MC Digital Edition 1.6.21

Local Detroiter Launches Podcast to Discuss Racial Tension in America City.Life.Style. B1

Michigan Chronicle

Vol. 84 – No. 18 | January 6-12, 2021

Powered by Real Times Media | michiganchronicle.com

Marathon Announces Property Purchase Program Southwest Detroit Residents to Benefit

By Renee Summers Telegram Reporter

On December 17, Marathon Petroleum Corporation (MPC) announced its offer to purchase residential properties in southwest Detroit. MPC plans to spend $5 million on the purchase program focusing on homes closest to I-75 on Edsel and South Patricia Streets, in the Boynton Neighborhood. In addition, MPC is negotiating with the City of Detroit Land Bank Authority (DLBA) to purchase 38 abandoned homes and 140 vacant lotsin the neighborhood owned by the DLBA, which are in the area east of I-75 and north of Schaefer.

The area is heavily surrounded by industry and lies within Detroit’s 48217 zip code, which has been deemed by both researchers and elected officials as the state’s most polluted zip code.

2021 The Year Ahead:

Detroit’s Political 2021 Forecast

By Whitney Gresham

“I think it’s a great proposal and it’s more than purchasing homes,” said State House Representative, Tyrone Carter (6th Dist.). “Phase one is really for the safety and beautification of the community.”

MPC’s goal is to create a green space to serve as a buffer between residents and their industrial neighbors. Abandoned and blighted homes will be demolished. “We take great pride in being part of southwest Detroit, and we are committed to continuing our partnership with the community to improve the quality of life here,” said Dave Leaver, general manager of MPC’s Detroit refinery. “We are happy to make this property purchase option available; our intent is to work with residents in the target area to secure property and create green space at the north end of the neighborhood.”

MPC’s contributions to the neighborhood include a $2 million contribution to the renovation of the Kemeny Recreation Center and ongoing support to organizations in the area including La Sed, Starfish Family Services and the Fort Street Bridge Park Project.

Carter applauds MPC’s initiative. “Where the city can’t knock down houses, they’re going to eliminate blight…they’re going to maintain the grass, they’re going to create a buffer, so for the people that want to stay, it’ll be a nicer, cleaner neighborhood, and the ones that want to leave, this gives them options,” he said.

The Property Purchase Program is strictly voluntary and will enable those eligible residents

See MARATHON page A6

WHAT’S INSIDE

Pay Yourself

First:

Be Financially Fit in 2021

Money. A5

$1.00

After such a harrowing year as 2020, with the devastating impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and President Trump and the Republican Party’s attempt to erase the votes of Detroit citizens to steal the presidential election, Detroit can hopefully look to a more normal and productive 2021, even though a mayoral and City council election will punctuate it.

Early in December, incumbent Mayor Mike Duggan announced his intention to run for reelection for a third consecutive term. His announcement came on the heels of successful turnout the vote effort in Detroit, which proved to be decisive in flipping Michigan back into the Democratic win column for President-elect Joe Biden.

Political observers say with a much friendlier administration in the White House and two U.S. senators with considerable clout in the Senate, the City can leverage those relationships to its advantage.

“President-elect Biden and Mayor Duggan are close,” said Tim Kiska, a communications and pollster professor at the University of Michigan-Dearborn.

“I get the sense that Biden understands Detroit and understands Michigan and the importance of this state. It gave him

a big victory by way of 150,000 votes.”

“And then you have Sen. Debbie Stabenow as the ranking member of the Agriculture Committee, Sen. Gary Peters now secure after his reelection, as the ranking member on the Homeland Security Committee, Debbie Dingell rising in influence in the House, coupled with former Governor Granholm as the incoming Secretary of Energy, and I can see us getting things done for this city and state,” he said.

That critical victory for the state and city and the successful passage of several long-overdue criminal justice reform measures along with local initiatives will have a more direct impact on Detroiters in 2021, noted Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones.

For example, in October, Michigan became the third state to adopt the Clean Slate legislation and the first to include felonies within its eligibility and to refrain from disqualifying otherwise eligible individuals who have unpaid legal debt. “This is a historic day in Michigan. These bipartisan bills are a game changer for people who are seeking opportunities for employment, housing, and more, and they will help ensure a clean slate for hundreds of thousands of Michiganders,” Gov. Whitmer said during the signing ceremony.

The bills will provide an opportuni-

ty for Michigan and Detroit in particular, to grow its workforce in 2021 by expanding access to job training and education for many individuals in the community who previously were denied jobs and access to loans and grants for education because of criminal records.

This will be especially beneficial to Black males in the state caught up in the mass incarceration and prison industrial complex. For years, they faced roadblocks in obtaining good-paying and secure jobs even after serving their time due to these prohibitions.

And after years of perks and abatements to incentivize large corporate investments in downtown redevelopment, the passage of Proposal N, a $250 million bond sale to renovate or demolish 16,000 vacant homes in neighborhoods and grow Detroit-based demolition and rehab companies. In 2021, the City has committed to – but not guaranteed – to prioritize Detroit businesses for contracts, ensuring Detroiters receive primary selection or all demolition related jobs, salvageable homes assessed and saved, and other local neighborhood development priorities.

Another significant economic development for 2021 will be implementing the Medical Marijuana Facilities and Adult-Use Marijuana Establishments

See LOOK

AHEAD page A2

2021: Fight Pandemic Fatigue While Finding Your Purpose

By Sherri Kolade The trauma from his childhood was supposed to be the hindrance that stopped him.

But for Detroit resident R.J Johns, 29, it was the stepping stone into his destiny -- a calling that he brings others along with on their own journey as a life coach at The Purpose Fulfillment, based in Detroit.

“The final piece of the puzzle for me was God; it was a spiritual thing. … Along that journey, I needed healing and wholeness. There was a trauma I went through in my childhood and I wasn’t able to be effective in my purpose,” Johns said. “That was done a few years ago through my ministry and personal relationship with God and the leaders in my ministry taking me through the inner healing process.”

R.J. Johns is a life coach who is helping his clients fight pandemic fatigue. – Photo

the easiest year. And now nearly a year into the pandemic, it’s time to continue provided by R.J. Johns fighting pandemic fatigue in this new year while keeping “They are talented; they are gifted and they do have a purpose,” mental health top of mind.

Johns said.

Johns said that mental health is imJohns said that through his profession he shows people who they are.

During this pandemic with the threat of COVID-19 lurking around the corner and disproportionately impacting Black and Brown communities, 2020 wasn’t

portant, especially in a pandemic where reports of depression statistics are increasing, along with suicide rates and domestic violence.

“[That] is not often discussed from a mental health perspective in the Black community because it is seen as maybe taboo or something we don’t like to discuss … that’s what other people do but not us,” Johns said, adding that Black men can still handle their situations while seeking therapy. He added that Black women can be strong, too, while getting help.

See PANDEMIC

FATIGUE page A2

Page A-2 • michiganchronicle.com •

January 6-12, 2021

Pandemic Fatigue From page A-1

selves to think?”

“It is very important that during this pandemic we keep up mental health and fight pandemic fatigue,” he said, adding that people were created to be relational beings and it is important to consider speaking with someone equipped to help them find the help they need to gain greater success throughout their life. “Only when we go in healed and whole do things start to work better.”

He added for things to get better for us in this pandemic we must stimulate our minds, stimulate our bodies and do meaningful things.

Johns said that with people still spending so much more time at home with themselves they are figuring out what’s next for them as COVID-19 rages on.

“People’s lives changed before their eyes,” Johns said. “They had to figure out as far as their education, their businesses, as far as employment and even hobbies. …

When was the last time we had this much time to sit and be with our-

He said seeking mental health resources, a virtual therapist, a virtual life coach, or something similar is crucial. He also said that exercise, like walking, or writing are other tools to use to stay fit mentally and physically.

Also, try hosting a virtual party [if you haven’t already] or attend a religious service.

“That is Johns said.

always

beneficial,”

Detroit resident Terrance Adams, 28, said that he is not the stay-at-home type and the pandemic fatigue is real and it’s been a big change to still have to be at home for the most part.

“I like to be active and moving -when they shut everything down it put me in my own space,” Adams said. “After a while, it was daunting for me; it was definitely a time for self-growth.”

Adams, who meditates, said that he’s been getting in touch with his inner self. Before the pandemic, he

was cooking in a restaurant. Now he does a lot of gig work and works some part-time jobs to sustain himself.

Adams, who went to college with Johns, said that his life coach is like an older brother to him, and he’s seen growth in himself.

“It is a huge morality boost in many areas,” he said. “I still have my down moments but I feel like I gained a lot during that process with a lot of tools I can use. One of the biggest things was letting go of control and those things you put all your energy into. Just being able to let God control those things and the universe control those things.”

Adams added that every day is a fight that one has to take steps every single day to get to the next day.

“I always wonder what is going to happen next and we wonder when we are going to see our friends and family, and every day something else is shut down and more people are getting sick and what I say is find peace. Find a center you can always go back to,” he said. “My children [are my center] … I know that at the end of the day that will always be there.”

Boston Red Sox Hire Bianca Smith as First Black Woman Coach in Baseball History had heard more racist remarks in Boston than any other city.

By Stacy M. Brown Bianca Smith, an African American woman, has made baseball history.

Smith, who most recently served as an assistant baseball coach and hitting coordinator at Wisconsin’s Carroll University, was named a coach in the Boston Red Sox minor league system.

Smith, 29, becomes the first Black woman to coach in professional baseball.

She will work with the team’s infielders at the Red Sox minor league facility in Fort Meyers, Fla. “She was a great candidate coming in,” Red Sox vice president of player development Ben Crockett told the Boston Globe.

“She’s had some really interesting experiences and has been passionate about growing her skillset and development herself.”

That Smith’s historic hiring happened in

“When I went to Boston, it was so consistent. After a while, I just kind of shoved it off, and I went out and played. I played with aggression, though,” Hunter relayed.

Bianca Smith Boston, a city where angry mobs violently attacked school buses carrying Black children to previously all-white schools in the 1970s, could be a sign of racial progress.

The Red Sox have had a history of racism at Fenway Park.

In 2019, four fans hung a banner that read “Racism is as American as Baseball,” from the famed Green Monster.

Last year, retired baseball star Torii Hunter told ESPN that he was called the N-word several times by fans as young as “little kids.”

Follow, Like & Share

He later said that he

He added that he felt uncomfortable with the idea of his family living in Boston if he had signed there.

“That’s why I got the no-trade clause, the list of teams, and I put Boston in there,” Hunter added.

“I love Boston. I wanted to play there. It just hit me that I can’t have my wife and my kids in this area,” he continued.

“There is no way I can do that because I don’t ever want them to go through that, and if they do, I don’t know what I would do, and I would be the angry Black guy, and that wouldn’t be good.”

Hunter’s comments prompted the Red Sox to issue a statement acknowledging his experience.

The team noted that, in 2019, there were seven reported incidents of fans using racial slurs at Fenway Park.

In 2017, Baltimore Orioles star outfielder Adam Jones said he was on the receiving end of racial slurs at Fenway Park no less than 100 times.

Fans even threw bags of peanuts at him, Jones said.

But the hiring of Smith is barrier-breaking. She joins a list of female professional baseball coaches, including Rachel Balkovec of the New York Yankees, Rachel Folden of the Chicago Cubs, and Christina Whitlock of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Last year, Alyssa Nakken of the San Francisco Giants became the first on-field female coach in Major League Baseball.

She once served as an intern for the Texas Rangers and Cincinnati Reds.

Smith also played softball at Dartmouth from 2010-12 before working as director of baseball operations at Case Western Reserve University from 2013 to 2017 and as an assistant coach with the University of Dallas in 2018.

“It’s a meaningful,” Crockett said of Smith’s hire. “Meaningful thing for the organization.

Marathon

michiganchronicle.com | EQD

From page A-1 who wish to relocate to do so while residents who choose to stay will enjoy more open space. MPC has contracted with the real estate consulting firm Community Interaction Consulting (CIC) to guide residents and handle purchases. CIC will establish an information office in the neighborhood in January. Those interested in participating in the program may begin the process on February 1, 2021.

“Residents have experienced respiratory illness, cancer, and foul odors as they suffer from the pollution in the area,” said U.S. Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib (Dist. 13), who urges residents to seek out legal guidance before fully participating in the program. “Residents have a right to be

skeptical of Marathon and I am meeting soon with Marathon to learn more about their plans. I am encouraging all residents considering the program to seek legal assistance, and my office can provide information about free legal consultation.”

Carter says MPC’s program is an example of the company’s efforts to work with the community surrounding it and creates a model for other large corporations along with their host communities to follow when pursuing outreach and consensus within that community.

Carter adds that it is important for large corporations to remain compliant with local regulations.

“It’s about holding our neighbors accountable, but also being good neighbors with our neighbors.”

37

PICKS 705 520 795 472 313 WEEK’S BEST LOTTERY

261 082 221 658 234 882 761 8832 3009 274 7 18 32 48 65 2

THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE PUBLISHING COMPANY

1452 Randolph • Detroit, MI 48226 • Phone: (313) 963-8100 Publication No.: USPS 344-820

OFFICE HOURS:

Mon.-Fri. 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.

Closed Sat. and Sun. The Michigan Chronicle is published every Wednesday.

Periodical Postage, paid at Detroit, MI. Price $1.00 and other post office.

MEMBER OF AUDIT BUREAU OF CIRCULATION

ADVERTISING DEADLINE Classified: 3 p.m Friday Copy, corrections and cancellations, preceding the Wed­nesday publication.

Display: 12 p.m. Friday preceding the Wednesday pub­lication.

For all news and calendar items: Deadline is two weeks prior to event.

Weeks that contain holidays, dead­line is Thursday prior to publication date.

POSTMASTER — Send address changes to:

MICHIGAN CHRONICLE • 1452 Randolph • DETROIT, MI 48226

Look Ahead From page A-1 ordinance, which authorizes the Buildings, Safety Engineering, and Environmental Department (BSEED) to issue business licenses for co-location, and adultuse marijuana establishments provide more opportunities for local business development.

Under the new ordinance, Detroit Legacy applicants will get a minimum of 50% of all newly created recreational marijuana business licenses for retailers, growers, processors, microbusinesses, designated consumption, and marijuana event organizers issued in Detroit. There will be a six-week exclusive early licensing period for Detroit Legacy applicants.

Detroit Legacy will be able to purchase cityowned land at 25% of fair market value. The City will work with philanthropy and private lenders to develop sources of funding and expertise to back Detroit-owned marijuana business start-ups.

This new law is expected to generate new neighborhood businesses across the City and substantially increase the local tax base in the future.

And, of course, hanging over everything else in 2021 like a thunder cloud will be Detroit’s continued response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Detroit City Council President Brenda Jones, who herself tested positive for the disease and has recovered, noted that Michigan had received the vaccine, and she wants the City’s first responders, medical professionals, seniors, and those most vulnerable to receive the vaccine first to ensure their health and safety.

“Unfortunately, I personally have known people who lost their lives to this dreaded disease. I have honored little ones, like 5-year old Skylar, to dear friends like Benny Napoleon,” she said.

“COVID-19 pays no attention to age or social status, so I tell everyone it is serious and they must practice social distancing, wear their masks and use hand sanitizer.

