The New Tri-State Defender - July 1-7, 2021 by The Tri-State Defender

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July 1 - 7, 2021

VOL. 70, No. 26

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‘Scary Times’ for some as new gun law set to take effect July 1 by Erica R. Williams

Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Fears are mounting over the impact Tennessee’s permit-less gun carry law will have when the law takes effect Thursday (July 1). Law enforcement officers across the state are adamantly opposed the controversial law that will allow anyone 21 and older to legally carry a gun, either openly or concealed, without a license, background check or training. Since Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee signed the bill into law in April, local law enforcement and community

leaders began offering free gun-safety classes across the county, arguing that proper training for residents could be a matter of life or death. “It’s scary times for me,” Shelby County Sheriff Floyd Bonner Jr. said about the law. “This is not a commonsense approach to residents carrying a firearm.” Bonner is one of several local officials who have opposed the law. Memphis Mayor Jim Strickland, Shelby County District Attorney Amy Weirich and others from the Tennessee Sheriff’s Association are also against it. They urged legislators to keep the current law in place, which will allow

residents to carry guns but still require training and a background check. One of the concerns is that the new law will increase violence in a city Sheriff Floyd that already is Bonner Jr. suffering from an overwhelming number of gun-related incidents. So far this year, there has been more than 140 homicides in Memphis. A record was set in 2020 with

Under the new law, adults 21 and older and military members between 18 and 20 will be allowed to open or concealed carry handguns without a permit. (Photo: Karanja A. Ajanaku) 323 homicides. “As violent as Shelby County has become — and we are doing what we can do to curtail that — when we allow our citizens to carry with

Shortage of workers threatening city’s hotel and hospitality industry

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Dr. Vernell Bennett-Fairs (Photo: Karanja A. Ajanaku)

Dr. Vernell BennettFairs: How a ‘classically trained’ vocalists became LeMoyne-Owen College president

by Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Jobs are open across the country, millions of them but, it seems, no one to fill them. And for Memphis and Shelby County, tourism and businesses associated with it are suffering. “The shortage of employees in the hotel and hospitality industry is threatening the tourism trade in Memphis,” said President and CEO Beverly Robertson of the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce. “When a business is dependent on a certain volume of employees to open, such as a hotel, and those employees are not available, that is devastating for businesses that depend on hotels being operational.” The food and beverage industry Beverly is seeing the Robertson detrimental effects of this shortage of service employees as well, said Robertson. “It is getting tougher for restaurants to operate with this shortage,” said Robertson. “Restaurants will have to make some adjustments and look at opening three or four days out of the week, instead of their normal operating schedule. Small, local

no training, it doesn’t make sense to me,” Bonner said. “Supporters say that it will decrease violence. I think

by Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell

Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Evelyn and Olive’s Restaurant owner Damion Hype made some unconventional moves to keep the Edge District eatery rolling through the pandemic with minimum impact on employees. (Photo: Gary S. Whitlow/GSW Enterprises) businesses are the hardest hit.” Tourism and businesses in Memphis and Shelby County are not alone in suffering the effects of a diminished work force. The restaurant industry in major cities across the country has been particularly hard hit by the worker shortage. One local labor advocate says conditions before the pandemic

in the restaurant industry are to blame. “How many more sacrifices must the working class make?” said Lily Nicholson, an organizer of Memphis Restaurant Workers United. “It is simple. The shortage of workers in this industry is simply human beings responding to incentives. Other jobs are paying more and offer-

ing incentives and benefits unavailable to restaurant employees. These workers don’t want to continue to feel exploited.” Statistics show that warehousing and shipping enterprises grew steadily throughout the pandemic as buying and selling became almost exclusively elec-

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Dr. Vernell Bennett-Fairs sat down this week with The New Tri-State Defender to give a vivid account of her journey to the LeMoyne-Owen College President’s Office. “I was going to be the first vocalist to be successful across all the genres,” said Bennett-Fairs, who began her tenure as LOC’s 13th president on Jan. 5. “I had to be classically trained. I love secular music, I love R&B. I was going to Broadway, while I recorded an album. I was going to grad school for music in New York City. “But days after I got the scholarship in New York, I learned I was expecting. There was no way I was going into New York City with an infant.” Bennett-Fairs said her move to Memphis is both the fruition of a dream and the greatest challenge of her life. “Becoming president here was my full-circle moment,” Bennett-Fairs said. “I went from nontenure track instructor to president. I had always aspired to be president, but this is the first presidency I ever applied for.” By looking at Bennett-Fairs’ resumé, perhaps she is one of the most unlikely college presidents.

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The New Tri-State Defender

July 1 - 7, 2021

Page 2

NEWS GUNS

CONTINUED FROM FRONT it will increase.” States that loosened their gun laws tend to see a 13 to 15 percent increase in violent crime 10 years after adoption, according to a 2017 study by the National Bureau of Economic Research. Bonner pointed to another concern: Residents who will get a gun without knowing the laws and regulations surrounding firearms. This, he said, may result in an unjustified shooting. “If you’re going to choose to carry a gun, please understand the proper laws and learn the minimal training of carrying a firearm,” Bonner said. “If you don’t, you can potentially wind up on the other side of the law.” Tennessee is joining some 19 other

