September 17th, 2020 Edition

Betty Jean Kerr passes away at age 82

turned a St. Louis area storefront free clinic started by community activists and medical students in 1972 into People’s Health Centers. When Kerr retired in 2007, in her honor the clinics were renamed the Betty Jean Kerr People’s Health Centers. The Board

Betty Jean Kerr’s contributions to healthcare were celebrated at the St. Louis American Foundation’s 2004 Salute to Excellence in Healthcare. Left to right: KSDK’s Rene Knott, Betty Jean Kerr and KMOX’s Carol Daniel.

Webster University awards 10 Suggs Scholarships

Five-fold increase in four-year scholarships for minority students

By Chris King Of The

St. Louis American

Webster University has increased by a factor of five the number of scholarships it will offer every year to academically talented undergraduate students from ethnic groups typically under-represented in higher education, in the name of Donald M. Suggs, publisher and executive editor of The St. Louis American Since 2013, Webster offered two Dr. Donald M. Suggs Scholarships annually. Starting this year, it will sponsor 10.

‘Mr. D.C.’ teaches PE in Lindbergh Schools and serves on its strategic planning team

By Chris King

See COCKRELL, A6

Jackie Brock, widow of former St. Louis Cardinals outfielder and Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Lou Brock, thanked everyone for the love they showed her husband after a wreath-laying ceremony at his statue at Busch Stadium on Saturday, September 12. Brock died September 6 at 81. See inside for a Lou Brock special section, and see B8 for an intimate tribute by Lou Brock Jr.

n “We all came together and agreed this was meaningful and impactful and true to Webster’s values and mission, and it was not difficult to agree: ‘let’s go big and go to 10.’”

– Webster University Chancellor Elizabeth (Beth) Stroble

“We know these students are engaged and talented and will become leaders on campus,” said Chancellor Elizabeth (Beth) Stroble. “We look forward to their contributions in the classroom and in the community during their time at Webster. We have confidence they will make their mark in their world when they leave us.” The 10 incoming Suggs Scholars from throughout the bi-state region new to Webster this semester are Machaela Brock, Francis Howell High School; Jessica Echols, Hazelwood West High School; Bolanle Akinyemi, Fort Zumwalt West High School; Juliette Ferch, Fox Senior High School; Khalisah Habeebullah, Francis Howell High School; Dashauna Mairidith, Soldan International Studies; Joi’ Johnson, Edwardsville High School; Naba Yasir, Parkway South High School; Jalalah Muhammad, Collegiate School of Medicine; and Khyree Plair, Hazelwood Central Senior High School. These scholarships are being instituted at a time when institutions of higher learning are reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic and its economic impacts along with

See SCHOLARSHIPS, A7

‘If I Can Help Somebody’

By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American

in Clayton.

“Mrs. Jackson would teach first grade in row one,” Graham said. “And when she was done teaching, she would move down to row two

grade. And row three was third grade.” The way Mrs. Jackson organized her classroom to include both peer learning and individual instruction is something Graham will never forget. In fourth grade, Graham attended a majority-white school in the City of St. Louis — a completely different world from Attucks Elementary. “This is what I remember,” she said. “I was told to put my best foot forward, wherever I go: ‘Do your best, and let God do the rest.’”

These formative experiences had a significant

See GRAHAM, A6

Photo by Wiley Price

By Sandra Jordan Of The St. Louis American

Photo by Wiley Price

Darrion Cockrell

SEC fines T.I. $75K in cryptocurrency scheme

T.I. is out of the crypto game for a while. Black Enterprise reports that rapper and businessman Clifford “T.I.” Harris was fined $75,000 by the Securities and Exchange Commission, charged with helping to promote “unregistered and fraudulent initial coin offerings (ICOs).”

Also charged are film producer Ryan Felton, two companies controlled by Felton, FLiK and CoinSpark, T.I.’s social media manager, William Sparks Jr, and Atlanta residents Chance White and Owen Smith, according to the SEC release.

The settled administrative order states “the SEC finds that T.I. offered and sold FLiK tokens on his social media accounts, falsely claiming to be a FLiK co-owner and encouraging his followers to invest in the FLiK ICO. T.I. also asked a celebrity friend to promote the FLiK ICO on social media and provided the language for posts, referring to FLiK as T.I.’s ‘new venture.’” Sparks Jr. allegedly offered and sold FLiK

tokens on T.I.’s social media accounts, and White and Smith allegedly promoted SPARK tokens without disclosing they would receive compensation in return.

The SEC’s order against T.I. requires him to pay a $75,000 civil penalty and T.I. is no longer allowed to participate in offerings or sales of digital-asset securities for at least five years. All but Felton agreed to settlements to resolve the charges against them.

Maya Moore marries man she freed from prison

In a surprise jump shot that was nothing but net, superstar Maya Moore marries Jonathan Irons the man she put her career on hiatus for two years while fighting for his release from prison in Jefferson City, Missouri for a wrongful conviction 23 years ago. He was released in July and they were married shortly thereafter. As TMZ reported, they made the big announcement recently on “Good Morning America.”

are doing together, but doing it as a married couple,” Moore said. “We got married a couple months ago and we’re excited to just continue this new chapter of life together.” Moore said over the last 13 years they developed a friendship and “just entered into this huge battle to get him home and just over time it was pretty clear what the Lord was doing in our hearts and now we’re sitting here today, starting a whole new chapter together.”

Cardi B sets off divorce

calls it quits from her husband of almost three years, Migos member

As Pax Six reported, the WAP rapper filed divorce papers Tuesday in Fulton County, Georgia with a hearing is set for November 4. The two married in a secret ceremony in September 2017. They have a 2-year-old daughter, Kulture, for whom she seeks child support and joint custody.

Ray J files for divorce from Princess Love

Ray J says he wants the pre-

Hollywood” costars. He also seeks joint custody of their two children, daughter Melody and son Epik, in papers filed in Los Angeles County Court this week. The couple’s recent reconciliation was short lived. Love had filed for divorce against Ray J in May, but had the petition dismissed shortly after.

LA sheriff slammed for trying to bully LeBron James for reward money

There was swift reaction after LA County Sheriff Alex Villanueva called out LeBron James to match the $175,000 reward money offered in the ambush shooting of two L.A. deputies over the weekend, because he knows James “cares about law enforcement.” Most notably, NBA great Kobe Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, weighed in, whose reply to @ ElanMaree on Instagram was posted in Yahoo! Sports, “He shouldn’t be challenging LeBron James to match a reward or ‘to step up to the plate.’ He couldn’t even ‘step up to the plate’ and hold his deputies accountable for photographing dead children.” ESPN’s Shannon Sharpe tweeted, “I challenge him to fire the officers that shared the photos of Kobe’s accident, but he and his dept tried to cover it up.”

Have you, or someone you know, experienced loss

Enroll your child ages 6 weeks to 5 years into the YWCA St. Louis Early Education Program. Go to www.ywcastl.org to begin the enrollment process today!

Maya Moore

St. Louis circuit court suspends evictions until Oct. 2

Judge: ‘evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic create a public health crisis’

By Rebecca Rivas

Of The St. Louis American

A suspension on evictions in the City of St. Louis has been extended to October 2, according to an order from Presiding Judge Rex Burlison of the 22nd Judicial Circuit Court on Monday, August 31. The order comes after the city’s 12-member health board recommended that Burlison halt evictions until October 1, with the potential for a further extension.

in response to the St. Louis American’s July 31 investigation on the looming eviction crisis.

n “I would give great deference to the medical director’s opinion.”

“Directives from various levels of government and from the Joint Board of Health and Hospitals have declared that evictions during the COVID-19 pandemic create a public health crisis, as it is not in the interest of public health to displace persons from their homes during this COVID-19 emergency,” Burlison states in his order.

– Judge Rex Burlison

“A lack of access to housing places everyone at risk — the tenant, the community and the entire region,” said Dr. Will Ross, board chair, during the August 6 meeting. In March, Burlison issued a court order halting evictions, which he lifted on July 6. On July 7, 22nd Circuit Court started taking up eviction proceedings again. However, the city government didn’t open up applications for the $5.4 million in federal CARES Act rental and mortgage assistance until July 15.

Families were rapidly falling through the cracks, and sheriff deputies were forced to remove families from their homes just as the COVID-19 was rising throughout the region and state.

Photo by Wiley Price

ing but have no power over the circuit court. While people are not being evicted from their homes, eviction proceedings are still continuing despite technological barriers for tenants, advocates say.

Since July 6, St. Louis’ major healthcare systems have reported “troubling” numbers of new hospital COVID patients.

“We have too much virus spreading in the community,” said Dr. Alex Garza, incident commander for the St. Louis Metropolitan Pandemic Task Force, in his August 5 briefing. “We are far from out of the woods. There is a lot on the line here, but it’s not going to slow down until everyone steps up and does the right thing.”

Since August 2, the sevenday average of new hospital admissions has remained above 40 — and on August 31 was 44 — which is well into the task force’s Red Zone.

On August 12, Dr. Fredrick Echols, the city’s public health director, signed a health order that includes the board’s suggestion, as well as scales back the capacity of restaurants and bars to 50% percent.

The Joint Boards of Health and Hospitals called an emergency meeting on August 6,

From July 7 through August 7, 75 evictions had been scheduled. Of those, 22 had “sur-

rendered possession” of their homes, and only seven have been able to be mediated or canceled.

Since July 15, the city has received more than 4,000 applications for rental or mortgage assistance, according to the mayor’s office, and more than 100 of them said they were in

eviction proceedings. Led by the United Way of Greater St. Louis, 17 local organizations are trying to quickly process through these applications so the number of applicants with eviction cases could be higher.

On August 19, another $2 million was added to the $5.4 million in rental and mort-

gage assistance, after gaining approval from the threemember Board of Estimate and Apportionment.

Previously, Steve Conway, chief of staff for Mayor Lyda Krewson, told The American they needed more time to process the thousands of applications for the CARES Act fund-

Burlison previously told The American that if Dr. Echols heightened public health restrictions, Burlison would align with them.

“If he expresses a medical concern, then I’m going to give that long thought,” Burlison said. “I would give great deference to the medical director’s opinion.”

Housing advocates rallied outside 22nd Judicial Court to demand that the City of St. Louis take action to avoid a looming housing crisis on July 7.

Editorial /CommEntary

Vote no on Amendment 3 on Nov. 3

The sun always rises in east and sets in the west; this is true at all times and in all places. There is an absolute political truth that has the same degree of metaphysical certainty. If you are Black and live in America, any proposition proposed by right-wing Republicans is detrimental to the interest of the Black community. Period. Full stop.

You don’t have to know anything else about it, just that it’s their idea. That’s enough to guarantee you need to be against it. Because, just as you’re certain, without looking, that the sun rises in east, you can be equally certain that it’s a bad idea for you.

Amendment 3 to the Missouri Constitution on the November 3 ballot falls into this category. It was proposed by right-wing Missouri Republicans – to overturn a citizen ballot initiative passed with overwhelming statewide approval – and that means we need to vote against it. But The St. Louis American believes that we have a responsibility to educate and inform our readers on important issues. That being said, the fact that Amendment 3 is a bad idea, proposed by even worse people, while true, is insufficient for voters who are the informed readers of The American. So, what is Amendment 3 trying to do?

Amendment 3 is a proposal sponsored by Missouri’s right-wing Republican Party to overturn the constitutional election reform amendment that Missouri voters passed by a 2 to 1 margin in November 2018. That margin means that even many people who voted Republican – who voted into office the people pushing this amendment and agendas like it – voted to pass the reforms that Amendment 3 would undo. The November 2018 initiative passed overwhelmingly with 1.4 million votes, earning support from Independents, Democrats, and Republicans across the state. Amazingly, it received the majority vote in every state Senate district.

The November 2018 initiative, popularly known as Clean Missouri, was a lobbying, campaign finance and redistricting initiative that was designed to provide major reform and oversight

to Missouri politics. The most important element of the initiative was redistricting reform. It changed the process for how Missouri legislative districts are to be redrawn after every census. It created a less partisan process, using more objective criteria that reduces the ability of right-wing Republicans to gerrymander the legislature to their advantage.

Among other changes, Amendment 3 on the November 3 ballot would eliminate the requirement that state legislative maps be drawn based on total population, meaning that 1.5 million Missourians — almost all of them children — would be uncounted and unrepresented. It also would undo the new requirement that voting districts be drawn by an independent state demographer, rather than Republican Party insiders. In addition, Missouri citizens could not challenge gerrymandering in federal court, as did the citizens of Wisconsin, Pennsylvania and North Carolina. We need to come together to protect everyone’s right to vote, especially those who have long been sidelined by a racist, corrupt system that suppresses voting rights and prevents a truly representative government.

“Amendment 3 is a dangerous new scheme that would eliminate the independence and transparency added to the state constitution by voters, give state political parties new powers to rig maps, and take away our rights to challenge unfair maps in court,” business leader and policy advocate Maxine Clark argued here in a letter to the editor.

“Worse still, Amendment 3 is not what it appears to be. In fact, while the plan includes minor campaign finance reforms so that it could be promoted as a ‘reform’ bill, the amendment would replace the voter-approved reforms with some of the worst gerrymandering policies in the country. These tactics are utterly deceitful and dishonest.”

This is why Republicans are pushing Amendment 3. It’s their attempt to overturn the will of Missouri voters so they can reclaim their partisan advantage and continue to push their repressive agenda. The American strongly recommends a vote of NO ON AMENDMENT 3

Jerome Morris lights a $1M candle for Black education

By Mike Jones Of The St.

Louis American

A good general operating principle is when someone you don’t know offers you something you didn’t ask for and they don’t use, your safest answer is, “Thank you, but no thanks.” It’s particularly important to observe this principle if you’re Black in America and the people making the offer are white and have generally been in active opposition to just about everything you think is important for your well-being. Nothing is more illustrative of this than the discussion around education reform and the role of charter schools and choice. Charters and/or choice are two things that white education reformers have advocated for Black children that the Black community never asked for, but white people continue to insist is the answer to the educational success of Black children. However, these same white people are not advocating charters and choice as a way to improve educational outcomes for any white children. Over the last two decades, educational reform has been a debate among white people about how Black children should be educated. And it’s been a discussion that not only hasn’t had a seat at the table for Black adults, Black adults (that is, the parents of Black children) weren’t even extended an invitation to be in the room.

I am not a defender of the current American educational system for any children and especially not for Black children. The kindest thing you can say about the current model is it’s functionally obsolete and 100 years out of date; think rotary telephone or a computer that uses floppy disks. And nobody needs a better educational delivery system than Black children. But that system, its pedagogy and curriculum must speak to their axiology.

A lawyer takes three things into court: the facts, the law

and a theory of the case. While the facts and the law are important and necessary, they are insufficient without a theory of the case. Why is a theory of the case so important? Leonardo Da Vinci probably summed it up best: “He who loves practice without theory is like a sailor who boards ship without a rudder or a compass and never knows where he may cast.”

This is so very true in politics and public policy. The set of normative assumptions, the theory of the case, that creates and guides policy determines what the policy becomes and who the policy benefits or harms. The lack of a rational Black political theory that frames and articulates the reality of Black Americans and provides a vision and direction for a collective way forward is the root cause of our political underperformance. This is never been truer than the policy discussions around urban education and Black children, but there may be the beginning of a light at the end of this dark tunnel. That light is the announcement that Jerome Morris, UMSL’s E. Desmond Lee Endowed Professor of Urban Education, received the prestigious $1 million Lyle M. Spencer Research Award. Morris has spent the last 20 years studying the impact of educational reform on Black children. This award supports a multi-year research project, “Countering the Unintended Consequences of School Reforms: Communally Bonded Schools, Reconnecting Black Students, Strengthening Communities and Improving Educational Outcomes.”

Morris’ concept of a communally bonded school model speaks to the issue of Black axiology and builds off the

Black voters are top targets of voter suppression

By Ben Jealous For The St. Louis

American

Black voters have a powerful role to play in this year’s elections. That’s why we are being targeted by disinformation campaigns that are meant to discourage and suppress our turnout. We can’t let them succeed.

Black voters are still targeted by old-school voter suppression strategies like restricting registration, closing polling stations, and limiting early voting. On top of all that, we are now top targets in “information warfare” campaigns designed to drive down Black turnout by any means possible.

Robert Mueller’s investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 election reported that no group of Americans was targeted by Russian intelligence more than African Americans. That same year, Trump campaign officials admitted to running a “major” voter suppression effort to depress the Black vote. Republican strategists and far-right activists studied those tactics and are using them now – including fake accounts on social media pretending to be Black people – “digital blackface.”

In August, right-wing political smear agents sent robocalls to Black voters in Detroit spreading false information about voting by mail. There is absolutely no truth to claims that voting by mail would allow credit card companies or police to get access to personal information. Why spread these lies in Michigan? Because every vote counts. In 2016, 90,000 people who went to the polls decided not to vote in the presidential election – more than Trump’s margin of victory

in the state.

The goal of such campaigns to depress the Black vote is to rob us of our power to make the difference in this year’s elections. The forces behind these efforts will do anything to keep President Donald Trump and his enablers in power.

At the same time, Trump and the GOP have embraced promoters of the dangerous “QAnon” conspiracy theory that is spreading online, because they hope to turn this formerly fringe group into Trump voters this fall. QAnon backers claim that Trump is going to make mass arrests to destroy a cabal of Satanic pedophiles, along with a wild array of other conspiracies. QAnon conspiracies have already motivated people to commit violence. Yet Trump praised a Republican congressional candidate who promoted QAnon and published racist videos online.

historical relationship between the school as an institution and the larger Black community. I would strongly recommend his book, “Troubling the Waters: Fulfilling the Promise of Quality Public Schooling for Black Children.” Building upon the work of Black scholars, from W.E.B. DuBois to Derrick Bell, his work is focused upon a data-driven, fact-based Black theory of educational change. As he explains in the introduction, “Black peoples’ quest for quality schooling is not limited to the integration paradigm but can be placed within a complex ideological understanding of Black political thought.”

A truly impressive element of this project is the team Morris has assembled to assist him: Superintendents Kelvin Adams of St. Louis Public Schools, Art McCoy of the Jennings School District and Joseph Davis of the FergusonFlorissant School District, along with retired UMSL anthropology and education professor Jackie Lewis-Harris.

I’m particularly enthused by Lewis-Harris’ participation because she’s an anthropologist. One of the acute failings in American public policy is the abject ignorance of policy makers in understanding the totality of what constitutes the human condition. This team has the intellectual bandwidth, integrity and commitment to Black children to lead a project of this magnitude and importance. They are also renewing an important tradition in Black America: serious Black thinkers and scholars doing the heavy intellectual work to understand, explain and inform the Black community on the Black condition in America. To light a candle, so we don’t have to curse the darkness.

Mike Jones, who serves on The St. Louis American editorial board, was a member the Missouri State Board of Education from March 2011 to January 2020.

Racist attacks are also being aimed at U.S. Senator Kamala Harris, who made history by becoming Joe Biden’s running mate. Harris is a graduate of Howard University and a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha, two of the Black community’s most prominent institutions. But almost immediately, the “information warriors” of the far right started spreading lies about her not being Black – attacking her identity as the daughter of Jamaican and Indian immigrants—and spreading a new version of the birtherism they used against Barack Obama, falsely claiming that she is not eligible to be vice president. The attacks on Harris are a shameless effort to suppress the excitement that so many Black Americans – especially Black women – have about her candidacy. As one report about such efforts recognized, “Black women don’t just go vote, they make sure they get others to vote.” That’s why they are major targets.

Letters to the editor

Vote no on Amendment 3

Clean Missouri, the landmark constitutional amendment that passed in 2018 to end gerrymandering and unfair district maps in Missouri, is under attack.

Politicians and lobbyists are mounting a campaign to pass Amendment 3, a bill that would eliminate current requirements that state legislative maps be drawn based on the total Missouri population and by an independent state demographer. Amendment 3 is a dangerous new scheme that would eliminate the independence and transparency added to the state constitution by voters, give state political parties new powers to rig maps, and take away our rights to challenge unfair maps in court. Worse still, Amendment 3 is not what it appears to be. In fact, while the plan includes minor campaign finance reforms so that it could be promoted as a “reform” bill, the amendment would replace the voter-approved reforms with some of the worst gerrymandering policies in the country. These tactics are utterly deceitful and dishonest, and it’s time voters like me know the truth.

I will be voting no on Amendment 3 this November, and I’m urging my fellow Missourians to do the same.

Maxine Clark St. Louis

Women’s Voices congratulate Starsky Wilson

On behalf of the 500-plus members of Women’s Voices Raised for Social Justice, we want to congratulate the Reverend Dr. Starsky Wilson on his appointment to head the Children’s Defense Fund.

