Here's the Super Bowl commercial that has Jenny Hankins' daughter Tiffany in:
Tiffany's Million Dollar Super Bowl Commercial
Congratulations to our home girl!
Sunday, February 8, 2009
Fredrick K Smith II has sent you a message on The Kingsport Ebony Club Alumni Association
Hello everyone! I wanted to reach out to you and encourage you to teach or learn something new about black history this month. We all know about the Martin Luther King's and Harriet Tubmans status leaders. I challenge you to learn about someone you do not already know about or know much about. When you have accomplished this, pass it on to a young person. Black history is a great time to celebrate our past but we need to learn about all of our past not just the glorious parts. I wish everyone a joyful month and may everyone be blessed.
Oh yeah, when you learn something new, share it with us!
To reply to this message, you need to join the Kingsport Ebony Club, sponsored by the Douglass Alumni Association. Please do that by clicking here:
Respond to Fredrik's Message Here
Oh yeah, when you learn something new, share it with us!
To reply to this message, you need to join the Kingsport Ebony Club, sponsored by the Douglass Alumni Association. Please do that by clicking here:
Respond to Fredrik's Message Here
Old Douglass Auditorium Seats Find New Home At Sevier Middle
Sevier Principal Jocelyn Lyons had planned to ask for funds to replace the seats in the 2009-10 school budget.
THIS STORY COURTESY THE KINGSPORT TIMES-NEWS
By RICK WAGNER
rwagner@timesnews.net
SEVIER PRINCIPAL JOCELYN LYONS
KINGSPORT — A part of the old high school that served African-Americans during segregation lives on at Sevier Middle School, which housed the original Dobyns-Bennett High School.
Thanks to Janice Allen, a bookkeeper at Sevier with a sharp eye for a newspaper photograph, Kingsport City Schools has done some creative reuse of 121 old auditorium seats from V.O. Dobbins Community Center, formerly Douglass High School, by moving them to Sevier.
THE PICTURE THAT MS. ALLEN SAW, THAT PROMPTED A COMPARISON OF SEATS
Sevier Principal Jocelyn Lyons said Allen noticed in a January Kingsport Times-News photograph of a Douglass reunion that the Dobbins auditorium seats there were very similar to seats at Sevier.
Lyons had already planned to ask for funds to replace the seats in the 2009-10 school budget. The estimated cost was $40,000 for about 800 new seats.
“She came to me and said they look like the seats already in our auditorium,” Lyons said. “It was actually a very good find.”
Sevier school officials thought the old seats might find a new home at Sevier and contacted the office of Superintendent Richard Kitzmiller.
Lyons said the auditorium is the least-changed section of Sevier, which underwent a major renovation in the 1990s.
“As a history major, I sure wouldn’t have wanted to have lost that tradition,” Lyons said. “I’m glad we got to keep (the older) seats.”
David Carper, facilities director of the school system, said he approached David Austin, who oversees the city’s surplus, about the school system using some of the old Douglass/Dobbins seats.
Carper said he often dreaded calls from Sevier Assistant Principal Randy Quillin to come repair the auditorium seats at Sevier because parts and replacements are scarce.
“Over the years, wooden chair parts are no longer available,” Carper said, explaining that more modern plastic theater seats would not fit into the architecture of Sevier and would be expensive, and that padded theater-type seats would be prohibitively expensive.
“It cost us zero, but it cost us about six days of labor,” Carper said. “Now you’ve got maximum capacity again, which you haven’t had in years.”
The Douglass/Dobbins seats were close enough in design and color that they were used in the balcony at Sevier. He said that freed up some of the old Sevier seats to be used to keep the main floor seating in order and gives the school system a supply of an additional 35 or 40 Douglass seats for use as replacements and parts for the balcony.
“They’re not the same,” Carper said. “They’re lighter colored. But they were able to work for us.”
So 121 seats were moved from Dobbins to the Sevier balcony, not counting the seats to be used for later replacements or parts.
“We ought to be good for 10 years or so,” Carper said.
Sevier Middle was the original campus of D-B, from construction in 1926 to 1968, when the current D-B building along Fort Henry Drive opened.
V.O. Dobbins is a city-owned community center located between Louis and Wheatley streets in Riverview. The building served as Kingsport’s blacks-only school from 1951 to 1966 and was named Douglass High School. However, Lyons said she believes the building dates back to circa-1920s. Lyons said she understands the first home of Douglass, at the corner of Center and East Sevier streets, replaced the old Oklahoma Grove School for African-Americans.
The community center was named after the longtime Douglass principal. Kingsport plans to expand and renovate the center, demolishing part and renovating the rest to include room for a new nonprofit center. The first phase of the $7.1 million project is the demolition of the auditorium, which was deemed to have too much asbestos to be renovated and will become the site of the new nonprofit wing. Demolition is expected to begin this month and will include some asbestos removal. The city will go out to bid on the renovation and expansion phase of the project in March or April.
David Grace —dgrace@timesnews.net
SSEVIER MIDDLE SCHOOL BOOKKEEPER JANICE ALLEN AND PRINCIPAL JOCELYN LYONS INSPECT SEAT SALVAGED FROM THE OLD DOUGLASS HIGH AUDITORIUM
THIS STORY COURTESY THE KINGSPORT TIMES-NEWS
By RICK WAGNER
rwagner@timesnews.net
SEVIER PRINCIPAL JOCELYN LYONS
KINGSPORT — A part of the old high school that served African-Americans during segregation lives on at Sevier Middle School, which housed the original Dobyns-Bennett High School.
Thanks to Janice Allen, a bookkeeper at Sevier with a sharp eye for a newspaper photograph, Kingsport City Schools has done some creative reuse of 121 old auditorium seats from V.O. Dobbins Community Center, formerly Douglass High School, by moving them to Sevier.
THE PICTURE THAT MS. ALLEN SAW, THAT PROMPTED A COMPARISON OF SEATS
Sevier Principal Jocelyn Lyons said Allen noticed in a January Kingsport Times-News photograph of a Douglass reunion that the Dobbins auditorium seats there were very similar to seats at Sevier.
Lyons had already planned to ask for funds to replace the seats in the 2009-10 school budget. The estimated cost was $40,000 for about 800 new seats.
“She came to me and said they look like the seats already in our auditorium,” Lyons said. “It was actually a very good find.”
Sevier school officials thought the old seats might find a new home at Sevier and contacted the office of Superintendent Richard Kitzmiller.
Lyons said the auditorium is the least-changed section of Sevier, which underwent a major renovation in the 1990s.
“As a history major, I sure wouldn’t have wanted to have lost that tradition,” Lyons said. “I’m glad we got to keep (the older) seats.”
David Carper, facilities director of the school system, said he approached David Austin, who oversees the city’s surplus, about the school system using some of the old Douglass/Dobbins seats.
Carper said he often dreaded calls from Sevier Assistant Principal Randy Quillin to come repair the auditorium seats at Sevier because parts and replacements are scarce.
“Over the years, wooden chair parts are no longer available,” Carper said, explaining that more modern plastic theater seats would not fit into the architecture of Sevier and would be expensive, and that padded theater-type seats would be prohibitively expensive.
“It cost us zero, but it cost us about six days of labor,” Carper said. “Now you’ve got maximum capacity again, which you haven’t had in years.”
The Douglass/Dobbins seats were close enough in design and color that they were used in the balcony at Sevier. He said that freed up some of the old Sevier seats to be used to keep the main floor seating in order and gives the school system a supply of an additional 35 or 40 Douglass seats for use as replacements and parts for the balcony.
“They’re not the same,” Carper said. “They’re lighter colored. But they were able to work for us.”
So 121 seats were moved from Dobbins to the Sevier balcony, not counting the seats to be used for later replacements or parts.
“We ought to be good for 10 years or so,” Carper said.
Sevier Middle was the original campus of D-B, from construction in 1926 to 1968, when the current D-B building along Fort Henry Drive opened.
V.O. Dobbins is a city-owned community center located between Louis and Wheatley streets in Riverview. The building served as Kingsport’s blacks-only school from 1951 to 1966 and was named Douglass High School. However, Lyons said she believes the building dates back to circa-1920s. Lyons said she understands the first home of Douglass, at the corner of Center and East Sevier streets, replaced the old Oklahoma Grove School for African-Americans.
The community center was named after the longtime Douglass principal. Kingsport plans to expand and renovate the center, demolishing part and renovating the rest to include room for a new nonprofit center. The first phase of the $7.1 million project is the demolition of the auditorium, which was deemed to have too much asbestos to be renovated and will become the site of the new nonprofit wing. Demolition is expected to begin this month and will include some asbestos removal. The city will go out to bid on the renovation and expansion phase of the project in March or April.
David Grace —dgrace@timesnews.net
SSEVIER MIDDLE SCHOOL BOOKKEEPER JANICE ALLEN AND PRINCIPAL JOCELYN LYONS INSPECT SEAT SALVAGED FROM THE OLD DOUGLASS HIGH AUDITORIUM
Friday, February 6, 2009
Kingsport BMA Votes Money for V.O. Dobbins Expansion
BMA voted 6-1 to appropriate a bond issuance for V.O. Dobbins and two other capital projects.
