Greensboro Daily Photo

W is for Water

Water is such a precious natural resourse. Greensboro doesn't have a river, but we do have some great manmade lakes: Townsend, Jeanette, Brandt and Higgins are the largest. We need to do everything we can to keep our lakes clean. Greensboro must be doing something right because in 2008, we were the recipient of the Environmental Protection Agency Region 4 Safe Drinking Water Excellence Award for Large Surface Water Public Water Supply Systems. The above kayaker was enjoying an outing on Lake Higgins in northwest Greensboro. Lake Higgins is great not only for on the water activities, but also for the surrounding nature trails.

Today is ABC Wednesday and, for this round, we're celebrating everything that is green about Greensboro. W is for water, good clean drinking water, full of fish, and just waiting for us to use for recreational purposes. Let's all do our part to keep our water supply clean.

V is for Visitor Center and Volunteers

Greensboro is so lucky. Greensboro Beautiful and the City of Greensboro are building a visitor center at Gateway Gardens on East Lee Street at the entrance to Barber Park. The venue is situated on eleven acres and will cost approximately 8 million dollars. The visitor center, photographed above, will be LEED certified. It sounds like the more funding they receive, the "greener" they can make the facility. It will be surrounded by 1) a wedding & rose garden; 2) a Japanese garden; 3) a white oak forest; and 4) will include the above facility where lots of learning, sharing, and celebrating can take place. 

Greensboro Beautiful is an organization with many volunteers who work to keep Greensboro's public gardens beautiful and scheduled with events.* Please support this worthwhile organization in any way you can. At the very least, give a big thank you to the volunteers manning events when you see them.

Today is ABC Wednesday and we're almost through the alphabet.  For this round of ABC Wednesday, we've committed to the theme of going green. V is for visitor center and volunteer.See A-U GO GREEN Greensboro posts here. 

*The Tanger Family Bicentennial Garden, The Greensboro Arboretum, The Bog Garden at Benjamin Park and Gateway Gardens are all Greensboro Beautiful projects. If you want a copy of Greensboro Beautiful's newsletter, the SEED, go here. Who knows, you just may become their next VOLUNTEER (or VISITOR)!

U is for Urban Horticulture

Urban Horticulture is now a major at Greensboro's NCA&T University. Through this major, students learn techniques for producing horticultural crops in the limited space of urban environments. You learn to plant as much as possible in these often wasted spaces: herbs, flowers, and crops in spaces. Cement and barren patches of dirt become lush and green. The A&T curriculum is geared towards food production; however, the ornamental component of urban horticulture is also addressed.

The above photo was taken at the corner of Wright Avenue and Kensington Road, down the street from UNCG. As you can see, the property owners take advantage of that strip of dirt between the city sidewalk and the road by filling it with greenery. They have been practicing urban horticulture for twenty years or so, long before most people were talking about it, much less practicing it.

Hats off to NCA&T for being trend setters in their Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Systems. Today is ABC Wednesday and for GO GREEN Greensboro, "U" is for Urban Horticulture. It isn't too late to go outside and plant something. Consider requesting permission to plant something in an unused space beside your favorite coffee shop or retail store. The price of a pack of seeds could bring the community great joy.

T is for Triple Bottom Line

Ron McNair Elementary School on Yanceyville Road in Browns Summit has several factors that make it an ideal school for teaching children how to decrease their carbon footprint and to have sustainable practices. To name a few:

"The 88,900 square-foot school building features sustainable materials, natural lighting in hallways, solar panels for water heating, light sensors, a light-colored roof to reduce heat gain, an integrated fresh-air system, sun shades for large windows and low-flow plumbing fixtures. All classrooms have access to outdoor learning environments. Vegetation has been planted to grow up green screens that will provide shade over outdoor patio areas. Additionally, the art and science labs are equipped with movable exterior wall systems, allowing the classrooms to literally open up to the outdoors when weather permits and facilitate an indoor/outdoor classroom space."*

This state-of-the-art learning environment is an example of what is known in environmental (green) glossaries  as triple bottom line. The triple bottom line concept asserts that for environmental practices to be sustainable, they must be aligned with 1) economic prosperity, 2) environmental quality, and 3) social equity (reference). McNair Elementary does just that; the sustainable practices contribute positively to the environment, they are not cost prohibitive, they are "for all," (open to any child living in the district). Therefore, for "T" day on ABC Wednesday, "T" is for triple bottom line. We hope that the children who attend this fabulous school generate even more ideas for protecting the earth's limited resources.

See GDP's A-S Go Green Greensboro entries here.

 

* Robert Nemitz

S is for Solar Panels and Sustainability

Contemplating our environmental theme for the Go Green Greensboro series for ABC Wednesday, we've been driving around Greensboro looking for solar panels to photograph. We did find some out in the county; however, as far as in-town residences, this house on 16th street is one of the few.

Solar panels use light from the sun to generate electricity, decreasing the use of less renewable forms of energy. There are several companies in the Greensboro area that install solar panels. We were interested in Honey Electric Solar, Inc. because Rebekah Hren advises and trains for them. She teaches classes for the NC Solar Center and has written a book called the Carbon Free Home. While Hren lives in Durham, not Greensboro, our state is lucky to have people like Hren working to make our communities greener. Sustainability of one of the most important concepts of the 21st century. We need to find ways to sustain everything from our natural resources to our standard of living.

If this tiny house on 16th street at the base of the Billy Crash Craddock bridge can have solar panels, why can't more of us? Today is ABC Wednesday and S is for solar panels and sustainability. 

R is for Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Whole Foods in Friendly Center is making an effort to educate the public about disposing of trash. Before us, we see three bins: 1) trash/landfill, 2) recycling, and 3) compost. This sorting helps us reduce, reuse, and recycle. Some items inevitably head to the landfill; however, there is plenty of waste that can be recycled or composted.  The City of Greensboro takes yard waste that can be composted. They now takes all plastic bottles and jugs numbered 1-7.* This is a more generous policy than we had in previous years, Whole Foods helps educate us on what exactly can be done with which items.  Greensboro has learned that nobody wants a garbage dump in their neighborhood, so the less trash that we have, the better off we all are. Every composted or recycled piece of trash makes a tremendous difference in what gets sent to the dump.

Today is ABC Wednesday and for our GO GREEN Greensboro series, "R" is for reduce, reuse, recycle! We can also add, "repurpose," that great effort to make something useful out of something that has outlived its usefulness. If you look closely on the wall, you can see that Whole Foods made decorations out of old wooden spools from local textile mills, a local, repurposed touch. 