This news is a loss to St. Louis, but a gain for children across America. The Reverend Wilson provided courageous leadership as a co-chair of the Ferguson Commission in the sad months following the death of Michael Brown. He helped focus anger and pain to birth a plan to move St. Louis forward as a community in which a child’s Zip code does not determine their future.

The Reverend Wilson was also instrumental in the growth of Women’s Voices. In 2014 the Deaconess Foundation granted Women’s Voices a $5,000 seed grant to begin the Lock It for Love program. Through this program we have educated adults about the importance of safely storing firearms and have distributed more than 5,000 gun locks in the region, potentially

We are less than two months from an election in which the gains of the Civil Rights Movement and the future of our freedom are on the line. Political, religious, and community leaders need to sound the alarm. Black Americans need to know that when we are engaging with friends on Facebook or debating politics on Twitter, we are also being targeted by dishonest, manipulative political operatives who want to make us feel hopeless or disgusted by politics so we won’t vote. We cannot let ourselves get played. We need to get good information about where and how to vote from our state election officials or trusted resources. Make a plan to vote and do it as soon as possible. Black people have overcome efforts to stop us from voting for more than 150 years since the Civil War. We won’t stop now. For reliable information on voting, visit https:// www.vote411.org/ (League of Women Voters) or https://866ourvote.org/ state/ (Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights under Law). Ben Jealous serves as president of People For the American Way and People For the American Way Foundation.

and

saving the lives of many children. In 2015 his church hosted “Remember, Reflect, Respond,” a vigil against gun violence And, during the past two years, we have held numerous educational programs at the state-of the-art Deaconess Center for Child Well Being. Women’s Voices Raised for Social Justice is deeply grateful for your contributions to the St. Louis community, Reverend Wilson. Please know that your spirit and presence live on in our continued efforts to build a community that values the lives of all children. Our work will be evidence of our gratitude for your leadership. Ruth Ehrisman St. Louis

Guest Columnist Mike Jones

Guest Columnist Ben Jealous

Jordon Ryan wins black journalists’ scholarship

Jordon Ryan, a 2020 John Burroughs School graduate, recently won a $750 scholarship from the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists (GSLABJ). Ryan, who is attending Grinnell College in Iowa, submitted an article about the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on his senior year of high school. His entry was part of GSLABJ’s Insight into a Pandemic, an outreach program to high schoolers created after the organization cancelled its Minority Journalism Workshop because of the pandemic. Ryan participated in the workshop held at Webster University in 2019. For more information, go to www.gslabj.org.

Drive-through meal service resumes at STL County Library

St. Louis County Library and Operation Food Search will provide drive-thru meals for children from 10 a.m. to noon at 10 SLCL branches starting Monday, September 14. Participating branches will provide two shelf-stable breakfasts and two lunches Monday, Wednesday and Friday. Meals will be available free of charge for children ages 18 and under. Meals will be distributed in the branch parking lots. The branches serving meals are:

•Bridgeton Trails Branch, 3455 McKelvey Rd. Bridgeton • Cliff Cave Branch, 5430 Telegraph Rd., St. Louis • Florissant Valley Branch, 195 New Florissant Rd.,

Florissant

• Indian Trails Branch, 8400 Delport Dr., St. Louis

• Jamestown Bluffs Branch, 4153 N. Highway 67

Florissant

• Lewis & Clark Branch, 9909 Lewis-Clark Blvd. St.

Louis

• Natural Bridge Branch, 7606 Natural Bridge Rd. St.

Louis

• Prairie Commons Branch, 915 Utz Ln. Hazelwood

• Rock Road Branch, 10267 St. Charles Rock Rd. St. Ann

• Weber Road Branch, 4444 Weber Rd. St. Louis For more information, visit www.slcl.org/drive-thrumeals.

A re-alignment in St. Louis

By Jamala Rogers For The St. Louis American

The August 4 election results were not just a matter of who won and who lost. An organized community is starting to see the fruits of its labor, from the streets to the ballot box. Being intentional and tangible has helped to put forth a vision of what we want the region to be. This informs a community agenda of change. From here, it becomes easier to put your support behind candidates and ballot issues that line up with our agenda and community values.

A broad network of groups – some ad hoc, others in coalition with one another – are way past the sick and tired point. We are studying the systems of oppressions along with the laws and policies that prop them up. We are honing our organizing skills to get more victories for our families and our communities.

converged on St. Louis City Hall last fall, armed with signed petitions, to fire City Counselor Julian Bush for his complicity with the frontal assaults on Gardner. Recently Bush, a crony of Mayor Krewson, announced his retirement, citing the desire to travel. We need to send a bunch more just like him, whose corporate interests are in opposition to the majority of people, on permanent vacations.

Voters sent a message on August 4 that racism, sexism and cronyism will not be tolerated. Backward thinking and protecting the status quo are unacceptable. Communities are refusing to take the brunt of society’s political and economic burdens while a few enjoy all of the benefits. The relentless and malicious attacks on two citywide AfricanAmerican, female officeholders were met with overwhelming support by voters. St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura O. Jones and Circuit Attorney Kimberly Gardner easily won their re-elections, one of several reasons the state legislature and governor may have difficulty passing a law that strips Gardner of her power to prosecute homicide cases.

The Missouri Association of Prosecuting Attorneys is opposing the power grab. This makes the group an unlikely ally of the Black Lives Matter forces that swept Gardner into office in 2016 and who have been blocking attacks against her ever since then. The alignment may be a temporary one but others will be more lasting.

The Community Justice Coalition

Missouri voters passed the Clean Missouri Amendment by almost a 2-to-1 margin in 2018. This year, the Republicandominated Missouri Legislature is doing everything they can to overturn the will of the people. It has put Amendment 3 on the November 3 ballot to rig the process so lobbyists can make secret deals and gerrymander districts. For trying to avoid accountability and disrespecting the vote of the people, Amendment 3 most go down. It must go down big time.

The orange man in the White House is sharpening our understanding that, regardless of whether you live, in the city, suburbia or in rural towns, we have more in common than not, and we are refusing to be divided by the racist dog whistles of the Right. Further, Trump has attacked or alienated so many sectors that we should be united in building the biggest anti-Trump hammer ever. People of color, women, veterans and active military personnel, LGBTQAI, workers, unions and youth all have a vested destiny in the November 3 election. Who is left are the small segment of people who are longing for the days when white men were in control. These folks are impeding progress for the majority and for the country.

The re-alignment of forces will be seen and felt on all levels. We have some house cleaning to do in the Democratic Party, in our organizations, in our places of worship and other institutions. When we see 2020 in our rear-view mirrors, we must be headed into a period of true human enlightenment. The light must blind out the darkness that has engulfed us this year. The choices are clear.

Photo courtesy of Jamala Rogers

Jamala Rogers

Cockrell

Continued from A1

are definitely not those clichés.”

One of the catchphrases in education today is to “teach the whole child.” Physical education teachers educate a critical aspect of children: their bodies. The job is all about getting children moving and teaching them about the health benefits of physical activity.

“It’s important that kids be athletic and fit,” Cockrell said. “The child obesity rate is out of the roof. The only way we can impact that in schools is by PE teachers making kids get active and stay active and have fun. A lot of kids don’t like PE; they don’t like activity. You have to make it fun and familiar, almost like where they don’t even know they are being active. Then you educate them about what’s going on with their body.”

One creative way he does this – at least when teaching children who are physically present and not socially distanced – is by making up games like Toilet Tag, a variant of the age-old game of Tag.

“Toilet tag, silly as it sounds, teaches hygiene and health benefits,” Cockrell said. “Running around tagging people is good exercise for your heart. It elevates your heart rate. Then we talk about why their heart is pumping and why that’s important to you. It also teaches the importance of washing your hands after using the toilet.”

Toilet habits is very basic education, but he teaches small children. Graduation for his students happens at 5th grade. But his connection with students often extends beyond that.

Cockrell, who is known at school as “Mr. D.C.,” remem-

Graham

Continued from A1 impact on Graham’s 38-year career as a teacher and administrator in the St. Louis Public School District, she said. They also fueled her fight for equity as a teacher-union organizer, a board member for 23 years in the Ferguson-Florissant School District, and as a board trustee for St. Louis Community College for the past eight years.

As an ordained preacher, Graham’s favorite song in church is, “If I Can Help Somebody,” which she said was also one of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s favorites.

“That’s my mantra, and it means so much to me,” she said. “I’m not doing this for any show, form or fancy. As

bered one student he had frequently disciplined for behavior issues, poor sportsmanship, and bullying. The situation was serious enough that he reached out to the boy’s parents. He was surprised when he heard from those parents after the boy went on to middle school.

“Something had happened at middle school where some kids were bullying another kid, and he went to his mom and said, ‘These are my friends, but I care about this other kid who is getting bullied.’ His mom told him to reach out to a teacher, and he said, ‘Is there any

n “He realized that my disciplining him showed how much I cared about him, so he trusted me to help guide him and his friends.”

– Darrion Cockrell

way you can reach out to Mr. D.C.?’” Cockrell said.

“So, his mom reached out to me, and I couldn’t believe it, because we did not have the greatest relationship. But he realized that my disciplining him showed how much I cared about him, so he trusted me to help guide him and his friends. I was glad he showed empathy. That’s one of the words we use a lot: ‘empathy.’ So, I reached out to his principal, and his mom was extremely excited and happy that I was able to help and intervene.”

That sensitivity to connect with the whole child, starting with physical activity, was what got Cockrell recommended for the award.

“Building trusting, respectful relationships with students and families has been one of Mr. DC’s top priorities throughout his five years

my mother, Josephine Dampier, always told me, you do it from your heart.”

Graham began her career at SLPS’ Clark Elementary in 1967 as a fifth-grade teacher, just after graduating from Harris Teachers College. She became a reading specialist and even co-hosted the “Reading is Terrific Show,” a motivational reading program on the radio station KSLH.

Early in her career, she was among a group of Black teachers whom the district transferred to majority-white schools in South St. Louis as part of integration in the late 1970s. At Shepard School, she faced discrimination and found herself using the same lessons she learned as a young girl.

“I had a wonderful supervisor,” Graham said. “She said, ‘Doris, you keep doing the

of teaching at Crestwood Elementary School,” a Lindbergh Schools spokesperson said of Cockrell. “He also works tirelessly to promote a healthy community by motivating, inspiring and pushing his coworkers and students every day.”

His coworkers and the larger community participated in his Crest-Fit training program. Crest-Fit – the name mashes up “CrossFit” and “Crestwood Elementary” – is a health and fitness program that started with his students, progressed to a weekly after-school workout activity for teachers, and culminated with parental involvement. One workout, styled after The Whip dance, spread to other schools throughout the community and has more than 3,600 views on the district’s YouTube channel.

Pushing further into the community, Cockrell started the Dads’ Club Open Gym, a weekly event for local fathers to play basketball in the evening. He is also an active member of Crestwood’s diversity committee and the Lindbergh district’s strategic planning team.

“He has this ability to bring a smile to your face and connect with people,” Lindbergh Superintendent Tony Lake said when Cockrell was announced as district Teacher of the Year, sending him to the regional competition, “and he does amazing things in that building and with his kids.”

Cockrell will serve as Missouri’s representative in the National Teacher of the Year program. He will be honored during a virtual recognition event on Thursday, October 15, along with the other six finalists, semifinalists and regional teachers of the year

good job that you’re doing and win over the parents.’ And I did.”

Soon, she had a waiting list to get into her class, and white parents were pleading with her to teach their children. She stayed at Shepard School for 14 years.

Graham achieved her master’s degree in elementary administration/principalship in 1970 from the University of Missouri—St. Louis, and then obtained her doctorate educational administration/ superintendency from Saint Louis University in 1979. That was also the year she became a strike leader and walked the picket line for 56 days. Graham served on the executive board of the St. Louis Teachers Union, Local 420 AFL-CIO, for more than 15 years, and she was one of the negotiators for

the 1979 strike.

“We came out with wonderful benefits,” Graham said. “And, some of those benefits, the St. Louis Public Schools teachers are living on them right to this day.”

In 1988 while teaching at Shepard School, Berkeley Mayor Ted Hoskins called her and asked her to run for the Ferguson-Florissant School Board.

“In my letter, I said I am running for this board specifically to represent children and parents that look like me, but in general for everybody,” Graham said. “And that’s what I did because the voiceless needed a voice to speak up for them.”

She stayed on the board for 23 years. Soon after, she was elected to be a member of the St. Louis Community College Board of Trustees, where she has served for eight years, and she has four more years left in her current term.

It was fitting to spend the end of her teaching career as assistant principal at Ames Visual and Performing Arts Elementary School in St. Louis, she said.

“I got a chance to do what I love to do,” said Graham, again noting that she’s a preacher. “Every time we had a program,

I’d be the emcee.”

She retired in 2005, and SLPS colleagues still share fond memories of her, said Dr. Paula D. Knight, SLPS deputy superintendent of academics.

“Dr. Graham was truly a steward of leadership to the new administrators,” Knight said. “When I was appointed as the principal of Waring ABI in 2000, Dr. Graham was one of the first administrators to embrace me as an aspiring leader. She has always been supportive and truly a loss to SLPS when she retired.”

Graham also holds a master of arts in pastoral studies from the Aquinas Institute of Theology. She is a dedicated church member at Prayer Tabernacle Baptist Church. Her husband, Jerry, and her family have been big supporters throughout her life and career, she said.

Graham has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the St. Louis Teachers Union and the Legacy Award for Community Service from the National Council of Negro Women Inc. Gateway Metropolitan Section. She also was recognized by the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority as one of its Women Making a Difference honorees. And on Saturday, October

17, Graham will receive the 2020 Lifetime Achiever Award at the St. Louis American Foundation’s Salute to Excellence in Education virtual gala. Knight said, “Dr. Graham is deserving of such a prestigious honor — congratulations!”

The foundation will foster over $1.95 million in scholarships and grants this year for area youth and educators — which aligns well with Graham’s life work and mantra.

“If you can be the vessel that God can use to help somebody go higher in life, please do it,” said Graham. “You have a mouth – open up your mouth and speak. But speak with love and encourage them. If it had not been for people in my life, I would not be where I am today.”

The 33rd Annual Salute to Excellence in Education Scholarship & Awards Virtual Gala Weekend will be celebrated online as free virtual events on Friday and Saturday, October 16 and 17 on stlamerican.com, the St. Louis American’s Facebook page and YouTube channel. For additional details on how to participate, please visit givebutter. com/SaluteEdu.

Continued from A1

everything and everyone else, so it’s a remarkable time to increase a scholarship program. The university is investing over $1 million on its new cohort of 10 entering Suggs Scholars.

“One of the most surprising aspects of this is, I won’t say it was easy, but I also would say it was not hard” to get the university’s leadership team to agree on doing it, Stroble said.

“We all came together and agreed this was meaningful and impactful and true to Webster’s values and mission, and it was not difficult to agree: ‘let’s go big and go to 10.’” Why, in an effort to increase the university’s impact on under-represented students, did it turn to this namesake scholarship in particular?

me be a more effective leader,” Stroble said.

“He is not a member of our board now, but I still consider him a mentor and advisor to me. He helped me to understand that we are living in a community with many challenges and issues, and each of us has to find a way to make it better, to follow his example of how to make it better however you can, and this is our way to make a difference.”

n “To have such large number of scholarship students will enable them to build a supportive structure among themselves. Now they will be able to create a peer mentor structure.”

– Chancellor Elizabeth (Beth) Stroble

“I first met Dr. Suggs when I started here in 2009, when he was a member of our Board of Trustees. I soon learned to tap into his wisdom, expertise and knowledge of the area to help

Kerr

Continued from A1

of Directors at People’s selected as her successor to lead the clinic and People’s Family of Corporations Dwayne Butler, her only child.

“My mother was a nurse, with the heart of a nurse in everything she did, and she lived a life of serving,” Butler said. “She spent her life fighting to serve the health needs of the underserved community with the dignity and respect that all lives deserve. She became a CEO and great community activist, but she never described herself as anything other than a nurse. Her commitment and resolve to serve her community were beyond special.”

Betty Jean Kerr was born on April 22, 1938 in Yulee, Florida to Ethel Lee and Alexander Calhoun. She earned an advanced degree from St. Louis University and a degree from the Brewster Duval School of Nursing in Jacksonville, Florida. Kerr helped grow the People’s free clinic into People’s Health Centers, with multiple locations offering comprehensive health services.

The 10 new Suggs Scholars join a cohort of five who are still on campus. Those students and their majors are Jovan McBride (Management), Jalen McBride (Management Information Systems), Henok Moges (Exercise Science), Brennae Jackson (Education) and Tekoa Bell (Political Science). The current and incoming Suggs Scholars already have been introduced to one another in an online meeting.

Webster University Chancellor Elizabeth (Beth) Stroble with 2019 Suggs Scholars Brennae Jackson and Tekoa Bell. The university have now upgraded Suggs Scholarships from two to 10 per year.

“To have such large number of scholarship students will enable them to build a supportive structure among themselves,” Stroble said. “Now they will be able to create a peer mentor structure.”

U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay said his friend of more than 40 years was one of the most remarkable women he has ever known, who perfected the delivery of quality healthcare to a community with major healthcare disparities and who taught him a great deal.

“She was a public health pioneer, a visionary community leader, and an endless source of compassion and healing to thousands of St. Louis families, many of whom would have never received medical care without her,” Clay said.

“My father and I were proud to help bring federal resources to Betty that allowed her to expand People’s Health Centers from a storefront clinic to one of our nation’s preeminent and exceptional Federally Qualified Health Centers.”

Dr. Jacqueline Harvey, a pediatrician and chief medical officer at People’s, said she interviewed with Betty Jean Kerr on her living room couch in the spring of 1989.

“It didn’t take long to figure out that her passion for the community and my passion for children would be a great fit,” Harvey said.

‘Thirty-one years later, mostly under her mentorship, it’s been an incredible experience. She was an awesome lady.”

“When I think about Ms.

Two Suggs Scholars –Olivia Perez and Joshua Tyler – already have graduated from Webster.

“The Donald M. Suggs Scholarship meant the world to me because I could pursue a college degree without

Kerr, ‘trailblazer, visionary, smart, compassionate, and mentor’ come to mind,” said Vickie Wade, executive vice president of Clinical Services for Betty Jean Kerr People’s Health Centers.

“She pushed me to reach my full potential as a nurse and be a voice for our community. She helped shape my educational path as a nurse leader and a provider. Ms. Kerr shared many memorable moments in my life, providing guidance and support. Thirtysix years later, I’m still doing the community work that was the epitome of her passion.”

Webster University Chancellor Elizabeth (Beth) Stroble with 2018 Suggs Scholars Jalen McBride and Henok Moges. The university have now upgraded Suggs Scholarships from two to 10 per year.

constantly worrying about an extreme financial burden,” said Tyler, a 2014 Suggs Scholar. “I feel more confident about my dream to work in the video/film production field.” Tyler also added a credit of video apprentice at The St. Louis American while complet-

“Betty Jean Kerr would often say the People’s Health Centers team must be a catalyst for the community we serve,” said Clara Scott, director of Social Services at PHC. “They need us to be their voice and advocates.”

n “My mother was a nurse, with the heart of a nurse in everything she did, and she lived a life of serving.”

– Dwayne Butler, on Betty Jean Kerr

Kerr was a founding member of the St. Louis Integrated Health Network, Gateway Classic Walk of Fame inductee, and a charter member of the St. Louis Metropolitan Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta.

St. Louis Treasurer Tishaura O. Jones had the opportunity to work with Kerr.

People’s Executive Vice President Mark Sanford was with Kerr from the days at the storefront clinic until the day she retired.

“She always believed in putting the patients first,” Sanford told Fox2 News.

He said Kerr worked with Civic Progress to get them to believe in her vision of community health, and she was able to raise $4.6 million to build a new headquarters and facility at 5701 Delmar.

“Soror Kerr was my mentor, both professionally and personally,” Jones said.

ing his degree.

“Josh saw Dr. Suggs as someone who guided and advised his next steps, and Josh even adopted into his lifestyle something that I, too, have heard Dr. Suggs say: ‘but for,’” Strobe said. “‘But for teachers, but for

“I had the honor and privilege of working for her for almost 12 years, starting as an analyst and working my way up to the executive staff. She was an integral part of my growth, as a mother and as a leader.” Kerr was honored as a Lifetime Achiever for Excellence in Health Care in 2004 by the St. Louis American Foundation.