THIS STORY CONDENSED FROM THE KINGSPORT TIMES-NEWS
By MATTHEW LANE
mlane@timesnews.net
KINGSPORT — The Kingsport Board of Mayor and Aldermen has voted to appropriate money it has received from a bond issuance, to fund the renovation of the V.O. Dobbins Center (formerly the Douglass High School building).
The total allocated is $7.1 million to fund the V.O. Dobbins Community Center renovation and expansion project.
To get started, the board appropriated $365,770 for the initial start-up work at V.O. Dobbins, including the demolition of the auditorium and the closing of James Street, the construction of a new mechanical room, and temporary HVAC units for the Upper East Tennessee Human Development Agency’s office. City Alderman Ken Marsh voted no on the resolution.
The initial work is scheduled to start in a few weeks, beginning with the demolition of the old Douglass Band Room behind the auditorium, which also housed the Douglass School 2nd Grade years ago. The auditorium tear-down itself will probably occur sometime in March, according to Dineen West, the consultant at Cain, Rash and West, the architectural firm hired to design the project.
Once that date is finalized, there will be a brief going-away ceremony for Douglass Alumni and the Riverview-South Central Neighborhood. Please watch for updates.
Alderman Marsh voted against appropriating the money Tuesday night, saying he was being true to his convictions.
Kingsport received the bond money on Wednesday, and this week's move simply allocated the money to V.O. Dobbins and the various other projects. Alderman Marsh voted against the appropriation.
The bond money will also mean, among other things:
•$12.3 million to fund the construction of a downtown parking garage, K-Play expansions, the Riverwalk project, school security upgrades and property acquisition, Kingsport Public Library and Justice Center expansions, and road improvements.
• $15.3 million to fund the executive conference wing at the MeadowView Conference Center.
During the BMA work session Monday afternoon, Alderman Pat Shull asked why the three appropriations were in one resolution, rather than in three. Campbell and Kingsport Finance Director Jim Demming said the normal procedure in the past has been to lump multiple allocations into one resolution.
“I would feel more comfortable if they were broken out in three ordinances,” Shull said. Shull voted against two of the bond issuances back in November — the V.O. Dobbins one and the MeadowView one — and apparently wanted to vote against these two again Tuesday night.
During Monday’s work session City Attorney Mike Billingsley said if Kingsport failed to appropriate the money for the intended use, the city would have to answer to the IRS.
“It creates an issue for the city — borrowing money we’re not using,” he said. “Once you approve the bond issue, the bonds have to be spent on the projects you said they were going to be spent on.”
Mallicote said there was no responsible reason to separate the appropriations out.
“We’re committed to a course of action. The time to vote these down ... that ship has sailed,” Mallicote said. “If we separate these and voted not to do these, we’re voting to get the city cross-eyed with the IRS,” said Alderman Larry Munsey.
Shull said his concern was with the perception of being contradictory, voting for something that he already voted against. But as Billingsley said, the sale of the bonds is a separate vote from the use of the bonds.
In other business Tuesday night the BMA:
• Voted 6-1 to approve an ordinance to allow restaurants in downtown to establish outdoor eating areas on the sidewalk. Munsey voted against the measure.
“I think this ordinance would permit the serving of alcohol beverages on city property, which in accordance with current city code is not allowed,” Munsey said. “Since this new ordinance, which will result in a proliferation of alcoholic beverages on the city right of way and city streets, I have a strong personal conviction against this.”
Munsey voted to allow beer sales on Broad Street during the Downtown Concert Series and said he has regretted that vote ever since.
THIS STORY CONDENSED FROM THE KINGSPORT TIMES-NEWS
By MATTHEW LANE
mlane@timesnews.net
KINGSPORT — The Kingsport Board of Mayor and Aldermen has voted to appropriate money it has received from a bond issuance, to fund the renovation of the V.O. Dobbins Center (formerly the Douglass High School building).
The total allocated is $7.1 million to fund the V.O. Dobbins Community Center renovation and expansion project.
To get started, the board appropriated $365,770 for the initial start-up work at V.O. Dobbins, including the demolition of the auditorium and the closing of James Street, the construction of a new mechanical room, and temporary HVAC units for the Upper East Tennessee Human Development Agency’s office. City Alderman Ken Marsh voted no on the resolution.
The initial work is scheduled to start in a few weeks, beginning with the demolition of the old Douglass Band Room behind the auditorium, which also housed the Douglass School 2nd Grade years ago. The auditorium tear-down itself will probably occur sometime in March, according to Dineen West, the consultant at Cain, Rash and West, the architectural firm hired to design the project.
Once that date is finalized, there will be a brief going-away ceremony for Douglass Alumni and the Riverview-South Central Neighborhood. Please watch for updates.
Alderman Marsh voted against appropriating the money Tuesday night, saying he was being true to his convictions.
Kingsport received the bond money on Wednesday, and this week's move simply allocated the money to V.O. Dobbins and the various other projects. Alderman Marsh voted against the appropriation.
The bond money will also mean, among other things:
•$12.3 million to fund the construction of a downtown parking garage, K-Play expansions, the Riverwalk project, school security upgrades and property acquisition, Kingsport Public Library and Justice Center expansions, and road improvements.
• $15.3 million to fund the executive conference wing at the MeadowView Conference Center.
During the BMA work session Monday afternoon, Alderman Pat Shull asked why the three appropriations were in one resolution, rather than in three. Campbell and Kingsport Finance Director Jim Demming said the normal procedure in the past has been to lump multiple allocations into one resolution.
“I would feel more comfortable if they were broken out in three ordinances,” Shull said. Shull voted against two of the bond issuances back in November — the V.O. Dobbins one and the MeadowView one — and apparently wanted to vote against these two again Tuesday night.
During Monday’s work session City Attorney Mike Billingsley said if Kingsport failed to appropriate the money for the intended use, the city would have to answer to the IRS.
“It creates an issue for the city — borrowing money we’re not using,” he said. “Once you approve the bond issue, the bonds have to be spent on the projects you said they were going to be spent on.”
Mallicote said there was no responsible reason to separate the appropriations out.
“We’re committed to a course of action. The time to vote these down ... that ship has sailed,” Mallicote said. “If we separate these and voted not to do these, we’re voting to get the city cross-eyed with the IRS,” said Alderman Larry Munsey.
Shull said his concern was with the perception of being contradictory, voting for something that he already voted against. But as Billingsley said, the sale of the bonds is a separate vote from the use of the bonds.
In other business Tuesday night the BMA:
• Voted 6-1 to approve an ordinance to allow restaurants in downtown to establish outdoor eating areas on the sidewalk. Munsey voted against the measure.
“I think this ordinance would permit the serving of alcohol beverages on city property, which in accordance with current city code is not allowed,” Munsey said. “Since this new ordinance, which will result in a proliferation of alcoholic beverages on the city right of way and city streets, I have a strong personal conviction against this.”
Munsey voted to allow beer sales on Broad Street during the Downtown Concert Series and said he has regretted that vote ever since.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Black History Day and Arts Workshops
Monday, February 16, 2009
Kingsport's Renaissance Center
1200 E. Center Street
Noon - 6 PM
Artists will be conducting workshops in music, drumming, dance, storytelling and graphic arts. In addition, there will be African cuisine sampling, and headwrap designs workshops.
Artists-in-residence will include:
Quian Hale - Nashville Graphics Designer: Graphic and Computer Arts
Carlton "Starr" Releford - Actor/Singer with Knoxville's Carpetbag Theater-Acting
Megan Adair - Swing Dance Instructor" Knoxville Community Arts School
Richard Hicks, Jr - Drumming
Gerie Hicks - African Cuisine
Lavonda Price - Local Hairstylist
Kate Augman - Storyteller: "The Fiber of Freedom-Use of Quilts on the Underground Railroad"
Lydia Wilson - Mixed Media Textile Artist in Johnson City: Visual Arts
Exhibits on Display:
*A quilt that students made at last year's workshop
*Douglass High School Alumni
*Displays of prominent American Black Artists provided by members of the Arts Council
NO CHARGE TO ATTEND
SUGGESTED FOR ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN
Kingsport's Renaissance Center
1200 E. Center Street
Noon - 6 PM
Artists will be conducting workshops in music, drumming, dance, storytelling and graphic arts. In addition, there will be African cuisine sampling, and headwrap designs workshops.
Artists-in-residence will include:
Quian Hale - Nashville Graphics Designer: Graphic and Computer Arts
Carlton "Starr" Releford - Actor/Singer with Knoxville's Carpetbag Theater-Acting
Megan Adair - Swing Dance Instructor" Knoxville Community Arts School
Richard Hicks, Jr - Drumming
Gerie Hicks - African Cuisine
Lavonda Price - Local Hairstylist
Kate Augman - Storyteller: "The Fiber of Freedom-Use of Quilts on the Underground Railroad"
Lydia Wilson - Mixed Media Textile Artist in Johnson City: Visual Arts
Exhibits on Display:
*A quilt that students made at last year's workshop
*Douglass High School Alumni
*Displays of prominent American Black Artists provided by members of the Arts Council
NO CHARGE TO ATTEND
SUGGESTED FOR ELEMENTARY AND MIDDLE SCHOOL-AGE CHILDREN
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Black History Month at the President Andrew Johnson/Nathaniel Greene Museums
PLEASE PUT THIS ON YOUR CALENDARS FOR SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 2009 AT 12 NOON.
