Passing of a warrior Reflections on the death of Smokin’ Joe Frazier
Page B3
Vol. 83 No. 32
CAC Audited NOVEMBER 10 – 16, 2011
COMPLIMENTARY
stlamerican.com
COGIC will return to STL in 2013
‘The great Joe Frazier’ gone at age 67 Spinks team member Sam Moore remembers a legend
Second successful Holy Convocation earns additional year as host city
By Chris King Of The St. Louis American
By Kenya Vaughn Of The St. Louis American “This has been one of the greatest convocations I’ve ever experienced in all of my life,” said Church Of God In Christ Presiding Bishop Charles E. Blake “Convocation as tens of is a mass appro- Sr., thousands of priation of all of COGIC saints sat the resources of attentively in the the church in one Edward Jones Dome on the eve location, and of the final day of that’s why it their 104th Holy seems so Convocation. Of those 104, profound.” Blake has attended more than half – Elder CJ Bolden – a point he made as he welcomed his flock to St. Louis six days before. While Blake mostly praised the staff that pulled together the convocation, he made it plain that St. Louis had a heavy hand in COGIC’s success. See COGIC, A7
Photo by Wiley Price
Spiritual dancers performed at the Edward Jones Dome during Sunday services for the 104th Holy Convocation of the Church of God in Christ held in St. Louis. For more convocation photos, visit www.stlamerican.com.
NEW RECORD FOR BLACK GIVING Charmaine Chapman raises more than $2M for United Way American staff In the face of a strained economy and high unemployment rates, local African-American leaders secured $2 million for the United Way of Greater St. Louis, “You have set a setting a new high for new standard United Way’s Africannationally, and you American giving locally and nationally. will help more peoOrvin Kimbrough, a ple as a result of it.” United Way senior vice president, congratulated – Orvin Kimbrough, the members of the United Way senior African-American vice president Leadership Cabinet on reaching this year’s goal. “You all should take a bow because you helped navigate a tough economy and march right into the history books – you have secured $2 million through African-American giving in this See GIVING, A7
Danny Ludeman, 2011 campaign chair with Richard Mark, 2011 African American Leadership Society chair
Former heavyweight champion Michael Spinks is not yet ready to talk about the enormous loss of his friend, boxing legend Joe Frazier, who passed Monday night from liver cancer at age 67. “Michael said he has lost so many friends that he is just overwhelmed with the sadness that has occurred around him,” said Alderman Samuel Former heavyweight champion Moore, a close confidante of the Spinks Joe Frazier family. passed Monday They all worked night from liver cancer at age 67 closely together in Butch Lewis in Philadelphia. Productions, which also managed Frazier’s early professional boxing career. “We all just saw Joe at Butch’s funeral,” Moore said. “We just lost Butch Lewis, and then to come round to Joe like that.” Lewis died July 23 at age 65. The son of a South Carolina sharecropper who won an Olympic gold medal in 1964 in See FRAZIER, A6
Library mandates more minority workforce ‘Everyone is a winner,’ says Pruitt of STL NAACP By Rebecca S. Rivas Of The St. Louis American The St. Louis Public Library Board of Directors passed a resolution Monday that mandates more minority workforce participation on the library’s $67.5 million renovation of the Central Library. The resolution puts an end to more than two months of protesting from a coalition of community organizations. “The most important thing is that the comSee LIBRARY, A6