Emmaus Holder ’24 has always considered himself an adventurous person. He has been on numerous hiking and backpacking trips, and he’s traveled around the world, including to Tanzania and Djibouti just this spring.
This summer, the Carolina sophomore took his adventurous nature to another level.
Over the span of 56 days, the Morehead-Cain Scholar cycled 4,300 miles from Topsail Beach, North Carolina, to Los Angeles, California, in a solo, self-supported ride.
The experience was more than just about racking up miles on his bike, though. Holder tied his academic and personal passions into the adventure, turning it into a research opportunity and a chance to bring awareness to Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, which can cause physical and learning problems.
The towns along Holders’ meandering route linked researchers working on Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, support groups and the services designed to help families. From town to town, Holder stopped to meet with researchers and learn more about their challenges and successes — ultimately compiling dozens of interviews that he’ll turn into a research paper.
“This is something that is going to be one of the best things I will ever do in my life,” he said. “It was absolutely the best way I could have spent my summer. This is something that is going to be very special for me for the rest of my life.”
Read the complete Carolina Story
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Chris Hall ’23 took a low point in his life and turned it into something positive, all in memory of his mother, Lynn, who died of triple negative breast cancer in 2018 at age 47. With a head for business and a drive to help others, Hall is working with the North Carolina Basnight Cancer Hospital to help fund a Parenting with Cancer Clinic through the hospital’s Comprehensive Cancer Support Program.
CCSP provides support to patients and their families, from diagnosis to treatment and into survivorship, and its goal is to help families just like Hall’s.
Hall, a business major who graduated in spring, has already put his business savvy to work, amassing more than $1.5 million in sales from his online enterprises, monetizing advertising on his social media channels and selling those for a profit — all to keep a promise he made to his mother when she was diagnosed with breast cancer.
“She was declared in remission when I was in eighth grade, and it sparked a little fire,” he said. “It made me think a little bit. I promised myself that I’d pay off her mortgage before I’m 25.”
After his mother passed, Hall wanted to find a way to repurpose his goal. He created the Lynn Hall Parenting with Cancer Clinic Fund to honor her.
The clinic’s mission is twofold: 1) to help cancer patients with minor children talk to their children openly and honestly about their cancer; and 2) to help with legal issues that can accompany cancer, such as end-of-life decisions, wills, trusts and custody agreements.
“Putting your affairs in order does not mean giving up hope. It’s a gift to your family to have a plan. Rather than worrying about what might happen, patients can have peace of mind that their families will be taken care of,” said Cindy Rogers, director of patient assistance at CCSP.
Read more about the Parenting with Cancer Clinic…"
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“Chineka is a wonderful, hardworking and deserving employee,” wrote one of the many people who nominated residence hall housekeeper Chineka Stanley for a C. Knox Massey Distinguished Service Award. “She is always here, bright and early.”
“Bright and early” is especially fitting, given that Stanley typically arrives before her student residents wake and lifts their spirits with a personality that shines.
Employed by UNC-Chapel Hill for nearly five years, Stanley maintains and cleans the Lewis and Everett residence halls off Raleigh Street, not far from the Coker Arboretum. She transforms the residential spaces each day with careful attention and hard work to ensure everything is in good shape and to care for the residents.
In addition to being a positive presence for students, Stanley also supports her fellow housekeepers by filling in for others when they are unable to come to work. During the pandemic, she took on extra work as other housekeepers left their jobs, and she banded with coworkers to advocate for better wages.
The C. Knox Massey Distinguished Service Award recognizes Carolina employees each year who have unusual, meritorious or superior contributions to the campus community. It is one of the most prestigious distinctions available for faculty and staff. Winners are selected through a campus-wide nomination process, and each winner receives a $10,000 stipend and an award citation. Among Stanley’s nominators were 37 of the buildings’ current and former residents and four resident advisers.
“I do think that most housekeepers get overlooked,” said Stanley. “For someone to even notice my work, it means a lot. So, to be nominated and to actually win this award just for being myself and doing what I like to do is huge.”
Read the complete Carolina Story…"
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Collards sizzle in a pan on a hot stove before a lid stifles their chorus. Cutting boards, vegetables, and dishes crowd the countertop in a small apartment kitchen. A nearby sweet potato pie exudes the warming aromas of cinnamon, allspice and bourbon, filling the room with its perfume each time the oven door opens.
“If apple pie is the most American pie, then sweet potato pie is the most Black American pie,” said Bailey Benson ’23, a Morehead-Cain Scholar majoring in food studies at UNC-Chapel Hill.
She pulls the pie from the oven to cool, then dons plastic gloves and reaches for a bag of chicken that has been marinating in a sweet-and-spicy peanut sauce. Her roommate, Serenity Bennett, clicks off the stove dial and removes the pan of collards. The mouth-watering meal is accompanied by sweet potato cubes, couscous and a spicy margarita — all recipes included in Benson’s cookbook.
“An Afrofuturist’s Guide to Cooking” is her undergraduate thesis project. Benson’s life experiences thus far culminate in pages that connect the reader to not only food, but also a rich history of Black Americans descended from people displaced by the trans-Atlantic slave trade. This displacement, known as the Black diaspora, occurred throughout the world, but Benson focuses on the borders of the U.S. for her project.
Benson weaves together art, music, recipes, interviews and historical documents to tell the story from the Black perspective, using her own life experiences to inform her process.
“It started as a cookbook,” she said, “but now I describe it as an educational celebration of Black joy.”
Her approach to the cookbook makes the recipes and cultural history more accessible, and she hopes to eventually publish it to help others relearn their past in an inclusive way.
“I want everybody to be able to not only read it and enjoy it, but also cook from it and have a good meal.”
Read more about Benson’s project…"
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