"A Piece of History"
Experience a piece of history by joining us on a trip to see the President Andrew Johnson Museum and the Nathaniel Greene Museum in Greeneville, Tennessee (Greene County is named after Nathaniel Greene). The museums will be representing Black History Month.
The tours will begin at 2:00 P-M, and dinner will be served at Ryan's around 4:15 P-M.
DATE: Saturday, February 21, 2009
TIME: 12 Noon (bus will depart from the V.O. Dobbins Community Center at 12:30 P-M.
PLACE: Greeneville, Tennessee
The field trip will be FREE to adults and youth. Kingsport Housing tenants' dinners will be paid for by the K.H.R.A. If you are not a housing tenant, dinner prices at Ryan's are: adults - $12.77, children ages 9-12 - $7.55 and ages 4-8 - $6.45.
The trip is sponsored by the New Vision Youth, Kingsport Parks and Recreation Community Services, and the South Central Kingsport Weed & Seed Corporation. To register and for more information, please call Johnnie Mae Swagerty at 423-246-6623 or Jason Wilburt at 423-246-4201.
"A Piece of History"
Experience a piece of history by joining us on a trip to see the President Andrew Johnson Museum and the Nathaniel Greene Museum in Greeneville, Tennessee (Greene County is named after Nathaniel Greene). The museums will be representing Black History Month.
The tours will begin at 2:00 P-M, and dinner will be served at Ryan's around 4:15 P-M.
DATE: Saturday, February 21, 2009
TIME: 12 Noon (bus will depart from the V.O. Dobbins Community Center at 12:30 P-M.
PLACE: Greeneville, Tennessee
The field trip will be FREE to adults and youth. Kingsport Housing tenants' dinners will be paid for by the K.H.R.A. If you are not a housing tenant, dinner prices at Ryan's are: adults - $12.77, children ages 9-12 - $7.55 and ages 4-8 - $6.45.
The trip is sponsored by the New Vision Youth, Kingsport Parks and Recreation Community Services, and the South Central Kingsport Weed & Seed Corporation. To register and for more information, please call Johnnie Mae Swagerty at 423-246-6623 or Jason Wilburt at 423-246-4201.
Douglass Alumni Trustee Board Meeting 1/31/09
The Douglass Alumni Association Trustee Board Meeting was convened by President Doug Releford for its regular meeting Saturday, January 31st, in the historic Douglass Auditorium.
MORE PICTURES IN THE PHOTO GALLERY
At this time, Treasurer Sandy Wilmer reported $1,572.34 in the Association's bank account.
Under OLD BUSINESS, trustee and Souvenir Booklet chairperson Linda Blye submitted the following letter to be sent or given to prospective advertisers in the booklet:
"To whom it may concern":
"The Douglass High School Alumni Association is preparing to celebrate its 42nd anniversary since the closing of Douglass High School. We are asking you at this time if you would be interested in purchasing an ad in our souvenir booklet. We are also asking if you would interested in providing any type of object that may be used in our welcome packages for our members that will be attending the Reunion this year. We are asking that all ads and any gifts or souvenirs that will be donated, be turned in no later than June 12, 2009. You can contact me at 423-288-6040, or any other member of the Douglass High School Alumni Association. Sincerely, Douglass Releford, President, Douglass Alumni Association."
Linda suggested a deadline sometime in April for having all of the ads in, and the money paid, so we can decide how much money to spend on the booklet itself. People who purchase an ad, will also be told in the letter how much each size will cost; full page ($100), half-page ($50), and quarter-page ($35). Doug also reminded the trustees that it was voted on and approved, that each trustee would be responsible for getting 200 dollars worth of advertising on their own.
Letters to be mailed to businesses will have their names in the address area, others that we can ask by just going inside the company, will have "to whom it may concern."
There was discussion about providing a booklet to all businesses and individuals who purchase ads, and also checking out people in the Tri-Cities who make excellent booklets for a living, to make ours. Several booklet types are being considered, either bound, glossy, etc.
Trustee and Golf Tournament Manager George Smith updated us on the upcoming Reunion's Memorial Golf Tournament.. Plans are to return to Cattails at Meadowview for the tournament, because most of the out-of-town alumni will be staying there, and two of our main events will also be there. Letters will be sent out to alumni golfers. He was also brought up to date on asking the participants to purchase a Douglass High School golf shirt in school colors, and that will be included in the letter. 35 golfers took part in the last tournament.
Alumn Association Vice President Andra Watterson provided a meals menu from the Marriott Corporation, the food vendor at Meadowview. Trustees looked over the list of main courses, side items, breads, salads and desserts and the prices. The choices will be decided on at the next Alumni Board Trustee meeting. The price per person will be 27 dollars, and we did get a discount. As always, that is included in the reunion registration dues. Andra reports, our group also got a discount per room at the Marriott-Meadowview: 85 dollars a night, instead of the standard price over a hundred dollars per room.
Media-Public Relations-Website Manager Calvin Sneed thanked everybody for their participation and encouragement during "The Last Great Program at Douglass." There have been lots of requests for the Douglass Teachers Interviews on D-V-D. Those will be made available, the price to be set soon, and they will be sold individually during separate fundraisers, not included as part of any promotion or program.
Under NEW BUSINESS, Treasurer Sandy Wilmer brought up the school book sales during the book fairs, and since we have had book fairs since they were discovered last March, we need to start thinking about an end to the book fairs, perhaps holding a large book fair at Wal-Mart. She also said, we should include anything else Douglass, mugs, shirts, etc. Calvin said we cannot continue to hold books for Douglass alumni and also, we cannot store them indefinitely, and that we should start thinking about mass sales of the books to anybody who wants to buy them. It was decided that we should hold books with the names of Douglass Alumni until the Reunion this summer so that any out-of-town alumni who want to get them in person can do so, then those that are not picked up, will be up for grabs by anybody in Kingsport who wants to buy them. There will also be book fairs in the spring. By the way, the maintenance people in the V.O. Dobbins Center, have discovered MORE books in the lockers, and we will be taking possession of them immediately.
Doug Releford also told the group that the Douglass Alumni Association will have a booth at the Black History Month Celebration at the Kingsport Renaissance Center on February 17th starting at 9 A-M, and we will need items to display at our booth. A couple of our people will be there to answer questions. The event is sponsored by the Kingsport Chamber of Commerce.
Doug also said we need to start considering whom we want for keynote speakers at the Reunion Banquet and the Memorial Service, and Trustee Jenny Hankins suggested what whomever we chose, should be a Douglass Alumnus or a descendant of a Douglass Alumnus. Doug suggested we can do that, as long as a Douglass Alumnus is available and willing to speak. Several names were mentioned, and a decision will be made at the next meeting.
The Trustees adjourned the meeting to a pot luck lunch, and then did a tour of the historic Douglass Auditorium to select items in the room to save, when the demolition crew starts work in a few weeks.
NEXT MEETING: Saturday, February 21, 2009 at 1 PM, at St. Mark's Methodist Church.
MORE PICTURES IN THE PHOTO GALLERY
At this time, Treasurer Sandy Wilmer reported $1,572.34 in the Association's bank account.
Under OLD BUSINESS, trustee and Souvenir Booklet chairperson Linda Blye submitted the following letter to be sent or given to prospective advertisers in the booklet:
"To whom it may concern":
"The Douglass High School Alumni Association is preparing to celebrate its 42nd anniversary since the closing of Douglass High School. We are asking you at this time if you would be interested in purchasing an ad in our souvenir booklet. We are also asking if you would interested in providing any type of object that may be used in our welcome packages for our members that will be attending the Reunion this year. We are asking that all ads and any gifts or souvenirs that will be donated, be turned in no later than June 12, 2009. You can contact me at 423-288-6040, or any other member of the Douglass High School Alumni Association. Sincerely, Douglass Releford, President, Douglass Alumni Association."
Linda suggested a deadline sometime in April for having all of the ads in, and the money paid, so we can decide how much money to spend on the booklet itself. People who purchase an ad, will also be told in the letter how much each size will cost; full page ($100), half-page ($50), and quarter-page ($35). Doug also reminded the trustees that it was voted on and approved, that each trustee would be responsible for getting 200 dollars worth of advertising on their own.
Letters to be mailed to businesses will have their names in the address area, others that we can ask by just going inside the company, will have "to whom it may concern."
There was discussion about providing a booklet to all businesses and individuals who purchase ads, and also checking out people in the Tri-Cities who make excellent booklets for a living, to make ours. Several booklet types are being considered, either bound, glossy, etc.
Trustee and Golf Tournament Manager George Smith updated us on the upcoming Reunion's Memorial Golf Tournament.. Plans are to return to Cattails at Meadowview for the tournament, because most of the out-of-town alumni will be staying there, and two of our main events will also be there. Letters will be sent out to alumni golfers. He was also brought up to date on asking the participants to purchase a Douglass High School golf shirt in school colors, and that will be included in the letter. 35 golfers took part in the last tournament.
