75 CENTS
Omaha Star
The
Juneteenth Flag Raising June 4, 2022. 11:30AM
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Charles B.Washington Library
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Nebraska’s Only Black Owned Newspaper Vol. 84 - No. 11 Omaha, Nebraska
Friday, May 27, 2022
75 cents
SYMONE on MSNBC
We are peacock proud (no pun intended) that Omaha ‘s own Symone D. Sanders has her own show on MSNBC Saturdays and Sundays at 3PM, CST, and she is streaming on Peacock with a new show each Monday and Tuesday. Congratulations to her! Be sure to watch. Just think she used to write for the Omaha Star…Oh the places you can go…
Metro Extends K-12 Rides Free Program Through Summer Detroit Opera Attendees L:R: Anthony Goines, Kimberly Goines, Terri D. Sanders, JoAnna LeFlore-Ejike, and Leo Louis.
Publisher’s Pen
By Terri D. Sanders
Dotcom Studios
COVID and now Monkeypox…What is next? This is virus after virus. It puts me in the mind of the plagues in the Bible: blood, frogs, lice/gnats, flies, livestock, boils, hail, and locusts. And that was REAL, not just a Bible story. I’m just saying. Makes me say
hmmmmmmmm. Omaha we have some exciting things coming up in the community. Last week I was in Detroit to experience an opera about the life and times of our very own native son Malcolm X! As one of the sponsors of this great event Opera Omaha was present and we enjoyed every moment. Opera Omaha Board members, Opera Omaha Staff, Malcolm X Foundation staff, and Omaha community members witnessed this groundbreaking event. We met the writers and composers of the opera who penned this production in 1986 and brought it back to life in 2022. A theatre talk was held with an author and one of Malcolm’s daughters. The art, the culture, and the people were wonderful to Omaha and we look forward to returning the favor. The real scoop is that this production will be coming to Omaha in November 2022. Watch the Omaha Star for more information. There was a strong community behind this production and many people of color. Omaha we must support the arts as this is not just legacy, but it is our future. The Omaha Star is looking forward to supporting and promoting the cultural events in our city and globally. Remember last summer the music in Miller Park? That
summer music series is returning…Watch the Omaha Star for details. School will be out soon and what will the young people of the city be doing? Here at the Omaha Star we will have a Junior Communicators program, formerly known as Junior Journalism. We are looking to the future to provide experiences to students 15 years old to high school graduates in the area of communications. A person who taught Jr. Journalism in 2010 thought enough of this program to donate (20) 27” new in the box HP computers for our participants to use. Let’s do this Omaha! Video experiences, podcasting, writing, photography, graphic arts, public relations, research, archiving, and more. We want students to have a fulfilling summer experience. If you have a young person that would be interested, please call our offices (402)346-4041. Our hats are off to those educators that have literally stood in the gap for the education of young people. Through pandemic, violence and mental weariness, educators return continually, many times using their own resources and monies to see that students are getting what they need. The school system provides food where many times there may be none and the transit system in our city is providing free transportation to students this summer. Yes, there are summer job programs and there are summer experiences, the key is the students have to show up. No one is coming to the front door to drag Johnny out of the bed to get him to the water so he can drink…I know this sounds old, but back in my day when you got out of bed each day you had an agenda / a plan for the day. That plan did not include sleeping all day, eating, and gaming all night! There are opportunities galore, but you have to GO and get it! Until next time…enjoy life because you only go around ONCE.
Please submit graduate information by June 3, 2022 for publication June 10, 2022 Requesting a picture of the graduate and a short bio.
WE HAD THE DIFFICULT CONVERSATIONS ABOUT THE VACCINE. IT WORKS. Facts at: douglascountyhealth.com/covid-19
Metro announced the extension of K-12 Rides Free through students’ summer break. The program provides free transit access for kindergarten through 12th grade students in the Omaha area. “The K-12 Rides Free program has shown us how many students are interested in riding public transportation,” said Metro CEO, Lauren Cencic. “We’re thrilled to extend access for students seeking a variety of opportunities during the summer, including education, jobs, and other activities.” The pilot program provides free bus, MOBY, and ORBT rides for all kindergarten through 12th grade students in the Omaha and surrounding area during Metro’s regular service hours. The program started on May 10, 2021, and was scheduled to end on June 1, 2022. The program has highlighted a strong demand from young people to utilize transit in the community. K-12 Rides Free is on track to surpass 150,000 rides by the end of the school year, up 75% from pre-COVID student ridership. “National trends show that more and more teenagers are waiting longer to get their driver’s license,” said Cencic. “K-12 Rides Free provides an easy alternative, while also teaching them the skills to navigate transit as they get older.” The first year of K-12 Rides Free was funded by a generous grant from a local philanthropic organization. Based on the success of the pilot, Metro is pursuing additional funding to extend the program. Metro will share updated information about the future of the program prior to the start of the next school year.
Do You KNOW…
If you or someone you know worked with Gerald Leroy “Roy” Cook as a diesel mechanic in the 1950’s or 1960’s, please call Rebecca at Simmons Hanly Conroy toll-free at (855) 988-2537. You can also email Rebecca at rcockrell@simmonsfirm.com.
Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world. ~Nelson Mandela