’’ijortbub (Observer Black Histoiy Month
Page A6
February 25, 2009
Young Poet Achieved Despite Adversity
Feb. 4, 1977 - Feb 16, 2009
Iraqi army soldiers patrol Mosul after a U.S. soldier
was killed and three others were wounded in a shoot­
ing in 2008 at an Iraqi police station.
Timeline Set to
End Iraq War
All troops would leave in 2010
O b a m a P la n s P re sid e n t
B arack O bam a plans to re ­
m ove all U.S. com bat troops
from Iraq by A ugust 2010, ad­
m in is tra tio n o f fic ia ls said
Tuesday, ending the w ar that
defined his upstart presiden­
tial cam paign three m onths
later than he had promised.
The withdraw al plan — an
announcem ent could com e as
early as this w eek — calls for
leaving a large contingent of
troops behind, between 30,(XX)
and 50,(XX) troops, to advise
and train Iraqi security forces
and to protect U.S. interests.
O b a m a b u ilt e n o rm o u s
g ra ss-ro o ts su p p o rt fo r his
White House bid by pledging
to withdraw troops 16 months
after taking office. That sched­
ule, based on removing roughly
one brigade a month, was predi­
cated on com m anders deter­
mining that it would not endan­
ger U.S. troops left behind or
Iraq’s fragile security.
The contingent rem aining
will include intelligence and
surveillance sp ecialists and
their equipment, including un­
m anned aircraft, according to
tw o adm inistration officials
w ho spoke on condition o f
anonym ity because the plan
has not been made public.
The com plete withdraw al
o f Am erican forces will take
place by D ecem ber 2011, the
p e rio d by w h ich th e U .S .
agreed with Iraq to remove all
troops.
M a rin e M aj. G en . Jo h n
Kelly, who just left his job over­
se e in g U .S . o p e r a tio n s in
Anbar Province, said Tuesday
that he saw violence drop to
an almost "meaningless" level
over the past year.
Kelly told reporters T ues­
day that in the area that was
the hom e ground o f the Sunni
insurgency, A m erican com bat
forces don't have enough to
do and m ost could have pulled
out m onths ago.
A c c o rd in g to o f f ic ia ls ,
O bam a had requested a range
o f options from his top m ili­
tary advisers, including one
that w ould have w ithdraw n
troops in 16 months. Defense
S ecretary R obert G ates and
Adm. M ike M ullen, chairm an
of the Joint Chiefs o f Staff, had
recently forwarded withdrawal
a lte r n a tiv e s to th e W h ite
House for O bam a's consider­
ation.
Samuel M onroe "M arcel” Irving III, a Portland native, beloved
son and brother, went hom e to be with the Lord on Feb. 16,2009
after a 15 year-long struggle with M ultiple Sclerosis.
Sam was a person that thrived despite adversity. His am azing
strength o f character, ability to w ithstand the challenges o f life,
m aintain his faith, and rem ain optim istic, was evidenced by his
truly indom itable spirit.
Until his last day, he was convinced that he w ould beat MS
and walk, unassisted, across the stage to receive his B achelor’s
o f Science degree in Interdisci-
plinary Studies from C oncordia
Daily Evening
U niversity in May. The degree
by Sam uel M . Irv in g , I I I
w ill now be aw arded po sth u ­
mously.
Fantasies o f my life
P u sh in g p ast his p h y sical
with
the freedom to steps
lim itations Sam was challenged
no
longer
crooked
th e b o u n d a rie s o f w h a t the
world said he could and could
as my' blinded eyes
not do. He was determ ined to
overshadow the standards o f everyday
accom plish his goals and walk
drawn in a self reflection
in to his fu tu re y u n d au n ted ,
relived in nightly spasms
w ithout giving up.
and monthly flare ups
A s evidence o f his continual
striving for excellence, Sam was
o f needles scorching the tears
recently appointed to President
o f a present past
O bam a's Com mittee on Disabil­
becoming the lines between
ity Pow er and Pride w here he
what I truly feel
was to be instrum ental in bring­
ing issues o f the disability com ­
as myself in a condition
m unity to the forefront o f the
that invades my body.
presidential agenda.
However I no longer
D uring the sum m er o f 2(X)7,
allow society to place badges
Sam served as an A m erican A s­
sociation for People with D is­
o f special treatment on my chest
abilities Inform ation T echnol­
while placing kick
ogy Fellow for the Office o f Dis-
me signs on my back
a b ility at the D ep a rtm en t o f
because I am a survivor
H ealth an d H um an S erv ice s
where he is remembered warmly
o f daily struggle
by his colleagues.
and a child o f promise.
Sam also battled an imm ense
For 1 seek not
sense o f loss, grief and shame
to befriend mistaken ignorance
due to his rapidly progressing
illness. By w riting poetry, he
o f “ can I help you with that?
opened up a window to healing
or
and allow ed for the reclam ation
"do you want me to read this for you?”
o f his feelings, his voice, and all
because I am a descendant
that mattered to him in life. Until
th e e n d , p o e try g u id e d him
o f God's destiny
through rough tim es and trans­
and with every spasm
form ed him to profound levels.
my lips can take,
S am ’s last poem , albeit brief,
every thing that
sp o k e o f tra n s c e n d in g th e
my eyes cease to see,
b o u n d aries o f this w orld and
incorporated in my
e s c a p in g to th e s o la c e th a t
dragging
left sided years.
aw aited him in glory.
Just believe that my pain
exits beyond this page
and my soul rests
In God’s hands.
