The Voice Newspapers, Serving Chicago's West Side

REPORT FROM ALDERMAN EMMA MITTS

Stay Prepared in Unexpected Emergencies: Be READY
In the wake of the massive natural disaster flooding impacting hundreds of thousands of Houston, Texas residents following Hurricane Harvey, I’m dedicating this week’s column to the topic of emergency preparedness. Today --- right now, if the unexpected suddenly occurred, a massive fire, tornado, terrorist attack, power outage, flood or any host of other tragic episodes - - would YOU and your family be ready?
At some point in life - - everyone encounters disasters, large and small. The strong survive - - but the prepared also thrive in the aftermath. While there’s no way to avoid every possible negative situation, there are some simple things we all can do to improve our chances of successfully confronting any emergency - - here are a few to get you started:

R FIRST, Develop a Family Emergency Plan: Think about what you need to do if you have to leave your home immediately. What are the best escape routes? Locate at least two ways to exit each room. Remember to keep some money, identification and keys readily available. Next write it down and share with your family.
R Designate a Family Disaster Meeting Place: Establish at least two safe meeting places for everyone in a disaster. One should be outside, but close to your home. The second should be away from your neighborhood if the area becomes unsafe.
R Emergency Contacts & Communications: Choose an emergency contact person, out-of-town b if possible, as it’s often easier to call long distance than locally after a local/regional disaster. Contact the out-of-town friend/family member to ask them to be your family’s emergency contact, and share their phone number with your family. Keep a wired landline phone if possible - - cordless and cell phones may not work in an emergency, bur if that’s not an option - - always keep your phones fully charged. And teach children their address, phone number and how to call 911!
R Keep an Emergency Supply Kit: This need not be expensive -- if you do a little each shopping trip. Build an emergency supply kit in case you must evacuate or are stuck at home awaiting help. The basics: 3 days of water and non-perishable canned/dry food for each family member, medicine for seniors and disabled, battery-powered radio and flashlight with extra batteries, first aid supplies, change of clothing.

Stay Ready and Safe!

Need assistance or have a question? The 37th Ward Service Office is OPEN AND READY TO SERVE YOU during regular business hours, so feel free to call 773-379-0960 or stop by 4924 W. Chicago Ave. Monday-Thursday, 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., and Fridays, 9:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m. and Saturdays, 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon (except holidays). Thank you! You can also send an email: emitts@cityofchicago.org.

MONEY RUN By Kevin Pearson

Plan to Plan

Have you ever wondered why do I need a business plan? One may say to ones self “ I know what I want to sale. Can I just open my doors and start making money.” This is a thought that has crossed many entrepreneur minds, but having or not having a business plan can be the beginning or the end of ones business.
In early 2001, you all may know I published a hip-hop magazine that circulated in Chicago and two other major cities. The idea to start the magazine came over night. I can remember sitting on the floor in my brother’s room flipping through some old magazines. I looked him right in the eye and said, “ I want to start a hip-hop magazine.” Neither of us had writing experience and definitely no publishing experience, yet he was all in. Our entire business plan was fluttering in our imaginations.
Finally in 2003, after hundreds of hit or miss (only by the grace of God) we put out a full color glossy magazine. The hip-hop community loved the publication. We were on the media list of major music labels; we got passes to just about every hip-hop event. So what was wrong with that you ask? NO MONEY. We had zero revenue coming in, and no strategy in place to get any. We were the new guys on the block, and no ad agency would touch us. Also, big hip-hop publications where adding online versions of them selves, called e-zines, yet we still owed the printer. We hung on for a few years but closed shop in 2006.
In the end, we had a great product and tenacity, but no plan to execute anything. Today I plan everything, ever phone call, email, I even wrote a plan to write this column. “Remember no business has ever been totally successful with out a plan in place to make it successful.”

