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THE MICHIGAN CHRONICLE

April 28-May 4, 2010

Page A-3

Second Front

Dr. Augustine Kole-James dies

Chief (Dr.) Augustine Kole-James, a board

certified internist who in 1996 founded the Pro- Care HMO, died March 24. He was 65.

Dr. Kole-James was born May 4, 1945 in

Lagos, Nigeria to the late Chief Nicholas Kole- James and Elizabeth Kole-James.

From his father, Dr. Kole-James he learned

to study and work for what he wanted, and to want only the best.

Dr. Kole-James decided to become a doctor

after being treated for nearly-fatal double pneu- monia by a Dublin-educated Nigerian doctor, Dr. Olumide, at age 10. He became motivated to study medicine and care for people just as he had been cared for. He became the first in his family to study medicine, and Dr. Olumide became his guide and mentor. Determination was his rule, and he read so much, other chil- dren called him a bookworm.

Dr. Kole-James was educated at the Uni-

versity of Ibadan, where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Physiology. In 1971, he emigrated to the United States to continue his studies. He enrolled at Columbia University, where he majored in pharmacy, and graduated in three years instead of four.

He also received a full scholarship to pursue

his doctoral degree at Wayne State University. He graduated with honors as a doctor of phar- macy in 1976.

Dr. Kole-James was accepted at five medical

schools, and decided to attend New York SUNY Downstate University, where he received his MD in 1981. He completed his residency in in- ternal medicine and became a diplomate of the American Board of Internal Medicine, American

Board of Clinical Internal Medicine, American Board of Managed Care Medicine, Fellow, Royal College of Physicians (USA) and Fellow, Ameri- can College of Physicians.

He began his private medical practices in

1981 and opened Professional Medical Centers in 1984. His practice consists of five multi-spe-

April 12, 2010

Kirk T Steudle Michigan Department of Transportation Director

State Transportation Building 425 W. Ottawa Street P.O. Box 30050 Lansing, MI 48909

Dear Mr. Steudle:

I write this letter out of great concern for

the citizens of Wayne County and particularly those who live in the city of Detroit.

I am certain that you understand and believe

that road construction and interstate transpor- tation are essential areas in which jobs and economic opportunities are most prevalent. We have had meeting after meeting in Detroit. Among those was a statewide meeting held here at my church involving the governor, your office and executives from the state to outline job opportunities and a commitment for di- versity. The stimulus money coming into the state and Detroit as well as federal dollars for the improvement of highways and roads should also impact people of color.

I am totally disappointed by the progress,

or lack thereof, as evidenced with no people of color visibly appearing on the streets and high- ways where construction is taking place. Per- haps I missed it, but maybe you can indicate by numbers which companies and individuals have the work.

Most recently, I was coming down M-39 and

saw a number of barrels and orange colored poles, various equipment, individuals working — and no people of color. Again, I was coming down Telegraph and a special corridor was lined with barrels and equipment — and again no people of color.

ceptable.

Mr. Steudle, this is outrageous and unac- It is against the commitment that the

governor made. It is not within keeping with the spirit of your commitment or the federal

An Open Letter to Kirk Steudle

cialty clinics in Detroit. Dr. Kole-James was a visionary and wanted

to treat the whole person while being sure ev- eryone had access to affordable, excellent med- ical care. To that end, he establinhed Pro-Care Health Plan. In 2004, he established Pro Care Plus, Inc., which provided health care services

to Wayne County residents. He was a member of Sacred Heart Catholic

Church, and attended regular services. He was appointed by the governor to a

number of committees, including the Medicaid Liaison Committee, MSIMS, and Quality Effec- tiveness Committee.

He also received the Doctor Recognition

Award from Mercy Hospital and the Merit Award by the Association of Poverty Adjudication Beneficiaries of Nigeria. He belonged to several organizations in the US and Nigeria, including membership in the AMA, MSMS, WCMS, DMS, ACP, ASIM, NMA and ANPA.

Among his many affiliations, he was chair-

man of the board of directors of the Nigerian Foundation of Michigan and vice chair of the African World Expo (leading three trade mis- sions to Nigeria). In 2009, he was bestowed the chieftancy title of Asiwaju Basegun of Egbaland at Music Hall in Detroit. He was recognized by those he taught and served as an outstanding example of excellence and compassion.

He often traveled back and forth to Nigeria

with his wife, Robin, to help people there. He never lost track of the land and the blood that made him who he was.

