Happily Divorced And After

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- The elegant women of The Social Lites, Inc. from past to present enjoyed celebrating 60 years in the Inland Empire with over 200 guests in attendance on Saturday, August 20, 2016 at the National Orange Show in San Bernardino.  Among the guests were Beautillion Alumni and former participants of the program, community leaders, and various community organizations.  Awards presented included a financial donation towards The Social Lites, Inc. 501© 3 scholarship foundation from Kappa Alpha Psi, Inc. (Riverside Chapter), recognition certificate from Assemblymember Cheryl Brown, 47^th District, Councilwoman Bessine Littlefield Richard, 6^th Ward, presentation plaque from The Swans Club to name a few. The celebration Master of Ceremonies included both Hon. Rikke Van Johnson, Former City Councilman, San Bernardino, Beautillion Knight 1973, and Anthony S. Blacksher, Professor of Sociology, Sir Knight 1999.  Dr. Regional Woods, Senior Pastor, Life Changing Ministries of San Bernardino, Sir Knight 1976 provided the invocation followed by entertainers Edwonda White and Soul Brothers Band. 

Be It Blue, Lavender, Or Lace, These Are the Women of Style and Grace was the theme for this elegant celebration in which Beautillion Sir Knight 1978 Robert Grace, Deputy District Attorney, Los Angeles County was the keynote speaker.  Attorney Grace stated as a young man growing up on the West Side of San Bernardino he reflected on how women in The Social Lites, Inc. inspired him to go to college.  Education continues to be a road map to meaningful employment.  Moreover, the Beautillion program provided not only him but a group of young men meaningful, lifelong experiences, including a trip out of the community in which they stayed in a nice hotel, attended cultural events, performed community service, and awarded scholarships to help finance their education beyond high school. Attorney Grace reminded attendees all lives matter, however, we need to know how important it is in the spirit of all lives matter, to remind others “Black Lives Matter!”  

Over 30 years this organization raised funds by bringing The Ebony Fashion Show annually to the community. This organization was one of the first organization to donate a sizeable scholarship to California State University, San Bernardino, contributed to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. statue located in downtown San Bernardino, holding membership with the NAACP, Chamber of Commerce and was recognized earlier this year by The San Bernardino League of Women Voters. 

The 50^th Beautillion Season will start the second weekend in October, 2016.  Mentoring young men towards a better future is their mission.  For additional information for the upcoming Beautillion season, please contact Mrs. Bettye Brewster, President at 951-204-0022 or Mrs. Helen Thomas, Correspondence 909-854-7730.  Application available via e-mail: Sociallites2@msn.com or www.socialitesinc.com.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- In an effort to prepare parents and students for the upcoming school year, Assemblymember Cheryl R. Brown (D-San Bernardino) hosted her 4^thAnnual Tools for Success Day in partnership with the Inland Empire Job Corp Center and a number of local businesses and non-profit organizations. This year, more than 500 students received a backpack stuffed with pencils, crayons, notebook paper, books, rulers and more.

“I’m so proud to host this annual event to provide students with the tools they need to be successful in the classroom,” said Assemblymember Brown. “It also gives me an opportunity to discuss our Legislature’s educational plans and accomplishments.” 

This year, Assemblymember Brown reported that our Legislature voted to increase funding for California schools by billions of dollars.  This year’s budget package provides additional funding for college readiness programs; counseling services; early education and child care programs; teacher recruitment; competitive matching grants to continue the Career Technical Education Incentive Grant Program (CTEIG); and grants to improve the quality of drinking water in public schools, preschools and day care centers.

Other local educational agencies such as the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools represented by Carolyn Tillman and the San Bernardino City Unified School District represented by Dr. Harold Vollkommer, made appearances to greet parents and students and highlight their accomplishments as well.

