The Dallas Examiner headliners for 09.19.19

VOL. XXXIII • SEPTEMBER 19, 2019

50 cents

Dallas City Council reviews aviation lease in South Dallas Rate of Uninsured Rises

Post-Military Careers

Health Pg 7

By DIANE XAVIER The Dallas Examiner

During the Dallas City Council meeting, held Sept. 11, Pastor Steve Wilder read from Psalms 23:1-3 before offering a special prayer in commemoration of 9/11 during the invocation.

During the meeting, council members discussed the authorization of a lease agreement with Dallas Jet Holdings LLC. The lease agreement with Dallas Jet at Dallas Executive Airport would allow for approximately 824 square feet of lobby and office space within the airport terminal and 97,049 square feet of airport land and facilities for aviation-related operations.

Kimberly Bizor Tolbert, chief of staff to the city manager, explained that the aviation group is a subsidiary of Aero Management Group Inc., which operates independent fixed-base operator facilities at multiple general aviation airports around the United States. AMG provides FBO services

Mark Duebner, director of aviation for the city of Dallas.

– The Dallas Examiner screenshot from the city of Dallas video

including fueling, aircraft tie-downs, parking, hangar services, flight instruction, aircraft rentals and aircraft charter services, and now desires, through Dallas Jet, to expand its operations to the airport.

The city desires to lease to Dallas Jet approximately 97,049 square feet of land and facilities at the airport for its new FBO operation for an initial term of 20 years, with two 10-year renewal options.

The city would also lease to Dallas Jet approximately 824 square feet of lobby

and office space within the airport terminal for an initial term of five years, with four five-year renewal options.

Tolbert said this lease would generate over $8 million in revenue.

“This lease would generate an estimated revenue of approximately $8.7 million to the city over the initial 20-year term and will bring new amenities and business operations to Dallas Executive, which will help spur continued future development at the airport,” Tolbert said.

George Moussa, president and CEO of Ambassador Jet Center, the other FBO on the field, said he is not opposed to competition from Dallas Jet but is concerned about the unfair advantage given to Dallas Jet. “To allow Dallas Jet Holdings the opportunity to run their FBO operations from their terminal creates an economic disadvantage against Ambassador and

See City Council Page 3

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Awards group pays tribute to music icons PRNewswire

CHICAGO – The fourth annual Black Music Honors, hosted this year by television and radio personality Rickey Smiley and Grammy Award winner and actress LeToya Luckett-Walker, is currently airing in national broadcast syndication.

“The vision behind the Black Music Honors is to recognize the trailblazers in African American music who have paved the way for the artists of today. Many of these artists have never received their much-deserved recognition,” stated chairman Don Jackson, the show’s founder, executive producer.

The star-studded show was taped live at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre in Atlanta. Honorees were:

• Platinum-selling quartet Xscape received the Urban Music Icon Award for 25 years in the industry.

• Chart-topping crooner Freddie Jackson, whose career has spanned over 33 years, received the Legend Award.

• Gospel artist Yolanda Adams received the Gospel Music Icon Award.

• Culturally conscious eclectic group Arrested Development received the Hip Hop Icon Award.

• Soulful songstress Tamia received the Soul Music Icon Award.

Leon Timbo and Major performed a special tribute in honor of Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Bill Withers.

Other tributes were performed by Avery Wilson, Dee1, Jade Novah, Jagged Edge,

Jekalyn Carr, Naughty by Nature, June’s Diary, Keke Wyatt, Kelly Price, Le’Andria Johnson, Melanie Fiona and 702.

Several performances were met with standing ovations.

The night culminated with Jackson expressing gratitude to the honorees, presenters and performers for making the night unforgettable.

“The Black Music Honors gives us an opportunity to celebrate the accomplishments of the trailblazers of African American music,” said Jackson. Jennifer J. Jackson also served as producer and Michael A. Johnson as producer and director.

The show was produced by Chicago-based production company Central City Productions Inc., founded in 1970 by Jackson. CCP is a distributor of original targeted program-

The Indigent Project – Part V

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Accepting awards: 1. Xscape, 2. Freddie Jackson, 3. Yolanda Adams and 4.

Tamia. – Photos courtesy of Central City Productions Inc.

ming to television and cable networks. CCP's award-winning television programs include The Stellar Gospel Music Awards, Stellar Tribute to the Holidays, Stellar Sunday, The Black College Quiz Show Series and Mentoring Kings, among others.

The show can be viewed Sept. 28 at 8 p.m. on The CW33, KDAF – channel 33.

Every Texan has a right to an effective lawyer, fair trial

By NEENA SATIJA

Texas Tribune and Texas Monthly

On June 24, 2018, Marvin Wilford sat on his bunk in the Travis County jail and pulled out a notebook. He was firing his lawyer, and over three pages, he did his best to explain why: Espersen barely communicated with him; it appeared he’d misplaced documents from Christine Wilford.

“He didn’t use none of the state money ... to get an investigator to question the witness on my behalf, not even the Security Guard who fired the gun,” he wrote.

The thought that he might end up in prison for many years overwhelmed him.

“When I was in combat, and my life was on the line, I fought for my life,” he recalled. “And I realized, ‘I gotta fight for my life now, too.’ I was trying to write the

Read…

letter so she would understand.”

For two weeks, neither he nor Christine Wilford got a response. She called the Capital Area Private Defender Service phone number repeatedly – more than 20 times, she thought – and left message after message. Finally, in early July, she heard from executive director Ira Davis, who told her to attend her husband’s next court date, on July 13. If CAPDS was supposed to be a recourse, it didn’t strike her as particularly effective.

The truth was, the staff at CAPDS was overwhelmed, too. The sheer volume of work – supervising more than 200 lawyers, handling their payments, coordinating investigators and social workers – was near impossible for such a small team. Not to mention the number of complaints they received. There was barely time to look into

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each defendant’s grievance, let alone a lawyer’s performance. Many complaint forms ended up half filled out, with no record of a follow-up.

Strassburger felt that CAPDS’ supposedly independent oversight was continually compromised. The use of investigators, while better, was not improving fast enough; by 2018, lawyers were requesting them in less than 5% of felony cases and less than 1% of misdemeanor cases. And while judges no longer assigned cases – this was left to court administrative staff – a lawyer could still show up for ad hoc appointments, circumventing the setup.

Because judges had found it difficult to suspend poorly performing lawyers,

See Fair Trial Page 3

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Business Pg 6

Angelicah Malone, a high school student, doesn’t remember attending middle school and has started to skip classes. She said the foster parent she lived with before did not properly supervise her. Her siblings are scattered across New York City. – Photo by Jae C. Hong/AP

Disparities of Black children in foster care

BY MATHEW SHAW The Dallas Examiner

Gabe Meadows of Richardson knows what it is like to grow up without a father. Having been raised by his mother since his father left him when he was 10, Meadows now volunteers for Court-Appointed Special Advocates, known as CASA, a nonprofit organization of volunteers who act as “voices” for abused and neglected children.

Now in his fifth year with Dallas CASA, he has advocated for two sets of brothers, one Black and the current set Hispanic. The National Court Appointed Special Advocate Association has 950 programs in 49 states.

Meadows, himself a Black man, said he can relate his life experiences growing up poor and without a father with his boys, who also have no father.

“Nobody ever welcomes turmoil, but we almost all benefit from it,” he declared. “The way they used to say in the old churches, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger, and there may be a lot of wisdom to that.”

Meadows is one of only 15% of volunteer advocates who are Black. However, 46% of the children removed from their homes in Dallas County in 2018 were Black, even though Black children make up only 21.4% of the county’s child population, according to Dallas CASA president and CEO Kathleen LaValle.

“I don’t think we have a real definitive theory as to why the disproportionality exists to the extent that it does,” LaValle stated. “Is there any bias on the part of those who are making reports? Those are all just questions as a community we ought to be asking ourselves.”

LaValle cited a 2016 report by the Child Welfare Information Gateway, a service of the Children’s Bureau of the Administration of Children and Families, that offered four possible explanations for this disproportionality.

The reasons could be the unique needs of children and families of color due to higher rates of poverty, racial bias and discrimination exhibited by caseworkers, child welfare system issues such as lack of resources for families of color and geographic context like region, state or neighborhood.

Steve Pemberton, author of A Chance in the World, who chronicled his abusive childhood in foster care, described himself as an “inheritor of generations of tragedy.”

“It’s difficult to describe all these years later what it’s like waking up every day as a child in fear for your life,” he said. “My biggest goal – the thing I wanted more than anything in the world – was a family.”

Pemberton shared his story as the guest speaker during Dallas CASA’s annual “Cherish the Children” luncheon, April 5 at the Omni Dallas Hotel.

Removed from an alcoholic mother and absent father and placed in foster care at 3 years old, Pemberton spent the next 13 years being mentally and physically tortured in his foster

See Foster Care Page 6

Inside

State/Metro . . . . 2

Editorial . . . . . . . 4 Perspectives . . . 5

Dear Biden

Business . . . . . . 6

Perspectives Pg 5

Health. . . . . . . . . 7

Classifieds. . . . . 9

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www.dallasexaminer.com

Page 2 September 19, 2019

STATE/METRO

The Dallas Examiner www.dallasexaminer.com

City seeks input from residents, businesses on Comprehensive Environmental and Climate Action Plan Special to The Dallas Examiner

With a focus on public safety, the purpose of the Comprehensive Environmental and Climate Action Plan is to inform how Dallas can become a healthier, cleaner and better city.

The city of Dallas is seeking the public’s input. The city’s Office of Environmental Quality and Sustainability will begin a second round of community meetings to gather feedback from residents and businesses to help shape its first comprehensive plan.

Six public meetings are scheduled to give residents an opportunity to provide their input. The first meeting was held Tuesday and will continue through Oct. 3.

“Because city operations form such a small part of our overall

The Dallas Examiner

DALLAS In Texas, there are over 300,000 victims of sex trafficking – 79,000 are children – with under 100 beds for victims who have been rescued to be safely secured for healing and restoration.