Alumn Association Vice President Andra Watterson provided a meals menu from the Marriott Corporation, the food vendor at Meadowview. Trustees looked over the list of main courses, side items, breads, salads and desserts and the prices. The choices will be decided on at the next Alumni Board Trustee meeting. The price per person will be 27 dollars, and we did get a discount. As always, that is included in the reunion registration dues. Andra reports, our group also got a discount per room at the Marriott-Meadowview: 85 dollars a night, instead of the standard price over a hundred dollars per room.
Media-Public Relations-Website Manager Calvin Sneed thanked everybody for their participation and encouragement during "The Last Great Program at Douglass." There have been lots of requests for the Douglass Teachers Interviews on D-V-D. Those will be made available, the price to be set soon, and they will be sold individually during separate fundraisers, not included as part of any promotion or program.
Under NEW BUSINESS, Treasurer Sandy Wilmer brought up the school book sales during the book fairs, and since we have had book fairs since they were discovered last March, we need to start thinking about an end to the book fairs, perhaps holding a large book fair at Wal-Mart. She also said, we should include anything else Douglass, mugs, shirts, etc. Calvin said we cannot continue to hold books for Douglass alumni and also, we cannot store them indefinitely, and that we should start thinking about mass sales of the books to anybody who wants to buy them. It was decided that we should hold books with the names of Douglass Alumni until the Reunion this summer so that any out-of-town alumni who want to get them in person can do so, then those that are not picked up, will be up for grabs by anybody in Kingsport who wants to buy them. There will also be book fairs in the spring. By the way, the maintenance people in the V.O. Dobbins Center, have discovered MORE books in the lockers, and we will be taking possession of them immediately.
Doug Releford also told the group that the Douglass Alumni Association will have a booth at the Black History Month Celebration at the Kingsport Renaissance Center on February 17th starting at 9 A-M, and we will need items to display at our booth. A couple of our people will be there to answer questions. The event is sponsored by the Kingsport Chamber of Commerce.
Doug also said we need to start considering whom we want for keynote speakers at the Reunion Banquet and the Memorial Service, and Trustee Jenny Hankins suggested what whomever we chose, should be a Douglass Alumnus or a descendant of a Douglass Alumnus. Doug suggested we can do that, as long as a Douglass Alumnus is available and willing to speak. Several names were mentioned, and a decision will be made at the next meeting.
The Trustees adjourned the meeting to a pot luck lunch, and then did a tour of the historic Douglass Auditorium to select items in the room to save, when the demolition crew starts work in a few weeks.
NEXT MEETING: Saturday, February 21, 2009 at 1 PM, at St. Mark's Methodist Church.
Unity Choir Now Rehearsing at Central Baptist; Singers Needed
• KINGSPORT — Local choir members or anyone who loves to sing and wants to be a part of the Community Unity Choir is invited to attend rehearsals Jan. 29 and every Thursday through Feb. 18 at Central Baptist Church, 301 Carver St., Kingsport, at 7 p.m.
LAST YEAR'S COMMUNITY UNITY CHOIR
Ida Machen is the choir director. The choir will sing at the Community Unity Celebration Feb. 22 at 4 p.m. at the Eastman Employee Center. For more information call 246-6809.
LAST YEAR'S COMMUNITY UNITY CHOIR
Ida Machen is the choir director. The choir will sing at the Community Unity Celebration Feb. 22 at 4 p.m. at the Eastman Employee Center. For more information call 246-6809.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Barack Obama's Inaugural: "History Paints No Other Picture"
THESE ARE NOTES FROM A JOURNAL THAT I KEPT IN WASHINGTON, D.C., DURING THE TWO DAYS OF THE PRESIDENTIAL INAUGURATION OF BARACK OBAMA, JANUARY 19-20, 2009 ESPECIALLY FOR THE PEOPLE OF RIVERVIEW AND SOUTH CENTRAL KINGSPORT..
--Calvin
MORE PICTURES ARE IN THE PHOTO GALLERY; CLICK ON THE PICTURES BELOW TO MAKE THEM BIGGER
Washington, D.C. The capital of the United States of America, intellectual capital of the Free World.
January 20th, 2009 was a special day, an understatement if there ever was one. It was one of those special moments in history. The first time a black family moved into the White House, who wasn't there to clean up or cook.
NOVEMBER 5, 2008:
The chronicle to witness one of the most important events in American history began a couple of months ago, when I starting floating a wild idea to actually GO to the inauguration. Many of our Douglass alumni and Riverview neighbors wanted to go and just be there in person, but trying to do a lot of things in this economy is difficult, if not impossible, especially traveling. I thought the same thing as many African-Americans for a few days after the inauguration; just think.. the 1st Black President. How would it be like to be there, in person, in the flesh.. seeing it, experiencing it.. breathing the same air, so to speak.
And then, I thought of the broader picture. African-Americans have a history as long and difficult as this country's history itself. I started thinking about all the black folk who fought the big fight for us to get to this point. Thoughts flooded my mind about fire hoses, busted-up voter registration drives, "white" and "colored" water fountains. All of those happened in our collective memories.. worse things happened just years before that. And then, there was just the harrassment.. "no, you can't do this.. no, you can't do that." It was always "NO, YOU CAN'T."
But one candidate for President told us during his campaign, we can overcome obstacles. HIS theme was "Yes.. we CAN," and he just happened to be a Black man. Although he was younger than I was, his words sounded inspirational, as if history was speaking to all of us right now. That man who just happened to be Black, had just overcome his own obstacles to be elected to the highest office in the Free World. It was at that moment, I decided that I was going to this inauguration, no matter how much it cost, and no matter the personal sacrifice. No sacrifice I could ever make in my life, would equal the sacrifices other African-Americans made years ago, just so we could all get to this moment in history.
Of all the events I felt privileged to attend, only one stood out in my mind.. I wanted to be there to hear Barack Obama say the words "Yes I do.. so help me God." That moment would be the one always frozen in time. The U.S. Constitution says, every four years, the duly elected president-designate has to be in sworn in at 12 noon.. I researched constitution scholars, and it turns out, the person who wins the election automatically becomes President at 12 Noon every four years, where there is a ceremony or not.
But this wouldn't be an ordinary ceremony. American politics and American history would not permit this man to just be automatically ushered into office. This ceremony would be special.
NOVEMBER 14, 2008:
I applied for tickets to the inauguration ceremony on the U.S. Capitol steps on January 20th. The only way to get tickets was through my U.S. Senator or U.S. House Representative. Never thought of actually RECEIVING them.. so many people around the country had applied for tickets, I never had a hope of getting one of those coveted historical mementos. Imagine my surprise when I got an email from U.S. 3rd District Congressman Zach Wamp's office from Tennessee, that I would be getting inaugural tickets from them. I was profoundly shocked when I received a phone call from Tennessee's U.S. Senator Bob Corker's office that I would be getting tickets from that office, too.
Shock.. turned to awe at that point.
My late mother had a wonderful friend that she and her sisters knew from college at the Tennessee A & I State University (now Tennessee State) in Nashville.. she lives just outside Washington, D.C., her husband having retired from the U.S. Department of Transportation offices near Capitol Hill. Ernest Hawkins knew every in and out of the Capitol District, and he promised to personally get me as close to the events as possible.
Thousands of people had gotten the same message I did: the inauguration tickets have to be picked up Monday, January 19th, in the Congressman's or Senator's office. I made a spirited trip up I-81 in Virginia to Washington, and battled a 6-inch snowfall between Bristol and Roanoke to boot.
JANUARY 19, 2009:
9:15 AM -
I never dreamed the trip into the District, as it's called, would be so easy. Ernest Hawkins, my "chauffeur" lives out Pennsylvania Avenue on the other side of Andrews Air Force Base. I was getting antsy, and as the hours approached on the schedule to pick up the tickets, I grew more nervous, thinking the Capitol District would be blocked up, streets closed. I thought I would be walking for miles.
1:30 PM -
Mr. Hawkins delivered on the promise to get me in as close as possible, and did he ever. We found no streets blocked off at all. We actually drove right up to the U.S. Capitol, where crowds had formed to get into the Senate and House office buildings. Those lines were incredibly long, born by the necessity of metal detectors and screening at the buildings' front entrances.
The Everett Dirksen Senate Office Building was my first stop, the Washington office of Tennessee U.S. Senator Bob Corker. I made my way up to his office, showed my I.D. and picked up the admission ticket to history.
4:10 PM -
My next trek was the Longworth Building, one of many office complexes, housing the offices of many of our U.S. Representatives. My destination was Zach Wamp, Tennessee 3rd District Congressman, of which I had originally thought, well if I can't get tickets through Senator Corker's office, I might through Congressman Wamp's.
Thousands of ordinary citizens milling around, joking, having a good time, me included. It was a time that we all shared a common bond, where anybody could become a professional camera person. If I wanted to document my moment in history, there were plenty of ordinary citizens, a.k.a. camera people, that were only too willing to take my camera and record the moment, if I would return the favor.
4:55 PM -
After 45 minutes of standing in the wrong line at the wrong building (thanks to a D.C. cop too busy to really help me), it was over to the Longworth Building for U.S. House members. I finally got in the right line there with NewsChannel 9 colleague Tanya Mendis and a few other Chattanooga people. As the hour of closing the building approached, many Congress members came out and got their constituents to bring them inside to make sure they got their tickets, and Congressman Wamp came out and got us.
