or would like to find out more detailed information on this opportunity, please contact Theresa Stout at 636-561-9500 or tmstout@paric.com.

All bids should be delivered to Paric via e-mail (bids@paric.com) or fax (636-561-9501).

Plans and specifications will be available to view at Paric’s Main office at 77 Westport Plaza, Suite 250, St. Louis, MO 63146.

PARIC CORPORATION IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS:

Great Rivers Greenway is seeking proposals for materials testing and inspections for Mississippi Greenway: Katherine Ward Burg Garden (#402). Check https://greatriversgreenway.org/ jobs-bids/ and submit by November 15, 2018.

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS:

Great Rivers Greenway is seeking bids for the rental and service of portable restrooms as needed for a period of three years (2019-2021). Check https://greatriversgreenway.org/ jobs-bids/ and submit by November 16, 2018.

KELLER CONSTRUCTION INC.

Notice is hereby given that the Metropolitan St. Louis Sewer District is proposing to procure: MEDIATION SERVICES. The District is proposing single source procurement to CLAUDE BROWN LLC. Any inquiries should be sent to gjamison@stlmsd.com.

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

NOTICE:

Regarding: Ameren North Metro Operations Center

Dear Qualified MBE/WBE/VOB/ SDVOB/LGBTQ/etc. Contracting

Firms, KAI Design & Build is seeking qualified Diverse Business Enterprises for subcontracting opportunities on the Ameren North Metro Operations Center project which will be located at 4427 Geraldine Ave., St. Louis, MO 63115. Proposals will be due on Tuesday, November 6, 2018, promptly at 2:00 PM CST at KAI Design & Build Headquarters, 2060 Craigshire Road, Saint Louis, MO 63146. We strongly encourage interested parties to contact KAI Design & Build to learn more about the project and the desired diversity goals. Should you have any questions, do not hesitate to contact Joe Kabance at jkabance@kai-db.com or 314.241.8188. We appreciate your interest in this project!

LETTING NO. 8677

TOWER GROVE PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ACCESS ENHANCEMENTS

NO. TAP 5670(604), ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI

Sealed proposals will be received by the Board of Public Service in Room 208 City Hall, 1200 Market Street, St. Louis, Mo. Until 1:45 PM, CT, on NOVEMBER 20, 2018, then publicly opened and read. Drawings and Specifications may be examined on the Board of Public Service website http://www. stl-bps.org/planroom.aspx (BPS On Line Plan Room) and may be purchased directly through the BPS website from INDOX Services at cost plus shipping. No refunds will be made.

The prime contractor must have a fully responsive contractor questionnaire on file with the Missouri Highway and Transportation Commission at least 7 days prior to bid opening date in order for MODOT to concur with the award of this project. Bidders shall comply with all applicable City, State and Federal laws (including DBE policies).

There will be a pre-bid conference for this contract on November 6, 2018, 9:00 a.m., City Hall, 1200 Market Street, St. Louis, Missouri Room 305. All bidders are encouraged to attend the pre-bid meeting.

All bidders must regard Federal Executive Order 11246, “Notice of Requirement for Affirmative Action to Ensure Equal Employment Opportunity”, the “Equal Opportunity Clause” and the “Standard Federal Equal Employment Specifications” set forth within and referenced at www.stl-bps.org (Announcements).

The City of St. Louis hereby notifies all bidders that it will affirmatively ensure that in any contract entered into pursuant to this advertisement, businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals will be afforded full opportunity to submit bids in response to this invitation and will not be discriminated against on the grounds of race, color, religion, creed, sex, age, ancestry, or national origin in consideration for an award.

Contractors and sub-contractors who sign a contract to work on public works project provide a 10-Hour OSHA construction safety program, or similar program approved by the Department of Labor and Industrial Relations, to be completed by their on-site employees within sixty (60) days of beginning work on the construction project.

The DBE Goal for this project is 16%

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\sta- tus, 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 available on an equal opportunity basis.”

Call Angelita Houston at 314-289-5430 to place your rental/real estate ad today!

for Missouri Highway Patrol Troop A HQ, Radio Tower Replacement, Lee’s Summit, Missouri, Project No. R150401 will be received by FMDC, State of MO, UNTIL 1:30 PM, 12/20/2018. For specific project information and ordering plans, go to: http://oa.mo. gov/

BIDS

Solicitation For Bids (SFB) for Laundry Cleaning Services Bids Wanted Bid documents may be

The gospel and white supremacy

Have white evangelicals completely forgotten the teachings of Christ?