Moreover, it is not uncommon for survivors to end up in a homeless shelter, jail or back in the hands of traffickers after being rescued because of the shortage of transitional homes and restoration programs.

Bochy’s Place is a restoration home for women healing from the trauma of human trafficking. It provides a family environment where residents can work toward their healing emotionally, spiritually, psychologically and physically. Through a trauma- informed lens, the program offers various life skills classes, licensed counsel-

carbon footprint in Dallas, we have to collaborate with our residents and businesses to find innovative ways to reduce our community-wide emissions, prepare for a changing climate and enhance quality of life through equitable and sustainable planning of our community’s environmental assets,” explained James McGuire, director of the Office of Environmental Quality and Sustainability.

The city is working with AECOM, a global infrastructure firm, to develop this plan. Previously, AECOM supported development of the Resilient Dallas Strategy in collaboration with 100 Resilient Cities. The firm also supports the Carbon Disclosure Project and the World Bank as well as over 50 cities around the

ing, inner healing sessions, legal advocacy, financial planning mentorship and partnerships with the community to provide exercise, self-defense, nutrition classes, community service, educational opportunities, job placement, dental, chiropractic and medical care.

On Sept. 26 it will host its third annual Night in White Benefit Gala at The Nest at Ruth Farms. The theme is “Home Sweet Home.”

The gala will focus on the problem in North Texas and show the short film Grace, based on true stories of Bochy’s Place survivors.

Attorney General Ken Paxton will share his mission regarding the eradication of human trafficking.

For more information and tickets, visit http://www.bochysplace.com/events.

Anyone interested in volunteering can also fill out a form on the website.

world with climate action, adaptation and sustainability planning.

Extreme heat, prolonged droughts and other climate change-related impacts could have detrimental effects on a city and the health of its residents. According to the Fourth National Climate Assessment 2017/2018, Texas alone could see up to 60 additional days per year of temperatures exceeding 100 degrees if carbon emissions aren’t significantly reduced. When complete, the CECAP plan will focus on reducing the root causes of changing weather and the development of benchmarks and strategies for adapting the city to changing local conditions.

“The effects of climate change on our cities are becoming more intense every year. We need to

collaborate as a society to facilitate meaningful change,” said AECOM Senior Urban Planner Tatum Lau, deputy project manager for the CECAP plan. “It will take the entire community of Dallas to ensure it’s ready to build a safe future and enhance the quality of life for all residents.”

The contract to develop the CECAP plan, which was first approved by the Dallas City Council in January, is expected to be unveiled on Earth Day 2020.

Scheduled public meetings, at locations around the city, will be held to solicit the community’s ideas and goals before the final plan is unveiled. Light snacks and children’s activities will be provided as well as Spanish translation services.

The survey is available through

Around the State

DALLAS After the opening of the Fresh Produce Distribution Center at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center June 19, staff learned many residents were unfamiliar with some ingredients being given away and occasionally rejected them due to lack of confidence in how to prepare meals. A member of the MLK Center Advisory Board worked to secure a rotation of chefs to provide cooking demonstrations and healthy cooking alternatives.

On Sept. 7, the MLK Center began hosting noteworthy local chefs on the first Saturday of every month. The demos began with the culinary team of Ellen’s Kitchen in the Historic West End. Each month, chefs will provide the community informational programming that compliments their experience in receiving free

SAVE THE DATE

Oct 21

Meet the Candidates

food from the Fresh Produce Distribution Center at the center. Upcoming demos include notable culinary masters from some of Dallas’ most reputable restaurants like CBD Provisions, Café Momentum, Commissary and many more.

Since its inception, the center has served nearly 4,000 families fresh produce at no cost. There are no income or zip code restrictions.

DALLAS The State Fair of Texas, themed “Celebrating Texas Creativity,” runs Sept. 27 through Oct. 20. Representatives recently announced that the fair is continuing the annual tradition of the Opening Day Parade, Sept.

27 at 7 p.m.

However, the parade will take place in front of the Hall of State in Fair Park beginning this year to ac-

Oct. 27 at http://www.dallasclimateaction.com.

Community listening events are scheduled from 6-8 p.m. at the following dates and locations: • Sept. 17 at Lakewood Library: 6121 Worth St. • Sept. 19 at MLK Community Center: 2922 MLK Jr. Blvd.

• Sept. 24 at Bachman Rec Center: 2750 Bachman Drive.

• Sept. 26 at Singing Hills Rec Center: 1901 Crouch Road.

• Sept. 30 at Dallas Executive Airport: 5303 Challenger Drive.

• Oct. 3 at Timberglen Rec Center: 3810 Timberglen Road.

Venues have been selected to enhance community engagement and to cover council districts across the city.

commodate other events and activities planned as part of the start to the 24day State Fair. The parade previously took place downtown. Moving the parade inside the fairgrounds allows more people to join in the festivities and puts the focus on Fair Park.

“We think this is a change that a lot of fairgoers will enjoy, as they can focus their attention on events in Fair Park that day,” said Mitchell Glieber, president of the State Fair of Texas.

“Since we will have two parades on Opening Day, there will be the opportunity for daytime and nighttime visitors to take part in the celebration.”

The fair will be taking certain popular elements from the downtown parade and incorporating them into this year’s parade, but will offer a unique experience from the nightly parade.

Opening Day is also Mil-

itary Appreciation Day at the fair. All active military, retired military and veterans receive free admission when they present valid documentation of military service. Spouses of service men and women with a valid military spouse ID with accompanying children under the age of 18 receive free admission, as well.

Children ages 2 and younger also receive free admission. Other attendees who bring a full 20-ounce bottle of Dasani water or any 20-ounce Coca-Cola product for donation to the North Texas Food Bank will receive a special 50% discount admission.

General admission is the same as last year and will include more than 100 daily shows, concerts, activities and exhibits, all at no extra cost. For information, visit http://www.bigtex.com.

The Dallas Examiner www.dallasexaminer.com

City Council, continued from Front Page

shows favoritism to a newcomer over an operation that has been on the field over 15 years,” Moussa said. “For 19 years, Ambassador Jet Center has had a committed investment and continues to make improvements to the airport, and we believe in a level playing field for all. I encourage you to vote no on this portion of the agenda and keep the terminal building off limits.”

Brian Myler, general

manager of Ambassador Jet Center and an employee of Dallas Executive Airport in South Dallas, also agreed that allowing Dallas Jet the opportunity to take over the terminal building would be unfair and difficult.

“Our location is not directly next to the restaurant where people can easily go and eat, so if we have a new FBO in the building, then all their customers can easily go to the restaurant, and if somebody comes to get picked up from the terminal there, it’s an easy drive, and it terminates right at the end of the road, and we are off

to the side, and one has to circumvent many hangers to get to the building,” Myler said. “We have been down there and working there since 2001. We are part of South Dallas and Oak Cliff and part of that infrastructure, and we just want to be fair.”

Mark Duebner, director of aviation for the city of Dallas, said his organization feels like this connected type of fixed-based operator enterprise is beneficial to the airport.

“We’ve seen a steady rise in the fuel sales average monthly gallons flow at Dallas Executive since we

have made the major investment on expanding the runway, and so we felt like that there is enough business at Dallas Executive; it is steadily growing significantly the investment,” Duebner said.

“Bringing a fixed-based operator with a national network would help drive additional traffic as well as other development we are doing at Dallas Executive.

We think we have been fair about the opportunities at Dallas Executive, and so when Dallas Jet approached us about negotiating terms of coming to Dallas Executive, we were receptive, and that is how we came to negotiate this deal.”

Council member Tennell Atkins for District 8 wanted to know what the current volume of fuel was for the airport.

“In 2019, we are averaging 60,604 gallons monthly,” Duebner said.

“So we are seeing an increase in fuel sales, an increase in activity, which lets us know our and the council commitment to the investment in the airport is paying off.”

Atkins also had questions about the lease agreement and wanted to know why the lease agreement called for a 20-year lease when initially he was told it would be a temporary lease agreement.

Fair Trial,

continued from Front Page

CAPDS had formed a review committee of criminal defense lawyers to make the tough calls instead. But, as it turned out, lawyers found it just as difficult to sanction their peers. Committee members were loath to kick colleagues off the wheel, thereby depriving them of income; they also had trouble taking defendant complaints at face value.

“People in the criminal justice system are unhappy,” explained Blackwell. “People are going to about their complain lawyers.”

Most exasperating to Strassburger, was that despite the county’s effort to wrest power from the judges, the judges were still ultimately in control. The review committee actively solicited judges for input on lawyers.

The court staff that facilitated appointments also reported to the judges.

Meanwhile, the judges refused to agree to stricter caseload limits – the limit in Travis County is 100 misdemeanor cases and 90 felonies at any given time; Alex Bunin, the chief defender in Harris County, stated that lawyers in his office rarely go above 30 felonies at once. Judges also, together with county commissioners, refused to increase lawyers’ fees, arguing that there wasn’t enough funding.

As a result, many lawyers still juggled big caseloads, racking up complaints. At first, Strassburger tried to keep detailed memos. In July 2015, for instance, she noted that several defendants had complained about Tom Weber, who that year was paid for 305 felonies and 104 misdemeanors.

“All reported bizarre and unprofessional behavior,” she wrote. When she’d brought this to Weber’s attention, Strassburger also wrote, he had dismissed the credibility of his clients, calling them “monsters,” “scumbags” and “rapists.”

Weber did not respond to requests for comment.

Three weeks after that memo, the KXAN report about Espersen’s workload aired. According to the investigation, over two years, Espersen had billed Travis County for 40 hours of jail visits that were unac-

Page 3 September 19, 2019

“It could be extended to 20 years, but the original term is five years,” Duebner said. “However, the last part of that clause in the lease does say either party may at any time terminate this lease with respect to the terminal space upon 180 days prior written notice to the other party. It is the intent in discussing with Dallas Jet that it is a temporary use of that space while they do renovations.

They intend to consolidate their operations at 5555 Apollo [Drive], and that will be their place of business.