 

*view the city's plastic recycling page here.

Q is for Quantity and Quality

The yard sale season is upon us. Increasingly, people are painting, repurposing and reselling surplus items from their homes. The above photo features a sale from a while back when the Thrill of the Hunt was still on Battleground Avenue.* It is amazing what one can accrue over the course of a year. As college students move home for the summer, household items and tchotchkes can grow exponentially. With Craigs list, community sales, and personal yard sales, one person's trash becomes another's treasure.

Today is ABC Wednesday and for our Go GREEN Greensboro series, we're featuring "Q" for quantity and quality. Websites abound with suggestions for decluttering and paring down to owning things that really matter for us. If you spent a week considering the items that brought more quality to your life, what would you get rid of? Quality over quantity is a good first step in going green. If you don't mind quibbling over price and you need to get out from under the quagmire of stuff, consider organizing a sale in your neighborhood...... or ours!

*The Thrill of the Hunt is now located downtown across from the Mellow Mushroom on South Elm Street.

P is for Plants

This past Saturday, an Edible Plant Sale was held in the Edible Schoolyard in the backyard of  the Greensboro Children's Museum. The Edible Schoolyard is a gem of a place that is fun for children and adults alike. As communities make more of an effort to eat local produce and to teach children how food grows from seed to plant to produce to table, events like the Edible Plant Sale bring children one giant step closer to their food source. Our regular readers know that we at GDP urge everyone to plant edible items in their yards and flower beds. Chard and lavender and rosemary make great bed fillers. Blueberry bushes are as beautiful and their non-berry producing counterparts. We hope that the Children's Museum continues to hold the plant sale every spring. They should have families come back late summer and bring their harvested vegetables to sell as a museum fundraiser. 50% to the children and 50% to the museum. The children could use their profits to purchase plants next spring. 

Today is ABC Wednesday, a favorite with many of our readers. "P" is for "plant" in our GO GREEN GREENSBORO series. May you plant many plants this spring and reap the fruits of your labor later this summer, possibly even turn some profit!  Plant, plant, plant.......

O is for Organic

The above photo features the organic produce section at Whole Foods in Friendly Shopping Center. With three supermarket-sized natural food stores in Greensboro, as well as numerous farmers' markets,  organic food is getting easier and easier to find. From Ashevilly to Kitty Hawk, here is an organic food store finder Google "ap" for North Carolina. Organic foods do not contain synthetic inputs, nor do they have pesticides. The organic, Green Food Revolution took hold in the 1940's and has been growing ever since. While there is controversy about whether organic food is better for you than commercially grown, conventional food, there is something wholesome about knowing your food hasn't been genetically modified or sprayed with chemicals. Let us remember, until the 20th century, the majority of farming was organic. Organic is the ORIGINAL, old-timey way to grow food.*

Today is ABC Wednesday and for this round, we're featuring A-Z GO GREEN Greensboro and "O" is for original, ordinary, and ORGANIC, the way grandma, and nature intended food to be. Yes, we know there are two sides to this story. AND, Greensboro has several businesses that rely on chemicals and chemical processes. Maybe for the next round of ABC Wednesday, we'll feature science of Greensboro. In the meantime, we're off to plant some organic chard in the yard! Happy ABC Wednesday!

*Wiki organic food reference.

N is for Nature, Nurture, Natural

This past Sunday, the Yanceyville Farmers Curb Market hosted its first plant sale and earth day celebration. Unfortunately, many booths were unfilled and the normal rush of customers were not there. Perhaps attendance was low because it was the day before tax day; perhaps because people are not yet familiar with the event; perhaps because the giant arts and crafts festival was taking place at the coliseum complex; just maybe the event could have benefitted from more advertising. At any rate, we hope that the event continues becaue the plants offered were great and seemed to be a good money value. Plus, vendors were very knowledgeable. One farmer and his wife took the time to explain three different kinds of thyme to us.

We're using the above photo of the event to help with this week's ABC Wednesday post. Today is "N" day for "N" is for nature, nurture, natural. Natural produce helps keep us and the earth healthy and nature is our most important resourse. We must nurture it. From insects to trees and everything in-between, nature keeps us healthy. "N" is the second most commonly used consonant in the English alphabet; second only to "T".  We hope you are doing somethi-N to make today special. We hope the plant/earth day event will happen again next year. In the meantime, if you still need plants, consider the Herb Society's event at the Greek Orthodox Church this Thursday. Here is a write-up from four years ago.

M is for Mulch

          Marshall Stone is a landscape business on Sandy Ridge Road, near the Farmers Market in Greensboro. They specialize in stone installations and outdoor living areas; however, they also have plenty of mulch. From what we can surmise online, the company is about seven years old and their primary markets are Virginia and North Carolina. The above Sandy Ridge location is fairly new. It has an attractive stone and water feature in the front of the business; however, today we are interested in their mulch piles.

         As you prepare your yards and gardens for the summer, remember, mulch is a fabulous addition to your landscape. Mulch keeps out weeds (which compete for nutrients) and it helps retain moisture in soil.  A good layer of mulch also optimizes root temperature-- cooler in summer and   warmer in winter.*  We are lucky in Greensboro. If you leave yard waste by the curb, the city hauls it away and converts it to mulch that can eventually be purchased. The Ingleside Facility in High Point accepts yard waste from private residences for free. Today is ABC Wednesday, and for this round of GO GREEN GREENSBORO, M is for mulch because it is a fabulous, recycled, organic material.

         
*If you want to learn more about mulch (types, advantages, concerns, money value), consider consulting 'Mulch for Dummies'. Not that we are dummies, but those catchy-titled books are now websites too (see here).

L is for Light, Landfills, and Learning

Today, we bring you a Big Belly smart/solar trash can.*  The one photographed above is located on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in front of the student union. The can on the right, that opens like a mailbox, is the solar operated one. It compacts trash and sends an e-mail alerting the cleaning crew that it needs to be emptied. While the compactors cost about $5,000 per can, they can pay for themselves in labor costs saved by not having to be "checked" by humans. 

It is so wonderful that these cans are located on a university campus. Universities are a place to foment ideas. If we are going to transform education and prepare students to generate new ideas and products to enhance our quality of life, we have to surround them with innovation. Gone are the days when we teach for the future. Today’s expectations are that classrooms impact the present. It takes a blend of good teaching, student motivation, state of the art materials, and authentic, real-world projects to grow these great idea like the Big Belly solar trash compactor.  

