May 23, 2019 

By Stacy M. Brown 

NNPA Newswire Correspondent 

 

The nation’s leading public interest group providing seniors and others with information that empowers them to choose how they live, AARP, regularly publishes a retirement calculator that individuals and families can use to provide a personalized snapshot of what their financial future might look like.

 

One simply has to answer a few questions about household status, salary and retirement savings (such as an IRA or 401(k)), include information about supplemental retirement income (such as a pension or Social Security), and consider how long they intend to work to generate information that will inform their expected lifestyle as a retiree.

 

The tool is designed to help potential retirees determine the amount of money they’ll need to retire “when – and how – they want.”

 

Unfortunately for most African Americans, even the most sophisticated planning tools lead to the same result: retirement has fast become a pie-in-the-sky dream.

 

“As a whole, Americans are bad savers. But, I believe it’s worse for African American communities because they don’t have access to the right educational opportunities,” said Cory Chapman, the Managing Partner and CEO of EFC Wealth Management.

 

“Being raised by a single mom with three kids, I understand the struggle of just trying to pay the bills and get food on the table. Growing up, saving money was an afterthought and never discussed,” Chapman said.

 

A report published earlier this month demonstrated how African Americans, Latinos and other minorities will have a more difficult time calling it quits than white Americans.

 

The report, published on the financial website The Motley Fool, revealed that the troubling disparity in retirement readiness between white Americans and minorities can be explained largely by income and wealth disparities that persist throughout our lives.

 

“Caucasians didn’t lose as much wealth during the Great Recession and have recovered more of it, so white households now hold close to six times the wealth of African American or Hispanic households,” the report’s authors said.

 

Median earnings for white households recovered from the recession by 2016, but earning levels for both black and Hispanic households remained below 2007 levels.

 

Caucasians now earn close to twice as much as minority households do, according to The Motley Fool.

 

“The African American community is skeptical when it comes to saving,” Chapman said.

 

“Growing up, we were taught by our grandparents that we couldn’t trust banks and we were better off burying money in the backyard,” he said.

 

Understanding how money works is actually getting worse with each new generation – black children aren’t learning basic life skills in school, Chapman continued.

 

“We need to be teaching children about planning strategies to generate wealth. Retired African American clients that come into my office are still just trying to make ends meet,” Chapman said.

 

“They don’t feel like they can save money when they are trying to put their kids through college and help them buy a home or car. They are forgetting about themselves and their own retirement,” he said.

 

The most recent MassMutual State of the American Family Study found that there are differences in retirement planning among different cultural groups.

 

African Americans fall short on executing life-changing measures such as accumulating wealth, being better prepared for retirement and building up savings.

 

According to the American Family Study, 84 percent of African Americans believe the American Dream means financial security; 78 percent in not living paycheck-to-paycheck; and 77 percent in owning a home.

 

However, based on the study, many African Americans don’t have tangible assets needed to make those goals happen now.

 

The study revealed a disconnect between African Americans’ financial situations and their hope toward the future.

 

Some key findings from the survey:

 

• Outside of retirement accounts, only 37 percent of African Americans own wealth-building products such as stocks and mutual funds.

 

• Only 35 percent believe they are doing a good job of preparing for retirement.

 

• 33 percent have less than one month of funds saved for a crisis and less than 25 percent have amassed more than six months’ of emergency savings.

 

• 58 percent are actively involved in educating their children on finances versus 48 percent of Caucasians. Forty-percent rely on family members for information

 

“The study shows African Americans want to improve their financial situations and are hopeful about the future,” Evan Taylor, African American market director for MassMutual, told Black Enterprise Magazine.

 

“At the same time, it sheds light on the financial struggles and inequities that the African American community continues to battle,” Taylor said.

 

“Those contradictions indicate a need for greater financial education and discipline for the whole family to achieve economic success. In fact, the biggest financial regret expressed by respondents was that they wished they had started saving and investing sooner,” he said.)

May 23, 2019 

NNPA Newswire 

 

Dorothy R. Leavell, publisher of the Chicago and Gary Crusader newspapers for nearly 51 years and chairman of the National Newspapers Publishers Association (NNPA), was honored on Friday, April 19 during a luncheon at the Hotel Intercontinental on Michigan Avenue.

 

Leavell was given a special award by the Ida B. Wells Committee from the charity organization known as Ida’s Legacy. It was founded by Delmarie Cobb, who heads and owns Publicity Works, a broadcasting and media production company in Bronzeville.

 

For her lifelong contributions to Chicago, Leavell was given a framed portrait of Ida B. Wells-Barnett by renowned artist Minnie Watkins.

 

“It was a special honor to be given an award in honor of Ida B. Wells,” Leavell said. “It was also notably special because the Crusader was born in the Ida B. Wells project. It was a double honor. No other pioneer comes close to the contributions that Ida B. Wells made to Black America.”

 

Former Ebony/Jet showcase impresario Devorah Crable served as mistress of ceremonies of an elegant luncheon that was attended by Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle, State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and other powerful Black women in Chicago. The event’s keynote speaker, Faye Wattleton, the first Black female CEO of Planned Parenthood, inspired guests to live their own truth to uplift their families and communities.