Given the variabilities that happen in construction in this market and indications of a looming recession really affects general aviation sort of as a leading casualty, they wanted some option of staying in the terminal if something went wrong so they wouldn’t be displaced or have no place to have their reception space and office space.”

Atkins said he believes it should not be a long-term lease of 20 years.

“When they do improvements to their property, and they didn’t come back and negotiate,” Atkins said. “I don’t think it should be a long-term lease.

I think it’s unfair with more than one FBO there and to have an exclusive right for the plane to drive up in front of the terminal building.

Instead, the city of Dallas let you drive up, drop the passenger off, and you have another space on the property that is unfair because it is an impression that the city of Dallas is part of the FBO, in my opinion, as part of general aviation.

It is not a Love Field or DFW, but it is a general aviation airport. So I think to lease something in the terminal building for 20 years for a revenue of $10,000 a year for a 1,000 square feet – that is less than 80 cents a square foot.

That is below market. I think we should do a shortterm lease and not a 20-year lease.”

Council member Carolyn King Arnold of District 4 noted having concerns because she had questions for the district’s council member about what his constituents have said, but that representative was not present.

Arnold made a motion to delay the vote of this subject for 30 days.

“It’s about stewardship and accountability,” Arnold said. “I have a number of concerns about the statements made today, and I just want to err on the side of getting enough information so we can vote in terms of accountability for this community of which I am also affected.”

The council agreed to defer the item for 30 days.

counted for. In one instance, Espersen claimed to have met with an inmate named Rodney Thomas five times, for a total of 13 hours. But Thomas told KXAN that the lawyer visited him once – a week before his trial – a claim corroborated by jail records. Espersen had also billed for a visit with Robert Rivera “I did not so much as receive one visit from Mr. Espersen while incarcerated at Travis County Correctional Complex in Del Valle,” he told KXAN. In response to the KXAN report, the district attorney’s office opened a criminal investigation into Espersen and a few other lawyers – including Weber – for the alleged overbilling. When the CAPDS review committee convened early the following year to decide which lawyers could take appointments, Strassburger, Davis and Hargis recommended in a joint memo that Weber not represent people with mental illness.

He’d allegedly told one client to “go ahead and kill himself,” they wrote. They urged the committee to “seriously consider whether he should be defending indigent people at all.”

They also warned about attorney Phil Campbell, who was paid on 134 felonies and 300 misdemeanors in fiscal 2015.

“Staff observations of Mr. Campbell and complaints from other attorneys indicated an attorney who was not truly advocating on behalf of his clients but merely conveying an offer and advising them to take it,” they wrote.

Campbell declined to comment.

Later, they brought up Espersen. Some of his clients had learned of the DA’s investigation and written to CAPDS to complain.

“I deserve a fair trial,” wrote one. “Please help.”

The review committee agreed to remove Campbell and Weber from cases involving people with mental illness. But that was it.

Weber continued to receive appointments on high-level felonies until he was hired by the DA’s office. Campbell’s caseload, meanwhile, increased; he went on to take cases in nearby counties. (In 2014, he was paid for 106 felonies and 252 misdemeanors; by 2018, his misdemeanor caseload had grown to 428.)

As for Espersen, the com-

mittee decided to delay action until the DA’s office concluded its investigation, which is still pending four years later.

The DA’s office denied a public information request for records related to the investigation.

As long as judges had this much say in the matter, Strassburger realized, little would improve for Travis County’s poor defendants.

Her despair only grew when, in the fall of 2017, several judges approached CAPDS with a question.

Was it fair, they asked, to look at a lawyer’s number of cases rather than clients?

Given that some clients had more than one case against them at a time, why not instead suspend lawyers who had too many clients?

Strassburger was dumbfounded. This would have the effect of raising the caseload limit, and caseloads were terrible enough.

In yet another memo, she outlined her concerns.

“We are encouraging attorneys to quickly resolve cases and, in effect, punishing those attorneys who handle complicated cases,” she explained. In bold, underlined font, she added, “The attorney with the highest caseload (748) has not been suspended for exceeding caseload limits in the last 12 months.” A few months later, disheartened, Strassburger quit.

On July 13, Marvin and Christine Wilford appeared for his court date. They were joined by Espersen, who, per Marvin Wilford’s request, had agreed to remove himself from the case. Standing before Judge Clifford Brown – who was sitting in while Sage was at trial – Marvin Wilford listened attentively as the judge approved Espersen’s motion. Wilford sighed with relief.

“Finally,” he thought.

Disclosure: The University of Texas, the University of Houston and Texas Tech University have been financial supporters of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune’s journalism.

Page 4 September 19, 2019

Incomparable voice of Toni Morrison By MARIAN WRIGHT EDELMAN Children’s Defense Fund

“When a child walks in the room, your child or anybody else’s child, do your eyes light up? That’s what they’re looking for.”

– Toni Morrison

When great writer Toni Morrison passed away Aug. 5, our world lost an incomparable voice. I always have been especially moved by her portrayals of children, and the knowledge that her care and perceptive attention to children’s emotions and needs did not stop on the printed page.

I remember gratefully her presence at CDF’s 1999 National Symposium on the Arts and Scholarship held at the Children’s Defense Fund Haley Farm for the dedication of the Langston Hughes Library designed

by Maya Lin on the grounds formerly owned by Roots author Alex Haley. The library’s design and construction was made possible by the generosity of Leonard Riggio and his wife, Louise.

Len was chair of Barnes and Noble and a CDF board member.

Morrison joined first lady Hillary Clinton, Secretary of Health and Human Services Donna Shalala, Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman, Dr. Maya Angelou, Dr. John Hope Franklin, Dr. Dorothy Height, U.S. poet laureate Rita Dove, Joyce Carol Oates, Walter Dean Myers, Nikki Giovanni and more than 200 other guests at the inspiring event.

Morrison’s signature remains at the top of the library’s visitors book. She spoke about the role of arts and literature in liberation, enthralled us with a reading from Paradise and graciously moved among her great admirers.

Her presence at this very special CDF event was a powerful reminder of her deep commitment to children. When asked about her treatment of child characters in a 1984 interview, she responded, “I have thought that the children are in real danger. Nobody likes them, all children, but particularly

Black children. It seems stark to me, because it wasn’t true when I was growing up. The relationships of the generations have always been paramount to me in all of my works, the older as well as the younger generation, and whether that is healthy and continuing. I feel that my generation has done the children a great disservice. I’m talking about the emotional support that is not available to them anymore because adults are acting out their own childhoods. They are interested in self-aggrandizement, being ‘right’ and pleasures.

Everywhere, everywhere, children are the scorned people of the earth.

“There may be a lot of scorned people, but particularly children. … You don’t have to go to the exploitation, the 10-year-old model and child porn – that’s the obvious. Even in the orderly parts of society, it is staggering. Children are committing suicide, they are tearing up the schools, they are running away from home. They are beaten and molested; it’s an epidemic.”

How deeply aware she was of the way our culture mistreats and undervalues children, the continued fraying of traditional multigenerational bonds and the increasing exploitation, self-absorption and isolation that has grown in the internet age.

Morrison was a great human being and a peerless writer, whose words will echo across the ages. Accepting the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1993 she said: “Word-work is sublime, she thinks, because it is generative; it makes meaning that secures our difference, our human difference – the way in which we are like no other life. We die.

That may be the meaning of life. But we do language.

That may be the measure of our lives.”

Marian Wright Edelman is founder and president emerita of the Children’s Defense Fund whose mission is Leave No Child Behind. For more information, visit http://www.childrensdefense.org.

EDITORIAL

Ray Shackelford: NUL Young Professionals’ new president By JEFFERY BONEY NNPA

When it comes to voting, it is often said that “every vote counts,” and that adage really rang true for Houston native Ray B. Shackelford, as he was recently elected as the 10th president of the National Urban League Young Professionals by a narrow one-vote margin at the National Urban League Annual Convention in Indianapolis.

Again, every vote counts!

NULYP is a National Urban League volunteer auxiliary that targets young professionals, from the ages of 21 to 40, who seek to empower their communities and change lives through the Urban League Movement. Its mission is to support the movement through volunteerism, philanthropy and membership development.

Since its inception, it has worked to support their affiliates and to develop a leadership pipeline for the NUL. Over the years, the NULYP’s role has expanded to a point where they have provided leadership in every space, while helping to bridge generational gaps and solve problems that have plagued the African American community for decades.

Shackelford was elected to serve as the new leader of NULYP, which was ironically unveiled at the NUL Annual Conference in Houston back in 1999.

Fast forward to 2019, and we find a Houstonian at the helm of the very organization that was launched in his home city of Houston exactly 20 years ago.

It is fitting that Shackelford will be at the helm of leading the organization, as the annual conference will be returning to his hometown in 2020.

Shackelford was born and raised in Houston’s Third Ward, where he spent his entire childhood attending Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church. After graduating from Lamar High School, he left Houston to attend Morehouse College, where he graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts degree in business administration, concentrating in finance.

Upon returning to Houston, Shackelford became a member of the Houston Area Urban League for Young Professionals and was eventually elected to serve as its president.

As president, he steered HAULYP to an intense focus on service programming and connecting with the community. His impact in that role led to him being named as the National President of the Year. Shackelford went on to serve as Southern Region Vice President of NULYP before recently being elected to serve as the 10th National President.

Recognized as a leader in his community, Shackelford was nominated by the city’s mayor and confirmed by the Houston City Council to serve on the city’s Independent Police Oversight

Socialist price controls will harm American patients

By SALLY C. PIPES Pacific Research Institute

The Trump administration is planning one of the biggest changes to Medicare in decades.

The draft rule would effectively bring socialist drug price controls to the United States. The change would threaten patients’ health and discourage companies from funding experimental treatments for deadly diseases.

The rule impacts Medicare Part B, which covers drugs administered via shots and IV drips in hospitals and doctors’ offices. Most cancer treatments, for instance, are covered through Part B. Part B drugs cost more in America than in countries like Canada and the United Kingdom, which impose strict price controls on prescription drugs. If bureaucratic agencies – such as Canada’s Patented Medicine Prices Review Board – deem a drug too ex-

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pensive, they refuse to cover it.