U.S. REP. ZACH WAMP'S OFFICE (R-3RD DISTRICT, TENNESSEE), WASHINGTON, D.C.
The reception in his office was in short, a family reunion, whose members all had tickets to history. The congressman's office had refreshments with picture-taking opportunities with Chattanooga neighors and friends, among them former City Judge Walter Williams, Hamilton County Commissioner Greg Beck, Chattanooga councilman Leamon Pierce, and current Tennessee State Representative Joanne Favors of Chattanooga, who told me to remind the folks in Kingsport to get Nathan Vaughn back into politics. Rep. Favors, a personal friend of Vaughn's, told me to convey the message that he was the victim of racism and that his Vaughn's leadership is still needed in Nashville. She said the Democrats' denial of the Republicans' attempted takeover of the State Senate failed, because of, among other things, actions taken to oust Vaughn from office; his other Democratic colleagues were angry about the racism directed by state Republicans towards Vaughn, in an spirited effort to take over the Tennessee Legislature. "Pure dirty politics, with a racial edge," she told me. "We need him back, so folks in Kingsport, keep the fires going."
I promised to convey the message to folks in Riverview and South Central Kingsport.
10:20 PM -
The day ended, with me going to bed early, because I wanted a head start on getting in line at the Blue Gate on Inauguration morning. THAT decision was one of the best I made the entire trip.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20TH:
3:05 AM -
Mr. Hawkins knocked on my bedroom door, and I sat there on the edge of the bed for about 15 minutes, trying to decide if I "really want to do this." Home was only 9 hours distant.
3:40 PM -
After lining myself with insulating material, again thinking I would be walking for miles.. fooled again. We drove to within 4 blocks of the U.S. Capitol. Take that terrorists.. this is MY country. I got in line at the Blue Gate outside the Capitol grounds at 4:15 AM, temperature 21 degrees. I was about 8 or 9 people from the front of the line, which stretched about 200 feet across. The crowd at that time, about 2,000 people, were happy, jovial, getting songs started. The favorites were "Na-na-na na.. Hey, hey, hey.. Goodbye," (an obvious tribute to George Bush), "You've Got A Friend" (James Taylor), and anything Motown. I overheard one of the black ladies standing next to me, talking on her cellphone, referring to our group as "The American Idol" line. She'd had enough when they broke into "My Girl."
5:05 AM-
Glance over my shoulder. The crowd, now about 8,000 or 9,000 according to the TSA people, who've just arrived with their security screening stuff and metal detectors. Individual space was drawing up really fast, and unknown, strange-looking people bumping into me, touching me. Temperature still 21 degrees.
6:15 AM-
Just a small glimmer of sunlight, and the TV helicopters started buzzing the crowd, especially one from WUSA-TV. Crowd now estimated between 15,000 and 20,000, cannot see them around the street corners. Temperature now 20 degrees, I am not feeling my toes, and the shawl is not staying over my mouth and nose like it's supposed to.
7:15 AM-
The sun is up, but the temperature isn't. 20 degrees, my toes are numb, even with the foot warmers. The songs continued, and so did the shivering. The Washington Post says the crowd at the Blue Gate at 7 AM was about 30,000.
8:30 AM-
The TSA security people announced they were opening the gates early, because there were too many people to guarantee that everybody would get in, in time. Everybody stood up, pressed tightly together, all at the ready. Thoughts went through my mind of stampeding people at a Wal-Mart Christmas sale. All of a sudden, as one part of the fence opened slightly to permit a single-file line, there was a surge to that direction. Small, baby steps were the only way to move. Then, another area of the fence opened, and my group surged in that direction. Eventually, that was the way that got me to the screening with metal detectors.
8:40 AM-
The TSA agent ran the hand-held metal detector over me, and asked me why I had clear adhesive tape around my camera. I told him I had dropped it so many times, tape is the only thing holding it together. He just grinned and passed me through.
8:55 AM -
I made it around into the Blue area, which would be standing room only. It was located on the side of Capitol Hill, to the right as you're looking at it, right behind the Orange area, whose privileged folks were allowed seats to enjoy the Inauguration. My group questioned who those people had to know to get seats. We later found out, those "privileged" folks included Denzel Washington, Kobe Bryant, Steven Spielberg, Muhammad Ali and his wife, and a host of other celebrities.
9:35 AM -
Again, I'm about eight or nine people back from the barrier that separates the Blue from the Orange sections. Not believing I've spent the past six hours standing. Temperature now up to 23 degrees.
Again, folks start taking up available breathing space. Thank God for Irish Spring. Among the nearest places I could hear were Austin, Texas.. Chicago.. Portland, Oregon.. Greenville, Alabama (these Crimson Tide folks chided me on my Tennessee Big Orange jacket).. Flagstaff, Arizona. These Blue Section people are getting pretty rowdy. They were more "blue-collar" than blue area, very Democrat, and not afraid to express themselves and their political beliefs.. they had made their politics known by voting, and now they let it be known in no uncertain terms that their physical voices would be heard THIS election. America is the greatest country on Earth.
10:25 AM -
The U.S. Marine Band starts playing, and you can really tell the ex-soldiers in the crowd. Theirs were the care-worn faces, wrinkled with time, whose eyes glazed over, hearing "America the Beautiful" and the other patriotic songs. Those guys reminded me how proud I was to be an American, about to witness an historic moment.
11:10 AM -
My Blue Section group wasted no time, letting the rest of America know they were loyal Democrats. Each time a recognizable face arrived on the Jumbotron, their political leanings were known to the arrivals, because we were within earshot distance of them. Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy arrived to chants of "Teddie, Teddie, Teddie" and he graciously acknowledged our area with a nod and waves. It was a magical moment.
Demoratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was also lauded with loud applause and whoops. So was Tennessee Favorite Son Al Gore, Junior and his wife Tipper. I even got slapped on the back by folks near me, because of my Tennessee Football "Big Orange" jacket, still providing a measure of warmth, by the way. Howard Dean acknowledged our Blue Area group's "YEE-awe" growl from his presidential campaign.
11:31 AM -
A large ovation came at the announcement of the arrival of former President Bill Clinton and his wife, presidential candidate and Secretary of State designee Hillary Clinton. I overhead behind me a loud "We still love you!" Each view of the Clintons produced enthusiatic yells and whoops from our group.
The arrival of Vice President Dick Cheney in a wheelchair did not escape the notice of the Blue Group. The V-P reportedly pulled a muscle while moving boxes and was told to stay off his feet for a few days. Overheard in my group: "Next time, spend the money and get Mayflower."
As guests and dignitaries were announced, straining to hear wasn't necessary. Each word from the announcer was as crisp and clear as the morning air, which at 28 degrees, had not risen that much since the early morning.
11:45 AM -
Finally, the arrivals were over. Everyone is in place. Dignitaries seated, with smiles on their faces, perhaps produced by the nip in the air, but probably by the pomp and circumstance of the occasion. The 2009 Presidential Inauguration began with a welcome flourish, people in predictable nervousness, as the results of hours of standing in long lines for hours earlier, and the prior day finally came to an end. This was the event we had all waited for, planned for, and anticipated for weeks and months prior. "Please," one white woman overheard behind me, "let's get this going." A white man standing near me was overhead to say, "let's get this man sworn in."
Hostess Dianne Feinstein produced a loud chuckle when she told the audience to "please be seated" at the end of the invocation, given by Dr. Rick Warren, in that our Blue Area group, all 30-thousand strong, had been standing the whole time. Given the uproar over his selection as Minister of the Invocation, the conflicts proved unnecessary. Dr. Warren spoke the Word with conviction and determination, and his prayer was well received. There's only one way to Preach the Gospel, and for men of God, it's the Right way.
As Senator Joe Biden was sworn into office by John Paul Stevens, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, the mood in the air became electric. I heard someone behind me say "C'mon.. let's get this man in office." As mentioned earlier, Mr. Obama would have become President anyway; the person with the most delegates in the Electoral College is AUTOMATICALLY President at the first stroke of Noon on January 20th, every four years. The ceremony, the pagentry, the hoopla.. all mere formalities, ceremoniously performed with the pomp and circumstance the event calls for. The automatic ascension to office is thought to have been a war-time measure, designed to protect a President-elect, should an outside ceremony not be possible.
11:53 AM -
After a number from four of classical music's icons, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, clarinetist Anthony McGill, pianist Gabriela Montero, and violinist Itzhak Perlman, the moment arrives for the swearing in of the president-elect.
The swearing-in of 47-year-old Barack Obama began simple enough as Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts, presiding over his first Presidential swearing-in, started reciting the oath Obama was to repeat, a few words at a time. That's when the program went slightly left of center.
"I, Barack Hussein Obama," began Roberts.
"I, Barack," said Obama, and before he could continue, Roberts said, "do solemnly swear."
Obama: "I, Barack Hussein Obama, do solemnly swear"
Roberts: "That I will execute the office of president to the United States faithfully...
Obama: "that I will execute..."
Before he could continue, Roberts said: "faithfully execute the office of president of the United States..."
Obama: "The office of president of the United States faithfully..."
At that point, Roberts got back on course, leading as Obama followed with "and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
"So help you God?" asked Roberts.
"So help me God."