I definitely will take the

vaccine when it becomes available to me.”

Until then, she said she anticipates City Council will continue to meet virtually into 2021, as the state’s amended Open Meetings Act allows.

Once all protocols are in place to ensure a safe environment, the Council will resume meeting in person.

But Dr. Stacy Scott, a national public health expert and founder of the Global Infant Safe Sleep Center in Toledo who has done extensive work with Black families in Detroit, said given the devastating impact COVID-19 had on Detroit, that it is critically important for the next mayor to make compliance with new COVID-19 vaccination protocols a top priority too.

“Black families have been destroyed by Covid19,” she said. “We see family members dying within weeks and days of one another. So, the lines are no longer blurred about how the impact of racism has taken its toll on people of color,” she said.

Local leaders like the mayor of Detroit, whoever it might be, must look at the social determinants of poor health outcomes to see why we have such vast disparities in outcomes between African Americans and others, she said.

“This is carnage of more than 300,000 dead American in less than one year from a new disease that other advance countries have managed to effectively handle is far more than a public health issue,” she said. “It is also about policy and politics from the White House to City Hall.”

“People of color often live in highly populated areas that lack public transit, are food desserts, and do not allow one to easily social distance as a result of deliberate policy decisions often made on a local level,” Scott said.

So in the coming months, the people of Detroit must hold its leadership accountable for getting them out on the other side of the COVID19 pandemic just like they did with the over-taxation of their housing, she said.

Do your part to stop the spread of COVID-19.

Let’s stay covered for each other.

Michigan.gov/MIMaskAid #StayCoveredTogether

®

A3

| January 6-12, 2021

Roots.

michiganchronicle.com

Should African Americans Trust the Coronavirus Vaccine

By Megan Kirk The Wichita African American Council of Elders, together with the Black Alliance, hosted a virtual town hall conversation to discuss if African Americans should take the vaccine for COVID-19 and address fears and misconceptions of the virus and the vaccines.

Top pharmaceutical companies Moderna and Pfizer have received emergency use authorization from the Food and Drug Administration to distribute their individual vaccines for Coronavirus. With thousands of vaccines already produced and distributed, many in Black and Brown communities are questioning receiving the vaccine and its efficacy rates.

Michelle Vann SCWT

Regan DeHart, MD

Maurice Duggins, MD

Dr. Onentia Oyieng'o

Several Black physicians were on hand to discuss side effects, success rates, high risk populations and mistrust in the vaccine.

Each, now vaccinated, also spoke about their personal experiences with the virus and best ways to combat it.

Dr. Onentia Oyieng’o, a Pulmonary and Critical Care Specialist and panelist during the town hall discussion, is among many in the Black community who tested positive for the novel coronavirus. Beginning with a fever and muscle aches, it soon grew to trouble breathing and cold sweats.

“I didn’t know what it was initially. I thought it was something coming along, and I tried to shake it off,” Dr. Oyieng’o says.

“It was scary. It was the anxiety of not knowing what to expect.”

To help curb skepticism, many promiDr. Rita C. Stanley nent Black doctors and healthcare workers have been vaccinated during live press conferences to create transparency and honesty surrounding the vaccine. Dr. Regan DeHart, also featured as a panelist in the discussion, received the vaccine during a live Facebook feed.

“I’ve had my vaccine last week,” Dr. DeHart says. “The only thing I experienced was a little bit of muscle pain. You have to weigh the risks and the rewards.”

Side effects and both long- and short-term effects of the vaccine continue to raise questions throughout communities of color. Clinical trials for the vaccine, although performed, have no extended proof of long-standing effects. Doctors say while the vaccine is new, the science behind it has long since been explored using cells already present in the body.

“The reason why everybody is so excited about this vaccine is because of the science that has gone into it,” Dr. DeHart says. “Over the years of research on disease, we have figured out a way that we may be, in the future, able to fight almost any kind of virus through a technology called mRNA; messenger RNA, which is a part of our cells.”

A history of mistrust between the African American community and the government as

See CORONAVIRUS VACCINE page A-4

The Silent Killer No More:

Health Experts, Community Speak Out About Maternal Heart Disease in Black Mothers and What’s Next

By Sherri Kolade After all the chaos, it was in those quiet early morning hours late last June that Jessica McCall-Kailimi, 32 of Oak Park, found her peace in the form of a nurse who soothed her soul.

McCall-Kailimi gave birth two weeks early to her second daughter, Ava, [at Beaumont Royal Oak] and the empathic mother’s journey of having her was traumatic, though, triumphant.

After giving birth, McCall-Kailimi hemorrhaged, had life-threatening complications, needed emergency surgery to remove blood clots and part of her placenta that was still attached. At one point she thought her time was up here after blacking out on the surgery table from so much blood loss.

“I feared for my life. Who would have thought that having a baby could have killed me?” McCall-Kailimi said. “I said, ‘This is it. My baby

is 12 hours old -- this is how my story ends.’ It was scary for me.”

Coupled with dealing with family issues [that left her primarily alone in the hospital] she needed reassurance that she was going to make it.

And she indeed did.

“I had an African American nurse who prayed for me. I came back from the surgery and she said that I had been through so much,” McCall-Kailimi said, adding that the nurse hugged her, too, and held her baby.

“She was that mother figure that I needed at that time ... She was maybe only a few years older than me. She said, ‘Take care of yourself; you’re going to be OK.’ That comment meant so much to me … I think at that moment I knew I was going to be OK,” McCall-Kailimi said, choking up a bit through her tears. “It felt even better coming from a woman of color; she really saw me deeper than a patient.”

Shortly afterward, McCall-Kailimi made it home with her baby and dealt

with another scary situation: postpartum preeclampsia, or high blood pressure. Her feet, legs, and other body parts ballooned three times their normal size and at one point her blood pressure was 190/120.

“I had no idea; my heart wasn’t racing -- [there] no symptoms except for the swelling,” McCall-Kailimi, who is fit and had no problems during pregnancy, said.

McCall-Kailimi [who has a background as an integrated infant mental health therapist] encourages mothers to connect with a healthcare provider who listens to them. “If you feel like you’re not being heard, change providers.”

Black women like McCall-Kailimi experience higher rates of health-related complications as it relates to pregnancy and postpartum care. The American Heart Association noted in a recent press release that significant racial disparities exist in

See BLACK MOTHERS page A-4

Get Fit for 2021: How to Lose the Quarantine 15

By Sherri Kolade

Latricia Wilder is on the move and isn’t allowing quarantining to slow her, or her ­ ­cycling, down. – Photo provided by Latricia Wilder

When Felicia Maxwell gained a few pounds earlier this year during quarantine, the fitness guru looked within herself and got it all the way together.

The good sis is right and tight now, and as the CEO and owner of Fit4Life Health and Fitness, LLC Detroit, she is continually getting others back in shape, too, but in a different way. Primarily she is using Zoom to hold exercise classes until the facility can open back up.

“Personally, I believe it’s more mental and emotional than anything for most people,” she said of getting started with exercising. She added that she was always at the gym facility, so when the gyms closed due to pandemic orders to slow the spread of COVID-19, Maxwell veered slightly off course -- some of her clients did, too.

“Most of my clients who were already consistently training with me four or five days a week never stopped.… However, they picked up weight because they felt the Zoom training is a little different from face to face because of the accountability, motivation and encouragement from others.”

She said that no one expected the

Felicia Maxwell doesn’t play when it comes to fitness and she is helping others stay trim and healthy during quarantine and into 2021 and beyond.

– Photos provided by Felicia Maxwell

pandemic to last this long, and her clients steadily became used to Zoom and started to be more accountable for their eating habits and more committed to exercising through virtual encouragement.

“Everybody is like, okay, enough is enough,’” she said of being fed up with unhealthy gains and “quarantine fluff.”

See GET FIT FOR 2021 page A-4

Page A-4 • michiganchronicle.com •

January 6-12, 2021

Combatting the Serious Effects of Digital Devices During COVID-19

Coronavirus Vaccine

From page A-3

well as medical treatment disparities within the healthcare system have created an environment where many African Americans no longer trust these entities to provide a functional and safe vaccine.

“We understand why there’s so much mistrust or distrust in our community especially, based on some history,” Dr. Rita Stanley, an Internal Medicine Specialist, says.

Despite general mistrust, the vaccine for coronavirus has shown a promising effective rate. Distributed in two dosages, Pfizer being three weeks apart and Moderna’s vaccination dosages being provided four weeks apart, reports have indicated the vaccine has been able to lessen the severity of the impact of the virus.

PHOTO SOURCE: (c) AntonioGuillem / iStock via Getty Images Plus

(StatePoint) Screen time among children and teens has skyrocketed during the COVID-19 pandemic. In the cold-weather months, when families are more likely to be spending free time indoors, it’s especially important that parents and caregivers set schedules to help ensure safe, healthy and balanced use of digital devices, according to experts.

“Digital devices and the internet have become absolutely necessary tools for kids, not only for school, but for connecting and socializing with friends.

Unfortunately, these tools can often be used in unhealthy ways to fill a void left by the loss of many typical school-year routines,” says Michele Havner, director of marketing, OurPact, a screen time monitoring app for parents.

Research has consistently shown that more screen time is often accompanied by health and wellness challenges like anxiety, depression, low self-esteem, poor sleep and reduced physical activity.

Havner says that parents can help kids build healthier relationships with digital devices in the following ways: • Being good role models: Parents are in many cases relying on digital devices to work from home and may also be facing some of the same issues as their children, including boredom and isolation.

However, they can serve as good digital role models by setting aside screen-free time for other activities, like art, cooking, music, exercise, crossword puzzles, reading and more.

• Avoiding being punitive: This extended situation has been stressful for parents and kids alike, so parents should try to take a compassionate approach to the situation. When engaging children

Black Mothers From page A-3 heart-related problems among pregnant and postpartum women in the United States, with Black women having the highest risk of several major complications, according to research published recently in the Journal of the American Heart Association, [AHA] an open-access journal of the AHA. “Clinicians should be aware of the cardiovascular risks associated with pregnancy that, although not common, can result in serious illness and death.

Women at increased risk for heart disease should be closely monitored during and even after pregnancy,” said Samir R. Kapadia, M.D., senior author of the study and chair of the department of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic in Cleveland, Ohio.

Heart disease, stroke, and pregnancy-related complications are among the top-10 causes of death in women ages 20-44 in the United States, based on the most recent official data available.

To look at the fullness of racial disparities in the risk of heart problems during pregnancy or after delivery, Kapadia and colleagues reviewed health records for more than 46 million hospitalizations of pregnant or postpartum women included in the National Inpatient Sample, the largest U.S. database detailing inpatient hospital care in 47 states, between 2007 and 2017, according to the report.

Also after adjusting for socioeconomic status, access to health care, and other medical conditions, researchers found that compared to white women, pregnant Black women were: 45% more likely to die in the hospital; 23% more likely to have a heart attack; 57% more likely to have a stroke; 42% more likely to develop a blood clot in the lungs; and 71% more likely to develop heart muscle weakness.

“The magnitude of disparity was most alarming,” said Kapadia in the release. “We were very surprised by the persistent disparities irrespective of socioeconomic status. Attributing worse outcomes in Black women to socio-economic status or differences in health care delivery may be an oversimplification.”

“Cardiovascular health in women should not be taken for granted and pregnancy provides a reasonable mirror for the future,” Kapadia added in the release. “When women have problems during pregnancy, they should be followed carefully after pregnancy and actions should be taken to prevent heart problems.

“We need a better understanding of the root causes of these disparities in order to mitigate them. The aim is to deliver equitable cardio-obstetric care to all pregnant women,” Kapadia said.

on screen use, they can start the conversation on the right foot by acknowledging the many challenges and stressors that the “new normal” has created for young people. This is also a good time to check in about what exactly kids are doing online and whether the uptick in social media use has exposed them to negative content or cyberbullying.

• Setting schedules: Screen use before bed is associated with poor sleep due to the blue light emitted by digital devices, which can delay the release of sleep hormones. If possible, cap screen usage at least 30 minutes before bedtime. While many people like to keep devices on bedside tables, consider turning bedrooms into screen-free zones.

• Making it happen: Devices have become so important to children, they may not realize the negative effects they are having on their health, making getting kids to actually put down devices often easier said than done. In fact, kids will often defy verbal limitations and warnings. Fortunately, parents can get a little outside assistance in making rules stick. One solution is OurPact, a screen monitoring app that allows parents to set online schedules. Using the app, parents can limit app access automatically for recurring activities like school or bedtime, and can block or grant internet access on a child’s device. They can even view screenshots of kids’ digital activity, helping them swiftly address usage issues like unsafe content and cyberbullying. To learn more or download, visit OurPact.com.

While the new normal has meant an unavoidable uptick in screen time, parents can help kids strike a healthy balance.

Kristian Hurley, senior director, Community Impact, American Heart Association, Southeastern Michigan, said that her team looks at the risk factors that Black women, and other minorities, have and addresses them, in particular high blood pressure and hypertension.

Working in the city of Detroit, Hurley said her team asks: “How do we make the environment that is around Black women healthier? “We focus on where people live, work, play, pray.”

Hurley said her team works in the faith-based communities to ensure they are educating their membership about healthy lifestyles and what people can be doing to work on their weight and blood pressure.

“If they can get it under control they are less likely … to develop cardiovascular disease or stroke,” Hurley said. “We do a lot of programming in the city and across the state to make sure the care our women are receiving high quality.”

Dr. Michelle Voeltz, an interventional cardiologist who also manages highrisk obstetrics patients at Georgia-based Northside Hospital Cardiovascular Institute [who previously worked at Henry Ford Hospital] said that she is focused on improving the heart health in women who are thinking of getting pregnant, are pregnant, or recently delivered.

Voeltz said that pregnancy-related cardiovascular disease and general mortality are a “double hit” in Black women when it comes to pregnancy and delivery.

She added that there are a number of things Black women can do to combat the grim statistics.

“First is preconception counseling.

Prior to getting pregnant do risk assessments,” Voeltz said, which comes in the form of “optimizing their medical regimen” to make sure their blood pressure is under good control in pregnancy, among other health improvements.

Voeltz added that medications used to control blood pressure should also be safe for baby and breastfeeding.

Voeltz added that it is also critical that medical professionals work closely together and monitor Black mothers “to make sure that we have a multidisciplinary approach for carrying for these high-risk women.”

Voeltz echoed McCall-Kailimai’s thoughts of having trusted providers and said it is important that mothers are “feeling connected” to their providers.

“As Black women, we certainly have experienced our concerns being minimized by physicians so it is really important that you are cognizant of your relationship with your provider and that you have trust in your provider,” she said. “Advocate for yourselves and advocate for each other,” she said.

For more information on the local AHA search for American Heart Association, Southeastern Michigan.

For more information go to heart.org and stroke.org.

“Studies have shown even after one injection of Pfizer, there’s a 50 percent effectiveness,” Dr. Stanley says. “But you still want to get the second one. You don’t want to be happy with just 50 percent.”

Deemed as medically safe, doctors and healthcare officials are urging all members of the Black community to receive the vaccination to help slow the

Get Fit for 2021 From page A-3 Maxwell and her clients are like many others in Detroit, and elsewhere, who gained weight during the pandemic because of anxiety, stress and being stuck at home more.

