By Carl Kenney
November 13, 2014
The reentry into society following incarceration presents an array of challenges, but the most fundamental hurdle is housing – a key issue at this year’s Antioch Builds Community, Inc. annual meeting. “Right now housing is the biggest issue we are facing,” said Alesha Jones-Garrett, regional former offender specialist at the North Carolina Department of Commerce […]
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November 12, 2014
Editor’s Note: Staff writer Caitlin Ball was one of the photographers participating in the Oct. 10 Project Homeless Connect Durham event in which VOICE photographers made portraits for 55 people attending the support event at Durham Bulls Athletic Park. After spending the better part of the day meeting, talking to and photographing many Durham residents […]
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Durham Senior Divas cheerleading squad is out to get you moving, and thinking positive. The mantra of the seven-time North Carolina Senior Games gold medalists is simple: “You don’t stop playing because you grow old; you grow old because you stop playing,” But what keeps the Divas playing is that they have so much fun […]
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“Hands Up! Instruments Up!” Instructor Omar Ruiz-Lopez says to the group of young musicians. The section of Kidznotes waits expectantly for Ruiz-Lopez to raise his hands before raising their violins and playing the first note of the song of the day: “Fiddles on Fire.” Kidznotes, a free orchestral community program for children K-8 grade, is […]
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Rapid Rehousing Program Coordinator Cynthia Harris believes that affordable housing should be available to everyone. “We’re not afraid to talk to anyone,” Harris says. “And when people call us, even if we can’t help them, we’re willing to give them resources to put them in the right direction. We don’t want them to leave New […]
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An initiative to help those in poverty fight it and its negative effects has come to Northeast Central Durham. REAL (Relationships Equipping Allies and Leaders) Durham is a collaboration between a host of agencies: End Poverty Durham, Durham Congregations in Action, East Durham Children’s Initiative, Healthy Families Durham and the Durham Economic Resource Center, REAL […]
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Individuals experiencing homelessness. That’s the phrase Tasha Melvin prefers over “homeless people,” because as she puts it, “homeless people” carries with it the connotation of being permanent. Melvin is the volunteer coordinator at Genesis Home, a temporary housing facility located at 300 N. Queen St. near downtown Durham. Melvin coordinates the home’s Circles of […]
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After being hit by a series of life events – including a divorce and the deaths of a few loved ones – that drove Durham resident Dawn Sims to start drinking again after nine years of sobriety, Sims knew she needed a new strategy for getting clean and staying sober. Sims said that was […]
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On the white picket fence at the corner of Hart and South Driver streets, there hangs a yellow wooden box with a metal roof and a glass door. This bright box is filled with novels and children’s stories, and it reads in bold purple letters on each side, “READ BOOKS.” On the front, a sign […]
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Twin sisters Oyinka and Oyinda Ajasa are only in the 7th grade, but they’re already planning to attend Duke Medical School together. “I want to be a pediatrician,” said Oyinda, a student at Rogers-Herr Middle School. Her sister also wants a career in medicine. “I want to be an oncologist,” Oyinka said. They both plan […]
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With winter right around the corner, Fayetteville Elementary School hopes to help every student in need. “We try to make sure no student is forgotten and has food, warm clothing, and any other school materials they need,” said Charlotte Wilson, the school’s assistant principal. The school has a long list of charities that donate clothes, […]
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Julia Ross Harrelson grow up in Hurdle Mills, N.C., on a farm with more than 114 acres of tobacco, squash, snap peas and anything else you could think of. The youngest of eight children, Harrelson had the task of collecting wood for the stove and gathering water from the spring near the farm. Her father […]
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November 10, 2014
The purpose of suspensions is to take a student out of an environment where a problem was caused or a problem is brewing. The goal of a modern school is to keep a child in a structured learning environment at all cost. The idea of suspension is the exact opposite of what schools try to […]
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November 2, 2014
What is the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Thanksgiving? Most people think of turkey, ham, stuffing, cranberry sauce, pumpkin pie, and other popular fixings. Food is one of the highlights of Thanksgiving, but some people have become so caught up in what is on their plates that they have forgotten […]
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