HELP

CONTINUED FROM FRONT tronic, online interactions. Companies like Amazon and FedEx are offering permanent, full-time employment with higher wages, medical coverage, tuition reimbursement and other incentives to leave lower-paying jobs in the service industries. “The employee shortage is damaging to Memphis because it is a city heavily traveled,” said Robertson. “It is essential that hotels remain open to meet the demand of tourists coming in. Hotels are going to have to re-evaluate the business model if they are going to compete with other industries that have elevated wages to $15, $17, or $20 an hour.” Many agree that employees are recalibrating their lives as they return to full-time employment, post-pandemic. Lower-paid employees in the hospitality and restaurant industries are pursuing other career trajectories that offer better pay, better conditions, and opportunities to advance. President and CEO of the Black Business Association of Memphis (BBA) Ernest Strickland agrees with Robertson, that restaurants, hotels, and other service-oriented enterprises must make changes to compete for employees. “During the pandemic, we saw uncertainty being reﬂected in capital investments,” said Strickland. “Employees sat on the sidelines. Now certainty and confidence are returning and companies must make some readjustments and reassess. “Now is a great time for employers to tell their stories. Now is the time to look at raising wages, revisiting hiring criteria, re-thinking the business model, if businesses are going to compete for the workforce.” One restaurant in Memphis that has not suffered from the shortage of employees is the Edge District’s Evelyn and Olive’s Restaurant at 630 Madison Ave. Call it luck, a hunch or just plain, old business savvy. Owner Damion Hype made some unconventional moves as restrictions from the pandemic began to set in. “At the beginning of the pandemic,

states in enacting the permitless carry law. The National Riﬂe Association has played a major role in garnering support in states across the country. Gov. Lee thanked members of the organization for their role in getting the bill passed in Tennessee. The bill received overwhelming support from Republicans. No Democrats voted in favor of it. Among the proponents was Representative Chris Hurt of Halls, who touted the bill’s harsher penalties for gun-related crimes as a way to ensure violence doesn’t increase. “Those penalties along with defending the Second Amendment and allowing families and people to defend themselves in Tennessee. I think it’s a win-win,” he said. Bonner argued that the right to carry isn’t the issue. In fact, he said he supports the Second Amendment. It’s

Rep. Chris Hurt

the omission of mandatory training that bothers him. He worries it could be an endangerment for not only residents, but law enforcement officers as well. “How to interact with someone who is carrying a firearm. That is stressful for an officer. This adds unnecessary stress to these officers’ jobs,” Bonner said. In response to the bill’s passing,

we did some things to absorb costs to keep all our employees working,” said Hype. “Our curbside, to-go orders kept everything going. “My stepmother and father, Caroline and Wayne Lumsden, do the cooking in the back and sometime, come out front to help. We are all owners, and we tried to make decisions that would keep our employees.” Because adjustments were made by this family-owned restaurant to retain employees, the eatery is fully operational with no effects of the employee shortage. Pick-up and delivery orders still are increasing bottom-line profits. Business is still great, said Hype. The worker shortage means slower service at some restaurants, bars and cafés, which is a concern not just for diners, but for businesses that fought hard to survive the economic pain caused by the pandemic. “Think of all our attractions — the Zoo, Stax, Beale Street and so many other tourism favorites,” said Robertson. “The hotels must remain open, and this may mean paying higher wages and offering attractive benefits. It’s tough when you depend on a number of people to remain open. Other businesses are offering sign-on bonuses and other incentives. Hotels must compete.” Some national, state and local politicians, mostly Republicans, along with business and industry executives, blame the federal $300 weekly unemployment supplement payment program as a disincentive to returning to low-paying jobs. The program is scheduled to end Sept. 6. However, Tennessee has joined 26 other states that have moved to end the program immediately or shorten the payment period. Tennessee is scheduled to stop the supplemental payments Saturday (July 3). Lee said Tennesseans have access to more than 250,000 jobs across the state, which have remained open. “Unemployment benefits are ending,” said Robertson. “Employers are hoping and praying those employees come back to work. But, wages and benefits in hotels and restaurants have to compete with other industries, if they are going to retain the volume of employees necessary to remain open. That’s just the bottom line.”

LOC

CONTINUED FROM FRONT Her degrees are in music. Bennett-Fairs taught music classes required for music majors and music appreciation courses for others. She expanded her involvement with student life on campus by getting involved with the band at Kentucky State University, a historically Black institution in Frankfort, Kentucky. Involvement with the band meant getting with the dancers. A funny thing had happened on the way to a career on Broadway. Although Bennett-Fairs was a show-stopping consummate performer, had planned to sing her way to fame, she fell in love with campus life. Over a span of two decades, she had served in every administrative capacity, except president, at Kentucky State. Even as a vice-president, Bennett-Fairs would work a full school day in her office, then pull on her leggings and get down on the field where she could easily be mistaken for one of the student dancers. (Before accepting a job as a college administrator, Bennett-Fairs mulled over an offer to join the Ebony Fashion Fair.) All of those positions on African-American college campuses taught Bennett-Fairs how to immerse herself in student life and touch thousands of lives over the years — not only with her administrative savvy, but in guidance and mentoring. “I still sing, and I will always sing. It’s just a part of what I do,” said Bennett-Fairs. “But I love campus life, and I love the opportunities to impact so many students. “I was at Delta State (University in Cleveland in the Mississippi Delta), coming here to Memphis every Saturday to get my hair done. “I wanted to be a college president, but I was waiting for the right opportunity. And when I saw that description and read up on the institution’s mission and vision and what the institution stands for, I knew LeMoyne-Owen College was right for me.”

