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lu i P qrii and O bserver • D ecember 18, 1996
CHILDWATCH
Grandparents raising grandchildren
House parties allow everyone to help black children
Bi. M A ki vs W sig h i E n k i \tv s
O n S e p te m b e r 2 6 . D w a y n e
Crom pton turned 50. But instead o f a
birthday party, he held a “ House P ar
ty" to help black children get a healthy
and safe start in life.
He told 200 or so friends who
attended his party no, to buy him a
new tie or any other gift, bu, instead
to donate the money to the Black
C om m unity Crusade for Children
(B C C C ) to help accom plish its m is
sion to leave no child behind.
D w a y n e , w h o ru n s K C M C
(K aring for Children is our M ain
C oncern), a w onderful child care
center in K ansas City, was one o fth e
270 black A m ericans across this
country who hosted H ouse Parties
on Septem ber 26 to support the C ru
sa d e’s work and renew the black
com m unity’s long tradition o f ser
vice and self-help.
N ational House Party Day is about
black folks taking responsibility and
building a m ovement for children by
opening their homes, schools, hous
es o f worship, and com m unity cen
ters to friends and neighbors who
want to improve the life chances o f
children. Follow ing are a few exam
ples o f the House Parties that have
been held around the country.
• Jim m ase Shalaby, a single mom
in T renton. N.J., invited several o f
her friends to a party she organ ized at
her apartm ent com plex's clubhouse.
She prom oted the event by hanging
posters throughout the com m unity,
and friends helped prepare food.
• A Richmond, V A „ group known
as Youth Nation 2001 held a party
highlighting M ocentric them es a, the
city’s A frican Cultural Center, It be
gan with a drum concert and attract
ed black college student. A local
grocer donated food.
• In New York City, superm odel
I man and her husband, rock star D av
id Bowie, hosted a dinner and auc
tioned com m em orative dinner plates
painted by celebrities, inc hiding Rosa
P a rk s , M u h a m m e d A li, M ay a
A n g e lo u . B ill C o s b y , W h o o p i
G oldberg, Eddie M urphy. W hitney
H ouston, Janet Jackson, Spike Lee
and O prah W infrey. A lso in New
York. BCCC W orking C om m ittee
m em ber G e o ff C anada held a house
party at his home, and the Persaud
B rothers, three young, black hum an
itarians known for hosting charity
functions, held a party for young
professionals and figures in the fash
ion and music industry.
• In Los Angeles, director O z Scott
and his wife, Lynne, opened their
home and, along with actress V ictoria
Rowell (w ho plays D rucilla W inters
on the Y oung & The Restless soap
opera), hosted a dow n-hom e, after
noon soul food feast with collard
greens, m acaroni and cheese, chick
en, and peach cobbler. G uests were
entertained by a ch ild ren ’s gospel
choir, a youth string quartet, and
three teenage pianists. A ctress Anna
M aria H orsford joined actor, Samuel
L. Jackson, and others on the host
com m ittee, and raffled o ff som e tra
ditional black dolls. Reed Tuckson,
president o f the C harles Drew C o l
lege o f M edicine and a m em ber of
the BCCC W orking C om m ittee, ad
dressed the guests.
• In W est H ollyw ood, Calif., re
cording artist Tevin C am pbell and
producer Q uincy Jones held a party
that featured New Q w est Jungle re
co rding artists Red Foo and Dre
Kroon.
• Pat W esley, w ho runs a day-care
center for children with special needs
in Dallas, decided to hold her party in
O ctober to coincide with a statew ide
recognition day for special needs
children.
Som e parties raised $10, w hile
som e raised tens o f thousands o f
dollars. Every dollar raised will be
m atched dollar for d o llar by a $3
million grant from the Charles Stewart
M ott Foundation and will be used to
support the w ork o f the BCCC and
endow the form er Alex H aley farm,
which is the C hildren’s Defense Fund;
B C C C ’s center for spiritual renew al,
and character and leadership d ev el
opm ent.
The most im portant thing about
H ouse Parties is that they allow ev
eryone to get involved in helping
children. A ta tim e when m a n y o fo u r
p o litical leaders are sh am elessly
abandoning children and their fam i
lies, I am so grateful that black folks
are com ing together to do w hat w e’ve
alw ays had to d o - ta k e care o f our
own. And w e’ll w ork together to
build a m ovem ent that is so pow erful
that no politician will ev er again be
able t hurt children as they did in
1996.
Elder advocates needed
V olunteers are needed to protect
the rights and dignity o f th e elderly
and to advocate for quality long term
care. They will serve as C ertificate
O m budsmen forthe residents o f nurs
ing homes, residential care facilities,
assisted living facilities, and adult
foster care homes. The advocates
will participate in a nationally-rec
ognized training program that covers
areas such as the aging process, com
munication skills, m editation, prob
lem-solving skills and investigations.
An orientation training will be held
in Portland beginning D ecem ber 5.
Certified O m budsm en investigate
com plaints and concerns o f the resi
dents and then work with the facili
ties to make changes. "O m budsm en
em pow er residents and provide a
means to solve their problem s,” says
Kathv Walter, Volunteer Recruitment
Supervisor. “ I think that som etim es
we forget about the elderly. But it is
im portant to rem em ber that th e y -th e
e ld e rly -h a v e the same rights, needs
and wants that everybody else does.”
