When I received the book, the first thing I noticed was that it came with signatures from all three sisters. Each pen stroke is as unique as each sister. Wispy, narrow, neat and symmetrical, small and squarish. I noticed that they were close together, just like the sisters. I first met the three Hines sisters…
As a kid, I wanted to be a dancer like Lola Falana. If you don’t know Lola Falana, then you don’t know Sassy, and you don’t know Cutsey, and you don’t know Demure because she was all of that and then some. Now, if I was going to be a dancer, there was only one…
It’s the most wonderful time of the year… Until it’s not. For many, the upcoming holiday season is a gaping reminder of the hole in your life because someone you love has crossed over into the land of the ancestors. There is a part of you that enjoys the “holly and jolly” that usually engulfs…
As promised in an article in last October’s issue entitled “The 48-Hour Film Project” (page 20), we are not going to leave you hanging. Here is the follow-up to the article about A.M.E. Zion filmmakers Marvin Askew II and his wife, Johnette Warren-Askew, from St. Paul’s in Buffalo, NY, and their film Line of Sight. …
There is a saying that you should not judge someone until you walk a mile in their shoes. Every person has a story, and so do the shoes they wear. If you’ve seen me at any Zion gathering, then you know that I will chase somebody down to take a picture of their shoes. Yes….
You can tell a lot about a person by what they wear on their feet. Shoes protect our feet, cushion our body weight, and allow us to play sports safely. There are all types of shoes: closed-toed shoes, open-toed shoes, sandals, boots, and sneakers, to name a few. And then there are the heels… Perhaps…
Day two began with a cavalcade of purple as the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church Board of Bishops processed in for the morning service. After the opening hymn and reading of scriptures, The President of the Board of Bishops, Bishop George Crenshaw, delivered a soul-stirring prayer. The denominational choir then ignited our souls under the…
The Board of Bishops and International Ministers and Lay Association (IMLA) meetings held February 20-23, 2024, at the Kenneth Monroe Transformation Center in Rock Hill, South Carolina, was a cornucopia of movement. It was not just a movement of physical activity but a movement of faith, family, and activism. For this writer, it was a…
February 2, 2024 Durham, NC – Lately there has been a lot of discussion around Trauma-Informed Care in the field of human services. Trauma-Informed Care recognizes the presence of symptoms of trauma and the role that trauma could play in an individual’s life. On a systemic or institutional level, Trauma-Informed Care changes the culture to…
The 46th Annual Dr. Cameron W. Jackson Awards Recognition Program took place on February 20, 2024, at 7:00 PM at the Kenneth Monroe Transformation Center. It was an ornately decorated affair that paid homage to those who served. In the words of Sarah Kinard, Mistress of Ceremonies, “In the bustling rhythm of our daily lives,…
Spencer, NC – March is Women’s History Month. I love hearing the stories of all the famous women who have broken glass ceilings and stained glass ceilings and all kinds of barriers to achieve greatness. But there is greatness in even women who are not famous. There are wives and mothers and daughters and nieces…