Apparently, the Trump administration thinks these countries have the right idea. Officials believe that tying Medicare reimbursements to the average prices paid for drugs in a handful of foreign countries, where price controls are common, would reduce Part B drug spending.

Americans have little to gain and much to lose from statist price controls.

Drug development is risky. It can take decades and cost a staggering $2.9 billion to develop a new medicine. Most experimental drugs never even make it out of the lab. Manufacturers fund future research with the revenue from just a handful of successful products.

The rule would make drug development far less appealing. If the potential return on investment were capped, companies would have little reason to spend billions trying to develop new medicines.

History shows us what happens to drug development when price controls

are employed. Europe was a hotbed of drug innovation in the 1970s, producing over half of all drugs worldwide.

But European nations gradually ramped up price controls in the ensuing decades.

U.S. leaders resisted that temptation, which explains why America now attracts 75% of global biopharmaceutical venture capital investments and develops more than half of the world’s medicines, while Europe invents a mere third of drugs.

Price controls may yield some shortterm savings, but they would cost patients dearly in the long run.

Sally C. Pipes is president and CEO at the Pacific Research Institute, where she is a Thomas W. Smith Fellow in Health Care Policy. Her latest book is The False Promise of SinglePayer Health Care.

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Board, making him one of the youngest members to serve on that board in the city’s history.

In this role, Shackelford reviews investigations conducted by the Houston Police Department’s Internal Affairs Division when officers use force on civilians or discharge their firearms.

After reviewing those cases, he and his peers make recommendations to the mayor, chief of police, and the public safety representative for the City Council.

He previously worked for the Houston Area Urban League in its Housing Programs department and as a certified housing counselor for the Homeless Prevention and Rapid Re-Housing Program.

In both roles, Shackelford worked to solve housing issues facing disadvantaged communities. He is currently working on a major census 2020 project to ensure an accurate count for African Americans in the upcoming year.

Shackelford understands that he must gain the trust and respect of all members, especially those who did not vote for him, but he is overly optimistic that the organization can thrive with collective unity and focus on advancing the movement.

“Just like I didn’t get here on my own, moving forward the same will be true,” Shackelford said. “In the coming months, my team and I look forward to meeting with the members across the country and hearing their ideas of how we can work together to ad-

vance the movement. It will take all of us to create the impact that we want to see and our communities desperately need.”

Shackelford knows it will take a lot of hard work to accomplish those goals, but he believes the current climate in this country as it relates to African Americans won’t allow him to be deterred from his mission to better the organization.

“Today we live in a nation where Black lives have little to no value, mass shootings have become the norm, children are being stripped from their families, women cannot receive equal pay and a host of other issues.

So, what does that mean for you and I?” asks Shackelford. “We must achieve record voter turnout in both presidential and local elections. We must ensure that every soul is counted in the census. We must become the best version of ourselves, and we must come together as a family. We are necessary. We are needed, and we must all step up to lead now. The time is now, and this is too important of a time to have a seat on the sidelines.”

Jeffrey Boney is a political analyst and frequent contributor for the NNPA Newswire and BlackPressUSA.com and the associate editor for the Houston Forward Times.

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PERSPECTIVES

Page 5 September 19, 2019

Income gap increases, the poor die sooner

By EDDIE BERNICE JOHNSON

U.S. House of Representatives

The income gap between wealthy and poor Americans continues to increase and one of the results is that the life expectancy of those at the top continues to grow, while those at the bottom are living fewer years than those who are benefiting from the country’s economy.

According to a report released last week by the Government Accounting Office, the income gap is a factor in the deaths of Americans who find themselves on the margins of our society. Some are dying from inadequate health care, poor nutrition and, in some cases, suicide.

The report found that 75% of wealthy Americans who were between the ages of 49 and 70 in 1992 were still living in 2014. However, slightly more than half of all poor Americans in the same

age range in 1992 as the rich were alive in 2014.

The report found that poor women were actually living fewer years than their mothers, and that Black women and men who were poor lived fewer years than Whites.

The White House and its supporters are quick to point to a declining poverty rate in America, but they seldom bother to recognize that all people are not participating in the nation’s economy on an equal footing.

The administration seems hostile to increased funding for public schools, employment programs, affordable health care and livable wages, which are all recognized as steps that would allow people to lift themselves out of poverty, raise their families, purchase homes and educate their children.

Even though Americans are living longer lives, they are experiencing more difficulty as they live than those who were their age a decade or two before them. For in-

stance, increasing numbers of senior citizens, even those who have reached retirement age, find it necessary to work just to pay their bills.

According to the report, the number of Americans over the age of 55 who are still active in the workforce has increased significantly.

Twenty years ago, 30% of those over the age of 55 were still working. That percentage has increased to 40% today.

We must close the income and wealth gaps in our

country. They are adversely impacting the health of our nation in very negative ways. It is unacceptable, and it is dangerously unfair.

Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson represents the 30th Congressional District of Texas in the United States House of Representatives. She also chairs the House committee on Science, Space and Technology.

A letter to presidential candidate Joe Biden

By SUSAN K. SMITH Crazy Faith Ministries

Dear Biden,

It is probably safe to say that many to most people do not consider former Vice President Joe Biden to be a racist.

The definition of what is “racist” seems to be fluid in this country. Just last week, Gregory Cheadle, an African American who has supported the president, said that he wouldn’t call the president racist because racists are violent. He said, though, that he believes that Trump has a “white superiority complex,” and he noted that the president’s words and policies adversely affect African Americans more severely, as noted by the Washington Post.

Die-hard Trump supporters insist he is not racist, either, in spite of his calling out women of color and deciding recently that the United States needed to be careful

not to let Bahamians who lost everything in Hurricane Dorian into the United States because of his belief that they were drug dealers and gang members, according to Newsweek. In my mind, the president’s behavior has been more than ample proof that he is a racist.

But Biden is different. The vice president, it seems, is a product of his upbringing, as are we all. His latest statements about how Black children could be better educated were appalling.

New York Times columnist Charles Blow suggested that Biden’s words last week revealed his belief that Black parents do not know the correct way to raise their children, and that’s why they are not “good” parents.

He said, “We bring social workers into homes and parents to help them deal with how to raise their children. It’s not that they don’t want to help. They don’t – they don’t know quite what to do. Play the radio, make sure the television – excuse me, make sure you have the record player on at night, the – the – make sure that kids hear

words. A kid coming from a very poor school – a very poor background will hear four million words fewer spoken by the time they get there.”

He was sincere. He was not spouting hatred and denigration.

He was spouting American cultural belief system, which is racist.

Biden gets defensive when people remind him of his past statements and stances as concerns race. Sen. Kamala Harris seemingly infuriated him during the first Democratic debate when she reminded him of his position on busing some years ago, The New York Times also reported. He was offended and said he had stood for the rights of Black people his whole life.

The thing is, Biden is an American who has been taught, as have all of us, no matter our race, color or ethnicity, that “White is right,” and that anything White is better.

He has internalized the “fake news” that Black people are inherently inferior.

The beliefs he grew up with are a part of his psyche. They are a part of the psyches of all of us.

The oppressors have taught the history and the perspective of history they want us to believe.

I keep thinking that Biden should exhale and get rid of his desire to defend himself when it comes to race. I keep thinking that he needs to exhale and just admit that he has evolved. I think everyone who listens to him can hear and feel that he has good intentions; there is none of the spirit of denigration that we hear from the current president.

Biden has compassion for all people, and he wants to do right by all people. Part of “doing right,” however, has to be that he drops the defensiveness. He needs to own his implicit bias, his prejudices and the actions he took in perpetuating racist policies in the past.

White supremacist thinking is a moral and spiritual illness. It compromises the ability of people to see anything but their own belief in white superiority. Just because one does not use the N-word or participate in KKK rallies does not mean one has not contracted the illness of the soul called white

supremacy.

Many people would feel better if Biden would just say, “I’ve changed. The positions I took in the past were the positions I took in the past. I cannot change them.

But I have evolved and am still evolving on the issue of race, and I ask for your patience.”

I would bet many people who are cringing at his statements on race would breathe a sigh of relief.

None of us heal until we own that we have something to heal from.

And many of us have a need to be healed from the spiritual damage done to us by this yoke called white supremacy.

Rev. Dr. Susan K. Smith is the founder and director of Crazy Faith Ministries. She is available for speaking. Contact her at revsuekim@sbcglobal.net. Her latest book, Rest for the JusticeSeeking Soul, is now available for preorder through Barnes and Noble at http://bit.ly/RESTBN or through Amazon at http://bit.ly/RESTAmazon.

Congressional reps rebuke delay of payday loan rule By CHARLENE CROWELL Center for Responsible Lending

Anyone who struggles with the rising costs of living knows all too well how hard it is to try stretching dollars when there’s more month than money in the household. Predatory lending, like payday and car title loans, worsen financial stress with triple-digit interest rates that deepen the debt owed with each renewal. The irony is that many payday loan borrowers who needed just a few hundred dollars wind up owing thousands. And any loan whose accrued interest exceeds the principal borrowed is truly predatory.

In recent days, more than 100 members of Congress

stood in support of consumer protections against these debt-trap loans. The effort, led by U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters of California, chair of the House Financial Services Committee, called upon the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to do two things: stop delaying the current rule from taking effect and preserve the existing rule’s requirement that lenders make loans only to consumers who can afford repayment.

The Aug. 23 letter to CFPB minced no words.

“Experts have noted that payday loans often target communities of color, military service members and seniors,” the Congress members wrote, “charging billions of dollars a year in unaffordable loans to borrowers with an average annual income of $25,000 to $30,000.”

“The Consumer Bureau’s proposal represents a betrayal of its statutory purpose and objectives to put consumers, rather than lenders, first,” continued the members. “Moreover, the Bureau has offered no new evidence and no rational basis to remove the ability to repay provisions. We think you should immediately rescind the harmful proposal to roll back the 2017 payday rule.”

These direct rebukes were reactions to CFPB’s 15month delay of a longawaited consumer-friendly rule that was scheduled to take effect on Aug. 19.