The 4^th Annual Tools for Success Day, emceed by KCAA Radio host Paul Rasso, was packed with information, giveaways, activities and included a special guest appearance by Speaker of the Assembly, Anthony Rendon (D-Paramount). “Attending Assemblymember Brown’s annual backpack giveaway was yet another reminder of her endless passion for public service. During the week, she’s in Sacramento fighting for her constituents. On weekends, she’s there for the families of San Bernardino – in last week’s case, providing students with the school supplies they need to succeed,” said Speaker Rendon. 

Also at the event, live entertainment was provided by Alive in the Lights and Flora Fauna from the San Bernardino Teen Music Workshop, and a host of vendors offered community resources such as housing assistance, Prop 47 information, Medi-Cal insurance sign-ups, services for undocumented citizens and nutrition education.

Other program speakers and participants included Mayor Carey Davis, City of San Bernardino; Dan Flores representing Supervisor Josie Gonzales, 5^th District; Board Member Gwendolyn Rodgers, San Bernardino School Board; Board Member BarBara Chavez, Fontana School Board; Board Member Randall Ceniceros, Colton School Board; Commissioner Kareem Gongora, Fontana Planning Commission; and Jorge Leyva representing the Mexican Consulate.

“It was a great event; especially because it’s about learning and getting an education,” said Claudia Lopez, Inland Empire Job Corps. “The Inland Empire Job Corps is honored to host this event every year and happy to help! The need for backpacks and supplies was evident by the number of families who attended the event. It was wonderful to see children with big smiles, walking away with their backpacks.”

The event concluded with a raffle and awards presentation. Raffle winners took home a 32 inch flat screen TV and bicycles donated by Assemblymember Brown and fruit trees donated by the Incredible Edible Community Gardens.

This year’s event was proudly sponsored by: Farmdale Creamery; Inland Empire Health Plan (IEHP); Community Action Partnership of San Bernardino County; KCAA Radio; City of San Bernardino Parks & Recreation; S.B. County Superintendent of Schools; Stater Bros.; Incredible Edible Community Gardens; Niagara Bottling; Home Depot; Pinnacle Medical Group; San Bernardino County Department of Public Health; First 5 San Bernardino; Mother’s Nutritional Center; Molina Healthcare of CA; Loma Linda University; TODEC Legal Center; Consulado of Guatemala in San Bernardino; San Bernardino County Fire; United Cerebral Palsy of the Inland Empire; Inland Behavioral & Health Services, Inc.; Consulado of Mexico in San Bernardino; Target; and the San Bernardino Valley Chapter of the Links.

For more information, contact Ashley Jones at (909) 381-3238.

SAN BERNARDINO, CA – The statewide 2016 #SchoolsNotPrisons Arts and Music Tour is coming to San Bernardino Thursday, August 25 to Saturday, 27, calling for less spending on punishment and more investment in education, health and support for young people. 

“We are spending money on the wrong things,” said Ayla Lopez, a senior at Arroyo Valley High School and an Inland Congregations United for Change (ICUC) Student Leader. “Schools, not prisons, are what will keep our communities safe. The best thing we as a community can do to make positive changes is to vote.”

The week’s events will highlight three areas of action for the San Bernardino community: 1) Replacing harsh school discipline like suspensions with positive discipline that keeps kids in school; 2) Offering increased health services in schools, especially mental health; and 3) Increasing San Bernardino County’s investment in youth programs and services. 

“We spend $144,000 a year to lock up a young person in San Bernardino County, but only $10,300 per K-12 student,” said Dina Walker, President/CEO BLU Educational Foundation. “That needs to change so our young people can thrive and reach their full potential.” 

The week’s events are supported by a coalition of San Bernardino County organizations, including Time for Change Foundation, BLU Educational Foundation, COPE, ICUC, Life Center Church, United Nations of Consciousness, and Youth Action Project.

The week’s activities will begin Thursday, August 25, with a community roundtable bringing together school and city officials to discuss how San Bernardino can shift more public spending from punishment to prevention in schools and communities. The roundtable will be held at Inghram Community Center, 2050 N. Mt Vernon Ave., San Bernardino, CA 92411 and will begin at 11:30 a.m.