Want to increase your customers and profit, but don’t know where to start? Let us help, contact the Voice Newspapers at Ph: 773-889-0880 or email: austinvoiceads@gmail.com

AS I SEE IT By Representative La Shawn K. Ford

The Heroin Epidemic State of Emergency

I have been working with Director of the Illinois Department of Public Health, Nirav Shah, MD, JD, on our state’s response to the opioid overdose epidemic for much of the last year. We have held three West Side Heroin Town Hall meetings or press conferences, listening to community members, health experts, and law enforcement officials and spreading the word to the media. This week I filed House Resolution 592, which was drafted and approved by the director in March 2017. Now the work is done and the Illinois Opioid Action Plan will be announced this week. House Resolution 592 will assure that we continue to work on the issue and the West Side is not left out. House Resolution 592 urges Governor Bruce Rauner to declare a State of Emergency in Illinois due to the ongoing heroin crisis and urges the director of the Department of Public Health, Dr. Nirav Shah, to create a comprehensive plan to combat the heroin crisis. It also urges the State of Illinois to fully fund the Heroin Crisis Act.
Director Shah has noted that last year in Illinois, more people died from an opioid drug overdose (due to heroin and prescription opioid pain relievers) than the number of people who died due to all gun-related causes (including homicide, suicide, and accidental shootings). He also noted that more people died from an opioid drug overdose than in motor vehicle accidents. The scope of the problem is huge.
Because the scope of the problem is so large, my resolution calls for the governor to call a State of Emergency in the state, just as President Trump declared the opioid crisis a national emergency on August 10th, implementing the top recommendation from a presidential commission that studied the growing epidemic. The opioid crisis now kills more than 100 Americans daily. The growing toll led Trump to establish a presidential commission which urged Trump to formally designate it a national emergency to help mitigate the damage. Calling the opioid epidemic what it is, which is an emergency, could free up funds to confront the crisis.
This week, Governor Rauner is signing an Executive Order creating the Governor’s Opioid Prevention and Intervention Task Force and rolling out the Illinois Opioid Action Plan. We will look hard and carefully at how the plan is implemented, seeing if it can actually make a difference in our communities.
From the federal government to our state to our city to our hospitals to our community clinics, we have some great people working hard so eventually we will hopefully be able to say that we have made a difference in fighting this heroin epidemic and in saving the lives of our friends, neighbors and family members.

For more information, contact one of Ford’s Constituent Service Offices: 816 S. Oak Park Avenue in Oak Park at 708-445-3673, 4800 W. Chicago Avenue in Chicago at 773-378-5902 or in the Stratton Office Building in Springfield at 217-782-5962, or visit www.lashawnford.com.

REACHING BEYOND THE WALLS By Reverend Dr. T.C. Thomas, Sr. Pastor

Station Identification Break

Recently, I was watching television and there was a loud station identification notification that came on the television. I have been plagued by this station identification that always seems to interrupt my favorite programs. However, the station breaks provide important information to help bring awareness to what may be a troubling situation. This station break that happened told the city citizens that there was a storm that was on the way and its nature was severe. This fostered my thinking towards how the enemy will seek to cause breaks in our spiritual lives to disrupt our worship and praise to God! God has a better station break for us. God breaks in our lives yes to bless us, but also for reflective moments. Daily, we should allow God’s blessings to become a time that we enter into thanksgiving for all He has done for us. Let’s stop giving the enemy and his soldiers of destruction a place to give him credit. Turn the page so we can watch God work in our lives. Take the enemies breaks and turn it into a positive time to help ourselves and others become greater.

Dr. T.C. Thomas is the Pastor of Walls Memorial C.M.E. Church, 200 S. Sacramento Blvd., on Chicago’s west Side. He is a strong advocate for children, education, healthcare and most of all the people of God “being better and not bitter.” Rev. Thomas may be contacted at 773/533/2721.

