Douglass Board Meeting Minutes, September 22, 2012

09-22-2012

Members In Attendance: Virginia Hankins, Sheila Leeper, Ozine Bly, Doug Releford, Ruth Russell, Andra Watterson, Judy Phillips, Calvin Sneed, and Vicki Smith.

Meeting was called to order by Virginia Hankins, President



Prayer by Ruth Russell



Minutes were read by Vicki Smith, Recording Secretary. Doug made a motion to accept minutes as read and Ruth seconded. Motion carried.

OLD BUSINESS:


NEW BUSINESS:

Discussion:

Jenny deposited $350.00(funds received for the golf outing) into the Savings Acct. AGC Flat Glass gave a contribution of $100.00, making a total of $450.00 received & deposited.

Jenny asked for volunteers to assist with the golf outing. John Hardy is working on obtaining sponsors and teams. Jenny also encouraged board members to contribute to the golf outing to replenish our scholarship fund.

All in agreement to set-up automatic bank withdrawal for the Charter acct to avoid late charges.

New Beginnings Church requested a $75.00 donation due to Sons & Daughters of Douglass recommendation to use Charter; which will result in a credit ($ amt. tbd) to our Charter Acct.

One of our scholarship recipients received a full college scholarship. The school deducted the amount we sent which still resulted in a full scholarship for the recipient.

Scholarship Committee guidelines should be followed and applicant information kept confidential.

Doug made a motion for future reference that the Scholarship Committee should bring back to the board recommendation of applicants & the amount to be given for recipients. Andra seconded the motion. Motion carried.

Our scholarships are available to all alumni descendants, not just the Tri-Cities area.

All board members are encouraged to get address/email updates of family, friends, classmates that are Douglass Alumni.

Several ideas were discussed regarding the 2013 events (bus ride, growth of Kingsport, picnic, etc.)

Doug has talked with contacts for Eastman & Northeast State for souvenirs for our gift bags.

Judy Phillips will be the chairperson for a FISH/CHICKEN DINNER on Friday, October 19th. Doug will secure the shelter for this event.


The next meeting is scheduled for Saturday, 10/27/12 @ 1:00 p.m. in the Eastman Room. Meeting was adjourned.



Minutes submitted by: Vicki Smith, Recording Secretary

AKA Salute to Excellence Event

The Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is holding its annual Salute to Excellence on Saturday, September 29, 2012, 5:00 p.m. at the V. O. Dobbins Center, Douglass Room, Kingsport, TN.

This year’s celebration will also include the ever popular Taste of AKA, our favorite foods from each of the four seasons, and the introduction of our scholarship recipient.

All honorees will be featured in the souvenir program. Family, friends and business associates can salute your accomplishments by securing additional ads at $ 50.00 for a full page and $ 30.00 for half a page. The deadline for submissions is Saturday, September 22, 2012.

Tickets can be purchased for $ 35.00 each. For additional information and/or to confirm your attendance, please contact Linda W. Calvert at 423.677.9779 or 423.323.0222(day).

Shiloh Carnival: A Community Affair

Many folks in the Riverview neighborhood are looking good these days, thanks to one particular outreach from the Shiloh Baptist Church in Kingsport.

Hundreds of clothing items were available at the church's annual Community Carnival on Saturday, September 22nd.

The clothes were free of charge.

"I talked to one man who came through," says church pastor Kenneth Calvert. "He said, 'Reverend, I just needed some pants to go to work in. He found 4 pair just right there, and to me that's what it all about. The young folks love, of course, the games and the food, but the parents get a benefit, too."

Rev. Calvert says, about 200 people browsed through the clothes, and everybody left with something.

Created with Admarket's flickrSLiDR.

Kids at the carnival, also had a good time, especially when the engine from the fire department arrived, not on a firefighting mission.. the engine and the firefighters manning it were on a kids outreach mission.

"We like working with the Kingsport Fire Department, the Kingsport Police Department on occasion, and the Sullivan County Health Department," says Reverend Calvert. "It lets the kids build bridges with the officials who protect them. If we can get a young child to realize that they can go to the police instead of being chased BY the police, then it's mission accomplished."

"The fire department really gets a kick out of bringing an engine by," Reverand Calvert says. "We were lucky this year, because sometimes the equipment they want to bring, is on the scene of a fire or a wreck, and is too busy to stop by. Today, the kids got to touch the fire truck, they got to sit in it, wear some of the equipment the firefighters wear, and be a part of what they do. The firemen themselves get to interface with the kids, answer their questions, and in some cases, court future firefighters who may have gotten a good impression from their previous close-up visit."