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Pastor Ricky Floyd

Shelby County Sheriff Department began hosting free gun-safety classes in May. Following suit have been local community leaders, like Pastor Ricky Floyd of the Pursuit of God Church in Frayser. Floyd said while he supports the Second Amendment, he is concerned that the lack of training may result in more child-related deaths. This prompted him to host a gun-safety class for children as young as 6 years old. “I am not as disturbed about the law being passed. I am pro citizens carrying guns, but now we have a responsibility to be trained on how to carry to protect our children,” Floyd said. “And if children are going to have their hands or be anywhere near it, they need to know some rules to keep them safe.” In 2020, at least 134 children were treated for gunshots at Le Bonheur

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New LOC President Dr. Vernell Bennett-Fairs said the college is moving toward a new vision, with the early steps including a campaign to “re-introduce” the historic college. (Photo: Karanja A. Ajanaku)

“I would drive as far onto the campus as far as I could get, and I would just sit there and think about what I could do here. I told myself, ‘I could really be impactful here. I was meant to be here.’ ” — Dr. Vernell Bennett-Fairs After Bennett-Fairs formally applied for the school’s presidency, she would drive, after her Saturday appointment, to the LeMoyne-Owen campus and just park. Bennett-Fairs was married for the first time last year on March 7, 2020, to Patric Fairs. She has one adult son, Jeffrey, who is 30. “I would drive as far onto the campus as far as I could get, and I would just sit there and think about what I could do here,” said Bennett-Fairs. “I told myself, ‘I could really be impactful here. I was meant to be here.’” Bennett-Fairs had fallen in love

Children’s Hospital. Some of those shootings were accidental. The increasing number of child-related deaths is why Floyd said he plans to continue his classes. Meanwhile, the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office is adding more dates to their gun safety classes, hoping more residents will show up. “We are asking residents who are thinking of carrying a firearm to please get the proper training,” Bonner pleaded. “This could be a matter of life or death. If one person gets killed because of this new law, that’s one too many.” (To register for the Sheriff Ofﬁce’s gun safety classes, residents can call or text the SCSO Training Academy at 901-562-3059 or email GunSafetyClass@shelby-sheriff.org. Classes will also be posted on the SCSO’s social media pages.) with LOC and Memphis long before becoming president. Now, her dreams are comprised of what the college could be in her administration. “I am still talking with stakeholders, constituents, and people in the community,” said Bennett-Fairs. “So, our vision moving forward is still taking shape. I am on our ‘re-introduce LeMoyne-Owen College’ campaign. “Folks have no idea of who we are any more and who we are about to be. We’re doing that with the four ‘R’s: Recruit. Retention. Revenues. Relationships.” For Bennett-Fairs, the most important “R” is relationships. “We’ve been in a pandemic, so there have been a lot of virtual meetings,” said Bennett-Fairs. “We can’t have in-person meetings yet, but it’s important to virtually start shaking those hands and letting folks see my face.” Just getting back out into the community and raising her visual profile as the new face of LeMoyne-Owen is a strategy that is working. “I can’t tell you how many folks I’ve heard from. ‘Oh, it’s so good to hear all this positive momentum, all this positive buzz about LeMoyne Owen … We’re not hearing all this negative stuff.’ This helps recruitment and retention.” And, what about that whopping $40 million endowment from the Community Foundation of Greater Memphis? “That was something wonderful, something transformative,” said Bennett-Fairs. “We draw a certain percentage (up to $2 million) each year. It helps with fundraising because that gift says, ‘We’ve got this institution that is needed in our community, we endorse the institution, and we want you to do so as well.” As Bennett-Fairs raises her profile around Memphis and on campus, don’t be surprised if she’s seen “stepping and strolling” with Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. “I’m so grateful for the outpouring of support,” said Bennett-Fairs. “The alumni really have shown that they are behind us, the community has been supportive as well, and I am so grateful.”

The New Tri-State Defender

July 1 - 7, 2021

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NEWS

Bill Cosby’s sex assault conviction overturned by court by Maryclaire Dale Associated Press

PHILADELPHIA — Pennsylvania’s highest court overturned Bill Cosby’s sex assault conviction Wednesday after finding an agreement with a previous prosecutor prevented him from being charged in the case. Cosby has served more than two years of a three- to 10-year sentence at a state prison near Philadelphia. He had vowed to serve all 10 years rather than acknowledge any remorse over the 2004 encounter with accuser Andrea Constand. He was charged in late 2015, when a prosecutor armed with newly unsealed evidence — Cosby’s damaging deposition from her lawsuit — arrested him days before the 12-year statute of limitations expired. The court said that District Attorney Kevin Steele, who made the decision to arrest Cosby, was obligated to stand by his predecessor’s promise not to charge Cosby when he later gave potentially incriminating testimony in Constand’s civil suit. There was no evidence that promise was ever put in writing. Justice David Wecht, writing for a split court, said Cosby had relied on

the former prosecutor’s decision not to charge him when he later gave potentially incriminating testimony in the Constand’s civil suit. They said that overturning the conviction, and barring any further prosecution, “is the only remedy that comports with society’s reasonable expectations of its elected prosecutors and our criminal justice system.” The 83-year-old Cosby, who was once beloved as “America’s Dad,” was convicted of drugging and molesting the Temple University employee at his suburban estate. The trial judge had allowed just one other accuser to testify at Cosby’s first trial, when the jury deadlocked. However, he then allowed five other accusers to testify at the retrial about their experiences with Cosby in the 1980s. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court said that testimony tainted the trial, even though a lower appeals court had found it appropriate to show a signature pattern of drugging and molesting women. Cosby was the first celebrity tried and convicted in the #MeToo era, so the reversal could make prosecutors wary of calling other accusers in similar cases. The law on prior bad

act testimony varies by state, though, and the ruling only holds sway in Pennsylvania. The justices voiced concern not just about sex assault cases, but what they saw as the judiciary’s increasing tendency to allow testimony that crosses the line into character attacks. The law allows the testimony only in limited cases, including to show a crime pattern so specific it serves to identify the perpetrator. In New York, the judge presiding over last year’s trial of movie mogul Harvey Weinstein, whose case had sparked the explosion of the #MeToo movement in 2017, let four other accusers testify. Weinstein was convicted and sentenced to 23 years in prison. He is now facing separate charges in California. In Cosby’s case, one of his appellate lawyers said prosecutors put on vague evidence about the uncharged conduct, including Cosby’s own recollections in his deposition about giving women alcohol or quaaludes before sexual encounters. “The presumption of innocence just didn’t exist for him,” Jennifer Bonjean, the lawyer, argued to the court in December. In May, Cosby was denied paroled after refusing to participate in sex

