A planned shelter for homeless veterans in East St. Louis is one step closer to completion after getting a loan from the state. The Illinois Housing Development Authority board has approved an $870,000 loan for the Joseph Center. Martha Watts is the president of the nonprofit Eagles Nest of St. Clair County, which is sponsoring the project. She says the money will be enough to finish the project, but she doesn't know how long it will take. The project calls for turning the old Army Reserve in East St. Louis into a 22-bed facility to provide housing, medical care and job training for clients. |
East St. Louis — Famed dancer and Choreographer Katherine Dunham died on May 21, 2006 at the age of 96. But this city — her adopted hometown — is making sure she's not forgotten anytime soon.
Organizers announced that a citywide tribute to the civil rights activist, anthropologist and publisher would be June 22 — what would have been her 97th birthday — Lincoln Middle School Gymnasium — 12 South 10th Street — noon to 3 pm.
Eugene Redmond, who heads the committee planning the event honoring his friend of nearly four decades, said the celebration included testimonials by people influenced by Dunham, the namesake of the technique melding movements from traditional African and Caribbean dance styles.
The event titled "Katherine Dunham: a Familial Memorial Celebration," also featured dancers and drummers, Redmond said. "It …[was] a celebration of her life and an ode to her legacy," said Redmond, who also serves as vice president of the board for the local Katherine Dunham Centers for Art and Humanities.
Charlotte Ottley, a former aide to Dunham, said that culturally, this is a boost East St. Louis needs. Dunham, who died May 21, 2006 in an assisted living center in New York city, called East St. Louis home for more than 30 years. She once pressed a cultural crusade that some credited with putting gang leaders in leotards. At the time, she called on everyone to share her love for the arts and "something more constructive than genocide."
Dunham moved to New York in 1999. But Ottley said Dunham had planned to move back to the area for good before her 97th birthday bash at St. Louis' Missouri History Museum, which was also scheduled for June 22. This event followed the East St. Louis tribute.
Dunham's body has been cremated and a private service by the family was held at the Frank E. Campbell Funeral Chapel. Dunham's husband, John Pratt, died in East St. Louis in 1986.
Source: Belleville News-Democrat (Wednesday, May 31, 2006) |