“Betty Jean Kerr belongs to the pantheon of visionary African-American leaders in St. Louis who have made lasting and significant contributions to a better quality of life for thousands in the Black community,” said Donald M. Suggs, president of the St. Louis American Foundation and publisher and executive editor of The St. Louis American

“She was responsible for providing greater access to the healthcare needs of generations

donors, but for parents, but for family,’ none of us would live the lives we live. We don’t do it alone. Josh understood that. Even as an undergrad, he gave back to others. I hope our current and new Suggs Scholars also pay it forward, give back, and open doors for others.”

of underserved Black families. Our community owes a huge debt of gratitude for her dedicated, steadfast service. A beloved leader, she was able to exceed expectations of a modest free clinic and foster the huge, successful healthcare complex that serves as a fitting legacy for her productive, extraordinary life.” Kerr is survived by her son, Dwayne; stepchildren, Henry and Glenn; several cousins; nieces and nephews. In accordance with her wishes, a private burial will take place for Ms. Kerr at her birthplace of Yulee, Florida. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations to the Betty Jean Kerr Scholarship Foundation, 5701 Delmar Blvd, St. Louis, MO 63112, or click the link at the top of phcenters.org.

Rebecca Rivas leaving American for news non-profit

She will continue to collaborate on investigative pieces for States

years,

criminal

Missouri

at

Salute to Excellence in Education Scholarship & Awards

Newsroom outlet

the

and a former Kansas City Star state government reporter. “We want our work to help those papers that can’t afford to send a reporter to the capitol.”

That’s why the outlet’s articles will be free for newspapers to reprint with attribution, he said. Also joining the team is Rudi Keller, news editor at the Columbia Tribune, who will be covering the state budget and energy.

Another reporter will also be announced soon.

Rebecca Rivas

“The St. Louis American and its community have become family to me,” Rivas said. “Under Dr. Donald Suggs’ leadership, the newspaper has long driven the conversation around systemic racism in St. Louis, and it’s been incredible to be part of that for the past decade. This new position will allow me to continue investigating racial equity and inclusion on a statewide level — work I believe will serve this community as well.”

Publisher and Executive

Editor Donald M. Suggs said that Rivas will be missed.

“If she had only produced all of our award-winning Salute to Excellence videos or only done breaking investigative news reporting, Rebecca would be challenging to replace. In fact, she has done both as well as anyone in the state,” Suggs said.

n “Everyone at The St. Louis American appreciates Rebecca’s substantial contributions to our editorial team, which have helped affirm the value and trust of The American.”

– Donald M. Suggs

“Everyone at The St. Louis American appreciates her substantial contributions to our editorial team, which have helped affirm the value and trust of The American in the St. Louis community and beyond. Although we will miss her, we thank her for her dedication and hard work over more than a decade and wish her all the best and look forward to working with her in her important new position.”

The American has announced a search for a news reporter and expects to make an announcement soon.

Urban League partners with Panera Bread

Five-year commitment includes food pantry, workforce development, community outreach

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis is going into business with Panera Bread, building on and sharing their respective strengths, among them workforce development, community outreach – and food.

As part of the partnership, the Urban League’s new Regional Headquarters and Community Empowerment Center at 1408 North Kingshighway Blvd. in North St. Louis will include Panera Pantry. Panera Pantry will provide food items, fresh produce, and bread from bakery-cafes available to those who need it.

Panera Bread will collaborate with the Urban League’s workforce development division to provide job announcements, assistance with resume writing, and career counseling. Panera Bread employees also will engage in community outreach initiatives across the St. Louis region alongside Urban League staff.

The more formal five-year partnership evolved from an existing rela-

tionship that developed during the Urban League’s massive, historic pandemic relief effort. As the Urban League provided emergency food, household necessities, gloves, masks, and school supplies to more than 60,000 families during its 22-week COVID-19 emergency relief operation, Panera Bread fed more than 300 volunteers each week.

The Urban League also has partnered with Panera Bread to provide nutritious meals to senior citizens and homebound individuals.

“The Urban League is excited to launch this groundbreaking community service partnership with our longtime partners Panera Bread,” said Michael McMillan, president and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis.

“We are fortunate to undertake this venture with Panera, a partner that shares our values, is committed to our mission and has been a trusted, reliable partner for the Urban League during these difficult times brought about by the pandemic.”

See URBAN LEAGUE, A10

‘Wellston needs investment, not demolition’

By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American

The Wellston Tenant Association just wanted justice for their community.

“We remember what Wellston was like in days gone by,” Flora Mix, the association’s president said on September 4. “It was a beautiful, thriving community with good housing and lots of businesses. We know what Wellston can be again. Wellston needs investment, not demolition.”

In August 2018, tenants learned that the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) was planning on demolishing approximately 200 public housing structures in Wellston. It would have displaced about 530 people or 174 families — about one-fourth of Wellston’s residents. Wellston is a historic Black community located just outside the limits of the City of St. Louis. But the tenants and Wellston community overall came together to fight for their homes. And they won, after employing an expansive group of elected officials and organizations to advocate locally and in Washington, D.C. on their behalf. On September 4, those leaders gathered to announce a $30-million redevelopment agreement, which includes a provision to create See WELLSTON, A10

U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay congratulated members of the Wellston Tenant Association on September 4 after working with them and other elected officials to stop the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development from demolishing approximately 200 public housing structures in Wellston.

United Way of Greater St. Louis’ campaign is underway

Funds will support free 2-1-1 helpline as well as 167 Safety Net agencies

American staff

The United Way of Greater St. Louis’ 2020 community fundraising campaign, which supports programs and organizations across the region that help local people live their best possible lives, is underway. This year’s campaign theme is “We are all United.”

The campaign spokespersons are David Steward, founder and chairman of World Wide Technology, Kathy Osborn, president and CEO of the Regional Business Council, Penny Pennington, managing partner of Edward Jones, and Warner Baxter, chairman, president and CEO of Ameren Corporation.

“Our region is facing incredible challenges stemming from the COVID-19 crisis and nationwide calls for racial equity,” Steward said. “We all want to see the communities where we live, work and raise our children thrive.”

United Way’s annual campaign runs in the fall from September through mid-November. More than 1,000 local companies and hundreds of thousands of individuals are expected to contribute to the campaign; early dollars raised are in line with those raised prior to the start of last year’s campaign.

“The strength of our community’s safety net is more important than ever,” Osborn said. “It ensures that someone is there to help our neighbors, whether with everyday basic needs or in times of crisis.”

From mid-March through August, United Way’s 2-1-1 helpline has received over 77,000 requests for help, an increase of 57% over 2019. Top requests include housing, health-

See UNITED WAY, A10

Day’ is September 19

Development Week runs September 13-19

Todd Gilyard

Panera Bread leaders presented Michael McMillan, president and CEO of the Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis, with a

$500,000 check on September 8 when announcing a five-year partnership between the company and the agency. Left to right:

Ronald Ornelas, senior vice president, chief procurement officer; McMillian; Pam Morris-Thornton, vice president, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion; Sara Burnett, vice president, Food Values, Sustainability and Public Affairs; and John Meister, senior vice president, chief information officer.

Photo by Steve Engelhardt

David Steward

care, mental health support and food resources.

“The needs of our community and neighbors will continue to evolve, and nonprofits will continue to face increased demand for their services,” Baxter said. “In fact, 75% of United Way’s surveyed partner agencies reported an increased demand for help, and 90% reported receiving requests for help from new clients.”

With the widespread increase in demand for services, United Way is calling on community members for their support.

“The need has rarely been more visible, and our efforts to rally the community behind United Way are more important than ever,” said Michelle Tucker, president and CEO of United Way of Greater St. Louis. “While in the past United Way and the community have rallied around a specific dollar goal, this year we’re rallying around the connectedness of each other through our ‘We are all United’ theme.”

The dollars raised through United Way will support programs like United Way’s free 2-1-1 helpline as well as 167 Safety Net agencies. These programs and agencies help people through five impact areas: provide food and shelter, establish financial stability, foster learning, improve health and strengthen communities. View the list of Safety Net agencies at https://helpingpeople.org/funding.

For more information, call 314-421-0700. To pledge online, visit WeAreAllUnited. org.

Wellston

Continued from A9

a city-run nonprofit that will own all the renovated units in 30 years.

Melanie Marie Randels, co-founder of the Canna Education Collective

Trust awards $500K to Normandy and University City schools

American staff

The Opportunity Trust awarded $500,000 to Normandy Schools Collaborative and the School District of University City to support their plans to transform teaching and learning outcome.

Canna Collective to open in December in Dellwood

The Canna Education Collective Education Center will open in December in Northland Hills Plaza in the City of Dellwood, near the old Elaine Steven Beauty College.

A Black-owned collective, the Canna Education Collective aims to remove the marginalization and exclusion of African Americans in the cannabis industry and to diversify the market.

“There is a true medicinal side to this plant, and now a true business side that, if we don’t position ourselves now within the industry, we are going to miss out on,” Melanie Marie Randels, co-founder of the Canna Education Collective, told St. Louis Public Radio.

The grow headquarters will serve as a resource center in the heart of North St. Louis

MBE

Continued from A9

“Every citizen’s dedication to supporting minority-owned

“It is a remarkable step forward for the good people in Wellston and could not have been achieved without close, bipartisan cooperation to fight to save affordable housing,” said U.S. Rep. Wm. Lacy Clay (D-St. Louis), who worked

businesses can make a resounding difference in urban and rural communities,” said St. Louis MBDA Business Center Project Director Todd Gilyard. “Supporting these firms is good business and strengthens the

alongside U.S. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) on the project.

Mix said all the public housing tenants in Wellston were grateful to these elected officials — “most especially our own Mayor Nate Griffin” — for hearing them and respond-

County and teach members how to harvest and cultivate a legal and self-sustaining business within the cannabis industry. These collective efforts will have the potential to create job opportunities by way of production, transportation, and distribution of medicinal cannabis.

For more information, contact Jasmine Osby at TheEliteRoute@gmail.com or 314-480-0714.

overall health of our nation’s economy.”

St. Louis MBDA Business Center is a federal grant program funded by the U.S. Department of Commerce, Minority Business

ing to their demand for justice.

One of the most important aspects about the redevelopment plan is that the city will eventually own the housing, Griffin said.

“I’ve been working towards taking over ownership since I came into office,” he said.

HUD’s decision to demolish the housing was completely unexpected. In fact, Griffin and other city officials had been negotiating with the federal agency for a year to regain local control of the Wellston Housing Authority, which consists of some 200 public housing structures scattered throughout the city. The city lost control in 1996, when the federal agency took possession and governance of the housing authority due to a breach of contract.

On April 19, 2018, Daniel Sherrod made an impassioned speech at his last board meeting serving as chair of the Wellston Housing Authority Board of Commissioners, according to the meeting minutes. He said that Wellston had “earned its rightful place” to regain control.

“You all should be happy that I am leaving because that means that you are within six months of transitioning back to local control,” said Sherrod, who is an employee of the

Urban League

Continued from A9

The Panera Pantry will be a critical anchor in an iconic

Sharonica HardinBartley

Since 2018, the Opportunity Trust has provided the School District of University City with approximately a half-million dollars in grant funds and connection to resources in support of its Learning Reimagined plan.

“Their support is equipping our district with the resources and finances necessary to make dramatic and urgent improvements that will directly benefit the most vulnerable young people in our community,” said Superintendent Dr. Sharonica Hardin-Bartley.

The Opportunity Trust began its work with the Normandy Schools Collaborative in 2019 after being contacted by the district’s Board President Sara Foster. It funded an analysis of performance data, instructional quality, and stakeholder feedback for Normandy Schools Collaborative to help identify the root causes of the district’s low performance. The district used this data to inform its 2025 Strategic Plan.

The Opportunity Trust, according to its Founder and CEO Eric Scroggins, builds and evolves a research-backed plan for the transformation of public education systems and supports districts and schools to change how they operate so that more children are prepared for the jobs of the future. For more information, visit www.theopportunitytrust.org.

Development Agency that provides business development services to help minority business enterprises create jobs, build scale and capacity, increase revenues, and expand into new markets.

HUD St. Louis Field Office.

At the May 2018 meeting, the commissioners announced that the plan to transition control in September was still underway. However, in August the commissioners announced that the housing authority was struggling and the decision was made to dissolve it, rather than transfer operation back to the city. This decision meant demolishing all of the properties.

n “It will have a domino effect to spur other development projects if we get this done right.”

– Wellston Mayor Nate Griffin

A significant turning point came in July 2019, when newly elected St. Louis County Executive Dr. Sam Page refused to sign off on the Trump Administration’s plan to demolish the structures.

The demolition plan had the backing of the previous county executive Steve Stenger, who had resigned and pled guilty to federal corruption charges.

“This redevelopment agreement shows what happens

building that was one of the last freestanding Sears and Roebuck department stores in the country and for years was owned by local AfricanAmerican businessmen Michael and Steve Roberts. The

To learn more about Buy MBE Day 2020 national initiative and how to participate, visit www.MBDA.gov/ BuyMBEDay.

when we work hard and when we work together,” Page said. At the September 4 press conference, Griffin said he had been looking for a developer that wanted to be a true partner with the city and who had experience in affordable housing projects. He believes they found that in BGC Advantage. It has been a long time since Wellston had new development, Griffin said.

“It will have a domino effect to spur other development projects if we get this done right,” he said.

That’s why it’s also important that BGC has pre-development capital, which helps ensure that the project won’t stall. A big emphasis will also be on minority inclusion and reaching out to minority-owned and women-owned enterprises to help with construction.

“Every person deserves a good home,” Mix said. “No one should be forced to live in terrible conditions. No one should be forced to leave a community they love. St. Louis needs more affordable housing, not less. We wanted justice for Black communities. Too many times in history, our communities were destroyed. We could not let that happen again. Not in Wellston.”

205,000 square-foot building is currently being renovated and will offer the majority of the Urban League’s critical human service programs in one central location. The move to the new headquarters will provide greater access for the more than 110,000 clients served annually.

“The entire Panera Bread team is deeply committed to caring for all people in the St. Louis community, especially those struggling to put food on the table during these unprecedented times,” said Niren Chaudhary, CEO of Panera Bread.

“The partnership is an expression of our shared values and ongoing commitment to the families and communities we are honored to serve.” To further drive this community engagement effort, Panera’s VP of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Pamela Morris-Thornton will join the Urban League’s board this fall. For more information, visit www.ulstl.com.

Photo by Corinne Ruff / St. Louis Public Radio

Yinka Faleti campaigns on voter inclusion, rather than Ashcroft’s voter suppression

A statewide election when the state’s incumbent secretary of state is on the ballot is always a little strange, given that the secretary of state for a state (as opposed to the federal cabinet position) is the state’s chief election authority. So, you have an elected official overseeing an election that will determine the next step in his political career: four more years in office with an even stronger platform for his next career move – or a couple of months to clean out the offices and call in political debts for a new job. The November 3 general election in Missouri, like most other things in 2020, is a uniquely toxic version of this paradigm.

The incumbent, John “Jay” Ashcroft, belongs to the same Republican Party as the president, Donald Trump. Ashcroft has been silent or supportive of this divisive president. On September 5, Ashcroft joined a float parade on Table Rock Lake in the Ozarks in support of Trump, with the Trump sign aboard his ship more than twice the size of the Ashcroft sign affixed beneath it. Trump won Missouri by a half-million votes in 2016, and clearly Ashcroft believes that riding in, rather than rocking, the Trump boat will help him win the election he is duty-bound to oversee.

The awkward and toxic thing is that Trump is acting to undermine electoral democracy in the United States and in particular in Missouri, where the pandemic goaded Republican legislators to pass special voting-by-mail options for this election so that people can stay out of harm’s way yet still exercise their voting rights. To undermine this, Trump has at best dodged the issue of foreign interference in American elections and actively moved to weaken the United States Postal Service to disrupt bymail voting. Trump is on record as saying that Republicans are more likely to lose high-turnout elections. Ashcroft, who swore to protect our elections and their integrity, has not criticized Trump’s actions. Duty-bound to make sure all eligible voters

can vote and all votes will be counted, he has advised people not to use the vote-by-mail option because those votes might not be counted. As such, Ashcroft has handed a campaign platform to his challenger on November 3, Democratic nominee Yinka Faleti, a U.S. Army veteran. With good evidence, Faleti is accusing the incumbent of at least acquiescing to voter disenfranchisement rather than actively opposing it, as Ashcroft swore to do. While conceding that all Missouri voters should use either the absentee ballot option or vote in person because Ashcroft clearly cannot be trusted to count mail-in ballots, Faleti is calling for Ashcroft to count all mail-in votes posted by election day and not only those received by election day. In short, Faleti is running as a secretary of state who actually will perform the office’s most critical function: to protect elections in Missouri and their integrity. The American spoke with Faleti about the campaign.

The St. Louis American: The American endorsed you in the primary, though you ran unopposed, and now has endorsed you in the general election on November 3, when you will face the Republican incumbent, John “Jay” Ashcroft. What is new for the campaign since your primary victory?

Yinka Faleti: I’m thrilled to have had the endorsement of The St. Louis American. It is inspiring to have the support of The American, and I know many readers learned about our campaign when they read about it in your paper.

Since our victory in the primary, we have redoubled our efforts to demand safe, secure and accessible elections in Missouri. On August 18, I anchored a press conference in Jefferson City, where Democratic leaders from the Missouri State House of Representatives, including House Minority Leader Crystal Quade, state Representative Kip Kendrick and state Representative Ashley Bland-Manlove, and I joined

our voices to call for all ballots postmarked by – not just received by – election day to be counted. This was in response to continued efforts by Jay Ashcroft to sow distrust in vote-by-mail in Missouri and the systematic dismantling of the United States Postal Service by the Trump administration. We have also seen a significant increase in grassroots support for our campaign. We raised more money in this last reporting period – July 24 through August 29 – than we did in the entirety of the 90-day span of the second quarter of this year. Most of those contributions were from Missourians giving small-dollar gifts. Increasingly, Missourians are coming to understand the importance of the Secretary of State’s Office to our democracy, and they are showing their support for our campaign of voter inclusion, rather than Jay Ashcroft’s policies of voter suppression.

As we get closer to November 3, our campaign is continually outworking and outpacing our competition and showing that Missouri is ready for leadership of character and competence in the Secretary of State’s Office.

The St. Louis American:

Both Ashcroft and you ran unopposed in your respective primaries, and he got 620,822 votes whereas you got 470,955.

He got more votes on August 4 than anyone else on the ballot and almost 150,000 more votes than you did. How do you close a gap that huge?

Yinka Faleti: First, the August primary was obviously not a head-to-head match-up between Ashcroft and me. As such, these are not numbers we can compare. Comparing these votes totals within our respective party primaries is a bit like comparing apples to lemons. Historic election data tell us Republicans tend to be more enthusiastic about voting in August, while Democrats hold most of their voting energy for November.

We know that our campaign of voter inclusion and our vision for a Missouri where every eligible voter is able to cast their ballot in a safe, secure and accessible election is more attractive to Missouri voters than the last three and a half years of Ashcroft’s voter suppression tactics. No matter your political leanings, everyone wants to be represented by leaders of character and competence – two values I internalized during my years at West Point and in the U.S Army. Ashcroft has demonstrated time and again that he lacks both competence and character, and we will continue to highlight that contrast in the final stretch of this campaign.

The St. Louis American:

I want to press on the primary numbers a little more. Arguably, they reveal that the Ashcroft name is ageing well. It could be that even Republicans who defect from the party of Trump associate Ashcroft senior with a more sane era in their party. How do you overcome the name-recognition gap and what could be nostalgia among even those Republican voters who are defecting from Trump?

Yinka Faleti: I’ve actually had conversations with many Republicans over the past year. I’ve asked them about Jay Ashcroft. One thing has become abundantly clear: Jay Ashcroft does not have the regard of Republicans that his father did. Remember, he has been defeated in a race before in 2014. His defeat then demonstrated that riding coattails can take him only so far. He may have a known last name, but that is the only thing he has. That is why our campaign has outraised him in this election cycle and outraised him 7:1 in the second financial quarter of this year alone. Missourians are looking for a leader, not someone who relies on their family name to get what they want. I am proud of my background. From earning my American citizenship, to earning my appointment to West Point, to serving in the U.S. Army, to my law degree from

Washington University, to the family my wife and I have built – all have come from the type of hard work and character it takes to lead this office. We overcome the name-recognition gap by reminding voters of how Ashcroft could give a care less about their constitutional rights and how I will fight tooth and nail to protect the rights of every eligible voter in Missouri. The St. Louis American: We know elections are largely about turnout. How are you going to get out voters? In a pandemic? What is the message? What is the strategy? Who are your allies?