In this April 26, 2018 ﬁle photo, Bill Cosby, center, leaves the Montgomery County Courthouse in Norristown, Pa., after being convicted of drugging and molesting a woman. (AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File) offender programs during his nearly three years in state prison. He has long said he would resist the treatment programs and refuse to acknowledge wrongdoing even if it means serving the full 10-year sentence. This is the first year he was eligible for parole under the three- to 10-year sentence handed down after his 2018 conviction. Cosby spokesperson Andrew Wyatt called the parole board decision “appalling.” Prosecutors said Cosby repeatedly used his fame and “family man” persona to manipulate young women, holding himself out as a mentor before betraying them. Cosby, a groundbreaking Black actor who grew up in public housing in Philadelphia, made a fortune estimated at $400 million during his 50 years in the entertainment industry. His trademark clean comedy and homespun wisdom fueled popular TV shows, books and standup acts. He fell from favor in his later years as he lectured the Black com-

munity about family values, but was attempting a comeback when he was arrested. “There was a built-in level of trust because of his status in the entertainment industry and because he held himself out as a public moralist,” Assistant District Attorney Adrienne Jappe, of suburban Montgomery County, argued to the justices. Cosby had invited Constand to an estate he owns in Pennsylvania the night she said he drugged and sexually assaulted her. Constand, a former professional basketball player who worked at his alma mater, went to police a year later. The other accusers knew Cosby through the entertainment industry and did not go to police. The AP does not typically identify sexual assault victims without their permission, which Constand has granted. (Follow Maryclaire Dale on Twitter at https://twitter.com/Maryclairedale)

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VACCINATE YOUR FAMILY. #I mmun izeT N

t n.g o v/h e a l t h

sh e l by t nh e a l t h.c o m

PERSPECTIVE The New Tri-State Defender, July 1 - 7, 2021, Page 4

In this June 4, 2021 photo provided by the Ad Council, former Mayor Omar Neal, left, speaks during an interview in Tuskegee, Ala., as part of an ongoing multimillion-dollar education campaign aiming to encourage conﬁdence in COVID-19 vaccination. Neal is a nephew of Freddie Lee Tyson, a hard-working family man of deep faith who unwittingly became part of the U.S. government’s infamous syphilis experiment on Black men decades ago. ‘’When we don’t take the vaccine, we’re kind of doing to ourselves what the government did to those men at Tuskegee,’’ he says.

In this June 7, 2021 photo provided by the Ad Council, Lillie Tyson Head, 76, speaks during an interview in Wirtz, Va., as part of an ongoing multimillion-dollar education campaign aiming to encourage conﬁdence in COVID-19 vaccination. Head is the daughter of Freddie Lee Tyson, a hard-working family man of deep faith who unwittingly became part of the U.S. government’s infamous syphilis experiment on Black men in Tuskegee, Ala., decades ago. “Don’t deny ourselves the opportunity the men were denied,’’ she says. (Photos: Ad Council via AP)

Tuskegee relatives promote COVID-19 vaccines in ad campaign by Lindsey Tanner Associated Press

uskegee is the one-word answer some people give as a reason they’re avoiding COVID-19 vaccines. A new ad campaign launched Wednesday with relatives of men who unwittingly became part of the infamous experiment wants to change minds. Omar Neal, 63, a former mayor of the Alabama town, said he was hesitant at first about the shots. Neal is a nephew of Freddie Lee Tyson, a family man who was among several hundred Black men who decades ago became involved without their consent in the federally backed syphilis study. Neal said he agreed to appear in the national campaign after doing research to gain confidence in the vaccines. “I want to save lives,” Neal told The Associated Press. ‘’I didn’t want people to use Tuskegee and what transpired there as a reason for not taking the vaccine.’’ In 1932 and over 40 years, Black men in Tuskegee, Alabama, were subjected to experimentation without their knowledge. Most of the 600 men had syphilis — including Tyson, who got infected before birth — but they were left untreated so researchers could study the natural history of the disease. Tyson died from unrelated causes in 1988, 16 years after the study ended. But many others died from a disease that can be cured with penicillin. Neal and other Tyson relatives are among half a dozen Tuskegee descendants involved in the ads, which focus on vaccine hesitancy among Black Americans. They say vaccination is needed to help communities of color and curb a disease that has disproportionately affected Black Americans. “Don’t deny ourselves the opportunity the men were denied,” Tyson’s 76-year-old daughter, Lillie Tyson Head, said in one of the ads. “It’s really up to us to take ownership of our health and this story,” Carmen Head Thornton, the granddaughter Tyson called his ‘Çarmen girl,’ said in another ad. Vaccines are highly effective against COVID-19. Yet U.S. vaccination rates are lower than government goals,

In this June 8, 2021 photo provided by the Ad Council, Carmen Head Thornton speaks during an interview which is part of an ongoing multimillion-dollar education campaign aiming to encourage conﬁdence in COVID-19 vaccination. Thornton is a granddaughter of Freddie Lee Tyson, a hard-working family man of deep faith who unwittingly became part of the U.S. government’s infamous syphilis experiment on Black men in Tuskegee, Ala., decades ago. ‘’It’s really up to us to take ownership of our health and this story,’’ she says. with 46 percent fully vaccinated while 54 percent, have received one dose. People of color have lagged behind white Americans in getting the shots. Authorities are concerned about the slowing pace of new vaccinations amid persistent pockets of resistance. Limited access is an issue for some Black people, but so is mistrust of the medical system. Thornton, a director at the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, was a young girl when she learned what had happened to her grandfather. The two were extremely close; she recalls catching her first fish with him and watching mesmerized while he stitched

quilts by hand. She pledged to devote her life to fighting health inequities and injustice, and sees COVID-19 vaccines as a way to address disparities the pandemic laid bare. The campaign includes a minidocumentary and shorter 60-second versions made for TV and online use. They are part of the Ad Council’s ongoing multimillion-dollar education campaign aiming to encourage confidence in the shots, paid for by donations from media corporations. (Follow AP Medical Writer Lindsey Tanner on Twitter: @LindseyTanner.)