For information about the program
o rto learn how toget involved, contact
Kathy W alterat 1-800-522,-2602.
Project Independence
Project Independence is a free
program for single parents and dis
placed homemakers located at the
Cascade Campus o f Portland Com
munity College. The program is ac
cepting applications for the class
wh ic h beg i ns on M onday, J an uary 6,
1997. For further information, please
call Linda Palmer at 978-5633.
G row ing num bers o f g randpar
ents are finding them selves parents
once again, housing and raising their
children's children. It is estim ated
that 3.4 million children in the U.S.
currently live in a household head
ed by their grandparent.
Tiie Center on Aging at Bradley
University has received a three-
year research grant from the N a
tional Institute on Aging to study
grandparents who are sharing a
household with agrandchikl. I lead
ing up the study is Dr. Rachel
Pruchno, the D irector o fth e C enter
on Aging and a well-know n psy
chologist who studies fam ilies in
their m iddle and later years.
The C enter on A ging w ill be co n
ducting personal and confidential
interview s with 700 g randparents,
age 50 o r older, w ho live w ith atleast
one grandchild under the age o f 18.
Dr. P ruchno stresses the im portance
o f g ran d p aren ts com ing forth and
sharing their ex periences, so that
researchers, ed u cato rs, and policy
m akers can b etter understand their
needs.
The G randparent Study will fill an
im portant know ledge gap by p ro v
ing inform ation about the challenges
and rew ards o f grandparents w ho are
raisin g ag ran d ch ild . Specifically, the
S tiff//
Male, 2 lbs 12oz, 15"
Mother: Qiana P C. Dixon
Grandparents/Paternal: Jacqueline Jones
Grandparent/M aternal: Patrick Dixon Sr.
Great Grandparents/M aternal: Chrttsbine Jones
Great Grandparents/Paternal: Wille A. Jones Sr.
Great Grandparents/Paternal: Larry Dixon Jr.
Great Grandparents/M aternal: Patricia Dixon o f Kalazou, ML
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study will identify grandparents w ho
are struggling w ith their new role,
w hether it be socially, em otionally,
or financially. T h ese findings will
be im portant to local and federal
agencies to b etter plan program s
and policies to assist fam ilies in the
future.
If you are a gran d p aren t sharing
a household with a grandchild and
you w ould like to p articipate in the
G randparent Study, call 1-800-695-
5927. R em em ber, by p articipating
you have the o p p o rtu n ity to im
prove the system an d have a voice in
the services and p o licies that are
being planned for the future.
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“24 Ways To Strengthen
A Weak Memory In
Classroom Learning”
by
V ivian O wens
l W rite a w ord or num ber dow n
on a card Refer to the card frequent
ly-
2. R ecite silently the num ber or
w ord several tim es before putting it
aw ay Return to it later for another
recital.
3. Recite "it" orally several tim es.
4. O rally discuss “it” with som e
one else w ho is also interested in the
details o f your topic.
5. Study “it" and m ake asso cia
tions w hich stim ulate instant recall.
6. Sing “it” and create a jingle.
Rehearse the song at every available
opportunity. 7. R em ove distractions
and allow y o u rself tim e to co n cen
trate when you need to m em orize or
rem em ber som ething. G ive yourself
a noise-free environm ent if possible,
or a soft m usic setting if you know
m usic helps.
8. W orries and anxieties handicap
memory. Rid yourself o f worries be
fore you set about a m em ory task by
writing the worries down on paper and
sticking the worry list into a brown
paper bag. Set the bag outside o f your
work door and accept perm ission to
return to it, after y o u ’ve concentrated
on your needed topic. 9. Consider
good nutrition as essential to a g<xxJ
memory. A sluggish, over-fed body
does not function well, and neither
does an under-fed body. Adequate
proteins in food promote alertness.
IO. A good nig h t’s sleep or a c a t
nap in the late afternoon will give the
brain the rest and restoration it needs
to perform for you.
I I . Read and reread an item you
w ant to rem em bers. Reading gives
you the connective tissue necessary
for recall and link.
12. E lim inate m edical reasons as a
cause for w eak m em ory. O ften, poor
m em ory in children or adults arise
from m edical conditions, w hich can
som etim es be corrected.
13. D evelop system s for m em o
rizing nam es, faces, num bers, p o
em s. long lists, short lists, facts, pro
cedures, or other item s by using a s
sociation techniques.
14 D evelop a m ethod w hich links
one item to som ething very vivid in
your im agination, allow ing you a
quick and easy retrieval.
15. D istin g u ish betw een those
item s that require m em orization and
those that require fam iliarity.
16. K now w hat type o f m em ory
you need for an item. D o you need a
detailed, replica o f an item, or do you
need a flashback recall? Do you need
a short term or long term m em ory for
a p articular item ?
17. L earn to observe People ob
serve with the m ind and see with the
eye. T each children to observe as
they see. Ask them questions as they
look at things, requiring them to look
for detail in observation. Point out
details w hich they m ight overlook
18. Reduce absentm indedness by
becom ing aw are o f w hat y o u ’re d o
ing during at a given m om ent Re
quire y o u rself to consciously observe
w here you put som ething
19. From routines or habits for
certain actions in order to elim inate
som e forgetfulness.
V