In today’s contentious Washington, getting strong support for any pro-consumer issue seems particularly difficult. Even so, the August letter to CFPB Director Kathleen Kraninger included representatives

from 31 states, including those with some of the highest annual percentage rates on loans found across the country. For example, the typical payday loan in California comes with 460% interest and the largest number of state signatories also came from California: 15.

Although no other state’s signatories were as numerous, the clear expression of genuine consumer protection against this heinous predatory loan in other areas with rates near or exceeding 400% is noteworthy: Texas, 661%; Wisconsin, 574%; Missouri, 462%; and Illinois, 404%.

Yet a closer examination of the signatories reveals that despite sizeable support expressed in the letter, it represents only about 23% of the entire House of Representatives.

New research on the nation’s wealth gap by McKinsey & Company found that 65% of Black America lives in one of 16 states – Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

Among these 16 states, only Arkansas, Georgia and North Carolina have enacted 36% or less payday loan rate caps. The remaining 13 states have typical triple-digit payday loan interest rates that range from a low of 304% in Florida to a high of 521% in Mississippi. Multiple CBC members also represent districts in these states.

Speaking at a House Financial Services subcommittee hearing held on April 30, Diane Standaert, an ex-

Why people all around the world prefer democracy

By LEE H. HAMILTON

Center on Representative Government

A wave of protests is roiling Moscow. Millions of people, young and old, have been crowding the streets in Hong Kong. In Britain, members of the Conservative Party took to open revolt over Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s move to sideline Parliament on Brexit. If democracy is dysfunctional and on the ropes worldwide, as many voices currently insist, you’d have a hard time making the case from these headlines.

In fact, at a time of concern and, in many quarters, cynicism about democracy and its prospects, they remind us of a basic truth: People want a say in how they’re governed.

As Winston Churchill put it back in 1944, “At the bottom of all the tributes paid to democracy is the little man, walking into the little booth, with a little pencil,

making a little cross on a little bit of paper – no amount of rhetoric or voluminous discussion can possibly diminish the overwhelming importance of that point.”

To be sure, “democracy” is hard to define. The UN says that democracies are where “the will of the people is the source of legitimacy of sovereign states,” but that’s a broad definition. Our representative democracy, the various parliamentary democracies, the town-meeting democracy of New England – these are all forms of democracy.

What they have in common are mechanisms for the people to express their will; characteristics such as free speech, the ability to associate freely, fair and free elections, and universal suffrage; and such values as equality before the law, political responsiveness, transparency and accountability.

I’d argue there’s one other characteristic you also find in the world’s democracies: People prefer living in them. And when they don’t feel the popular will can find expression, at some point condi-

tions ripen to the point where, as in Russia and Hong Kong, they take to the streets.

Why is this? What do people value about living in a democratic system? Most of us who support democracy would argue that its key characteristics – openness, accountability, transparency, media freedom, responsiveness – actually improve the nation’s overall well-being. On the whole, democratic nations have stronger economies. They tend to be less corrupt, because free and fair elections and their systems’ checks and balances impose accountability on their leaders. They make it possible for citizens to know where they stand, because the rules of the road are set up to apply to everyone. At their core, they recognize the value and dignity of each individual.

There are clearly signs of stress in the world’s democracies. A Pew poll last year found sometimes marked increases in dissatisfaction with how democracy is working in such countries as Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Canada

and the U.S. It was a warning sign that all is not well.

Even in the best of times, democracies are imperfect. They too often wallow in political stagnation or gridlock. Issues that need resolution get batted back and forth for years, and even when they’re addressed, the remedies fall short. It’s far easier for opponents of a given approach to block it than for its proponents to enact it.

Elections may give the people a voice, but they also serve as a de facto horizon, inclining political leaders to short-term fixes rather than investing in people, infrastructure or other long-term goals.

And far too often, the voices of those with resources are louder in the halls of power than those of people who lack money or access.

Yet even people who complain about their governments or their representatives rarely argue that they need a different system. That Pew survey I cited above measured unhappiness with how democracies are functioning, not with democracy itself. Most citi-

ecutive vice president and director of state policy with the Center for Responsible Lending, testified of the rippling reasons that payday loans need regulation.

“Allowing the 2017 rule to go into effect as planned is the bare minimum that the CFPB should do,” said Ms. Standaert. “It is absurd that we should even have to make such a straightforward request of an agency whose charge is to protect consumers from unfair, deceptive and abusive financial practices.”

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

zens of democracies believe that their countries are wealthier, less corrupt, more resilient and more responsive than the alternatives, and that their deficiencies are correctable. They count themselves happier, healthier and freer than they would be in any alternative.

This is why, in the end, the discussion in the world’s traditional democracies is about how to make them stronger. It’s about fear of slipping into autocracy, not about the desire for autocracy. Among those who understand what it is like to live in a free society, democracy remains the system of choice.

Lee Herbert Hamilton is a former member of the House of Representatives and a member of the U.S. Homeland Security Advisory Council. He writes regularly about Congress and what individuals can do to make our representative democracy work better.

BUSINESS

Page 6 September 19, 2019

Veteran Affairs: Making business ownership a post-military career Family Features

After they leave the military, veterans often look to start a second career.

For many, owning a business is an attractive career path because they have honed many of the skills needed to be successful entrepreneurs, such as ambition and a drive to succeed, during their time in the military.

“There are many unique qualities veterans possess that simply aren’t found anywhere else and make them a great fit for business ownership,” said Tim Davis, president of The UPS Store Inc., and former U.S. Marine Corps captain and Gulf War Veteran.

Skills that transfer Veterans are uniquely suited for solving pressing challenges life can present, which is part of the reason they can make successful entrepreneurs and business owners. Franchising, in particular, can be a building block for veterans’ careers as they transition from military service.

“Franchising is an opportunity where veterans can empower and be empowered, adding value to the brands they represent,” Davis said. “I have seen firsthand how the drive and discipline gained in the military can be a great advantage for veterans looking to own their own businesses and open franchises.”

Leadership. Work ethic. Discipline.

These qualities are exactly what help the more than 200 veteran The UPS Store franchisees succeed.

• Working as a team: Veterans often know the success of an organization relies on every member working together to build a team, or a business, that’s greater than the sum of its parts. In the case of a franchise, the franchisee must embrace teamwork at multiple levels, not only among the employees of the local franchise location, but also with the franchise’s leadership team on a national and regional basis.

• Executing a plan: A franchise business typically provides its owners with a proven business model and ongoing support. However, executing the plan is up to the franchisee.

All of the pieces are provided, but putting them together and creating a working business plan requires a degree of entrepreneurship. It’s an approach that is similar to the training veterans experience in the military.

• Acquiring new skills: Franchisees typically complete a comprehensive training program to develop the knowledge and day-to-day operational skills needed to own and operate their own businesses. The training focuses on everything from marketing and operations to human resources and staff management.

Photos courtesy of Getty Images

• Thriving under pressure: Veterans know things don’t always go according to plan. The military provides service members the training and discipline needed to remain calm and thrive under the most pressurefilled situations. Particularly when it comes to navigating tricky situations like disgruntled customers or employees, a level-headed approach can earn more satisfying results.

• Working hard to accomplish a goal: Business owners typically dream of self-made lives, but not all have the commitment and work ethic needed to accomplish their goals. Service members are trained to understand the requirements of a mission and work tirelessly until they achieve them.

• Accepting responsibility: Operating a business is no small job and it requires a strong sense of responsibility akin to the role service members take in their chosen fields.

Business owners assume a hefty burden to ensure the business and its employees grow and thrive.

Getting started As a participant in the Veterans Transition Franchise Initiative – known as VetFran – a strategic initiative of the International Franchise Association and the Franchise Education and Research Foundation, The UPS Store, Inc., allows veterans the opportunity to fulfill their desires for second careers.

The Mission: Veteran Entrepreneurship program offers significant financial incentives – valued at nearly $300,000 – for a select group of qualified U.S. military veterans to help open their own franchise locations. In addition, the first 10 eligible veterans to submit a complete buyer’s application packet and initial application fee

by Nov. 11 will be awarded $29,950

in waived franchise fees.

To learn more about franchise opportunities and special incentives for veterans, visit http://www.theupsstorefranchise.com/veteran.

Franchising vs.

Starting a Business Solo For entrepreneurs exploring business ownership, there are a multitude of options to consider, but one of the first is to determine whether to invest in a franchise or start their own business. There are pros and cons to each path.

One of the biggest differences between investing in a franchise and starting a business from scratch is the initial startup process. When you start your own business, everything is on you. As a new business owner, you have to develop branding elements and positioning, your product and service offerings and logistics, such as a physical store layout.

With a franchise, those elements are captured as part of the franchising fee.

If you’re attracted to the idea of a proven business model to help get your business positioned to grow quickly, having the support of a franchise brand can be helpful.

In the end, your decision depends on what business ownership style best fits your personality. Starting your own business can allow you the freedom to explore any venture you want, but it comes with the risks and responsibility of being completely on your own. Investing in a franchise provides the framework within an existing business model while still enabling you to be your own boss, expressing your creative side within the structure of a proven system.

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Foster Care, continued from Front Page

home. Without the support of a CASA volunteer, he sought refuge in school and books.

For Pemberton, who is now a chief human resources officer at WorkHuman and a husband and father, the impact of caring adults was life altering. A neighbor brought him a box of books after she noticed him reading the same book over and over, and he later lived with one of his teachers after leaving his abusive foster home. Knowing that people cared gave him the strength to keep pushing ahead to make a better life for himself.

Some of the steps Dallas CASA is taking to recruit more Black volunteers include hosting events targeting potential Black volunteers, working with fraternities and sororities, and maintaining a relationship with T.D. Jakes’ The Potter’s House, LaValle said.

“Our numbers aren’t as high as we would like them to be, but they’re rising, and the advocates we do have already serving today do incredible work for our kids,” she stated.

Last year, Dallas CASA served 3,330 children and as of July 31 were serving 95% of children in foster care, all of who come from Dallas County, she added.