By Keith Magee

For The St. Louis American

The election of Donald Trump embodies white supremacy theology that is hostile toward non-white blacks – in particular, black men. He began spurring flames of discord, as the driving force of the birther movement, and also called Mexicans rapists and targeted Muslims with a travel ban. These are underpinnings of the hate of the Ku Klux Klan and a deeply seeded evangelical apocalyptic theology of a Holy Race War. White evangelicals voted at a rate of 81 percent for Trump. As someone who attended Vacation Bible School in the conservative bayou of Louisiana, one of the first songs I remember was “Yes, Jesus Loves Me.” Winan United Methodist Church was the place where a white, blonde-haired and blued-eyed Jesus Christ was introduced to me as the savior of the world. This Christ and his church was a place of safety from our personal sins, the social ills on the outside, yet assuredly as place of his love.

bloodshed on the cross was the horror of death and yet the beauty of a saving grace for all. However, it is the same symbol of the cross that is burned, as a form of intimidation, to remind black people that even this white savior can’t save them from the venom of white hate.

It seems that daily throughout America another black life is suffocated to death at the hands of someone in a blue uniform who is protected by the government. Recently, the death of Botham Jean of Dallas has created a deeper level of anger and outrage. Now it is being communicated that not only are blacks in danger while driving, standing on a street corner, and in their back yard, but there is no safe place – even in the sanctuary of their own home.

The fact that, in 1915, a UMC minister, William J. Simmons, played a major role in the new charter of the KKK was either unknown or accepted by many. Simmons’ first public order was consecrating their Christian morality by setting a fire to the old rugged cross atop of Stone Mountain, Georgia. And yet there is an idea of racial hierarchy, embedded into religious teachings, that has been a part of our culture for over 400 years. While confined within the chattels of slavery, religion was an outlet that gave hope in this faith of a suffering servant. The idea was that suffering with Him might make it possible to reign with Him in eternity. His

The use of religion to stoke racial strife and violence is prevalent in our societies. In August, while meeting with evangelical Christian leaders, Trump told them that there would be “violence” if Republicans lost their majority in Congress as a result of November’s mid-term elections. He told them to take to their pulpit to tell their followers that this is a referendum on him, their religion and freedom of speech.

The same religion that teaches love thy neighbor, don’t steal, cheat or commit adultery is seemingly using Wite-Out to affirm this American president. The adulterer, one who pays for sex and speaks freely about being able to walk down 5th Avenue and shoot someone, is touted as the one to save and make America great again.

The duality of religion and vulnerability was something I Iearned a long time ago from my father who was a lover of dogs. As he would sit

actions, while also trying to subjugate black people under that same God, there appears to be no recourse but to go to war.

A war for the soul of the country is the true meaning of a righteous doctrine. This hatred under the guise of religious teachings can no longer be met with patience, peace talks or Twitter protests. What is the point of preaching the gospel of Jesus’ love to a Christian sect who apparently welcome the KKK’s ideal: “So I’ll cherish the bright fiery cross, till from duties at last I lay down, then burn over me a bright fiery cross, the day I’m laid in the ground.”

Nor can we have any hope in this president, who affirmed to his Texas supporters that he’s a proud nationalist and believes that if the synagogue had an armed guard there would have been a different outcome. The only thing that he can do is continue to spark and ignite more flames of discord and hatred.

Do we have to accept that nonwhite Christians, along with white Christians, who don’t believe this rhetoric won’t be able to enter paradise through the same pearly gates? Possibly there’s a backdoor for the rest, on a lower level, because of an unequal salvation? Or perchance there’s a difference in how Jesus loves me verses them?

out back on a stump, he would give me world wisdoms. He often told me that “if you keep kicking a dog, he will bite back.” The preaching of “whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also” seemed to apply only to those seen as less than human while these white Christians raged injustice and violence against our communities and leaders. Just over 50 years ago the KKK offered a $100,000 bounty for the assassination of the non-violent Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., resulting in the cowardly shooting by James Earl Ray.

The snuffing out of his life led to anger and biting back with people taking to the streets in over 125

riots in American cities and around the world. This isn’t 1968 when impassioned response for a revolution, from Pittsburgh to Paris to Prague, was happening with protest in the streets. It would appear that this indignation of these whites is ushering Jesus’ sign of the end: “nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom.”

It is clear that the White House is being led by an Imperial Wizard and king, the GOP is serving as his Klexter (outer-guard at a Klan meeting), and his latest U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice is his Klarogo (inner-guard at a Klan meeting). By invoking an evangelical theology and using the Bible to justify their cruel

It is obvious that this sect of Christians has completely forgotten the Jew from Nazareth who came to fulfill the law through the good news of love. It was his belief, and that of His father, Yahweh, that his death would save the entire world, regardless of difference – through his selfless act and message of love. It is that love that must dominate all of our hearts and theologies, so that we can have peace on earth.

Keith Magee is a public intellectual, theologian, and social justice scholar. He is senior fellow in Culture and Justice at the University College London and serves in leadership at The Berachah Church in Boston and The Tab Church in London. For more information, visit www.4justicesake.

Guest Columnist Keith Magee

White evangelicals – who profess a religion that teaches love thy neighbor, don’t steal, cheat or commit adultery – is seemingly using Wite-Out to affirm this American president. The adulterer, one who pays for sex and speaks freely about being able to walk down 5th Avenue and shoot someone, is touted as the one to save and make America great again.