A Call To Action: By Reverend Charles C. Brown, Ph.D. - Pastor, New Heaven Christian Church

The Main Goal is to Educate Our Youth

“Teachers open the door, but you must choose to enter” (Chinese Proverb).
The weather is changing, September is here, and the new school year has begun. As students return to class from their long summer break, it is time for our young learners to readjust to the rigors of academia. As each student begins the year with a clean slate, it is important to stress the critical role they play in achieving academic success. No matter how efficient an instructor may be in presenting the curriculum, in order to learn, a student must be self-motivated. Although instructors must be held accountable for creating an atmosphere that is conducive for learning, students must be held accountable for becoming active participants in the learning process, and parents must be held accountable for providing a working support system for their children (McCombs, 2017).
Therefore, an unbreakable triangular bond must be forged between the teacher, student, and parent. This process may be achieved through seven essential steps:
1) Teachers must provide the highest quality of education possible.
2) Parents must reinforce, and students must practice the skills, strategies, and techniques in the home that are taught in the classroom.
3) Students must attend school on a regular basis.
4) Lines of communication must remain open between the teacher and the parent.
5) An atmosphere of mutual respect must be maintained.
6) Students must come to class equipped, prepared, and focused on learning.
7) Parents and teachers must ensure the student stays on track.
Once the bond or connection has been created, the focus must be on sustaining an environment that will ensure academic success. This is an essential aspect of the student’s overall development, and without a doubt, it is a vital connection that will not only play a critical role in the child’s intellectual development, but also in his or her future endeavors. In the words of Dr. Richard Curwin, “When teachers and parents are allies and teammates, their combined influence on a child’s behavior can last for a lifetime.”
It must also be understood, that for varies reasons the educational process intimidates some parents. Therefore, teachers must be willing and able to address this delicate situation in a manner that does not create unwarranted conflict within the relationship. Both parents and teachers must be willing to understand that they are not enemies or adversaries, but allies in the process of educating our children. Doing so will ensure that neither the parent’s, teacher’s, or student’s concerns or abilities are undermined. We must always remember the timeless words of Nelson Mandela, when he said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.”

By: Charles C. Brown, PhD
drccbrown@gmail.com
Pastor, Professor, Advisee to State Representative LaShawn K. Ford, Illinois 8th District Chair of Higher Education, and the Co-Chair for the 37th Ward Pastors Alliance

What Does God Have To Do With It? Who’s Running It? By Angie Mims

THE LITTLE FOXES OF SIN IN A BELIEVING CHRISTIAN’S LIFE

If we’re honest with ourselves, some sins have a tendency of feeling good. Whether it’s the succulent kiss and hand filled grasp of our forbidden romantic love or the ongoing sips of Sangria, Moscato and Courvoisier with our friends, sin, plainly put, has a tendency of feeling good. After all, what is wrong with enjoying great company, with a room full of laughter and fun? Imported spirits that perfectly satisfy our palettes with honey suckle, pomegranates, raspberries, limes and green apples, provide us with a surge of relaxation that just could not be wrong, let alone be evil. Besides, it isn’t like we’re out snorting cocaine or parading up and down Cicero soliciting for paid sex from a hypocritical deacon. So what’s the problem?
As you’ve already gathered, this columnist previously didn’t mind a taste of a fine imported wine with great company around. Nevertheless, upon discovery during this Christian walk, I’ll readily admit that although many of us aren’t being serial killers, as Paul was in the Bible days nor are we aiding Boko Haram in kidnapping and trafficking young girls, it’s sometimes the subtle sins that cloud our judgement, blind our vision and stunt our growth in Christ.
And before the Christian who proudly proclaims that they’re neither a fornicator or a drinker, rest assured, the gossiper, the back stabber, the liar and the Big Pick Lottery Player are not guaranteed to have VIP seating in heaven’s box office.
So, what does God have to do with it? It’s the little foxes of sin that deter us from our destinations. Be it gossiping, a lack of integrity, over indulging in drinking, fornicating, or being envious of our fellow brothers and sister in Christ within our churches, inevitably, we end up spoiling the vine and wreaking havoc in our own lives. If these sins are unchecked, unfortunately, we delay our own destiny. My dear friend, you could be on the cusp of something so great, but these little foxes of sin are trying to delay your destination. Identify those little foxes and protect what God has given you - a future and a hope.