As written, the official swearing-in speech begins: "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States...." But Roberts said, "I will execute the office of President to the United States faithfully." When Obama stumbled in repeating the line, it was because he had already memorized the passage exactly, and he knew what was supposed to be recited by the Chief Justice.
Of course, members of the Blue Area caught the error, and a few mumbles were heard, but none out of the ordinary. Once the words "so help me God" were sounded by Mr. Obama, the mystery was over. Folks in my area, black and white, rich and poor, old and young, and from every socio-economic background were overheard sniffing, and seen either crying or holding back the tears. The long struggle for black-white equality in America had indeed, crossed a threshhold with one big giant leap.
12:03 AM -
47-year-old Barack Hussein Obama is the first president of African-American descent in the history of the United States of America. It was a sight to behold. I felt so honored and humbled, especially since reports got back to us that many Blue Group ticket holders were later denied access because security people felt they had reached the maximum number of people to get in. Sometimes, it pays to be early.
FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
FROM CALVIN
12:40 PM -
As I left, I was lucky enough to capture a picture of the presidential helicopter with the Bush family leaving the U.S. Capitol, and the White House for the last time after the ceremony. At first, I felt a twinge of resentment to the one president whose approval rating at this point, is the lowest of any president in history, who never seemed to know that Black folk existed. Almost immediately, I softened, realizing that sometimes, old thinking is based on old habits, that are hard to break. As much as friends and neighbors in Riverview and black communities across the country disagreed with his policies that largely ignored the needs of African-Americans, I do respect the man for sticking with his principles. His helicopter circled the Capitol Rotunda once, then headed east to Andrews Air Force Base for the Bush trip to their new home in Texas.
3 PM-
After buying souvenirs, thanking my wonderful hosts and getting ready to head home, I heard on the CBS coverage that Senator Ted Kennedy had suffered a seizure just minutes after we had seen on in the cold afternoon air. Said a silent prayer for this majestic man from the one political family considered a friend to African-Americans.
I-81 SOUTHBOUND, NEAR WYTHEVILLE, VIRGINIA, TOWARDS HOME
3:45 PM-
I'm on the way back down I-81 to Tennessee. Before the mandatory stop at 9:55 PM in Bristol for 3 gallons of Pal's Peachy Tea, I have a ton of road salt to give back to Smyth County, Virginia, to go with the 6 inches of snow they couldn't get off the Intertate fast enough, on the way TO Washington.
Some Riverview folk say, they started thinking about "The Jeffersons" and "moving on up to the big time" when Barack Obama won the nation's popular vote to become President. Humorous references instructed us to try to avoid that, because that's what would be expected. All of that was replaced by the optimism of a new president, one who identifies with us in Riverview and South Central Kingsport, because he IS one of us. For my part, I will never forget the humbling experience of seeing history happen right before my eyes.
January 20, 2009.. a day to cherish. It is a day to live in our hearts and minds in Riverview, South Central and indeed ALL of Kingsport. Let the renewed challenge from the president of ALL our country, be bonded with three words that have always been there, but now, have inspired meaning:
YES, WE CAN!
--Calvin
--Calvin
MORE PICTURES ARE IN THE PHOTO GALLERY; CLICK ON THE PICTURES BELOW TO MAKE THEM BIGGER
Washington, D.C. The capital of the United States of America, intellectual capital of the Free World.
January 20th, 2009 was a special day, an understatement if there ever was one. It was one of those special moments in history. The first time a black family moved into the White House, who wasn't there to clean up or cook.
NOVEMBER 5, 2008:
The chronicle to witness one of the most important events in American history began a couple of months ago, when I starting floating a wild idea to actually GO to the inauguration. Many of our Douglass alumni and Riverview neighbors wanted to go and just be there in person, but trying to do a lot of things in this economy is difficult, if not impossible, especially traveling. I thought the same thing as many African-Americans for a few days after the inauguration; just think.. the 1st Black President. How would it be like to be there, in person, in the flesh.. seeing it, experiencing it.. breathing the same air, so to speak.
And then, I thought of the broader picture. African-Americans have a history as long and difficult as this country's history itself. I started thinking about all the black folk who fought the big fight for us to get to this point. Thoughts flooded my mind about fire hoses, busted-up voter registration drives, "white" and "colored" water fountains. All of those happened in our collective memories.. worse things happened just years before that. And then, there was just the harrassment.. "no, you can't do this.. no, you can't do that." It was always "NO, YOU CAN'T."
But one candidate for President told us during his campaign, we can overcome obstacles. HIS theme was "Yes.. we CAN," and he just happened to be a Black man. Although he was younger than I was, his words sounded inspirational, as if history was speaking to all of us right now. That man who just happened to be Black, had just overcome his own obstacles to be elected to the highest office in the Free World. It was at that moment, I decided that I was going to this inauguration, no matter how much it cost, and no matter the personal sacrifice. No sacrifice I could ever make in my life, would equal the sacrifices other African-Americans made years ago, just so we could all get to this moment in history.
Of all the events I felt privileged to attend, only one stood out in my mind.. I wanted to be there to hear Barack Obama say the words "Yes I do.. so help me God." That moment would be the one always frozen in time. The U.S. Constitution says, every four years, the duly elected president-designate has to be in sworn in at 12 noon.. I researched constitution scholars, and it turns out, the person who wins the election automatically becomes President at 12 Noon every four years, where there is a ceremony or not.
But this wouldn't be an ordinary ceremony. American politics and American history would not permit this man to just be automatically ushered into office. This ceremony would be special.
NOVEMBER 14, 2008:I applied for tickets to the inauguration ceremony on the U.S. Capitol steps on January 20th. The only way to get tickets was through my U.S. Senator or U.S. House Representative. Never thought of actually RECEIVING them.. so many people around the country had applied for tickets, I never had a hope of getting one of those coveted historical mementos. Imagine my surprise when I got an email from U.S. 3rd District Congressman Zach Wamp's office from Tennessee, that I would be getting inaugural tickets from them. I was profoundly shocked when I received a phone call from Tennessee's U.S. Senator Bob Corker's office that I would be getting tickets from that office, too.
Shock.. turned to awe at that point.
My late mother had a wonderful friend that she and her sisters knew from college at the Tennessee A & I State University (now Tennessee State) in Nashville.. she lives just outside Washington, D.C., her husband having retired from the U.S. Department of Transportation offices near Capitol Hill. Ernest Hawkins knew every in and out of the Capitol District, and he promised to personally get me as close to the events as possible.
Thousands of people had gotten the same message I did: the inauguration tickets have to be picked up Monday, January 19th, in the Congressman's or Senator's office. I made a spirited trip up I-81 in Virginia to Washington, and battled a 6-inch snowfall between Bristol and Roanoke to boot.
JANUARY 19, 2009:
9:15 AM -
I never dreamed the trip into the District, as it's called, would be so easy. Ernest Hawkins, my "chauffeur" lives out Pennsylvania Avenue on the other side of Andrews Air Force Base. I was getting antsy, and as the hours approached on the schedule to pick up the tickets, I grew more nervous, thinking the Capitol District would be blocked up, streets closed. I thought I would be walking for miles.
1:30 PM -
Mr. Hawkins delivered on the promise to get me in as close as possible, and did he ever. We found no streets blocked off at all. We actually drove right up to the U.S. Capitol, where crowds had formed to get into the Senate and House office buildings. Those lines were incredibly long, born by the necessity of metal detectors and screening at the buildings' front entrances.
The Everett Dirksen Senate Office Building was my first stop, the Washington office of Tennessee U.S. Senator Bob Corker. I made my way up to his office, showed my I.D. and picked up the admission ticket to history.
4:10 PM -
My next trek was the Longworth Building, one of many office complexes, housing the offices of many of our U.S. Representatives. My destination was Zach Wamp, Tennessee 3rd District Congressman, of which I had originally thought, well if I can't get tickets through Senator Corker's office, I might through Congressman Wamp's.
Thousands of ordinary citizens milling around, joking, having a good time, me included. It was a time that we all shared a common bond, where anybody could become a professional camera person. If I wanted to document my moment in history, there were plenty of ordinary citizens, a.k.a. camera people, that were only too willing to take my camera and record the moment, if I would return the favor.
4:55 PM -
After 45 minutes of standing in the wrong line at the wrong building (thanks to a D.C. cop too busy to really help me), it was over to the Longworth Building for U.S. House members. I finally got in the right line there with NewsChannel 9 colleague Tanya Mendis and a few other Chattanooga people. As the hour of closing the building approached, many Congress members came out and got their constituents to bring them inside to make sure they got their tickets, and Congressman Wamp came out and got us.
U.S. REP. ZACH WAMP'S OFFICE (R-3RD DISTRICT, TENNESSEE), WASHINGTON, D.C.
The reception in his office was in short, a family reunion, whose members all had tickets to history. The congressman's office had refreshments with picture-taking opportunities with Chattanooga neighors and friends, among them former City Judge Walter Williams, Hamilton County Commissioner Greg Beck, Chattanooga councilman Leamon Pierce, and current Tennessee State Representative Joanne Favors of Chattanooga, who told me to remind the folks in Kingsport to get Nathan Vaughn back into politics. Rep. Favors, a personal friend of Vaughn's, told me to convey the message that he was the victim of racism and that his Vaughn's leadership is still needed in Nashville. She said the Democrats' denial of the Republicans' attempted takeover of the State Senate failed, because of, among other things, actions taken to oust Vaughn from office; his other Democratic colleagues were angry about the racism directed by state Republicans towards Vaughn, in an spirited effort to take over the Tennessee Legislature. "Pure dirty politics, with a racial edge," she told me. "We need him back, so folks in Kingsport, keep the fires going."