“It caused people to just eat the wrong things.” She said that coming into the new year means staying fit, keeping your body moving and making better and smarter choices. “I need my clients just as much as they need me for accountability.”

Maxwell added that she has heard so “many different excuses” of why people are not getting started on their health journey. She added that within the Black community, she learned that many that she spoke to at different churches locally just didn’t know where to start -and that trickled down to their children.

Also, she learned that during COVID-19, a lot of them had increased numbers in high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

“I think it was a wake-up call to the Black community,” she said, adding that a lack of knowledge and access to fitness resources were the main factors behind them not working out. “I did not realize how much they did not know.”

She added that she encourages people to change their attitude, think healthy thoughts, and then act out their thoughts. “Because if you change that attitude and think healthy … over time that is what you will become,” she said.

For more information go to https:// www.livewellmaxwell.com/fit4life.

It is her ministry and Latricia Wilder, owner of boutique cycling studio Vibe Ride Detroit, doesn’t play when it comes to spreading the word of fitness through her cycling. Wilder said that while the pandemic closed her business temporarily, she pivoted and is renting

spread of the virus. Patients who have already contracted the virus are also encouraged to still be vaccinated.

“Yes, you’re encouraged to get the vaccine even if you’ve had COVID-19 because we don’t know how long your immune system is going to protect you,” family physician Dr. Maurice Duggins says.

While doctors suggest patients discuss their individual medical history with their healthcare provider, they are also stressing the importance of getting vaccinated while attempting to ease the fears of the Black community.

“Get the vaccine because it’s good for you and it’s good for the community. It protects you and those around you,” Dr. Duggins says.

In addition to the vaccine, doctors are reminding everyone to continue to follow the Center for Disease Control’s guidelines to protect themselves against the potentially deadly virus.

“We can’t let off the gas with our mitigation efforts of wearing your masks, avoiding crowds and washing your hands,” Dr. DeHart says. “Just because we have the vaccine does not mean we’re one hundred percent safe.” out bikes for her clients looking to shed unwanted pounds.

She said it doesn’t matter if a person is in their living room or kitchen fixing something to eat -- exercise can happen anywhere at any time.

“For me what we’ve been telling our clients is to keep moving whatever that means for you,” Wilder said. “Have a dance party every day. Do some squats in your house. When you’re cooking do ankle raises and go up on your toes ... if you have steps in your house go up and down the steps.”

Wilder added that quarantine has forced many people to stay home, resulting in inactivity. But the key is to also get your metabolism pumping -- and let’s take that first step in 2021.

“I think what happens is people are more intimidated at the thought of starting than actually starting,” Wilder said.

Wilder added that spinning is a good workout option appropriate for all ages.

The high cardio exercise on a bike is low impact, she said, adding that it won’t “kill the joints.”

And while it’s nice to feed off of other people’s energy during in-person group fitness classes, it is important during this time of isolation to also pump up the mental stamina.

“It can be very hard to energize yourself when you’re just in a house,” she said, adding in her weekly fitness newsletters she provides her clients with selfcare tips that get them to the next week.

Self-care mentally can range from mind workouts including playing a game, dancing or stretching.

“If you can get your body starting what we call the feel-good juices, the endorphins will kick back in and your brain will start pushing you again,” Wilder said. “But something has to kick start it.”

For more information on Vibe Ride Detroit or renting out exercise bikes visit theviberide.com/detroit.

Voice of the Voice of the Community Community at your at your fingertips

fingertips.

michiganchronicle.com | DQE

A5

| January 6-12, 2021

Money.

michiganchronicle.com

Top Tips for Organized Tax Filing (StatePoint) 2020 was a particularly stressful year -- but filing its taxes doesn’t need to be. With the following tips, you can stay organized and cool-headed throughout the process.

File Early File early so you check this major to-do off your list and relax. The good news is that the sooner you file, the better. This is true no matter what your circumstances are. If you owe money, you’ll have that much more time to plan your payment. If you’re due for a refund, filing sooner means you’ll have your money sooner, money which can be used to pay bills, be invested or be added to a rainy day fund.

To that end, take some time to glance at your overall financial picture so you can make a smart game plan for directing your refund usefully.

Pay Yourself First: Be Financially Fit in 2021

By Sherri Kolade PHOTO SOURCE: (c) AnnaStills/ iStock via Getty Images Plus Check Your Work A multi-functional printing calculator with a 12-digit display can help you check your work and track and manage any necessary calculations, while ensuring your figures aren’t truncated.

Look for a model that prints in two colors, such as Casio’s HR170RC, so you can quickly see both positive and negative numbers to avoid reading errors. If you have any international holdings, this is a must-have tax season tool, as its functions include currency exchange. This model also has a built-in tax feature that lets you store a frequently-used rate and pull it up when needed, as well as a check function that allows you to scroll up to 150 steps of previous calculations.

Stay Secure Your financials and personal data are especially vulnerable during tax season. Be sure to keep all the paperwork associated with your taxes organized securely. As forms arrive by mail, file them neatly in one place that’s locked and secure. Sensitive information can easily be misused if it falls into the wrong hands. If you’re storing information electronically, be sure to use strong passwords and work only on a secure network.

By giving yourself the right tools and plenty of time, you can better ensure timely, accurate tax preparation.

Weslia Echols, a financial coach at Trinity Financial Coaching in Grosse Pointe, knows a thing or two about keeping her coins. When it comes to being fiscally fit, Echols said the Black community can access all the tools we need to be more agile in times of financial uncertainty.

Echols helps her clients many of whom are working from home since the pandemic. She said that for the most part 2020 didn’t hit them as hard as others in regards to a reduction in pay or layoffs.

“Most of the people I’ve worked with were able to maintain at least some amount of income during the pandemic, however, you do have those not able to work and [those] laid off [who were] fortunately able to get unemployment,” Echols said, adding that some people were prepared financially and others were not when the pandemic hit. “[With] preparation I’m talking about having significant savings so that during the interim when there was the loss of income ... they can pay their bills” A general rule of thumb for getting finances more secure in 2021, Echols said, is to have three to six months of living expenses saved. Whether those bills are housing, utilities, transportation, food, medical costs, or something else.

“Anything you need to live to survive,” Echols said, adding that the extra things, like cable, can be cut when necessary.

“You don’t want to lose your house; you don’t want to lose your car.”

Omari Hall, a learning experience designer and certified financial wellness expert at GreenPath Financial Wellness, encourages financial empowerment. – Photo provided by GreenPath you must keep in your budget no matter what such as housing, food, transportation, utilities, insurance, health care and the minimum payments of debt), ■ 30% of income is used for wants (expenses that if in a crisis you could cut out such as dining out, subscriptions, entertainment, memberships, etc.)

She also said the 50/30/20 budgeting method is one of several methods. With this method:

■ 20% of income is used for savings and/ or extra payments on debt.

■ 50% of take-home income is used to take care of needs (living expenses that

“Everyone is not at a point they can do that,” she said, adding that it is im-

portant that people start where they can.

“The best way to do it is automatic. If you can automatically take $5 out of your checking account and the paycheck you wouldn’t miss it just like you don’t miss the money going to your 401K. However much you can afford to pay yourself first go ahead and do that … and when you need it, it will be there.”

Echols added that she encourages Black people to up their savings because “dollar for dollar” our white counterparts are earning more and where they can save more easily, we can start the ball rolling, too. “[Just because] it’s a little more challenging for us to do it doesn’t mean we can’t do it. You have a generation of people who … need to have multiple streams of income, have savings … [being smart about] how they are taking on debt and handling it responsibly.”

Echols counsels her clients primarily virtually and they are typically Black professional women between 28 and 38 years old. She said that they are seeing that the biggest leak in their finances is their savings.

She said her clients are saying that they plan to put more in their savings this year.

Echols added for those who are working hourly and they are given overtime, to save the overtime and don’t spend it so that if revenue stream dries up, they won’t be counting on something that won’t be there.

She also said to make sure that a trust or a will is in place. “I know people don’t want to speak about it [or they] felt they were too young [but] I think the pandemic has shown us tomorrow is not promised to anyone and we all need to have

See FINANCIALLY

FIT page A6

Securing the Keys to Homeownership Millennials have over $1 trillion in debt, the most of any generation in United States history. They’ve also had to work towards financial stability in an economy that has grown slower than any previous generation. The last “golden-era” of economic growth in the United States, the 1990s, saw high job creation and low inflation levels, two indicators of a thriving economy.

When you compare baby boomers in their thirties to millennials of the same age, boomers owned eight times as much real estate value as millennials. Rising student debt and stagnant income levels are some of the factors that have made buying and keeping a home seem unattainable. The economic impact of Covid-19 has only reaffirmed that view for many.

between 3-4% per year. You can then cash in on it later by selling your house for more than you paid or borrow against it at a lower interest rate than most credit cards.

Furthermore, you will get income tax breaks for the mortgage interest and property tax you pay each year. Owning a home gives you more financial freedom in both the short and long term to pursue the things you want in your everyday life.

However, a home is more than just a place to live; it’s also a valuable asset to your financial portfolio. When the economy is going well, home values usually increase

Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) offers up to $7,500 in down payment assistance for first-time buyers (MI

Support for Prospective Homebuyers As a rule of thumb, start your search for programs offered by the local and federal government, specific vocations (military, nurses, etc.), and different family structures.

See HOMEOWNERSHIP page A6

Page A-6 • michiganchronicle.com • January 6-12, 2021

Homeownership From page A-5 and repeat buyers (MI Home Flex).

GreenPath has partnered with Freddie Mac to create the BorrowSmart Program, a down-payment incentive program to allow prospective homebuyers to receive additional education while moving toward a home purchase.

Financial coach Weslia Echols says that 2021 is the time to make greater money moves with the right tools.

– Photo provided by Weslia Echols

Financially Fit From page A-5 our financial future planned out,” Echols said.

For more information visit www. mytfcoach.com.

Omari Hall, a learning experience designer and certified financial wellness expert at GreenPath Financial Wellness, said that the biggest tips people should know about coming into the new year and saving money are understanding the “why.”

Automate payments if possible. A large amount of debt or carrying balances for a long time can negatively affect your credit score.

•M ake a plan to pay off debt.

Use a debt payoff calculator (greenpath.com/resourcestools/ debt-management-calculator/).

Consider the snowball method (paying off smallest debts first) or avalanche method (paying more on debt with the highest interest rate).

•C onsolidate debts into a personal loan or balance transfer credit card with a zero percent or low-interest rate.

“[You need to understand] your key reasons for building up savings and use this as motivation. Do you want to be prepared to cover an emergency like a medical bill or car repair? Or prepare for a planned upcoming expense like a down payment? Or reduce stress during this time of uncertainty?” he asked, echoing Echols’ thoughts and said to set aside a set amount each month; to just set it and forget it.

•B e wary of debt consolidation scams. Exercise healthy skepticism about emails from financial institutions or others sending unsolicited offers and links designed to get your personal information.

Hall said that at GreenPath, January tends to be their busiest call volume month as people make new year’s resolutions to become financially fit and come to grips with their holiday spending.

Hall added that what people should leave behind in 2021 is pre-pandemic thinking.

Some suggestions GreenPath provide callers include: •P ay bills on time. Pay as much above your minimums as you can.

•C onsider a Debt Management Plan (DMP): DMPs help you pay off the unsecured debt in three to five years.

“Thirty-seven percent of Americans and 35 percent of Detroiters would not have the cash to cover a $400 emergency,” Hall said. “2020 has definitely demonstrated the need to save more and spend less.”

He added that at the onset of the

pandemic, GreenPath’s HOPE hotline (888-995-HOPE) saw a significant increase in calls from people concerned about housing, making rent and mortgage payments. Debt management [credit cards] counseling was also a big part of call volumes.

“Then, most callers were unemployed, underemployed, or faced temporary layoffs. Now, as nearly 8 million Americans have fallen into poverty, callers are facing more permanent job loss, are worried about long-term unemployment benefits and are income insecure,” he said.

Hall said through GreenPath’s Detroit Voices project, www.greenpath.com/detroitvoices, they want to help create programs/resources that better support Detroit’s Black and Brown communities and “chart a path toward financial wellness.”

“First, we remind people they are not alone,” Hall said, adding that they can help with essential household needs.

People who contact GreenPath will receive an initial free financial counseling session.

“Our counselors can lend an empathetic ear, look at the entire financial picture and help you develop a customized plan to manage debt and achieve financial wellness,” he said.

Contact GreenPath at 866-6488122 or visit www.Greenpath.org for more information.

It can be hard to know which options best fit your situation and which information to trust. By working with realtors, loan originators, and financial counselors like Greenpath, you can compile a more exhaustive list of options that might even enable you to utilize several different programs at once.

Support for Homeowners

Existing

Many mortgage lenders are offering financial remedies to borrowers during the pandemic.

The assistance provided is usually either forbearance or deferment. The difference between the two is generally how interest accrues and how those paused payments are paid back. For example, Under the CARES act, any homeowner with a federally backed mortgage (i.e., FHA, VA, USDA, Fannie Mae, or Freddie Mac) is potentially eligible for an initial forbearance up to 180 days.

Often, taxes, insurance, etc., must still be paid with either option.

There are also options for nontraditional homeowners. If you’re in a more stable financial position, refinancing your home at a lower interest might offer an opportunity to save thousands of dollars. If that’s a path you look into, be sure to consider your new rate and term, plus your closing costs to ensure the dollars make sense for you.

Even the most com-

mon form of assistance available comes with many terms, implications, and decisions. Contact your loan servicer, and a qualified counselor, like GreenPath, to assess how the remedies will impact your short and long term financial outlook.

Honest conversations with loan servicers and realtors about your financial situation are often stressful and maybe even embarrassing. Still, these tough conversations are the best way to start down a path of financial remedy. They know, and in many cases, the authority to present solutions to seemingly unfixable problems.

Additionally, new federal and state programs aimed at offsetting income lost due to the pandemic could help you keep up with your mortgage payment. Benefits. gov, 211.org, and Sba.gov are great places to start looking.

For example, 1099 contractors and parttime employees now also qualify for unemployment benefits in Michigan.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) has several loan programs, grant programs, and resources available to assist eligible small businesses.

And as always, be wary of fixes such as debt consolidation, payday loans, etc. They often end up being more stressful and costly than the original bills you sought to pay down.

Milestones such as buying a house or keeping up with the mortgage payments are undeniably more difficult because of COVID-19, but thankfully there are real, attainable solutions to many of the genuine issues that are hitting many of us just a little too close to home.

American Heart Association Selects Kristian Hurley as Metro Detroit Executive Director

By Sherri Kolade

PHOTO SOURCE: (c) GaudiLab / iStock via Getty Images Plus

Need Mortgage Relief Due to COVID-19? Here’s What to Know (StatePoint) As the pandemic continues to affect Americans across the country, many are facing financial hardship.

For homeowners with a Freddie Mac loan, COVID-19 mortgage assistance is available in the form of “forbearance,” which temporarily suspends or reduces your mortgage payment without penalty so you can get back on your feet.

Here is how forbearance works and what happens when it ends: How do I request forbearance?

To request forbearance, you must contact your loan servicer (the company listed on your mortgage statement) who will help you understand your options. Forbearance is available for up to a year, though servicers will typically start you on a shorter forbearance plan and reassess to see if your financial situation has changed.

