BRC:What actually set you on the road you're on now?

HANNAH:Event planning is something I started out doing back when I was in the military, just to get extra money. Turned out I was good at it. I networked, I researched, I studied and followed all the leads I could. Eventually I met Toni Driskell who is my current business partner, and from whom I have learned a lot.

A few years later in Florida I did a wedding all by myself, really a tough job. It was a kind of wake-up call for me, telling me that I really needed a team of people around me to make this happen. I invited about 50 people to a meeting and twenty-five showed up -- photography and video people, caterers, decorators, DJs, people with a wide assortment of talents and credentials. This was the nucleus of our present team at A Regal Event.

It's the broad array of skills our team brings to the table that make possible what we do. We're a full service one-stop shop. We can handle every phase of your event, from securing the venue to selecting your wardrobe, sending the invitations, confirming the guest list, catering, video and still photography, the entertainment, shopping for gifts, and even the post- event follow-up. It's teamwork like this that enables us to handle multiple events in overlapping time frames. We've got three things happening this coming weekend, two on the same day, and all three will be truly regal and memorable events.

BRC:What advice would you give others who might consider starting out, either in your line of business or something else?

HANNAH: I'd say the first thing is to do your research, do your homework. Make sure that whatever you're doing, you've got something that sets your business apart. Check out the demographics, the market before you launch. Faith is necessary but not sufficient all by itself.

BRC:Is there anything you'd like to say about the BRC and black economic development?

HANNAH:Only that more of us need to do the homework and get out there to take those first steps and start businesses, begin working for ourselves and working for each other. I hope that the BRC can make those steps easier for some of us. There's no reason why we can't be a lot better about doing business with each other, and no reason why doing so won't benefit all of us.

BRC: Tell us just what Mission on the Move is, and how long you've been around.

ANDREWS: Mission on the Move has existed since 1990. It grew from a concept given to us by my mother, Sister Marilyn Stroud.

DUGGER: We try to live the name, and to put ourselves each week wherever the need is greatest. We reach out to any and everyone, without fear or favor and with the love of God in our hearts. We try to lift up, not to look down.

We have seen a lot of lives touched. These are homeless people, people without a job, people in crisis. We try to answer some of these needs, from the immediate like food, to longer range help furnished by our collaborators, who offer life skills and sometimes job training, eyeglasses, shoes, housing assistance and the like. We've been blessed by the cooperation of many agencies who accept our referrals.

ANDREWS Local businesses, especially black businesses, make possible a lot of the work we do. SCORES, an establishment in Decatur for example, recently made possible an event for children we did, from the location to the food. The support we do get from black business people is so very important, not just because of the resources they donate, but because of the positive example they set. We definitely will be reaching out to more of them, asking for sponsorships of events, and to be mentors.

We know that a growing and empowered black business sector, in combination with its churches makes it possible to do more of the Lord's work both inside and outside those churches. Ultimately it means more to the community. the community at large. The BRC's principle of strengthening black business in order to to put our entire communities on a more solid economic foundation is just good common sense.

Most of our outreach is done on Saturdays. We can always use extra hands to feed the hungry and to minister to the needy. As long as these needs are out here we will be the Mission On The Move. To find out how you can help, call us at 770-920-4796.

by Bunnie Jackson-Ransom
Atlanta, GA (8-14, 2007) Dr. Asa Grant Hilliard, III, world renowned Pan-Africanist educator, historian, and psychologist, passed from this life on August 13, 2007 in Cairo, Egypt. Dr. Hilliard was in Egypt to deliver a keynote lecture at the annual conference of the Association for the Study of Classical African Civilization (ASCAC), an organization he helped found. He was also lecturing for a study trip led by Rev. Jeremiah Wright of Chicago. The cause of death is attributed to complications from malaria. "Dr. Hilliard was in his favorite place, with his favorite person - our mother, when he died," said his daughter, Robi Hilliard Herron.

Dr. Hilliard was married for nearly 50 years to the Honorable Patsy Jo Hilliard, former mayor of East Point, GA and former school board member for the South San Francisco Unified School District.

Born in Galveston, TX on August 22, 1933 to Asa G. Hilliard II and Dr. Lois O. Williams. Dr. Hilliard graduated from Manual High School (1951) in Denver, CO. He received a B.A. from the University of Denver (1955) and taught in the Denver Public Schools before joining the U.S. Army, where he served as a First Lieutenant, platoon leader, and battalion executive officer in the Third Armored Infantry (1955-1957). He later received his M.A. in Counseling (1961) and Ed.D. in Educational Psychology (1963) from the University of Denver. In pursuit of his education, Dr. Hilliard worked in many occupations including as a teacher in the Denver Public Schools, as a railroad maintenance worker, and as a bartender, waiter and cook.