The difference between a foster parent and a court-appointed special advocate is that a foster parent is licensed through Child Protective Services or through a child placement agency and is responsible for a child’s everyday needs.

Being a foster parent is a compensated role, whereas a special advocate is a volunteer position whose role is to be the “eyes and ears” of the judge presiding over the child’s case by giving them information about the child’s circumstances, LaValle explained.

The volunteer may also form connections with the child by checking in on them and visiting them.

That way the volunteer becomes a constant in a child’s life that is filled with uncertainty and change, she continued.

“The idea is to be sure that the child doesn’t give up hope or feel defined by what’s going on in their life, and that we make sure that they have a model of what a trusting, reliable adult looks like,” she said.

As for Meadows, when he is not busy playing sports or eating lunch with his boys, he is at court with them giving the judge information on the boys’ well-being.

Meadows said he has never turned down a case, but other potential volunteers may have an exaggerated idea of what qualifications they must meet in order to be a CASA volunteer.

“People are their own worst critics, and they just think they’re not capable of being a court-appointed special advocate,” he offered. “That sounds like a pretty big deal. It is as big of a deal as it is for a human being to reach out to help another human being. That is huge, but we are all capable of that charge.”

Robyn H. Jimenez/The Dallas Examiner contributed to this article from a Dallas CASA report.

The Dallas Examiner www.dallasexaminer.com

HEALTH

Page 7 September 19, 2019

Texas ranks highest in uninsured people across nation, again

By STACY FERNÁNDEZ The Texas Tribune

The rate of Texans without health insurance rose for the second year in a row, making it once again the most uninsured state in the nation, according to data released Sept. 10 by the U.S. Census Bureau.

In 2018, 17.7% of Texas residents – about 5 million people – had no health coverage, up from 17.3% in 2017. Both years, Texas had almost double the number of uninsured people compared with the national average of 8.7% in

2017 and 8.9% in 2018. It was one of only nine states to record an increase in the uninsured rate.

Texas is one of 14 states that have not expanded Medicaid, a joint state-federal program that provides health care to low-income individuals, since the 2010 passage of the Affordable Care Act – better known as Obamacare.

President Donald Trump made the repeal and replacement of Obamacare a major part of his 2016 campaign, but the U.S. Senate narrowly rejected a bill in 2017 that would have repealed parts of the ACA.

Texas is 1 of 9 states to record an increase in the uninsured rate from 2017 to 2018. – Martin do Nascimento for The Texas Tribune

Last year, a federal judge in Texas invalidated a Medicaid expansion that would have filled

Preventing falls - the leading cause of fatal injuries in older adults Special to The Dallas Examiner

Falls are the leading cause of fatal and nonfatal injuries for older Americans. They threaten seniors’ safety and independence and generate enormous economic and personal costs.

But falling is not an inevitable result of aging. Through practical lifestyle adjustments, evidence-based falls prevention programs and clinical-community partnerships, the number of falls among seniors can be substantially reduced.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1 in 4 Americans aged 65 and older falls each year. Every 11 seconds an older adult is treated in an emergency room for a fall and every 19 minutes an older adult dies from injuries sustained in a fall. In 2015, the CDC reports, older Americans experienced 2.8 million injuries treated in emergency departments annually, including over 800,000 hospitalizations and more than 27,000 deaths.

The cost for these fall injuries was $50 billion, according to CDC data. The financial toll for older adult falls is expected to increase as the population ages and may reach $67.7 billion by 2020.

“Falls result in 28,000 deaths

in older adults each year. More than 10,000 U.S. baby boomers turn 65 each day. This means that nearly seven baby boomers are turning 65 every minute,” said LaTrica Hicks, PhD, geriatric education coordinator at Parkland Health and Hospital System. “This increases the likelihood that fall-related injuries and deaths will leap in the coming years. That’s why preventing falls is a top priority for older adults, their families and caregivers.”

During September, Fall Prevention Awareness Month, Parkland’s Department of Geriatrics will host a series of free events to the public to emphasize that falls are preventable. At the events, Parkland will offer fall risk assessments and information about how to decrease your fall risk.

Upcoming events: • Friday from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at Amelia Court Geriatrics Center and Senior Services, 1936 Amelia Court.

• Sept. 23 from 10:30 a.m.11:30 a.m. at Lancaster Senior Center, 240 Veterans Memorial Parkway, Lancaster.

According to Hicks, there are many things seniors can do to decrease or prevent falls, such as:

• Begin a balance and exercise program to improve strength, flexibility and stability.

• Review your prescription and over-the-counter medications with your doctor or pharmacist regularly to make sure side effects are not increasing your fall risk. Take medications only as prescribed.

• Get your vision and hearing checked every year and update your eyeglasses with new prescription lenses as needed.

If you have bifocal or progressive lenses, you may want to get a pair of glasses with only your distance prescription for outdoor activities, such as walking. Sometimes these types of lenses can make things seem closer or farther away than they really are.

• Keep your home safe by removing tripping hazards, improving lighting, installing grab bars where needed and making stairs safe.

• Talk to family members to get their support to help you stay safe.

• Talk to your health care provider about your fall risk and share your history of recent falls. Talk with them about specific things to help prevent falls.

coverage gaps for an estimated 1.1 million low-income Texans, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Between 2017 and 2018, fewer Texans got their insurance through Medicaid – the number dropped 0.7% to 17.9%.

Some Texas political leaders, including Gov. Greg Abbott, Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and former Gov. Rick Perry, have argued that expanding Medicaid would increase health care costs for the state, especially if the federal government doesn’t keep its promise to pay for the increase in newly eligible people.

Others, like state Sen. Carol Al-

varado, D-Houston, are in favor of the expansion. In 2018, the senator filed a bill that would allow county commissioners to request a federal waiver to expand Medicaid in their jurisdictions and roll out the expansion county by county. The bill didn’t even get a hearing during this year’s legislative session.

Five other states – Alaska, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi and Oklahoma – also had more than 12% of their population uninsured, according to the Census figures.

Counseling Corner

School mornings don’t have to be chaos

American Counseling Association

So what does the typical school morning look like in your house?

Quiet conversation over a leisurely breakfast, everyone dressed and ready to depart on time, all their books, papers and lunch neatly packed and ready to go?

No? Not quite? More like a minor riot with lots of stress? If so, it’s time for a change.

There’s no magic way to guarantee that the bedlam that marks those getting ready for school times in too many homes will totally disappear, but there are steps to take to help minimize the school-morning frustration, stress and anger.

You can start by not blaming the kids for all the problems. Make it clear that you’re not happy with how you’re acting – you know, that yelling and lecturing virtually every day. Tell them you want to change and you need their help in making it happen.

An important step is to give the kids more responsibility. A kitchen timer, for example, is a great way to help young children finish breakfast with time left to get dressed for school. For older kids, let them use an alarm clock, maybe on their phone, and have them agree to a “no-snooze-alarm” rule.

For both younger and older children, there have to be consequences, dis-

cussed and agreed to ahead of time, if they don’t stick to the time rules. They give up a favorite something if they slide back into the old ways. And you also need to set a consequence for yourself if you flip back into yelling and nagging to get them moving.

You can also make changes to move things along faster. No morning TV for starters and that cell phone can wait until after breakfast and getting dressed before it becomes the center of their lives.

Being more organized will also help.

Have a designated place for backpacks and school books, and make sure they’re in place before bedtime. School clothes get laid out the night before.

Have a special inbox for school papers that need to be signed. If your child forgets to put the papers there after school, consequences should kick in.

There’s no perfect cure to schoolmorning craziness, but making the kids shoulder more of the responsibility, and giving them a system to help make things more organized, can not only make that morning rush more civilized, but can also provide skills that will help them throughout life.

Counseling Corner is provided by the American Counseling Association.

Comments and questions can be sent to acacorner@counseling.org or visit http://www.counseling.org.

Building Futures Through Education MAXIE JOHNSON Dallas ISD Trustee District 5

As most of you know, August 15, 2019 my family joined a select group of families who have lost a loved one to senseless gun violence. Please allow me to be transparent for a moment. The sudden and untimely death of my oldest son has taken me on a journey I would wish on no one. On behalf of my family, I would like to acknowledge the abundance of support and words of comfort we received. Thank you doesn’t seem enough, but please know that we appreciate every word, thought, prayer and deed.

I firmly believe that in the wake of every tragedy there lies opportunity. Opportunity to serve, opportunity to grow. My son is only one of a growing number of young people who’s lives have been cut short due to growing violence in our community.

Educational inequalities lead to poverty. Poverty, too often, leads to violence. While it is a path I did not want to take, it has caused me to look at educational inequities through a different lens. As District 5 Trustee, I want our scholars, parents and communities to know that I am committed to ensuring that every Dallas ISD student is provided with a safe, equitable learning environment staffed with caring qualified, high-performing teachers and administrators. My goal is to

ensure that every child can reach their full potential through a dynamic Dallas ISD education.

District 5 High Fives Please help me congratulate the District 5 Schools A/B Honor Roll. These schools received TEA ratings of either an A or B for the 2018/19 school year:

A Honor Roll • Dr. Wright Lassiter Jr. Early College • School for the Talented and Gifted • School of Science and Engineering • Dallas Environmental Science Academy • Judge Barefoot Sanders Law Magnet • Rosie Sorrells Education and Social Service Magnet • School of Business and Management • School of Health Professions

B Honor Roll • William Travis Vanguard Academy • Barack Obama Male Leadership Academy • Harry Stone Montessori Academy • N.W. Harllee Early Childhood Center • W.W. Bushman Elementary • T.L. Marsalis Elementary • William Brown Miller Elementary • New Tech High School at B F Darrell • J.N. Ervin Elementary • C.F. Carr Elementary

Congratulations to South Oak Cliff High School on their increased enrollment due to academic success which includes four aca-

demic distinctions from TEA.

Wilmer Elementary School Groundbreaking Ceremony – Tuesday, September 24 at 10 a.m.

