Charles W. “Chuck’’ Cherry II of Daytona Beach, a fierce advocate of the Black Press and a longtime warrior for social justice, died on Saturday, July 15, at age 66.

Chuck Cherry retired as publisher of the Daytona Times and the Florida Courier in 2020 after running the Black newspapers’ editorial operations for decades.

The retired attorney also was an author, speaker, radio broadcaster and strategic business planning consultant.

In 2019, he founded 623 Management, Inc., a company that focused on developing and disseminating messaging to Black America with a specific focus on understanding and reaching Florida’s Black population through a comprehensive marketing strategy.

He also was a sought-after speaker on Black history and civil rights in Daytona Beach and beyond.

Charles W. Cherry II was born on Aug. 6, 1956, in Daytona Beach to Julia T. Cherry and Charles W. Cherry, Sr., founder of the Daytona Times and Florida Courier newspapers. The senior Cherry also was a past president of the Florida NAACP and a former Daytona Beach city commissioner.

Admitted into the Florida Bar in December 1983, he was a former Fort Lauderdale city and South Florida state prosecutor, and practiced law for 21 years before returning to journalism and newspaper publishing as his primary occupation upon the death of Charles W. Cherry, Sr.

For more than 10 years, Chuck Cherry also served as general counsel to the Housing Authority of the City of Fort Lauderdale.

Along with being publisher of the newspapers, he served as general manager of the family-owned radio station WPUL-AM and for years was host of the station’s “Free Your Mind’’ radio show.

Jenise Griffin, who replaced Cherry as publisher in 2020, said, “Chuck Cherry was my longtime mentor and friend, and I am devastated by his passing. He was a giant in the journalism industry and his voice will be missed. As his award-winning column was titled, he told it ‘straight, no chaser.’ I admired him as a journalist, a brother with a great legal mind, and an awesome father.’’

She added, “Although he was no longer a working member of the Daytona Times and Florida Courier, the staffers often still reached out to him for advice and insight on their editorial projects.’’

Plans for a public memorial service are in the works. In lieu of flowers, the Cherry family is requesting that donations be made to the Charles W. Cherry Sr. Endowed Scholarship Fund via giving.morehouse.edu.

The post Charles ‘Chuck’ Cherry, Black Newspaper Publisher in Florida, Dies at 66 first appeared on Post News Group. This article originally appeared in Post News Group.

BY DAYTONA TIMES STAFF

Joeretha Hayes, a retired Volusia County educator, turned 85 on March 29 and the special day brought her many surprises right outside of her front door. A drive-by birthday party, organized by her daughter, LaVeta Hayes-Logan, was attended by family, friends and her sorors of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.

“I had a wonderful time and was delighted by all of the gifts, warm wishes and surprise by my daughter LaVeta. I couldn’t believe she pulled this off at my house,’’ Mrs. Hayes said.

Her daughter told the Daytona Times, “It was such an honor for me to see her tears of joy, which made it all worth it.’’

Born in Jacksonville, Mrs. Hayes is the daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. Raiford Stringfield of Jacksonville. She has one sister, Joyce Walker.

She came to Daytona Beach to attend then Bethune-Cookman College and graduated in 1959.

EDUCATOR FOR 36 YEARS

She married her college sweetheart, Edward “Creamy” Hayes, Jr. They were married for 63 years until his passing. The union brought them two children – Edward Hayes III (deceased) and LaVeta Hayes, also graduates of Bethune-Cookman University.

Bethune-Cookman honored them with the Total Family Medallion for all family members graduating from the university.

Mrs. Hayes also has two grandchildren and three great grands.

An educator for 36 years in Volusia County schools, her first teaching job was at Campbell Street Elementary under the late John Dickerson. She taught fourth grade for five years.

She later transferred to teaching physical education and for a while taught part time at Campbell and part time at Rigby Elementary. Later, the schools integrated. Mrs. Hayes transferred to Highlands Elementary. She retired from Palm Terrace Elementary.

Along with her membership in the Daytona Beach Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, she is a member of various teacher and educator associations. She’s also a member of Bethune-Cookman University’s Volusia County Alumni Chapter, the Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Silhouettes as well as the Daytona Beach/Volusia County NAACP.

This article originally appeared in the Daytona Times.

SPECIAL TO THE DAYTONA TIMES

The Jacksonville Port Authority (JAXPORT) and Volusia County have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that establishes a working relationship to promote each other’s geographical n business advantages. The goal is to attract more global businesses to Volusia County, bring more Florida-bound cargo through JAXPORT and create high-wage jobs for Florida.

Under the agreement, JAXPORT and Volusia will work together to attract new distribution, manufacturing and related facilities to Volusia while also highlighting the logistics benefits of moving cargo bound for Central Florida through JAXPORT.

“As we continue to invest in our state’s transportation system, including our ports, roads and rail, it’s rewarding to see those investments being put to work to benefit communities across county and regional lines,” said Florida Department of Transportation Secretary Kevin J. Thibault, P.E. “This type of teamwork helps market Florida’s world-class infrastructure to the world, bringing more jobs and businesses to our state while maximizing the return on the investments we’ve made for the citizens of Florida.”

‘Proactive collaboration’

“Connectivity is what we do best in Florida and this agreement is a perfect example,” said Florida Secretary of Commerce Jamal Sowell. “By partnering together, JAXPORT and Volusia County are maximizing infrastructure and putting job creation front and center. This is great news for the region’s exporters and the Floridians they employ.”

“This agreement is a recognition that we’re all interconnected and must work together to maximize the potential for business opportunities and job growth,” said Volusia County manager George Recktenwald. “This type of proactive collaboration has the very real potential to deliver positive economic outcomes for both our communities and JAXPORT. Volusia County is proud to be a part of it.”

