Maryland African American Pride Magazine

Recent News

From the January - February 2007 Issue

James L. Purnell, Jr.
President of the Worcester County Commission

The other Outstanding Achiever for this issue is James L. Purnell, Jr. of Berlin, MD. The Worcester County Commiss-ion elected its first and only Black member to head the governing body in December 2005. The District 3 represent-ative was unanimously elected president by Commission mem-bers. He had served as vice president for six years. He is a member of the Tri-County Council for the Lower Eastern Shore board and the Maryland Association of County Officials. Purnell was reelected for a fourth term last November.

James is the past president of the Worcester County Branch of the NAACP and served over eight years. He led the fight to create the majority-Black, District 3 seat on the Com-mission. Then he became the first and only one to occupy the seat.

A Berlin native, Purnell has been a school bus contractor for 30 years and is a former drapery manufacturer. He has been a community leader most of his life. A 32 degree Prince Hall Freemason, Purnell is a Past Worshipful Master of his Blue Lodge. He is also a past State Grand Master of the Odd Fellows of Maryland.

Married to Clemeth Purnell for 46 years, he is a member of St. Paul United Methodist Church in Berlin where he has held several positions.

Brown Elected 2nd Black Maryland Lt. Govenor

The Democratic win of the Maryland Governor's race places the second African American in a row into the Lt. Governor seat. Prince George's County State Del. Anthony G. Brown was Governor elect Martin O'Malley's run-ning mate in the closely contested November elections. Considered an asset to the campaign, Brown will also give the new Gov. much- needed experience in working with the State General Assembly. He was majority whip and a trusted lieutenant to House Speaker Michael E. Busch.

Born in Huntington, New York, 45 year old Brown is a 1984 cum laude graduate of Harvard University in government. He finished Harvard University Law School with a Juris Doctorate Degree in 1992 and was admitted to New York Bar in 1993, the Maryland Bar in 1994, and the District of Columbia Bar in 1994.

Brown served in the U.S. Army as an Aviation Officer (captain) from 1984 to 1989 and has been in the U.S. Army Reserve since 1989. He is currently a Colonel in the Judge Advocate General Corps there. He served in Iraq with 353rd Civil Affairs Command as Senior Con-sultant to the Iraqi Ministry of Displacement and Migration, 2004 -2005.

A member of the Mary-land House of Delegates since 1999 and its Majority Whip since 2004, Brown is a member of the Legislative Black Caucus of Maryland (formerly Maryland Legislative Black Caucus and was a member of the economic development committee. He had been a member of the boards of the Council of State Governments, since 2003, and of Adoptions Together, Inc., since 2001. A resident of Mitchellville, MD, Brown is married and has two children.

Queen Anne's elects its 1st Black County Councilman

Courtney M. Billups

Sample-Hughes Elected in Wicomico - Incumbents Re-elected
The November 2006 General Elections resulted in several gains in county council seats. Queen Anne's county elected Courtney M. Billups as its first African American county councilman. Wicomico County elected Shereee Sample-Hughes as the first African American woman to the Council; replacing African American Ed Taylor who retired from the council. Incumbents James L. Purnell, Jr. of Worcester County, William W. Pickrum of Kent County, and William Nichols of Dorchester County were all returned to their seats on their county's council or commiss-ion.

Billups, a resident of Ingleside, MD, is the managing principal of the Law Offices of Courtney M. Billups, in Washington, D.C. He and his wife also operate Ingleside Gardens tree nursery in Ingleside, MD. Billups is a graduate of Morehouse College in Atlanta, GA where he was a three-time all-conference run-ning back and graduated with honors. He received his law degree from George Washing-ton U. Law School.

Sheree Sample-Hughes

Sheree Sample-Hughes has won the District 1 seat on the Wicomico County Council with no opposition in the General Election after defeating her lone Democratic opposition in the September 12th Primary Elections.

A Salisbury native, Sheree is the daughter of Stephanie Sample and the late James Sample. She grew up in her predominantly-Black Coun-cil District and earned her bachelor's degree from Delaware State U. in public relations. She has been heavily involved in the Salisbury Westside community with her work and her community activities. She was Coordinator of the WestSide C-SAFE II and After School Initiatives pro-grams for the Wicomico Partnership for Families & Children. She is past president of the American Legion Auxiliary Unit #145 in Salisbury, a mentor, and a member of the NAACP and Wesley Temple United Methodist Church.