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The New Tri-State Defender

July 1 - 7, 2021

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RELIGION

Order of Eastern Star… The Queen Esther Grand Chapter of the Order of Eastern Star hosted its annual O.E.S. Banquet at the Crowne Plaza Memphis Downtown last Sunday (June 26). (Photo: Tyrone P. Easley)

The Rev. R.T. Fouse said he felt a call to ministry very early, receiving Elders Orders from the C.M.E. Church when he was 21 years old. (Courtesy photo)

Rev. R. T. Fouse – an emeritus C.M.E. ‘treasure’ – reﬂects on his 100-year journey by Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell

Special to The New Tri-State Defender

One of the 20th-century’s most illustrious pastors represents a class of Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) leaders, who helped sustain the denomination during the turbulent African-American experience wrought by Jim Crow segregation. The Rev. R. T. Fouse served in a pivotal time of the church when Methodism in the African-American community post-slavery meant preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ and advancing the causes of civil rights and higher education. “I was pastor of 12 churches during my career,” said Fouse. “But I drove a school bus, taught school, sold insurance and was employed as a social worker for 10 years. I loved being a pastor, but I always worked to take care of my family. “We wanted all our children to get a college degree. I went back myself and graduated from Lane College in 1966 with my second oldest daughter.” Fouse, an emeritus CME treasure who turns 100 on Thursday (July 1), was committed to the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church. And, like all the organization’s pastors, Fouse moved with his family as often as he was assigned a new church. But starting out, he was an itinerant minister. “I remember when our father was an itinerant,” said Robert Timothy Fouse. “This one church had one window, an outhouse, and a pot-bellied stove. I can just see that little church.” Fouse felt a call to ministry very early as a young man, and received Elders Orders from the CME Church when he was 21 years old. Itinerant pastors would sometimes have to preach at a different church each Sunday. “I had to drive to a church where I was preaching, and I would load my family up in the car, and bring them with me,” said Fouse. “The people would bring food up to the church, and that’s what we would eat. We would take some home, too. That was my pay many times — wasn’t much money in those days.”

After receiving a bachelor’s degree from Lane College in Jackson, Tennessee, Fouse went on to earn a Master of Divinity degree from Memphis Theological Seminary in 1976. In 1983, Fouse was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Humanities and Religion from St. Stevens University in Los Angeles, California. Fouse was born on July 1, 1921, to sharecroppers Dave and Mattie Sue Fouse in rural Haywood County (Brownsville). Fouse’s mother died when he was 7, leaving him to be reared by his father and older siblings. Fouse completed high school at Haywood County Training School. He married Mary Lena Jackson, and seven children were born to that union. The couple dreamed of every child attending college. And so, it was. Five attended Lane, one went to Tennessee State University in Nashville, and another went to the University of Tennessee, at Martin The Fouse family roots run deep in Haywood County, but Fouse knows little about his family in the antebellum South. His father was born in 1881, and his grandfather, Anderson Fouse, was a slave. At some point, a migration of the Fouse family took place, from North Carolina to Haywood County. Fouse lives in North Memphis with three of his children. Their roots run deep in the CME Church. Fouse has 11 grandchildren and nine great-grandchildren. Fouse has published three books: “Why I Love the CME Church,” “Poems of Strength and Comfort,” and “Inspirational Poems and Special Tributes.” In his retiring years, Fouse founded the House of Prayer Outreach Ministry. One daughter, one son, one grandson and two sons-in-law followed him into the ministry. Fouse’s favorite scripture is Philippians 4:13: “I can do all thing through Christ who strengthens me.” “Now turning 100, I like to meditate on a quote from the late Dr. Howard Thurman: ‘There is strength beyond our strength that gives strength to our strength.’ And because the Lord’s great strength, I’m turning 100 years young.”

Celebrating the 18th… Tabernacle of Praise Missionary Baptist Church, 306 S. Somerville, celebrated the 18th pastoral anniversary of the Rev. Derrick Davis, who, along with his wife, Glenda Davis, was showered with appreciation during a service that included praise dancers doing a mime performance last Sunday (June 27). (Photo: Tyrone P. Easley)

The New Tri-State Defender

July 1 - 7, 2021

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ENTERTAINMENT BOOK REVIEW:

‘Hidden Figures’ subject shares ‘My Remarkable Journey’ by Terri Schlichenmeyer

Special to The New Tri-State Defender

One, two, buckle my shoe. We Three Kings, cheaper by the dozen, it’s a Catch 22 and double jeopardy, then we’re back to Square One. In every corner of our lives, we use numbers, we count, we cypher. And in the new book “My Remarkable Journey” by Katherine Johnson (with Joylette Hylick and Katherine Moore), we know a career takes true calculations. When Katherine Coleman was born in 1918, Model T cars were selling for $350, fresh off the assembly line. Women couldn’t vote, TV hadn’t been invented, and Black Americans lived under strict Jim Crow laws. Knowing that schooling was the best way to survive the latter, Coleman’s parents, who owned a farm near the town of White Sulpher Springs, West Virginia, insisted that their children all get educations. Precocious Coleman was the youngest, but by the time she graduated high school at age fifteen, she was old enough to see that success would require more classwork and that teaching at a Black school was the likeliest goal. College spoke to Coleman’s innate curiosity and she loved it; she planned to major in French until “the math professors had their say.” One of them challenged her to become a “research mathematician.” Unsure what, exactly, that was, Coleman stepped off the career track to marry and raise three daughters before heading back to work as a teacher, then landing a position at the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (the “predecessor