Yinka Faleti: Democracy demands participation. The pandemic has laid bare the leadership vacuum that exists in Missouri. The good news, though, is that it doesn’t have to be this way. We are reaching out to every group in the state, whether it’s through our digital infrastructure, paid advertising, working with the press, or –most importantly – the personal referrals of the thousands of people we have met in person, on Zoom calls and socially distanced events. We are showing them what effective and meaningful leadership looks like and helping them realize the power we all have to change our state and our nation for the better.

Yinka Faleti campaigning at a social distance. The U.S. Army veteran is the Democratic nominee for Missouri secretary of state in the general election on November 3, when he will face the Republican incumbent, John “Jay” Ashcroft.

“TakingCareofYou”

Covenant House Missouri opens renovated Wellness Center

Local family foundation gift of $75K funds expansion and

Covenant House Missouri opened its newly renovated Wellness Center on September 8, three months after a local family foundation awarded it $75,000 to expand and remodel its existing clinic.

Covenant House Missouri welcomes youth ages 16 to 24 who are runaway, trafficked, at-risk, or experiencing homelessness. More than one in three young people who come to Covenant House arrive with a mental health issue or diagnosis. These young people are still developing physically, cognitively, psychologi-

n More than one in three young people who come to Covenant House arrive with a mental health issue or diagnosis.

cally and emotionally.

“The Wellness Center has created a space of sanctuary on our campus,” says CEO, Jessica Erfling. “Thanks to the generosity of a local family foundation, young

By Sandra Jordan

Of The St. Louis American

n “It really helps to tie this facility closer to our own community, which was an objective and a guiding principle.” – Steven M. Scott, president of SLU Hospital

people living here can access quality mental, physical and emotional health services in a welcoming and loving space.”

Joe Robinson told The American in February that he came to Covenant House after being kicked out of the house, “couchsurfing for a little bit” and running “out of options of places to go.” When he came to Covenant house, Robinson told The American, he was struck by the familial atmosphere: “It makes a lot of people feel safe.” For more information, visit covenanthousemo.org/wellness-center.

By Bettina Drake For The St. Louis American

The world was shocked to learn that actor Chadwick Boseman died of colon cancer on August 28 – he was just 43 years old. It was a terrible reminder that colon cancer can strike sooner than many of us might think. But no matter your age, there are steps you can take right now to lower your risk.

By far the most important action you can take if you’re 50 or older is to get your routine screening. Colon cancer can strike at any age, but it’s far more frequent in older adults, and our risk increases as we age, especially after 60.

n To assess your personal risk for colon and other cancers, and to learn more about how you can lower that risk, visit YourDiseaseRisk. com.

Routine screening for colon and colorectal cancer should begin at age 50 for most people, but should start at age 45 for those at higher risk, including African Americans, people with an inflammatory bowel disease (such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis) or a personal or family history of colorectal cancer or colon polyps. Polyps are noncancerous growths in the intestine that can turn into cancer. When possible, be sure to talk to your loved ones to learn about your family history. Regardless of age, it’s important to be aware of changes in your stool or bowel habits. If something seems wrong, make an appointment with a doctor.

For most young people, prevention is the most important way to reduce risk later in life. Some things you can do right now to help prevent colon cancer: maintain a healthy weight; limit servings of red meat and processed meat; get 30 minutes of physical activity every day.

Besides skin cancer, colorectal cancer is the third most common cancer diagnosed in

“The Wellness Center has created a space of sanctuary on our campus,” said Covenant House Missouri CEO Jessica Erfling, seen here with two youth at the center.

SSM Health and Saint Louis University leaders celebrated the grand opening of the new SLU Hospital on September 1. Front row, left-right: Steven M. Scott, president of SLU Hospital; Laura Kaiser, president and CEO of SSM Health; Dr. Fred P. Pestello, president of Saint Louis University; Candace Jennings, regional president of SSM Health

Louis. Back row, left-right: Kevin Elledge, CEO of SLUCare Physician Group, and Dr. Robert Wilmott, dean and VP of Medical Affairs for SLU School of Medicine.

Bettina Drake

Photo courtesy of Saint Louis University

“TakingCareofYou”

People leaving prisons in Missouri receiving bridge medication again

Rx Outreach, Corizon Health administering Healthy Re-Entry program as part of state contract

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

The cost for providing bridge medication program for individuals returning to the community after prison in Missouri has now been included in the health care contract by the Missouri Department of Corrections and will be administered by Corizon Health and Rx Outreach through December. Through the Healthy Re-Entry program, people are released from Missouri correctional facilities with 30 days of medication and receive an additional 60 days of mental health medication at no cost to the individual. The program provides enough medicine so

people don’t run out of medications before they can get an appointment with a clinic in the community.

“Healthy Re-Entry not only improves the quality of life for individuals receiving bridge medications, it also improves public safety and offers potential savings to the State of Missouri,” said Ralf Salke, VP of Business Development for Rx Outreach.

“By providing returning citizens with $20 worth of mental health medication, it helps keep them stable during release and transitioning them back into the community, effectively saving thousands of taxpayer dollars per year.”

Over 8,000 people received more than 40,000 prescriptions for free upon release from Missouri prisons through the Healthy Re-Entry program which operated from 20162019. The program was piloted in St. Louis in 2016 and expanded to rural Missouri in 2017 and to Kansas City in 2018. All people released from Missouri prisons on parole were enrolled.

The program faced funding issues and ceased in November of 2019. At that time, it was entirely funded through private donations from the Lutheran Foundation of St. Louis, the Sidney R. Baer Foundation, Corizon Health, and the Missouri Foundation for Health.

‘I’m moving forward with my life’

COVID survivor Annie Cooper turned to job retraining with MOKAN

By Sylvester Brown Jr. Of The St. Louis American

For every person who has died from COVID-19 in the United States, there are more than 10 survivors. Although research is ongoing, we know that these survivors must wrestle with damage done to their physical bodies after recovery from the virus.

But what about the damage to the soul and spirit?

In April, as the virus was rapidly spreading in the world, Indian-American author and alternative-medicine advocate Deepak Chopra shared his concerns about the outbreak’s effect on the spirit: “Millions of people experience a sick soul; however, you want to define it — weariness of heart, existential dread, a sinking feeling that nothing really matters.”

For city resident and COVID survivor, Annie Cooper, 47, Chopra’s words ring true.

“I’m never going to be the same,” Cooper said. “My way of thinking is so totally different now. I was a more nonchalant, trusting person but now I feel like I can’t trust anyone. You just never know.”

Cooper worked as a certified medical assistant (CMT) at a nursing home in St. Charles. The facility, she said, was practicing all the recommended safety procedures and she had no valid reason to fear she’d contract the virus.

But, on June 28, she had chills while at work and felt she had a slight fever. She went home and scheduled an

Hospital

Continued from A12

Steven M. Scott, president of SLU Hospital, said the new 802,000 square-foot facility has 316 private rooms with smart boards that identify staff who come in the room and what role they play in the patient’s care and conveniences accessible by the push of a button.

“They have a remote control that, for the most part, will control their entire room environment – temperature, the

Cancer

Continued from A12 men and women in the U.S., according to the American

appointment with her doctor. He gave her a Z-pack to fight off bacterial infections. She received the positive COVID19 diagnosis on July 5, but Cooper already knew she had the illness. Although she never ran a high fever, her appetite was gone, and she still had constant chills. She doesn’t smoke or suffer from asthma but felt as if a pallet of bricks rested on her chest.

Cooper was one of the lucky ones. She believes her regimen of vitamins staved off any other symptoms, and she never had to go to the hospital. Because she lives in a three-story house, she was able to quarantine herself from her 18-year-old son and heal on her own terms. After about a month, she felt ready to return to work.

Physically, she had gotten better, but the mental and spiritual damage was overwhelming.

“I was talking to a therapist throughout the whole period. It helped, but not a lot,” Cooper said.

COVID-19 survivor Annie Cooper is a perfect fit for MOKAN’s pre-apprenticeship trades program, said Executive Director Yaphett El-Amin. “We give people, like Annie, who’s close to 50-years-old, a second chance,” El-Amin said.

She is not alone. According to the World Economic Forum, more than a quarter of American adults are experiencing COVID-related symptoms of depression, researchers report. Cooper was hyper conscious about re-infection and paranoid about returning to the nursing home. She told her superiors that she would not work on what she called “the COVID floor.” Cooper said there was no sympathy given to her concerns. In fact, she said, attitudes changed, and she was fired two days after her return to work.

television, any entertainment that they might want to dial into,” Scott said. One of Scott’s favorite amenities allows patients to order their meals when they are ready to eat.

“In the legacy hospital, you sort of ate at our schedule, oftentimes wasting food, and oftentimes that food might arrive when you might be, for instance, away at a procedure,” Scott said.

Kelly Baumer, vice president of Clinical Services, said the hospital’s interventional platforms – operating rooms, radiology suites, catherization

Cancer Society. The good news is that it’s highly preventable.

To assess your personal risk for colon and other cancers, and to learn more about how you can lower that risk, visit Your Disease

“I was confused. They said it was because I was late, but they never wrote me up or anything. They didn’t follow any procedures or protocol for getting fired, no paper trail nothing,” Cooper said. “You want to fire me because I feared for my life and I contracted this

labs, endoscopy suites – are co-located.

“Then we have one big area – prep and recovery –where our patients who have either surgery or a procedure will come into one very nice, lovely area, will get ready for their procedure, we’ll take them back to have their procedure and recovery after that,” Baumer said.

The hospital has floor-toceiling windows to pour in lots of natural light, a conference center that will be available for community meetings, a healing garden, and art by local artists.

Risk, a free online tool, at YourDiseaseRisk.com. Youth and adults around the country have held memorial services for Mr. Boseman, mourning his loss and ours, including all that he had yet

virus from your facility?”

Although her sister encouraged her to sue, Cooper declined. Perhaps, she thought, her termination was a good thing.

“I’m not going to lie,” she said. “I was scared. I’m not angry about getting fired because I was nervous about going back anyway.”

“It really helps to tie this facility closer to our own community, which was an objective and a guiding principle, reinforced long ago when we were authorized to move forward with this project,” Scott said.

The hospital’s sophisticated technology and design support and elevate its academic-medical partnership with Saint Louis University School of Medicine.

“The students, the medical trainees and the faculty will be working in really outstanding brand-new facilities with state-of-the-art equipment, new

to bring to the world through his art and presence. There’s another way we can honor him – by making sure we and our loved ones understand who should be screened for colon cancer, and when. Then,

to ‘bounce back’

The termination provided Cooper with the opportunity to address what Chopra described as a “sick soul.” She had to dig deep to access her self-worth and potential. Cooper said she’s always been an “independent woman.” She was never satisfied with one job and was always seeking ways to supplement her income. She was enrolled in nursing school before those plans got derailed by divorce in 2015. With the help of her older brothers, she had bought and rehabbed properties.

The unplanned firing led Cooper on a search to find a job. She was not only seeking a “good job” but wanted something that could provide a future for herself and her son.

Less than half of the more than 23 million jobs lost since March due to COVID have been recovered. A Harris Poll released in May found that 78% of employed Americans said that they would not consider a job change during the COVID-19 outbreak as long as they can continue to work at their current job. Although Cooper no longer had her job, a career change was a big but necessary step for her.

“My son is so smart. I try to show him that even though I don’t have a degree, there are other ways to supplement your income and make your life better,” Cooper said. “So, I was thinking, ‘What can I do at my age without going back to college?’”

In her online search, Cooper ran across a 10-week pre-apprenticeship program offered

technology,” said Dr. Robert Wilmott, dean and vice president of medical affairs, SLU School of Medicine. While COVID-19 did not halt construction of the hospital, the pandemic demanded some retooling for health and safety precautions.

Scott said what the hospital had to modify because of the pandemic has been fairly extensive, including setting up wellness stations, striping for social distancing, and removing chairs. And, of course, everyone working and visiting must wear a mask. Baumer said there

make a plan to make it happen. We’ve already lost enough. Bettina Drake, PhD, MPH, is a professor in the Division of Public Health Sciences at Washington University School of Medicine and asso-

by MOKAN, the region’s leading minority contractors association. Something about the minority organization’s commitment to help people of color get into the construction industry and perhaps build their own businesses appealed to her. The training program prepares students to enter the construction industry. In 10 weeks, students earn all the mandatory safety and regulatory certificates needed to work in sometimes hazardous environments. Annie Cooper is a perfect fit for the program, said MOKAN’s Executive Director Yaphett El-Amin.

“We give people, like Annie, who’s close to 50-yearsold, a second chance,” El-Amin said. “Prior to the COVID she was probably looking to retire from the health industry. Now, she has a second chance, a second career opportunity, a chance for expansion and a reconnection with the community. It’s empowering.” Cooper, who started the MOKAN program last month, said she is grateful for the opportunity to “bounce back.” Her post-COVID anxiety levels, she said, are much better these days. Taking control of her destiny, she said, has proven to be the best therapy.

“I’m very happy and content,” she said, “and I’m moving forward with my life.” For more information on MOKAN, visit https://mokanccac.org.

Sylvester Brown Jr. is The St. Louis American’s inaugural Deaconess Fellow.

is a lot of plexiglass installed and other modifications to minimize risks to patients, employees and visitors as well. During the pandemic, the new hospital’s visitor policy remains with COVID-19 restrictions. Patients are allowed one designated support person for the duration of their stay. However, compassionate-care exceptions can be made. While they say the old SLU hospital structure is not going away, whatever is in its next chapter is still under consideration.

ciate director of Community Outreach and Engagement at Siteman Cancer Center. She is a cancer epidemiologist, committed to promoting health equity and cancer prevention strategies.

Rx Outreach and Corizon Health will administer the Healthy Re-Entry program through December.

Photo by Chris King

Photo by Sylvester Brown Jr.

NEWSPAPER IN EDUCATION

Planting the Seeds for Success!

Nutrition Challenge:

Eating nutritious healthy foods often starts at the grocery store. Here are some tips to smart shopping.

4 Eat Before You Go

4 Make a List

4 Shop the Walls (Natural, healthier choices are often located along the walls of the store.)

How Healthy Is Your Heart?

PRESENT:

Healthy Kids Kids

4 Read Labels (Look for lower fat, sodium and sugar and higher fiber options!)

4 Colorize — Just like your dinner plate should be “colorful,” so should your shopping cart. Fill your basket with colorful, fresh fruits and vegetables.

Learning Standards:

HPE 2, HPE 5, NH 1, NH 3, NH 5

Your heart is an amazing thing! It is actually a muscle that pumps blood throughout your body. A beating heart is what keeps you alive.

Let’s test your heart health. First make sure you have been completely inactive for at least 10 minutes. Locate your pulse* and count how many beats you feel in 15 seconds. Multiply that by 4 and you have your resting heart rate. Ideally this number should be 60-100 beats for anyone over 10 years old.

Learning Standards: HPE 1, HPE 2, NH 1, NH 5 Get Some Sleep!

> Do you often feel tired during the day?

> Do you fall asleep during the day?

In order to be at your best, go to bed early enough to allow for at least 8 hours of sleep. You’ll feel more rested and alert and ready to start a new day!

If your resting heart rate is above that, your heart is possibly working too hard. Discuss with your pediatrician ways that you can improve your heart’s health. Following the Nutrition and Exercise guidelines in the Healthy Kids page over the next several months can help improve your heart health too!

Visit:

*http://www.webmd.com/heart-disease/heartfailure/watching-rate-monitor for tips on how to take your pulse.

Learning Standards: HPE 1, NH 1, NH 5

P.B. Dip

Ingredients: 4 Tbsp. Natural Peanut Butter, 1 Tbsp. Greek Yogurt, 1 Tsp. Honey

Dippers: Pretzels, Apple Slices, etc.

Directions: Mix together the first three ingredients for a delicious dip!

Cecilia Carter, MA, QMHP, LPC

Where do you work? I am a therapist at Safe Connections and Cecilia Carter Counseling, LLC.

Where did you go to school? I graduated from South Shore High School in Chicago, Illinois. I then earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology/psychology from Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville, and a master’s degree in counseling from Webster University.

What does a therapist do? I help people learn how to live their best lives!! I talk to people about their problems. I teach people how to love themselves and others.

Why did you choose this career? I chose to be a therapist because I love to help people. Being a therapist allows me to take the skills that I have learned and give back to my community.

What is your favorite part of the job you have? I love to see people have, “AHA” moments. It is really rewarding to see people use the new skills that they have learned to better their lives.

Learning Standards: HPE6, NH3

“Questions or comments? Contact Cathy Sewell csewell@stlamerican.com or 618-910-9551

The St. Louis American’s award winning NIE program provides newspapers and resources to more than 8,000 teachers and students each week throughout the school year, at no charge.

Questions or comments? Contact Cathy Sewell csewell@stlamerican.com or 618-910-9551

FAMILY SPOTLIGHT SCIENCE STARS

Inspired by the e-edition of The American’s STEM page, Thorin Davidson continues his science lessons at home. He built a homemade barometer to record changes in air pressure through the week.

SCIENCE CORNER

Pest Control

What do you think of when you hear the word “pest?” Most people think of bugs or insects. Did you know that bugs and insects can actually be helpful? Insects can visit plants and spread pollen to help new fruits, vegetables, and flowers grow. Insects can also eat other insects that damage plants. However, when insects cause harm, they are considered pests. For example, there are worms and bugs that eat plants and crops, and insects that bite people or animals and spread disease. Pest control is tricky. The important thing is to eliminate the pest without causing harm to people, animals, or the environment. According to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency), there are three ways to control pests: 1.) predators, which hunt and kill pests for food, 2.) parasites, which live on or inside pests and also may kill them, and 3.)

SCIENCE INVESTIGATION

What do plants need to grow?

Your answers probably include water, sunlight, and healthy soil. Did you know that plants also need space? In this experiment, you will see how space affects the growth of plants.

Materials Needed:

• 2 Flower Pots • Potting Soil

• Seeds • Water Process:

pathogens, which cause disease in pests. Pathogens are germs like bacteria or viruses.

Pesticides are chemicals made to kill pests. Pesticides can be found in the form of spray, gel, or pellets. There are three main types of pesticides: insecticides to kill insects, herbicides to kill plants, and fungicides to kill mold and fungus. Pesticides contain chemicals and they are very dangerous. They are only to be used by adults. Remember to keep them away from family pets, as well. For more information, visit: http://pestworldforkids.org/. Learning Standards: I can read nonfiction text for main idea and supporting details. I can make text-to-text and text-to-world connections.

Crowded Seeds

w In the second flower pot, place the seeds close together.

e Observe the seeds as they begin to grow and germinate.

r Record your observations.

t Draw conclusions: How does space affect the growth of plants?

Kenyan Entomologist and Educator Thomas Odhiambo

Thomas Odhiambo was born in 1931 in Mombasa, which is a city on the coast of Kenya. He was one of 10 children. Odhiambo was very passionate about learning and graduated from CMS Maseno, which is a public school in Kenya. Next, he received his Cambridge overseas school certificate in 1949. For the next four years, he studied biology at the Makerere University College in Uganda. He used this knowledge to work as an entomologist. Odhiambo then studied natural sciences at Cambridge University and earned his PhD in insect physiology in 1965. For the next five years, he taught zoology at the University of East Africa in Nairobi.

Odhiambo wanted to spread knowledge and wanted to train scientists. He helped to establish several schools including the Third World Academy of Sciences in Trieste, Italy (1983), the Kenya National Academy of Sciences in Nairobi (1983), and the African Academy of Sciences in Nairobi (1985). At the University of Nairobi he set up the departments of entomology and agriculture. He also created the International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (Icipe) in Nairobi. He was the first dean of the University of Nairobi’s department of agriculture, and was the founding president of the African Academy of Sciences. He also created a secondary school near Mombasa, founded a children’s publishing house, and wrote six children’s books.

q In one flower pot, add potting soil and plant seeds with the recommended amount of space between them.

MATH CONNECTION

z A Kentucky farmer needed to apply pesticide to his summer crop of corn. If one container of pesticide covered 12 square acres and the farmer’s corn was 3 acres long by 5 acres wide, how many containers of pesticide would he need? ______

x Brenda has a square garden plot that is 10 feet on each side. What is the perimeter of her garden?______ What is the area of her garden?______

DID YOU KNOW?

Did you know that sulfur dusting was the

Learning Standards: I can follow sequential directions to complete an experiment. I can make observations and draw conclusions.

Acres of Land!

c Joe has a rectangular herb garden that is 16 ft long and 12 ft wide. What length of fencing does he need to fence in his entire garden?

v Pam has a rectangular flower garden that is 10 ft long and 2 ft wide. One bag of soil can cover 8 square feet. How many bags will she need to cover the entire garden? ______

b Challenge Problem: Tom purchased 4.5 acres of land for $76,500. Bill wants to purchase a strip of Tom’s land measuring 108.9 feet by 100 feet. What should this strip cost Bill if Tom sells it for the same price per square foot he originally paid for it? ______ (Note: 43,560 square feet are in one acre.)