Orphan's Court Judges - Smack Elected to Worcester County Court

John Dale Smack II Incumbents Re-elected Democrat John Dale Smack III of Snow Hill, MD was elected Judge of the Orphans' Court in Worcester County in the November General Elections. Incumbents Norma Lee Barkley of Wicomico County and George Ames of Dorchester County were re-elected. A Worcester County Sheriff's deputy for over 18 years, Smack is now lieutenant for the Road Patrol division there. He is also the Patrol and SWAT Commander for the agency. The son of John Dale, Jr. and Leola Smack of Berlin, Dale is a graduate of Stephen Decatur High School and of the Eastern Shore Criminal Justice Academy. Elected to the Worcester County Democratic Central Committee in 2002, this was only his second bid for an elected office. After School Initiatives pro-grams for the Wicomico Partnership for Families & Children. She is past president of the American Legion Auxiliary Unit #145 in Salisbury, a mentor, and a member of the NAACP and Wesley Temple United Methodist Church.

Farrare Elected in Talbot County - Miles Re-elected in Somerset

Gloria Y. Farrare

Gloria Y. Farrare won the District 1 seat on the Talbot County Board of Education in the November General Elections. Incumbent William M. Miles was re-elected to his seat on the Somerset County Bd. of Educa-tion. Farrare is a Talbot County native who retired from Verizon and is now working at Easton Bank and Trust.

Duncan Showell American Legion Elects New Officers

Denise Purnell

Duncan Showell Ameri-can Legion Post #231 in Berlin, MD elected Larson Jarmon as its post commander and Denise Purnell as president of its Auxiliary for 2006-2007.

Jarmon is a US Navy veteran. A native of Berlin, he is the son of Minnie Jarmon and the late William Jones. He was in the first graduating class to include African Americans at Stephen Decatur High School in 1967. He later graduated from Goldy Beacom Jr. College of Business in business admin-istration.

Larson Jarmon

Purnell is also a native of Berlin and a graduate of Stephen Decatur High School there. She is the daughter of Norwood and Mary Whaley.

A nurse at Worcester Developmental Center in Newark, MD, Purnell graduated from Worcester Vocational School and Wor-Wic Commun-ity College in nursing. Among her affiliations, she is a member of the Color Guard of the American Legion Auxiliary, the Order of the Eastern Star, and Grace Tabernacle Praise and Deliverance of Seaford where she in the choir. Denise is married to George Purnell and lives in Snow Hill. She is the mother of four children and three step children.

Dr. Whittington Honored For His Community Service

The Phi Alpha Chapter of Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. honored Dr. DeWayne Whittington last November with its Special Service Award for "his outstanding contribu-tions and achievements in the community, the state, and the nation." The recognition was given during the chapter's Flounders' Day National Achievement Week and Schol-arship Breakfast held at the Chateau DeVille Banquet Cen-ter in Salisbury on November 18, 2006.

Dr. Whittington (l) receives a plaque from Chapter Basileus Jeff Dumpson.

Other awards presented at the affair were Citizen of the Year to Martha L. White of Accomac County, VA; Community Service Award to Wicomico County NAACP president Mary Ashanti; Education Award to Aaron Deal of Salisbury; Student Award to Julian Thompson of Crisfield High School; Omega Man of the Year to Bro. Jason Phillips; and Omega Service Award to Bros. Charles Goslee, James Handy, George Kent, and William Bender.

Dr. Whittington is a Somerset County native who returned home after graduating from Morgan State U. and worked his way through the same school system that he grew up in to become its first and only Black superintendent. While doing so he earned his master's degree in Education from Penn State U. and a Ph. D. degree from Nova University.

Now retired, Whittington remains active in his church and community. He is a past Basileus of the Phi Alpha Chapter and has been honored as its Man of the Year. He is chairman of the Board of Directors of SHORE UP!, Inc. and serves on several boards and committees. A recipient of numerous awards from his fratern-ity, the community, and his church Dr. Whittington lives with his long-time wife in Marion Station, MD.

Local AKA's To Serve On Regional And International AKA Committees

The Centennial Interna-tional President of AKA, Barbara A. McKenzie has appointed Lower Shore Delta Sigma Omega Chapter member, Marva Purnell-Greene to serve as AKA North Atlantic Region coordinator focusing on the Educational Advancement Foun-dation Inc. for DE, MD, MA, NY, NJ, Philadelphia, and Washington, DC.

AKA Centennial North Atlantic Region director Evelyn Sample-Oates has appointed Delta Sigma Omega Chapter president Kimberly Clonway-Dumpson Esq. to serve on the Regional Communication Com-mittee for the AKA chapters in DE, Philadelphia, and the MD Eastern Shore.

Wicomico Native Brian Mitchell Is A Delmarva TV Studio Supervisor

Wicomico native Brian Mitchell, Jr. serves as Studio Supervisor and Senior Director for WMDT-47 and Delmarva's CW3. He is responsible for production and quality control of the newscasts. Two studio directors and twelve studio employees report to him. Mitchell also oversees coordi-nating and training efforts for the entire department.

Brian Mitchell is shown above with some of his TV production equipment.

Brian came to the TV station six years ago after eleven years in the music industry with several record labels, holding the position of radio and retail marketing and promotion and artist relations. "I love what I do at WMDT-47 and Delmarva's CW3," said Mitchell in a recent interview. "I am very excited and enjoy being part of a team that supplies Delmarvans with their daily news and information."

