Mount Olive Town Commissioner Barbara Kornegay, right, reads a proclamation for National School-Based Health Care Awareness Month (honoring Wayne Initiative for School Health, also known as WISH) during the town board’s Feb. 14 session Kornegay is joined by nurses Pam Anderson, left, WISH director, and Alice Summerlin,WISH centers manager.
Proclamations in support of Black History Month and National School-Based Health Care Awareness Month (honoring Wayne Initiative for School Health) were unanimously approved by the Mount Olive Town Board during its Tuesday, Feb. 14, session.
It was a light agenda with the meeting lasting just over an hour, including about 20 minutes spent in closed session.
The closed session was called to discuss the competence, performance and/or fitness of a town employee and to discuss property purchase negotiations.
There was no discussion or vote on either issue when the board returned to open session.
Town Clerk Sherry Davis read the Black History Month proclamation in which the town recognized that more than 60 percent of its population is made up of minorities and that a large segment of that population is the black community.
The proclamation adds that the town joins with the Carver High School Alumni and Friends Association “to encourage all citizens to become more aware of the many contributions of black Americans to all fields of endeavor including Civil Rights, black history, business, education, science, medicine, aviation, sports, military and politics.”
It adds that the perseverance and dedication of leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks, W. E. B. Du Bois, one of the founders of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, and Mary McLeod Bufune, who founded the National Council of Negro Women, have led to great advances in equal rights and focus groups to facilitate the growth and achievement of the black community.
Great strides have been made as well on the local, state and national levels in African Americans being elected to public positions, Davis read.
“Now therefore be it resolved that it is a privilege and a duty of the Mount Olive Town Board of Commissioners to recognize the importance of the black community and the month of February as Black History Month,” she read.
The proclamation encourages town residents to reflect on the contributions and achievements of the black community in the town, Wayne County and state.
It also designated Friday, Feb. 17, as Black History Day in the town.
Commissioner Vicky Darden reminded the board that the annual Black History Month Parade, sponsored by the Unity Organization, will be held Saturday, Feb. 25. The rain date is March 4.
The Rev. Dwight Merritt, pastor at Church of Deliverance in Mount Olive will serve as grand marshal.
Parade entries will line up between 11 a.m. and noon on Talton Avenue.
Signs will be in place to direct traffic to the line-up area.
Talton Avenue will be a one-way street on parade day, and parade units should enter Talton Avenue from the Old Mount Olive Highway.
The parade will turn left (south) onto Breazeale Avenue (U.S. 117 Business). The route will follow Breazeale Avenue south to the Carver Cultural Center (the old Carver High School) where it will disband.
Heath Care Awareness
Commissioner Barbara Kornegay read the proclamation for National School-Based Health Care Awareness Month (honoring Wayne Initiative for School Health, also known as WISH).
Kornegay was joined by nurses Alice Summerlin, WISH centers manager, and Pam Anderson, WISH director.
“We have seven WISH centers,” Summerlin said. “Two serve students who reside in Mount Olive. We have a center at Mount Olive Middle School and a center at Southern Wayne High School.
“We thank the town of Mount Olive for your continued support. You have been part of it for many years, and we do appreciate it.”
The town of Mount Olive recognizes that WISH is a nonprofit partnership of Wayne UNC Health Care, Wayne County Public Schools, local city and county government and community organizations, Kornegay read from the proclamation.
The program provides comprehensive health services to thousands of middle and high school students, she said.
WISH is celebrating its 25th anniversary, Kornegay said.
“Their goal is to help their students succeed in school by promoting healthy lifestyles, by providing comprehensive health care services designed to meet their needs and filling a vital need for health care services in Wayne County,” she said.
All students are eligible, with parental consent, to participate in the program, Kornegay noted.
It is a duty and privilege of the town to recognize the importance of the program, she said.
“Thank you all for your services,” Kornegay said. “Thank you for your hard work.”
WISH centers provide quality medical, nutritional, behavioral and preventative health care year after year.
The in-school centers staff six full-time registered nurses, six office assistants and two floating nurse practitioners, who work alongside registered dietitians, health educators, pediatricians and mental health providers to address a wide range of needs.
WISH offers in-school physical exams, adolescent health screenings, mental/behavior health visits and nutritional assessments as well as provides vital support to students with acute/chronic conditions.