On Friday, August 26, ARTIVISM will take place at Anne Shirrells Park Community Center, 1367 N. California St., San Bernardino, California 92411 at 5 p.m. The youth exhibition, which will combine both art and activism, will provide local youth the opportunity to visually express their ideas for how to create safe and healthy communities.

The week’s events will be capped off by Saturday, August 27 with a arts and music festival at California State University, San Bernardino’s Santos Manuel Student Union. The festival will begin at 5:30 p.m. and will feature art, food, music and community presentations. There will be performances by Audio Push, Mistah F.A.B., The Occupation, Jasiri X and Low Leaf, along with local artists and special guests. All in attendance will be encouraged to vote and get involved in their communities.

“We’re hyped to be a part of this tour because we get to really stand behind something with substance,” said Oktane of Audio Push. “This isn’t just a concert for the money and a good time and then everybody leaves. This is really speaking for something bigger than all of us on that stage, and that’s always been what we’re about. A bigger purpose. We’re excited for what’s to come!”

The tour will support campaigns by San Bernardino youth and community leaders to create thriving, healthy and safe schools and communities. Right now there is too much harsh punishment in schools that’s harming San Bernardino’s young people, especially youth of color who are suspended most often. Last year, San Bernardino County schools suspended more than 22,000 students – that’s more students than attend California State University, San Bernardino.

Even one suspension increases the chances of dropout and getting in trouble with the law, and San Bernardino students need positive supports to help them when they get off-track.

A primary focus of the tour will be to increase peaceful activism and voting among California’s young people whose opportunities are being cut short by the overuse of punishment and overspending on jails and prisons. 

“This week of activism will give our community an opportunity to share its vision of real safety with our elected leaders,” said La’Nae Norwood, Executive Director/Founder of United Nations of Consciousness. “Young people must be part of the decision-making process, and when youth vote, we see the power of their voices.”

The week of action is a time for San Bernardino to unite around the goal of strengthening our communities, said San Bernardino City Unified Superintendent Dale Marsden. 

“We are grateful our community can come together to strengthen our systems of support for students,” said Superintendent Marsden. “Together we can make hope happen for every child.”

The #SchoolsNotPrisons Arts and Music Festival will be a free, all-ages event that will include art by San Bernardino youth, food and more. The event is free of drugs and alcohol. To attend the event, participants can RSVP at www.eventbrite.com/e/schoolsnotprisons-tour-san-bernardino-tickets-27058699298

Due to the extreme fires in San Bernardino County, The High Life Music Festival made the decision to postpone their music festival today when Gov. Jerry Brown declared a state of emergency in San Bernardino County. Wildfires are currently raging throughout communities with evacuations ordered to 82,000 residents in the area, making transportation to the region also difficult. 

The festival was to take place at The San Bernardino County Fairgrounds on August 20^th and 21^st, 2016, but is currently being used as an evacuation and animal shelter. As a result of this postponement, High Life Music Festival will continue to grant ticket holders admission to a future date once determined. 

“The High Life Music Festival would like to send our thoughts and prayers to the High Desert community affected by the tragic wild fires. It is with great disappointment, but a necessary decision we had to make to reschedule this year’s High Life Music Festival.  Safety is a priority for our festival goers, vendors, patients, sponsors, exhibitors, and staff,” said High Life management.  “We also respect the governor’s state of emergency declaration and the safety of our community and first responders.  We apologize to those who had planned to visit the area this weekend and hope you bear with us as we continue to make arrangements for a rescheduled date.” 

For more information and updates or to contact festival coordinators please visit www.highlifemusicfestival.com

Lou Coleman

By Lou Coleman

Yeah I said it! Just an egomaniac, arrogant, big-headed, cocksure person, thinking you are too good to be damned. Boasting that, “You are the Captain of your Fate; the Master of your Soul.” If you believe that Captain… I want you to know that your ship is about to Sink!