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

Next to sharing knowledge and education, Odhiambo is known for studying and creating nonchemical methods of insect control to preserve crops. This was important because pesticides that had been previously used contained chemicals that were harmful to both people and the environment. Citizens of Kenya depended on their crop of maize as a source of many foods; but the crops were being eaten by moth larva. Odhiambo solved the problem by using wasps from Pakistan to attack the moths. In 1987, he received the African Prize for Leadership for the Sustainable End of Hunger. Odhiambo also received the Albert Einstein Medal, the Gold Mercury International Award, and an honorary doctorate from the University of Oslo. He died May 26, 2003.

Learning Standards:

about a person who has contributed to the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math.

MAP CORNER

Enjoy these activities that help you get to know your St. Louis American newspaper.

Activities —

Story Outline: Underline the main ideas in a feature story in the newspaper, circle the supporting details, and then outline the story. Descriptive Writing: Make a list of at least 15 descriptive words you find in the advertisements. After compiling your list, write one or two paragraphs describing something. Use as many of the words as you can.

Learning Standards: I can use a newspaper to locate information. I can write for a specific purpose and audience.

Photo by Juliann Davidson

Jerome Morris wins $1M research award to transform education

UMSL scholar will work with school leaders in St. Louis, Jennings and Ferg-Flor

By Burk Krohe University of Missouri –St. Louis

As Jerome Morris

scrolled through the previous winners of the prestigious Lyle M. Spencer Research Award to Transform Education, he called out the universities of fellow researchers: The University of California, Berkeley; the University of Chicago; Harvard University; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; Northwestern University; the University of Virginia.

Morris, the E. Desmond Lee

Endowed Professor of Urban Education at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, joined their ranks recently with a $1 million award to investigate his theory of communally bonded schooling. He pointed to the company

he’s now keeping not to brag but as an indication of the extraordinary work that is happening at the university – work that is on par with esteemed research institutions across the country.

“The importance of this is about continuing to elevate UMSL’s research reputation,” Morris said. “This is about bringing attention to the kinds of scholars who are here and the researchers who are here. That’s what this is. That’s what this award does.”

Chancellor Kristin Sobolik also noted significance of the award.

“This is excellent news and a testament to important research that will shed light on school reforms and help transform lives,” Sobolik said.

There’s no debating that Morris is a first-class researcher.

Before coming to UMSL in 2015, he was a professor in the College of Education at the University of Georgia and a research fellow at its Owens Institute for Behavioral Research. For more than 20 years, he’s studied the impact of school reforms, as well as the links between race, social class and the geography of educational opportunities and Black communities in the South.

Morris has also written scores of scholarly articles and two books on the topic of urban education, “Troubling the Waters: Fulfilling the Promise of Quality Public Schooling for Black Children” (Teachers

College Press of Columbia University) and “Central City’s Blues: A Song of Race, Place, and Life in the Housing Projects of the Urban South (forthcoming).”

The award supports Morris’ multiyear research project, “Countering the Unintended Consequences of School Reforms: Communally-Bonded Schools, Reconnecting Black Students, Strengthening Communities and Improving Educational Outcomes.”

“The Spencer Foundation understood the record I had and what I had done,” he said. “I had put that framework out there, so this is an opportunity to further develop it.”

College of Education Dean

Ann Taylor commended Morris’ dedication to his research.

“Jerome’s commitment, over several rounds of proposals to the prestigious Spencer Foundation, is testament to the quality of his scholarship, the significance of his area of research and his determination to further grow this work in the St. Louis region,” Taylor said.

The Lyle M. Spencer Research Awards program supports “intellectually ambitious” research projects aiming to transform education with budgets between $525,000 and $1 million. Morris believes his communally bonded schooling model can be a transformative way to rethink education, particularly for Black students.

He noted that a common missing element in education reform research is the relationship that students have with their schools and how a sense of connectedness and trust can lead to improved academic outcomes. When those things are divorced from each other in education reform, there are unintended consequences. This especially true for Black students.

“When people go to school and they feel connected, they feel like they belong,” Morris said. “They feel like educators affirm who they are. If they don’t have to fight to get an education and there’s a sense of trust, then they’re more likely to be engaged and do well.” Morris said in terms of Black education, many researchers have also missed the historical relationship Black people have had with schools and their communities. During the legal segregation era – what he identifies as 1865 to 1970 – schools served as pillars in Black communities, fostering a sense of trust between educators, parents and students.

“I would say a barrage of educational reforms and policies have disrupted that relationship,” he said.

It was often eroded through desegregation policies, like those in St. Louis, which at one point transferred 13,000 Black students a year out of the city into predominantly white suburban districts. Those students faced a fractured relationship with their suburban schools because they were “fish out of water” in others’ communities. Predictably, many Black students struggled.

“It’s important to rebuild these relationships,” Morris said. “Albeit, many of them existed during a segregated era, it’s important to rebuild these relationships because we see even more today this disconnect that Black students have with schooling – in predominantly Black schools in terms of the connection that schools have with communities and when they go to predominantly white schools, there’s a sense of not feeling part of the school culture and community.”

State takeovers and school closures have produced similar problems. Schools that are deemed failing typically are poorly funded due to an

impoverished tax base. They’re also more likely to be predominantly Black. Morris said that causes uncertainty around the viability of schools in the lives of Black children.

“You’re going to get failing schools if you don’t have that overall community, economic and political support,” he added.

That’s why he views his theory of communally bonded schooling as an ecological approach concerned with supporting families and communities.

“How do we have a conversation around improving schooling or improving educational outcomes by not just focusing on the child, but also focusing on the community, the families and the ecological contexts?” he asked.

To that end, Morris’ project is centering stakeholders in the communities and schools he’s studying. His research teams will lead community-based case studies in three predominantly Black school districts in the St. Louis region – St. Louis Public Schools, the Jennings School District and the FergusonFlorissant School District.

The three teams will be made up of people from those communities, which is rare for this kind of undertaking.

“They will be residents in those neighborhoods,” Morris said. “They’re helping engage in the research enterprise, helping to recruit participants, interviewing participants. These are people who are going to be trained in research techniques and methodologies.”

The plan is to interview school district leaders, educators, families and students for ethnographic interviews, observations and surveys. Morris also expects to work closely with Kelvin Adams, St. Louis Public Schools superintendent; Art McCoy, Jennings School District superintendent; and Joseph Davis, FergusonFlorissant School District superintendent. He will receive additional support from Jackie Lewis-Harris, retired UMSL anthropology and education professor.

“What I’m hoping from this work is that from studying these communities, we will have a better sense of those factors that are conducive to inform this communally bonded model,” Morris said. “Some of the work I’ve done was based on elementary schools. Now, I’m incorporating middle and high schools into that theoretical research. We will have a better sense of what communally bonded schools look like.” Morris believes St. Louis is the perfect place to do this research, too. He describes it as a “Northern, Midwestern and Southern city,” a convergence of cultural identities. In that way, it’s a microcosm of the whole country.

“It’s a unique place to do this kind of work because when we understand St. Louis, we can, I think, understand what goes on in the rest of the country,” Morris said. “So, it’s applicable on a national level.”

Jerome Morris, the E. Desmond Lee Endowed Professor of Urban Education at UMSL

Living It

Trojan Park in Wellston recognized by Urban Land Institute

and corona

COVID-19 is tough,

so

for

One of two urban parks selected

2020 Urban Open Space Award

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

Trojan Park in Wellston is one of two urban parks selected by the Urban Land Institute for this year’s Urban Open Space Award. The award recognizes outstanding examples of vibrant public open spaces that have been instrumental in promoting healthy, sustainable, and equitable outcomes in communities.

“A park seems like a little thing, but when you see kids running and exerting that positive energy, these things give us a great outlet to grow into ourselves and grow into society,” said

Wellston Mayor Nathaniel Griffin. Trojan Park is a 1-acre community park in Wellston, Missouri that gets an estimated 20,000 visitors per year. It is a key destination as part of the St. Vincent Greenway, which stretches across four towns in North County, connecting parks, schools, the University of Missouri – St. Louis, public transit, job centers and neighborhoods. The park, designed and named by neighbors to honor the former high school mascot, is packed with amenities they chose, from a splashpad and playgrounds to a full basketball court. Beyond basic functions, it also features ADA-accessible exercise equipment, musical instruments and rain gardens full of native plants. It was designed by Lamar Johnson Collaborative, formerly Forum Studio, Clayco’s

original architecture practice.

Built as part of Parks Build Communities initiative sponsored by the National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA), it is a partnership project between Great Rivers Greenway, the City of Wellston, St. Louis County Parks, NRPA and more than 30 partners who contributed funding or in-kind services or materials to the park. The city, county, and NRPA continue to collaborate with vendors and volunteers for operations and maintenance.

“When I walked up this morning, I could hardly keep from tearing up, it’s so wonderful,” then-St. Louis County Councilwoman Hazel Erby said when it opened in 2016. “Wellston deserves it. Our children deserve it. Our fami-

See Park, B2

Fear of the black vote

‘All In: The Fight for Democracy’ details history, aftermath of racism at the polls

By Kenya Vaughn Of The St. Louis American

With Americans preparing to cast their votes in the next election in less than two months, filmmakers Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortés present an urgent message with their film “All In: The Fight for Democracy.”

They want American citizens to know that from the country’s inception, systems have been created – and recreated – to keep certain people from being properly represented at the ballot box – which is why them going to the polls is of the utmost importance.

“Voter turnout is the best remedy for voter suppression,” 2018 Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams says in the Amazon Studios film that will be available for streaming on Friday, August 18.

The film weaves in Abrams’ rise to political prominence and her experience of losing the election by a devastatingly narrow margin. Parallel to Abrams’ story is a chronicle of the history of the Black vote and mainstream political structures’ unrelenting work to dilute, suppress and destroy its power by any means necessary – whether legislation or violence. Her experience of a 1.2% defeat by Brian

Kemp, who worked to systemically suppress the black vote in Georgia for nearly a decade before his campaign for governor, is evidence. From Reconstruction to the election of President Obama, every demonstration of power with respect to the Black vote was met with

heavy-handed opposition. In addition to Abrams, “All In: The Fight for Democracy” enlists the expert opinions of major political players and scholars to make the film’s See Vote, B2

bar owner Kenny Martin got tougher

By Sylvester Brown Jr.

Of The St. Louis American

“I have never, in my 60 years of life, seen anything like this.”

Like thousands of other restaurant and bar owners, Kenneth C. Martin, co-owner of KJ’s Bar & Grill, at 5300 N. Broadway, was rocked by COVID-19. Back in May, the American Nightlife Association, a trade group representing more than 30,000 clubs nationwide, reported that the nightlife industry had already lost about $225 billion in revenue due to mandatory shutdowns. The loss to businesses continues to increase exponentially. Martin is no exception. His club at 5300 N. Broadway opened in 2017. No one under 30 is allowed for evening gatherings. KJ’s food, pool & dart room, themed events such as Wednesday Game night, Monday and Thursday night karaoke and Bop practice on every other Saturday kept the place at capacity-crowd levels.

The good times came to a screeching halt as the new coronavirus shuttered businesses like Martin’s earlier this year.

n “We went from making damn good money to being closed for two months. I’ve seen bad times before but nothing like this.”

– Kenny Martin

Martin has been in the entertainment business for decades. In a way, it was preordained. His mother worked at the Voyager Lounge on Lindell and, when Martin turned 16, she recruited him.

“I started as a busboy and dishwasher,” Martin recalled. “Then I became a prep cook, a cook, a waiter, bartender and ended up managing the lounge.” Martin credits his stepfather, Edward Grantham, a 27-year U.S. Air Force veteran, for instilling a sense of “structure” in his life. The former military man didn’t tolerate slackers, so Martin and his four siblings learned to hustle at early ages.

“I was making money as a little kid,” Martin laughed, recalling how he cut grass in the summer, shoveled snow in the winter and delivered newspapers year-round. Martin had picked up another trade in his early years. Working with a neighborhood handyman, Martin learned electrical, carpentry and plumbing. By the age of 18, he was running the lounge by night and doing light construction work by day.

Learning to do for himself as a kid has paid off in Martin’s adult years. Never one to be satisfied with one job, he started a mobile carwash business in 1995, the same year he went to work at the Chrysler Plant in Fenton. His older brother, Donald, convinced him to put his restaurant and lounge experience to work as a partner in a new venture. In 2001, they opened Two Brothers on Natural Bridge near Interstate 170. It was there that Martin said he perfected his formula for success: good food, good drinks, a

Trojan Park in Wellston was recognized by the Urban Land Institute as an outstanding example of a vibrant public open space that has been instrumental in promoting healthy, sustainable, and equitable outcomes in communities.

Photo by Sylvester Brown Jr.

Kenneth C. Martin, co-owner of KJ’s Bar & Grill, at 5300 N. Broadway, was rocked by COVID-19. A recent outdoor Pride event netted over $2,500, “enough to pay some bills,” Martin said.

“All In: The Fight for Democracy” by Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortés is open in select theaters and will be available for stream on Amazon Prime Video on Friday, September 18.

the 1965 Voting Rights Act thanks to “Bloody Sunday” in Selma.

case.

Viewers are presented with a timeline of history repeating itself as far as the political system responding to the notion of a strong African-American voting base as something that must be feared and destroyed.

Just as Black people emerged from slavery proving themselves apt and eager to be a part of the American political system as new citizens, they were subjected to the legislation and strategies that created the Jim Crow South, compounded with threats of violence

There was a purge of black political participation due to racial terror. The film pointed out the case of Maceo Snipes. It had only been a few years since Snipes had returned from serving his country in World War II that he decided to bravely cast his ballot in a 1946 election.

He was the only Black person in Taylor County Georgia that voted in 1946 – where there was a sign directed at Negro voters that said, “You vote, you die.” Three days later, Snipes was executed on his front porch by white men who were absolved of criminal charges. Election day terrorism was real until civil rights activists like the late John Lewis, Andrew Young and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. forced President Johnson’s hand with

The election of the first African-American president in 2008 was a siren call for those fearful of a democracy that reflected the diversity of the nation. And so began the undermining of laws that made it possible for Barack Obama to be elected.

In 2013 the U.S. Supreme Court case Shelby County v. Holder essentially gutted critical elements of the Voting Rights Act.

“Throwing out preclearance when it has worked and is con-

Black voters from the late 19th century through 1965 reemerged as voter suppression. Voter ID laws, voter purges, drastically reduced polling places and gerrymandering replaced the poll taxes, literacy tests and overt threats of violence for African Americans who dared to go to the polls two generations before. Disinformation and propaganda about voter fraud serve as the basis for the argument for pro-suppression. And Abrams’ run for governor was one of many casualties as the campaign is still underway to impede Black, Hispanic and Native Americans from having a say in the American political process by way of their vote.

But, as with most American stories, the horrors are juxtaposed with hope – and “All In: The Fight for Democracy” attempts to compel the viewer to buy into becoming politically engaged with the same amount of fervor of those who want to see them resigned to apathy due to political disenfranchisement. In honor of their great and great-great grandparents who risked their lives to guarantee, the film encourages people to endure any and all obstacles to enforce their birthright to be civically engaged.

tinuing to work to stop discriminatory changes is like throwing away your umbrella in a rainstorm because you are not getting wet,” U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg wrote in her dissenting opinion.

“All In: The Fight for Democracy” traces the voter prevention experienced by

“Every voice matters, and every vote counts,” Abrams said. “And we will do everything in our power to make it so.”

“All In: The Fight For Democracy” is rated PG-13 with a running time of 142 minutes. The film is open in select theaters and will be available to stream via Amazon Prime Video on Friday, August 18.

lies deserve it. There are good things happening here.”

The other winner is the 5-acre Domino Park, part of the transformation of the former Domino Sugar Factory site in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, which has served nearly 3.5 million visitors since opening in June 2018.

“Equitably accessible quality open spaces are increasingly understood as vital to the physical, social and economic health of urban neighborhoods,” said jury Chairman Antonio FiolSilva, founding principal of SITIO architecture + urbanism in Philadelphia. “In their own particular contexts Domino and Trojan Parks are two brilliant examples of the profoundly positive impact that such spaces can have in the lives of their communities. That both civic spaces are the product of private sector initiatives makes then even more remarkable.”

The winners were selected from an impressive collection of entries representing urban areas from across the U.S. and Canada. Projects were eligible for the award if they were predominantly outdoors and had been open to the public at least one year. The jury selected the finalists based on a range of criteria, from accomplishment of the team’s vision and goals, to sustainability and resilience, to community engagement and economic impact, among others.

“We have so much pride and dedication and commitment to our community, to ourselves and to each other,” Mayor Griffin said.

“If kids don’t have some way to release their energy in a positive way and have a positive place to go with positive

KJ

Continued from B1

mature crowd, and variety of adult-pleasing entertainment. The bar was so successful, so quickly, Martin said, the landlord decided to triple his rent. Refusing, Martin opened Brothers in Woodson. It was a nightmarish experience, he recalled. After nine months and about $100,000 in rehab and costly, city-mandated adaptions, Martin finally opened the club. It was another hit, but after three years he and the leaser fell out and Martin left the club behind.

In 2012, he opened the

n “If kids don’t have some way to release their energy in a positive way and have a positive place to go with positive people around them, they’re eventually going to go the negative route.”

– Wellston Mayor Nathaniel Griffin

people around them, they’re eventually going to go the negative route. That’s what I want to get this community to be where these kids

Cotton Club in Kinloch. His formula worked for two and a half years before a falling out with new partners ended his involvement with the venture.

Done with the nightclub business, Martin returned to light construction. But, since he still had all his karaoke equipment, he started accepting karaoke gigs around town. He had a loyal club-to-club following which benefitted him when he opened KJ’s in 2017. Martin said he learned valuable lessons from his other failed ventures. For three years, he and his partner, Jesse Davis, have run KJ’s like a well-oiled machine with capacity crowds on almost every night, especially with Thursday and Saturday

karaoke. Then, on March 21, St. Louis city and county officials announced new stay-at-home orders to slow the spread of the virus. Days later, Martin’s manager contracted the coronavirus. It was just one in a series of setbacks, Martin said.

“We went from making damn good money to being closed for two months,” he said. “I couldn’t pay utilities, couldn’t pay rent and had to use credit cards, which is nothing but interest payments. I’ve seen bad times before but nothing like this.”

By mid-May, the City of St. Louis allowed restaurants and bars and other select businesses to reopen under strict safety restrictions. Martin thought the tide was turning.

Then, in late July, the city announced new restrictions for bars and restaurants that including capacity limits and an 11 p.m. curfew. Since non-compliant bars and nightclubs will be shut down for 14 days, Martin made serious adjustments. Now he only operates at 25% capacity. Tables are six feet apart. He canceled Game Night and Bop practice. Karaoke singers must use mic covers and wear masks when they’re not singing, drinking or eating. He consistently enforces the rules from the DJ booth.

“Listen, y’all know with this coronavirus we’re under restrictions,” Martin said. “So, if you can’t wear your masks, you will be asked to leave! I can’t afford to be shut down for two weeks.” The shutdown came with an unexpected blessing, Martin said. It’s given him time to fix up his outdoor patio. Now he offers the venue for free to bands, groups or individuals, banking on an idea that their guests will buy KJ’s food and drinks.

So far, the gamble is paying off. A recent outdoor Pride event netted over $2,500, “enough to pay some bills,” Martin said.

The seven-month downturn has been a tremendous challenge for Martin and KJ’s. Still, he insisted, COVID will not defeat him.

“I’ve been through a lot of businesses, and I learned one thing: They don’t fail until you quit,” Martin said. “I’m a creative dude. I’ll find a way to get through this.”

Sylvester Brown Jr. is The St. Louis American’s inaugural Deaconess Fellow.

Ebony G. Patterson, ...below the crows...a blue purse sits between the blades ...shoes among the petals...a cockerel comes to witness... , 2019.

Courtesy the artist; Monique Meloche Gallery, Chicago; and Hales Gallery, New York.

“Voter turnout is the best remedy for voter suppression,” 2018 Georgia gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams says in “All In: The Fight for Democracy’ by Liz Garbus and Lisa Cortés.”

The Last Children of Mill Creek

By Shakia Gullette Missouri Historical Society

The Missouri History Museum is pleased to host Vivian Gibson, author of The Last Children of Mill Creek, for a St. Louis History Live virtual program on Zoom on Thursday, October 1, at 6:30pm.