I promised to convey the message to folks in Riverview and South Central Kingsport.
10:20 PM -
The day ended, with me going to bed early, because I wanted a head start on getting in line at the Blue Gate on Inauguration morning. THAT decision was one of the best I made the entire trip.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 20TH:
3:05 AM -
Mr. Hawkins knocked on my bedroom door, and I sat there on the edge of the bed for about 15 minutes, trying to decide if I "really want to do this." Home was only 9 hours distant.
3:40 PM -
After lining myself with insulating material, again thinking I would be walking for miles.. fooled again. We drove to within 4 blocks of the U.S. Capitol. Take that terrorists.. this is MY country. I got in line at the Blue Gate outside the Capitol grounds at 4:15 AM, temperature 21 degrees. I was about 8 or 9 people from the front of the line, which stretched about 200 feet across. The crowd at that time, about 2,000 people, were happy, jovial, getting songs started. The favorites were "Na-na-na na.. Hey, hey, hey.. Goodbye," (an obvious tribute to George Bush), "You've Got A Friend" (James Taylor), and anything Motown. I overheard one of the black ladies standing next to me, talking on her cellphone, referring to our group as "The American Idol" line. She'd had enough when they broke into "My Girl."
5:05 AM-
Glance over my shoulder. The crowd, now about 8,000 or 9,000 according to the TSA people, who've just arrived with their security screening stuff and metal detectors. Individual space was drawing up really fast, and unknown, strange-looking people bumping into me, touching me. Temperature still 21 degrees.
6:15 AM-
Just a small glimmer of sunlight, and the TV helicopters started buzzing the crowd, especially one from WUSA-TV. Crowd now estimated between 15,000 and 20,000, cannot see them around the street corners. Temperature now 20 degrees, I am not feeling my toes, and the shawl is not staying over my mouth and nose like it's supposed to.
7:15 AM-
The sun is up, but the temperature isn't. 20 degrees, my toes are numb, even with the foot warmers. The songs continued, and so did the shivering. The Washington Post says the crowd at the Blue Gate at 7 AM was about 30,000.
8:30 AM-
The TSA security people announced they were opening the gates early, because there were too many people to guarantee that everybody would get in, in time. Everybody stood up, pressed tightly together, all at the ready. Thoughts went through my mind of stampeding people at a Wal-Mart Christmas sale. All of a sudden, as one part of the fence opened slightly to permit a single-file line, there was a surge to that direction. Small, baby steps were the only way to move. Then, another area of the fence opened, and my group surged in that direction. Eventually, that was the way that got me to the screening with metal detectors.
8:40 AM-
The TSA agent ran the hand-held metal detector over me, and asked me why I had clear adhesive tape around my camera. I told him I had dropped it so many times, tape is the only thing holding it together. He just grinned and passed me through.
8:55 AM -
I made it around into the Blue area, which would be standing room only. It was located on the side of Capitol Hill, to the right as you're looking at it, right behind the Orange area, whose privileged folks were allowed seats to enjoy the Inauguration. My group questioned who those people had to know to get seats. We later found out, those "privileged" folks included Denzel Washington, Kobe Bryant, Steven Spielberg, Muhammad Ali and his wife, and a host of other celebrities.
9:35 AM -
Again, I'm about eight or nine people back from the barrier that separates the Blue from the Orange sections. Not believing I've spent the past six hours standing. Temperature now up to 23 degrees.
Again, folks start taking up available breathing space. Thank God for Irish Spring. Among the nearest places I could hear were Austin, Texas.. Chicago.. Portland, Oregon.. Greenville, Alabama (these Crimson Tide folks chided me on my Tennessee Big Orange jacket).. Flagstaff, Arizona. These Blue Section people are getting pretty rowdy. They were more "blue-collar" than blue area, very Democrat, and not afraid to express themselves and their political beliefs.. they had made their politics known by voting, and now they let it be known in no uncertain terms that their physical voices would be heard THIS election. America is the greatest country on Earth.
10:25 AM -
The U.S. Marine Band starts playing, and you can really tell the ex-soldiers in the crowd. Theirs were the care-worn faces, wrinkled with time, whose eyes glazed over, hearing "America the Beautiful" and the other patriotic songs. Those guys reminded me how proud I was to be an American, about to witness an historic moment.
11:10 AM -
My Blue Section group wasted no time, letting the rest of America know they were loyal Democrats. Each time a recognizable face arrived on the Jumbotron, their political leanings were known to the arrivals, because we were within earshot distance of them. Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy arrived to chants of "Teddie, Teddie, Teddie" and he graciously acknowledged our area with a nod and waves. It was a magical moment.
Demoratic Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid was also lauded with loud applause and whoops. So was Tennessee Favorite Son Al Gore, Junior and his wife Tipper. I even got slapped on the back by folks near me, because of my Tennessee Football "Big Orange" jacket, still providing a measure of warmth, by the way. Howard Dean acknowledged our Blue Area group's "YEE-awe" growl from his presidential campaign.
11:31 AM -
A large ovation came at the announcement of the arrival of former President Bill Clinton and his wife, presidential candidate and Secretary of State designee Hillary Clinton. I overhead behind me a loud "We still love you!" Each view of the Clintons produced enthusiatic yells and whoops from our group.
The arrival of Vice President Dick Cheney in a wheelchair did not escape the notice of the Blue Group. The V-P reportedly pulled a muscle while moving boxes and was told to stay off his feet for a few days. Overheard in my group: "Next time, spend the money and get Mayflower."
As guests and dignitaries were announced, straining to hear wasn't necessary. Each word from the announcer was as crisp and clear as the morning air, which at 28 degrees, had not risen that much since the early morning.
11:45 AM -
Finally, the arrivals were over. Everyone is in place. Dignitaries seated, with smiles on their faces, perhaps produced by the nip in the air, but probably by the pomp and circumstance of the occasion. The 2009 Presidential Inauguration began with a welcome flourish, people in predictable nervousness, as the results of hours of standing in long lines for hours earlier, and the prior day finally came to an end. This was the event we had all waited for, planned for, and anticipated for weeks and months prior. "Please," one white woman overheard behind me, "let's get this going." A white man standing near me was overhead to say, "let's get this man sworn in."
Hostess Dianne Feinstein produced a loud chuckle when she told the audience to "please be seated" at the end of the invocation, given by Dr. Rick Warren, in that our Blue Area group, all 30-thousand strong, had been standing the whole time. Given the uproar over his selection as Minister of the Invocation, the conflicts proved unnecessary. Dr. Warren spoke the Word with conviction and determination, and his prayer was well received. There's only one way to Preach the Gospel, and for men of God, it's the Right way.
As Senator Joe Biden was sworn into office by John Paul Stevens, Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, the mood in the air became electric. I heard someone behind me say "C'mon.. let's get this man in office." As mentioned earlier, Mr. Obama would have become President anyway; the person with the most delegates in the Electoral College is AUTOMATICALLY President at the first stroke of Noon on January 20th, every four years. The ceremony, the pagentry, the hoopla.. all mere formalities, ceremoniously performed with the pomp and circumstance the event calls for. The automatic ascension to office is thought to have been a war-time measure, designed to protect a President-elect, should an outside ceremony not be possible.
11:53 AM -
After a number from four of classical music's icons, cellist Yo-Yo Ma, clarinetist Anthony McGill, pianist Gabriela Montero, and violinist Itzhak Perlman, the moment arrives for the swearing in of the president-elect.
The swearing-in of 47-year-old Barack Obama began simple enough as Supreme Court Chief Justice Roberts, presiding over his first Presidential swearing-in, started reciting the oath Obama was to repeat, a few words at a time. That's when the program went slightly left of center.
"I, Barack Hussein Obama," began Roberts.
"I, Barack," said Obama, and before he could continue, Roberts said, "do solemnly swear."
Obama: "I, Barack Hussein Obama, do solemnly swear"
Roberts: "That I will execute the office of president to the United States faithfully...
Obama: "that I will execute..."
Before he could continue, Roberts said: "faithfully execute the office of president of the United States..."
Obama: "The office of president of the United States faithfully..."
At that point, Roberts got back on course, leading as Obama followed with "and will, to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States."
"So help you God?" asked Roberts.
"So help me God."
As written, the official swearing-in speech begins: "I do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States...." But Roberts said, "I will execute the office of President to the United States faithfully." When Obama stumbled in repeating the line, it was because he had already memorized the passage exactly, and he knew what was supposed to be recited by the Chief Justice.
Of course, members of the Blue Area caught the error, and a few mumbles were heard, but none out of the ordinary. Once the words "so help me God" were sounded by Mr. Obama, the mystery was over. Folks in my area, black and white, rich and poor, old and young, and from every socio-economic background were overheard sniffing, and seen either crying or holding back the tears. The long struggle for black-white equality in America had indeed, crossed a threshhold with one big giant leap.