We share this photo today as part of our ABC Wednesday, GO GREEN GREENSBORO series. L is such an important LETTER in the green world. L is for life;  living- with minimal environmental impact; lawns- and conserving water;  leaves- that Greensboro collects for mulch;  and land and landfills. Also, L is for LIGHT to compact trash and make it take up LESS space in the LANDFILLS. Finally, L is for the LEARNING that has to take place to make these innovative devices possible.

 

*Amanda Lehmert wrote an informative article about them for the News and Record on April 1st 2012 p. A1 & A6. Her informative article about the cans, located at the downtown greenway, sent us out in search of a smart trash can to photograph!

K is for Kids

The above photo was taken at the tennis courts in Sunset Hills; last year, when it was warm at the end of March. The children look so unencumbered with their absence of shoes and winter garmets.  It is heartwarming to see children enjoying the out of doors. At first glance, you will see a trio of children. Look closer and find the fourth.

Yellow, blooming forsythia in the forground frame the photo and distance the children from the street. Forsythia are flowering plants in the Oleaceae or olive family. Befitting to photograph children with this plant, given the olive branch is a symbol of peace- dating back to the 5th century BC.  As Jews enjoy Passover and Christians prepare to celebrate Easter, let us hope that the world can become more harmonious and peaceful and that children and nature alike can be nurtured. Today is ABC Wednesday;  for this A-Z round, our theme is GO GREEN GREENSBORO and K is for KIDS, happy, healthy kids, playing outside and enjoying nature in all its glory. Peace...

J is for Juice Shop

Anybody who is trying to maintain a healthy diet, likely has participated in some sort of juice regimen for the purpose of cleansing or  providing nutritional supplements or adding antioxidants for health. Juice can be healthy or junky, depending on the quantity and quality. Today is ABC Wednesday. We've selected J for juice for our Go Green Greensboro series and have photographed the Juice Shop in Friendly Center. While there is not any stand out green factor from the Juice Shop (no solar panels,  recycled building materials, or LEED certification, etc. that we know of), they are worth mentioning for the following reasons.

Their business model is simple, one fairly-nutritious product, one size, cash only, good money value. The shop provides college scholarship money to employees who have worked there a certain number of hours. This is a locally owned business that has been giving back to the community and to employees way before all of those concepts were trendy. The Juice Shop opened in 1997 and is owned by Colin and Rick Streng. They have three stores: One on Lawndale; one in Friendly Center; one in Winston-Salem. Please stop by if you like smoothie/juice drinks that are yogurt-based. While you are there, look at the scholarship wall and thank them for this fine tradition. Hats off to Juice Shop and thank you, dear readers, for stopping by on J Day for Go Green Greensboro. See A-I here.

I is for Individual

Yesterday, at Geeksboro Coffee House, we ran into our young, old-friend, Elizabeth Perrion. We first met Elizabeth several years ago when she was a Page High School student working at Earth Fare Supermarket. As a teenager, Elizabeth was health-conscious and loved talking about health and well-being with the store’s customers. Today, as a young adult, she is still passionate about healthful living. Now, Elizabeth works at Deep Roots Co-Op and is so excited about the opening of the new store. When she isn’t working, she attends GTTC, finishing an associates degree and hoping to continue her studies in nutrition, health, and wellness. 

 If you get a chance, stop by Deep Roots on North Eugene and let Elizabeth help you with your healthful living needs. With individuals like her, the younger generation may break the death-by-food cycle. For this round of ABC Wednesday, our theme is Go Green Greensboro. Greensboro can only be “green” and healthy if we have individuals who take health and wellness seriously. I is for individual citizens all doing what we can to keep our community healthy in every way. Elizabeth is one such INDIVIDUAL!

 

E is for Education and the Environment

This weekend, we were at Bur-Mil Park and stopped by the Frank A. Sharpe, Jr. Wildlife Education Center. It is conveniently located on the edge of the greenway and along the birding trail. The center is a great place to step in out of the elements- not to mention a place to get a drink of water and use the bathroom. In addition to being a great rest stop, they offer wildlife education programs for people of all ages. Two free classes, particularly relevant to this post, are Growing the Green Way and Living the Wildlife.

The renovated barn, that houses the above education center, was originally owned by Julius W. Cone and was known as the Owl's Roost Farm and Poker Club (reference). Julius was the brother of Clarabel and Etta Cone and son of Herman and Helen Cone. His stepdaughter's husband was local architect Edward Loewenstein. So, yet again, a facet of Greensboro's history takes us back to the prominent Cone family.

If you get a chance, stop by Bur-Mil's Wildlife Education Center. It is a fine example of a free, resource available to all. Today is ABC Wednesday and for our GO GREEN Greensboro, "E" is for 'Education and the Environment'.

Z is for Zero, Ground Zero (27401)

The Fisher Park neighborhood was built at the beginning of the 20th century with most of the homes erected before 1940. The actual park, in which the above Genesis Marker is situated, consists of approximately 14 acres and is billed as Greensboro's "premiere civic open space" (reference).Today's photo of the Genesis Marker in Fisher Park was selected because genesis means "beginning."  The Genesis Marker is the "Ground Zero" for Greensboro; the beginning of the city, the geographic center of the county. From the Genesis Marker, the city radiates equally in all directions. We could actually describe our Greensboro neighborhoods in terms of their distance from the Genesis Marker. The marker is so unassuming, tucked in its little spot between North and South Park Drives and Elm Street to the west and Church Street to the east. Historian Jim McLamroch erected the Genesis Marker to honor and document the city's early history.

Since this round of ABC Wednesday, we focused on the neighborhoods of Greensboro and Greensboro doesn't have a Z neighborhood, we thought it would be nice to feature the Genesis Marker as Z is for Ground ZERO.

In case you are interested, here are the A-Z neighborhoods we have featured on the wonderful ABC Wednesday meme over the last 26 weeks: Adams Farm, Brown Town, The Cardinal, Dudley Heights, Eastern Shores, Forest Oaks, Guilford Hills, Hamilton Lakes, Irving Park, Jefferson Gardens, Kings Forest, Longview Hills, McAdoo Heights, NEW Irving Park, O. Henry Oaks, Pleasant Garden, Reedy Fork, Starmount, Tammanary Forest, (the end of the alphabet is nearly neighborhood-less) University Neighborhoods, (Green) Valley, Westerwood, Xtra Xtra News and Record for all the neighborhoods, Year 5 of GDP and our featuring your neighborhoods, and today's Z for Ground Zero! We hope you enjoyed these posts. We have thououghly enjoyed driving through so many of  Greensboro's neighborhoods over the last six months. 

Y is for Year 5

Happy New Year!

