Muncie Times, Muncie, Delaware County, 17 August 2000 — Page 11

The Muncie Times, August 17, 2000 pg 11

Petty offers Muncie youths modeling tips

By Tara Carter Vicki Ellen Petty, a Muncie native, knows the importance of keeping the youth in the community positive and active. She finds time to keep the local children busy, while maintaining her own business and family life. She has been married to Jerome Petty for 25 years and is the mother of Nikki LaShaun Petty and Erica LaShell Petty. She is an administrative assistant at American National Trust and Investment Management Co. and for 2 years, has been a word processing and graphic design specialist. Petty attended Ball State University before she transferred to Ivy Tech. She also attended John Casablanca School of Professional Modeling in Indianapolis where she gained modeling skills. Petty has been a member of Shaffer Chapel

AME Church all her life. She is Her community involvement the church’s second includes being on the board of administrative assistant and a directors of the Community youth Sunday School teacher. Civic Center, a member of

Eastern Star Naomi Chapter II (Marshall of the East) and her own personal nonprofit organization, Models N’ Motion, a modeling troupe and outreach program for children under 18. Petty spends most of her time working with Models N’ Motion. The children in the program receive training in self-improvement, etiquette, how to do television commercials, building selfesteem, how to do a photo session, basic and advanced modeling techniques, skin and health care and fashion do’s and don’ts. Models N’ Motion has been around since 1997. Asked why it is so important for her to be involved in the community, she said, “I love the children. I would like to give young people an opportunity to do things that I was unable to do growing up.” Petty feels that the youth today have to see too much in their

lifetime. “Instead of complaining about what they are and are not doing, we should provide positive things for them to do,” she said. Petty said that every child should have a role model. When she was growing up, she looked up to her grandmother Bessie Golston. “She was a Christian, classy and a very caring person.” Her grandmother was also a Sunday School teacher at Shaffer Chapel. Petty’s immediate goals are to obtain her degree in business administration and help Models N’ Motion grow to where she can give college scholarships to participants. Petty’s advice to youth is, ‘When you have inner-beauty, you have self-confidence and when you have selfconfidence, it’s easier for you to accept other people and not be judgmental.”

Quarles happy to enter Akron’s hoops Hall of Fame

Larry Quarles, a native of Muncie and graduate of Muncie Central High School, on a summer visit to Muncie told the Muncie Times of being inducted into the Akron University Basketball Hall of Fame. Quarles was inducted Feb. 12, 1999. He graduated from Akron University in 1972 with a bachelor’s degree in physical education and health. He later received a master’s in administration and physical education. “I always wanted to get an education, I am a teacher and coach. At that time, I thought I was good enough to play some pro ball.. .I got close. . .but that never happened. “Right now I’m assistant principal at BenDavis High School in Indianapolis,” he said. Quarles said that at one time he had high expectations of playing professional basket-

ball. “Like most young basketball players, I grew up and I played basketball at Muncie Central and I was fairly successful there and fairly successful in college. “I had the feeling and I took my shot and didn’t make it. Fortunately I had a college diploma to fall back on. A lot of black athletes make a mistake of not having the diploma to fall back on,” Quarles said. Quarles was cocaptain of his Akron team, which finished second in the nation. He set a singlesession assist record and was an All-American athlete in junior college. “All-American means you’re one of the best in the country, so that meant a lot,” Quarles said. “I was very proud of it and I still have my plaque. It meant a lot then, but know it doesn’t mean a whole lot. I have other things that are important to me.” Being

inducted into the Hall of Fame was a real honor for Quarles. The induction was a surprise. He said, ‘That was fantastic. I had no idea that it was going to happen. When I went to the banquet and was inducted, it was just a thrill and a feeling that hit me at the moment when I was presented my plaque. When I received the letter, it didn’t do a whole lot. But when I went there and was honored and saw some old friends, my old coaches, I was very thrilled.” Quarles said that growing up in Muncie, his mother, friends, coaches and people like Dr. O’Neal, and Mrs. Redd are the influences that have shaped him into being the person that he is today. He doesn’t, however, have anyone in particular that he models himself after. He just keeps the good role model In his heart and patterns

himself after the people he respected when he was growing up. He admires his mother Willie Jo (Quarles) Corbin, Dr. O’Neal, Dr. Abram and many others and describes himself as a person with values, honest, loyal, dependable, a hard worker, having a lot of faith in God and an overall good person. His advice to young people concerning education and sports are, “Learn baby leam. Make sure that they put education first, leam as much as you can because nowadays, employers, universities want people to be able to perform certain skills and have certain knowledge in order for them to be employed and support themselves and make money and be productive citizens. So I would say leam. Be educated. If you got the talent, and you work hard at it,

fine but don’t rely on sports to be your sole way out as far as being successful. Quarles has been involved in such organizations at the Optimist Club International that services young people in the Booster Club that deals with adults and services children. Quarles grew up as a member of Antioch Missionary Baptist Church where he was baptized by the Rev. Broaddus and attends Eastern Star Church in Fishers, Indiana. Quarles’ hobbies are golf, bowling and watching sports. Quarles has two daughters, Keisa, who attends Shaw University in North Carolina on a volleyball scholarship, and Kalia, a junior at Cleveland Heights High School who plays volleyball, basketball and softball.