Sam was the author o f four
books o f poetry: Q uiet in the
S to rm , O p e n M e d ita tio n s ,
R ound M idnight (co-authored
with M arquis Stoudam ire) and
his m ost recent work. M anipu­
latin g A n o th er N oun (M A N )
H is poem s are also featured in
Poetry C ollection anthologies in
the Library o f Congress and the
N ational Library o f Poetry.
S am has b een fea tu re d in
new spapers and magazines. He
was the keynote speaker at sev­
eral ch ild ren ’s book fairs and
r e g u la r ly p ro d u c e d p o e try
slams in O regon and Indiana. He was a regular
guest on P ortland’s K BO O radio.
A tw o-tim e w inner o f the N ational S ociety’s
Poet o f the Year Award, he was the recipient of
the N ational A ssociation for Therapeutic Po­
etry C ounseling’s 2003 D istinguished Service
Award and was designated as a Poetry C oun­
selor in the field o f poetry therapy.
S am presented free w riting w orkshops to
children in Portland public schools and was very
proud o f the w ork he had done with King E l­
em entary school. He was a m em ber o f the M id­
w est S lam Team ; h o st o f P oetic Journey, a
w eekly telev isio n show in In d ian a’ and the
founder and ch ief executive officer o f A bstract
Visionz, a small press publishing com pany in
Portland.
A 1995 graduate o f U lysses S. G rant High
School, Sam attended H am pton U niversity in
Virginia for a short tim e before his disease pro­
gressed and he had to return home. Later, he
w orked briefly as a personal assistant to East
C oast m usic producer Teddy Riley.
B esides O regon, he has lived in Indiana,
M aryland, W ashington, D.C., Virginia and N ew
York and has traveled extensively in the C arib­
bean. M ost recently he realized a lifelong dream
o f basking in the sunlight on the beaches of
Trinidad, West Indies.
Friend and counselor to many, S am ’s life and
legacy will not be forgotten.
He was preceded in death by his baby brother
Sim one M arcus Irving. Survivors include his
m other W anda C ox-Irving and sister Dr. Shalon
M. Irving, both o f M aryland; his father Samuel
M. Irving Jr. o f Portland, the Sellers fam ily o f
C incinnati, the Riyers fam ily o f New Jersey and
the Irving family o f Portland and California; and
many, m any friends from coast to coast.
As per his w ishes, he was crem ated on Feb.
2 3 ,2 0 0 9 at G reenm ount Cem etery in Baltimore,
Md.
A hom e-going celebration will be held on
Saturday Feb. 28 at 2pm at Irvington C ovenant
Church, 4046 N.E. M artin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
A celebration o f S am ’s life will also be held
Sunday, M arch 1 at 3 p.m. at the A lbina C hris­
tian Life Center, 2149 N. W illamette Blvd.
Coach Charged with Sex Abuse
ful sexual penetration.
A C lack am as C ounty
p ro se c u to r says Avery
coached the victim both in
group and on-on-one set­
tings.
A local basketball coach
has been a rre ste d and
charged with five counts of
sex abuse involving a 17-
year-old female student ath­
lete.
H ow ard A very, 51, is
scheduled for arraignment
Friday on charges of sod­
omy, sex abuse and unlaw-
Howard
Avery
Of
Ask Deannai
Real People,
Real Advice
In Celebration
of Black History Month
Now through March 7, 2009
Portland Community College Cascade Campus
Moriarty Arts and Humanities Building, Room 104
705 North Killingsworth Street
For more information:
www.africanfilmfestival.org
503.244.6111, ext. 3630
Dear Deanna!
I walked away from a long marriage,
a new home and a family because I
wasn’t happy. My husband and
kids took me for granted and walked
over me. I did all I thought was
necessary such as counseling, hir­
ing babysitters for the kids and
losing weight. Noone in the family
has noticed or cared about my pain,
or cries for help or attention. Now
that I’m gone, ignoring everybody,
they don' t know what to do and are
begging me to come home. What do
I do? - T o m W ife; St. Louis, Mo.
Dear Toro Wife:
You need to have a major discus-
sion with your husband who ap­
pears to be part of the problem.
Your children don’t have a choice
but to fall in line because they
don’t pay any bills. Provide a list
of your needs and wants and
present them to your husband so
you can get on the same page. If
h e’s willing to accommodate the
important things on your list then
you have a chance of restoring
your marriage and regaining per­
sonal balance and footing in the
household.
Dear Deanna!
I’m a Christian and there are
things that I do that people d o n ’t
agree with. I feel as if I can drink
wine, enjoy music and wear what
I want to wear. D on’t get me
wrong, I love the Lord and do
what I'm supposed to do. My
life is fine but other people don’t
think so. I don’t like being judged
when other people at church do
the same thing but pretend to be
super holy. Do 1 need to go ahead
a'*ir 33ortlanb (Dbacrucr
Established 1970
USPS 9 5 9 - 6 8 0 ___________________________________
4747 NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd., Portland, OR 97211
and change churches because these
people aren't going to change? —
Honest Christian; Charleston ,
S.C.
Dear Honest:
If you were as rooted and tooted
in your faith as you pretend to be,
you w ouldn't worry about what
other people think. You need to
put your stones away and come
out of the same glass house that
everyone else is in. You’rejustas
guilty because you just so hap­
pen to know their business they
way they know yours. Do your­
self a favor and mind your busi­
ness, live according to G od’s
word and seek to receive growth
and understanding in your wor­
ship instead of human acceptance.
Ask Deanna is written by Deanna M.
Write Ask Deanna! at the email
askdeanna I <&yahoo, com or 264 S.
LaCienegaBlvd. Suite 1283Beverly
H ills, CA 90211. W ebsite:
www.askdeannfkivm
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