From Staff Reports
State Representative Juandalynn Givan continues to search for answers in the sudden closing of the George Washington Carver Memorial Gardens Cemetery. The cemetery where civil rights martyr Virgil Ware is buried and where his father was buried closed a month ago. It is also the final resting place of Erica Arrington, the daughter of Richard Arrington Jr., the first African American Mayor of the City of Birmingham.
On Wednesday before the funeral for James Ware Sr., the manager on site told employees that the cemetery was closing and that the final funeral would be that Saturday. She couldn’t say what comes next. George Washington Carver Cemetery, one of the largest cemeteries in the state, closed without any prior notice to their customers or patrons who have family members buried there, or who have purchased burial plots or graves for future burial services.
The phone has been disconnected at George Washington Carver Memorial Gardens. The office was closed Thursday morning and one of the gates was locked. Neighbors and frequent visitors say it’s usually open at that time of day. A number of customers are worried about what the future holds for their departed loved ones and for prepaid cemetery plots. Many carloads of concerned customers have shown up looking for answers, but there was no one from the management to greet them. The citizens are outraged by the blatant malfeasance and breach of fiduciary duty of the owner.
Records with the Alabama Department of Insurance show that Carver Cemetery has been operating without the necessary Certificate of Authority or Endowment Trust. Under Alabama law, funeral homes and cemeteries are required to maintain a log of all preneed merchandise and services sales. Endowment care cemeteries are required to maintain a log of all cemetery property sales. A preneed entity that is a combination funeral home/cemetery must maintain both logs. The logs should show all transactions made since April 30, 2002. All funeral homes and endowment care cemeteries had until April 1, 2010, to construct the log(s) with all historical information from April 30, 2002 to the end of the 2009 calendar year. The logs must be available for inspection as of April 1, 2010. There is also no record of an Annual Endowment Trust report being filed with the State. 
 The President and CEO of Carver, Louie Reese III, is represented by attorney Andrew J. Potts with Baker Donaldson, one of the biggest firms in the state and Fred Garfield of Spain Gillon. State Representative Juandalynn Givan has spoken with the Governor’s Office, Attorney General’s Office and the Department of insurance. Each has begun looking into this matter.
 “The people affected by this matter are absolutely distraught and feel they have been ripped off and defrauded. “ This situation has left many citizens emotionally distraught, said Givan “ 
 Givan states that the  keys issues are as follows for many of the affected citizens:

1.  What happens to the thousands of dollars paid by these consumers. Who will honor the burials.
2.  Who will maintain the grounds and graves that have been paid for. If the owner has violated any laws.
3.  If the state failed to regulate and govern over the cemetery.

The City of Birmingham’s Mayor, City Council and School Board Officials will be officially sworn in on Tuesday, October 22, 2013. The Mayor and City Council Inauguration Ceremony will take place on short 20th Street in front of City Hall at 9 a.m. with Council Meeting immediately following in City Council Chambers. School Board officials will be sworn in at 6 p.m. at Carver High School.
A joint reception for all officials will take place at Boutwell Auditorium starting at 7 p.m. Doors will open at 6:30. The public is encouraged to be a part of this historic day in the City of Birmingham.