Many people think they are self-sufficient, no need for God. That spirit of independence apart from God is what the Bible calls pride. It ruined the human race [Genesis 3:5].  In Proverbs chapter 6 and verses 16 to 19 there is a list of seven things which God hates. These six things the LORD hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: a proud look, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that are swift in running to evil, a false witness who speaks lies, and one who sows discord among brethren. Pride is put at the top of the list because it is the main factor which drives men and women’s disobedience and rebellion against God’s laws. The Bible says: Every one that is proud in heart is an abomination to the Lord: though hand join in hand, he shall not go unpunished” [Proverbs. 16:5];   The Lord shall cut off… the tongue that speaketh proud things [Psalm 12:3]; “God resists the proud…” [James. 4:6] For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon everyone that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and ‘he shall be brought low [Isaiah 2:12].

With pride in your heart you provoke God to anger. Not only will God not help you, God will literally become your adversary [1 Peter 5:5].  A lesson from Biblical history – Who better than King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon to demonstrate a man who had God as an adversary. Daniel chapter 4 is a riveting one. I suggest you take a moment to read it. Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, had to learn the hard way. You don’t want to learn the hard way. You need to humble yourself on our own before the mighty hand of God, so He does not have to do the humbling to you or for you. Repeatedly God tells us pride precedes destruction. It’s not just that you will be humiliated. Ultimately you will be destroyed. Why? Because God hates pride, resists the proud, and sets Himself in battle array against the proud. Know that you will come to naught unless you repent. Worst of all, pride brings eternal ruin. Don’t take my word for it, read [Luke 18:9-14], the parable of the Pharisee and the publican.

As the Old Testament prophet Obadiah said: “Your proud heart has deceived you . . . . Though you soar aloft like the eagle, though your nest is set among the stars, from there I will bring you down, says the Lord.” And the greatest prophet of them all Isaiah, speaking for the Lord, told the proud that they will be forced to make their bed with worms and maggots. There is no pulling of punches when it comes to describing the fate of the proud in the Bible. Pride is a deadly sin that causes those filled to overflowing with themselves great sorrow and grief.

The message is clear from beginning to end in the Bible – the proud will ultimately be brought low. The proud will ultimately fall. The proud must live with the consequences of their actions and their deeds. Perhaps this is a good day to say sorry to God for the pride in your heart. Perhaps today is a good day to begin to put right those things that your pride has caused. Perhaps today is a good day to clothe yourself with humility and to start to live the Christ-like life God has shown to you. Don’t be deceived, God will not be mocked. What you sow you will reap!

You pray for me as I continue to pray for you!

By Ronda Racha Penrice, Urban News Service

Gymnast Simone Biles. Swimmer Simone Manuel. Shot putter Michelle Carter. All three won gold medals at the Rio 2016 Olympics in sports not typically associated with black American athletes.

Eighty years ago, a grand total of two black American women athletes, Tidye Pickett and Louise Stokes, both in track and field, traveled to the 1936 Olympics in Berlin, where Jesse Owens won four gold medals. Because his victories debunked Adolf Hitler’s pronouncements of Aryan supremacy, many believe Owens was the only black American Olympian there.

“He wasn’t alone,” says filmmaker Deborah Riley Draper. “There were 17 other people.” Her documentary, “Olympic Pride, American Prejudice,” tells the stories of Pickett, Stokes and the other black American Olympians with Owens.

Nine of them also won medals in the Nazi capital. Some did so with Owens. Some competed against him. Some didn’t compete with him at all. 

Ralph Metcalfe shared the podium for gold with Owens after the 4×100-meter relay. Then Metcalfe won silver to Owens’s gold in the 100-meter dash. Jackie Robinson’s brother, Mack, took silver to Owens’s gold in the 200-meter dash.

