Garden to Groceries program goes a step further

by Kimberly McGrew
Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Not even the sweltering heat could stop the students of the Boys and Girls Club Technical Training Center from selling their nutritious treats at the Downtown Farmers Market on Saturday (June 30).

Their resolve was linked to "Gardens to Groceries" – the center's program that encourages students to grow their own foods through a new age of hydroponic gardening called aeroponic tower gardening. Aeroponic gardening requires no dirt; just mineral water, sunlight and air.

NBA’s Monta Ellis plays host in his new home

Milwaukee Bucks guard Monta Ellis experienced his first taste of hosting an upscale event and the proceeds were reaped by organizations in the city that he now calls home.

Ellis' giving efforts were recognized on Saturday (June 30) as his agency, the ME8Foundation, hosted its first public event, Romance on the Rooftop Day Party benefitting the National Civil Rights Museum and Stand for Children. The event featured R&B crooner Robin Thicke at the Peabody Hotel's Skyway and Rooftop.

HBCU royalty plan Session in Memphis

Royalty from more than 30 Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) are set to arrive in Memphis for four days (July 12-15) of intense training at the 11th annual Leadership Conference for Queens and Kings' Konnection sponsored by Verizon at The Peabody Hotel.

First Lady brings history home at AME session

Drawing upon the rich history of the nation's oldest African-American denomination, First Lady Michelle Obama encouraged all Americans to get involved in the lives of the nation's families and neighborhoods and the country as a whole.

Mrs. Obama addressed the 49th Quadrennial Session of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church's General Conference held in Nashville on June 28, the same day she spoke at a Memphis fundraiser.

First Lady connects during Memphis visit

"Sacrificed!"

That's the verb that resonated from Michelle Obama as the first lady shared elements of her upbringing with a Memphis-area crowd at the Canon Center on Wednesday afternoon. The reference was to her parents and the posture they took to make sure she and her brother had what each needed to succeed.

"They held us to the same high standard of excellence because they wanted us both to have the same kind of education they could only dream of," she said.

Brothers prove giving back is for the Byrds

by Brittany Fitzpatrick
Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Jim Byrd opened his first McDonald's in Memphis in 1989. Over 20 years later, he and his brother, Darrell Byrd, have built a successful business with a combined eight McDonald's restaurants.

"My dad always taught us that in anything we do we have to be twice as good at it. That's a philosophy we carry with us...and it's helped us in this business," said Darrell Byrd.

‘If we are not infected, we are affected’

The corner of Elvis Presley and Kerr was the site as the Cocaine Alcohol Awareness Program (CAAP, Inc.) and First Impressions Remix Barber Shop intersected with other community-based organizations to bring STD/HIV testing, food and fun, and door prizes to the community.

A simple swab has changed the way individuals can be tested for HIV today, with the portability of the testing making it more convenient to serve individuals wherever they are.

Memphis pastor reaps Congressional Gold Medal

At this stage in his life, the Rev. Dr. Lee Ward, pastor of Greater Harvest Church of God In Christ Ministries, Inc. in Memphis, has a storehouse of never-to-be-forgotten memories. On Wednesday (June 27), he added another.

Ward is a surviving member of the historic, Munford Point Marines, the first African-American members of the United States Marine Corps. He and his surviving Marine brothers were awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the highest honor that a citizen can achieve.

Service providers out to educate at health fairs

by Dr. Dee Lofton
Special to The New Tri-State Defender

Sharay Thomas and Terrance Moore, founders of Top Priority Homemaker Services, see their company as an extension of a personal mission to serve those in need.

Last Saturday (June 23), Thomas and Moore were out to get health fair visitors to see what they see. The venue was The New Olivet Baptist Church, where the health fair was co-sponsored by the church's HealTHY Congregation Ministry Delta Medical Center.

With ‘no room for error,’ TPC unfolds schools-merger plan

by Tarrin McGhee
Special to The New Tri-State Defender

The Transition Planning Commission (TPC) is convinced that it has come up with a schools merger plan that fits the needs of all the affected students.

That conviction was reflected by the unanimous vote (June 14) in favor of the first draft of the transition plan to guide the merger of Memphis and Shelby County Schools.

"Our desire is that all children will be educated well, and we believe we have a plan that can do that," said TPC Chairwoman Barbara Prescott at a post-vote media briefing.

TSD Health Fair bonds and bridges

Gregory Douglas and Kevin Hopson did not know each other before each took a finger and placed it in the hands of a third "stranger" at The New Tri-State Defender 2012 Health Fair on Saturday (June 16).

The third party was Okoia Uket, a second-year student at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center's College of Pharmacy. She's from Brooklyn, N.Y. Settings such as TSD's Annual Community Health Fair and Fun Day – held this year at Douglass High School in conjunction with the Juneteenth Freedom and Heritage Festival – help her practice in her area of interest and build up on local knowledge.

Healthy Church Challenge signals ‘the beginning of a new beginning’

Barbara Jackson was shocked and ecstatic after a representative from BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee announced that she had won first place and received a $500 gift certificate after losing the most weight during the Healthy Church Challenge 100-day weight loss competition.

The announcement of individual winners and churches that loss the greatest percentage of weight was delivered before hundreds on June 17 at the 19th Annual Juneteenth Freedom & Heritage Festival in historic Douglass Park in the North Memphis community.