Page 9 - Florida Sentinel 10-17-17

Local
Harram Court No. 96 Has African Soiree
The History:
Male Chorus Of Beulah Baptist To Celebrate 33rd Anniversary
The ladies of Harram Court No. 96 held their African Soiree on September 30, 2017. The event was held at the Crowne Plaza to benefit the organization’s outreach pro- grams.
Ladies dressed in their African attire are: 1st row - Eunice Butts, Iris Warren, Andreatha Nurse, Illustrious Comman- dress; Davina Drayton, and Gail Williams. Second row: Celes- tine Hipps-Shaw, Joanna Tokley, Greta Powell, Tawanda Peoples, Bertha Baker, Lavada Broxton, and Alicia Haynes. Third row: Bernice McFadden, Sonya McFadden, Almatine Williams, Delores Whitehead, Audrey Colston, Juanita Robinson, Helen Bell, Betty Baker, Sanjo Wilson, Selena Lemons, Cynthia Bowden-Jolly, and Bessie Thomas. (Picture by Encore Productions Hampton Allen)
The Male Chorus of Beulah Baptist Institutional Church, 1006 W. Cypress St., West Tampa, is preparing to cele- brate its 33rd Anniversary.
The celebration will be held on Sunday, October 22, 2017, at 4 p. m. The public is invited to attend. Rev. Dr. W. James Favorite is the Pas- tor.
One of the feature groups on the program will be the Ex- citing Gospel Warriors. They will be joined by several other groups.
In June of 1984, the Beulah Baptist Institutional Church Male Chorus was organized on the heels of a vision of (the late) Eddie Felder. His pas- sion for the community and wanting to see men working and singing together was the catalyst for creating and or- ganizing this group.
Mrs. Floretta Taylor
graciously accepted the chal- lenge as musician for the choir. Mrs. Taylor dedicated much time and effort in blending the voices of these men to lift the name of Jesus and allowing the Spirit of the Lord to dwell in the atmosphere.
Mrs. Taylor served as musician for six years before she relocated to Baltimore, Maryland. The last concert under her leadership was per- formed on July 15, 1990.
The music leadership was passed on to Beverly Jones who took over as musician/di- rector. Over the years the Male Chorus continued to be blessed with new members joining, growing from 6 mem- bers to 15. They served on their designated Sundays and were called upon on numerous oc- casions to minister at local and surrounding community events through the Tampa Bay Area.
In November 1995, the
leadership of the ministry was passed on to Lewis Williams and he served faithfully until his passing in July 2002. Williams and Wilbur Jack- son worked tirelessly in per- fecting the voices as the choir continued to serve God through songs of inspiration and jubilee.
Other Ministers of Music have transition through Beu- lah and have blessed this group to new levels of excel- lence ministry, such as: Mau- rice Jackson and Minister Nathan Westbrook. This group even had the opportu- nity to perform the National Anthem under the leadership of Minister Richard Guess and Minister Robert Car- penter.
Today, God has blessed the choir with the music and Spir- itual leadership of Rev. Isaac Ruffin. The membership in the male chorus now stands at 27 active members.
Over the years, however, many of the members have passed on. They will be hon- ored during Sunday’s service: Eddie Felder, Dr. Caleb Wright, John Cook, Leroy Clark, Thomas Mobley, Leroy Edmundson, Lewis Williams, Eddie Denson, James, Alphonso Murphy, and Lionel Moore. Of the original six members, two are still in service, Deacons Arnold Dubose and Robert Nixon.
Deacon Clem Bell is President.
The Male Chorus of Beulah Baptist Institutional Church, the Musician, Rev. Isaac Ruffin, and Rev. Dr. W. James Favorite, Pastor.
FYI
Know A Veteran Who Needs A New Roof?
The money is available. The need is undeniable. But unless more Hillsborough County veterans successfully apply – and soon – tens of thousands of dollars that could be used to repair or re- place their roofs are in danger of being reallocated.
Last year, Hillsborough County awarded $90,000 in Commu- nity Development Block Grant funds to the nonprofit Rebuilding Together Tampa Bay for its Roofs For Vets program.
Under the program, qualifying veterans can have their ailing roof fixed or replaced, potentially at no cost to them. Each year, a portion of the debt is forgiven.
The money can help 15 veterans this year. So far, though, only one veteran has successfully qualified. The remaining money will be reallocated if it isn’t used by December 31, 2017.
The program has important restrictions on who qualifies. Mo- bile homes do not qualify under this program.
To apply for the program, or for more information, call (813) 878-9000, est. 7.
For The Family Forum Set For October 19th
Another series of Family Forums will be held on Thursday, Oc- tober 19, 2017, 11 a. m. at the W. E. Davis Center, 5407 N. 30th St. (just off the corner of Hillsborough Ave. and 30th St.), Tampa. These forums are sponsored by For The Family and the Family En- richment Center.
Other partners are Pastors on Patrol and the Hillsborough Council on Aging.
The forums are held throughout the community to allow par- ents, seniors and other individuals to speak out about how inade- quate services challenge their lives. Sylvia Thomas Center and Eckerd Community Care are encouraging their constituents to at- tend if they have similar challenges.
The forum is open to anyone receiving social services of any kind.
Community service providers are also invited to attend to share information about their services.
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