In “My Remarkable Journey,” Katherine Johnson, on whom the movie “Hidden Figures” is modeled, explains what parts were right and what Hollywood got wrong. (Photo: Annie Leibovitz) to NASA”) at Langley Field (now Langley Air Force Base) in Virginia. Her job, at first, was as a “computer” – literally, one who computes so that the program’s engineers didn’t have to do it. Coleman (then Goble, later Johnson) quickly worked her

way into the research division involved in the Space Race, and when the Soviets launched Sputnik, she felt “that competitive American spirit” deep inside herself. “We’ve got to do something,” she remembered thinking. “Little did I know

then that ‘we’ soon would include me.” So you saw the movie, “Hidden Figures,” and you loved it. So did author Katherine Johnson, on whom the movie is modeled, and here, she explains what parts were right and what Hollywood got wrong. Moreover, she takes you back to the beginning in “My Remarkable Journey.” Lively and with great detail, Johnson tells her story in a way that frames her accomplishments in humble neon, never letting readers forget who she was or what she did, but not bragging on it without giving ample credit to others. The warmth and grace of that is impressive; so is the fact that she admits to having endured racism, patriarchy and Jim Crow laws but she waves them away like a ﬂy on a June afternoon, as if they weren’t even a part of her equation. “My Remarkable Journey” puts the movie about Johnson into keener perspective, bringing the full story, as Dr. Yvonne Cagle says in her introduction, to a new generation of young women. Find it, share it with your daughter. Or catch it on an audiobook. That counts, too.

COMMUNITY The New Tri-State Defender, July 1 - 7, 2021, Page 7

Bank of America Memphis now guided by Trevia Chatman

TSD Newsroom

Trevia Chatman, who has 20 years of leadership experience within the financial services industry, has been named president of Bank of America Memphis. As president, Chatman, who joined the bank in 2018, will be responsible for connecting the banking and investment resources offered through the bank’s eight lines of business to people and companies across the region. According to a release announcing Chatman’s selection, she also will lead the effort to deploy Bank of America’s resources to address social and economic concerns, build strong communities and support the health and safety of local teammates.

Native Memphian Trevia Chatman is the new Memphis market president for Bank of America. (Photo: Angie & Ike Photography) “Trevia has established deep relationships with teammates, clients and the Memphis community to deliver responsible growth, and in

this new role will help ensure we continue to be a great partner in Memphis,” said Brian Moynihan, chief executive officer, Bank of America.

Active in the Memphis volunteer community, Chatman has been an executive board member for Junior Achievement of Memphis and the Mid-South; on the board of directors for the Women’s Foundation for a Greater Memphis; co-chair of marketing for The United Way of the Mid-South’s Women United and a New Memphis Fellow. She has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from Tennessee State University and a master’s degree in Business Administration from the University of Memphis. Chatman is a recipient of the Memphis Business Journal Top 40 under 40 award, the Memphis Grizzlies HBCU Empowerment award and the Bank of America Global Diversity and Inclusion Award.

Rotary in transition … Television news commentator and University of Memphis professor Otis L. Sanford (right) on Tuesday became the new president of the Memphis Rotary Club, succeeding Gen. Harry Montgomery (left). New Memphis Police Department Chief Cerelyn “C.J.” Davis was the guest speaker, announcing that she is transferring her Rotary membership to the Memphis club. (Photos: Karanja A. Ajanaku)

Getting vaccination holdouts to go ahead and take the vaccine is part of the “100 Days” campaign unveiled last week. (Photo: Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell)

COVID-19 UPDATE: Shooting for ‘100 Days Under 100 New Cases’ by Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell Special to The New Tri-State Defender

With great fanfare, Shelby County Mayor Lee Harris hailed the county’s 50-day milestone of keeping new COVID-19 cases below 100 daily and set course for a new push. At a morning press conference last Friday (June 25), a huge banner heralding “The Road to 100 Days Under 100 New Cases” was unveiled on the Second Avenue terrace of the Shelby County Administration Building. The new milestone target date is August 10. Harris praised county employees for their hard work in reaching the 50-day mark, noting that it took the joint effort of all Shelby Countians, who “rallied together” during the pandemic. “We’ve all made sacrifices,” said Harris. “We have all done the hard work to keep our neighbors and our families safe. This was a unified effort that was unimaginable a year and half ago, but we did it, we all did it.” Detailing that effort, Harris said, “Strangers began leaving food boxes and care packages on the porches of seniors in need. Neighbors began to create caravans so they could celebrate the graduations, the accomplishments and the homegoings of their friends and loved ones… . As a result of all of that effort, our case counts have remained relatively stable.” Touting the merits of COVID-19 vaccination, he urged those who have not made the choice to do so. “If not to protect yourself, then to protect those in your family who may be vulnerable,” he said. Getting vaccine holdouts to go ahead and take the vaccine is part of the “100 Days” campaign. As another sign of transition in the long fight to check the spread of the. Pandemic, earlier this week it was announced that local health officials no longer will conduct daily COVID-19 briefings. However, task force meetings with stakeholders will be ongoing. At the press conference, David Sweat, the Shelby County Health Department’s outgoing deputy director and chief of epidemiology, also referenced those who “have worked so hard for so long to get us to this day. … “Our numbers are better now than they have ever been