What happens when forbearance ends? It’s important to remember mortgage forbearance is not the same as mortgage forgiveness and you will have to repay your missed payments. About 30 days before the forbearance plan is scheduled to end, you and your servicer will determine next steps. This could include additional forbearance or a workout option to make up the missed payments. Just remember, you are never required to pay back missed payments in a lump sum if your loan is owned by Freddie Mac. How does repayment work?

Even though you must pay back payments that were missed during forbearance, you have several options for doing so. Additionally, you won’t accrue additional fees, penalties or interest beyond the amounts already scheduled or calculated based on the terms of your mortgage. For example, let’s say you enter into a forbearance agreement of three months. If your monthly mortgage payment is $1,000, you

will owe about $3,000 in missed mortgage payments at the end of your forbearance term. Your servicer can help you determine the workout option that works best for you, including: • Full repayment, where you pay back the missed payments all at once.

• Repayment plans, which allow you to catch up gradually while you are paying your regular monthly payment.

• Payment deferral, which allows you to resume making your normal monthly payment. Your servicer can work with you to leverage alternative ways for you to pay back the missed payments from your forbearance period at a later date and in a manner that is affordable.

• Modification of the loan, which changes the terms of your loan, usually to reduce your original monthly payment amount. Your servicer can help with a modification that might suit your new circumstances.

Additional Information: To stay on track with paying down your loan balance and less interest over the life of the loan, it’s important that you resume your payments as soon as you’re financially able.

Keep in mind that while you’re not charged “extra” interest, you won’t be paying down your principal, and the interest will continue to accrue on your unpaid mortgage balance.

For information on forbearance and how to get help with your mortgage, visit My Home by Freddie Mac at myhome.freddiemac.com.

Remember, contacting your servicer is the first step in getting help with your mortgage payments if you are facing financial hardship due to COVID-19 or for other reasons. They can explore available options with you and determine what works best for your circumstances.

The American Heart Association [AHA] recently announced that Kristian Hurley was named Metro Detroit’s executive director. In that role, Hurley will be responsible for the fundraising and community engagement programs that create longer, healthier lives for everyone who lives in southeast Michigan, according to a press release.

executive vice president of the American Heart Association’s Midwest Region, said in the press release. “We are excited to see her step into this important leadership role.”

The American Heart Association in Detroit is also working to improve health outcomes for all residents across the region through investments in cardiovascular and COVID-19 research.

This comes at an important time as the Black community is still significantly beHurley, has nine years of ing impacted by the virus experience at AHA, with her at a higher rate than other most recent experience as groups. the senior director of Com“We are continuing to munity Impact in Detroit. Newly selected American work alongside the commuShe has co-led the market’s Heart ­Association Executive Board of Directors with the Director Kristian Hurley. – nity to reduce health disexecutive director, oversaw Photo provided by the Ameri- parities through initiatives that address issues such as a team of Community Im- can Heart Association healthy food access, hyperpact directors, and develtension, social health disparities and tobacoped much-needed corporate and foundation partnerships with the Ballmer Group, co use,” the release added.

Michigan Health Endowment Fund, and Hurley has a bachelor of science in manEnterprise Community Partners, the press agement, also a bachelor of arts in political release added. science from Case Western Reserve Univer“Kristian is a thought-leader, an innova- sity in Cleveland, Ohio.

For more information visit https://www. tor, and a colleague who truly creates impact in every role she plays,” Kevin Harker, heart.org/en/affiliates/michigan/detroit.

Pepsi Invites Everyone to “Dig In” and Champion Black-Owned Restaurants with Goal to Generate $100 Million in Sales for Local Businesses Recognizing the diverse range of delicious food, rich history and culture that Black-owned restaurants contribute to the American experience, Pepsi introduced Dig In. The consumer-facing, multi-year platform is a rallying call for people to double down on supporting Black-owned restaurants.

Dig In aims to generate at least $100 million in sales for Black-owned restaurants over the next five years. The platform also serves as an invitation for Black restaurateurs to tap into a variety of resources available from PepsiCo including business services, training and mentorship. Both timely ways to support Black-owned eateries that are facing systemic barriers, which have been worsened by the pandemic.

“Our mission to connect Black-owned restaurants with the access, business acceleration, and visibility needed to thrive requires a clear call to action: Dig In,” said Scott Finlow, Chief Mar-

keting Officer, PepsiCo Global Foodservice. “Dig In to the vibrant, delicious menus of Black-owned restaurants.

Help build this moment into a sustainable movement that enables businesses to continue serving as cornerstones of our communities.”

A Primetime Kickoff Pepsi introduced Dig In with a national ad spot featuring a symphony of stand-

out Black-owned restaurants from four cities. Debuted on NFL Network Media during the playoffs, one of the mostwatched sports moments of the year, “Savor the Sound” shines a spotlight on four hometown heroes through the sights and sounds of the dishes they create. The spot premiered December 26 and runs through February 8 on TV, and digitally on NFL. com.

Viewpoint Michigan Chronicle

A Real Times Media Newspaper

HIRAM E. JACKSON Publisher SAMUEL LOGAN Publisher 1933-2011

January 6-12, 2021 | Page A-7

My Inside-Out Look At A Vaccine Trial

By Dr. Sybil C. Mitchell New Tri-State Defender

It made perfect sense to me. With COVID-19, African Americans have had higher infection rates, hospitalization rates and death rates. In fact, according to a recent report from the Shelby County Health Department, 59 percent of coronavirus deaths in Shelby County are African Americans.

Vaccines from Pfizer-BioNtech and Moderna, both approved by the Food and Drug Administration, are already protecting millions of healthcare personnel in America.

The potential is there to save lives. However, many African Americans harbor a strong distrust of the healthcare system, and are raising questions.

They are not alone.

Recent Gallup polling has found that the public in general has lost confidence in almost all major institutions in the United States, including Congress and the news media. The most dramatic decline, however, has occurred in confidence in the medical system, which fell by more than 50 percent-from 80 percent in 1975 to 35 percent in 2019.

Therein lies the problem.

Whichever vaccine is administered, medical professionals agree that at least 70 percent of the population must be vaccinated to protect everyone.

“We actually need 70-75 percent of the population to be vaccinated,” said Dr. Bruce Randolph, medical director of the Shelby County Health Department.

“Then, you can start talking about this herd immunity.

If 75 percent is vaccinated, the remaining 25 percent is protected so that the virus is not being transmitted.”

However, many of the skeptics say they will take a waitand-see approach, and some say they’ll simply refuse to take it.

Which brings me to the point of this story.

There is a third potential vaccine by Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies, a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.

A trial study is the last big hurdle before FDA review. Researchers at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and the University of Tennessee Health Science are facilitating the trial at St. Jude.

The trial study’s lead investigator, Dr. Aditya Gaur, understands that communities of color have extreme trust issues of medical institutions. He expressed that sentiment when I called in early December to express interest in participating.

“Oh, so you are a journalist, and you want to participate in our trial study,” Dr. Gaur asked. “That’s great. I think that would help us so much. We have a messaging problem in the Black community as well as other minority communities. I would be interested in hearing your thoughts about how we improve our messaging.”

Since the days of slavery, White physicians and institutions have conducted horrific, inhumane experiments on African-Americans.

Perhaps, the most infamous is the Tuskegee Experiment, conducted from 1932-72, 600 sharecroppers in Macon County signed up to receive free medical treatment: 399 with latent syphilis and 201 in the control group. The study was set up to observe the stages of untreated syphilis. Those with the disease were allowed to suffer and die.

“The Tuskegee Experiment was highly unethical,” said Randolph. “No research should ever be done without consent. And once penicillin was designated as being effective in treating syphilis, those men with the disease were denied treatment. That went on for 50 years – shameful.”

Even with that historical perspective, I still felt participating in this trial and sharing the experience with readers of The New Tri-State Defender (TSD) was a good idea.

My editor was hesitant, telling me that the TSD could not and would not ask that I participate in the vaccine trial.

Determined, I pushed forward. I made an appointment, pre-qualified for the trial and went in on Dec. 14, a Monday. We want vaccines to be effective in all populations, but it’s especially important that African Americans are protected and part of the research study. Our transmission numbers and fatality rate from coronavirus continue to be high.

I answered some medical questions, signed some papers and was officially accepted into the study trial.

It was explained to me that the trial was a “double-blind” study. That means that some participants will actually receive the vaccine, and others would receive a placebo, which is an injection with no therapeutic benefits. The methodology is used as a control. Neither the participant nor the physicians know which was administered to whom. Both are in the dark, thus, a “double-blind” study.

Placebo or vaccine, that needle was big. I concentrated on not crying or passing out. (After all, I’m not six anymore, just felt that way.)

I took the shot, and 15 days out, I feel great. I report on an app how I feel and whether or not I am exhibiting any symptoms of COVID-19. Had I experienced any symptoms, I would have been asked another set of questions on the app and returned to the doctors for observation and treatment.

I told Dr. Randolph Monday night in a phone conversation the trial has been uneventful for me. He thought it was great that I did so well. But he continues to be concerned about gaining the trust of Shelby County’s African-American population so that the quality of healthcare improves for all.

“There are three types of people,” Randolph said.

“There are those who want the vaccine right off, a second group that wants to wait and see what happens to the first, and the third group, which refuses to be vaccinated altogether. We’re hoping most fall into the first two groups.”

It’s early in the trial, but I am doing fine. Go ahead and get the vaccine of your choice. Encourage friends and neighbors to do the same. Let’s commit in great numbers as if our very lives depended on it – because they really do.

This article originally appeared in the New Tri-State Defender

AJ WILLIAMS Managing Editor

JOHN H. SENGSTACKE Chairman-Emeritus 1912-1997

LONGWORTH M. QUINN Publisher-Emeritus 1909-1989

CONTACT US 1452 Randolph • Detroit, MI 48226 • (313) 963-8100 e-mail: newsdesk@michronicle.com

Remembering the Silver Linings of 2020

By Stacy M. Brown NNPA Newswire

There was little to celebrate or be happy about in 2020, particularly for Black America. So, as the calendar turns to 2021, and many wish friends, family and associates, “Happy New Year!” we’ll place an overwhelming emphasis on the “New Year” portion of the sentiment.

The year began with devastating news as the world learned that a helicopter carrying NBA legend Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gigi, had crashed into a mountainside just outside of Los Angeles. Bryant, his young daughter, the pilot and six other passengers were all killed in the accident.

In unfortunate, but anticipated news, 2020 headlines continued to report on two areas of disproportionate death tolls for Blacks: Police killings of unarmed African Americans, and the novel coronavirus pandemic, or COVID-19, which disproportionately affected communities of color.

While some might argue that detecting a silver lining over the past 365 days is difficult, there was good news.

The outgoing year saw many firsts and accomplishments for African Americans, including many from the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), representing the Black Press of America.

Presidential candidates Joe Biden, Tom Steyer, and Michael Bloomberg all sat for interviews with NNPA President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Jr. Chavis, a civil rights icon, also helped raise the profile of the Black Press when he launched The Chavis Chronicles, a national television show with American Public Television.

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation continued a campaign with the NNPA to raise awareness about education barriers for students of color and bridging the learning gap for minorities. That partnership has proven even more vital during the pandemic.

The United States, and much of the world, underwent an awakened awareness that Black Lives Matter now more than ever in 2020.

Following the murders of Breonna Taylor, George Floyd, and others, major sports leagues, corporations, and others began acknowledging their responsibility in the fight for social justice and civil rights.

Led by LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers, NBA players exerted their popularity and authority by successfully demanding that the league honor the Black Lives Matter Movement.

Because of the players’ actions, the NBA opened its arenas to use as polling places, and the league agreed to promote social justice and civic engagement.

Major League Baseball and the National Football League also instituted initiatives with promises to do more for minorities at all levels.

The Google News Initiative (GNI) Innovation Challenge awarded Black Voice News (BVN) $300,000 in support of “Save the Black Press,” a bold call to action to innovate revenue and sustainability solutions at Black news organizations through the creation of the Data Access and Content Discovery Hub (DACDH).

Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts announced that Comcast would fight injustice and inequality against race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, or ability. With that, Roberts committed $100 million to a three-year plan to advance social justice and equality. The initiative includes a $75 million cash commitment and $25 million in media.

Facebook announced that 15 member publishers of the NNPA would receive $1.288 million in grants through the Facebook Journalism Project’s relief fund for local news.

The social media giant said more than 200 news organizations would receive nearly $16 million in grants, which stem from $25 million in local news relief funding announced in March as part of Facebook’s $100 million global investment in the news.

MSNBC named Rashida Jones the first Black person and Black woman president of the network.

Jones, who quickly becomes the most prominent woman in cable news, is scheduled to step into the top role on Feb. 1, Black His-

tory Month, replacing Phil Griffin, who had been at the cable news channel for more than 25 years.

Mellody Hobson, a Princeton graduate who, in 2019, earned the Woodrow Wilson Award, the university’s highest honor, was named Chairwoman of the Board of Starbucks.

With the promotion, Hobson became the only African American woman to chair a Fortune 500 company.

Midshipman First Class Sydney Barber, a mechanical engineering major from Illinois, was named Brigade Commander for the spring semester at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Barber, a track star with a stated desire to work as a Marine Corps ground officer, becomes the first Black woman to lead the Naval Academy’s student body.

The Brigade Commander heads the Academy’s day-to-day activities and trains the class of approximately 4,500 midshipmen. Barber becomes the 16th woman to serve in that role.

There were significant changes in the world of entertainment as Valeisha Butterfield Jones, a leader, global influencer, and culture shifter, who co-founded the Women in Entertainment Empowerment Network (WENN) and served as the National Youth Vote Director for President Barack Obama’s 2012 reelection campaign, was named the Recording Academy’s first Chief Diversity & Inclusion Officer.

While the traditional annual festival which hosts more than 350,000 people on Los Angeles’ Crenshaw Boulevard wasn’t in the cards because of the pandemic, Bakewell Media and the Los Angeles Sentinel found a new way to bring even more people together. The 15th annual Taste of Soul, the largest one-day street festival in Southern California, took place virtually in October.

Carol H. Williams received Ad Age’s Vanguard Award during this year’s Women to Watch Awards event. Williams, the CEO of Carol H. Williams Advertising, was honored for a lifetime of significant achievements, including being named to the AAF Advertising Hall of Fame.

2020 also answered the question, “What do Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis, Delores Tucker, Roland Martin, Gayle King, and Brent Staples have in common?” Each has made the Ebony Power 100 List, which annually recognizes leaders in their respective fields whom the iconic publication’s editors say have, “positively impacted the African American community.”

Retired NBA Star Junior Bridgeman announced the purchase of Ebony for $14 million.

Ebony’s archives were previously sold for more than $30 million.

With death and hospitalizations piling up from the pandemic, a Black woman, Dr. Kizzmekia Corbett, was at the forefront of a National Institutes of Health’s team that worked with Moderna on its coronavirus vaccine.

Corbett, an expert on the front lines of the global race for a SARS-CoV-2 vaccine, will go down in history as one of the key players in developing the science that could end the pandemic.

Many others on the front lines of the fight to educate and advocate for African Americans are also celebrated. African American physicians at the University of Virginia, including Drs. Ebony

Hilton, Leigh-Ann Webb, Taison Bell, Rochanda Mitchell and Cameron Webb all proved to be trusted and vital sources of objective information throughout the pandemic.

