75 CENTS
Omaha Star
The
Proudly Serving Our Community for Over 80 Years
Dedicated to the Service of the People that NO Good Cause Shall Lack a Champion and that Evil Shall Not Go Unopposed
Nebraska’s Only Black Owned Newspaper Vol. 83 - No. 19 Omaha, Nebraska
Friday, September 17, 2021
75 cents
Mildred Brown Children’s Book
Addy Partridge
Addy Partridge, daughter of Jenn and Rob Partridge of St. Paul, Minnesota was quite impressed when she received Newspapers and Butter Pecan Ice Cream, as a gift from her grandparents Robert (Bob) and Janet Partridge, Omaha. Addy who is named after her great great Aunt Addie Hinton (Omaha music teacher) never thought a Black woman could publish a newspaper. She was so excited that she took her book to school to read to her whole class. All were impressed by the story of Mildred D. Brown.
Basketball coaching business seeks to give opportunity to all Omaha athletes The pandemic threw the world of college sports into disarray. In addition to restrictions on fan attendance at basketball games, coaches and athletes had to work remotely. That’s when Creighton coach Chevelle Saunsoci decided to pull the trigger on a dream of hers – to start Dvlp Basketball, a hoops training and mentoring business for Omaha athletes who dream of playing in college. “Starting Dvlp during the pandemic was tough, but it felt like the right thing to do,” recounted Saunsoci. “Taking that leap of faith helped me be part of real change.” In a time when so much was uncertain for small businesses, Dvlp Basketball’s mission was Dvlp Basketball never a question. “There are areas of Omaha with fewer resources than other and we typically focus on North Omaha most of all,” observed Saunsoci. “We wanted to create something to bridge the gap in opportunity between athletes throughout the city, an issue I saw during my time coaching.” Although Dvlp Basketball is a relatively young business, it’s benefited from staying up to date on social media trends and digitally spotlighting its strengths. “We started publishing videos on Facebook of our athletes getting some 1-on-1 mentoring and showcasing their skills,” highlighted Saunsoci. “When those clips are shared around the youth basketball community, online word of mouth is a great way to advertise our business.”
Sacred Heart Preschool
Sacred Heart School opens preschool program for three- and four-year-old children
The CUES School System announces the addition of preschool at Sacred Heart School
located at 2205 Binney St, Omaha, Neb. The school system now offers preschool through eighth grade education at all three of its schools – Sacred Heart, All Saints and Holy Name. All Saints and Holy Name have offered preschool programming for years and the decision to add programming at Sacred Heart was made in support of the increased demand in the neighborhood. “We will utilize our program experience to make a positive impact for all families in in our school system and make the transition into kindergarten seamless,” said Jennifer Sturgeon, chief academic officer for the CUES School System. Evidence demonstrates that experiences from birth through age 5 are critical to children’s development. Yet despite the long-term benefits of early childhood education, many children lack access to integrated, inclusive early learning experiences before kindergarten. Successful coordination between preschool and kindergarten helps to lay the groundwork for a child’s positive school experience. If this transition does not go well, children can be turned off to learning and school at an early age. By aligning standards, curricula, instruction and assessments between preschool and kindergarten, children can experience a seamless pathway that sets them up for future success. CUES preschool programming focuses on shaping a child’s attitude toward school in a nurturing environment where young children can thrive both academically and in creative play time, which is proven to increase self-esteem and develop fine motor skills. The preschool program is fully enrolled for this school year due to the needs of families that have other children in a CUES school, but the schools offer an opportunity for enrollment in February of each year. Children attend preschool from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday. Daily schedules include play, story time, songs, large-group and smallgroup learning, recess, snack and access to our school library, music program, and physical education. “Our curriculum helps children grow and learn what they need to know to become ready for school, including age-appropriate mathematics, literacy, science, social studies and art,” said Sacred Heart principal Mike Jensen. “This is in addition to learning positive values that create character and teach children how to become a good friend to others.” CUES tuition rate for preschool programing is lower on average than Omaha area childcare centers, and grants are available for tuition assistance depending on the family’s financial means.
Publisher’s Pen
By Terri D. Sanders
Have you had your vaccination? You know COVID-19 and its “cousins” are all around! Be Safe…If not for yourself what about those around you? Wear your mask. Change or launder your mask regularly, I’m just sayin’. The Omaha Star Copy Center is open 9-5 Monday-Friday and Saturday 9-2 in our offices at 2216 Dotcom Studios North 24th Street. We offer a variety of copying and printing services to meet your digital needs. You can send your inquiries to printing@omahastarinc.com or give us a call at 402-346-4041. We are providing services in our community at an economical price. The North Omaha Turnback Tax Committee is looking for community members to serve on the grant funding committee. Since 2009, this committee has worked to bring tourism to North Omaha, strengthen community ties through programs and events, and a newly added use of the grant funding for the upcoming year is to assist small business and entrepreneurship growth in North Omaha. Please see the article in this edition of the paper for details and how to contact the committee for more information. The Omaha Star Newspaper would like to welcome Amari R. Leigh, as a fellow from the Google News Initiative who will be doing a couple of guest columns. A graduate of Hamilton College (Clinton New York), majored in World Politics, French, and
Next Issue: October 1, 2021
Frachophone (using French as her first language). We welcome her perspective that she will be sharing with our readers. Is our community suffering from digital redlining? Redlining is the defined as the discriminatory practice of denying services to residents of certain areas based on their race or ethnicity. Using this definition does our community have injustices and inadequacies regarding access to broadband and connectivity? The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation defines digital redlining as “major network providers systematically excluding low-income neighborhoods from broadband by deploying low-speed home internet.” It has been brought to my attention that this “could” be the case. This will require further investigation on our part and we will report back to our audience. This is a topic that makes us go hmmmmmmm… In 2022, The Omaha Star will return to a weekly format. We are encouraging YOU to get or renew your subscription at 2021 rates before December 31, 2021. Yes, you can renew ahead of schedule. The Staff of the Omaha Star, the Mildred D Brown Memorial Study Center, and the Board of Directors would like to thank YOU for supporting our programs with your tax-deductible donations. You can donate by sending us a check (PO Box 3393, Omaha, NE. 68103), donating on line (www.theomahastar.com) or even bequeathing us a donation (putting the Mildred D Brown Memorial Study Center in your estate/will). Your donation will fund our programs and services to the community. What is that? Junior Journalism, the Omaha Star Archiving Project, The Omaha Star Newspaper (which is a program of the MDBMSC), or our Scholarship fund. Any questions, give us a call. Until October 1, 2021…keep on the UP.
Information submission due September 24, 2021
Unity Block Party Celebration
Heartland Family Service is hosting Community Unity Block Party Celebration: September 25th at NOIC Generations Community Center 4318 Fort St. from 12pm to 4pm. We will be highlighting young entrepreneurs in North Omaha. Free rental space for those under 24 years of age. Those 25+ years of age will pay $20 and everyone will need to bring their own table. We will have food vendors, live entertainment, as well as outdoor games! This event will highlight our youth in entrepreneurship, and we want to encourage other youth that may want to go toward entrepreneurship. This event is used as a key to influence, connect, and encourage our youth into other avenues. In order to register for this event, please call 402-553-5300 between the hours of 9:00a.m.-4:00p.m. MondayFriday.
Send all articles to publisher@ omahastarinc.com