Page 10 - 2-13-15 Friday's Edition

Local
Several Families Participate In Demonstration On Student Day At Fairgrounds
BY LEON B. CREWS Sentinel Staff Writer
On Student Day at the Florida State Fair in 2014, Andrew and Deanna Joseph lost their son, An- drew, III. He was struck and killed by a vehicle after being ejected from the Fair- grounds along with almost 100 other students.
Since Andrew, III’s death, his parents have dedi- cated their lives, and the memory of their son, to mak- ing sure no one else loses a child due to what they de- scribed as non-concern over safety issues involving the students.
Mrs. Joseph said they are proud to have partici- pated in the Student Day demonstration, and they feel there is still a great need for awareness.
“It’s really sad that no one wants to take real responsi- bility to make sure the chil- dren are safe.
“We were able to interact with other families, and emo- tions were evident that some of them felt that Student Day should be abolished.”
Mr. and Mrs. Andrew (Deanna) Joseph, Jr. address the large group of parents outside the entrance to the Fair- grounds.
hear about. I think they are still an agency that polices it- self.
“We did have a major breakthrough with the charges being dropped against the kids that were with Andrew at the Fair. It took a year to get that done. A judge told us he believed An- drew’s ejection was illegal.”
Joseph, Jr. said next year, they’re going to con- tinue their safety campaign and asking the school district to divorce itself from having anything to do with the Fair.
“The School District openly participates in the Fair every year without first checking with the parents to see if they want their children to go. I don’t think it makes sense to have a school spon- sored day with all the prob- lems going on.
“They still don’t make safety their top priority ahead of profit. We’d like to see Stu- dent Day changed to Family Day to send the message that it’s a family event, not just for
the students.”
Joseph, Jr. said there’s
still a great lack of supervi- sion, and there are other ven- ues that put safety first like the Strawberry Festival.
“So, we know there are some things that can be done. I think the entire thing has been non-transparent and there are still a lot of ques- tions that haven’t been an- swered from last year.”
“I’m glad to have been a part of the Safety Plan, and although it was modified, I got about 85% of what I asked for. Now, we’re fighting for the remaining 15%.
“Things must change, be- cause we’re fighting for human rights. If they had found a stray dog on the Fair- grounds, they wouldn’t have just thrown it out.”
Joseph, Jr. said they’re planning a bigger demonstra- tion for next year, and they are grateful for all the fami- lies that joined them on the anniversary of their son’s death.
Mrs. Joseph said it seems the problems have gone beyond Student Day with the report of a woman injured on a ride at the Fair.
“We’re still mourning the loss of our son, but we feel what we’re trying to do is im- portant. You can’t save the world, but at least you can make some noise and show that someone must be held accountable.”
Joseph, Jr. said he felt Student Day could have been a lot safer.
“We’d still like to see more parent participation. The environment hasn’t changed from last year, and
we still think it’s not a safe place.
“We met with Sheriff David Gee before the demonstration, and we were successful in getting the ejec- tion age limit extended from 16 to 18.”
Joseph, Jr. said the issue of firearms on the Fair- grounds on Student Day is still a problem, and Sheriff Gee told him he’s aware of it.
“Every year, there seems to be major incidents at the Fair that the public doesn’t
Morehouse Man With Tampa Ties Making A Difference On College Campus
Former Tampan, Janet Myers Colley was very ac- tive in Tampa when she lived here over 20 years ago. After leaving, she married Atty. Kristopher Colley of Den- ver, CO, who was her friend while they attended Spelman College and Morehouse in the 1970s.
Now, Janet and now Judge Colley’s sons attend Morehouse College. Their eldest, Kris, Jr., a junior at Morehouse has spearheaded a project to improve the neighborhood around the col- leges. Kris, Jr. has estab- lished a GoFund to erect a Dream Wall.
After building the wall, Kris and his brother, Kyle, a freshman, and friends will clean up the area around the wall.
Kris, Jr. and Kyle are the godchildren of Sentinel publisher, S. Kay Andrews.
Over the past year, Kristopher Colley, Jr. and several of his colleagues in the Atlanta University Center (Spelman, Morehouse and Clark Atlanta) have been seeking the interest and sup- port for an expression wall close to the campuses in the AU Center. The title of the wall is “I Dream To One Day....Wall.”
“The goal of this wall is to become a place where stu- dents and members of the community can express their hopes, dreams, frustrations and aspirations,” Colley ex- plained. “The wall concept is not new, in fact similar walls exist throughout the United
THE DREAM WALL
States and across the world,” he further explained.
The wall in the AU Center is going to cost about $350.00. Kris and his col- leagues have reached out to
family and friends to assist in paying for the wall. They set for themselves a deadline of February 14, 2015 to pur- chase supplies and materials. However, late donations will be accepted. A GoFund has been established to receive donations.
Once the goal has been reached, the group has planned a rally to construct the wall and to have a com- munity clean up for the sur- rounding neighborhoods. That event is planned for Fri- day, February 20, 2015.
PAGE 10-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 13, 2015