from the EDITOR
from the EDITOR Published By The Chaldean News, LLC Editorial Editor in Chief Vanessa Denha-Garmo managing Editor Joyce Wiswell Contributing Writers Crystal Kassab Jabiro Ken Marten Michael Sarafa Dan Shriner PROOFREADER Ken Marten art & production creative director Alex Lumelsky with SKY Creative graphic designers Zina Lumelsky with SKY Creative Joseph Sesi Photographers David Reed James Wallace operations Interlink Media director of operations Martin Manna circulation Candace Khamarko CLASSIFIEDS Joyce Wiswell sales Interlink Media sales representativeS Interlink Media Candace Khamarko Lamya Kory managers Vanessa Denha-Garmo Martin Manna Michael Sarafa subscriptions: per year The Chaldean News 29850 Northwestern Highway, Suite 250 Southfield, MI 48034 www.chaldeannews.com Phone: (248) 996-8360 Publication: The Chaldean News (P-6); Published monthly; Issue Date: July 2012 Subscriptions: 12 months, . Publication Address: 29850 Northwestern Hwy., Suite 250, Southfield, MI 48034; Application to Mail at Periodicals Postage Rates is Pending at Farmington Hills Post Office Postmaster: Send address changes to “The Chaldean News 29850 Northwestern Highway, Suite 250, Southfield, MI 48034” Like Us on Facebook and check out the Chaldean Word of the Day! Answering the five Ws and how During one of my first journalism classes at Wayne State University, our instructor informed us that if we pursue a career as a journalist, we will in fact be among the most powerful people in the world. At first, I didn’t quite understand what he meant but it became clear as time passed. One news story can make or break a career. One story can humiliate a person for life or make them a household name. There is power in the pen and with people who have access to the airwaves. A few weeks into that same journalism class, that instructor asked each student to write down the first three things they think of when they here the word Chaldean or Arab- American. I proudly wrote hardworking, family oriented and churchgoers. I was the only one who had anything positive to say. The list, read out loud, included statements like drug dealers, don’t pay taxes, don’t speak English, and so on. I became angered and proceeded to ask how many students in the class knew a Chaldean personally, and no one raised a hand. It was at that time that my dream to publish my own Chaldean newspaper emerged. One of the purposes of publishing the Chaldean News every month is to educate people inside and outside the community about the Chaldeans. Every month we cover the basics at minimum: the who, what, where, when, how and why is answered. The purpose of my question to my classmates was to figure out how they came up with those answers. I learned that the media had great influence on their perceptions about Chaldeans. This past month, we were given an opportunity to partner with WDET 101.9 FM Public Radio to enhance our efforts. Vanessa denha-garmo editor in chief co-publisher We jointly hosted a town hall meeting at Shenandoah Country Club last month sponsored by Bank of Michigan (BoM) in Farmington Hills so WDET can gather appropriate information and better report on the community. We recap the meeting in this issue. Thanks to the WDET team including Mikel Ellcessor, Craig Fahle, Joan Isabella, Jerome Vaughn and Rob St. Mary for reaching out and taking a proactive approach to reporting. I also want to personally thank the 70-plus Chaldeans who attended the town hall including Jane Shallal, Burt Kassab and Al Zara, who joined me on WDET live on the air on June 14 for a follow-up discussion about WDET’s Craig Fahle and Vanessa Denha Garmo on Mackinac Island. the event. The focus of that story was to answer who are the Chaldeans. BoM founders, investors and board members know all too well who the Chaldeans are and their entrepreneurial spirit as it was appropriately explained at the WDET town hall meeting. We feature the latest news in the BoM story in this issue’s cover as the bank can proudly declare itself community-owned. A group of young investors purchased 51 percent of the shares from the majority share holder. The story of how the sale came to fruition is explained. We also wanted to highlight the candidates running for office and there are many of them. One is seeking a third term while the others are pursuing public office for the first time. There is a concerted effort by a group of very influential Chaldeans to ensure the community has representation in government. You can read in this issue why they put their names on the ballot. Many of the candidates weaved through fair rides, food stands and vendor booths as they visited the annual Chaldean Festival that once again closed down parts of Evergreen Road near the Southfield Civic Center. We reiterate what was going on in Oakland County during a sunny and warm summer weekend in Southfield as we we visit the festival in Chaldean on the Street. Every summer — especially now that my daughter is school-aged — I look for things to do with her. I peruse magazines, newspapers and websites looking for programs, camps and events geared towards kids. She will attend two different vacation Bible camps and an ice skating camp, and will end up at the wave pool and beach in Rochester at least once this summer. As we do in every issue, we give you a calendar of events in Chai Time. We list when and where events around town will take place. In this month, as we strive to do every month, we hope we answered the questions at the core of journalism: who, what, where, when, how and why! Alaha Imid Koullen (God Be With Us All) Vanessa Denha-Garmo vdenha@chaldeannews.com 6 CHALDEAN NEWS JULY 2012
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