“Our numbers are better now than they have ever been since the first two weeks of the pandemic. So, that’s a tremendous achievement.” — David Sweat since the first two weeks of the pandemic. So, that’s a tremendous achievement.” Sweat, who has accepted an offer to lead the Mecklenburg County, North Carolina COVID-19 response team, said Shelby County has “not achieved victory.” The COVID-19 vaccine – which he called “a miracle of science” – is what will get Shelby County “over the top and through it all,” he said. As for his work here in Shelby County, Sweat said, “It’s been an honor, it’s been a pleasure and it’s been a journey.” Harris presented him with a commendation from the county. As of Wednesday, the health department reported the 7-day rolling average from June 2329 as 22 new cases per day. So far, 387,575 people have been vaccinated in Shelby County, reaching 55.4 percent of the county’s goal to vaccinate 700,000 people. Shelby County averaged 1,092 vaccinations per day over the last week. Health officials have, however, declared county residents more than 70 percent protected from the virus by the combined number of those receiving the vaccine and those who have antibodies in their blood from having survived the virus. No new deaths had been reported since June 22. In Shelby County, 1689 people have died from COVID-19. Getting vaccinated Throughout July, the city has scheduled numerous popup vaccination sites, with support announced for a publicly accessible walk-in vaccine clinic. Notably, the Pipkin Building at the fairgrounds will cease operating as a drive-thru vaccination site at the end of July. Those who have not been vaccinated can still call to schedule with the health department. Pharmacies and physicians’ offices also are offering vaccines. For more information, call 901-222SHOT or 222-6468.

The New Tri-State Defender

July 1 - 7, 2021

NEWS “I knew that it wasn’t just about opening a school and students getting hours. Students need emotional support, mental support, and so many other things I didn’t think of coming into the industry.” — Tamika Turner

CLASSIFIEDS NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC The following person(s) has asked the City of Memphis Alcohol Commission for permission to sell beer for Beer premise consumption. Applicant: The Candler Event Hall and Sports Bar Location: 3896 Lamar Avenue Asal, LLC Anyone desiring to circulate a petition FOR or AGAINST said establishment selling beer at this location must secure the petition blanks from the undersigned Commission at 2714 Union Ave. Extended Ist ﬂoor. Must be ﬁled no later than Tuesday, July 6, 2021 Jared Johnson, Chairman Anna Vergos Blair, Member Claudette Boyd, Member Barry Chase, Member Chad Hampton, Member Erma Hayslett, Member Renee Poe, Member Steven Reid, Member Johnsie Wallace-Gault, Member

Vice Plant Manager – Memphis, TN. Req’d: Bach’s in Electrical Eng. followed by 10 yrs of progressive managerial exp. including min. 5 yrs of exp. as sr. mgr., general mgr., director, plant mgr., or similar, in the power transformers mfg. ind. Mail resumes to: Hyosung HICO, Ltd., 2865 Riverport Road, Memphis, TN 38109.

Tamika Turner opened Tennessee’s ﬁrst freestanding Natural Hair School, The Institute of Beauty, building upon 17 years in the beauty and barbering industry. (Photo: iobtn.com)

Summer program puts students on course for natural-hair license by Sydney Jones

Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Students will have the opportunity to become licensed natural hairstylists and learn about the cosmetology industry before the fall thanks to Tamika Turner’s Institute of Beauty Summer program. Turner’s Institute of Beauty is Tennessee’s first free-standing natural hair school and has graduated more than 400 students Turner is a licensed barber, who opened her own beauty school, as well as a natural hair salon. Turner’s story began when she enrolled in a beauty school, taking evening courses while taking college courses during the day. She went on to barber school and later became the regional director for that school. During Turner’s time in barber school, she learned what was needed in a school, as well as what students needed outside of the classroom. “I knew that it wasn’t just about opening a school and students getting hours. Students need emotional support, mental support, and so many other things I didn’t think of coming into the industry,” Turner said. As result, when Turner opened her own institution, she could offer her students more than just the hours they needed to obtain their license. Turner’s passion for the hair industry and teaching has led her to start more programs for students who want a career in the cosmetology industry. Throughout Turner’s time as an educator, she noticed many of the problems that happen in the classroom, such as students tearing each other down, stem from the lack of confidence in students. So, building her students’ confidence by educating them on natural hair care was one of her goals. “If I can show them (students) how not only to take care of someone else’s hair, but take care of their own hair and educate them on the damage of these the new (style) trends coming out, then maybe we can prevent the damag-

ing of the hair which can also lift the confidence of the students.” The institute offers courses in the specific discipline of natural hair. The program is 300 hours and is only a fraction of the cost and time it would take one to go through full cosmetology school. Over the six-week span, students will be given the knowledge they need to enter the hair industry. Students of the institute not only will learn braiding, twisting, and loc-ing, but also hair extension methods, such as sew-ins and wig construction. Since the institute emphasizes natural hair care, students will learn how to perform scalp treatments, trim hair and transition from chemically-treated hair to natural hair without having to do the “big chop,” which is when someone cuts off the chemically-treated portion of the hair. Students also will learn how to create natural hairstyles like bantu-knots and two-strand twists. The Institute of Beauty also teaches students the business aspects of the cosmetology industry. Turner refers to these teachings as the “business basics.” Turner noticed many hairstylists have not been taught how to properly set up their business. So, Turner created her business bootcamp, where students will learn skills such as how to save and charge for their services. The Institute of Beauty Summer program has about 15 open student slots. Enrollment is open until Thursday (July 1). Turner wants to keep the program small so students will be able to thoroughly understand all the information they will be given over the short period of time. Students under 15 years old will be able to fill out an application for the program, but they must be 16 years old before the year is over in order to take the exam. (For more information, visit https://www.iobtn.com/training.)