The community is invited to join Dallas ISD leaders and officials of the city of Wilmer, Texas, for the groundbreaking for Wilmer Elementary School. The event will feature remarks by school district and elected officials and performances by students from nearby WilmerHutchins High School and Kennedy-Curry Middle School. The location of the new school is 510 East Belt Line Road in Wilmer.

Roosevelt High School Relaunch Celebration – Saturday, September 28 at 10:30 a.m.

District 5 Trustee Maxie Johnson, Roosevelt High School alumni and community members will gather to mark the beginning of construction to update some 75 percent of the campus.

The $36 million in construction improvements will include a new secure formal entrance, fine arts addition/storm shelter, new CTE building, new administrative offices, student-run restaurant, library/media center, classroom addition, new cafeteria, competition gym and interior and exterior renovations.

Please feel free to contact me at (972) 925-3720 or at MaxieJohnson@dallasisd.org with questions about Dallas ISD in general and District 5 specifically.

Thanks for supporting Dallas ISD.

Paid for by the Dallas Independent School District

Page 8 September 19, 2019

The Dallas Examiner www.dallasexaminer.com

The Dallas Examiner www.dallasexaminer.com

MISSING Caden Chavis

DOB: June 5, 2002 Missing Since: March 9, 2019 Age Now: 17 Sex: Male Race: Black Height: 5’6” Weight: 160 lbs Hair Color: Brown Eye Color: Brown Missing City: Houston NCMEC Number: 1352023

Additional informaton: Caden was last seen on March 9.

Anyone having information regarding this missing youth should call the Houston Police Department at 713-884-3131.

Every 40 seconds, a child is reported as "missing," according to several government and missing children's reports. And the number of missing African American children has increased from 25 percent to 33 percent.

This is not only a crisis for the families of the missing children, but for our community and our country.

The Dallas Examiner has made it its mission to post missing children in our community, as reported by the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children, each week.

Anyone having information regarding this child, should contact National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at 1-800-THE-LOST. For more information or to view more missing children in your area, visit www.missingkids.com.

Bids

CLASSIFIEDS Bids continued

INVITATION FOR BIDS IFB-2019-22

DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas will receive sealed bids for the Replacement of Roofs at Meadow Parc Apartments, 4811 Duncanville Road, Dallas, Texas 75236 (Project # IFB-2019-22).

Bid documents including Plans and Specifications may be obtained from the Procurement Department at DHA’s HQ which is located on the 2nd floor at 3939 N. Hampton Road, Dallas, Texas 75212, or by calling 214/951-8429, beginning Tuesday, September 17, 2019. Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Friday.

A non-mandatory Pre-Bid Conference will be held on Wednesday, October 02, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. at Meadow Parc Apartments, 4811 Duncanville Road, Dallas, Texas 75236.

Sealed Bids will be accepted until 3:00 P.M., on Monday, October, 21, 2019 in the Procurement Department, on the 2nd floor at 3939 N. Hampton Road, Dallas, Texas 75212, at which time and place all sealed bids will be publicly opened and read aloud. All sealed bids must be received in the Procurement Department by the specified time. Any Bids received after 3:00 P.M., on Monday, October 21, 2019 will be rejected.

DHA RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REJECT ANY AND ALL BIDS OR TO WAIVE ANY INFORMALITIES IN THE BIDDING. DHA WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, RELIGION, SEX, DISABILITY, FAMILIAL STATUS, OR AGE. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY.

INVITATION FOR BIDS IFB-2019-21

DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas will receive sealed bids for the Replacement of Roofs at Renaissance Oaks, 3737 Munger Ave., Dallas, Texas 75214 (Project # IFB2019-21).

Bid documents including Plans and Specifications may be obtained from the Procurement Department at DHA’s HQ which is located on the 2nd floor at 3939 N. Hampton Road, Dallas, Texas 75212, or by calling 214/951-8429, beginning Tuesday, September 17, 2019. Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Friday.

A non-mandatory Pre-Bid Conference will be held on Wednesday, October 02, 2019 at 10:00 a.m. at Renaissance Oaks, 3737 Munger Ave., Dallas, Texas 75204.

Sealed Bids will be accepted until 3:00 P.M., on Thursday, October, 17, 2019 in the Procurement Department, on the 2nd floor at 3939 N. Hampton Road, Dallas, Texas 75212, at which time and place all sealed bids will be publicly opened and read aloud. All sealed bids must be received in the Procurement Department by the specified time. Any Sealed Bids received after 3:00 P.M., on Thursday, October 17, 2019 will be rejected.

DHA RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REJECT ANY AND ALL BIDS OR TO WAIVE ANY INFORMALITIES IN THE BIDDING. DHA WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, RELIGION, SEX, DISABILITY, FAMILIAL STATUS, OR AGE. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY.

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS (RFQ-2019-23)

DHA, Housing Solutions for North Texas invites qualified firms to submit sealed Qualifications / Proposals for Land Survey Services for DHA (Project # RFQ-2019-23).

Qualifications / Proposals submission documents are on file and may be obtained from DHA’s website (www.dhantx.com) or at DHA’s HQ, Procurement Department, located on the 2nd floor at 3939 N. Hampton Road, Dallas, Texas 75212, beginning Wednesday, September 18, 2019. Office hours are from 8:00 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. Monday through Thursday and 8:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. on Friday.

Sealed Qualifications/Proposals will be received until 3:00 p.m., Thursday, October 24, 2019 in the Procurement Department, on the 2nd floor at DHA’s HQ, 3939 N. Hampton Road, Dallas, Texas 75212. All sealed qualifications / proposals must be received in the Procurement Department by the specified time. Any Sealed Qualifications / Proposals received after 3:00 p.m., on Thursday, October 24, 2019 will be rejected.

DHA RESERVES THE RIGHT TO REJECT ANY AND ALL QUALIFICATIONS / PROPOSALS OR TO WAIVE ANY INFORMALITIES IN THE SOLICITATION PROCESS. DHA WILL NOT DISCRIMINATE ON THE BASIS OF RACE, COLOR, NATIONAL ORIGIN, RELIGION, SEX, DISABILITY, FAMILIAL STATUS, OR AGE. EQUAL HOUSING OPPORTUNITY.

Yes, we can

help with your advertising needs.

Call today!

214-941-3100

Page 9 September 19, 2019

Employment For Sale

Internships

Internship at The Dallas Examiner Internships are available throughout the year for students enrolled in journalism, writing or design classes.

Applicants must be reliable. Hours are flexible. These are not paid positions but will allow students to gain practical, on-the-job experience. Students interested must e-mail their resume and three writing or design samples.

Contact: rjimenez@dallasexaminer.com Subject Line: Internship

Google Technical Internships Build new features and improve our products (and get some extra guidance along the way). Start dates are flexible and are offered year-round, but you’ll need to commit to at least three months of full-time work.

Locations vary, within and outside the United States.

Deadline: varies Contact: http://www.google.com/about/careers/ students

Real Estate

Scholarships

Texas Grant Program The Texas Legislature established the TEXAS – Towards EXcellence, Access and Success – Grant to make sure that well-prepared high school graduates with financial need could go to college. To receive a basic initial award through the TEXAS Grant Program, a student must be registered with Selective Service, or be exempt, demonstrate financial need, be classified by the institution as a Texas resident, have not been convicted of a felony or crime involving a controlled substance and be enrolled at least threequarter time as a Baccalaureate student who graduated from an accredited public or private high school in Texas, completed the Foundation, Recommended, or Distinguished Achievement high school program (or the equivalent) and, enrolled in an undergraduate degree or certificate program at an approved institution within 16 months from high school graduation.

Deadline: Varies Contact: Scholarship Committee Student Financial Aid Programs P.O. Box 12788 Austin, TX 78711-2788 888-311-8881 Texas Educational Opportunity Grant Program The purpose of the Texas Educational Opportunity Grant Program is to provide grant aid to financially needy students enrolled in Texas public two-year colleges. To receive an initial award through the TEOG Program, a student must be registered with selective service, or be exempt; be classified by the institution as a Texas resident and be enrolled at least half-time.

Deadline: Varies Contact: Scholarship Committee Student Financial Aid Programs P.O. Box 12788 Austin, TX 78711-2788 888-311-8881 ABA Diversity Scholarship The Diversity Scholarship focuses on broadening the number of traditionally underrepresented groups in the management and operation ranks of the transportation, travel, and tourism industry.

Eligible candidates must have completed, at a minimum, their first year of college at an accredited university; must have a declared major or course of study relevant to the transportation, travel, and tourism industry; and must have a cumulative 3.0 GPA. Applicants are required to submit a 500-word essay discussing the role they hope to play in advancing the future of the transportation, motorcoach, travel, and tourism/hospitality industry. For more information or to apply, please visit the scholarship provider's website.

Deadline: varies Contact: American Bus Association 700 13th Street, NW Suite 575 Washington, DC 20005 800-283-2877 https://www.buses.org/?/aba-foundation/ scholarships/diversity

Cheryl D. Conkling Memorial Scholarship Battling the physical hardships of gamma globulin anemia and hearing loss, Cheryl Conkling loved and excelled in education and music, and graduated Summa Cum Laude. This scholarship is named in her honor to support students with hearing or other physical hardships who have demonstrated a love for education. It is only open to students who live and/or attend school in Windsor, Colorado; Conroe, Texas; Wilkinson County, Mississippi; Baton Rouge, Louisiana; or West Feliciana Parish in Louisiana. Students must be a high school senior enrolling in an accredited college or university in the fall when the scholarship is awarded.

Preference may be given to students with hearing or other physical impairments, students not receiving other substantial aid, and/or students in Louisiana.

Deadline: Varies Contact: Scholarship Committee 100 North Street, Suite 900 Baton Rouge, LA scholarships@braf.org 225-387-6126 www.scholarships.com

Advertise your Classified Ads today! Call 214-941-3100

Page 10 September 19, 2019 Now–Sept. 30 “Branch Out Dallas,” a program from the city of Dallas offering Dallas residents one free 5-gallon tree from a grouping of five Texas trees. Tree may be picked up from six locations. Must show valid ID or water bill. Pick-up Nov. 2 9 a.m. to noon. For more information, email branchoutdallas@dallascityhall.com and register at www.dallascityhall.com/branchoutdallas.