12:03 AM -
47-year-old Barack Hussein Obama is the first president of African-American descent in the history of the United States of America. It was a sight to behold. I felt so honored and humbled, especially since reports got back to us that many Blue Group ticket holders were later denied access because security people felt they had reached the maximum number of people to get in. Sometimes, it pays to be early.
FROM THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
FROM CALVIN
12:40 PM -
As I left, I was lucky enough to capture a picture of the presidential helicopter with the Bush family leaving the U.S. Capitol, and the White House for the last time after the ceremony. At first, I felt a twinge of resentment to the one president whose approval rating at this point, is the lowest of any president in history, who never seemed to know that Black folk existed. Almost immediately, I softened, realizing that sometimes, old thinking is based on old habits, that are hard to break. As much as friends and neighbors in Riverview and black communities across the country disagreed with his policies that largely ignored the needs of African-Americans, I do respect the man for sticking with his principles. His helicopter circled the Capitol Rotunda once, then headed east to Andrews Air Force Base for the Bush trip to their new home in Texas.
3 PM-
After buying souvenirs, thanking my wonderful hosts and getting ready to head home, I heard on the CBS coverage that Senator Ted Kennedy had suffered a seizure just minutes after we had seen on in the cold afternoon air. Said a silent prayer for this majestic man from the one political family considered a friend to African-Americans.
I-81 SOUTHBOUND, NEAR WYTHEVILLE, VIRGINIA, TOWARDS HOME
3:45 PM-
I'm on the way back down I-81 to Tennessee. Before the mandatory stop at 9:55 PM in Bristol for 3 gallons of Pal's Peachy Tea, I have a ton of road salt to give back to Smyth County, Virginia, to go with the 6 inches of snow they couldn't get off the Intertate fast enough, on the way TO Washington.
Some Riverview folk say, they started thinking about "The Jeffersons" and "moving on up to the big time" when Barack Obama won the nation's popular vote to become President. Humorous references instructed us to try to avoid that, because that's what would be expected. All of that was replaced by the optimism of a new president, one who identifies with us in Riverview and South Central Kingsport, because he IS one of us. For my part, I will never forget the humbling experience of seeing history happen right before my eyes.
January 20, 2009.. a day to cherish. It is a day to live in our hearts and minds in Riverview, South Central and indeed ALL of Kingsport. Let the renewed challenge from the president of ALL our country, be bonded with three words that have always been there, but now, have inspired meaning:
YES, WE CAN!
--Calvin
Jennie Hankins at the Inauguration: "History From One Extreme to the Other"
MORE PICTURES IN THE PHOTO GALLERY
For Riverview resident Virginia (Jennie) Hankins, the 2009 inauguration of America's first African-American president began with an historic look back at one of the places where the Black Experience in America first started.
Colonial Williamsburg, as near as we can tell, was one of the main entry points into this country for the slave trade from Africa. As a student of African-American history, Jennie says it was fitting for her trip to the inauguration of the first Black president, begin with a visit to a place frozen on the OTHER side of history.
What was life like for those slaves on the plantations at Williamsburg?
"Our two guides were African-American themselves," Jennie says, "and they gave us the African-American perspective of life for slaves back in those times. They told us how differently the slaves lived, about them doing their jobs. Some of them were servers you know, standing at attention, waiting on something to do at the dinner table, while their "masters" and other people were talking about politics, community events, the government, and their slaves, how many they owned, what they had them doing, who's a good worker, who needs to be out in the fields, how much they could get for the pregnant slave women, especially if they bore male children."
Jenny says, the guides told them the "masters" talked of their slaves almost as if they were non-people, but little did the whites know, the slaves were actually hinging on every word they overheard. "They could hear which slaves were getting talked up, which helped determine their future," Jenny says she learned. "Who was going to be sold, who was going to get moved around. The slaves were listening, but pretending not to. What they heard, determined whether they should run away, try to stay with their family, what to take with them if they ran. Turns out, the slaves were smarter than the 'masters' gave tje, credit for. They also did subtle things to tip off their family members as to their intentions, but not the white slave owners or their families. The slaves had a well-thought out plan of staying one step ahead of the 'masters.'
"We saw the building where the plantation owners stored ammunition, with a wooden fence around it to keep the enemy out," Jennie says. "All the houses were original and restored to what they would have looked like back in 1785. The church was the government back then, and so whatever the church said to do, the government did it..no separation of church and state then. One white family was in charge of the church, another one was in charge of the school, still another in charge of the courthouse, and so on. A real step back in time."
From one extreme in history to the other, as the group entered Washington, D.C. for the inaugural of America's first Black president. "All you could see was people.. just people everywhere. Our destination was the Silver Gate, which was behind the Blue Gate folks where you were Calvin, but then we got turned in another direction as the Silver section got filled up too quickly. It was so crowded at times, your feet didn't have to touch the ground to move..they'd be moved for you. It was just packed. But it was so exciting.. people were singing when things would get kinda slow, somebody would break out in song, and that would get everybody back in a patriotic mood."
"I felt a cold chill when the band started playing the patriotic songs," Jennie says. "It brought tears to my eyes because I remember my granddaddy Thomas Cartwright, who'd fought in the wars for his country. When I was a kid, every time he'd hear the National Anthem or other patriotic song, he'd stop what he was doing, and just stand up and salute. This was his country. I get that same feeling, remembering him showing respect for the land he fought for. It's overwhelming, because I remember how patriotic he was."
"At the moment Barack Obama said the words 'so help me God,' my heart just melted," says Jennie. "This was so special. I hope his presidency gives everybody back home a different perspective on life.. our young people, some of them just mullng through life, not really with a purpose. I hope it gives them the realization that "YES, we can." When we were growing up, we hard our parent say 'you can be anything you want to be,' and while we'd all listen to it, we still had doubts in our minds, because we'd never witnessed things happen."
But this is here. it is now," she says. "Now we know 'we are better, we can do better."
"And we will DO better."
For Riverview resident Virginia (Jennie) Hankins, the 2009 inauguration of America's first African-American president began with an historic look back at one of the places where the Black Experience in America first started.
Colonial Williamsburg, as near as we can tell, was one of the main entry points into this country for the slave trade from Africa. As a student of African-American history, Jennie says it was fitting for her trip to the inauguration of the first Black president, begin with a visit to a place frozen on the OTHER side of history.
What was life like for those slaves on the plantations at Williamsburg?
"Our two guides were African-American themselves," Jennie says, "and they gave us the African-American perspective of life for slaves back in those times. They told us how differently the slaves lived, about them doing their jobs. Some of them were servers you know, standing at attention, waiting on something to do at the dinner table, while their "masters" and other people were talking about politics, community events, the government, and their slaves, how many they owned, what they had them doing, who's a good worker, who needs to be out in the fields, how much they could get for the pregnant slave women, especially if they bore male children."
Jenny says, the guides told them the "masters" talked of their slaves almost as if they were non-people, but little did the whites know, the slaves were actually hinging on every word they overheard. "They could hear which slaves were getting talked up, which helped determine their future," Jenny says she learned. "Who was going to be sold, who was going to get moved around. The slaves were listening, but pretending not to. What they heard, determined whether they should run away, try to stay with their family, what to take with them if they ran. Turns out, the slaves were smarter than the 'masters' gave tje, credit for. They also did subtle things to tip off their family members as to their intentions, but not the white slave owners or their families. The slaves had a well-thought out plan of staying one step ahead of the 'masters.'
"We saw the building where the plantation owners stored ammunition, with a wooden fence around it to keep the enemy out," Jennie says. "All the houses were original and restored to what they would have looked like back in 1785. The church was the government back then, and so whatever the church said to do, the government did it..no separation of church and state then. One white family was in charge of the church, another one was in charge of the school, still another in charge of the courthouse, and so on. A real step back in time."
From one extreme in history to the other, as the group entered Washington, D.C. for the inaugural of America's first Black president. "All you could see was people.. just people everywhere. Our destination was the Silver Gate, which was behind the Blue Gate folks where you were Calvin, but then we got turned in another direction as the Silver section got filled up too quickly. It was so crowded at times, your feet didn't have to touch the ground to move..they'd be moved for you. It was just packed. But it was so exciting.. people were singing when things would get kinda slow, somebody would break out in song, and that would get everybody back in a patriotic mood."
"I felt a cold chill when the band started playing the patriotic songs," Jennie says. "It brought tears to my eyes because I remember my granddaddy Thomas Cartwright, who'd fought in the wars for his country. When I was a kid, every time he'd hear the National Anthem or other patriotic song, he'd stop what he was doing, and just stand up and salute. This was his country. I get that same feeling, remembering him showing respect for the land he fought for. It's overwhelming, because I remember how patriotic he was."
"At the moment Barack Obama said the words 'so help me God,' my heart just melted," says Jennie. "This was so special. I hope his presidency gives everybody back home a different perspective on life.. our young people, some of them just mullng through life, not really with a purpose. I hope it gives them the realization that "YES, we can." When we were growing up, we hard our parent say 'you can be anything you want to be,' and while we'd all listen to it, we still had doubts in our minds, because we'd never witnessed things happen."
But this is here. it is now," she says. "Now we know 'we are better, we can do better."
"And we will DO better."
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