This is the 15th year for the Shiloh Community Carnival.

"Every year, we stand back and look at it, and the outreach does actually get bigger and better," says Reverend Calvert. "We enjoy giving back to the community in this and other ways. We also want to thank Johnnie Mae Swagerty.. she brought the New Vision Youth over, and they showed some of the other community kids how to have good clean fun.. that always makes a difference in their lives. We also welcomed some of the other churches who came over and fellowshipped with us."

"It's not just Shiloh. It's a community affair."

Boys & Girls Club "Day for Kids"

Although kids could claim Saturday, September 15th as their day, it was indeed a "Day for Kids" at the Kingsport Boys and Girls Club.

More than 100 area children from elementary to high school took part in the event, sponsored by and held at the Kingsport Boys and Girls Club on East Stone Drive.

Click here to see pictures from the Boys & Girls Club Day for Kids.

"It was held inside the building last year," says Stella Robinette, whose H.O.P.E (Help Our Potential Evolve), partners with the Boys and Girls Club on several events. "This year, it was brought outside to accomodate the bigger activities for the kids. It also gives the kids a lot more opportunity."

One of the most popular events was the petting zoo from the Copper Creek Ranch and Heritage Farm. Many of the children had never seen a goat up close, and initial fears turned to squeals of delight. The farm also brought grownup and baby rabbits, and a tom turkey who strutted his stuff around like the king of the barnyard.

One part of the event proved to be an attention-getter. Whenever kids were needed to wave the big orange and white parachute high into the air for everybody to run under, it usually brought every child on the field. There was also bingo for the kids, face-painting, Zumba, and races. Kids were also treated to popcorn, giveaways and drawings.

"The event is definitely bigger than last year," says Stella. "I think the word got out to a lot of parents about how much fun the kids had, and the fact it was being held outside this year on such a beautiful Saturday, proved to be a good for excercise for them."

Democratic Challenge in Sullivan County District 11 Race Has a South Central Connection

The race is now set with Democratic and Republican challengers in the Sullivan County Commission District 11 race.

The district runs from Stone Drive and downtown Kingsport, to South Central Kingsport and Eastman, over to Borden Village, Fairacres and south to Meadowview.

59 year old South Central Kingsport native and Democrat Carl Hale is throwing his hat in the ring. Carl is a graduate of the Douglass School and Dobyns-Bennett High School. He and his wife, the former Chynet Bond, live at 1018 East Sevier Avenue in Kingsport. They attend the Great Commission Church in Kingsport.

The following is a telephone interview your Douglass website did, with Democratic challenger Carl Hale:


"On August 7th at the Kingsport Library, I was nominated to run as a Sullivan County Commissioner, District 11 on the Democratic ticket. It covers downtown Kingsport, South Central Kingsport down to Meadowview.

It was a surprise in a way, but I had gotten wind of it earlier. It's a challenge to me, but I'm up for the challenge. I don't ever do anything half-heartedly, everything I do I try to do to the best of my ability. It'll be a challenge for me, but I'm ready for it."

QUALIFICATIONS... "First, I can pass a security background check. That being said, you have to know about the community you live in, your fellow commissioners, the political nature of the landscape, and what you want to do, to improve that. Budgets are on everybody's minds and how we spend taxpayer dollars, and I want to make sure money gets spent the way people want it to be spent."

BIGGEST NEED IN DISTRICT 11.. "Fresh voices. Fresh voices on the issues at hand. There are several things going on in the area that people are just not satisfied with..they raised the property taxes all at once, in one big chunk.. other issues are going with the sheriff's department, driving their police cars home. Every day, people are having to keep updated with things going around them. Some of the people who have represented some of the districts have been around a while. The taxes are way too high, and there is a lot of overspending especially lately.. things that are being spent on, are wastes of money and time."

"The circle around the Netherland Inn Road and Industry Drive, for example. They built it and I don't see how the engineer could have foreseen how it would have turned out with those big trucks using the circle, and now after all this money has been spent, we have to spend more money just to fix it. They wanted to make something look pretty, without first making sure it would last.. that's a waste of taxpayer dollars. There needs to be more thought into how taxpayer dollars are spent. As far as police taking cars home, it's a good idea, but it's an issue if they're using the vehicles for personal use.. that's what I have a problem with. I do think it's a good idea for them to take vehicles home because it cuts down on response times to incidents happening near them."