The professional career of Dr. Hilliard spans the globe. He was on the faculty at San Francisco State University; consultant to the Peace Corp in Liberia, West Africa; superintendent of schools in Monrovia, Liberia; and returned to San Francisco State as department chair and Dean of Education. At the time of his death, Dr. Hilliard was the Fuller E. Calloway Professor of Urban Education at Georgia State University in Atlanta where he held joint appointments in the Department of Educational Policy Studies and the Department of Educational Psychology and Special Education.

Dr. Hilliard was a Board Certified Forensic Examiner and Diplomate of both the American Board of Forensic Examiners and the American Board of Forensic Medicine. He served as lead expert witness in several landmark federal cases on test validity and bias, including Larry P. v. Wilson Riles in California, Mattie T. v. Holliday in Mississippi, Deborah P. v. Turlington in Florida, and also in two Supreme Court cases, Ayers v. Fordice in Mississippi, and Marino v. Ortiz in New York City. Dr. Hilliard has lectured at leading universities and other institutions throughout the world, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Smithsonian Institution, and the National Geographic Society.

The full list of Dr. Hilliard's professional accomplishments, publications and awards is enough for two rich lifetimes. He was a leading thinker on the cultural biases of history and the biases of education as it is typically delivered in African American communities. A strong opponent of standardized testing, he influenced an entire generation of scholars, educators and ordinary people with a stream of insightful lectures, articles, and books.

He is survived by his wife, Patsy Jo Hilliard (former East Point mayor and BRC Supporter) and four children: Asa G. Hilliard, IV, Robi Hilliard Herron, Dr. Patricia Hilliard-Nunn and Michael Hakim Hilliard and seven grandchildren.

For those friends and colleagues who wish to give comments and expressions about the life and works of Dr. Asa G. Hilliard or to give remembrances to the family, you may do so at www.asaghilliard.com.

Dr. Hilliard's family is requesting that in lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Per Maat Foundation, Inc., P. O. Box 357171, Gainesville, FL 32635. The Per Maat Foundation is a non-profit public foundation created to educate people about African and African Diaspora history and culture. All contributions are tax deductible.

Wednesday, August 29 at 7PM Ray of Hope Christian Church holds its Dance Jubilee, an unforgettable witness in the tradition of radical discipleship as the Ray continues to "transform this present world into the Kingdom of God". All are invited.

On Saturday, September 8, join the women of SCLC for an exciting day trip to dedicate the memorial monument to Mrs. Coretta King, the first lady of the Freedom Movement at the site of her home church, historic Mt. Tabor AME Zion in North Perry County, Alabama. $80 covers transportation, lunch and snacks. Get on the bus! Make checks payable to SCLC Women Inc., Monument Fund. To reserve your seat, call SCLC Women at 404-584-0303, or reach them via e-mail at sclcwomeninc@aol.com. The bus leaves at 7AM sharp, returns at 6:30 PM.

On Monday, September 10 Bobby Hurd will present the Midnight Gospel Explosion, at Light of the World Tabernacle, 5833 Highway 155 N, in Stockbridge GA 30281, where Pastor and Archbishop Jimmie L. Smith presides.

On September 18-22 Believers Bible Church holds its annual Mens Getaway to Kingston Plantation in Myrtle Beach SC, a time of physical and spiritual re-energizing! Contact Norman Robbins at 404-344-7203 for more information.

Thursday through Sunday, September 20-23 Pastor Grace C. Washington of Love Life Christian Fellowship Church presents Women At the Well, their 2007 Women's Conference. All women ages 13 and up are invited to be restored, renewed, rescued, refreshed, reclaimed and rejuvenated.

The YMCA at East Lake and the Embrace HIV/AIDS Ministry of the Greater Piney Grove Baptist Church present their annual 5K Walk For The Cure on Saturday, October 13, 2007 at 8 AM. Start and finish lines, and a 10 AM till 2 PM health fare are all at Greater Piney Grove Baptist Church, 1879 Glenwood Ave. SE in Atlanta.

All funds received are donated to the National AIDS Education & Services For Minorities and Our Common Welfare.

Did we miss what's happening at your BRC church? Fax us your church bulletin, or your news and announcements each week, or call the office with your news, 404-346-0808, or e-mail us at info@brcatl.com.