In high jump, Cornelius “Corny” Johnson won gold, while Owens’s fellow Ohio State Buckeye, Dave Albritton, snagged silver. Archie Williams mined gold and James “Jimmy” LuValle bronze in the 400-meter run. John Woodruff won gold in the 800-meter run. Frederick “Fritz” Pollard scored bronze in the 100-meter hurdles, and Jackie Wilson earned silver in bantamweight boxing. 

Draper found their stories accidentally while researching the life of American trumpeter Valaida Snow, who shared her tale after being interned during Hitler’s rise. Snow’s positive comments about the black American Olympians in Berlin sparked Draper’s curiosity. It took the former advertising executive four years to put the puzzle together. That puzzle is chock full of stunning archival footage, interviews with some of the Olympians’ children, and even actual audio from Olympians Williams and LuValle. In fact, their words help narrator Blair Underwood, also an executive producer, tell the story.

“It’s remarkable to have their voices and to have them kind of guide you through their experience through Berlin. It kind of feels like you’re having that conversation with Archie or Jimmy,” Draper says.

Digging through the archives of the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, Draper found interview transcripts and then hunted down the corresponding audio. As demonstrated in her breakthrough black-model-focused 2012 documentary, “Versailles ’73: American Runway Revolution,” Draper has a knack for letting her subjects speak for themselves. That was easy in “Versailles ’73;” her subjects were still alive. It is decidedly more difficult when all the subjects are dead. But Draper is committed to letting black people speak, even if it is about the 1930s where their voices are harder to find.

“I don’t like anyone to speak for me, so I don’t want to take someone else’s voice from them because I don’t like my voice taken from me,” Draper says. “I think that’s a respect thing.”

This also speaks to the independent filmmaker’s work ethic. Louise Stokes Fraser’s son, Wolfie, recognized it immediately after seeing an early cut of “Olympic Pride.”

“He looked for seven years to find footage of his mother and was unsuccessful, and he was a cameraman for NBC for 30 years,” says Draper, who found the footage in archives in both Los Angeles and Berlin.

When he did see his mother, Draper says, “He cried a lot. He saw his mom on the boat, and he saw his mom getting off the bus. He saw his mom in the stadium, the Nazi stadium, sitting there next to Mack Robinson. His mother. And he said he was so proud. Just seeing her reminded him of just how amazing his mother was.”

That kind of response is what keeps her Atlanta-based Coffee Bluff Productions grinding. (Draper named the company after a historic stretch of her native Savannah.) “Olympic Pride” premiered theatrically in New York and Santa Monica on August 5. It is also available on Comcast’s Xfinity Streampix and can be pre-ordered on Amazon. A 10-city expansion is in the works for September.

If Draper and those like her hope to continue to buck the Hollywood mainstream, she says, the public will have to step up and massively support these movies.

“We need a movement to elevate the film in the consciousness of people who want to see this type of film. We need folks on Facebook (1936OlympicsMovie) to tell us they like the film,” Draper says.

“We have to convince distributors that there’s an appetite for African-American films,” Draper says. “People have to be convinced that African-Americans want to see something different.”

Photo credit by the Riverside Police Department

RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA, U.S.A. – On Tuesday, August 10, 2016, Riverside Police Officers teamed up with undefeated, former two-time WBO World Boxing Champion, Mikey Garcia (35-0, 29 KOs), to hand out one hundred backpacks and various school supplies to kids in the Casa Blanca neighborhood. The event was part of the annual Riverside Police Department Backpack Giveaway program, held today at the Ysmael Villegas Community Center in Villegas Park. Garcia said, “This was a wonderful opportunity to come out and support these kids. As a parent, it feels good knowing that all of these children will be prepared with the adequate supplies for their first week of school. I’m a big advocate for education, so I gave some advice for the kids to take with them into this new school year. It was an honor to be a part of this program, and to partner with the Riverside Police Department.” The twenty-eight year-old Garcia trains nearby at the Robert Garcia Boxing Academy in Riverside.