Critical care nurse Sandra Lindsay, an African American in New York, became the first person in the country to receive Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine.

In November, the ticket of Joe Biden and Sen. Kamala Harris earned 306 electoral college votes and recorded more than 81 million popular votes to defeat President Donald Trump and Vice President Mike Pence.

Harris will become the nation’s first African American and first woman vice president.

In December, L+M Development Partners formally announced financing for a $349 million development project on the Bronx Harlem River waterfront in New York, including the Universal Hip Hop Museum. Construction is scheduled to commence in January.

The NNPA embraced online video and went “viral.”

With the goal of presenting each of the NNPA member media companies via an online panel format, the NNPA entered into online streaming aggressively under the theme, “Save Local Journalism.” Each of the streams featured up to four publishers who were able to share valuable insights, creativity, challenges and solutions.

Live audience interaction, in the form of questions and comments from those viewing the streams verified that the series of NNPA livestreams with African American newspaper publishers were an instant hit.

Other livestreams included interviews with superstars and legends like Ice Cube, Stephanie Mills, Ziggy Marley, Sugar Ray Leonard, Isiah Thomas, Kareem Abdul Jabbar, and LL Cool J. Because of the livestreams, the NNPA gained new followers on all of its social media platforms and a dramatic increase in visitation to the BlackPressUSA.com website.

The 2020 Virtual NNPA Annual Convention — a first completely online event for the NNPA — proved wildly successful with several hundred thousand attendees viewing the event live and over the days that followed.

NNPA Livestream guests included a host of Congress members, including Congressional Black Caucus Chair Karen Bass (D-Calif.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Rep. Yvette Clarke (D-NY), and many others.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin, and Meharry Medical College President and CEO Dr. James Hildreth also appeared on livestreams with the NNPA. Live broadcasts also included several from the 2020 Afro-Comic Con, including a special broadcast featuring comedian Sinbad.

The NNPA’s Dr. Nsenga Burton hosted a series of livestreams on the future of higher learning post COVID featuring the presidents of America’s Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs).

America was also introduced to the NNPA’s newest livestream series: “Ask Alma,” an interactive advice show.

The NNPA plans to broadcast even more live events in 2021.

Page A-8 • michiganchronicle.com •

January 6-12, 2021

Keeping You Informed at All Times of the Day.

michiganchronicle.com

City ity.. Life ife.. Style.

B1 | January 6-12, 2021

Where City Meets Life and Life Meets Style

michiganchronicle.com

After-H(ours)

Access Equity and Opportunity in a 24-Hour Economy

By Adrian Tonon, Jabari Jefferson and Andre Reed Photo Lil Monsterr Ten years ago making it in music in Detroit was moving to Los Angeles. Currently we have the opportunity to retain and attract artists who can sustainably work, live and play in the City of Detroit.

Meet four music industry leaders who are intentionally developing home-grown artists and a music economy workforce.

Suai Kee / Motown Accelerator Motown Accelerator’s goal is to help artists take their careers to the next level. We give them one-on-one mentoring, music industry connections, and management skills to have lucrative careers well beyond the 12-week accelerator program. Encouraging artists to deepen their Detroit roots by working with local creatives and engaging with their hometown supporters are the groundwork for the type of sustainability we want to see thrive in the city. In response to the 2020 pandemic, our programming has evolved and restructured to help hundreds more artists. In 2021, we’re expanding on our mission by offering specific, much needed career advancing services to hundreds of artists. Applications are open for our third program and we’re very excited to continue working with alumni and meet the next cohort.

Write The Vision - New year Vision Board and Resolutions How-To’s

By Megan Kirk Break out the champagne and get ready to celebrate 2021. It is the time of the year when New Year’s resolutions are made and vision boards are created to set goals for the new year.

Artists who enter the program are given a $20,000 creative budget grant. They sign no contract, retain their royalties, all revenues, and rights. Motown Accelerator, a gener8tor program, believes in communities investing in their brightest and best. So we’re setting up artists with capital and opportunities to be champions in their city. The grant and 0% equity model create an incredible opportunity for them to utilize the program to boost their careers, then cycling their earnings back into their crafts and communities.

For more information, visit www.motownaccelerator.com Nicole Churchill / Assemble Sound Assemble Sound approaches sustainability in an all encompassing way. We’re proud to offer artist favored splits in the sync world and creative label services to support releases in a way where the artists retain their ownership and copyrights. By offering a free educational program so that all artists and aspiring music industry professionals can learn together and grow together, sustainably.

Our approach has definitely evolved along the way, we’ve had to modify percentages, bring in brand partners, expand the team and update our blueprints to handle the growth and support the success of the artists we work with.

We push creative collaboration and

See AFTER H(OURS) Page B-2

As 2020 gratefully comes to a close, setting intentions for 2021 can feel refreshing and help create a clear path of success through the new year.

However, sticking to resolutions can prove to be hard.

Corynn McDade, Certified Life Coach and founder of Get Your Life, LLC, suggests breaking goals down to smaller tasks to make them more realistic.

ty at work or at home, different things like those,” McDade says. “I think we will find that this year, many goals will involve how people spend their free time and their time with family and friends.”

Vision boards, typically created from magazine cutouts, are a good way to keep track of goals for the new year. A visual representation of a resolution list, vision boards help to see ideas and plans in real time.

“By all means, you should aim high with your resolutions, but don’t be afraid to break them into smaller goals along the way,” McDade says. “It is impossible to go from 0 to 100. No matter what, there are still numbers in between the two.”

With common New Year’s resolutions centered around weight loss and financial freedom, quarantine and the pandemic may play a role in setting different goals for self and family. With increased time indoors, some resolutions may include ways to take advantage of the extra time at home.

“The most common goals usually revolve around self-improvement; people want to eat better or cleaner foods, create or improve budgeting, learn a new skill, increase productivi-

“Vision boards should really include the things and ideas that are most important to you as an individual,” McDade explains. “You want to think of what motivates you, and what you want to see, or keep in your life.

What is your focus? What are your goals?”

The life coach also suggests keeping vision boards in plain sight. Hang-

ing vision boards on a wall in the home or placing it in the bedroom all help to increase the time spent seeing the board. Vision boards can even be stored digitally.

“The vision board should be in a place that makes the most sense for you. Where are you most likely to see it, and associate it positively with your goals? With so many people working from home, putting your vision board on a wall or other area you can see from your working space is a great idea,” McDade explains.

“But don’t limit yourself. Just like we attend virtual meetings and gatherings, your vision board can absolutely go virtual as a computer or phone background.”

In an effort to stay on pace, conducting check-ins can help to assess status and completion of each resolution. Also, having a trusted partner can assist in staying on track.

“Schedule check-ins with yourself throughout the year to monitor your progress and assess what may be getting in the way. If you are someone that needs a little nudge from time to time, find yourself an accountability partner or even a life coach, to help you stay on track,” McDade suggests.

See VISION BOARD Page B-2

Local Detroiter Launches Podcast to Discuss Racial Tension in America

By Megan Kirk

documentary has since been aired on Hulu and ABC’s 20/20. After receiving no buzz around the film, media and news outlets began to take notice as public murders of Black people continued to grab recent headlines over the last year.

Detroit native Kacie Willis is helping to creating meaningful conversation surrounding social injustice in America through a new podcast called White Angle. The series brings together white and Black filmmakers to have discussions on race, privilege and content creation depicting Black stories of inequality.

Launched in 2020, White Angle explores three individual white filmmakers who have made documentaries about racial injustice and the plight of Black America. Through each episode, the creatives are joined together, in pairs, with a Black filmmaker to have open dialogue centered around issues of race in America and how the white perspective of these issues factor into the creation of their documentaries.

Originally spurred by the tragic murder of George Floyd in May and the release of the bodycam footage, this threepart documentary series draws from the Black experience of ongoing racial tension and the increased attention to racial disparities.

“I had a friend who made a documentary called In the Cold Dark Night, and he is one of the guests on the podcast,” Willis explains. “I asked would he be willing to talk about it on a podcast but to have a conversation with a Black filmmaker to sort of gauge how they felt about that situation.”

Wanting to keep the dialogue constructive and informative, the podcast uses the basis of creativity as a common shared space between the guests.

Kacie Willis “The swelling of people from everywhere, from all over the world. It was unfortunate what it took to spark a global movement,” Willis says. “But what I was really struck by was the footage.

Had there not been any of that footage, would any of this happen? Would the discussion that we’re having in the arts world about equity and treating people

the same, would any of this have happened?”

Of the filmmakers featured on the podcast, Stephen Robert Morse created the 2018 documentary In the Cold Dark Night highlighting the 1983 and 2018 investigation into the murder of 23-yearold Timothy Coggins in Georgia. The

“There’s something about grounding the conversation in a discussion about creativity and the arts that makes having the discussion so much easier,” Willis shares.

Despite racial differences, the podcast looks to pose a critical question: can the white community accurately tell

See PODCAST Page B-2

Page B-2 • michiganchronicle.com • January 6-12, 2021

Improve Your Mental Health with Better Sleep (Family Features) For some, the holidays may be the happiest season of all, but for others the hectic pace and endless to-do lists can take a real toll on their mental health. This year, the impact is heightened by a global health pandemic.

According to a survey from Mattress Firm, more than 60 million Americans say COVID-19 has worsened their quality of their sleep, and those losing sleep are often seeing their mental well-being and healthy habits worsen. Nearly half of respondents said COVID-19 has increased their worries and prevented them from falling or staying asleep at night, with 41% reported their poor sleep has a negative impact on their daily lives.

"It's no surprise that when our minds are full or our hearts are heavy, our mental health tends to suffer," said Dr. Sujay Kansagra, a sleep health expert for Mattress Firm. "What many people don't realize is that mental health struggles also affect sleep, and adequate rest is a key component of maintaining and improving your mental health."

If stress and worry are preventing you from getting a good night of sleep, try these ideas from Kansagra to help improve your mental state and ease your body into rest.

Think positively. Every night before going to bed, list three good things from your day. They don't have to be amazing things, just three positive aspects of your day. For example, acknowledge you had a good virtual catch-up with a colleague or enjoyed a new recipe or work-

After H(ours) From page B-1

economic cooperation hard because we believe the marriage of the two is what creates a sustainable creative eco system. For example, by encouraging Detroit’s content makers to “license local” we’re creating a brand message that brings attention from clients outside of just our backyard. Bridging the gap between this community and the opportunities available to artists in major entertainment markets is and will continue to be our goal.

Marcus Miller / Menace Media Menace Media approaches sustainably by identifying the artist/musicians core values. What are the goals of the artist? What are they trying to achieve in their career? Each answer is inherently different but valid in their own way.

Success depends on what the artist/musicians define as successful and that’s what we tend to focus on. By knowing the artist goals we are able to construct laser targeted marketing/advertising campaigns that will funnel the right traffic to specific releases whether it be a single, album, or PR campaign. We’ve evolved by growing with our artist. Mindsets and artistry are constantly evolving from the core of our artist we work with and that’s ideally what we are aiming for.

To stay relevant in today’s standards are having to constantly offer your consumers a new piece of you they can relate to. The answer to this is staying true to your artistry and adding great marketing behind that to personify yourself.

Menace Media core values are creating sustainable growth for our artist.

Growing in this industry means not only creating a lane of your own that your fans can identify with, but also creating marketing funnels that can be monetized so that this career path is something you can live off of. Consumers are here to buy into your brand. What do you as an artist stand for? That is the first step to figure out this journey.

Solving that piece of the puzzle not only sets you apart but gives us the opportunity to create a solid, on brand marketing strategy to reach the audience that will grow with your artistry for years to come. We want the artist we work with to inherently create revenue streams from not only their music but their branding as a foundation. We exercise this by constantly being in touch with our artist idealistic values of their brand and growing with their audience. And we do all of this with the utmost integrity and dedication.

Filthy Rockwell / Rayshon Gore-Willis / The Filthy Americans Art’s & Preservation Center The Filthy Americans Art’s & Preservation Center sustainability gives artists and musicians historical core values.

With us being coined as the “preserves of culture” our center is where artists are enriched and surrounded with pure nostalgia. From being exposed to vinyls, murals, and unique analog artifacts. If you don’t know where you started, how do you know where you’re going? We’ve evolved by being able to offer a unique

Vision Boards From page B-1

While sometimes resolutions fall by the wayside as the year moves on, staying consistent while working towards those 2021 goals can be a game changer.

Though some tasks may be left incomplete, celebrating accomplished tasks will help to add motivation.

“There’s almost nothing that is a complete failure. Consider the small wins and congratulate yourself for the things you have likely accomplished despite not completing the resolution,” McDade shares. “You can absolutely learn and grow from whatever has happened. Don’t give up on yourself.”

out class. Listing your positive experiences at night can help you maintain a positive frame of mind as you unwind for the day.

Create a to-do list. This technique is for those who mentally work through their list of pending responsibilities space for merchandise and history that’s all homegrown from Detroit and specifically curated to honor Techno, Hip-Hop, Funk , skateboard culture and many more.

At The Filthy Americans Art’s & Cultural Center our core value is independence and collaboration. By educating artists/musicians on how they can monetize their work and actually make a living without taking the new normal route that is “streaming”. We work closely with artists and expose them to more traditional options like producing physical copies and other merchandise that could reach their target audience more personally. So maybe you shouldn’t put your latest work on a specific streaming platform, you already may have the 300 fans you need to make your art into a career. We strongly believe in the roots of collaboration because music is a “we” thing not a “me” thing from the writers, producers, engineers, to vocalist;everyone comes together to create something special. If you stop by the center on a Saturday you may walk into a jam session that we allow everyone to be a part of.

Bartenders play a crucial role in a 24-Hour Economy. Like many other industries, bartenders were forced to pivot and innovate during government mandates, oftentimes not knowing where their next paycheck was coming from.

Join us for the seventh series to hear from four celebrated bartenders who have rose above adversity and are bringing new flavors, energy and excitement into 2021.

Podcast From page B-1

the story of Black trauma?

“In my opinion, I don’t think that creatives should be limited in the stories that they want to tell if they are extremely passionate about them,” Willis says.

“I think now there are no more excuses for not being aware of how being someone who is not a part of a community can affect how the story is told if they don’t do their due diligence. Especially if they don’t have people from that community on their team from the very beginning.”

Willis is a recent graduate of Savannah College of Art and Design, and the podcast was launched as a part of the school’s Alumni Atelier program which allows select graduates’ resources and business training to further their careers. In the future, the now-producer hopes to combine other professions and demographics to join in on the conversation while still maintaining the overall goal of the podcast.

“I’ve been flirting with the idea of doing several small three-part series with the same concept,” Willis says. “People from different perspectives, racial or sexual orientation backgrounds, and having them in other industries. An idea I have is a hip-hop artist in conversation with someone from law enforcement.”

The podcast series is available on whiteanglepod.com.

If resolutions seem to become overwhelming, reassessing the time and resolution will allow for some flexibility in the plan.

“Really sit down with yourself, and analyze what has to happen, for you to accomplish your goal or achieve your resolution,” McDade says. “If it is not feasible within the year for some reason, adjust the resolution, or adjust the time frame.”