Special for the Birmingham Times

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic High School’s work-study model depends on companies willing to invest in the lives of young people.
Birmingham-based law firm Christian & Small is doing just that this fall by covering the cost of a full year internship for Holy Family Cristo Rey junior Alexandria Thomas at Childcare Resources, a downtown Birmingham nonprofit.
Myra Davis, financial assistance coordinator who supervises Alexandria at Childcare Resources, said she plays a vital role for the agency that assists families needing information on financial assistance through the Supplemental Child Care Program and other needs. Five days a month, Alexandria restocks forms and prepares folders for clients, including pamphlets on free tax preparation seminars, Childcare Resources Guide to Choosing Child Care, and forms with the number clients can call for assistance. She also does computer data entry on providers and other work to assist Ms. Davis around the office.
“What Alexandria does is so important,” Ms. Davis said. It is time-consuming. She frees me up to do other things. Alexandria always has a smile on her face and is well-groomed and polite. She is an example of the great students being produced at Holy Family.”
Alexandria, who Ms. Davis says during three years at Childcare Resources has progressed from a shy teenager to a confident junior, said she gets a joy out of working there. “I love the fact that I am helping people in need,” she said.
The future pediatrician, who plans to attend college at UAB, Alabama State or the University of Alabama and medical school at UAB, said the lessons she is learning at Childcare Resources have helped her excel better in the classroom and prepared her for life in and after college. “Being at Holy Family has made me a better student,” Alexandria said.
Joan Wright, executive director at Childcare Resources, said Christian & Small is to be commended for investing in student’s lives at Holy Family Cristo Rey by sponsoring Alexandria’s internship this year.
“We want children to get the best life possible, and college is a big part of that,” Ms. Wright said. “Christian & Small by supporting Alexandria is showing that they care about the community.”
Christian & Small Managing Partner Deborah Alley Smith said the firm believes education is at the heart of economic and community development.
“It is rewarding for us to sponsor a student like Alexandria because we see the impact she is having in the workplace and the professional experience she is gaining,” Ms. Smith said. “With the education Alexandria is receiving at Holy Family, and the practical experience she is gaining at Childcare Resources,  Alexandria is on target to accomplish her academic and professional goals.”
Childcare Resources, founded in 1984 as a United Way initiative to help the community, serves clients in Blount, Jefferson, Shelby, and Walker counties. Ms. Wright said Alexandria takes a lot of pride in her work and it shows . “She is very responsible, we don’t have to babysit her,” Ms. Wright said. “Alexandria is getting exposed to a professional work environment at a young age.”
Since 2007, Holy Family Cristo Rey has been a part of the Chicago-based Cristo Rey Network, a group of 25 private college preparatory high schools across the country that have a unique work-study model. Students work one day a week at 80 plus corporate partners across metro Birmingham, offsetting 70 percent of the cost of their tuition.

Businesses interested in hiring a student intern or sponsoring a nonprofit should call Corporate Internship Program Director Kirk Mitchell at 205-253-0139 or email him at kmitchell@hfcristorey.org. For information on Holy Family Cristo Rey, go to www.hfcristorey.org.

An Installation Ceremony was held for Stillman’s 2013-2014 Student Government Association (SGA) President Rio Jackson (front row, 3rd from left) and her 14 cabinet members on Thursday, September 26.
Jackson, a senior from Los Angeles, California, who is majoring in psychology, admits that she was “thrilled, excited and honored”—but not surprised—when she was elected president last spring.
“In freshman year, I was a class senator. Later I was appointed a junior representative, and I was a vice president last year in Shalyn Smith’s cabinet. I always wanted to be SGA president. I love Stillman. I love our students. And I love the environment here,” Jackson says joyfully. “I was fortunate to learn from so many of our former SGA leaders. Now I have the experience to lead, and I’m so fortunate to have an outstanding cabinet.”
Although she notes that her full name, Rio Estrella Jackson, which translates to “River Star,” reflects her mother’s Panamanian heritage, Rio has a Golden State disposition. She is a perfect poster child for those who claim that Californians are among the most cheerful people in the nation.
Fortunately, she has an equally exuberant crew. Her cabinet members share her vision and, together, they hope to make Stillman one of our nation’s happiest campuses. After being elected last spring, they spoke to alumni and perused old yearbooks seeking ways to encourage student involvement, which is often directly linked to success and happiness in college. After reading an old yearbook article about “Clash of the Classes,” a campaign to encourage friendly competition among students, they decided to incorporate this theme into SGA Week activities.
Jackson says that she and her cabinet are inspired by memories that alumni have shared with them. “Alumni are like extended family. We really appreciate all that they do, and we like to hear about their experiences when they were here,” she says enthusiastically.
SGA has already hosted numerous activities this semester, including a toga party, a movie night, and a dating game. But Jackson says that one of their most challenging group activities was selecting suits for the Installation Ceremony. “Finding our suits is a dilemma every year, but it’s also a bonding time. I’m really happy with what we found. We all have blue suits and the males have yellow bowties—our school colors.”