Today is Day 1 of Year 5 for Greensboro Daily Photo. When we published our first post on January 2nd, 2009, we weren't sure we could sustain this effort. Posting a photo, with accompanying text/research, EVERY day is quite a commitment. Somehow, even with full time jobs, vacations, deaths in the family, and power outages, we've managed to get something posted every day. That's 1,460 photos related to Greensboro. Sometimes, we question why we have taken on this huge commitment- community service, of sorts. However, when we read your comments or attend events, like the Piedmont Interfaith Council Ecumenical Celebration and see our photos up on the giant screen, we know this effort is all worthwhile.

This whole international, city daily photo effort started with Paris Daily Photo and we are honored to be a part of this great community. If you are regular readers, you know we participate in the ABC Wednesday meme; also, we post a photo of the sky over Greensboro on Fridays; on Sundays, we post something related to religion and spirituality. The other days, we fill in with an array of scenes around town. Also, we try to feature the people of our Greensboro.  Please continue to read and to provide us with ideas, feedback and comments.

Xtra Xtra, Read All About It

In 1982, a newspaper known by the name News & Record was first delivered to the Greensboro community. However, Greensboro's print journalism history was first made in 1890 with the printing of the Daily Record. The Daily Record was owned at one time by Juilan Price, the man who at one time also owned Jefferson Standard Life Insurance Company, making Mr. Price one of the most influential men in the Piedmont during his day. In 1809, the Greensboro Daily News was founded, giving our community a morning and afternoon newspaper. From 1982-1986, the Greensboro community supported two newspapers. In 1986, competing newspapers were gone and The News & Record emerged as the sole daily newspaper for the community. The above facility, a city block of newspaper history, past, present, and future, was completed in 1976, on the site of the old King Cotton Hotel.*

Today is ABC Wednesday and, for this round, we've been featuring neighbohroods. For X, in the absence of an X neighborhood, we're featuring the newspaper. Two-hundred East Market Street, at the corner of Davie St.,  is the "x marks the spot' place from which news radiates to ALL the communities of Greensboro.The newspaper is in every community- in print and digitally.  Thick or thin, the News & Record is an invaluable clearninghouse of news, information, events, and ideas. A newspaper is more than ink, paper, and coupons. It is a community's shared discourse. Papers give communities a common frame of reference and tell us what others deem important and newsworthy. Without a common source of printed information, a community struggles to define itself. As the younger generation goes digitial and seeks out their own, disparate news sources, we need to find a way to keep them informed about what is actually happening in their own community and from the perspective of people in their community- even if they disagree with the views presented. A local paper, printed or digital, grounds us to each other. The News & Record is more than the sum of its parts; it is Greensboro's ANCHOR.

Today is ABC Wednesday and, X is for X-tra X-tra read all about it. We're asking you for a one day moratirium on saying "I saw on FACEBOOK...," and  to use as your conversation starter, "I read in the News & Record, that......"

* reference, here.

See our ABC Wednesday A-W neighborhoods of Greensboro, here.

W is for Westerwood

Westerwood is a Greensboro neighborhood that extends from West Friendly Avenue at the First Baptist Church to Benjamin Parkway in the north. The east/west streets are Smith Street and South Aycock. The neighborhood is less than a half of a square mile; however, it gets a lot of publicity due to its proximity to downtown, its diversity of architecture, the tree lined streets, and cozy front porches. The artists, living in the neighborhood, have started an annual art walk, held in the fall. Westerwood is one of Greensboro's early 20th century neighbohroods. While some homes are painted and decorated conservatively, others express individualism by way of paint color and yard decorations. Unfortunately, Westerwood has been in the news lately because Duke Power has been agressively trimming trees- to protect houses and power lines in times of storms. Neighbors are not happy about this situation. 

The above purple and pink house (built in 1922), located at 405 North Mendenhall, is the home of local artist Kathy Reese, who sells metal/sculpture work out of her home. Some of her sculptures are visible in this photo. Nearly a decade ago, we were at Kathy's admiring her artwork and our then-young daughter admired one of Kathy's spiders, welded out of flathead nails and washers. Kathy gave it to her as a gift and our daughter has been hooked on art ever since. Those are the kind of neighborly memories that are made in Westerwood. Today is ABC Wednesday and W is for Westerwood.  See this post from a year and a half ago of another Westerwood home. Enjoy our A-V selections, here. Stop back on ABC Wednesday next week for the dreaded X week!

U is for University Neighborhoods

Well, it took us until "U" to hit a snag with our A,B,C Neighborhoods of Greensboro theme for ABC Wednesday. That we can think of, Greensboro has no "U" neighborhood. As a matter of fact, Greensboro only has 8 streets that start with the letter "U" (Ulster, Underwood, Union, United, University, Upland, Urban, and Utah). However, between Greensboro and High Point, we do have three universities, three community college campuses, and four colleges. So, with ten institutions of higher education, and a law school, not to mention satellite campuses from as far away as the University of Phoenix, we hereby dub today "university neighborhood" day. Colleges and universities are a vital part of our Greensboro community and their surrounding neighborhoods give students and faculty a place to work, live, and study that minimizes commuting time.

 

    The above photo, taken in the College Hill neighborhood at 1004 West McGee Street. Looking closely, you will notice that a building on the Greensboro College campus sits in the back yard of this 1922 house. When the college was established in 1838 on nearly 80 acres just west of downtown, the surrounding neighborhood was rural. UNCG was established in 1891 and by the time the house in the photo was built, College Hill was a true college neighborhood. The above home reflects that craftsman, bungalow style so ever-popular in the 1920's. So, dear readers, today is ABC Wednesday and "U" is for university neighborhoods, representing all of our many neighborhoods near our multiple campuses. 

 

    From here to the end of the alphabet on the A-Z neighborhood round, we're going to have to get pretty creative. A-T were a little more straightforward. See the houses and read about those neighborhoods featured here.

T is for Tamannary Forest

Tamannary Forest is a neighborhood that is almost a peninsula, with Lakes Townsend and Jeanette wrapping around it. Tamannary Forest is located directly across the street from Air Harbor Airport off of Air Harbor Road. One could land a plane and walk home in no time if living on the above property. This view characterizes the neighborhood.  Homes, built from the mid 1980's to mid 1990's, are graciously large.  Lots are nearly an acre in size and wooded, making the houses difficult to see from the road when leaves are on the trees. This time of year, however, views are memorable. Tree trunks and limbs cast long, reaching shadows over the forest floor- a place where fairytales look as if they could come to life.