Gibson, whose family is featured in the Museum’s Reflections gallery, grew up in Mill Creek Valley, a city neighborhood razed in 1959 to build a highway. Gibson’s family, friends, church community, and neighbors were among the 20,000 African Americans displaced by this act of urban renewal. In her moving memoir, Gibson re-creates the everyday lived experiences of her large family, including her seven siblings; her college-educated mother, who moved to St. Louis as part of the Great Migration; and her sometimes forbidding father, who worked two jobs to keep them all warm and fed. With an eye for telling detail, she sketches scenes populated by her friends, shop owners, teachers, and others who made Mill Creek into a warm, tightknit, African American community and reflects on Mill Creek’s destruction in the name of racism disguised as “progress.”

and Donna Rogers-Beard as panelists for the program on October 1. Both panelists became Gibson’s biggest cheerleaders after reading her book. Russell is a St. Louis–based writer, editor, and contributor to the Informal History zine and podcast collective (informalhistorystl.org). She writes monthly history shorts for St. Louis Magazine and was Laumeier Sculpture Park’s 2018 poet in residence. Rogers-Beard is a retired history teacher who taught for many years in the University City and Clayton school districts. She is currently researching and writing about Black history in Clayton.

Now 71, Gibson started writing short stories about her childhood memories of the vanishing community after retiring at age 66. Her essay “From Sunup to Sundown” was included in Belt Publishing’s The St. Louis Anthology (2019) and served as the seed of this larger project. Although Gibson originally thought of writing a book of short stories, she ended up dividing the book into chapters that required joining 40 vignettes into the bigger story’s integrated components.

Gibson felt a need to give a first-hand account about growing up in Mill Creek. “Most all my research on Mill Creek Valley—newspaper articles, short paragraphs in books about the history of St. Louis—was written by people outside of the community—white people,” she says. “It was at this point in my writing that I appreciated the importance of my first-person account. I was writing about my experiences and observations as a Black person. I was writing an African American story I had not read anywhere else.” Gibson is excited to welcome Stefene Russell

In addition to utilizing the talents of Russell and Rogers-Beard, Gibson has been gratified by the positive response she has received after the release of her first book. She states, “I feel triply fortunate at this time in our history to be a woman, Black, and old. Regarding my age, becoming a first-time published author late in life is noteworthy—it comes up in just about every interview I do. I have even been invited by two national publications to write essays about my late arrival on the author scene. I consider this new role of mine a blessing and a privilege. I also recommend pursuing other careers, raising families, and gathering life experiences to inform and inspire one’s writing—before publishing a book.”

She has appreciated the feedback from her readers as well. “The sweetest and most surprising joy came when readers took the time to send me personal messages about how the book made them feel,” she says. “I received emails, instant messages, and letters sent to me via friends and relatives. I sobbed when readers described parallels between my life and theirs, or when they quoted a favorite passage, and some wrote that they related to a specific family member or scene in the book. I love that I made personal connections.”

Join Vivian Gibson online at 6:30pm on Thursday, October 1, to learn more about her book The Last Children of Mill Creek. This STL History Live program will be held on Zoom. To join, visit mohistory.org/events and click on the event name. The Missouri Historical Society’s online collections search also includes hundreds of photos of Mill Creek Valley. Visit mohistory. org/collections to view the collection.

Eugene Redmond brings Henry Dumas back

‘Knees of a Natural Man’ reprinted by Flood Editions

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

If Henry Dumas were still alive today, it’s possible that the world would be different because he would have transformed it in some way. If, however, he were to suddenly return to life today, in the way that long-out-of-print books can suddenly be reprinted, he would be amazed. He would be amazed to discover, 52 years after he was killed, that Black people like himself still confront the same problems and possibilities.

For the same reasons, the reader who confronts Dumas’ poetry in the reprinted edition of “Knees of a Natural Man” (forthcoming on October 30 from Flood Editions) will find a startlingly original contemporary. In these 165 poems, curated by East St. Louis’ own Eugene B. Redmond, we encounter the quintessential young, brilliantly burning Black man, enflamed by violence against his people and oppression, alert to the possibilities of Blackness reaching all the way back to before ancient Egypt. At least one major thing has changed since May 23, 1968, when a New York City Transit cop shot Dumas dead on the southbound platform of the 125th Street subway station on the Lexington Avenue line running under Harlem.

Today, a bystander video might go around the world and have people chanting “Henry Dumas” in the streets weeks before the police sheepishly released his killer’s name. In 1968, Dumas was an unnamed “33-year-old man” (not even a “Black man,” certainly not a “natural man”) buried in a three-paragraph report in the middle of page 5 of the Herald Statesman (straight out of Yonkers). His killer, Peter Bienkowski, was named outright because he faced no threat of prosecution. No witness ever testified to counter or complicate the police shooter’s

narrative captured in the curt headline “Knife Brings Death Bullet.”

So, Dumas is an ancestor of today’s Black Lives Matter protest movement and its contemporary martyrs, but not only because a cop killed him. Many of today’s movement leaders have artistic vocations that they suspended to save lives or that they find ways to use in their activism. Today’s artivists will find Henry Dumas waking up in ways they are waking up, praising much of what they praise, summoning the strength to heal the pain that they are trying to heal. A natural man or woman needs his or her (or their) knees to kneel to pray.

n There is no telling how many thousands of people have read Henry Dumas because Eugene B. Redmond talked to them about Dumas.

Today’s artivists will find Dumas praying their prayers before they were born.

Dumas came to East St. Louis in the summer of 1967 to teach with Katherine Dunham for the blink of an eye, and that is how he befriended Redmond. Because Redmond has outlived his friend for more than 50 years it’s difficult to imagine him as the younger man, but Dumas was several years older than Redmond and (arguably) more evolved in his poetic practice during their all-toobrief time together. Dumas’ poetry (and fiction) survived largely because of Redmond, and in the survivor’s decadeslong efforts to collect, curate, edit, publish and now reprint Dumas’ work, we see a debt of gratitude that will never be fully paid.

I had been alive only half a year in 1967 when Dumas arrived in East St. Louis and

assured the future survival of his poetry by meeting Redmond. I was a white boy seven miles (and several centuries of slavery) away in the Sundown Town of Granite City. But, in 1989, when Redmond first secured publication of “Knees of a Natural Man,” I was Redmond’s friend and understudy in the St. Louis performance poetry scene. Then, as now, Redmond never spoke for more than a minute without mentioning or quoting Henry Dumas.

There is no telling how many thousands of people have read Dumas because Redmond talked to them about Dumas assuming that they had read Dumas – or would, eventually, after hearing Dumas spill out of Redmond’s mouth. Redmond became even better friends with Toni Morrison (who is among the thousands of Redmondspurred Dumas readers) and Maya Angelou. I can remember being a 23-year-old white guy running around with a 52-yearold Redmond, who was always saying, “Maya,” “Dumas,” “Morrison” – not to mention “Baraka,” “Miles,” “Bluiett,” “Mor Thiam” (the father of Akon), all his personal friends – and me thinking, “I’ve got to catch up, I’ve got to get to know this stuff, this stuff is important, this stuff is going to teach me how to write, this stuff is going to teach me how to live.” this honey you gave me has turned to tears Dumas wrote, and Redmond curated, dripping from your fingers a lost sweetness but you can get it back. When they kill a man, you can never bring him back, but when you publish a poet, even if the book goes out of print, you can bring it back into print. You can get it back. You can bring him back.

“Knees of a Natural Man” is being reprinted on October 30 by Flood Editions; pre-order at www.floodeditions.com.

Henry Dumas, William G. Davis and Eugene B. Redmond in 1967, during their tenure at the Experiment in Higher Education at Southern Illinois University.

Courtesy of Eugene B. Redmond

Mill Creek Valley from Union Station, 1959. Missouri Historical Society Collections.

Vivian Gibson

Clergy encourage the faithful to register to vote – and vote

October 7 is the last date to register to vote in the November 3 election

American staff

Bishop Dr. Mark Hilton Sandilands, presiding bishop/CEO at The Mission Consortium of Churches International, Inc., is organizing simultaneous voter registration drives to rally congregations to register to vote.

Wednesday, October 7 is the last date to register to vote in the November 3 election. To register, you must be a U.S. citizen and 17 ½ years of age to register. To vote, you must be 18 years of age and a resident of the state where you are registered.

Out of America’s 90 million Christians, as many as 40 million do not vote in presidential elections, Sandilands said, and 15 million aren’t even registered.

“We have to change this, we can change this and we will change this,” Sandilands said. “The local church is key to helping every Christian understand how important it is to influence the culture and nation through one’s faith, and one of the most crucial ways to do that is by voting with biblical values.”

Bishop Ivory Jones III of the Grace Missionary Baptist Church of Cleveland, Ohio said he plans to promote voter participation during this vital election season.

“There appears to be a sense

of hopelessness and doubt amongst today’s voters. People simply do not feel that their vote matters or will produce change. We must inspire the vote through communication, organizing, educating and unifying our efforts,” Jones said.

“We have critical issues throughout our nation that perhaps will not change without the power of the vote. In addition, we must inspire the young American to vote. We must encourage the young men and women to become confident in their privilege and honor to vote. It is my prayer that this historic season will produce a massive voter turnout.”

Dr. Peter F. Moss, pastor of the Christian Church By Faith in Pompano Beach, Florida, encourages all citizens to make every effort to assist individuals in the community to vote in every election.

“It’s our decisions today that will determine the path of our future tomorrow,” Moss said. “Serving a predominantly Haitian-American community, it is my responsibility and duty to ensure the congregation is educated and aware of the resources, advantages available to them as citizens.”

Photo by Wiley Price

A group of clergy offered their individual, personal endorsements of St. Louis Circuit

Attorney Kimberly Gardner on Monday, August

n “Leadership, we, the church, say to you, ‘God is tired of you abusing his creation, such as the inadequacies of addressing climate change.’”

– Bishop Joe Simon, Mission Consortium of Churches International

Bishop Joe Simon, the second presiding bishop at the Mission Consortium of Churches International, Inc., compared 2020 to “the time of Moses and the time of that heartless, vicious, cruel, no concern, slave ownership

Pharaoh mentality, king of Egypt.”

“Moses, he was living peacefully as a shepherd in the desert. One day while he was tending his flock, he heard the voice of God coming from a burning bush. God ordered Moses to go and force Pharaoh to let his Hebrew people go,” Simon said.

“And, God spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am the Lord: And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of God Almighty, but by my name

JEHOVAH was I not known to them. And I have also heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered my covenant. Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgements: And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and ye shall know that I am the Lord your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.” Simon said this message must be given to the leadership of today.

“The leadership of today is ungodly, selfish, vicious, evil and is a conniving leadership,” Simon said. “Leadership, we, the church, say to you, ‘God is tired of you misusing and abusing children, God is tired of you misusing and abusing his people, and leadership God is tired of you misusing and abusing his creation, such as the inadequacies of addressing climate change.’ Let us pray.” For national voter registration, visit https://www.usa.gov/ register-to-vote. In Missouri, visit https://www.sos.mo.gov/ elections/goVoteMissouri/register. The League of Women Voters has a helpful page where you can also register at https:// tinyurl.com/LWV-register. Another helpful resource is https://www.vote411.org. The Mission Consortium of Churches International also has a helpline at 877 805-8447.

It takes all of us

We all have a history. A story. We bring with us life experiences that shape who we are and make us better.

At Spire, we know our individual stories only make us stronger as a whole. That’s why we’re committed to an inclusive work environment where all that makes us unique is embraced, encouraged and valued.

Because it truly takes all of us—our backgrounds, our perspectives and our experiences—to move forward.

3 at the Deaconess Center For Child Well Being. Rev. Duane Burch Pastor of Mount Herald Missionary Baptist Church, Gail Booker, Rev. Dr. Spencer L. Booker Pastor of St. Paul AME Church and Bishop Dr. Elijah Hankerson III, pastor of Life Center International, listened as Rev. Earl Nance, pastor of Greater Mt. Carmel Missionary Baptist Church, spoke on behalf of the group of clergy.

Sports

InSIdE SportS

10 black QBs start opening day

New NFL record

It was a historic first weekend in the National Football League in that there a record 10 Black quarterbacks starting on opening day.

The list of quarterbacks included Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs, Russell Wilson of the Seattle Seahawks, Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens, Kyler Murray of the Arizona Cardinals, Cam Newton of the New England Patriots, Dak Prescott of the Dallas Cowboys, Deshaun Watson of the Houston Texans, Dwyane Haskins of the Washington Football Team, Teddy Bridgewater of the Carolina Panthers and Tyrod Taylor of the Los Angeles Chargers.

Tatum had 29 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in 44 minutes to lead the Boston Celtics past the defending champion Toronto Raptors in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The Celtics are now taking on the Miami Heat in the Eastern Conference finals. In his three Game 7 appearances, Tatum is averaging 25 points, eight rebounds and four assists a game.

It was also a productive weekend for Black quarterbacks as their teams finished with a 7-3 record. The record-setting opening day comes on the heels of a tremendous 2019 season for Black quarterbacks in terms of postseason honors. Kyler Murray was the Offensive Rookie of the Year, Lamar Jackson was the league’s Most Valuable Player and Patrick Mahomes was the Super Bowl MVP after leading the Chiefs to its first world championship in 51 years.

Jayson Tatum in Game 7

Former Chaminade College Prep All-American Jayson Tatum is only 22 years old and has been in the National Basketball Association for only three seasons, but he has already proven to be a clutch performer in the playoffs’ biggest moments. That would be Game 7. Tatum has already participated in three Game 7s in his brief career and has thrived when the pressure is at its highest. In last week’s 92-87 victory over the Toronto Raptors,

Kyren Williams’ big debut

Former Vianney High football star Kyren Williams enjoyed a big debut performance as a starting running back for the Fighting Irish of Notre Dame. Williams rushed for 112 yards on 19 carries, scored two touchdowns and added 93 more yards on two receptions to lead Notre Dame to a 27-13 victory over Duke. Williams was awarded the Game Ball from Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly after his tremendous starting debut. Williams was a former St. Louis American Player of the Year at Vianney, where led the Golden Griffins two a pair of Class 5 state championships.

Dominic Lovett to Arizona State

Standout wide receiver Dominic Lovett of East St. Louis gave a commitment to Arizona State University over the weekend. A four-star prospect, the 5’10” 170-pound Lovett is one of the top prospects in the state of Illinois. He had nearly two dozen offers before choosing Arizona State over programs such as Illinois, Alabama, Georgia, LSU, Penn State and several others. As a junior, Lovett had 73 receptions for 1,541 yards and 18 touchdowns while averaging 21 yards per catch. He was a big component in the Flyers’

powerful offense that rolled to an Illinois Class 6A state championship last season. In the state championship game, Lovett caught five passes for 118 yards and two touchdowns in the Flyers’ 41-24 victory over Crystal Lake Prairie Ridge.

Yaya Keita commits to Mizzou DeSmet Jesuit basketball

standout Yaya Keita has given a verbal commitment to the University of Missouri. The 6’9” 225-pound Keita is one of the top prospects in the state of Missouri. As a junior, Keita averaged 8.1 points and 9.4 rebounds while shooting 54 percent from the field in helping the Spartans to a 22-7 record. Keita fielded offers from a bevy of Division I programs before committing to the Tigers.

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With Alvin A. Reid

one of a record

Mizzou head coach Cuonzo Martin also picked up a big in-state commitment from 6’8” forward Trevon Brazile of Springfield Kickapoo. Brazile is an explosive forward with an abundance of potential.

Kirkwood Teachers of Color Fundraiser

Kirkwood Teachers of Color is presenting its inaugural fundraiser, which is a Glory

Walk/Run Marathon to provide higher education scholarships for Kirkwood students of color. The virtual marathon will begin on October 1 and will last until October 31. Participants can run/walk 26.2 miles or bike for 100 miles. For those who are interested to register or to get more information on the event, you go on the link, https://www.eventbrite. com/e/116541263055.

Anthem protests ring true throughout NFL

The largest peaceful demonstration against racism and police brutality by NFL players took place in America’s largest city on Monday night.

At least 19 New York Giants took a knee during the national anthem – more than a third of the active roster – before their team’s game against the Pittsburgh Steelers.

The impressive action would have been greeted with many boos had there been fans in the stadium, and there was much criticism on social media and New York radio airwaves.

Head coach Joe Judge, who would go on to lose his first game at the Giants’ helm, stood during the anthem while touching the shoulders kneeling Jabrill Peppers and Dalvin Tomlinson. He also stood up for his players during his postgame press conference.

Nothing was scripted in terms of who stood next to me or who I was touching,” Judge said.

“As a team, the thing that makes you special is you respect everybody’s unique background. We respected our players’ rights and choices.

I’m proud of the way our team

handled it in terms of sticking together and not letting anything externally divide us.”

The Steelers were remained in their locker room during “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” which is known as the “Black National Anthem, and the Giants remained on the field. All Giants players stood for the song.

During the national anthem, the Steelers stood side by side while a group of players held a white banner with the words “Steelers Against Racism.”

While millions of eyes were on the Dallas Cowboys and owner Jerry Jones when the anthem was played before the game against the Los Angeles in $5 billion SoFi Stadium, more than a dozen Rams players knelt. Among them were All-Pro and future Hall of Fame defensive tackle Aaron Donald.

The lone Dallas Cowboy to kneel, as he said he would do, was defensive tackle Dontari Poe. Jones stood with his hand over his heart in an upper level suite.

“I had already told teammates and coaches that I was going to do it,” Poe told Dallas

Morning News columnist Clarence Hill.

“My teammates were telling me that they didn’t want me to do it by myself alone because we’re a team. But I had told them my mind was already made up and I felt this way. And if they didn’t, don’t do it. Don’t do it unless your heart is there like mine was. I appreciate my guys for sticking with me for being behind me.”

Reigning NFL

MVP Lamar Jackson was among at least six Baltimore Ravens to kneel or sit on the bench during the anthem.

The Indianapolis Colts’ Frank Reich was the lone head coach to kneel during the national anthem, along with several of his players.

Our intent is to bring attention to the issue of systemic racism and the injustice inherit therein,” the Colts organization said in a written release.

“We also wanted to demonstrate a symbolic gesture of how we believe meaningful change happens. TO BE

CLEAR — we were not protesting the flag, the anthem, or the men and women who wear the uniform.” Apparently, millions of television viewers opted out of watching prime time games, in part, because of the protests. Ratings were significantly down for the Thursday night season opener between the host defending champion Kansas City Chiefs and Houston Texans and the Sunday night game between the Cowboys and Rams.

Tatum’s time to shine

St. Louis area native Jayson

Tatum did his best Kobe Bryant imitation last week to lead the Boston Celtics to a Game 7 victory over the Toronto Raptors in the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals. Tatum scored 29 points and added 12 rebounds and seven assists in the victory.

At just 22, Tatum joined Hall of Famers Bryant and Jerry West as the only players to record at least 25 points,

10 rebounds and 5 assists in a Game 7 before the age of 25.

“It took everything,” Tatum said after the clinching win against the Raptors.

“When you’re trying to achieve something special like winning a championship, you’re gonna have to go through some stuff. I think we responded.”

Celtics coach Brad Stevens said, “(Jayson) just has a great feel for the game.”

“In this series, he saw everything you could possibly see. He’s done a great job of handling it.”

Race, racing make headlines

Bubba Wallace, who’s disdain for the Confederate flag at raceways led NASCAR to ban them at racing sites, has announced he is leaving Richard Petty Motorsports (RPM).

Saying that he wants to join a team “that feels like family,” NASCAR’s lone black driver added that he wants to join a team that offers a car that can win races and competitive equipment.

“I came into this sport wanting to win races and be a household name on the track,” Wallace said.

Racing writer Alex Andrejev of the Miami Herald wrote that RPM “typically fields a mid-pack running car and isn’t in the championship conversation. Wallace has made it clear that he wants to be racing faster than midpack.”

By the way, NASCAR legend Richard Petty does not own RPM.

It’s owner, Andrew Murstein, offered Wallace a contract for next year, which included a partial ownership stake.

Statistically, 2020 has been Wallace’s best season in his three years with RPM. During his three years with RPM, Wallace has recorded three top-five finishes, one in each season, and nine top-10s. It has also been a great season off the track for Wallace financially. He has signed lucrative marketing deals with Columbia Sportswear, DoorDash, Cash App, Beats by Dre and Kingsford.

Alvin A. Reid

Lamar Jackson of the Baltimore Ravens, the NFL’s 2019 Most Valuable Player, was

10 Black quarterbacks starting on 2020 opening day.

Earl Austin Jr.

