Jan. 17, 2022 One of the key turns in an ever-changing Charlotte celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day occurred 40 years ago. And one of the architects of that turn took time out this year to piece together a retrospective of the 1982 MLK Day Observance. Ken Koontz pieced together clippings, ... Continue Reading →
New name, same mission: Sarah Stevenson Tuesday Forum
Jan. 4, 2022 Sarah Stevenson Tuesday Forum. Facilitators this morning announced their November decision to re-brand the community group that's been known over the years as a club and a forum but chiefly as the place where one strong woman insisted that people could get along and, by golly, they ... Continue Reading →
‘There is no guarantee’
By Ken Koontz I am voting because the right to do so was not initially given automatically or granted Constitutionally. Voting, for citizens like me, came as result of demand from, murders of and bloodshed by people like me and our allies and there is no guarantee that it can’t be ... Continue Reading →
Open Forum draws commentary, calls for action
April 30, 2019 Neighborhoods that are hurting. Avenues for supporting others. Strategies for uniting for change and against violence. Working to keep the Forum's discussions relevant The topics brought up this morning ranged widely. And as with discussions over the years, the point was not ... Continue Reading →
Second Ward Gym murals are complete
Feb. 7, 2019 An event at the old Second Ward High School gym today marked the completion of murals created by Charlotte artist Tommie Robinson. The murals depict life at Second Ward High when it was a focal point of teen life in Charlotte's Brooklyn neighborhood. Two local news outlets published ... Continue Reading →
Koontz holds his own national holiday … for a good cause
Oct. 2, 2018 Not everything at the Forum is serious and somber. Take, for example, Ken Koontz' self-declared national holiday. He turned his birthday celebration into a fundraiser for a scholarship fund (yes, carrying his name) at Johnson C. Smith University. To start the videos, click on ... Continue Reading →
Update on The Excelsior Club
Left, Ken Koontz; facade of Excelsior Club in undated James Peeler photo. June 5, 2018 Ken Koontz opened today's Open Forum with an update on the status of the shuttered Excelsior Club. Koontz was a part-owner of the Beatties Ford Road institution in the 1980s. The nightclub was a gathering ... Continue Reading →
Election 2017: Ken Koontz
– Page initiated April 25, 2017 William Shakespeare had his Puck, that “shrewd and knavish sprite” and jester who wanders through the play, “A Midsummer Night’s Dream.” The Forum? The Forum has Ken Koontz. Longtime television journalist, onetime owner of the Excelsior Club and all-round active ... Continue Reading →
Forum participants discuss Black Lives Matter
Aug. 9, 2016 When speakers scheduled to discuss a Black Lives Matter topic did not arrive, Forum participants discussed the issues raised by the movement. Forum co-founder Sarah Stevenson asked speakers to focus on how to make improvements in the lives of African-Americans in ... Continue Reading →
Going first, then helping those coming along after
Feb. 2, 2016 Tuesday's speakers broke down barriers to African-Americans in the workplace by persevering despite harassment, unequal treatment and disrespect. Those are the war stories, and they are painful to listen to. But Juanita Miller, Carolyn Logan and Ken Koontz also pressed Forum ... Continue Reading →