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NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property: Tyrone J. Paylor Tax Parcel #: 08303000000280 Tax Sale #: 903 Price Offered: $1875.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 9:00 a.m. on August 2, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Office, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort. Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400 NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property: James E. Taylor Tax Parcel #: 07504300000090 Tax Sale #: 901 Price Offered: $3000.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 2:30 p.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Office, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort. Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400 NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property: Linda Britt and Keilon Morton Tax Parcel #: 03507900000270 Tax Sale #: 1604 Price Offered: $10,000.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 2:00 p.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Office, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort. Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400 NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property:

Maria Kight Tax Parcel #: 04700800000030 Tax Sale #: 1701 Price Offered: $6500.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 1:30 p.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Office, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort. Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400 NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property: Oscar I. Selvera Tax Parcel #: 07008800000240 Tax Sale #: 1402 Price Offered: $2500.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 1:00 p.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Office, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort. Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400 NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property: Oscar I. Selvera Tax Parcel #: 07204200000250 Tax Sale #: 1002 Price Offered: $1800.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 10:30 a.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Office, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort. Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400 NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property: Eunice Rena Lipford Tax Parcel #: 06005600000120 Tax Sale #: 1604 Price Offered: $11000.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 10:00 a.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Office, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort. Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400 NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property: W. Douglas &amp; Company LLC Tax Parcel #: 07101600000150 Tax Sale #: 903 Price Offered: $1800.00 Terms: Cash Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 9:30

a.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Ofﬁce, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort.

of any sort.

Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400

NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT

Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property:

Ronald Price Tax Parcel #: 02606700000060 Tax Sale #: 804 Price Offered: $1,500 Terms: Cash

Eric Norvell Tax Parcel #: 0934180B001650 Tax Sale #: 1203 Price Offered: $5800.00 Terms: Cash

Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 10:00 a.m. on July 29, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Ofﬁce, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort.

Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 9:00 a.m. on July 30, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Ofﬁce, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort.

Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400

NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT

Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property:

Cordale Echols Tax Parcel #: 07505800000080 Tax Sale #: 1503 Price Offered: $600 Terms: Cash

NV Dream Homes of Memphis Tax Parcel #: 07001000000270 Tax Sale #: 1701 Price Offered: $15,070 Terms: Cash

Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 9:30 a.m. on July 29, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Ofﬁce, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort.

Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 1:30 p.m. on July 29, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Ofﬁce, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort.

Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400

NOTICE OF PROPOSED SALE OF REAL PROPERTY BY SHELBY COUNTY GOVERNMENT

Notice is hereby given, pursuant to T.C.A. §67-5-2507, that Shelby County Government has received an Offer to Purchase for the following property:

Jason Panter Tax Parcel #: 04203400000740 Tax Sale #: 1603 Price Offered: $600 Terms: Cash

Nichole Spalding Tax Parcel #: 08205200000490 Tax Sale #: 405 Price Offered: $3,000 Terms: Cash

Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 9:00 a.m. on July 29, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Ofﬁce, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties of any sort.

Additional Offers to Purchase, of at least ten percent (10%) higher, may be submitted within Ten (10) working days of this notice. If additional offers are received during this ten (10) day period, all prospective Purchasers must attend a Public “Bid Off” at 1:00 p.m. on July 29, 2021, to be held in the Shelby County Land Bank Ofﬁce, to determine the highest and best offer. The property shall thereafter be sold to the prospective Purchaser making the highest and best offer without warranties

Shelby County Land Bank 584 Adams Avenue Memphis, TN 38103 (901)222-2400

SALES PERSON The New Tri-State Defender is looking for a few sales consultants to sell print ads, digital ads and event sponsorships for the organization. The candidate should have some sales experience. This is a commission based opportunity. For serious inquiries email your resume to administration@ tsdmemphis.com.

The New Tri-State Defender

July 1 - 7, 2021

Page 9

SPORTS

Hardaway ain’t going nowhere, for now! Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Penny Hardaway will be back on the sidelines manning the head coaching role for the University of Memphis men’s basketball team this coming fall. (Photo: Warren Roseborough/TSD Archives)

For a couple of days, the University of Memphis basketball fan base was at a loss as to whether head coach Penny Hardaway could possibility leave the program to coach the NBA’s Orlando Magic. To the relief of the Tigers’ basketball faithful, Hardaway announced on Instagram Tuesday (June 29) that he plans to remain the coach of his alma mater to coach for a fourth

year. And, in another development, Hardaway said he plans to hire legendary basketball coach Larry Brown as an assistant. The 80-year-old Brown is the only coach in history to have won an NCAA championship and an NBA title. He is expected to replace Tony Madlock, who was named head coach at South Carolina State in March. On his decision to remain at the U of M, Hardaway said, “I’m gonna be here. I don’t

want you guys to be afraid that I’m going anywhere. And, let’s get it done. Let’s keep fighting. I’m working hard. “My staff is working hard. We’re excited about this year with the 100 percent capacity coming back to the FedExForum. Please fill it out, fill it up. Come back, cheer us on and let’s see where it goes.” The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Sunday (June 27) that Hardaway had interviewed for the in Orlanda, where he was a superstar guard, and was a “serious”

candidate. Hardaway will coach a U of M team that will enter the new season after winning last season’s National Invitation Tournament (NIT). His 2021-2022 team will have a nucleus of four returning key players – Landers Nolley II, DeAndre Williams, Lester Quinones and Alex Lomax, alongside a crew highly-rated recruits. For each of his three seasons at Memphis, Hardaway’s teams have won 20 games.

Back to baseball…

The Huffman Cains of Birmingham and The Tri-State Yankees met at Jesse Turner Park on Saturday (June 27), playing two games. Popper Jack, a former major league player from Birmingham, and Kenny Lee coached the Cains, with Tony James guiding the Yankees. (Photos: Tyrone P. Easley)

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The New Tri-State Defender

July 1 - 7, 2021

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