Angie Mims is a radio personality for the Promoting Precision Radio Show. She has interviewed many greats on her show such as NBC 5’s Art Norman, CLTV News Dr. Garrard McClendon, Dr. Jamal Harrison Bryant, Ebony Magazine’s Senior Editor, Lynn Norment, the former president of Nigeria, General Olesugun Obasanjo, NBA players and many others. Visit her online at www.promotingprecision.com. Angie loves to meet new people and is in a constant attempt to unite people from all over the world. If you have a great story, don’t hesitate! Email her at AngieMims@PromotingPrecision.com today! You may also call (708)-612-4864. Support The Austin Voice Newspaper and let them know your thoughts about her column.

JESUS FREEWAY EXPRESS

The Power of Positive thinking –
“The Bible Act of Faith”
Greetings my dear brethren (everyone that I may ask you this household question of old, which came first – the chicken or the egg’? Bible tells us how that in the beginning the earth was void and there was darkness all over the world; then came the Divine Spirit of the Living God who was, He is, and will be forevermore. Who hovered all over the face of the earth (the deep) causing light to appear dissipating the darkness. Then followed His creation of the inhabitants of His new earth in six days and rested the 7th day. The devil (Lucifer – Satan) began the cunning acts of disobedience on man to dishonor the supernatural power of his creator (God). Negative thoughts was brought to the man who God created; but the positive thoughts (faith) in God is needed by man in order to move God to answer his prayers.
Faith is the substance of things hoped for, evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Psychologists & sociologists infer that baby chicken must have come first before the egg in the beginning, but the supernatural power of God had concealed chicken life in the egg He first created and which on command the egg hatched giving birth to the baby chickens male & female – thus starting the generation of this big land bird (chicken) great for food (meat).
My lovely wife (Dorothy) now up in age reflected on her youthful years being raised in a Christian home where all the children must read the Bible daily; their mother a retired Rev. (Retired Pastor) of a church in Mississippi. One day the sky got gloomy, dark clouds hanging overhead, the wind blowing feartlessly with lightening skies – heavy high rain soon started, horrific thunder followed, everything in the house shaking and the light outage came while little Dorothy (age 10 at the time) read the Bible. Her mother had covered the mirror and turned off the lights earlier due to the strong lightening. Little Dorothy was disturbed by light outage because she wanted to read her Bible. She complained to the mother as she could not see to continue reading the Bible in which she was so engrossed. She innocently appealed to God in faith to stop the rain and lighting and God answered. Light soon returned. And Dorothy continued reading the Word of God (the Bible).
Little Dorothy’s situation taught all two things: 1. To have faith (trust) in God as an innocent little child with no atom of doubt. 2 Read the Bible daily. It is the heart and voice of God and pray without ceasing in faith. Prayer changes things for better. For prayer support call mat at (630) 965-0256. Also to volunteer in this year (2017), “All Christians, All churches Parade for Jesus/Revival – planning meetings continue. The events scheduled for August 26, 2017. Please call same number above to volunteer. Jesus loves you and so do I. Your brother in the Lord, Rev. (Apostle/Prophet ) E. Dada.

CANCER SOCIETY WARNS WOMEN OF THREAT FROM RADON EXPOSURE

A new report finds a statistically significant positive association between high levels of residential radon and the risk of hematologic (blood) cancer in women. This study is the first prospective population-based study of residential radon exposure and hematologic cancer risk, leading the authors to caution that it requires replication and whether it truly differs by sex.
Radon is a naturally-occurring byproduct of the decay of radium and is a known human lung carcinogen, the second-leading cause of lung cancer in the United States. Modeling studies show that radon delivers a non-negligible dose of alpha radiation to the bone marrow and therefore could be related to risk of hematologic cancers. More than 171,000 new cases of hematologic cancer and more than 58,000 deaths are expected in the United States in 2016. Hematologic cancers are the most expensive cancers to treat per quality-adjusted life year gained.
For the current study, researchers led by Lauren Teras, Ph.D., of the American Cancer Society used data from the American Cancer Society Cancer Prevention Study-II Nutrition Cohort established in 1992, to examine the association between county-level residential radon exposure and risk of Hematologic cancer. The analysis included 140,652 participants among whom there were 3,019 hematologic cancers during 19 years of follow-up. They found women living in counties with the highest mean radon concentration had a statistically significant 63% higher risk of hematologic cancer compared to those living in counties with the lowest radon levels. They also found evidence of a dose-response relationship.
The authors say men may have a higher baseline risk, possibly because of more exposure to occupational or other risk factors for hematologic cancer, reducing the impact of any additional risk from residential radon. In women, who have a smaller baseline risk, residential radon exposure might be a larger contributor to overall risk. Another reason may be that the women of this generation spent more time in their homes, so had more residential exposure than men.
According to Dr. Teras, “Radon is already associated with lung cancer and if other studies confirm the link to blood cancers, we think it would warrant strengthened public health efforts to mitigate residential radon risks.”