"There are other issues I'm getting studied up on.. I'm fresh, I'm new, and new voices need to be heard."

"The city of Kingsport needs something in just about every area that will attract businesses and ultimately, people. You need to boost the city all over, north, south, east and west, not just in a few, certain areas."

DOWNTOWN KINGSPORT

WHAT WOULD YOU DO TO BRING NEW BUSINESS TO DISTRICT 11?.. "You have to do things to make it more attractive, bring in new ideas. Taxes for everyone, should be of the same value..I don't think I would go for giving tax breaks just to bring business to the area, but I would do is get out and talk to the people, and see what the people want. I'm a people person, and I plan to vote the way they feel.. so that I can be a voice for them. A new voice for the people."

"I'm looking forward to my campaign starting up, getting ready for November 6th. I'm going to need support and help from my fellow citizens here in the South Central Kingsport area."

"My opponent may have a little more experience, but you have to be ready on a challenge from me. I have appointed a treasurer, Mrs. Deborah Brimmer for my campaign, she's a member of my church, the Great Commission Church. I've got support from the Democratic Party helping me with my campaign and I've got some good people behind me, and I'm ready to name campaign workers to help me."

"I'm ready to jump into this thing feet first with a core of people with me.. we're gonna ring some bells and talk to people and do what we need to do."

*********

Hale's Republican opponent in the Sullivan County District 11 race is Pat Shull. Shull is a Kingsport native who served in the U.S. Army for over 26 years accumulating several awards and honors including the Bronze Star for exemplary service in a combat zone. Shull is a graduate of Dobyns-Bennett High School, The Citadel, the University of Tennessee, and the U.S. Army War College.

Minutes from the August 25th, 2012 Meeting of the Douglass Alumni Boards

08-25-2012

Members In Attendance: Virginia Hankins, Sheila Leeper, Ozine Bly, Wallace Ross, Jr., Ruth Russell, Andra Watterson, Frank Horton, John Hardy, Van Dobbins, Jr., Calvin Sneed, and Vicki Smith. QUOROM MET.

Meeting was called to order by Virginia Hankins, President

Prayer by Ruth Russell

Minutes were read by all and a motion was made to accept minutes as read and seconded.

Financial Report given by Ozine Bly and was accepted as read.

Financial Report available upon request.


Old Business:

By-Laws reviewed for changes/clarification

(see document changes) – 2nd reading to be voted on today.

Change made to Article XIV Section 4 (page 6) to state: "within 5 days"

Motion was made by Calvin to accept all changes made to By-Laws and seconded by Shelia. Majority ruled and motion carried.



New Business:

Request for Monthly Financial Statement

President, Virginia Hankins requested the Financial Committee to have an itemized statement each month of our financial report for our records.


Scholarship Awards

President suggested for the Scholarship Committee to have a set of rules for the applicants to abide by when applying. If these rules are not followed, the applicant will not be considered. Scholarship Committee made a recommendation of $500 per applicant. Calvin made a motion to accept the committee’s recommendation and Andra seconded and motion carried. Scholarships in the amount of $500 each were awarded to the following recipients: Kelsie Dulaney, Justin Long, Todd Gilmore, Courtney Alexander, & Sierra Evans. Vicki Smith, Recording Secretary will send a letter to recipients receiving awards and also send a copy of the acceptance letter along with the award check to the school of their choice.


CLICK ON THE FLYER TO MAKE IT LARGER

Golf Outing

2012 Scholarship Fundraiser

October 6 – Tee Time @ 8:00 a.m.

Warriors Path Golf Course

Any contributions will be accepted as proceeds from this outing will benefit students wanting to further their education. Sponsors and donations are needed and all members are encouraged to solicit for our scholarship fund. The following sponsor amounts/entry/green fees are listed below:

CLICK ON THE FLYER TO MAKE IT LARGER

Community Support Sponsor $20 or more

Cart Sponsor $50

Individual $75

Birdie & Par Sponsor $100

Wet Your Lips Sponsor $200

Foursome $300

Deluxe Luncheon Sponsor $500

Major Tournament Sponsor $2500



Contact persons for this event are listed below:

John Hardy 423-378-5572

Frank Horton, Jr. 865-382-4144

Don Hickman dhick007@aol.com



Virginia Hankins, President closed the meeting in prayer. The next meeting is scheduled for Saturday, 9/22/12 @ 1:00 p.m. Meeting was adjourned.