Closing out a year filled with uncertainty while welcoming a year of new possibilities, creating a vision board and writing resolutions can help set the tone for this new year. No matter how big or small, let those 2021 goals help shift you into the new year.

before bed. In a fast-paced world, sometimes lying in bed is the first time you have to actually think about what's on your list. By creating a list of tasks (or even writing down your worries), you can prevent yourself from thinking about them excessively before bed and throughout the night.

Try progressive relaxation. This involves taking slow, deep breaths and slowly tensing the muscles in your body for a few seconds then relaxing them.

Start at your feet and work your way up the body. This technique can help you relax and decompress after a long day.

Give yourself a break. Especially if you're working from home or tackling a lot of seasonal tasks, it's easy to keep yourself busy up until the minute you fall into bed. However, your mind may still be whirling from all that activity.

Build in a few minutes before bed each night to let your mind rest, whether it's spending a few minutes with a good book, practicing meditation or sipping on a cup of sleepy-time tea.

Appeal to your senses. Being mindful of how your senses react to various stimuli can play a role in your ability to drift off to sleep. Some people need silence; others benefit from ambient sound. Certain scents can be soothing and make good choices for essential oil diffusers, such as lavender oil. Also

be conscious of the touches that affect your sleep, like the support from your mattress, the softness of your sheets or the temperature of the room.

Whether it's your family, your health or general stress that's keeping you up, find time in your day to give yourself some grace. Your mental health is extremely important and should not be overlooked, so if you're feeling a little worn down, ensure you're getting the quality sleep you need to tackle the day and week ahead.

Find more tips for better sleep at MattressFirm.com.

What's Keeping You Awake?

If you're like many Americans, outside influences and worries may affect your sleep. Pinpointing what's keeping you awake, such as these common sleep disruptors reported in a Mattress Firm survey, can help you address your concerns so you can rest more easily.

1. Money or Paying Bills (49%) 2. My or My Family's Health (48%) 3.

State of Country and the Economy (39%) 4. My Kids and Their Health or Education (32%) 5. Missing Social Interaction (31%) Source: Mattress Firm

Overcoming the Mask

Tips for communicating through COVID-19 (Family Features) It can be challenging to communicate through masks, 6-feet of social distance, physical barriers and other factors due to COVID-19 that have changed daily life.

For people with hearing loss, this is an especially challenging time. In a telling sign of increased hearing difficulty, usage of online hearing tests increased 500% since the pandemic began.

"With COVID-19 and masks, everyday tasks are a source of frustration, such as asking a question at the grocery store deli or talking to someone from behind a customer service desk," said Bill Schiffmiller, a lifelong hearing aid user and founder and CEO of Akoio, a hearing wellness company. "It's a triple threat because masks reduce the loudness of the voice, muffle p r o nu n c i a t i o n and eliminate visuals like facial expressions and lip reading."

Data shows people who can't hear others begin to stay away from other people, and social isolation can lead to anxiety and depression. People who have trouble hearing also tend to have higher hospitalization rates and longer hospital stays, according to research published in "JAMA Otolaryngology."

Among those 55 and older who have hearing loss, 58% don't use hearing aids. In the past, statistics have shown people waiting up to seven years before getting a hearing aid from the time of diagnosis. However, the communication challenges posed during COVID-19 are driving some to address their hearing sooner than they may have otherwise.

Help Someone Hear You Better * Consider the mask you're wearing.

Clear masks provide a visual difference, helping with lip reading and facial expressions. The plastic in clear masks, however, can muffle sound too much for some. According to audiologist Dr. Shivani Patel, high-frequency hearing loss is common, making female voices difficult to hear. In this situation, research has found standard medical masks tend to transfer sound best. Try different masks to see what works for you.

* Minimize background noise. Music, construction, other conversations, heaters and fans can make it challenging to communicate when wearing a mask. * Avoid "cavernous" rooms. An environment with mostly hard surfaces, such as a large meeting room or gymnasium, offers minimal sound dampening and can make hearing comprehension more difficult. * Maintain eye contact. Look directly at the person you're speaking to and speak clearly, helping him or her read some of your facial expressions. When using video conference services, look directly into the camera in a well-lit room and ensure you have clear picture quality to help with lip reading. * Be patient.

Remember the increased challenges people with hearing loss are facing now.

If communication becomes too challenging through a mask, have a backup plan such as pen and paper or a smartphone note-taking app.

When You're Having Trouble Hearing * Talk to your friends and family. Tell them what you're experiencing and be clear and direct in expressing your thoughts and feelings. Ask whether they have noticed your hearing troubles and listen to their feedback. * Describe specific instances and circumstances when your hearing is affected most. Armed with this knowledge, friends and family can help you manage various situations. * Determine a plan of action. Set an appointment to have your hearing checked by an audiologist. If you wear a hearing aid, be sure to carry extra batteries. Notice ways to adjust your environment to reduce background noise. * Make hearing wellness a priority. Data shows hearing is important to a person's mental and physical wellness, and untreated hearing loss can have multiple health consequences.

Find more hearing resources, downloadable guides and an audiologist finder at akoio.com.

Source: Akoio

January 6-12, 2021 • michiganchronicle.com •

Page B-3

As COVID Anxiety Grows, Tips to Avoid Crisis and Conflict (StatePoint) Among mask mandates, social distancing, outspoken political views and personal challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a heightened risk for public spaces turning into places of conflict.

According to experts at the Crisis Prevention Institute (CPI), the global leader in de-escalation training for over 40 years, mentally preparing and practicing responses can best ensure non-confrontational experiences. Potential challenging situations could include disagreements over mask requirements or social distancing, family gatherings, shopping lines, acclimating to more densely populated work environments or navigating political discussions.

“Having trained teachers, nurses and others who interact with the public, and being a social worker myself, I know the immense need for de-escalation training in the workplace and in everyday life,” says Amber Belle, a global CPI trainer. “Learning conflict-prevention techniques can help ensure you have positive experiences in your community.”

PHOTO SOURCE: (c) tommy / iStock via Getty Images Plus

Looking for Love in 2021?

5 Tips for Successful Online Dating

PHOTO SOURCE: (c) YurolaitsAlbert / iStock via Getty Images Plus CPI has identified probable areas of conflict and how to best mitigate tension. They recommend embracing four simple techniques to prevent and reduce conflict: 1. Avoid judgment. Understand that everyone has different life experiences and may be overwhelmed with struggles and anxiety from things you know nothing about. Listen and focus on the feelings behind the message.

2. Don’t take it personally. Another person’s behavior is not about you. You are likely not the true target of someone’s behavior. Tell yourself, “This may not be about the two of us; it may be about other issues in their life.” Or repeat to yourself, “I’m going to be respectful. I’m going to be respectful.”

3. Control your reactions. You can’t control another person’s behavior, but you can control how you react. Avoid using facial expressions, gestures and language that could make another person feel anxious or defensive.

4. Be prepared if you have to engage.

Have a plan to acknowledge and redirect. Here are some things you could potentially say:

(StatePoint) Trying out online dating for the first time or frustrated by the experience?

pets are warm and welcoming, but limit the shots including friends or family.

Below are five online dating tips from Andrea McGinty, premier dating expert and founder of 33 Thousand Dates, a coaching platform designed to help millennial and Gen X women and men navigate online dating. In her 20+ years as a matchmaker, McGinty arranged over 33,000 dates, so it’s safe to say she knows a thing or two about dating successfully!

3. Be proactive. Start with only one or two dating platforms. You can add more later, but you don’t want to be overwhelmed by all the “likes” you’ll receive! Once live, don’t wait for messages to bombard you. Instead, use the platform’s filters so you see the type of people you’re looking for – don’t be shy about knowing what you want!

1. Enlist help. With over 104 million singles in America and over 30 million dating online, your online dating profile needs to stand out. A dating expert can help you craft a profile you’re proud of – and one that isn’t full of clichés like “long walks on the beach.” You hire professionals to help you exercise, clean and shop, so why not hire a dating pro to help reflect your individuality? At 33 Thousand Dates, for example, they take a personalized, proactive approach and handle the heavy lifting so that clients can have all the fun.

2. Refresh your photos. Time to cull from the thousands of photos saved on your phone for five to 10 terrific shots.

If they’re more than a year old or low-resolution, consider scheduling a photoshoot with a friend or a professional. Pose in natural light, ideally outdoors, and show off your smile. Avoid selfies and sunglasses, and include at least one full body shot that conveys your interests, whether you’re hiking, doing a tree pose, or walking along the shore. For men, shirts on unless it’s a great surf shot or you’re spiking a volleyball on the beach.

Lastly, most photos should be solo –

“After coaching thousands of people and playing a part in 4,200 marriages, I’ve found that those with the highest level of dating success proactively work the system in person and online,” says McGinty.

4. Arrange video chats. Set up short virtual dates to determine whether you’re willing to meet in person. Keep conversations to 10 minutes – this is enough time to get a feel for personality, looks and mannerisms. Ask important questions early to ensure your values align, and remember, chemistry only comes in person!

5. Have fun. Now it’s time for the good stuff! Arrange drinks, coffee or brunch al fresco – these dates are less pressure, more relaxed and don’t drag on. If you’re ready to leave, say you have errands to run or evening plans. A coach can help with this part, too – 33 Thousand Dates offers expert advice on how to communicate and follow up on dates. Keep in mind, you’re seeing if you like the person enough to go on a second date, not marry them! And if it doesn’t go well, those millions of other singles are waiting to meet you.

For more tips and to learn more about enlisting help from pros, visit 33000dates.com.

Don’t continue to tread water. Take proactive steps now to date online with confidence.

• “Yeah. This year has been difficult on everyone.”

• “I can understand where you’re coming from.”

• “We’ll all be glad to have this pandemic behind us.”

Over four decades, CPI has trained more than 15 million individuals in its techniques, spanning many industries and professions, especially health care and education. CPI tracks violent incidents in the industries it trains, and data shows that de-escalation skills, when used correctly, can quickly decrease violence regardless of the industry.

For more de-escalation tips and information on de-escalation, visit www. crisisprevention.com.

During a particularly tense time in our nation’s history, having a few techniques at the ready can help you avoid conflict wherever you are.

How to Reduce Your Recovery Time After a Tough Workout

(StatePoint) More Americans are investing their time and energy in the pursuit of fitness these days, with the percentage of people belonging to gyms and health clubs nearly doubling from 20002017, according to Statista. Beyond casual workouts, participation in extreme sports and endurance events has grown exponentially in the past 25 years.

Whether you’ve recently started exercising, are ramping up your efforts or have always been an avid sports enthusiast, you’ve probably dealt with soreness and fatigue after a tough workout.

push your limits, it’s important to remember that improving athletic performance is a gradual process. Be mindful of your current strength, endurance and flexibility and learn to distinguish between normal soreness and discomfort, and pain that could be a sign it’s time to slow down or take a break.

While rest days are critical for athletes and exercisers of all levels, no one wants to be sidelined for too long and lose their momentum. To turbocharge your recovery process and get back into the game faster, consider these techniques:

• Foam roll: You don’t need a big budget or much time to receive the positive benefits of a deep tissue massage. Give yourself the spa treatment at home. Post workout, foam roll to reduce tension of large muscle groups and targeted areas.

The harder the foam roller’s density, the deeper into muscle tissue you can go.

You may find it helpful to have multiple rollers to choose from, depending on the muscle area and your level of soreness that day.

• Complete a dynamic warm-up: Before physical activity, perform a dynamic warm-up to wake up muscles and get oxygen and blood flowing. Take your body through its full range of motion with effective moves, including high knees, butt kicks, forward and sideways leg swings and shoulder rolls.

• Consider CBD: With a similar molecular structure to the naturally occurring endocannabinoids produced by the human body, cannabidiol (CBD) sports supplements can assist with your prepa-

• Cross-train: The same type of exercise day in and day out can make you more susceptible to physical and mental burnout. Cross-training will not only give you an edge in your main sport, it can also help you recover faster.

PHOTO SOURCE: (c) Ridofranz / iStock via Getty Images Plus

ration, performance and recovery, according to research.

Check out the hemp-derived, custom-formulated supplements from Champions + Legends, which offers a portfolio of products used by some of the world’s most elite athletes to help keep them training, performing and recovering at a high level, including James Harrison, a two-time Super Bowl champion, Hafþór “Thor” Júlíus Björnsson Gregor, an Icelandic strongman, deadlift world record holder, and “Game of Thrones” actor, rock climbers, Adam Ondra and

Tommy Caldwell, CrossFit athletes, Sara Sigmundsdóttir and Pat Vellner, and Jay Glazer, football insider and MMA trainer.

“There is a big difference between just taking the day off and consciously recovering,” says Sonny Mottahed, founder and CEO of Champions + Legends. “Better recovery means you can train harder next time.”

To learn more, visit ChampionsandLegends.com.

• Know your limits: While strength and endurance gains can only happen if you

• Refuel rapidly: Good nutrition is essential for swift recovery. Be sure to refuel quickly after tough workouts to aid muscle repair.

You only have one body, so treat it well. Seek out the tools and knowledge you need to fully recover, faster.

Page B-4 • michiganchronicle.com • January 6-12, 2021

Vegetarian Ramen Zoodle Bowls

A

FAMILY FEATURES

new year brings with it new opportunities to better yourself in all kinds of ways, including your health. Start by evaluating your at-home menu to make sure it aligns with your nutritional goals.

These recipes for Vegetarian Ramen Zoodle Bowls, Broccolini and Bacon Egg Bites and Flourless Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies from Atkins offer better-for-you options that fit within a low-carb lifestyle that can help you eat right and make smarter choices in your kitchen. Each option offers a balanced approach to eating comprised of high-fiber carbohydrates, optimal protein and healthy fats. Plus, they’re easily personalized, allowing each recipe to help you meet your goals regardless of what eating plan you’re following and whether you’re looking to achieve weight loss, maintain your weight or achieve optimal health.

Vegetarian Ramen Zoodle Bowls

Recipe courtesy of “The Atkins 100 Eating Solution” Total time: 30 minutes Servings: 4

4 large eggs ice water

2 cups fresh water

1 quart vegetable broth

5 ounces (3 cups) broccoli florets, cut into bite-size pieces 10 ounces (4 cups) spiralized zucchini

5 ounces (5 packed cups) baby spinach

1 tablespoon, plus 2 teaspoons, white miso paste 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, plus additional, to taste, divided

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil, plus additional for garnish, to taste

2 cups mung bean sprouts, for garnish

chili garlic sauce, for garnish

1 cup shredded raw carrot, for garnish

4 tablespoons crushed peanuts, for garnish

In large saucepan of gently boiling water, cook eggs 7 minutes then transfer to bowl of ice water.

Drain cooking water from saucepan then add broth and fresh water. Bring to simmer over medium-high heat. Add broccoli and cook 3 minutes then add zucchini and spinach. Continue cooking until spinach is wilted and zucchini is crisp-tender, 2-3 minutes.

Remove from heat.

Ladle about 1/2 cup broth from saucepan into small bowl. Add miso paste and 1/4 teaspoon salt; whisk to combine. Return mixture to soup, add sesame oil and stir to combine. Add additional salt, to taste. Cover to keep warm.

Remove eggs from ice bath; peel then cut in half lengthwise.