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St. LouiS american Career Center

JANITORIAL - HIRING

FULL TIME POLICE OFFICER

The City of Clayton is now hiring for the fulltime position of Police Officer or Police Officer in Academy. Apply here: https://claytonmo. applicantpro.com/jobs/ EOE

CIVIC

&

MANAGER Great Rivers Greenway seeks a Civic Engagement Manager and a Project Manager who like a team environment and making the St. Louis Region a better place for all. Full descriptions of the

BID PROPOSAL

Great Rivers Greenway is Requesting Proposals

submit by October 09, 2020.

Paric Corporation is seeking proposals for the following project: Critical Care Addition – Update Procedure Room C2025 for the University of Missouri in Columbia, MO.

This is a renovation of an existing procedure room located on the 2nd floor of the University Hospital.

The project includes but is not limited to selective demolition, drywall, acoustical ceilings, painting, flooring, fire protection, plumbing, HVAC and electrical work.

This project has a diversity participation goals of 10% combined MBE, WBE, DBE, Veteran Owned Business and 3% SDVE.

Bids for this project are due on September 22th, at 12:00 p.m. For any questions or would like to find out more detailed information on this opportunity, please contact Evan Chiles at 816-878-6003 or emchiles@paric.com.

All bids should be delivered to Paric via e-mail (bids@paric.com) or fax (816-878-6249).

(LEED, Enterprise Green, NGBS, etc.), or have an energy audit with a HERS of 85 or less.

Federal Community Development Block Grant coronavirus relief funds may be available for affordable housing proposals which prevent, prepare for or respond to the coronavirus. Applicants should indicate how this

build to a national green building standard (LEED, Enterprise Green, NGBS, or EnergyStar with a RESNET energy auditor.) The development is not required to receive formal certification. All development projects must complete (as a condition of funding, not required for application): 1) Spire High Efficiency Program Rebate application, and, 2) Ameren Missouri

. Applications will be available for pickup after 12 noon, Monday, September 14th at Affordable Housing Commission offices, 1520 Market Street, Suite #2080, 63103. Applications may be obtained on the internet at the Affordable Housing Commission’s website, www.affordablehousingcommissionstl. org, September 14, 2020. It is anticipated

Saint Louis Zoo Association seeks bids from qualified vendors to provide planned giving marketing content, production and delivery services to its constituents. Bid documents are available as of Sept 16, 2020 on the Saint Louis Zoo website: stlzoo.org/vendor

Date of Publication: 9/17/2020

City of St. Louis: Community Development Administration (CDA) 1520 Market Street St. Louis, Missouri 63103

314-657-3700 / 314-589-6000 (TDD)

These notices shall satisfy two separate but related procedural requirements for activities to be undertaken by the City of St. Louis (“The City.”)

REQUEST FOR RELEASE OF FUNDS

On or after 10/5/2020, the City will submit a request to the U.S. Dept. of Housing & Urban Development (HUD) for the release of the City’s Federal HOME Program funds, to undertake the following projects: Project Title: Doorways 2.0

Purpose: New construction of residential facility that will provide housing 50 units of one- and two-bedroom apartments along with social service and administrative offices. Location: 2600 Stoddard, St. Louis, Missouri, 63106

Estimated Cost: Total development cost of this project is approximately $12,945,945, with $650,000.00 of funding coming from St. Louis City’s Year 2018 Federal HOME Program Funds— Grant # M-18-MC-29-0500.

FINDING OF NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT

The City has determined that these projects will have no significant impact on the human environment. Certain conditions will apply to this project. Therefore, an Environmental Impact Statement under the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA) is not required. Additional information for each project is contained in the Environmental Review Record (ERR) on file at CDA, at the above address, where the ERR is available for review and may be examined or copied weekdays, 8 A.M. to 4 P.M. PUBLIC COMMENTS

Any individual, group, or agency may submit written comments on the ERR to Rachel Sobotka, Community Development Planner II, CDA, at the address listed above. All comments received by 10/3/2020 will be considered by the City prior to authorizing submission of a request for release of funds. Comments should specify which notice they are addressing.

RELEASE OF FUNDS

The City certifies to HUD that, Lyda Krewson, in her capacity as Mayor, consents to accept the jurisdiction of the Federal Courts if an action is brought to enforce responsibilities in relation to the environmental review process and that these responsibilities have been satisfied. HUD’s approval of the certification satisfies its responsibilities under NEPA and related laws and authorities and allows the City to use the City’s above-referenced HUD program funds.

OBJECTION TO RELEASE OF FUNDS

HUD will accept objections to its release of funds and the City’s certification for a period of 15 days following the anticipated submission date or its actual receipt of the request (whichever is later) only if they are on one of the following bases: a) the certification was not executed by the Certifying Officer of the City; b) the City has omitted a step or failed to make a decision or finding required by HUD regulations at 24 CFR Part 58; c) the grant recipient has committed funds or incurred costs not authorized by 24 CFR Part 58 before approval of the release of funds by HUD; or d) another Federal agency acting pursuant to 40 CFR Part 1504 has submitted a written finding that the project is unsatisfactory from the standpoint of environmental quality. Objections must be prepared and submitted in accordance with the required procedures (24 CFR Part 58.76) and shall be addressed to Ms. Renee Ryles, Acting Community Planning & Development Director, HUD, 1222 Spruce Street, St. Louis, Missouri 63103 (314) 418-5405. Potential objectors should contact HUD to verify the actual last day of the objection period.

Lyda Krewson, Mayor Certifying Officer

NOTICE OF PUBLIC HEARING

ST. LOUIS COMMUNITY COLLEGE

St. Louis Community College will receive separate sealed bids for Contract No. F 21 601, Baseball/ Softball Fields Backstop Improvements, St. Louis Community College at Meramec, until 2:00 p.m. local time, Thursday, October 1, 2020 Bids can be dropped in a mail slot at the front door of Engineering and Design, 5464 Highland Park Drive. Bids will be opened and read by the Manager of Engineering and Design (Ken Kempf), 5464 Highland Park Drive (Plan Room). Specifications and bid forms may be obtained by emailing Angie James at ajames84@stlcc.edu.

Pre-bid Meeting: September 23, 2020 at 10:00 am at Meramec Community College Baseball Field 11333 Big Bend Road, St. Louis, MO 63122 An Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action Employer

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The St. Louis Economic Development Partnership (the “Partnership”) solicits proposals from qualified firms to provide website development services for the Partnership’s website. A copy of the complete RFP is available at https://stlpartnership.com/rfprfq/. DBE, MBE, and WBE consultants are encouraged to bid, and a five percent bid preference may be available to certified MBE firms. To be considered, proposals must be received no later than 3PM CST on Thursday, October 8, 2020.

St. Louis Economic Development Partnership Equal

BID PROPOSAL

Great Rivers Greenway is requesting bids for Maintenance and Conservation Services. Go to www.greatriversgreenway.org/ jobs-bids/ and submit by October 15, 2020.

Lou Brock Jr. remembers Lou Brock

‘Mental toughness: That was not only what made him a Hall of Fame baseball player’

By Chris King Of The St. Louis American

Lou Brock Jr. was not the only son of Lou Brock nor his first-born child, but he was the first son of the Hall of Fame ballplayer and he bears the man’s name. Perhaps that is why, when offered a chance to talk to him about his father (who passed September 6 at 81), I wanted to start by telling Brock a story about Confucius and his son.

Confucius’ wisdom has survived the ages in books, but he was not a writer. He was a musician and what today we would call a musicologist who made a living advising princes and warlords. He was a political consultant. He was so good at his day job, however, that people wrote down what he said. He attracted students and acolytes who were responsible for the survival of his ideas.

Confucius himself focused on keeping alive, in memory and performance, the Odes, the ancient Chinese folk poems that survive as folk songs.

When Confucius died (479 years before the birth of Jesus Christ), the font of wisdom died with him. He lived and died in a deeply patriarchal culture that highly prized sons, so Confucius’ students and acolytes descended on his only son in search of wisdom that the great man must have taught his one and only son.

“Leave me alone,” the son told them. “He was my dad. I didn’t follow him around like you did writing down everything he said. We played music together. He was my dad. Leave me alone.”

The students and acolytes would not leave him alone. They continued to seek out the son and pester him. The master must have told his only son something he only told his only son that he never told anyone else, that he never told us. What was it?

Finally, the son gave up, and he told them, “My father always told me: Know the Odes. That is all.” Know the Odes. Know the old songs. That is all.

I told this story to Lou Brock Jr., then I asked him, “Your father must have told you something he only told his son that he never told anyone else, that he never told us. What was it?”

“Wow,” Lou Brock Jr. said. “That’s a beautiful question. I never knew that about Confucius. Thank you for telling me that. That would be something really personal. Let me come back to that.” What he wanted to talk about, first, was what it was like having a father who was a universally beloved global celebrity. The son was struck by, no matter how many other

global celebrities were in the room (or at, say, the opening of a new shopping mall in Indiana), the conversation would always arrive at his father.

“I guess you could call him a star among stars,” his son said. Even the most famous people in the world most preoccupied with the problems of being famous asked Lou Brock how he dealt with being famous. They wanted his life hacks as a famous person.

Lou Brock Jr. grew up watching his father play baseball on television, so he knew his father was famous as surely as he knew that he was his father, but that fact never struck the son harder than when he visited Japan in the 1980s with the University of Southern California football team (Brock played defensive back).

Strolling the streets of Tokyo, Brock and some teammates gravitated to the sound of spoken English and ended up visiting with some tourists from the Netherlands. When Brock told them he was from St. Louis, one of the Dutch tourists said, “St. Louis: Anheuser-Busch; Lou Brock.”

“And I’m half-way around the world in Tokyo,” Brock said.

His buddies later goaded him, “Why didn’t you tell them you are Lou Brock Jr.?” and Brock replied, “They never would have believed me.”

The unbelievable yet true was a routine feature of life as Lou Brock, senior and junior. As the son warmed up to the interview and we established some trust, I mentioned that in the final years of his father’s life he was surrounded by protests of police violence against Black people. Did his father ever tell him stories about dealing with the police?

“Yes,” Brock said, “though I don’t think this is what you are looking for.”

The Chicago Cubs traded Lou Brock to the St. Louis Cardinals (one of Major League Baseball’s most notorious trades) in 1964, two months after his namesake first son was born. Lou Brock was then a poorly paid, no-name prospect, and his new team did not provide him with lodgings in St. Louis. He could not afford two homes. Brock was traded to St. Louis on the June 15 trading deadline, and for the rest of the regular season he commuted to home games from Chicago on Interstate 55.

On one of these drives, a man traded to St. Louis for the speed of his legs was pulled over by a police officer for the speed of his automobile. When the cop did not believe this 25-year-old Black man that he was speeding to St. Louis to play baseball for the Cardinals, the cop took him into the sta-

n “For the 56 years I knew my dad, his answer was always: Saying yes to the lord Jesus Christ and the way he grew in Christianity. Please put that in your story. He thought baseball only set him up for his work in Christ’s name.”

- Lou Brock Jr.

tion. There, a supervisor actually called the Cardinals, where management vouched for their new left fielder and lead-off hitter and begged the police to get him to St. Louis as fast as they could.

“All of the sudden, he had a police escort going 125 miles per hour the rest of the way to St. Louis,” his son said.

During that game, Brock got on first base and was thrown out stealing second. (In 1964, Brock finished second in the National League with 33 stolen bases, but he led the league in being caught stealing with 15.)

When Brock questioned the umpire about the call, the ump said, “Shut up, Brock. This is the second time you got caught speeding today.”

The son exclaimed, “It turned out the cop who pulled over my father was the

umpire’s son in law!”

Brock shared no story of police abuse concerning his father, but he suffered through a tremendous amount of racism along his father, who was the son of sharecroppers raised in the Jim Crow South. Brock senior was 8 when Jackie Robinson broke the color line in Major League Baseball, and neither the league nor the nation was desegregated during Brock’s early years in the game.

“Absolutely, my father had to stand up to racism,” Brock said. And not only the routine racism of segregated public facilities and widespread disrespect. “He encountered death threats as a Black man breaking Major League Baseball records,” his son said. (Lou Brock broke most MLB records for stolen bases and remains

the career leader in the National League.) Bomb threats were phoned into Busch Stadium. The family was accompanied to the stadium by personal bodyguards. One trailed Brock Jr. to school when he was in elementary school.

Surely, this helps to explain why the other most famous people in the world – Ed McMahon and the Olympic athlete then known as Bruce Jenner were two names that came up – turned to Lou Brock for answers about how to cope with fame.

“Mental toughness,” Brock summarized his father. “Mike Shannon talked about it at his funeral. He was never on the Disabled List for 19 years. That was all mental toughness. That was not only what made him a Hall of Fame baseball player. It also helped him cope with

things in a gentlemanly fashion that make other people come unhinged. How he approached baseball was the same way he approached racism.” He related another life hack from his father that he must have passed onto many other people, famous and not famous, helping them to cope. “One of his business partners asked him one day: What makes a Hall of Famer?” Brock said. “His answer was: You come out of your slumps faster.” All players slump. Hall of Famers come out of their slumps faster. By then, the son finally had thought of something he could say in the spirit of Confucius’ son giving an answer to the acolytes who wanted to hear something that the master only had said to the son.

Brock Jr. was in the prized position of being recruited for two sports coming out of Ladue High School in 1982. USC offered him a football scholarship, and the Montreal Expos offered him a contact to play professional baseball. The financial support was better for football at the collegiate level and education was a priority, so in the end he did not follow in his father’s fleet footsteps. His father did not push or persuade him, other than to tell him one thing Lou Brock may have never said to anyone other than his son: “Baseball is a career, but football is a job.” At that point, I felt that my story was complete, but this is not my story.

“I thought you were going to ask what my father’s greatest accomplishment was,” Brock said.

“For the 56 years I knew my dad, his answer was always: Saying yes to the lord Jesus Christ and the way he grew in Christianity. Please put that in your story. He thought baseball only set him up for his work in Christ’s name.” I felt that was the end of Lou Brock’s story, but his son texted me early the next morning: “Got a dad son Confucius one liner that you may like better. Call me today whenever you can.”

I called him when I could.

“I was 12 years old at Spring Training with my dad, working as a bat boy in Cardinals uniform for an exhibition game against the Mets, and my dad was the leadoff hitter,” he said – as, indeed, only the son of Lou Brock could say.

“The umpire motioned to me for the number of fresh balls he needed. It was the 1st inning, and I was running the balls out. Then I turned to go back to the dugout, and the Mets pitcher was warming up. I saw this white streak, and the ball hit the catcher’s mitt with a big “POW!”

His father, the leadoff hitter, was standing in the on-deck circle.

The son said, “Dad, do you have to play today?”

The son remembered, “He looked at me quizzically and said, ‘Why?’”

The son said, “Because the pitcher is throwing 100 miles per hour.”

The son remembered: “And my dad said, ‘Yeah, well, I swing my bat at 135 miles per hour, so I ain’t worried about that.’”

Back row: Jennifer Brock (daughter in law), Lou Jr (son), Jackie Brock (wife), Lou Brock, Wanda Brock (daughter) Seated row: Alivia Brock (granddaughter), Darian Brock (granddaughter)

Photo courtesy of St. Louis Cardinals archive

‘He was a gentle spirit’

Ozzie Smith reacts to the death of fellow Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Lou Brock

By Corey Miller

KSDK 5 On Your Side

St. Louis sports lost a legend on Sunday with the death of Cardinals Hall of Famer Lou Brock at the age of 81.

Brock’s death has sparked an outpouring of support around baseball, especially here in St. Louis.

5 On Your Side Sports director Frank Cusumano talked with fellow Hall of Famer Ozzie Smith about what Brock meant to him, and to baseball.

“Well, I mean, Lou is kind of the standard. You know, coming over here to the Cardinals in 1982 and having a chance to get to know Lou Brock, not only as a player. He was in his last year

in 1979 which was my second year in pro ball and, you know, Lou was a class act both on and off the field. He was an easy guy to talk to him, was always willing to share his knowledge of the game and I think that Lou is is what is make Cardinal baseball what it is today.” Smith said. “I mean, the excitement that is created by he was able to create excitement, both with his legs and with his bat you know so he was one of the most exciting cardinals and one of the nicest people you ever want to meet.”

As much as he was famous for his baseball ability, Brock was also famous for his easygoing style and warmth.

You never saw Lou Brock in a bad mood.

“No he was never he was never in a bad mood. He always had a smile on his face and always had a kind word to say about everybody and he was just one of those rare individuals who could who could light up a room.” Smith said. “He was very he’s very intellectual and he knows his craft, he knew his craft and and I guess it’s in base stealing, you know, because Vince Coleman is pretty much the same type of guy who knew his craft very well and you know, it’s just a great guy to be around.”

As a Black ballplayer coming into the game in the 1960’s Brock faced racism and other challenges to make his mark on the game. But any hardships didn’t show up in his personality.

“Yeah, he was he was a gentle spirit and unlike some of the other guys who who took it a lot harder. You know, I think he was able to internalize it and present it in a totally different way. I mean, I think he accepted in a totally different way understanding the importance of who he was and who he represented. It wasn’t just about himself,” Smith said. “You know, I think he he understood that it was about how we as a as a As a people accepted it, because he was going to be. We were going to be judged by how he Reacted to a situation. And I think that That a lot of that came from how Jackie Robinson approach. Major League Baseball as well.”

Lou Brock poses with fellow Major League Baseball Hall of Famers Bob Gibsob, left, and Ozzie Smith.

Photo by Maurice Meredith

Lou Brock leads off of first base during the 1967 World Series. He hit .414 with seven stolen bases while scoring eight runs in helping to lead the Cardinals to the championship over the Boston Red Sox.

When the stakes were high, Brock was at his greatest

Hit .391 with 14 stolen bases in 21 World Series games

By Earl Austin Jr.

Of the St. Louis American

The St. Louis community lost a local legend with the passing of former Cardinals great Lou Brock at the age of 81. Not only was Lou an iconic baseball figure, but he was also a wonderful human being who was loved by everyone.

When one thinks of the greatness of Lou Brock, the subject immediately turns to the art of stealing bases, which he was one of the best in the history of the sport. His 938 stolen bases is a National League record with 118

of them coming during his record-breaking 1974 season.

Brock accomplished a great deal during his baseball career, but the one thing that stands out most to me is what how he was able to raise his level of play in the World Series when the stakes were at his highest. The Cardinals won world championships in 1964 and 1967 and Brock was at his best when the money was truly on the line.

Earl Austin Jr.

The great Reggie Jackson earned the nickname “Mr. October” because of his World Series exploits, but Brock could

have easily had that nickname with what he accomplished during the Cardinals’ three trips to the Fall Classic in the 1960’s. In 21 total World Series games, Brock hit .391 with four home runs, 13 runs batted in and 14 stolen bases.

The Cardinals won both of their championships in the 1960’s in exciting seven-game series. And it was Brock who came up with a couple of sparkling performances in Game 7 of both series to spark the Cardinals to victory. In Game 7 of the 1964 World Series against

the New York Yankees, Brock had two hits in four plate appearances and hit a home run in the Cardinals 7-5 victory. Three years later in Game 7 of the 1967 World Series against the Boston Red Sox, Brock had two hits in four plate appearances, scored a run and stole three bases in the Cardinals 7-2 victory.

In 1967, he hit 414 with eight runs scored and a record seven stolen bases against the Boston Red Sox. The following season, he hit .464 with 13 hits and another seven stolen bases against the Detroit Tigers.

That, my friends, is called rising to the occasion. RIP, Base Burglar.

A timeline of the Major League baseball career of Lou Brock

1963

Brock had great speed and base running instincts, but the young right fielder failed to impress the Cubs management, hitting for only a combined .260 average over his first two seasons. In 1964 after losing patience with his development, the Cubs gave up on Brock and made him part of a trade with the St. Louis Cardinals. The June 15 deadline deal for pitcher Ernie Broglio saw Brock, Jack Spring, and Paul Toth head to St. Louis for Broglio, Bobby Shantz, and Doug Clemens. Cardinals general manager Bing Devine specifically sought Brock at the insistence of Cardinals’ manager Johnny Keane to increase team speed and solidify the Cardinals’ lineup, which was struggling after the retirement of left fielder Stan Musial in 1963. At the time, many thought the deal was a heist for the Cubs. Broglio had led the National League in wins four years earlier, and had won 18 games the season before the trade.

1964

In 1966, Brock ended Maury Wills’ six-year reign as the National League’s stolen base champion with 74 steals. In David Halberstam’s book, October 1964, the author stated manager Johnny Keane asked Brock to forgo hitting home runs in favor of stealing bases. Brock went on to lead the National League in stolen bases eight times within a nine-year span between 1966 and 1974 (former teammate Bobby Tolan led the league in steals in 1970).

Brock recorded his Major League record 105th stolen base off the Philadelphia Phillies which broke Maury Wills’ single-season record. Brock went on to steal 118 bases for the season.

