THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Sunday, April 21, 1996 TAG: 9604190248
SECTION: VIRGINIA BEACH BEACON PAGE: 03 EDITION: FINAL
TYPE: Campaign Notebook
LENGTH: Medium: 77 lines
George T. Coker has friends in high and faraway places.
When Coker, an at-large two-year School Board candidate, was endorsed last month in a letter to the editor of The Virginian-Pilot that was written by retired Vice Adm. James B. Stockdale, more than a few eyebrows arched.
In fact, after being shot down over Hanoi, North Vietnam, in 1966, Coker spent 6 1/2 years imprisoned in solitary confinement with the likes of Stockdale, former Sen. Jeremiah Denton, Capt. Jim Mulligan and Congressman Sam Johnson.
Though they were kept apart, together the men rallied to oppose their communist captors. They devised an intricate system of communication through tapping on the walls and floors, and they did anything else that would help to keep them sane and devoted to their country.
Today, the men are still the best of friends.
``It was a long ordeal we went through together,'' said Coker, who was awarded the Navy Cross, Legion of Merit, Silver Star and two Purple Hearts for his resistance while in Vietnam.
``We're bonded together because of that. If Stockdale needed something out in California, I'd go.''
- Lori A. Denney Gripping and grinning
Politicking is positively infectious, according to A.A. Wallace III, candidate for an at-large, two-year School Board seat.
Wallace said that he realized that his campaigning - shaking hands, saying good morning - had carried over into his workplace when co-workers asked him recently, ``How come you're so upbeat? How come you're in such a jovial mood?' ''
Another question he's heard a lot is, ``Are you going to do anything about dumbsizing the curriculum?'' The term refers to a trend some say has permeated the public schools that does away with training that would enable students to, say, answer essay questions on standardized tests rather than simply checking off true or false or multiple choice boxes as a way to get them through.
Wallace's answer is, ``Maybe there's some truth to that, but if we empower teachers, it will go away.''
Giving teachers more authority in the classroom and paying them more are two approaches to improving the educational system that Wallace backs.
Another dual question he's heard a lot is, ``Why are you running? Are you crazy?''
Wallace, who is a project engineer at Frontier Engineering in Norfolk, is now rethinking his earlier decision not to stake out campaign signs after a supporter told him, ``Bring me a sign, and I'll put it on my lawn.''
- Nancy Lewis Seminar focuses on kids
Kenneth R. Sigmon, also a candidate in the at-large, two-year School Board race, is excited about the initiative Commonwealth College's legal department club has taken in sponsoring an April 24 seminar focusing on children. He's director of the school's Virginia Beach campus.
Commonwealth's Law Society arranged the 6 p.m. discussion as a prelude to a June 1 Washington, D.C., march organized by the national Stand for Children organization.
Panelists at the Commonwealth seminar will be Judge Woodrow Lewis of the Virginia Beach Juvenile and Domestic Court, Edith Duggan, director of Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA), and Kate Frucher, Virginia's representative for Stand for Children.
Sigmon, 43, the father of four, says he's been ``very busy trying to pull things together'' as the campaign goes full tilt.
- Nancy Lewis ILLUSTRATION: Staff photo by JIM WALKER
Gail A. Ball, a candidate for School Board, speaks to a group at the
Virginia Beach Republican Caucus on Tuesday at the Central Libary.
It is one of many public forums prior to the May 7 election.
by CNB