Around The Town 

Cedresa Coble Wins Anson Idol 2008



Cedresa Coble (left) receives congratulations and $500 cash from HOLLA! founder Leon Gatewood after winning Anson Idol 2008.

Cedresa Coble, a 17-year old junior at Anson Senior High School is the 2008 Anson Idol Winner.  She won the title and a $500 cash prize by audience applause after joining five other contestants on the stage for the second round of competition.  Five contestants got eliminated in the first round by a panel of three judges.

Cedresa, who is presently an A/B honor roll student, plans to attend Winston Salem State University and major in nursing upon graduating.  She sings on the youth choir at Harris Chapel AME Zion Church in Morven , NC .

According to her mother, Tiffany Chambers, Cedresa loves to sing and is very athletic. "She's a good girl," she added.

This event was sponsored by HOLLA!  For more information, you can call 704.694.3552 or visit www.wadesboro.com

HOLLA!/Hampton B. Allen Library Literary Festival Educates, Entertains  



Alicia Williams of Charlotte, NC gave a thrilling performance entitled Reflections from the Past during Saturday's festival.

By Kimberly Harrington

If you didn’t leave the HOLLA! Second Annual Literary Festival inspired to read more, write more and learn more, you might want to pinch yourself.

Participants and authors alike praised the event, which was co-sponsored by the Hampton B. Allen Library, saying it was one of the better literary festivals they have attended.

Deanna Manley, author of “The Power of Eve,” said she cancelled another show in order to attend this one, held at the Little Theater in Wadesboro. “You don’t know what to expect at these events until you show up. This is better than some of the other shows I’ve attended.”

Gena Spencer of Wadesboro, who waited all day for the special guest, New York Times best-selling author Omar Tyree, said the literary festival was time well spent.

“I’ve had a good time. I’ll be back next year,” she said.

Tyree addressed the crowd at about 3:30 p.m., promoting his new nonprofit organization, the Urban Literacy Project. The initiative will give him the financial backing to travel across the country to participate in more literary festivals in order to promote reading, especially with young people, and to give away more books.

The organization’s motto is “Readers, Writers and Thinkers Rule the World.” In an animated and comedic fashion, Tyree stressed those three points in his remarks, often talking about his urban upbringing.

The author was 19 years old when he wrote his first book about being a black student in a predominantly white school, the University of Pittsburgh His acclaimed second book, “Flyy Girl,” catapulted him to notoriety.

“The book was famous because those kind of girls never had a book written about them,” he said. Flyy girls were essentially material girls, who prized boyfriends who could take them to the mall and buy them nice things.

Tyree said because he wasn’t financially able to do that for the girls, he decided to write about it.

His 2000 release, “For the Love of Money,” became a New York Times bestseller and earned Tyree an NAACP Image Award.

Tyree urged the audience to find something they like to do, become good at it, and garner supporters, which is the basis of his book in progress.

Alicia Williams of Charlotte was another standout at the program. Her one-woman act took the audience through a journey of black history, spotlighting Sojourner Truth, Elizabeth Eckford and the mother of Emmett Till.

The Dance Like David Danced and the Leap of Faith praise dancers, the Anson High School Gospel choir, a comic book writing workshop by Lena the Art Diva and a parenting workshop conducted by author Glenda Manning were other highlights.

Another highlight of the event was a grant presentation of $1,500 to HOLLA! by the Anson County Writers' Club.  "We wanted to give grants this year to people who encourage children to read and write. What better way to do that than what they (HOLLA!) are doing here today," said Elbert Marshall while making the presentation. There was also an announcement of a $500 donation from an anonymous source.

“It was another great event filled with wonderful authors, great performances and inspiration, said Leon Gatewood, HOLLA! chairman. “This literary festival further advances the mission of HOLLA! (Helping Our Loved ones Love and Achieve). We thank everyone for supporting it. It was a perfect day.”

Kimberly Harrington is a freelance writer living in Wadesboro.  Email her at kharrington@wadesboro.com

HOLLA! Kickoff To Reading
Comic Book Writing Contest Gives Local Students Chance To Be An Author



HOLLA! Co-chair, Subrina Hough (left) and board member, Mary Little eagerly prepare for upcoming comic book contest.

HOLLA! is sponsoring a comic book writing contest which guarantees that a gifted local student will be an author in the very near future.

In collaboration with the RealEyes Book Store in Charlotte, NC, HOLLA! is sponsoring the Kick Off to Reading program where the winner will have their book published by a national publishing company.

The competition commenced on August 27, the first day of school in Anson County and will end on May 16, 2008.  Children competing in the contest may turn their projects in anytime during that period. 

The 1st place winner will have their book published and receive other prizes.  The 2nd place winner will receive an honorable mention and other prizes.

All students in the Anson County School System are encouraged to participate.  To submit a project or to ask questions concerning this project, please call 704.694.3552 and leave a message.