From event organizers:
ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA SORORITY’s Gamma Gamma Omega Chapter Honors Six Members of the Community During their Annual Founders’ Day Celebration
Asheville – On Sunday, February 18, at 2:00 p.m. in the fellowship hall of St. James AME Church (44 Hildebrand Street, Asheville, NC) members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.’s Gamma Gamma Omega Chapter will celebrate their organization’s 110th Founders’ Day, while also recognizing six members of the community for their service to citizens of Buncombe County.
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority is the first Greek-letter sorority brought into being in 1908 as a support network for women of color. Alpha Kappa Alpha’s mission is to cultivate and encourage high scholastic and ethical standards, to promote unity and friendship among college women, to study and help alleviate problems concerning girls and women in order to improve their social stature, to maintain a progressive interest in college life, and to be of “Service to All Mankind.”
Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority’s Gamma Gamma Omega Chapter was chartered on March 31, 1940 in Asheville, NC. The Chapter provides educational and enrichment services to students through the ASCEND program, which is a national program developed by Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. Additionally, the sorority’s Chapter members volunteer and/or donate funds to other organizations including the National Association of Mental Illness (NAMI), Alzheimer’s Association, Asheville Buncombe Institute for Parity Achievement (ABIPA), Housing Authority of the City of Asheville’s Residents’ Council, Manna Food Bank, St. James AME Church, City of Asheville’s Parks and Recreation Department, and Hill Street Baptist Church. The Chapter has also awarded over $25,000 in scholarships to students who have graduated from local high schools.
Gamma Gamma Omega members will honor the following individuals during the Founders’ Day luncheon: Dr. Larry McCallum, Dr. Raymond Thertulien, Aisha Shepherd, Tameka Hill-Crudup, and Dr. Charles and Dr. Deborah “Dee” James.
Dr. McCallum was the Assistant Superintendent of the Buncombe County School system, and has over 42 years of education experience. Dr. McCallum is known for his ability to train and counsel students to become model citizens. He is well-known throughout the State of North Carolina for his ability to teach. Students continue to refer to him as Coach McCallum because of the decades he spent coaching within the system. At present, Dr. McCallum is retired, but continues to mentor African-American boys in six schools throughout Buncombe County.
Dr. Thertulien has a strong basic and clinical research background and has published extensively in various leading scientific journals in clinical areas including multiple myeloma, lymphoma, secondary malignancies, treatment-related MDS, and leukemia, among others. His current research interests are in developmental therapeutics.
Dr. Tertullian is board-certified in Internal Medicine, Hematology, and Medical Oncology. He is a member of the American Society of Hematology (ASH), the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), and the Western Carolina Medical Society (WCMS).
In his spare time, Dr. Thertulien enjoys playing and watching soccer, listening to music, reading and traveling. Dr. Thertuilen has led local delegations of medical providers and fellows to Haiti to assist with providing medical services to the residents of the country.
Shepherd is a native of Asheville who is employed with Buncombe County Government. She worked as a Social Worker for fourteen years. She currently serves as a Liaison and Trainer and a vital part of Community Engagement Team. In her role, Shepherd provides support to families by linking them to critical resources such as food, clothing, healthcare, housing, education, and other vital community resources.
Hill-Crudup is employed with Asheville Parks and Recreation as a Facility Manager. In her position, Hill-Crudup oversees all of the Parks and Recreation Centers with a focus on ensuring that the programs are run smoothly and the children and staff have what they need to operate. Hill-Crudup also ensures that the programs operate in compliance with all of Buncombe County’s and the State of North Carolina’s regulations.
Dr. Charles and Deborah “Dee” James are graduates of the University of North Carolina at Asheville (UNCA) and have taught at UNCA for over thirty years. Together with others, they started the African-American Student Affairs program, Dr. Dee James, as she is affectionately called by her students and colleagues, helped to develop the African-American Colloquium, which is a program designed to create community and support for first-year African American students on campus. The Colloquium includes tutoring, mentoring, and advising, along with special annual trips to places around the country including, our Nation’s Capitol Washington, DC and New Orleans.
“The honorees are providing transformative leadership that is changing the lives of a vast array of citizens throughout Buncombe County. As we recognize the honorees’ work, we salute their commitment to providing service above self,” said Terry Bellamy, President of Gamma Gamma Omega chapter.
The guest speaker for the event is Dr. Denise Patterson, Asheville City School system’s Superintendent. An educator for the past 23 years, she has a variety of leadership experiences at the school and district levels.
Patterson began her career in 1994 in Lincoln County Schools serving as a teacher, assistant principal, and principal. She taught fourth grade at Battleground Elementary School and later served as an academically gifted teacher at five elementary schools in the district. After six years of teaching, Dr. Patterson served as the assistant principal and later principal of North Brook Elementary School. She also was the founding principal of Norris S. Childers Elementary School. Dr. Patterson has been honored as the Lincoln County Teacher of the Year, Lincoln County Assistant Principal of the Year, and the Lincoln County Principal of the Year.
After more than 13 years in Lincoln County, Patterson assumed the role as the Associate Superintendent for Auxiliary Services in Union County Public Schools where she worked for more than four years overseeing transportation, after-school care, child nutrition, federal programs, and gifted education. Her most recent experience was the Assistant Superintendent of Curriculum and Instruction in Hickory Public Schools. Dr. Patterson supervised K-12 instructional programs, facilitated the Assistant Principals’ Academy, and oversaw testing/accountability and the exceptional children’s program.
Dr. Patterson has a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, which she received in 1994. She also holds a Master of Elementary Education degree from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte (2000) and a Master of Arts degree in administration (2002) from Gardner-Webb University. Dr. Patterson was the recipient of the Gardner-Webb Graduate Education Scholarship. In 2007, she received a doctorate in educational leadership from the University of North Carolina at Charlotte and participated in the North Carolina Aspiring Superintendent Fellows Program in 2015.
Dr. Patterson has served as an adjunct professor at Gardner-Webb University facilitating instruction for master level students. Most recently, she has served as an adjunct professor at Wingate University in the educational program for doctoral level students. She was appointed to serve as the Superintendent of the Asheville City School System in 2017.
She is a member of Oak Grove A. M. E. Zion Church in Cherryville, North Carolina, and serves on the Trustee Board, Stewardess Board, and Birthday Committee. She is also a proud member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated.
Gamma Gamma Omega’s Founders’ Day luncheon is open to the public and the cost of the tickets is $20. To RSVP for this event email: Ms. Marion Thompson at misstee@charter.net.
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