 

Reverend Jennifer Tinsley from Bethel AME Church in Bronzeville, gave the invocation and benediction. She noted that she was the first Black female in her church’s 152-year history to be ordained. she also noted that Wells-Barnett was a member of Bethel AME Church and married her husband there as well.

 

Born into slavery in Holly Springs, Mississippi, Wells-Barnett was a suffragist and pioneering journalist who documented the lynching of thousands of Black throughout the South during segregation. Some of her investigative tactics are still used today. In addition to civil rights, Wells-Barnett also fought for women’s rights. She helped to found prominent civil rights organizations including the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People and the National Association of Colored Women, only to be edged out of their leadership.

 

Wells-Barnett and Abolitionist Frederick Douglass worked together to have organizers of the 1893 World’s Fair create a pavilion for Black residents at a time when the city was segregated and people of color were treated like second class citizens.

 

Wells died in Chicago in 1931. She is buried with her husband, Ferdinand in Oak Woods Cemetery in Woodlawn. Earlier this year, the City of Chicago renamed Congress Parkway after Wells-Barnett, ensuring her legacy would be known to future generations.

 

Leavell assumed the leadership of the Crusader newspapers in 1968 after the sudden death of her husband, Crusader founder Balm L. Leavell. At 24, with the blessing of the co-founder, Joseph H. Jefferson, Leavell ushered in a new era at the Crusader newspapers. She did this as a Black single-mother with two children to raise while serving as a woman of color in a male-dominated print industry. She steered the Chicago and Gary Crusader newspaper as advertising in the print industry declined with the rise of digital publications and social media. Out of several Black newspapers that once operated in Gary, Indiana, the Gary Crusader remains the only one in operation today.

 

In 2017, Leavell was elected Chairman of the National Newspapers Publishers Association (NNPA) Board of Directors, commonly known as The Black Press. The organization represents over 200 Black newspapers across the country. But being publisher of the Crusader Newspaper Group remains Leavell’s most beloved role that has forged a strong bond with her readers and community.

May 16, 2019 

By Brian W. Carter 

Contributing Writer 

 

There’s a new facility ready to get the community in shape on every level from your body to your mind. Coach La La V. is the owner of Thrive Fitness Lab (TFL) and she has a goal in mind—you reaching your full potential. She spoke to the Sentinel about her passion, TFL and her plans for the community.

 

“We are a class-based facility that gives everyone the feeling they have a personal trainer,” said Coach La La V. “We consider client goals and support them in achieving them.

 

“Thrive is a community center.”

 

Coach La La V. grew up on Don Tomaso in Baldwins Hills.  She attended Palisades High School and Howard University, graduating with a B.A. in interior design.

 

In 2014, she started her career in health and wellness attaining her certifications as a WITS certified personal trainer, NASM corrective exercise specialist, AASDN nutrition specialist and is TRX suspension & group training qualified.

 

“We are a family who checks in with each other and encourages each other,” said Coach La La V. “What sets us apart is our passion to ensure that clients always use correct form which helps with lessening pain and injury while exercising.”

 

Open seven days a week, TFL offers a range of classes from stretch therapy and TRX, to yoga and meditation. Located in the Crenshaw corridor of Los Angeles, TFL believes in empowerment, education, and community.

 

“We aim to encourage and empower communities through education, proactive programming, and holistic wellness,” said Coach La La V. “The Lab is a diverse environment where people of all backgrounds and fitness goals feel comfortable and encouraged to meet their goals together.”

 

TFL offers a wide range of fitness programs and services including high intensity interval training, stretch therapy, personal training, stretch therapy/massage, corrective exercise, nutrition coaching, workshop series and a meal prep service.

 

TFL recently hosted an open house on Saturday, May 4. The open house welcomed the Crenshaw community and surrounding neighborhoods to encourage overall wellness classes and meal prep services. Coach La La V. spoke on the turnout.

 

“It was amazing!” said Coach La La V.

 

“We had about 150 attendees who were able to take complimentary 30-minute class demos by our enthusiastic trainers, taste test our new meal prep service by Nikkimomo, reserve a spot to get their body composition done by Body Spec and sign up for our 6 Week Glow Up Challenge.”

 

The Glow Up Challenge is a six-week full body transformation, which is taking place from May 6 until June 10. Coach La La V. offered some free advice on how to jumpstart moving towards better health and fitness. Her bottom line is to “keep it simple and don’t overthink it.”

 

“Nutrition is key,” said Coach La La V. “Avoid fried foods, processed foods, excess of sauces/condiments, and large portions.

 

“Eat more vegetables, season with fresh herbs and drink more water.”

 

As far as exercise, Coach La La V. says, “Start with walking, then jogging, then running.

 

 

 

“To get results, you don’t only have to do weight lifting and running. There are plenty of activities that you can do to yield results. Group classes, dancing, hiking, team sports, skating, and more. Find your fit by finding activities that interest you so you don’t get bored.

 

 

She also added, “Get sleep—sleep is the time when growth hormones are released. Growth hormone stimulates muscle growth and repair, bone building and fat burning.”

 

TFL is currently offering a few community donation-based classes to be inclusive of all those around the center.

 

For more information about Thrive Fitness Lab, please visit www.thrivehealthlab.com

 

 

 

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