Minutes submitted by: Vicki Smith, Recording Secretary

Rotherwood: The Beginnings of Modern-Day Kingsport

Click on the poster to make it larger

Please come out for Mrs. Ellis' inspirational insight into the beginnings of Kingsport.

"Light the Night" in Honor of Victor Simon

FROM GRETTA MAXWELL SIMON

I'm raising money for a very important cause, through The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society's Light The Night Walk: finding better treatments and cures for blood cancers so patients can live better, longer lives. I'm asking you to help by making a tax-deductible contribution! Please use this link to donate online quickly and securely. You will receive an email confirmation of your donation as soon as it is made. I thank you in advance for your support which will make a difference in the lives of thousands of patients battling blood cancers.

In Honor and Memory of my husband Victor.
'TEAM VIC DANGER 2012'

I really appreciate your generosity!!

Douglass Alumni Board Meeting This Saturday, Sept 22nd

Hello everyone,

Please remember our board meeting on Saturday, September 22, 2012 @ 1:00, at V.O. Dobbins.

I hope all of you are busy with your solicitations for the Golf Outing. Remember that as board members we are also alumni members and any personal contributions that you can make toward this cause will be greatly appreciated.

JennyH

Dobyns-Bennett 56 Daniel Boone 21

Ned Jilton II — njilton@timesnews.net

Ned Jilton II — njilton@timesnews.net
Dobyns-Bennett’s Devaun Swafford (8) escapes a Daniel Boone tackler to score a touchdown during Friday night’s non-conference meeting at J. Fred Johnson Stadium in Kingsport.



MORE PICTURES, MORE DB GAME HIGHLIGHTS AT MODEL CITY SPORTS.. <====CLICK IN LEFT COLUMN

Dobyns-Bennett’s Devaun Swafford (8) pulls in a pass from Malik Foreman in front of Daniel Boone defenders Adam Edwards (2) and Cliff Sanders (23) for a touchdown Friday night in Kingsport.

Carrying On the Tradition!

THIS PICTURE COURTESY JONATHAN MCCOY - KINGSPORT TIMES NEWS

Sullivan North’s Will Henshaw (12) and Eric Smith (25) block a Union County field goal attempt on Friday night. An offensive penalty negated the play.

Eric Smith, Number 25 at full extension on the right, is the son of Ryan Smith, grandson of Vicki Woods Smith, secretary of the Sons and Daughters of Douglass Alumni Board, and also the grandson of Harry Smith.

Riverview Kids: Tennis, Anyone?

If the kids of the Riverview community have their way, the tennis world will have dozens of new competitors in a few years.

"It's fun," says Juliana Soto, who says she had never picked up a tennis racket before. "It's a lot of work, but it's fun."

About 35 neighborhood kids gathered at the tennis courts on the Douglass-Dobbins Ballfield took part in the first ever "Tennis Youth Play Day."

Click here to see a slideshow of the Riverview kids learning to play tennis.

"The U.S. Tennis Association is trying to reach out to youth in urban communities," says Chassie Smiley-Freeman of Kingsport Parks and Recreation, local co-sponsor of the event. "They modified tennis to make it more user-friendly, joining other sports who had changed to accomodate players who are 10 years old and under, so they can be successful at it. In this case, the association shortened the court playing area and going to low-compression tennis balls, so the kids can go out and be successful at it."

Among the neighborhood children learning the art of tennis, were Soto and several other New Vision Kids.

"We started out getting our exercises done first," says New Vision director Johnnie Mae Swagerty. "Tennis makes you use a lot of muscles, plus eye and muscle coordination. The city has been good putting this event together for the kids in the community, and they really had fun."

"We did do some games and skills, and everybody got to play, at least batting the tennis ball back and forth across the net on a reduced court at first. Then, at the end of the day, where kids usually watch the Wimbledon matches and the U.S. Open, we had them do similated matches, where they got to play against kids their own age, using new equipment and a new sized court."

"It was basically to make it fun and to show kids that, all you need is a racket, and a ball and a partner, and you can come out and have some fun on the tennis court, without spending a lot of money."

The tennis lessons may continue for some time, because the kids had such a good time.

"What we'd like to do, now that we've done the initial first step, is to have other "Play Days" maybe once a month," says Smiley-Freeman. "The next one comes up on September 22nd, and the way this new tennis craze is going, even if we have rain or bad weather, we'll come indoors. We're also planning one for November, around Veterans Day.. kinda do something for military families in the neighborhood involving tennis."

That works just fine for the kids.

Tyrick Hale says he can't wait until he can play on a bigger court with the lines extended. "I like playing the white lines better," he says. "There's more room to move around."