Technically, Tamannary Forest is not within the city limits so residents escape paying city taxes on these homes, which cost upwards of half a million dollars. Tamannary must fly under the radar, literally (airport) and figuratively, as virtually nothing is published about the neighborhood and not even the origin of the word Tamannary is not clear and there doesn't appear to be a neighborhood website. Regardless, it is lovely; today is ABC Wednesday and T is for Tamannary Forest. (Quickly scroll through A-S Greensboro here).

S is for Starmount

Today's photo takes us to Madison Avenue in the heart of Starmount Forest. The scene evokes the feeling that.... all paths lead to home. Every house should have a proper entrance making it clear to the visitor where one enters and exits. There is no question about this charming cottage. Walk between the split in the stone fence, between the rose bushes, along the slate path, through the hinged, white picket fence, up to the wreathed door. Welcome! This house is so inviting and characterizes the charm of Sreensboro's Starmount Forest neighborhood. 

The Starmount Forest neighborhood bordered by West Friendly Avenue to the North and West Market Street to the South. It flows from West Wendover Avenue to Hamilton Lakes. One of its key features is the 150 acre Starmount Forest Country Club, located in the southwest quadrant of the neighborhood. The acerage is nearly 2 square miles, with a population of approximately 3,500 people. While some homes were built pre-1930's and and post-1950's; however, the bulk of the homes were constructed in the 1950's.

Starmount is the Americanization of the name Stern (star) berger (mountain). The Sternbergers were early citizens of Greensboro and responsible for many of Greensboros fine properties. While our lovely home today is in Starmount Forest, and not in Starmount Farms, this article provides some interesting insight into the philanthropy of the Sternberger family. Today is ABC Wednesday. This round, we're featuring neighborhoods of Greensboro and S is for Starmount Forest.

R is for Reedy Fork Ranch

Greensboro has a Reedy Fork Trail, that parallels Reedy Fork Creek that is not too far from Reedy Fork Ranch. Reedy Fork Ranch is part of a 1,300 acre tract of land that was annexed by the City of Greensboro in the year 2000. A drive around the northeast Greensboro neighborhood reveals beautiful houses, like the one above, surrounded by several lots yet to have been sold. Nevertheless with a Community clubhouse built, city water and sewage, and a fabulous new elementary school in the heart of the neighborhood, it is likely that as the economy improves, so will the construction in Reedy Fork. To date, only 636 of the 3,000 plus houses have been built and they seem to be a tremendous money value.

The motto for the community is "The Way Life's Supposed to Be."  Unfortunately, Starmount, the development company behind Reedy Fork, has had to put much of it up on the auction block. Starmount also donated the land for the elementary school. If you are local and near Bryan Park, you should stop out yourself and see this community.

Today is our neighborhoods of Greensboro series for ABC Wednesday, and R is for Reedy Fork Ranch.

Q is for Quaker Run

The above home, located at 3326 Quaker Run Road is a representative view of fall in Greensboro- porch lights on at dusk; a pile of leaves waiting to be jumped in and hauled away; hardwood trees without leaves; clusters of mums; a seasonal wreath; pumpkins on the porch; and gourds scattered all around. We can almost smell the mulled cider and cinnamon candles in the kitchen. The above home was built in 1990 during Greensboro's housing boom and during the time when construction in the Quaker Run neighborhood was well under way.

Quaker Run is a neighborhood filled with street names relevant to religions getting their start in the 1600-1700's : Friendsview Drive, Meeting House Drive, Shaker Drive, and Puritan Drive. The neighborhood, located between Horse Pen Creek and Battleground at the point where it dips to about its lowest elevation. It is a cozy neighborhood of largely college-educated folks who work hard to keep the neighborhood nice. On the average, homes in this neighborhood are about the size of this gray-green beauty with colonial red shutters.

Today is ABC Wednesday and Q is for Quaker Run. Most people playing Scrabble or alphabet games dread the letter Q; in Greensboro, we love it. We've got the largest enclave of Quakers outside of New England.  Quakers were some of the first settlers in North Carolina as our state had established religious freedom in the late 1600's (reference). We also have the only Quaker-founded college in the Southeast United States. We also have the Quaker Acres neighborhood off of Friendly Avenue not too far from the Friends' Meeting House at New Garden and Friendly. Quaker history abounds in our area. The neigborhoods don't have a religious affiliation, but they do remind us of our Quaker heritage. And they do start with Q! Have a quiet, quality, post-election day.

See A-P in our neighborhood series here.

O is for O. Henry Oaks

Today is ABC Wednesday and O is for O. Henry Oaks. If you are local, you likely know that short story writer O. Henry is from Greensboro. The August edition of O. Henry magazine dedicated several pages to all things, locally, named in his honor. As the article points out, there is an O. Henry subdivision on Sidney Porter Drive, as well as an O. Henry Blvd. Additionally, there is a neighborhood named O. Henry Oaks.  

O. Henry Oaks is located from 16th Street to Cone Boulevard to Spry Street between N. O. Henry Blvd. and Yanceyville St. Page High School is near O. Henry Oaks. The neighborhood is one of the most racially balanced in Greensboro. Approximately 40% of the neighborhood is white; 40% black, 10% Asian, 7% Hispanic, 3% other.* Today's post takes us to 3419 Yanceville Street, the upper northwest corner of O. Henry Oaks, where a plane tail permanently dive bombs into the lawn in the front yard. Surely, were O. Henry alive today, he would write an interesting short story with one of his famous smile-with-tears endings. How did the plane land in the yard? Why is it still there? What story does it have to tell? Today is ABC Wednesday and O is for O. (gotta have the dot) Henry!

(see Greensboro's A-N  neighborhoods here)

 

*http://www.city-data.com/neighborhood/O.Henry-Oaks-Greensboro-NC.html

N is for NEW Irving Park

Modeled after Pinehurst, NC, Irving Park is a Greensboro neighborhood that was built in the 1920's. The neighborhood's showcase facility is the Greensboro Country Club, where prominent families of Greensboro have been golfing, swimming, playing tennis, dining, and socializing for decades. As Irving Park became fully built up and somewhat landlocked, it was only natural for this wonderful place to be somewhat replicated and extended. New Irving Park begins at Cone Boulevard and, to the west of Elm Street, continues to Pisgah Church Road with streets named St. Andrews and St. Regis radiating off of Willoughby Boulevard. To the east of of Elm Street, New Irving Park extends to Abbotswood Senior Living Facility. 