ST. MALACHY + PRECIOUS BLOOD REQUESTS HELP FOR MOBILE PANTRY

Father Matthew Eyerman, Pastor of St. Malachy + Precious Blood Catholic Church, 2248 West Washington Boulevard, reminds everyone that his congregation hosts deliveries by the Greater Chicago Food Depository Mobile Pantry on the third Tuesday of each month. Volunteers unload the truck, bag the food, and distribute non-perishables, fruits, and vegetables to West Side residents. This food is available to anyone free of charge and without income verification. Each month, St. Malachy + Precious Blood serves more than 250 households representing well over 750 people, regardless of weather conditions.

In past years, the public has donated a pallet mover, tables, and bins. This year, Father Eyerman is requesting help in obtaining items to keep staff and clients dry and warm:

• $500 will install a retractable canopy

• $100 will purchase a pop-up canopy to keep food and volunteers dry

• $75 provides hand warmers for volunteers

• $50 provides single-use rain ponchos for clients & volunteers

For information about the monthly Mobile Pantry at St. Malachy + Precious Blood or making contributions to the program, call Father Eyerman at 312/733-1068 or 312/919-1610.

MT. VERNON BAPTIST CHURCH OFFERING YOUNG ADULT RE-ENTRY PROGRAM FOR EAST GARFIELD

MT. VERNON BAPTIST CHURCH OFFERING YOUNG ADULT RE-ENTRY PROGRAM FOR EAST GARFIELD AND NEAR WEST YOUTH

Mt. Vernon Baptist Church, 2622 West Jackson Boulevard, is providing assessment, support, and referral services as part of its Community Violence Prevention Program (CVPP) Re-Entry Program for East Garfield and Near West youth and young adults being released from Department of Correction facilities.

Any East Garfield Park and Near West juvenile between the ages of 13-28 currently on parole from any Department of Correction facility, or returning to CVPP communities from Department of Correction facilities are eligible to participate in the Mt. Vernon Baptist Church CVPP Re-entry Program. Interested persons should call Denise Harris at 773/826-3295.

Thursday, September 14, 2017

MT. MORIAH #2 CHURCH’S BACK TO SCHOOL FEST IS A NEIGHBORHOOD LABOR OF LOVE

4600 & 4700 SUPERIOR BLOCK CLUB HOLDS ANNUAL BACK TO SCHOOL CHILDREN’S PARTY

Thursday, September 7, 2017

DANNY DAVIS LEADS ANNUAL BACK TO SCHOOL PARADE

MELISSA, JASON & JENEVA ERVIN HOST SUMMER FEST WEST AT JOHN MARSHALL HIGH SCHOOL

Thursday, August 31, 2017

DANIEL WEBSTER STAFF HOSTS BACK TO SCHOOL BASH

ALD. EMMA MITTS BRINGS HOT SUMMER GOSPEL TO LAFOLLETTE PARK

Thursday, August 24, 2017

GREATER ST. JOHN BIBLE CHURCH INVESTING IN FUTURES, NOT FUNERALS

CONGRESSMAN DAVIS STRESSES EDUCATION IN IMPROVING STATE OF BLACK MALES

Thursday, August 17, 2017