Ladle 2 cups soup into four serving bowls. Top each portion with one egg and 1/2 cup sprouts. Drizzle with chili garlic sauce and additional sesame oil, to taste. Top each serving with 1/4 cup shredded carrot and 1 tablespoon crushed peanuts.

Nutritional information per serving: 10 grams net carbs; 17 grams total carbs; 7 grams fiber; 16 grams protein; 13 grams fat; 253 calories.

Flourless Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

Broccolini and Bacon Egg Bites

Broccolini and Bacon Egg Bites

Recipe courtesy of “The Atkins 100 Eating Solution” Total time: 45 minutes Servings: 4 Nonstick cooking spray

5 slices (4 ounces) no-sugar-added bacon

5 large eggs

3 ounces cream cheese

2 tablespoons feta cheese

1 tablespoon hot sauce 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus additional, to taste, divided 4 1/2 ounces broccolini (5-7 stalks), stalks and florets thinly sliced

1 tablespoon water 1 1/2 cups baby arugula

1 tablespoon lemon juice

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1 cup fresh blueberries Preheat oven to 350 F. Lightly coat eight silicone egg-bite mold cups or eight cups of standard nonstick muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray and set in large baking pan.

In large nonstick skillet, cook bacon over medium heat until golden, about 5 minutes per side. Transfer to paper towel-lined plate to drain. Chop bacon into small pieces.

In blender, puree eggs, cream cheese, feta cheese, hot sauce and 1/4 teaspoon salt until smooth.

Pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat from skillet. Add broccolini, water and 1/4 tea­spoon salt. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until broccolini is tender, 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat.

Fill each egg cup with 1 teaspoon bacon and 1 tablespoon broccolini.

Top with egg mixture, filling cups to about 1/8 inch from top. Add just enough boiled water to baking pan to come halfway up sides of molds.

Bake egg bites until set, 20-25 minutes. Take pan from oven then take molds from water bath. Let egg bites cool then remove from molds.

In medium bowl, toss arugula, lemon juice, oil and salt and pepper, to taste. Place 3/4 cup salad, two egg bites and 1/4 cup blueberries on four plates and serve.

Nutritional information per serving: 9 grams net carbs; 11 grams total carbs; 2 grams fiber; 14 grams protein; 34 grams fat; 400 calories.

Recipe courtesy of “The Atkins 100 Eating Solution” Total time: 50 minutes Yield: 24 cookies

1 cup sugar-free smooth or creamy peanut butter

2 teaspoons stevia extract powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1/2 cup sugar-free semisweet chocolate chips

1 teaspoon flaky sea salt Set oven racks in upper- and lower-third positions.

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line two cookie sheets with parchment paper.

In medium bowl, use handheld electric mixer on medium speed to beat peanut butter, stevia, baking soda and salt, scraping down sides if needed, until well combined, about 1 minute. Reduce speed to low, add egg and vanilla extract; beat until combined.

Shape dough into 24 balls (about 1 tablespoon each) and place 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheets.

Using tines of fork, carefully flatten each ball, creating crisscross pattern.

Bake, rotating cookie sheets from top to bottom and back to front halfway through, until edges begin to brown and cookies are set, 7-9 minutes. Cookies should not be browned. Let cool 10 minutes on cookie sheets then carefully transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.

In small microwave-safe bowl, add chocolate chips and microwave on high in 20-second increments, stirring after each, until melted, about 1 minute.

Dip dry fork into chocolate then drizzle over cookies.

Sprinkle with sea salt.

Nutritional information per serving (1 cookie): 1.5 grams net carbs; 3 grams total carbs; 1.5 grams fiber; 3 grams protein; 6.5 grams fat; 79 calories.

Flourless Salted Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies

An Easy-to-Follow Food Guide The latest science continues to support the many health benefits of a low-carb approach to eating beyond just weight loss. Simply reducing your carb and sugar intake by two-thirds over the “Standard American Diet” helps avoid the development of obesity, metabolic syndrome and type 2 diabetes.

While many eating approaches can be vague in their approach, “The Atkins 100 Eating Solution’s” fan-favorite program provides a clear-cut way to control your carb intake with 100 grams of net carbs (the total carbohydrate content of the food minus the fiber content and sugar alcohols) and shows you how to make delicious and satisfying food choices that lessen their impact on your blood sugar. This personalized approach is a way of eating you can follow for life.

With cutting-edge research and delicious recipes, this book provides a variety of foods with plenty of room for personalization.

This easy-to-use guide, written by Colette Heimowitz, the company’s vice president of nutrition and education, can also show you how the plan can be modified to fit in with most ways of eating, including vegetarian, Paleo, Mediterranean and more regardless of food preferences, lifestyle or cooking abilities.

Visit atkins.com/atkins-100-eating-solution-book to purchase the book.

Classifieds

6-12, Dec. 30, January 2020 - Jan. 5, 2021 • michiganchronicle.com • Page B-5

ANNOUNCEMENTS

HELP WANTED

ATTENTION QUALIFIED CONTRACTORS AND SECURITY SYSTEMS CONSULTANTS

DIRECTOR OF PRODUCTION

CNS Healthcare is seeking qualified contractors to perform construction/renovations and security system installation work at its facility located at 20303 Kelly Rd., Detroit, MI 48225. Work shall include automated egress door system; interior LED light fixtures; exterior security lighting; emergency lighting near exits; security door improvements; ADA accessible stalls in the lobby restrooms; security cameras and wiring and updated parking lot gates.

Contractors and security system companies wishing to bid shall demonstrate the following qualifications: at least 5 years in their relative trade and licensed as required by the State of Michigan and/or local law.

Insurance: General liability and automobile insurance with CNS Healthcare and the City of Detroit as additional named insureds.

Workman’s compensation insurance will also be required.

Bid packets are available via email by sending a request to Ajackson@cnshealthcare.org Contact Anthony Jackson at 248-467-4982 with questions concerning the specifications in the bid documents.

A mandatory pre-bid meeting and examination of the facility will take place on January 5, 2021 at 20303 Kelly Rd., Detroit, MI. from 1:00-2:00 pm. Masks are required and all social distancing protocols will be followed.

Sealed bids will be accepted until 3:00 pm on January 12, 2021 at 15560 Joy Rd., Detroit, MI. 48228. No bids will be accepted after this time.

All bids will be publicly opened at 3:30 pm at CNS Healthcare, 15560 Joy Rd., Detroit, MI. 48228. All interested parties are welcome to attend. CNS Healthcare will award a contract to the lowest, most responsible and responsive bidder, however, CNS Healthcare reserves the right to waive any irregularity in any bid or reject any and all bids it may deem in its best interest.

The contracts will be administered under the Neighborhood Opportunity Fund administered by the City of Detroit Housing and Revitalization Department-CDBG initiatives Division. The successful contractor will be required to adhere to all federal laws governing section 3 regulations, equal employment opportunity, with the prevailing wage requirements of the Federal Labor Standards Act, which also incorporates Davis-Bacon Act requirements; will have to be cleared and approved by the City of Detroit; and comply with: Executive Order No. 2016-1 which states, in part, that all City of Detroit project construction contracts shall provide that at least Fifty One percent (51%) of the workforce must be bona-fide Detroit residents.

Bidders are required to furnish a bid guarantee equal to five percent (5%) of their bid. The bid guarantee shall be in the form of a performance bond.

The successful bidder is required to furnish payment (Labor and Materials) and performance bonds in an amount covering the faithful performance of the contract and the payment of all obligations arising thereunder; in an amount equal to One Hundred Percent (100%) of their contract, executed by a surety that is licensed to do business in the State of Michigan.

The contactor will be required to comply with the federal government Housing & Urban Development (HUD) Section 3 ACT (24 CFR 135). All contractors (subcontractors) shall include the Section 3 Clause found on the City of Detroit’s website, https://detroitmi.gov/departments/housing-and-revitalization-department#HUD-Programs-and-information. You will find the link near the bottom of the page.

Classified

PERSONAL SERVICES PERSONAL SERVICE

Help is here you have tried the rest now it’s time to try the Best My Work Is GUARANTEED you will see RESULTS within 72 Hours

Stop Suffering and Start Living A Better Life Louisiana Rootman Bro Harris will tell you everything without you telling me anything Better HEALTH, MONEY, LOVE, PEACE, and HAPPINESS will be yours

BLESSED BE. Get the HELP you Need TODAY Call (313)341-0145 or Write Bro Harris P.O. Box 21765 Detriot, MI 48221

5

(Advanced 3D Sublimation) Detroit, MI

Direct 3D sublimation printing department. Plan 3D sublimation printing production schedules. Assess project and resource requirements. Develop, monitor, and analyze project plans.

Identify suppliers and purchase materials. Monitor production to ensure quality and on-time delivery. Liaise with customers, marketing, and sales staff to grow 3D sublimation business.

Estimate, negotiate, and confirm budgets and schedules with clients and sales managers. Set quality control standards. Oversee maintenance and repair of production equipment. Provide technical guidance on materials, estimates, and production needs.

Train, direct and coordinate production line workers on use of 3D sublimation printing machines. Requires two years of experience in a managerial role in print-on-demand manufacturing and in utilizing, installing, overseeing maintenance for, and training employees to use 3D sublimation printing machines.

Mail resumes to: My Locker, Attn: Bob Kendall 1300 Rosa Parks Blvd.

Detroit, MI 48216 Ref: 9532

7 Ways to Improve Your Family’s Dental Health in the New Year

Tips for

(StatePoint) The New Year is the perfect time to hit “reset” and start over with fresh dental habits that can help improve your health.

Winter Travelers

“As we move into the new year, so many of us are looking at our health and wellness through a new lens,” says Dr. Ruchi Sahota, American Dental Association (ADA) spokesperson. “Your oral and overall health are connected -- and even small improvements in your oral health routine can have big payoffs in your overall well-being.”

develop guidance for dentists on extra steps they can take to help protect patients and staff, in addition to the infection control procedures they’ve always followed. According to a report published in the “Journal of the American Dental Association” in October, 2020, 99 percent of dentists are using enhanced infection control procedures and disinfection practices when treating patients.

5. Look for the ADA Seal of Acceptance. Every product carrying the Seal has been evaluated by To help you independent usher in 2021, experts to the ADA offers be safe and seven recomeffective. To mendations for earn the Seal, improving your companies are family’s dental often asked to health routine: meet higher 1. Brush standards twice a day than what’s for two minrequired by utes each time law. Look for using fluoride specific Seal toothpaste and PHOTO SOURCE: (c) Wavebreakmedia / iStock via bullets on the a soft-bristled back of every Getty Images Plus brush. Place Seal product the brush at a 45-degree angle to the package to find out how they can help gums. Gently move the brush back and keep your mouth healthy. forth in tooth-wide strokes. Brush the 6. Think twice if you’re considering SeekingAssistant SeekingMedical Office Seeking AssistantIIIII outer, inner and chewing surfaces of DIY dental treatments.

Some such Photo courtesy of Getty Images the teeth. To clean the inside surfaces ASSISTANT III Oakland University atatOFFICE Oakland University fads, like oil pulling, are just not effective. of the front teeth, tilt the brush vertically ATGraham OAKLAND UNIVERSITY (Family Features) Because Enrollment Management Others, such as whitening with charcoal, Health Center of the pandemand make up-and-down Parents • Don’tstrokes. follow truckscould tooeven closely . If you can’t School of Medicine fewer Americans are taking cause damage. Before taking To ic, provide specialized office assis-to the skies, should instruct kids to do the same.

Coordinate the clinical processing in a see a tractor trailer’s mirrors, theyour driver can’ttalk seewith tance, busi- plan to hit but coordinating a significantprocedural number likely matters into own hands, clinic byactivities performing a variety Tomedical provide specialized Clean between teeth daily using ness or roads service for a assistance, complex your dentist to learn about the potential the to visit office friends and family 2. during you. ofprogram multi-step processes according a or only interdental cleaners, such as floss coordinating procedural businessto area involving processing, imrisks and benefits of each treatment. the winter months.

Whether a few towns specified framework ofon, procedures and plementing, advising and reporting or water flossers, to reduce the risk of service activities for a complex program over or a couple states away, many drivers “A dentist’s office is before a safe place where a • Schedule vehicle maintenance regulations, tosubject serve as an informationspecialized matter.

Minimum cavities and gum disease. area involving processing, implementing, will travel interstates, which are major logisdoctor is ensuring you’re alQualifications: source within High the clinic schoolin addition gradua. Have and treat askgetting therootquality your trip 3. Eat a nutritious diet.

Sugary foodsyour oil advising andthe reporting carechanged that will actually the of your tics corridors often dominated oron, an equivalent ofby commertotion maintaining rolecombination as a specialized medical and snacks can lead to tooth decay.

On experts to check your tire pressure and other improblem,” says Dr. Sahota. subject matter.

Minimum Qualifications: cial trucks. education and experience.

Four years assistant in the clinic. Minimum Qualthe other hand, calcium- and phosphoprogressively responsible office experiifications: High School or Census High school graduation orgraduation an equivalent portant fluids to help assure driving safely 7. Ditch you’re bad habits that can harm oral According to experience the United States rous-rich foods protect and strengthen ence, including direct in ofan equivalent combination of educahealth, like nail-biting, clenching your combination of education and experience. and efficiently.

Bureau, there are approximately 3.5 miltooth enamel.

Fruits and vegetables are ficeand coordination, i.e., Three prioritizing work tion experience. years’ exjaw, chewing ice and using your teeth as Four years progressively responsible office good choices for a healthy smile lion peoplemaintaining working aswork truckflow driversalso in the assignments, perience as a medical assistant or in a stand-in for tools like scissors. since they have high water and fiber experience, including direct experience in to meet deadlines.

This isgrocery a full time, U.S. From keeping store shelves • Carefully plan your route. If driving through a directly related field with experience For more dental health tips and reclean teeth. clerical-technical position – those some next-day ocstocked to delivering pack- which help office coordination, i.e., prioritizing work content, incasional medical office clerical functions.

Exbig cities, consider fluctuations rush hour traf-You can nights and weekends maydrivers be sources, visitinMouthHealthy.org. ages, professional truck impact assignments, maintaining work flow to meet 4.

Schedule regular dental visits for perience venipuncture and annualobtainrequired. inSalary is $44,592.00 find a dentist near there you by may visiting Findfic. For more remote locations where livesonline with freight they move andprevention serve and treatment of oral disease. deadlines. is athe full time, clerical-technical ing patient information including ly. basic SeeThis posting for additional aDentist.ada.org. not be regular food or gas, plan for when you’ll Experts say that your family can have safe an important role in keeping the economy blood pressure, electrocardiograph position requirements.

First considposition.

Salary is $43,718.00 annually.

Resolving to improve your family’s dental visits, even during COVID-19 running. measurements and urine specimens. eration will be given to those who apneed tothe stop along the route.

See online posting for additional position overall health? Start with your dental care pandemic.

This part-time clerical-technical poply is byaJanuary 18, 2021. Must apply Professional truck drivers requirements.

First consideration willare be also exon lineworking to: https://jobs.oakland.edu sition, Monday-Friday, 10:00 Early in 2020,•the ADA used science toand routine.

Stay hydrated nourished. Before perts when itapply comes to planning travel. given to those who by March 23, a.m.

– 5:00 p.m., 30 hours per week.

March 18-24, 2020 Page C-5 THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE From a route See to maintaining setting out, eat a healthy meal and drink plenty 2020.