"It's pretty fun," says Soto.

"If they could continue it, it'd be fun.. it'd be awesome."

From the London Paralympic Games.....

Left to right, Kingsport native Blake Leeper of the United States, Amu Fourie of South Africa, Jonnie Peacock of Great Britain, Richard Browne of the United States and Oscar Pistorius of South Africa compete in the men’s 100-meter T44 category final at the 2012 Paralympics on Thursday at Olympic Stadium in London. Peacock won the event in 10.90 seconds. Pistorius was fourth and Leeper finished fifth (11.21 seconds).

We Need Your Updated Contact Information

NOTE TO ALL DOUGLASS HIGH SCHOOL - KINGSPORT ALUMNI

We need updated contact information for all alumni of Douglass Elementary-High School of Kingsport. The information requested is: name, mailing address, and your email address if you have one.

Information will be coming out soon, concerning the upcoming 2013 Douglass Reunion, and our president Jenny Hankins tried to send out appeals for donations for the golf tournament on October 6th, and more than half of the emails and brochures came back as "no such address.

If you have moved and changed your mailing address, or bought a new computer and changed your email address, please send that to us, to keep you posted on news and events/

Please send the updated information to: douglassriverview@gmail.com

Hug a Grandparent Day

Grandparents are being honored this Saturday, at Kingsport's annual Grandoarents Day Celebration.

The celebration is free to the public.

The event will be held at the Kingsport Civic Auditorium from 11 AM to 12:30 PM Saturday in the main hall.

In addition to lunch, door prizes will be given away, and entertainment will be by the 2012 Kingsport Idol contestants.

The event is sponsored by New Vision Youth and Kingsport Parks and Recreation, Community Parks Division.

Golf Tournament to Help the Children

CLICK ON THE GOLFING BROCHURE TO MAKE IT LARGER

Folks, it's time for our 2012 Sons and Daughters of Douglass Scholarship Golf Tournament. Please take time to consider playing a round (even if you can't play well).

The Sons and Daughters of Douglass Memorial Scholarship Golf Fundraiser will be held
on Saturday, October 6th. Details are in the brochure, which you can print off, fill in the blanks and send in, to participate.

CLICK ON THE APPLICATION TO PRINT OFF, AND FILL IN THE BLANKS

Scholarships are the backbone of the Sons and Daughters of Douglass Alumni Association, essential for their descendants to further their educations and plan for the future. When you consider the rising cost of college, and the financial situations of many of our families, our children deserve nothing less than the help of the glue that held our Riverview Community together: The Douglass High School of Kingsport. Our kids are smart and intelligent, with goals not far off from the goals we all had while coming through school.


CLICK ON THE SIGN-UP SHEET TO PRINT OFF AND FILL IN

If you can't play, please make a sponsorship contribution to a golf cart or a hole, using the form to the right. Here's your opportunity to sponsor a cart or hole in honor of someone, like a Douglass alumnus or alumnae no longer with us, a favorite Riverview event, a Douglass gathering, yourself or a family member, whatever you choose. Just print the form off, enter the amount of your donation (you can also include the reason, person, or event you'd like to honor. Remember, more than one person can sponsor a hole or cart.

You'll be hearing a lot about the golf tournament over the next few weeks, so please stand with us, to stand with the children of our community. The future of their education deserves nothing less than our full financial attention.

Leeper, Pistorius to go head to head today for 200 gold

THIS STORY COURTESY THE KINGSPORT TIMES-NEWS

From staff and wire reports

LONDON — Kingsport native Blake Leeper and Olympian Oscar Pistorius of South Africa will go head to head for gold in the Paralympics after both qualified for today’s 200-meter T44 finals.

Leeper posted a time of 22.23 to lead Saturday’s second heat and Pistorius, the gold medalist in the event in Beijing four years ago, ran a world-record time of 21.30 to top the third heat.

Both men run on carbon fiber prosthetic blades.

Leeper, who was born without lower legs, is a graduate of Dobyns-Bennett who went to the University of Tennessee. He moved to Chula Vista, Calif., in December
2011 to train at the Olympic Training Center.

He qualified for the 100, 200, 400 and 4x100-meter relay in London.

Pistorius became the first double amputee to compete at the Olympics last month. He made it to the semifinals of the individual 400 meters and the 400-meter relay final running against ablebodied athletes.

He won three golds at the Beijing Paralympics.

Pistorius also qualified for the 100, 200, 400 and 4x100-meter relay in London.