Brian attends Higher Hope Temple of Apostolic Faith where he is a minister of the gospel, youth and teen Sunday School Teacher and head of the Audio/Video Minis-try. He believes in mentoring our youth and providing a support system for them that will help to ensure them of a sound future.

A Wicomico High School graduate, Brian is the son of Mary Stewart and Richard Sims. He is married to Danielle Mitchell and they have two children.

UMES News
News for and about the University of Maryland Eastern Shore

UMES Ggraduates Over 200 at December Commencement

Harold Baines

Some 250 graduates receiv-ed their degrees at the December 15th University of Maryland Eastern Shore Winter Commence-ment. Receiving an honorary doctorate were Harold Baines, St. Michael's native and a coach for the Chicago White Sox; C. Frederick Lankford, president and CEO of Lankford-Sysco Food Services, Inc.; commencement speaker Eleanor V. Horne, vice president of the ETS Social Investment Fund; Eric Forrest Conn, vice president of National Automobile Advertising for the American Honda Motor Com-pany; Roger Hathaway, head education program officer for the Office of Strategic Commun- ications and Education at NASA's Langley Research Center; and Receiving the Presidential Medal Award was Harry M. Lightfoot, retired foreign service officer from the U.S. Agency for International Development.

Eleanor V. Horne

C. Frederick Lankford

Of the degrees granted to the graduates, 195 were under-grad degrees, 36 were master's degrees, and 17 were doctoral degrees. The graduating class heard words of wisdom from commencement speaker Eleanor V. Horne, an accomplished woman who understands and invests in their futures. She challenged the class to make a difference.

As vice president of the ETS Social Investment Fund, Horne is dedicated to a number of projects, including those that help with the step from college to career. The Fund supports projects that improve the teaching and learning of English as a second language, help close achieve-ment gaps in education, and help individuals make effective transitions from one educational level to another and from school to work. She is most proud of the 23-year collaboration between ETS and the Nation's four-year Historically Black Colleges and Universities.

Mister & Miss UMES for 2006-2007 are crowned

The male and female students voted as exemplifying the best spirit of UMES were crown-ed Mister and Miss UMES last October. They are Terry Lee Savant Tyler of Bowie, MD and Ashley Shamieka Johnson of Baltimore County.

Terry Lee Savant Tyler

Ashley Shamieka Johnson

Tyler is a 21 year old honor student who is a senior majoring in accounting with a minor in business administration. He has made the National Dean's List two years in a row and been listed in Who's Who among American College and Universi-ties the last three years. He is a member of the NAACP, the National Association of Black Accountants, and Sigma Beta Delta honor society. Johnson is a senior major-ing in English non-teaching. She is an AKA and a member of sigma Tau Delta International English Honor Society. She has worked with the Hawk Messen-ger student newspaper and volunteered in an after-school tutoring program among her many activities. Mister and Miss UMES reign at homecoming activities and help host UMES events.

Talbot NAACP holds its Freedom Fund Banquet

Outstanding African Americans honored
The Talbot County Branch of the NAACP held its Greedom Fund Banquet on December 2, 2006 at Easton High School in Easton, MD. The branch honored several area community leaders.

Charles Edward Smothers

The mistress of cere-mony for the afternoon was Iris R. Whiting, Esq. and greetings were given by Easton Mayor Robert C. Willey, Talbot County Councilwoman Hilary B. Spence, and State NAACP Conference President Jenkins Odoms. The guest speaker was Marjorie Green, National NAACP board member. Music was provided by the UMES Jazz Band.

Several awards were given. The Harriet tubman Award was presented to Martha Ray Chase Green, retired public school teacher, church leader, and community activist. The US Veteran Award was presented to Charles Edward Smothers, the first Black commander of the predominantly white VFW Post #1158 in Easton, past com-mander of Blake-Blackston American Legion Post in Easton, and the first Black Chef deGare (commander) of the 40/8 in the Northern Shore District. He commanded the American Legion Post's Color guard that was National Color Guard Champion for four years and serves on the board of directors of the Veterans Cemetery in Beulah, MD.

Jo Ann D. Asparagus

The Life Achievement Award was presented to Kathleen A. Francis, retired Talbot County public school teacher after 34 years and former Board of Education member. The Thurgood Marshall Award was presented to The Honorable Jo Ann D. Asparagus, Domestic Relations Master for the 2nd Judicial Circuit of Maryland, member and past president of the Talbot County Board of Education, attorney, and former Legal Aid Bureau Chief.

The Frederick Douglass Award was awarded to Robert Julius Poney, Sr. posthum-ously. The church, fraternal, and community leader passed away in 1981. He was an Easton native and a Boy Scout Master.

The event was dedicated to Ella Luvenia Cooper Eason, civil rights and human rights activist who was a charter member of the branch and passed away May 22, 2006.