Now-November 24 The Village Coop neighborhood market, including up to 35 vendors selling locally grown foods and goods, will be held from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Friendship-West Baptist Church, 2020 W. Wheatland Road.

For more information, contact Danielle Ayers at 972-228-5200.

September National Food Safety Awareness Month www.foodsafety.gov

National Baby Safety Month www.jpma.org

National Alcohol & Drug Addiction Recovery Month www.recoverymonth.gov

CALENDAR COMMUNITY

ONGOING EVENTS

Now–November A Shared Border, an exhibit on how the diverse cultural landscape of the Texas and Mexico borderland has caused different cultures to blend and innovate, will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m at the Dallas Historical Society, 3939 Grand Ave. For more information, visit http://www.dallashistory.org/exhibitions.

Now–March 1, 2020 The Kinsey Collection, a groundbreaking exhibit featuring 150-plus works of art, photos, rate documents and more, celebrating the achievements and contributions of Black Americans from 1595 to present day, will be open to the public at the African American Museum, 3536 Grand Ave. For more information, visit www.aamdallas.org.

Kids Luncheon, honoring Maurine Dickey and recognizing individuals who exemplify family and community leadership while benefiting the students at Texas Can Academies’ six Dallas-area campuses, will be held at 11 a.m. at the Belo Mansion, 2101 Ross Ave. For more information, contact Felicia Gummi at 214944-1955 or fgummi@texanscan.org.

20 “A Musical Night of

19

Free Legal Clinics, legal advice and consultation on civil matters presented by the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program for Dallas County residents who meet certain financial guidelines, will begin at 5 p.m. at Grace United Methodist Church, 4105 Junius St. For more information, visit www.dallasvolunteerattorneyprogram.org.

19 & 20 Texas Associa-

tion of African American Chamber of Commerce Annual Conference, “Black Business is Powerful,” will be held Thursday, Sept. 19, 8 a.m. to Friday, Sept. 20, 5 p.m. at the Courtyard by Marriott Austin Pflugerville and Pflugerville Conference Center, 16100 Impact Way, Pflugerville. For more information and to register, visit taaacc.eventbrite.com or taaacc.org.

Compassion,” an evening of symphonic music and song by the Dallas Symphony Orchestra and The Potter’s House choirs, featuring Grammy Awardwinning singer Anthony Hamilton, will start at 7 p.m. at The Potter’s House, 6777 W. Kiest Blvd. The concert is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

For more information, call 214-331-0954.

20-22 The 2019 Status

& Role of Women Annual Conference, “Embracing the Journey: Where Are You?” a weekend of workshops and worship at Hamilton Park United Methodist Church, 11881 Schroeder Road. Register Aug. 18 through Sept. 15 after church service. For more information, call 972-235-4633.

21 Annual Freedom Fund

20

Age Well Live Well Dallas Symposium, with information about the best practices related to healthy aging, will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the University of North Texas Dallas, 7400 University Hills Blvd.

20

Texans Can Academies – Dallas Cares for

Brunch and Silent Auction will begin at 9 a.m. at the Hyatt Place, 5101 N. President George Bush Highway, Garland, 75040. For more information, visit www.garlandtxnaacp.org.

21

Sisterhood Call to Unity Conference, whose mission is to unite women for a time of healing, restoration and empowerment, will begin at 9 a.m. at the Texas Star Golf

Oct. 10 to March 22, 2020 Origins: Fossils From the Cradle of Humankind, an exhibit including fossils of two recently discovered ancient human relatives being brought to the U.S. for the first time from South Africa, will be open to the public at the Perot Museum of Nature and Science, 2201 N. Field St. For more information, visit www.perotmuseum.org.

Mondays-Wednesdays Sexually Transmitted Infection Testing/ Treatment, testing and treatment for STIs, HIV, Hep C and other sexual infections, will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at Prism Health Clinic, 4922 Spring Ave. For more information, call 214-421-7848.

Course and Conference Centre, 1400 Texas Star Parkway, Euless. For more visit information, www.prayhers.com.

21 Falling for Pink, a free

health fair where visitors can receive vital information about breast cancer and resources, will be held from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at Methodist Charlton Medical Center, 3500 W. Wheatland Road. Free bra fittings and mammograms are available but must be scheduled in advance by calling 972-992-7621.

21 Black Police Association Town Hall Meeting, designed to bridge the communication gap between the community and law enforcement, will be held from noon to 5 p.m. at the BPA Headquarters, 211 Centre St. For more information and registration, email latonyaspencer6@gmail.com.

21 HUD-Approved Homebuyer Education Class, open to anyone looking for help in buying a house, will be held from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the East Dallas Community Organization, 4210 Junius St., 4th floor.

Insurance and title professionals, realtors, lenders and city reps will also participate. Attendees receive a certificate that may help with down payment assistance. Free including lunch.

For more information, contact Mr. Banda at jbanda@edcohomes.org or 214-515-9779.

24 Lunch & Learn with

Shaylon Scott, “Financial Services for Social Good,” will be held from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Zan Wesley Holmes Outreach Center, 4600 Spring Ave. For more information, call 214-324-4443.

The Dallas Examiner www.dallasexaminer.com

Mondays, Wednesdays & Saturdays Sittercise, a low-impact class that can be done from your chair, is offered from 7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. at Methodist Charlton Medical Center, 3500 W. Wheatland Road. For more information, call 214-947-7777.

1st, 2nd & 4th Tuesdays Free legal services will be available at 5 p.m. at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, 2922 Martin Luther King Blvd. For more information, call 214-748-1234.

1st & 3rd Tuesday CitySquare’s Hospitality Program, a free 6week hospitality training program, will begin at 10 a.m. at CitySquare, 1610 S. Malcolm X Blvd. – Bldg. 100. For more information, contact Dana Branch at dbranch@CitySquare.org or

24

Free Legal Clinics, legal advice and consultation on civil matters presented by the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program for Dallas County residents who meet financial guidelines, will begin at 5 p.m. at Martin Luther King Jr. Center Core Services Building, 2922 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Room 122. For more information and scheduling, visit www.dallasvolunteerattorneyprogram.org.

24 District 3 Community

Meeting, hosted by Councilman Casey Tomas and Dallas Economic Director Courtney Pogue, will be held from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Dallas Entrepreneur Center at RedBird, 3662 W. Camp Wisdom Road., Suite 2044. For more information, visit, https://www.dallasecodev.org.

24

The Third Annual County Judge Clay Jenkins “You’re Hired” Job Fest will be held from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Gilley’s in Dallas, 1135 S. Lamar St. Positions include warehouse, shipping and receiving, forklift drivers, mechanics, package handlers, operations managers, census 2020 field reps, etc. Register at https://yourhiredjobfest3.e ventbrite.com.

24

Dallas Opportunity Job Fair, sponsored by Workforce Solutions, a job fair geared toward workers between 16 and 24 years old, will be held from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Gilley’s in Dallas, 1135 S. Lamar St. Register at https://dallas100kjobfair2019.eventbrite.com.

24 “The POWER Break-

fast: Understanding the Power of Networking,” presented by the Dallas Black Chamber of Com-

call 214-823-4409.

Tuesdays & Thursdays Free SkillQuest Career Readiness Classes will be held from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, 2922 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. For more information, call 214-879-9950 or email sgronstal@skillquestcareers.org.

Wednesdays The MLK Fresh Produce Distribution Center will be open from 10:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center, 2922 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. - Bldg. A. For more information, call 214708-2739 or visit www.dallasmlkcenter.com.

merce, will be held from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. at KAI Enterprises, 101 North Zang Blvd., #100. For tickets go to www.eventbrite.com/pow erbreakfast.

25

National Women’s Health Fitness Day

214-880-0202.

28 Math Tutoring from 10

a.m. to noon at the MLK Branch Library, 2922 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

Tutoring is free, but preregistration is required.

Register at www.intellichoice.org/sign-up. For more information, call 214-670-0344.

25

National Day of Remembrance for Murder Victims

25 “Find Out What Fra-

zier House Has to Offer,” hosted by Parkland Health & Hospital System’s Division of Women and Infants’ Specialty Health, will be held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Frazier House, 4600 Spring Ave. For more information, visit info@zwhjcoc.org or email info@zwhjcoc.org.

26

Dallas ISD Board Meeting will be held from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Turney W. Leonard Governance and Training Center – Conference Area, 5151 Samuell Blvd. For more information, call 972-9253720.

26-29 “The Shine Play

Festival: Black Men Illuminated,” presented by the Soul Rep Theatre Company, with performances on Thursday, Friday and Saturday starting at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 3 p.m., will be held at the South Dallas Cultural Center, 3400 S. Fitzhugh Ave. For more information, call 469-7349382.

27

Gay Men’s Awareness Day

HIV

27 The Color Purple Mu-

sical will be performed at the Winspear Opera House, Jan. 7-12, 2020.

Tickets go on sale Sept.

27. For more information, visit www.attpac.org, call

28 St. Philip’s School and

Community Center Fine Arts Symposium, with Debbie Allen plus conversations and workshops around the inclusion of children of color in the arts, will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. For more information and tickets, call 214-421-5221 ext. 241 or visit www.stphillips1600.org/finearts.cfm.

29

Family Health and Fitness Day

October

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month www.nbcam.com

Brain Injury Awareness Month www.biausa.org

1 Free Legal Clinics, legal advice and consultation on civil matters presented by the Dallas Volunteer Attorney Program for Dallas County residents who meet financial guidelines, will begin at 5 p.m. at Martin Luther King Jr. Center Core Services Building, 2922 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Room 122. For more information and scheduling, visit www.dallasvolunteerattorneyprogram.org.

Disclaimer: The Dallas Examiner makes every effort to accurately list all calendar events. However, The Dallas Examiner bears no responsibility for schedule changes and/or cancellations. Contact information on each event listing is provided for the public for confirmation and additional information.

Send your calendar events and a photo no less than two weeks before your event:

Email: calendar@dallasexaminer.com