Salary is mapping $30,973.00outannually.

HELP their vehicles and evenWANTED practicing Must apply online to: https://jobs.oakland.edu online posting for additional posi- a healthy of water. For the drive, pack healthy, non-perishdiet, many truck drivers are road trip extion requirements. Must apply online able snacks like granola, fruit PROFESSIONAL or nuts along with ANNOUNCEMENTS perts.

PROFESSIONAL to: https://jobs.oakland.edu

bottled water. For longer trips with kids, consider WANTED HELP WANTED Caron Comas is a professional truck HELP a small cooler for sandwiches, string cheese or driver WATER for Variant, a subsidiary of U.S. DETROIT AND SEWERAGE 2col. x 4.75 Xpress, one of the nation’s largest trucking yogurt.

Functional Safety Validation Engineer DEPARTMENT Senior Design Engineer companies. Highly trained, she’s driven NOTICE Warren, MI, General Motors.

Dvlp test procedures Meritor Heavy Vehicle Systems LLC trucks for 17 years and her expert insight •psgr Bevehicle overly prepared . Keep a few blankets, a &test scripts for ADAS features on PUBLIC HEARING – PROPOSED RATES seeks a Senior Design Engineer, in can aid the average automobile driver planJoin Our Team test bench &in vehicle.

Execute Fault Injection flashlight, a first-aid kit and extra pair of shoes Troy,an MI to perform engineering analysis Energy Services is hiring!

Tests using dSPACE MicroAutoBox, to test Fiscal 2020-21 ning For toWalker-Miler hit theYear roads this winter. necessary for the production design, &validate fail-safein action of Active Safety (AS) your car.

If you Several Positions Are Ready to be filled by Extraordinary Individuals!

experience car trouble, make

application and testing of “It’s important that average driver Notice is hereby given that the the Detroit features incldg Lane Keep Assist, Low Speed Energy Advisor I – Jackson, MI axle/suspension components and sure you can stay warm until help arrives.

Collision Mitigation Braking , Lane Centering give plenty of space on the road,” Water andtrucks Sewerage Department will hold systems, among other duties.

Control, Hands-on Lane Following (HoLF), Energy Advisor I – Farmington Hills, MI Comas said.

“People can forget we’re gena Public Hearing on Wednesday, April 15, FSRACC, Automatic Park Assist, &Collision Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Eng. Detroit, •Keep in mind pandemic. Check using MATLAB, Simulink, the global erally handling 75 Detroit feet –ofPolice tractor MI and Imminent trail- Braking, 2020 at 6:00 p.m.ITatManager the and two years of experience in the job INCA, VehicleSpy tools, &neoVI FIRE HW. Dvlp Web Developer – Detroit, MI offered or related. International er, which weigh 80,000 pounds.scripts Weusing ATTeach state’s quarantine requirements that you’lland Department 7th can Precinct located at 3501 Suite. Dvlp test procedures for travel required, as needed, up IT Desktop Engineer – Detroit, MI can’t onDetroit, a dime like automobiles, so &upcoming Chenestop Street MI 48207. existing features such to as HoLF beAStraveling or through,domestic wear a mask when in to 30%. Send resume to: Sarah &Super IT distance Helpdesk when Technician – Detroit, MIof Cruise. Dvlp MATLAB &Simulink models increase merging in front Trautmann, Meritor, Resume public follow for Disease Control using dSPACE RTI blocksetsand &interface them w/the Centers Business Development Manager Detroit, MI trucks and avoid slamming on your– brakes.”

ControlDesk projects for CAN, LIN &Automotive Processing/JO#10518804, Weston Preparatory Academy, and Prevention’s guidelines when traveling.

Manager - Detroit, MI Ethernet communication protocols. Bachelor, 2135 West Maple Road, Troy, MI A Tuition-Free Public School Academy ComasMarketing suggests following these tips on Mechanical, Automotive Engrg, or Electrical, 48084.

Talent Acquisition Manager – Detroit, MI the roaditsand before you travel: related. 12 mos expmore as Engineer, testvisit usxpress.com/news.

Announces Open Enrollment period For traveldvlpg tips, HR, People Manager Detroit, MI procedures &testing scripts for psgr vehicle ADAS for the 2020-2021 school year for grades features on test bench &in vehicle. Mail resume to For list of qualifications visit https://wmenergy.com/careers-2/ K-8.a fullApplications may please be picked up at Controls Commissioning Engineer II Ref#4933, GM Global Mobility, 300 Ren. Center, www.michiganchronicle.com note the location of the position applying.** the **Please school, 22930 Chippewa, Detroit, MI whenMC:482-C32-C66, Detroit, MI 48265.

(Grand Rapids, MI), responsible for 48219, www.westondetroit.com (313)utilizing controls subsystem installation, 387-6038, during Open Enrollment pericommissioning test procedures and od April 14, 2020 through April 30, 2020 Team Leader - Mfg, checklists for controls hardware and during school hours as well as April 16th software (PLC), HMI’s and SCADA; and New Boston, MI, Brose North America. Plan, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. and April 18th from 9 providing support for subsystem supervise &lead New Boston Plant (NBO) Mfg a.m. to 12 noon.

Technology Welding grp, incldg tools, equipment, electrical installation, interface testing, processes, projects, programs, personnel, If enrollment applications exceed the training, and startup, among other investment, &tooling &eqpmt suppliers, to assure duties. BS & 0 years exp. Education or number of available spaces, a random high volume mfg of mechatronic seat syss (1st, experience must include: the design and selection drawing will be held at Weston 2nd, &3rd row) rails (upper &lower), side panels, implementation of System PLC Code, Preparatory Academy on May 12, 2020 base structures, pivoting recliner structures, controls networks, and integrated backrests, loadthroughs, &center consoles. at 2:00 p.m.

Please visit our website for more classified ads.

Michigan Chronicle ANNOUNCEMENTS

Legal Notice George Washington Carver Academy

DIGITAL DAILY Attention: Employee Leasing Companies

The George Washington Carver Academy is requesting proposals for employee leasing services.

Vendors and/or their representatives may submit proposals to:

PROFESSIONAL HELP WANTED

Keeping You Informed At All Times Of The Day

George Washington Carver Academy c/o Provision Business Solutions Attention: Mrs. Alma Hollins 17336 W. 12 Mile – Suite 200 Southfield, MI 48076

The George Washington Carver Academy Board of Education reserves the right to accept or reject any or all proposals or to accept the proposal that is in the best interest of the school district.

All proposals must be submitted between 9:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. on April 1, 2020. RFPs may be requested from Alma Hollins at (248) 440-7318 or at alma@provision4solutions.com. All proposals should be delivered in a sealed envelope and addressed to George Washington Carver Academy and be clearly marked: Employee Leasing Proposal.

DETROIT WATER AND SEWERAGE DEPARTMENT NOTICE PUBLIC HEARING FOR WATER MAIN REPLACEMENT FY21 DRINKING WATER REVOLVING FUND (DWRF) PROJECT

The Detroit Water and Sewerage Department (DWSD) announces a Public Hearing regarding its Project Plan for proposed Water Main Replacement in the City of Detroit. DWSD will be seeking low interest Drinking Water Revolving Fund (DWRF) loan assistance for FY2021. The project is comprised of replacing aging water main in the Jefferson-Chalmers area of the City of Detroit. Construction will include excavation of existing water mains, installation of new pipes, rehabilitation of pipes, replacement of lead service lines between the water main and the water meter, pressure testing, backfill, and right-of-way. The impact of the project will be improved customer satisfaction and safe, reliable service delivery of potable water to customers. The temporary impact of construction activities will be minimized through mitigation measures specified in the contract documents. Adverse impacts on historical, archaeological, geographic, or cultural areas are not expected. This project is necessary to ensure that DWSD will consistently and reliably provide high quality potable water to the residents. The Project Plan consists of a single project in critical need of water main replacement or rehabilitation. The total cost of this project is currently estimated at approximately $20.8 million; which is being sought through the DWRF program. The Water Main Replacement/Rehabilitation project is eligible for participating under the State of Michigan low interest DWRF loan program.

Senior Software Developer Connected Core Apps

General Motors, Detroit, MI. Dvlp, unit test, debug, execute, validate, &publish psgr vehicle U.S. &global mobile &in vehicle customer facing core apps in Android OS, to ensure secure app exp, &to provide services (Terms &Conditions Privacy Statements, voice recognition (VR), Bluetooth &Bluetooth Low Energy, maps, smart trailering, Smart Connect, &AppShop) &user interfaces for Android Auto &CarPlay, &improved Vehicle to Back Office &Vehicle to Mobile commun. for vehicle infotainment sys &mobile phones, in Java &Android languages, in Agile methodology, using Git, Junit, Gerrit, Bitbucket, Jenkins CI, Artifactory, Android Studio, TFS, Gherkin, MS Project Management, SONAR, Visual Studio, &Atom tools. Dvlp VR &in vehicle map apps, &implement RESTful web-services.

Dvlp SW apps using regression testing, UAT Testing &production build testing to deliver effective products. Bachelor, Computer Science, Computer Engrg, Electrical Engrg, or related. 60 mos exp as Developer, System Designer, Consultant or Engineer, gathering reqmts, designing, &dvlpg sys, working in Java &Android environments, or related. Mail resume to Ref#38372, GM Global Mobility, 300 Renaissance Center, MC:482-C32-C66, Detroit, MI 48265.

ECU Flash Programming Project Engineer Warren, MI, General Motors. Design, engr, &dvlp conventional, semi-autonomous &autonomous psgr vehicle functional technical specs level reqmts &interfaces using IBM Synergy & DOORS for OTA flash programming of embedded ECUs to support vehicle infotainment &telematics syss features. Engr, analyze &improve vehicle electrical &electronic OTA capable ECU syss &update Infotainment (programming master, w/ low &high radio, Bluetooth, navigation, climate control &satellite radio syss); Central Gateway Module controlling CAN &Ethernet traffic in ECUs in Instrument Panel Clusters, Body Control Modules, Electronic Climate Control, External Control Module, &Vehicle Integration Control Module; &Telematics Control Unit, such as OnStar. Perform DFMEA on functional technical specs. Dvlp &implement HW &SW for automotive

michiganchronicle.com | DQE

The Public Hearing will present a description of the recommended project, estimated costs, as well as the cost per household impact

Manage, supervise, lead &mentor NBO internal mfg workforce -Welding Engrs, Welding Lab Supv, Shift Leaders, technicians, toolmaker, interns/apprentices, technicians, fastening speclts, &external personnel. Plan, design, dvlp, assure plant documentation, &in charge of assuring employee training in industrial joining technologies; welding tooling &fixtures mechanical designs &concepts; mechatronics technologies; laser &standard laser welding technologies; programming of disk lasers (Yttrium, Aluminum, Garnet lasers) &diode lasers, incldg parameter configurations; ABB robotic programming, handling &remote laser welding, fiber optics programming, automated &robotic PLC; PLC &tooling simulation. 24 mos exp as Welding Technologist, Engr or Team Leader, or related, supervising, leading, or in charge of plant welding processes &eqpmt, w/ industrial joining technologies incldg laser welding syss for automotive seat or door syss for OEM customer, or related. Mail resume to Ref#41121, Human Resources, 3933 Automation Ave, Auburn Hills, MI 48326.

Senior Industrial Engineer Warren, MI, General Motors. Analyze, create workstation designs, rebalance, &coach operations using Standard Time &Data Systems (STDS) for GenV, High Feature, 10 spd transmission, &GMT-T1 Cmpnts Launch programs to improve Value-added (VA) &Nonvalue added (NVA) work content. Support powertrain plants w/ line balancing activities to meet productivity targets in NY/TN, CAN/MEX Mexico engine plants. Provide data driven metrics incldg Non-Scheduled Overtime (NSOT), Cost Per Unit (CPU), Hours Per Unit (HPU) &overtime, &plant productivity proposals to guide production department to understand opportunities to reduce CPU, HPU &NSOT assigned to plants for each calendar year. Review plant industrial engrg production data reports &perform standard time data calibration audits for 10 engine, transmission, &related cmpnts plants in U.S., Canada &Mexico. Conduct monthly Continuous Improvement Process Workshops to Group Leaders, Maintenance Skilled Trades, &plant employees, to reduce CPU, HPU &NSOT, &improve production throughput. Required travel to vehicle GM vehicle engine, transmission &cmpnts plants in U.S., Canada, &Mexico to evaluate &improve mfg processes &facilities layouts, &support launches, up to 9 Wks P/Yr. Master, Industrial Engrg, Industrial &Systems Engrg, or related. 12 mos exp as Engineer, analyzing, creating workstation designs, rebalancing, &coaching operations using STDS for engine or transmission plant to evaluate &improve VA &NVA work content, or related. Mail resume to Ref#26795, GM Global Mobility, 300

motion controllers; and hardware and software applications for LabVIEW platforms. Domestic and international travel required 50-70% of time. Send resume to Leigh Baker (Code CCE GRMI), TGW Systems, 3001 Orchard Vista Dr. SE, Suite 300, Grand Rapids, MI 49546. No phone calls please.

EOE. Infotainment Calibration Domain Lead

General Motors, Detroit, MI. Engr, dvlp, release infotainment low radio calibrations, test, &verify psgr vehicle infotainment low radio calibration domain using Calibration definition tool (CalDef), Teamcenter, VehicleSpy, IBM RTC, DPS, E2, Engrg Change Request sys tools. Determine program specific calibration reqmts using Product Program Content charts &devise infotainment (low radio) calibration strategies to fulfil vehicle packages &trim reqmts of N./S. America, &GM Int’l Region. Create calibrations using CalDef in accordance w/ Global Infotainment Standards dos, GMW Engrg standards &Corporate Guidelines incldg AM/FM frequency reqmts for each country &region. Test &verify HMI functionality w/ psgr vehicle low radios incldg touchscreen displays &button assemblies. Create calibration archives for fleet vehicles using DPS to perform calibration tests. Bachelor, Electrical, Mechanical, Automotive Engrg, or related. 12 mos exp as Engineer, releasing infotainment low radio calibrations, testing or verifying psgr vehicle infotainment low radio calibration domain using Teamcenter, VehicleSpy, RTC, &E2 sys tools, or related. Mail resume to Ref#2337-C302, GM Global Mobility, 300 Renaissance Center, MC:482-C32-C66, Detroit, MI 48265.

Virtual Design Development Validation Engineer Warren, MI, General Motors. Engr, plan, &execute FEA models of psgr vehicle automatic, manual, &continuously variable transmission transmissions syss incldg valve bodies, housings, pumps, sprockets, hubs, park systems, clutch packs, spring packs, pistons &dams, &electric drive units (DU) incldg structural sealing &sys deflection, to meet structural &performance (durability, sealing, thermal, mfg tolerance, stiffness, &mass) reqmts in Bills of Design (BOD) at virtual design assessment gates, using Abaqus, HyperMesh, Simlab, Fe-Safe, Inspect, Tosca, Isight, OptiStruct &UG tools. Generate &simplify L/D data for gasket modeling &dvlp name tags &pressure mapping logic for simulating various gear state loads in valve

Page B-6

• michiganchronicle.com • January 6-12, 2021

Keeping You Informed Away or at Home.

michiganchronicle.com