The above house is located on the corner of Loch Ridge and Hillwind Street on the northeast corner of New Irving Park.  It is representative of the homes in the Provincetown section of the neighborhood: two-story, brick homes with modest, well-landscaped lots.  We decided to take advantage of the fact that the above  lawn was being re-landscaped and a clear view of the house was available. We were thrilled that a father-daughter running team came along as we were on the photo shoot as New Irving Park is a place where families spend time together enjoying each other's company. 

Today is ABC Wednesday and we're getting close to half way through our A-Z neighborhoods of Greensboro series. See A-M photos here.

K is for Kings Forest

Today's neighborhood visit takes us deep in the heart of Kings Forest of northeast Greensboro. Lord Foxley Drive, featured above, is located off of Phillips Avenue near the juncture where it becomes Huffine Mill Road. Sandwiched between Woodbriar Estates and Nealtown Farms, the boundaries of Kings Forest extend from Phillips Avenue in the south to just beyond Old Hickory Drive in the west and Sir Galahad Road to the east. Close to 3,000 people live in this .373 square miles of neighborhood. Kings Forest was developed primarily in the 1960's and 1970's with almost no houses older than 1950 or newer than the late 1990's. While the above homes may be on the newer side for the area, they are indicative of the great care that homeowners take in this neighborhood's houses and lawns.

The street signs in Kings Forest read like the nooks and crannies of a Renaissance festival: King Arthur Place, Sir Galahad Road, Prince Charles Drive, Larchmont Drive and Lord Foxley Drive. Foxley is a village in the county of Norfolk, England, known for having an ancient woodland believed to be over 6,000 years old and dating to the end of the last ice age.* One can only imagine the trees that were in Kings Forest before the area was developed.

Kings Forest is an example of a neighborhood we wish had more written about it. "Whosoever dubbed the neighborhood Kings Forest?" beseech the keepers of Greensboro Daily Photo. We're sharing this post with our dear friends at ABC Wednesday as part of our ABC Neighborhoods of Greensboro series. Today's letter is "K" for "Kings Forest." Enjoy our featured A-J neighborhoods here. And the quest for L-Z begins now!

 

*reference.

J is for Jefferson Gardens

    Jefferson Gardens is a neighborhood located off of Jefferson Road, between Friendly Avenue and Hobbs Road. The above house is located on Hayfield Lane; perhaps there was a hayfield here before the house was built in 1972. This neighborhood backs up to Price Park and to 240-acres owned by Guilford College. The natural area behind the houses of Jefferson Gardens attracts plenty of wildlife. As you can see, on the day we were photographing the neighborhood, a wild turkey walked out of the woods and was hanging out on Hayfield Lane. Residents say the turkey thinks it is their pet. 

    Jefferson Gardens is only made up of six main streets (Hayfield Lane, Broadmoor Place, Thorncliff Drive, Elderwood Place, Ainsworth Drive, and Bennington Drive- the main artery) and a few cul-de-sacs. The small neighborhood, with one way in and out, is fairly quiet eleven months a year. Come December, Ainsworth Drive is ablaze with a multiple-home display of Christmas lights and decorations. People from miles around make an annual tradition of driving by and enjoying the festive street.

    Today is ABC Wednesday and J is for Jefferson Gardens. View our A-H neighborhoods here.

I is for Irving Park

    The Irving Park neighborhood, located just north of Downtown Greensboro, was a 350-acre project created by the Southern Real Estate Company  at the beginning of the 20th century.* From Mr. and Mrs. Joseph M. Bryan and Alfred M. Scales in the past, to entrepreneurs and business owners today, Irving Park has been home to some of Greensboro's most influential residents.  At the center of this prestigious neighborhood is the Greensboro Country Club. The above Irving Park house, located near the country club on Country Club Drive, overlooks the club's immaculate and spacious golf course. It has plenty of acerage, square footage and impeccable design. It exudes Irving Park charm. The residents of this home must feel like they are living in the Pantheon or some other ancient, magnificent structure.

    

    Today is ABC Wednesday and for this round, we're featuring the neighborhoods of Greensboro. I is for Irving Park, Old Irving Park. See A-H neighborhoods, here. Country Club Drive is the street featured with yesterday's walkers; exempifying the fact that even in Greensboro's neighborhoods with giant homes, people find a way to build a sense of community.

* Fripp, G.(1998)  Greensboro Neighborhoods, Volume II, p. 68.

C is for Cardinal

Today is ABC Wednesday and for Round 11, we're featuring A-Z neighborhoods of Greensboro.*  "C" is for "Cardinal. The Cardinal neighborhood is located in Northwest Greensboro, very near the airport. Before the Cardinal neighborhood was developed in the late 1980's- 1990's, this was just a rural neighborhood in northwest Greensboro. In 1972, the first phase of construction began for the Cardinal Golf and Country Club. The 18-hole golf course became an anchor around which the Cardinal neighborhood was developed.  Today, it is member-owned and is one of North Carolina's finest courses. Driving by the golf course and through the neighborhood, you will quickly get a feel for the neighborliness of the Cardinal. Residents greet each other while out walking. They wave to cars as they drive by.

For today's photo, we chose this lovely home at the corner of Murfield Drive and Lytham Court. Murfield is the key anchor street in the Cardina,l stretching from Fleming to Old Oak Ridge Road. This teal green gem is superbly landscaped with the owners making an effort to replace grass with plantings. It looks like a cozy oasis with the back yard tucked into a cul-de-sac. It is one of many examples of how the Cardinal feels like home.

The community has a very informative community newsletter online.

 

" See previous weeks for our A-Z streets here.

Z is for Zenke, Otto Zenke

Today is ABC Wednesday and we're closing out our People of Greensboro Series with Z is for Zenke, Otto Zenke (1904-1984). In the current issue of O. Henry Magazine, Deborah Salomon writes that Otto Zenke is the "hottest" interior designer North Carolina has produced and he has left his imprimitaur on many of the homes of his day. While the Zenke legacy endures, it is unfortunate that that he lived and worked in the pre-internet era. There is simply not enough written about him, nor enough available photos of his interiors for the public to enjoy. His elegant,English, estate-inspired style, infused with relaxed tones and motifs of the American south are as relevant today as they were when Zenke was at the peak of his career. One interior can be seen in a UNCG article on design (here). Additionally, his name lives on in the Otto Zenke Competition, sponsored by the Carolinas Chapter of the American Society of Interior Designers.

In 1939, Otto Zenke moved to Greensboro from New York with his brother Henry to start Otto Zenke Interiors and they lived and worked in Greensboro until their death. Henry's wife Virginia was also a designer in the business. Today, Chris and Ginia, the son and daughter of Henry and Virginia, work tirelessly to oversee the needs of the estate, which have included relocating Zenke houses (see here and here).