The goal of the MOU is to provide Volusia County businesses with convenient access to Northeast Florida’s nearby deep-water seaport and congestion-free transportation network.

“We are grateful for the support we’ve received over the years from our federal, state and local partners, and will continue to work to leverage these investments for the benefit of our customers and community,” said JAXPORT CEO Eric Green. “We are thrilled to work with Volusia County as part of JAXPORT’s ongoing effort to encourage businesses who are creating goods for Florida consumers to bring their operations, cargo and jobs to our state.”

Officials from JAXPORT and Volusia County will meet regularly to share information about companies looking to expand or locate in the County and how the team can best serve them.

“We are excited to offer the benefits of this new partnership to new and existing businesses located within the County. This can serve as a catalyst to facilitate global expansion of those businesses into new markets,” said Volusia County Economic Development Director Helga van Eckert.

About JAXPORT

The agreement will complement JAXPORT’s long-standing work with JAXUSA Partnership to support global business development in the seven counties within the JAXUSA area. The MOU expands JAXPORT’s reach into the rapidly growing Central Florida market.

“Extending JAXPORT’s reach further into the state creates tremendous opportunities for businesses throughout Northeast Florida,” said JAXUSA Partnership President Aundra Wallace. “As more businesses come to our state and move their cargo through Jacksonville’s port, it creates jobs and economic impact throughout the supply chain and Northeast Florida stands to benefit.”

JAXPORT is Florida’s largest container port, one of the nation’s top vehicle-handling ports and a major U.S port for the import and export of bulk, breakbulk and other cargoes. Cargo activity through Jacksonville’s seaport generates 138,000 jobs and $31 billion in annual economic output for the region and state.

The article, “Jacksonville Port Authority, Volusia announce partnership ,” first appeared in the Daytona Times.

The Gamma Mu Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority (AKAs) is sponsoring a billboard on the corner of International Speedway and Fentress boulevards to encourage residents to wear masks to fight the spread of COVID-19. The billboard sponsored by the Daytona Beach organization will run through Jan. 24. The “Wear A Mask for Community Health’’ campaign was launched on Monday as part of the chapter’s MLK Day of Service activities.

The post A massive message on masks by Daytona’s AKAs appeared first on Daytona Times.

This article originally appeared in the Daytona Times.

CLAY JONES /CLAYTOONZ.COM

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By Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League.

“If this incident was motivated by hate, which news reports indicate, then this is another incident in a long line of violent incidents targeting the Jewish community. This hatred is a disease and right now we are experiencing an epidemic. Leaders must lead and call out hate wherever and whenever it rears its ugly head – regardless of politics. This is about principle.” — Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO and National Director, Anti-Defamation League For the third time in just over a year, the nation is reeling in the face of a deadly mass shooting that appears to have been motivated by anti-Semitism.

Earlier this week, a man and woman killed a police detective near a Jersey City cemetery and then stormed a nearby Jewish market, shooting and killing three people there. The two were killed in a subsequent shootout with police.

The suspects have been linked to a religious sect that includes factions designated as anti-Semitic hate groups. In the stolen van they were driving, investigators found a note that contained anti-Semitic and anti-police sentiments. Similar sentiments were found in social media posts linked to the suspects.

Terrifying trend

In April of this year, a gunman opened fire in a San Diego synagogue on the last day of Passover, killing a 60-year-old woman and wounding three other people, including a rabbi and an 8-year-old girl.

Shortly before the attack, the gunman posted an anti-Semitic and racist manifesto on social media, citing conspiracy theories, expressing admiration for the gunmen who perpetrated the anti-Muslim killings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand.

Six months earlier, in Pittsburgh, 11 people were killed at the Tree of Life Synagogue. That shooter, too, deeply enmeshed in anti-Semitic conspiracy theories on social media.

These acts are part of a horrifying three-year trend that has coincided with a spike in course and heated racial rhetoric in political discourse.

It is one that demands action on several fronts, including gun policy, moderation of social media terms of service, and a sweeping reexamination of racial and religious intolerance.

Rise of violence

As a child of the Civil Rights Movement and the leader of the nation’s largest racial justice organization, I have witnessed the recent rise of white nationalism with equal parts dismay and a sickening sense of familiarity.

Our nation’s history is sullied with racial and religious intolerance and violence. What has sustained us, as famously expressed by Martin Luther King, Jr., is that “the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice.

In this particular period of history, the arc seems especially long. Leaked emails recently revealed that one of the president’s closest advisors, Stephen Miller, has cited and promoted white nationalist ideologies and conspiracy theories about “White genocide,” the criminality of immigrants, and the reviled eugenics movement.

Congressional response to the emails has been almost nonexistent.

Higher than recorded

Meanwhile, personal attacks motivated by bias or prejudice reached a 16-year high last year, according to the FBI.

More than 4,300 attacks on people, motivated by racial or religious hatred, were recorded by the FBI.

State and local police forces are not required to report hate crimes to the F.B.I., and as many as half the victims of hate crimes never file a report, so the actual number of hate-fueled assaults is significantly higher than the official record.

Love and protect

Lately it seems that the atrocities and outrages of racism and intolerance are falling too fast and too frequently to respond appropriately.

But we must not lose sight of our ideals as Americans – as brothers and sisters and parents and neighbors – to love and protect one another.

Let your elected representatives know that these incidents call for responsible gun reform, holding social media companies accountable for dissemination of hate speech, and a moderation of their public rhetoric.

And join us in our prayers for the victims and their families.

Marc Morial is president and CEO of the National Urban League.

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