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EWSPAPERS OF
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ICHIGAN
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AGE
4
December 13, 2012
Library speaker
enthralls crowd
I
NKSTER
- W
AYNE
- W
ESTLAND
Mayor named to
electoral college
Donation aids fire department
Passports available at Wayne Fire station
Inkster Mayor Hilliard
Hampton, II has an important
appointment at 2 p.m. Dec. 17.
That's when Hampton and the
other 15 Michigan Presidential
Electors will meet in the chambers
of the Michigan Senate in Lansing
to cast their electoral votes for
President of theUnitedStates.
TheElectoral College comprises
538 people, known as electors, cho-
sen nationwide to meet in their
home states and cast one vote per
person for president and vice pres-
ident. Michigan has 16 such elec-
tors which reflects the number of
senators and representatives the
statehas in theU.S. Congress.
The Electoral College will meet
next week by law to cast their votes
as determined by the outcome of
the general election onNov. 6.
Hampton has been the mayor of
Inkster since 1999 and serves on
several boards and commissions
including: The American Water
Works Association Commission,
Board of Water Commission,
Detroit Water and Sewage
Department, Southeast Michigan
Council of Government (SEMCOG)
Transportation Study Committee,
National Conference of Black
Mayors, vice-president/chair of the
Michigan AffiliateNational League
of Cities International Committee,
15th Congressional District
Executive Board, vice-chair,
Michigan Municipal League
trustee and Inkster Police and Fire
PensionFund.
For more information, contact
the Inkster City Clerk's office (313)
563-9770.
The Wayne Westland Fire
Department will be the first in
Wayne County with a power load-
ing cot fastener system, thanks to a
donation fromaWayne resident.
The Power-LOAD system
improves operator and patient
safety by supporting the cot
throughout the loading and unload-
ing process. The reduction in
spinal load helps prevent cumula-
tive trauma injuries and virtually
eliminates the possibility of a
patient drop, according to Fire
ChiefMikeReddy.
The Power-LOAD system along
with the current cots used by fire
fighters allows a single two- man
crew to safely load and unload a
patient weighing up to 700 pounds.
In the past, a bariatric patient may
have taken up to six staff members
to safely load andunload.
“This Power-LOAD system has
the capability to keep more vehi-
cles in service and reduce or elimi-
nate injury,” said Reddy.
“Robert W. Boyles, a long-time
Wayne resident, made a generous
donation to the fire department
and a portion of that donation will
be funding this purchase,” Reddy
said.
The Wayne-Westland Fire
Department can do a lot more
than protect residents from safety
hazards and fires.
The department has now been
certified by the U.S. State
Department as an acceptance
facility to process U.S. Passports,
according to Fire Chief Mike
Reddy.
The fire department will
accept passport applications from
9:30 a.m. until 2:30 p.m. and offers
a one-stop shop for all passport
needs, Reddy said. “Our fees will
be the same standard fees that are
set by the StateDepartment.”
Two separate checks will be
required, one to the Department
of State for the application fee
and the other for the execution
fee.
Additional information is avail-
able by phoning (734) 467-3302.
You can't help but like Wally
Triplett.
The long-time local resident, a
football great who played for the
Detroit Lions and Penn State, was
the guest speaker recently at a spe-
cial presentation at the Westland
Library where he reminisced
about his life experiences and foot-
ball career.
Triplett, who set records and
played in a tough sport with some
of the best and roughest football
players of the era, was the first
black to be drafted in a segregated
and prejudiced league. He insists
being referred to as aNegro.
Triplett has many bragging
rights but after his football career,
he stayed in theDetroit community
and made a living for his family
selling insurance and operating a
liquor store. He is proud of his
accomplishments, he said, and the
fact he has been married to his
wife, Leonore, for nearly 63 years.
He still lives in the same house he
had in the 40s and frequently men-
tioned his love for his country dur-
ing his talk at the library. He is an
army veteran and served in the
KoreanConflict.
Triplett, who grew up in an
affluent area of Philadelphia, holds
no prejudice or anger for the injus-
tices he and other black athletes
suffered in the 40s and 50s when
they traveled by bus and train to
many cities across the country.
“That was America. Penn State
prepared me for the world, but I
wasn't prepared for the racial dis-
crimination.” Triplett said.
Triplett broke the color line
when was drafted by Penn State in
1945 and signed on as the first
“Negro” in the league. Penn State
was not segregated, but Triplett
soon learned therewere still differ-
ences. “In America there were two
worldswe lived in”
Triplett said while still attend-
ing high school in Philadelphia he
received a letter to play ball for the
University of Miami, in Coral
Gables. When he replied, they
acknowledged his acceptance and
wrote back. He said the letter read,
“We made a mistake. They thought
I was white,” he told the crowd that
filled the librarymeeting room.
During the presentation, local
Westland resident and fan Bob
Hoyruk, surprised Triplett when
he introduced himself as a class-
mate from Cheltenham High
School in Philadelphia. Hoyruk
saidhe knewTriplett in 1945.
Triplett's appearance was
arranged by local publisher, Del
Reddy and Marilyn Kwik of the
WestlandLibrary.
Hilliard Hampton
Wally and Leonore Triplett