The above room is not attribited to the now-deceased interior decorator; however, since we haven't been able to photograph any rooms that were decorated by Zenke, we found one arranged around a "fireplace", a Zenke hallmark. (The photo is  a grouping currently on display at Printer's Alley, at Westover Terrace). 

http://www.myspace.com/gborocollegeart

 

Y is for Yvonne...... Yvonne Johnson

In the above yard of a Buddhist household in the Glenwood neighborhood is a re-election sign for Yvonne Johnson who, in November, successfully ran a campaign for city council at-large. Prior to this current term, Yvonne Johnson served on city council for 14 years-- part of that time as mayor pro tem. Additionally, she was mayor of Greensboro from 2007-2009. She was the city's first African-American mayor and second female mayor, testimony to her appeal across Greensboro's sub-groups of voters. She is known for being fair and for holding people accountable for their words and actions. Yvonne Johnson, who is both a Bennett College belle and an A&T University aggie, has been politically active since her teen years when she marched in protest and to support the Greensboro sit-in movement.*

Today is "Y" on ABC Wednesday and, in our People of Greensboro series, we are featuring Yvonne Johnson. We're using the letter for her first name instead of her last because rarely do you hear her last name without her first; Yvonne and Johnson are almost as likely to colocate as O. with Henry. Also, as we researched this post, we learned that, among her many endeavors, Yvonne Johnson is Executive Director of One Step Further, a non-profit United Way Agency in Greensboro that provides mediation and court alternative programs to Greensboro's youth (reference)-- an effort started by Judge Elreta Alexander, the first person in this GDP series.

* read this News & Record article from a few years ago where Yvonne Johnson is referred to as a Steel Magnolia (here).

Photo of Yvonne Johnson from:

http://opportunitygreensboro.com/learning/the-bennett-college-choir-mentors-through-music/

X is for X

Today is ABC Wednesday and this week's letter is X. As best we can tell in this post-phonebook era, Greensboro has no citizens whose last name starts with an "X". So, where do we go from here? Well...

X represents anonymity, the unknown; it is a signature for those who cannot write. X represents all of the people who are, seemingly, without identify, transient, homeless: Citizens X. Above, we see a photo of an unnamed person wrapped in a Mylar blanket. These ultra-thin waterproof and windproof blankets, originally developed by NASA in 1964, help protect those who are out in the elements.

Greensboro has many shelters and food banks to help the homeless. Urban Ministries is an ecumenical outreach agency that has been working to help the homeless since 1967. Greensboro also has Partners Ending Homelessness, Interactive Resource Center, and local universities are involved in outreach to our homeless citizens. Here is a directory of services in Greensboro. Last year's count revealed that there were 1,064 homeless people in Greensboro. Let's hope that the 2012 survey reveals a decrease in homeless citizens.

As we reviewed our People of Greensboro series, we realized that most of the people we featured have worked, in some capacity, to help those in need.  As time draws near to close out 2011 and we endeavor to make meaningful resolutions, lets do what we can to support the existing non-profits in their efforts to end homelessness. 

W is for Whittington

Keep spreading the news! We're here to stay. Love being part it..... our Triad Stage! No vagabond shoes; no little town blues! Love every day of it...... our Triad Stage! The above photo is of the exuberant Richard Whittington, co-founder and managing director of Greensboro's Triad Stage. 

Originally from Dallas Texas, Rich Whittington attended the Yale School of Drama. He and business partner Preston Lane conducted a nationwide search and Greensboro was the largest market without an established, regional theater. In 2001, they converted the abandoned Montgomery Ward building on Elm Street into a theater and dubbed it Triad Stage. The first performance was held in 2001- Suddenly Last Summer by Tennessee Williams- and Triad Stage has been getting rave reviews. Recently, Triad Stage was named one of the top 10 most promising theaters to have emerged in the last 15 years. This designation came from the American Theater Wing, the same group that determines the Tony Awards!

When asked what the biggest surprises have been for him since opening Triad Stage, Mr. Whittington said, they didn't anticipate the changes in Greensboro's textile industry and the loss of jobs to the local economy. Also, they had no way to anticipate that the 9/11 attacks would happen three months before their first performance. However, Whittington and Lane are pleased about the extent to which the Greensboro community supports Triad Stage. Mr. Whittington says that not only classics but also new plays are well attended here. Look here for upcoming opportunities to attend a performance at Triad Stage.

Today is ABC Wednesday and for our People of Greensboro Series, W is for Whittington. We are so glad Mr. Whittington and Mr. Lane opened a regional theater in Greensboro and can't wait to follow the theater's continued growth over the next decade!

V is for Vanstory

Today is ABC Wednesday and for our People of Greensboro series, we are featuring the Vanstory family, whose family name is more fully appreciated when looking across generations. The Vanstory legacy in Greensboro in the early 20th century begins with Cornelius M. Vanstory, Sr. who opened the Vanstory Clothing Company on Elm Street in 1900. The store was known for high quality merchandise, expert tailoring, and commitment to serving customers. Mr. and Mrs. Vanstory, Sr. raised six children in Greensboro, one of whom was Corneilus, Jr. (“Neil”), featured in the portrait above. 

Mr. Vanstory, Jr., born in Greensboro in 1901, served as a city councilman four times and as mayor. As with his family members before him, he was extremely active in civic and charitable organizations throughout his lifetime. While he had a law degree, he worked in the banking industry for most of his life. In addition to a career in banking, politics and civic involvement, Mr. Vanstory belonged to several civic clubs, too numerous to mention. Also, he was president of the Greensboro Country Club from 1939-1941. He chaired Greensboro’s Sesquicentennial Commission in 1958 and served on the Guilford County Bicentennial Committee in 1970-1971. Mr. Vanstory, Jr. was the impetus for the opening of the Central Carolina Convalescent (Polio) Hospital and served as president and trustee from May 1947-1959. Mr. Vanstory served on the Board of Trustees of NCA&T University, where a residence hall is named in his honor. While he was known for his tenacity in the business world and for getting things accomplished, Mr. Vanstory is remembered fondly by family members as having a softer side. As one example, almost daily, he called his daughter-in-law to inquire about her teaching day and to share with her an after-school snack.