His favorite activities wer dining out, danc-

ing and traveling. He is survived by his wife, Robin; sons,

Kishawn and Kori; siblings, nieces, nephews and many others.

Interment took place at Elmwood Cemetery.

Arrangements were handled by Swanson Fu- neral Home.

High conflict divorce? How to be a united front: co-parenting challenges

government’s commitment to place minorities into this area of work. We continue to suffer as a result of the “good old boys network” of companies that are not hiring people of color. It is your responsibility, as the director of your department, to make certain that this is not occurring. I do not see it. I receive constant complaints about it and unless you actually do it, it is not going to occur. Many of us are so fed up with this process that there are those who believe that the only way to resolve this is to literally lie down on the highway to get you to see how critical it is.

As monies are coming into the state and

counties to do these roads and new dollars are coming to employ these people, you have to know that the unemployment level in Wayne County and the city of Detroit is twice that of our state and may be the highest in the nation. You have the opportunity to make a difference here. What are you going to do? What is the program? What do we need to do to resolve this now, and when are we going to stop talking about this situation and start to implement and make a difference? If not now, when? And if not you, who?

Please forward your response as soon as

possible. I am copying the governor because I want her to know how critical this issue is. I can be reached by e-mail at revwendellan- thony@gmail.com., by phone at 313.347.2820 or by fax at 313.347.2821.

Yours for fairness and diversity,

By Michelle Mitcham

All too often, the negative

effects of divorce go beyond the husband and wife. Do you know any children “caught in the middle” of a bitter di- vorce or separation? Maybe you know someone that is going through an intense, hostile, angry divorce that has children and you worry about how the divorce is af- fecting them.

When we take a closer

look, divorce and separation are becoming a normative event in American society and elsewhere. Nearly half of all marriages end in divorce. The probability of the demise of a first marriage within five years is 20 percent, increasing to nearly 33 percent after 10 years. Additionally, the length of a first marriage is short- lived, averaging approximately 8 years.

What about the children? How

does this affect them? The breakdown of a mar-

Rev. Dr. Wendell Anthony President WA:daf Cc: Gov. Jennifer Granholm

Emerging leaders convene to discus ‘Detroit’s untold stimulus package’

The public is invited to join

some of Detroit’s newest gen- eration of business owners, educators, entertainment pro- fessionals and civil servants at the Emerging Leaders Forum scheduled for Saturday, May 1, 3 to 5 p.m. at Cobo Confer- ence Center. The theme for the Freedom Weekend free signature event is “A New Gen- eration of Entrepreneurs: De- troit’s Untold Stimulus Pack- age.”

Proudly marking its ninth

year to present meaningful dialog to its audience, Maia Anthony, event facilitator for the forum, anticipates atten- dance will reach its maximum seating capacity of 200 and encourages pre-registration at www.freeinst.org. Anthony said, “Each panelist comes highly recommended and has had positive, measureable impact on the lives of many across the state of Michi- gan. Professionals who have chosen to remain in Michigan have been creative and innova- tive.”

The panelists, all of whom have embraced problems and

offered resolve to make Detroit and Michigan a better place to work and live, are as follows:

• Rev. David Bullock, presi- dent of Greenation

• Councilwoman Saunteel Jen- kins, founder of Petite Sweets

• Juan Atkins, International DJ and cofounder of Techno music

• Wayne Bradley, president of CIC Media Group

• Jonathan Edison, inspira- tional speaker and author

• Brandon Jessup, chairman of Michigan Forward

• Jon M. Campbell Sr., presi- dent and owner of JMC, Mc- Donald’s Franchisee

• Jocelyn Benson, assistant professor of law, Wayne State University

Angie Starr, of WGPR 107.5

FM radio’s “Mason in the Morn- ing,” the number two ranked morning show in the Detroit market, according to Abritron rating for radio listenership, will serve as mistress of cer- emony.

Starr, known for her sense

of humor and “home girl” flavor, will strive to get re- sponses applicable to the issues of today.

Khary “WAE” (We) Frazier,

award-winning public speaker in political and social forums, will serve as emcee.

As president of the Detroit

Hip-Hop Congress and the founder of the music group Generation Population, Fra- zier epitomizes the essence of emerging leadership.

Astute and quick on his

feet, Frazier will challenge each panelist with thought- provoking questions.

For additional information,

contact Carmen Carter at cacar200@yahoo.com.

