One woman, two careers
@stlouisamerican
See page A9 @stlouisamerican
St. LouiS AmericAn The
CAC Audited MAY 3 – 9, 2018
Vol. 90 No. 6 COMPLIMENTARY
stlamerican.com
‘Clean sweep’ of North St. Louis
Health care awardees honored at Salute Capacity crowd of 450 showed their support By Chris King Of The St. Louis American
Photo by Wiley Price
Malik Ahmed, president and CEO of Better Family Life, was joined by community partners on May 1 to announced revitalization efforts in four St. Louis neighborhoods: Hamilton Heights/ Wells-Goodfellow, Jeff VanderLou, Penrose/Kingsbury, and Walnut Park.
Better Family Life, RBC, builders plan to revitalize four neighborhoods By Niara Savage For The St. Louis American Better Family Life has recruited some community partners to make a “Clean Sweep” of North St. Louis this summer. Malik Ahmed, president and CEO of Better Family Life, described the efforts as “rebuilding the community with a hands-on approach” during an announcement on Tuesday, May 1 at the Better Family Life Cultural, Educational and
Business Center, 5415 Page Blvd. The Regional Business Council is partnering with Better Family Life, and 12 construction companies will donate time, resources and equipment to the Clean Sweep efforts. They will target four St. Louis neighborhoods: Hamilton Heights/ Wells-Goodfellow, Jeff VanderLou, Penrose/Kingsbury, and Walnut See SWEEP, A7
Attacking segregation New community report strategizes to ‘dismantle the divide’ By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American When she was 18, LaTonya and her African-American family were living in one of the few affordable housing complexes in predominantly white South St. Louis County. But because it is one of the most isolated areas from public transportation in the region, LaTonya had to walk along a treacherously narrow shoulder of Highway 141 to get to her $7.50-an-hour job at Burger King.
n Malik Ahmed, president and CEO of Better Family Life, described the efforts as “rebuilding the community with a hands-on approach.”
Dr. Garey L.C. Watkins sounded the keynote for the St. Louis American Foundation’s 2018 Salute to Excellence in Health Care in accepting the 2018 Lifetime Achiever in Health Care Award: “This award,” he said, “is not about Garey Watkins.” Like every other award recipient who addressed the capacity crowd of 450 at the Hilton St. Louis Frontenac Dr. Garey L.C. Watkins on Friday, April 27, Watkins passed his recognition onto those who have trained, supported and loved him. For Watkins, an ophthalmologist who served the U.S. military for more than three decades and retired from the U.S. Army as a lieutenant colonel, credit was due, foremost, to God, his family and his Angela educators. He praised East Clabon St. Louis public schools, Meharry Medical College and, especially, Homer G. Phillips Hospital, which brought him to St. Louis in 1972 and where he completed his residency in 1975. “To see all these black people teaching and all dressed up,” he said of Homer G. Phillips Hospital, “I was in awe.” That awe was overshadowed only by his unabashed, awesome love for his family, especially his See SALUTE, A6
Seeking ‘equity and excellence in higher education’ NAACP, new coalition address ‘unconstitutional’ underfunding of HBCUs By Rebecca Rivas Of The St. Louis American
“The risk of getting to the job was worth it to support the young children in her family,” stated a new community report written by seven local organizations. The 115-page report, “Segregation in St. Louis: Dismantling the Divide,” told the stories of many families like LaTonya’s who lacked access to health care, fresh food and good employment opportunities because the housing they could afford
Telayah Richards, a junior and communications major at Harris-Stowe State University, is a first-generation college student. As a freshman, she and about 20 other students from similar backgrounds attended a summer program that helped them transition into the college lifestyle. But funding for the program – as for many other things at Harris-Stowe – was limited, she said. “I wish we could have opened it up to more students like myself who come from a background where I wasn’t familiar with
See DIVIDE, A7
See NAACP, A6