Above, we see Mr. Peter Vanstory seated, with wife Harriet-- the teacher mentioned above-- in front of a portrait of his father Cornelius Vanstory, Jr.  Peter Vanstory has the same commitment to community and strong work ethic as his relatives in earlier generations. Now retired from insurance and banking, Peter Vanstory continues to work full time for many local and national organizations. When a Vanstory talks about involvement with an organization, the involvement spans decades and at the level of not only leadership but also with people at the very core of the organizations. While he has served on the board of the Salvation Army for 35 years, Peter Vanstory still stands outside and rings the bell on cold winter days. A former marine, Mr. (Peter) Vanstory has served as ombudsman for nearly three decades, ensuring that employers comply with the law regarding job security for reserves and active duty military. Mr. Vanstory is truly a Southern gentleman who works tirelessly for the city he loves. We are inspired by this living legacy and his commitment to enhancing the quality of life in Greensboro. Today is ABC Wednesday and V is for Vanstory!

U is for Us...All of Us

Today is ABC Wednesday and for this series we are featuring the People of Greensboro.

For "U", instead of an individual, we're featuring "us", ALL of us-- we, the people of Greensboro. Among us, are the known and unknown; the named and unnamed; the celebrated and uncelebrated. Nothing captures this dichotomy better than the historic Underground Railroad. As seen above, decades before the Civil War, Greensboro was involved in seeing that fugitive slaves were guided to a better life. Quaker Vestal Coffin was one of the known in the chain of assistance and Sol. John Dimery was the first known Underground Railroad passenger from Guilford County. Behind both of these great people were many who contributed without recognition. We are lucky to have so many great people in and from Greensboro; those for whom books are written and signs are erected and those for whom rewards are more intrinsic. Here's to all of us!

In case you are having trouble reading the microscopic letters at the bottom of the sign, the above historic marker was erected February 1st, 2000 by the 40th anniversary committee of the Greensboro Sit-In Movement  on the W. Friendly Avenue side of Guilford College.

Stop back next Wednesday for, "V".

T is for Treanor, Kathy Treanor

Kathy Treanor was instrumental in establishing the Piedmont Land Conservancy (PLC), a non-profit that grew into reality around the Treanors' dining room table in 1989. Encompassing a 9-county* region, the overarching goal of PLC is to preserve the Piedmont's natural resources (reference). Some of the PLC's nearly 20,000 protected acres are for public use: Price Park, Weaver Bridge and the Lake Brandt Greenway are examples. Some land is farmed privately, but protected from future development: Goad Lady Dairy, Fern Hill Farm. Over the last twenty two years, Ms. Treanor has worked tirelessly, ensuring that future generations in the Piedmont have open space to enjoy, a clean water supply, and habitat for wildlife.

Ms. Treanor's passion for land preservation stems from the fact that her ancestors were farmers in America dating back to the late 18th century. Today, her 1797 family homeplace in Union Mills, MD, is an historic landmark as well as a museum of American culture (reference). Since her arrival to Greensboro in 1970, Ms. Treanor has been an ardent environmentalist. While she has recently retired as Executive Director of the PLC, Ms. Treanor is still involved in the organization's fine work. Her 2005 book, forever these lands, is a great reference and a way to enjoy the PLC's protected lands in the comfort of your home.

Today is ABC Wednesday and T is for Treanor, Kathy Treanor-- the latest in our People of Greensboro series. The above photo was taken in Ms. Treanor's back yard, a botanist's delight nestled between Friendly Avenue and Holden Road. For upcoming PLC events (including one TOMORROW) click here. 

*Alamance, Caswell, Forsyth, Guilford, Randolph, Rockingham, Stokes, Surry, and Yadkin.

S if for Schiffman, Arnold Anthony Schiffman, Jr.

Since 1893, the Schiffman name has been associated with quality purchases of fine jewelry, porcelain, and future heirlooms. Here we see Arnold Anthony Schiffman, Jr. (Tony), the third generation at the helm of Greensboro's oldest, locally-owned jewelry store. We were lucky to get a few minutes of his time last week as he and his associates have entered the season of the seven day work week between Thanksgiving and Christmas.  A firm believer in jewelry stores that have been part of a community for a century or more, Mr. Schiffman has purchased several such family-owned jewelry stores in the USA (read more here). Nearly 120 years ago, serendipity brought the Schiffmans to Greensboro.

In 1893, Simon Schiffman was traveling by train from Asheville to Raleigh. When he got off at the Greensboro Depot on South Elm Street, he learned that a jewelry store was for sale. He purchased it and Schiffmans have been selling jewelry in Greensboro since then.  The original store was on the west side of Elm Street which, in the late 1800's was the more reputable side of the street.

Along with the Cones, the Schiffmans were one of the earliest Jewish families to settle in Greensboro and were instrumental in establishing the congregation that would become Temple Emanuel. If all goes according to plan, Mr. Schiffman (Tony), will pass the business on to his sons. Eventually, grandson Arnold Anthony Schiffman IV will earn his credential from the Gemological Institute of America and carry the family business into the fifth generation. Today is ABC Wednesday and for our People of Greensboro Series, S is for Schiffman, Arnold Anthony, Jr.

See earlier entries here.

 

R is for Redhead, Dr. John A. Redhead, Jr.

Dr. John Agrippa Redhead, Jr. was minister of the First Presbyterian Church of Greensboro for twenty-five years, from 1945- 1970. He was not only well known locally, but also nationally and internationally through his radio broadcasts via the Protestant Radio Network and the Armed Forces Radio. Dr. Redhead carefully crafted every sermon that he preached. His detailed preparation consisted of: reading, organizing, writing, and 'absorbing the ceremony for delivery.'* He learned his sermons to the extent that he did not need to carry manuscripts or notes to the pulpit. He felt those papers would distance him from his congregation and diminish the impact of his delivery. He is quoted as saying, "paper is said to be a poor conductor of heat."** His sermons were broadcast live on the radio and he was highly sought after for his powerful and impeccable locution.

Also, Dr. Redhead's sermons were historically timely. After Greensboro's 1960 sit-ins, he preached a powerful lesson during these tense times, entitled, "On Turning the World Upside Down."  Another famous sermon, A faith for today, was delivered on June 7, 1968 following the death of Robert F. Kennedy.  Several of his books and sermons are still available today. Ever personable and connected to his congregation, Dr. Redhead was known for his amazing ability to call all 3,000 of his church members' names with ease. He was the 1975 recipient of the NCCJ Brotherhood/Sisterhood Citation Award for his efforts to promote understanding of people of all cultures.  The above portrait, painted in 1954, hangs in a meeting/fellowship room of the First Persbyterian Church of Greensboro (see inside here; outside here)

Today is ABC Wednesday and, for Round Nine, we've been featuring People of Greensboro. See previous entries here.

* Greensboro 27, Abe Jones, Jr., p. 265.

**Fundamentals of Preaching,John Killinger, p. 167.