1974

On September 10, 1974, Brock tied Wills’ single-season stolen bases mark of 104 with a first-inning steal of second base, and then captured sole possession of the record with another swipe of second in the seventh inning. He ended the season with a new major league single-season record of 118 stolen bases. Brock finished second to Steve Garvey in the balloting for the 1974 National League Most Valuable Player Award.

Lou Brock smashes one of his Major League record 13 hits during the 1968 World Series. Brock posted a .464 batting average for the series.

1968

The Cardinals won the National League pennant for a second consecutive year in 1968 as Brock once again led the league in stolen bases as well as in doubles and triples. In the 1968 World Series against the Detroit Tigers, Brock had three stolen bases in Game 3 and contributed a double, triple, home run, and four runs batted in during Game 4 to help the Cardinals build a three-games to one advantage over the Tigers. But the Tigers rallied behind the excellent pitching of Mickey Lolich to win the series. Brock once again stole seven bases and was the leading hitter in the series, posting a .464 batting average with 6 runs and 5 runs batted in.

Salute to Lou Brock

1977

In a game against the San Diego Padres on August 29, 1977, at San Diego Stadium, Brock became the all-time major league stolen base leader when he broke Ty Cobb’s career record of 892 stolen bases. The record had been one of the most durable in baseball history and like Babe Ruth’s record of 714 career home runs, had been considered unbreakable by some observers. Brock held this record until May 31, 1991, when it was broken by Rickey Henderson of the Oakland Athletics, who would go on to steal a total of 1,406.

1979

On August 13, 1979, Brock became the fourteenth player in Major League Baseball history to reach the 3,000 hits plateau against the team that traded him, the Chicago Cubs. Approximately one month later, Carl Yastrzemski reached the same plateau and was promptly invited to the White House by Massachusetts native and Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill. Brock was reported to have felt slighted that he hadn’t received a similar invitation. Brock originally stated that he wouldn’t go to the White House even if he was invited. However, after consideration, he decided that forgiveness was the best course and accepted a belated invitation to meet with the President. Brock retired at the end of the season, having posted a .304 batting average in his last season at the age of 40. At the end of the season, he was named the National League Comeback Player of the Year — the first player to be so named in his final Major League season.

with his wife,

19852006

Brock was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1985, his first year of eligibility. He was inducted into the Missouri Sports Hall of Fame in 1992. Brock was inducted into the St. Louis Walk of Fame in May 1994 and, in 1995 he was inducted into the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame. In 1999, he was ranked Number 58 on The Sporting News’ list of the 100 Greatest Baseball Players, and was nominated as a finalist for the Major League Baseball All-Century Team.

at a trophy presentation at

Brock and his wife, Jackie, were both ordained ministers serving at Abundant Life Fellowship Church in St. Louis, and he was a director on the board of YTB International. Brock’s speed was referenced in the song “Check the Rhime” by the pioneering “jazz rap” hip-hop ensemble A Tribe Called Quest. On December 5, 2006 he was recognized for his accomplishments on and off of the field when he received the Bobby Bragan Youth Foundation Lifetime Achievement Award. Brock was the father of former University of Southern California Trojan and National Football League player Lou Brock Jr.

Lou Brock in front of the sign that counted down Brock’s chase of the all-time stolen base record which was held by Ty Cobb.

Brock

Jackie,

Busch Stadium.

Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Cubs racial ‘quota system’ helped send Lou Brock to St. Louis

By Alvin A. Reid

For The St. Louis American

The St. Louis Cardinals were one of the final Major League Baseball teams to field a black player when Tom Alston was in the starting lineup on April 13, 1954. This was six years after Jackie Robinson took the field for the Brooklyn Dodgers.

A decade later, when young ace Bob Gibson was on the mound in 1964, the Cardinals sometimes had players of color on the field when combining Latino and Black players.

The starting lineup would include Gibson, center fielder Curt Flood, shortstop Julian Javier, first baseman Bill White and newly-acquired left fielder Lou Brock. Also, Cuban born pitcher Mike Cuellar started seven games that season and made 32 appearances. He would go on to become a star pitcher with the Baltimore Orioles.

Brock was acquired early in the season for pitcher Ernie Broglio. It is still called the worst trade in MLB history. Broglio was a broken-down right hander who lasted just three seasons with the Cubs. Brock, who passed away at 81 on Sept, 6, 2020, is in the Baseball Hall of Fame.

Why would the Cubs make such a ridiculous trade?

The late Buck O’Neil was a Negro League All-Star with several teams including the Kansas City Monarchs. He would become one of MLB’s first coaches and his scouting ability led to the Cubs signing Brock and Hall of Famers Ernie Banks and Ferguson Jenkins.

He signed many other black players in the early 1960s, only to see them traded away. Race and as “unwritten quota system,” were the reasons, O’Neil wrote in a 2002 essay that is included in the book Baseball as America

“They didn’t want but so many black kids on a major league ballclub.”

At the start of the 1964 season, the Cubs had five black players including Brock.

O’Neil got word that General Manager John Holland was going to trade Brock and told him if he did, “I don’t think we’ll have our best ballclub on the field.”

According to O’Neil, Holland “started pulling out letters and notes from people, season ticket holders, saying that their grandfather had season tickets here at

Wrigley Field, or their grandmother, and their families had come here for years.”

“And do you know what these letters went on to say? ‘What are you trying to make the Chicago Cubs into? The Kansas City Monarchs?’”

In 2014, as the Cubs celebrated the 100th anniversary of Wrigley Field, O’Neil told Chicago Reader columnist Steve Borgia the Cubs often traded many young black players.

“They were with us two years, and then we’d trade them, I don’t know why. Maybe they just wanted more, uh, veteran players,” O’Neil said.

Brock would become a baseball immortal and his Cardinals would defeat

the New York Yankees in seven games to win the 1964 World Series.

Brock and the Cardinals black players were among the first to decry segregation during spring training in Florida, and in some Major League cities. They demanded to stay at the same hotels and eat at the same restaurants as white teammates.

It was yet another battle that Brock helped the Cardinals win.

Of course, it was hardly a walk in the park when it came to racist fans in St. Louis and throughout baseball.

In an interview with KSDK’s Frank Cusumano the night of Brocks death, Hall of Fame shortstop Ozzie Smith said Brock “was a gentle spirit.”

In 1964, Lou Brock was acquired early in the season for pitcher Ernie Broglio. It is still called the worst trade in MLB history.

“Unlike some of the other guys who took (racism) a lot harder…I think he was able to internalize it…and accept it in a totally different way; understanding the importance of who he was and who he represented. It wasn’t just about himself,” Smith said.

“I think he understood that it was about how we, as a people, accepted it. We were going to be judged by how he reacted to a situation. And I think that a lot of that came from how Jackie Robinson approached it.”

The Cubs didn’t accept Brock and many other Black players. The Cardinals should always be grateful to the Cubs for that idiocy.

Alvin A. Reid

Salute to Lou Brock

Claiborne remembers Lou Brock

By Mike Claiborne Journalist and Cardinals Broadcaster

It’s a challenging time we live in, which comes with so much information about subjects and people. When it comes to people, what is said about them can at times be perplexing with respect to what the truth might be. If you ever wondered about the scouting report on Lou Brock, it was a simple one. The word “real” could start a long list in describing the “Base Burglar” as he was affectionately called by those who rose up from their chair, couch, when he got on base.

My dealings with Lou Brock go back to my early days with KMOX radio and The St. Louis American. While he was retired, Lou was always around the game, at the ballpark, and at spring training, doing anything that would help the game grow. Brock was one of the few players that could be found in North St. Louis talking to kids and passing on what the game had given him. Even in his later years, to see Lou Brock at the Cardinals Fantasy Camp or spring training was something we all looked forward to because with Lou, a kind word, keen observation or humorous story was sure to follow. I never saw Lou Brock have a bad day. Even the veteran Cardinal players would all make time to greet Brock once he stepped on the property. At the insistence of veteran players, coaches and managers, players new to the organization would make their way to introduce themselves only to learn that Lou Brock knew more about them than in some cases knew about themselves as they were just trying to make an impression. It was part of Cardinal Nation when it came to tradition of taking care of the future, and Lou relished that opportunity.

“Real tough” is where we can start when it came to Lou Brock, as in a 19-year career that saw him play 2,616 games that covered 21,492.1 innings. Not once in all the more than 10,000 at bats that produced more than 3,000 hits did you ever see him on the injured list. Think about that. Think about the pounding his body took from the more than 1200 attempts to steal a base...the sliding into bases where there may have been a heavy slap tag applied to the head and shoulders. There were the countless times of his diving back into first on a pick off attempt, and if that is not enough, let us throw in the 49 times he was hit by a pitch. Oh yes, do not forget about that. There would have been more but putting Brock on first base would have validated

his license to steal and we saw how that turned out.

In a series against the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1964, Brock had created such havoc on the bases that a white flag of surrender was contemplated in the Dodger dugout as they had no answer. It was bad that a Hall of Fame pitcher was so upset with Brock that he admittedly threw at him and hit him in the shoulder, which led to Brock playing the last few weeks of the season with a partially broken shoulder blade. Sandy Koufax later admitted that Lou was the only person he threw at but later regretting doing it as he had tremendous respect for the Hall of Famer.

When it came to punishment to the body, Lou Brock could hand it out as well. Like most base runners today who find it more elusive to use the head first slide, Brock found out the hard way that fielders would love to slap a tag with ball in glove on him normally in the head which would create cartoon size lumps. Lou changed all that with the pop-up slide whereas he used his forward momentum, so when he arrived at the base he could pop up into the fielder who was leaning in hoping to apply a tag. His leaning in, only to be met by a leading shoulder from Brock, was a game changer for tag plays at any base as the all-time stolen base champion was more than sturdy. Lou Brock was as physically fit as anyone whoever put the uniform on. No personal

trainer, no weight room and no steroids are what Brock was saddled with, and with his God-given tools he took his sport and specialty to another level.

While Lou Brock was known for his speed on the bases, there was no doubt that if needed to hit for more power, he could have easily done it as some of his home runs were of the tape measure variety. Fortunately for Brock and the Cardinals, he chose to be a hitter instead of a home run hitter. Brock was true catalyst for the Cardinals...as he produced by being the lead off man, so did the Cardinals. In some cases, once Brock got on first, the Cardinals would score a run without ever having a hit as he would steal second, would be sacrificed to third and score on a fly ball or a ground out to the right side of the infield. Sounds easier than it was to execute, but when it came to Lou Brock, he made a lot of things look easier than they appeared to be with his graceful approach and his tenacious effort.

When it came to being a big-time performer on the big stage, the conversation should start with Lou Brock. In 21 World Series, games Brock hit .391 with 4 home runs, and 14 stolen bases that saw him as World Series champion twice as he was part of the 1964 and 1967 Cardinal teams. He was” Mr. October” well before Reggie Jackson arrived.

In the world of sports analytics, Lou Brock (a math major at Southern Uni-

versity) turned base running and base stealing into a science as he calculated to the last step the prospect of him being successful on the base paths. Well after his playing days when he was a guest instructor at Cardinals spring training, Brock would have a clipboard, stop watch and tape measure in hand and the elegant presentation he would give to aspiring major leaguers would make a higher learning instructor proud and concerned as Lou was good enough to have his or her job too with his orator skills.

As real and as tough of an athlete Lou Brock was, he was pure class in every sense of the word. Brock could make any rookie player’s or broadcaster’s first day a memorable one with his kindness and patience. A witty sense of humo,r followed by a radiant smile, would be a lasting image for all who ever encountered him. When it came to his ability to dress, Brock was never a silver or bronze medalist as he was always the most stylish. Whether it was a three-piece suit or a conventional warm up suit, Lou represented well. The real Lou Brock continued to give to whoever was in need of advice on how the game of baseball is played, fund raising for worthy causes and just being a good teammate to all as well, as a worldly ambassador who never met a stranger. We already miss Lou Brock, but his spirit and examples will take us well into extra innings.

Mike Claiborne

Lou Brock with Mike Claiborne

Back row: Danny Brock (son), Lou Jr. (son), Lou Brock

Seated: Jackie Brock (wife), Jennifer Brock (daughter in law), Alivia Brock (granddaughter), Darian Brock (granddaughter)

Missing from this picture: Wanda Brock (daughter), Emory Brock (son)

Statement from Lou Brock, Jr. on the passing of his father

By Lou Brock, Jr.

I am certainly going to miss my dad and at a time when she is ready, my stepmom will certainly share her thoughts, and the family’s thoughts.

Growing up in St. Louis as Lou Brock, Jr. was a wonderful experience. Everyone says St. Louis is a baseball town, and my father absolutely was a baseball guy. What is so amazing to me is how St. Louis’ love for baseball has been honored with the likes of Jack Buck, Bob Gibson, Stan Musial, and all the wonderful guys. To know my dad’s name honors the city, as well as MLB, is a gift.

By virtue of being his son, I have met so many famous and influential

personalities. And the one common thing I heard is they all had admiration for my dad. Genuine admiration. I have to say it is well deserved since my memories of my father are full of him helping and speaking humanely to all people. He saw no barriers with people. I recall a hospital executive telling me how they never had to call the Cardinals to see if my dad could come visit children fighting illnesses because he would just show up with no one asking. And I thought, wow, he never mentioned that he just did it. I guess he saved the fanfare for the field.

I’ll remember him as a ball player that did not complain, did not speak bad words. He just went to work and put on a show for the crowd. I recall the days at Busch Stadium--the way the anticipation

began when he came into on-deck circle. There was that buzz in the crowd, that energy that started to develop. I don’t need to say what happened from there, we all know. “He’s safe!”

There are two distinguishing qualities about my father. First is the way he achieved success with his mental acuity and mental toughness. Generally, is it said how he could hit, and how fast he could run. But I first-hand witnessed him mathematically define the base stealing concept. He did it in a day with no digital video. The only tools were tape measures, stop watches, and borrowed cameras from a television station. Doesn’t that make him as much a scientist as athlete?

Second, is the myriad of things he

did after his career, what he did with the fame he accumulated. Since I had gone off to college, I didn’t first-hand witness all he did. But it was a lot and mainly his acceptance of the Lord Jesus Christ as his Savior. When Mrs. Brock is ready, I am sure she will share details on these things with everyone.

To baseball fans all over the world, thank you for your love of my dad. And thank you for all the condolences.

To Cardinal nation, I will tell you one undisputable fact: He loved you just as much as you loved him. I am proud to have shared my dad with you.

I salute you dad, to a life well-lived! I thank God for the blessing of Lou Brock as my father.

Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Recent Black history project by local first grader featured Lou Brock

Each year Adams Elementary first grade teacher, Kimberly Taylor gives her students an opportunity to create a poster on a notable African American figure. Calvin Walters Jr., in the collage below, selected Lou Brock for his project because his great grandmother, Karen Austin McCain, played softball for the Lou Brock Boys and Girls Club as a young girl, and his great uncle Kevin Austin, was a great fan of the St. Louis Cardinals and had recently been inducted into the Amateur Baseball Hall of Fame in 2019. Calvin’s living great great grandmother, Marcella Austin, inspired them all because of her love for the Cardinals as the family was growing up.

First grader Calvin Walters research began with googling facts about Lou Brock along with selecting pictures featuring the Hall of Famer. Then Calvin interviewed Mrs. Rochelle Lewis, a retired teacher and family friend. Mrs. Lewis has lots of Lou Brock memorabilia given to her by a long time employee of Bush Stadium, Earline Tuttle. Calvin chose two memorabilia items featured in the photos below to be included in his poster project. He also included a photo of Mr. and Mrs. Sylvester Lewis at an October 2010 Legendary Sports event as a thank you for their interview and the chance to see all the Lou Brock memorabilia they had collected over the years. To top it off, Calvin was most excited about including a Post Dispatch photo featuring his granny (Karen Austin) who had been crowned Queen of a Lou Brock Boys and Girls contest in 1969.

Adams Elementary first grade 2020 Black history project by Calvin K. Walters Jr.

Lou Brock poses with his statue during a dedication ceremony.Brock waves to the crowd on opening day in St. Louis.

Lou Brock poses with Negro League baseball star James “Cool Papa” Bell, center, and Curt Flood, left.

Whitey Herzog and Lou Brock at a St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame ceremony.

Photos by Wiley Price, Maurice Meredith and Bill Greenblatt

Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI

Thank you Lou... Thank you Mr. Devine

By Art Holliday News Anchor/Reporter KSDK 5 On Your Side

We are so fortunate in St. Louis because some of our favorite sports superstars and hall of famers made their homes here when their playing days were over: Stan Musial, Jackie JoynerKersee, Whitey Herzog, Ozzie Smith, Bernie Federko, Red Schoendienst, Dan Dierdorf, Jackie Smith, and of course, Lou Brock. It’s like the moving vans picked up their belongings from Mount Olympus, home address of heroes, and relocated them all to the 314 where we could rub shoulders at awards dinners, the ballpark or the arena, or maybe at the gas pump or grocery store.

My stint at KSDK-TV began in late July of 1979, which means I had come home to St. Louis to be a weekend sportscaster and to cover my beloved Cardinals at the tail end of Lou Brock’s

19 season career. It’s been 41 years, so I can’t remember if I interviewed Brock before the season ended, but I knew all about #20 because he had been a huge part of my childhood as I became a lifelong Cardinals fan. And the day I realized that Lou Brock knew my name, that I didn’t need to introduce myself any more? That was a good day. Your baseball idol doesn’t have to learn your name.

Simply put, Bob Gibson and Lou Brock were my guys, my childhood heroes; two larger than life athletes who made it easy for a black grade school kid to love the Cardinals. Nobody could score off Gibson, and no one could throw out Brock. Based on their World Series resumes, either Brock or Gibson could have easily claimed the nickname Mr. October, long before Reggie Jackson. My guys, but I was thrilled to share them

with everybody else.

So many words have been written about the trade, Brock-for-Broglio. It usually doesn’t end well when you trade an 18-game winner for a .250 hitter. Well, it didn’t end well...for the Cubs. Stop laughing Cardinal Nation.

Over the years Brock-forBroglio became shorthand for a lopsided deal where one team was a hapless pickpocket victim who never knew what hit them. Back in the day I wish I’d had the good sense to quiz Bing Devine, the Cardinals GM who made the perfect mid-season trade and simultaneously tormented the Cardinals’ archrival, the Cubs, for decades. Word on the street is that fans were not planning a parade for the general manager. “They wanted to run our GM Bing Devine out of town at first,” Cardinals

After the Brockfor-Broglio trade in 1964 which brought Lou over to St. Louis from the Chicago Cubs, the Cardinals went on to win the World Series over the New York Yankees. Brock would go on to burn the team that traded him over the next decade and a half time and time again. At left, Brock steals one of his many bases against his former team.

Mr. Devine, what did you see that nobody else did? Why did you think Brock would light the fuse? Athlete, speed, power, hadn’t put it all together yet in Chicago? Is that what you were thinking? Mr. Devine, you couldn’t have known Brock would would be hall of fame good, right? Nobody knew that. Now we know. Hall of fame outfielder, hall of fame human being. Lou-u-u-u-u!

Art Holliday has worked for KSDK for more than 40 years. His broadcasting work has been recognized with numerous awards, including three sportscasting Emmys. In 2001, Art was inducted into the Hall of Fame of the Greater St. Louis Association of Black Journalists. In 2009, he was inducted into the St. Louis Media Foundation Television Hall of Fame.

broadcaster Mike Shannon once told The Chicago Tribune.

Art Holliday

Photo courtesy of St. Louis Cardinals archive

Lou Brock’s Major League Statistics

by

Photo

Wiley Price

Lou Brock was one of the greatest lead off hitters in the history of the game. His 938 stolen bases are second only to Rickey Henderson all time.

Reflections on Lou Brock

From Urban League President Michael McMillan

Lou Brock will always be remembered for his humanity. He captured our attention with his athletic prowess but he stole our hearts with his kindness, compassion, and love for his fellow man. The outpouring of love and affection for him that we have witnessed since the world learned of his death is reflective of just how deeply he connected with us on

a personal level. Lou Brock was my friend and mentor; he really showed us all how to give back, how to be a man of your word, and how to honor commitments. He cared deeply for the advancement of the black community and our community in general. I remember once during

a spirited conversation about race relations he told me, “never let someone else’s hatred and someone else’s ignorance define who you are.” I have always carried that with me.

a true, living example of statesmanship, dignity, class and professionalism.

The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis Inc. has established the Lou Brock Scholarship in his honor and we are donating $5,000 to the Lou Brock Foundation in tribute to this great humanitarian. Mike McMillan

Lou Brock lived his life out loud—his values were on full display until the day he died. He was

Photo courtesy of St. Louis Cardinals archive