The Freedom Institute,

founded by Rev. Dr. Wendell Anthony in 2001, is a not-for- profit organization created to enhance the social and eco- nomic impact of African Amer- icans and others. More than 20 events have been sched- uled for Freedom Weekend IX. To obtain an updated list, visit www.freeinst.org.

riage, and ultimately the process of separation and di- vorce, has damaging effects on the parents as well as the chil- dren involved. Often, individu- als who were once committed to stable, loving relationships find themselves in the middle of divorce engaging in highly- conflicted behaviors of fight- ing, hostility and blame. The impact of high conflict divorce on children can be stressful and traumatic.

Characteristics that typical-

ly define high-conflict divorce involve a lack of trust between parents, elevated anger levels, seeing things in black or white — all or none thinking, and a willingness to perpetuate a cycle of litigation. We see ex- amples of this played out on television, in movies, best- selling books, the Internet, talk shows and even on the news.

Perhaps you recall a very

well known actor that left a scathing message on the answering machine for his daughter in recent years — that was clearly a case of high conflict divorce. The child was “caught in the middle” of all the parental drama. We all know someone who is or has experienced a high-conflict di- vorce that put their children in the middle of the conflict, whether they knew it or not.

What I mean by that is, the

parents, while embroiled in their anger, oftentimes, inap- propriately confide in their children regarding the break- up, details of child support, unnecessary stories of the other parent’s character flaws, infidelities, court documents, financial information about assets, etc.

Furthermore, parents ex-

periencing this extreme hos- tility toward one another, oftentimes, engage in behav- iors that negatively affect the

children and diminish the re- lationship between them. In my work as a family mediator and specifically, as a parent- ing coordinator, I observed numerous high-conflict cases that needed an immediate intervention to help parents with conflict resolution skills, effective communication, and transitioning into being co- parents.

I was assigned to work with

court-ordered high-conflict separation and divorce cases involving children. What amazed me was how many parents had limited awareness and minimal understanding regarding the effects of their high-conflict behavior on the children.

Perhaps you’ve heard of the

parent that instructed their child to “ask your daddy when he will pay the child support” or “tell your mother I don’t have any more money to give,” or “you would have what you needed if your other parent didn’t spend it on that new car.

Sadly, this type of behavior

is all too common in high-con- flict separation and divorce.

Children can survive di-

vorce. However, they cannot survive unaffected by the ex- treme, chronic conflict and toxic fighting that occurs be- tween parents in an emotion- ally-charged divorce. The level and intensity of conflict be- tween parents during marriage is a very good indicator of the level and type of conflict that will ensue after the divorce, unless the parents learn how to be co-parents and not put the children in the middle.

Ten tips to becoming ef-

fective co-parents and taking children “out of the middle.”

• Do not discuss the adult

and court issues such as child support and the contact sched- ule and other issues about the

divorce with the children. • If you need someone to

lean on, call a friend, pastor, relative or seek professional help during this difficult time from a mental health profes- sional, not confiding in chil- dren.

• Promote the relevance of

the other parent to the child; both parents are the center of the child’s life and the child needs a relationship with each. Do not discuss the flaws or shortcomings of the other parent with the child.

• Do not send messages to

other parent through the chil- dren.

• Do not ask your child to

keep secrets about their ac- tivities at your home; children naturally want to discuss their world with both parents.

• Allow your children to

take their personal belongings with them when they visit the other parent.

• Allow your children

access to other parent (tele- phone, cell, e-mail) and don’t monitor their conversations with the other parent.

• Communicate through

a parent notebook or weekly email to other parent with latest news, school updates, and vacations. (This reduces conflicts and misunderstand- ings).

• Attend school functions,

celebrations, sports events, etc. and be cordial to other parents; this teaches your chil- dren how to get along despite your differences. It shows them how important they are and lastly, shows them that even though the love between their parents has changed, the love for them is constant and unwavering.

Dr. Michelle Mitcham is an

assistant professor of coun- selor education at the Univer- sity of South Florida.

McCormick Campaign Kickoff

Monique Baker McCormick Candidate for Wayne County Commissioner

invites you to attend her campaign kickoff District 7 ( 8 mile/Greenfield to Tele- graph to schoolcraft area) Join me: Friday, April 30, 6 pm at 15418 Schoolcraft Rd (off Greenfield) Special invited guest Congressman John Conyers and Mildred Gaddis host of AM1200 Inside Detroit Enjoy good people, food and entertainment by BT Baker and Friends. For more information call 313-863- 6998 or visit www.Forward- TogetherMichigan.com Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32