Having the right tools and support is crucial for students to have a successful education. “It was great to have Mikey Garcia out here with us giving back to the community,” said Sgt. Barney of the Community Services Bureau. “The backpack giveaway is a joint sponsored activity by the Riverside Police Foundation and the Riverside Police Officers Association, and was designed to inspire children and let them know that their community supports their academic efforts. Both foundations were able to raise over $5,000 in school supplies for kids in the City of Riverside.”

For any inquiries, contact Lorin Chvotkin of Team Mikey Garcia by email at Lbchoyas@yahoo.com or by phone at (240) 498 1478.

For more information about the backpack giveaway program, contact Supervisor John Pedroza, with the Community Services Bureau of the Riverside Police Department by email at Jpedroza@riversideca.gov or by phone at (951) 826-5232.

Follow Garcia on Facebook

Follow Garcia on Instagram: @teammikeygarcia

Follow Garcia on Twitter: @MikeyGarcia

Hashtags: #TeamMikeyGarcia #RGBA #BackToSchool

SAN BERNARDINO, CA- As you may have heard, JCPenney is returning to San Bernardino by opening a new store at Inland Center this fall.  The store will bring over 200 new jobs to the San Bernardino area, and JCPenney is having two special hiring events, which you’re invited to cover:

• The first event will be held at Inland Center Mall at 500 Inland Center Drive, August 18-20 from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
• The second event will be held at the San Bernardino Employment Development Department location at 658 East Brier Drive, August 25-26 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.

Recruiters will seek department supervisors, replenishment and support associates, visual associates, sales associates (commission and non-commission), Sephora inside JCPenney beauty consultants and The Salon by InStyle stylists.  Interested candidates may also visit jcpcareers.com to view and apply for positions.

Due to the drought, it’s important to make every drop count. Saving a few gallons every day helps restore our water supply. Here are a few water-saving tips for around the home:

• Washing only full loads of laundry and dishes saves up to 50 gallons per week
• Fixing household leaks promptly saves up to 20 gallons per day
• Taking a five-minute shower saves up to 8 gallons each time
• Turning off the faucet while you brush your teeth saves up to 2.5 gallons per minute
• Buying water-saving devices like high-efficiency toilets, shower heads, clothes and dish washers saves many gallons per day!

Tips for residents and businesses on how to reduce water use inside and outdoors  are available at Metropolitan’s conservation website bewaterwise.com®, which also has information about how to apply for several different money-saving/water-saving rebates.

By Naomi K. Bonman

They say that if you want to see change that you must be the change. Meet Los Angeles, California native by the way of Midland, Texas, Rashaud Jones. Mr. Jones is being that change that he wants to see in his community. He is making a change through his music by being a voice for the voiceless. Under his stage name, HustleIsMandatory (H.I.M.), he broke into the music scene as an independent artist in October 2015 with the release of his first solo project entitled, “Dana Made H.I.M. Do It,” which was a concept piece based on conversations between H.I.M.’s late aunt Dana Augusta Wright and H.I.M over the last few years before her untimely death. He felt more than compelled to do it in honor of his aunt.

Now fast forward just one year later, and Mr. Jones is making an impact in his music once again with his current single #PROTECTUS which is off of his upcoming project #NOMOREHASHTAGS, which is inspired by the recent events that have occurred where innocent lives have been taken.

“In this moment we have to use our gifts and voices to stand up and say #PROTECTUS because if WE don’ history will continue to repeat itself. Therefore, we as people have to come together as one and showcase that not only “Black Lives Matters” but “All Lives Matter”.

Sophisticated Relations recently caught up with the prolific, uprising emcee where he chatted on his upcoming project, inspirations, and why we should all be using our platforms in order to create the change that we wish to see in the world.

To keep up with H.I.M. visit his website www.hustleismandatory.com or follow him on Instagram @hustleismandatory.

LISTEN TO THE INTERVIEW BELOW: