text:
Serer people
|Total population
|(Over 1.8 million[1])
|Regions with significant populations
Senegal (1,840,712), Gambia (31,900),Mauritania small number (3,500) also found overseas.
|Serer proper, Cangin languages, Wolof
French (Senegal and Mauritania),
English (Gambia),
|Majority Islam,[2] Christianity[3] and Serer religion (a ƭat Roog)
|Related ethnic groups
|Wolof people, Toucouleur people and Lebou people
The Serer people (also spelt "Sérère", "Sereer", "Serere", "Seereer" and sometimes wrongly "Serre") are a West African ethnoreligious group.[4] In modern-day Senegal, the Serer people live in the west-central part of the country, running from the southern edge of Dakar to the Gambian border. The Serer (also known as "Seex" or "Sine-Sine") occupy the Sine and Saloum areas (now part of modern-day independent Senegal). In the Gambia, they occupy parts of old "Nuimi" and "Baddibu" as well as the Gambian "Kombo". The Serer-Noon occupy the ancient area of Thiès in modern-day Senegal. The Serer-Ndut are found in southern Cayor and north west of ancient Thiès. The Serer-Njeghen occupy old Baol; the Serer-Palor occupies the west central, west southwest of Thiès and the Serer-Laalaa occupy west central, north of Thiès and the Tambacounda area.[5][6]
The Serer people are the third largest ethnic group in Senegal making up 14.7% of the Senegalese population.[7] In Gambia they make up less than 2% of the population.[8] Along with Senegal and the Gambia, they are also found in small numbers in southern Mauritania. Some notable Gambian Serers include Isatou Njie-Saidy, Vice President of the Gambia since 20 March 1997, and the late Senegambian historian, politician and advocate for Gambia's independence during the colonial era – Alhaji Alieu Ebrima Cham Joof. In Senegal they include Léopold Sédar Senghor and Abdou Diouf (first and second president of Senegal respectively).
- 1 Serer peoples
- 2 Ethnonym
- 3 History of the Serer people
- 4 The Serer kingdoms
- 5 Population
- 6 Serer languages
- 7 Serer culture
- 8 Serer patronyms
- 9 Religion
- 10 See also
- 11 Notes
- 12 Bibliography
- 13 External links
Serer peoples[edit]
The Serer people include the Seex (Serer or Serer-Sine), Serer-Noon (sometimes spelt "Serer-None", "Serer-Non" or just Noon), Serer-Ndut (also spelt "N'doute"), Serer-Njeghene (sometimes spelt "Serer-Dyegueme" or "Serer-Gyegem" or "Serer-N'Diéghem"), Serer-Safene, Serer-Niominka, Serer-Palor (also known as "Falor", "Palar", "Siili", "Siili-Mantine", "Siili-Siili", "Waro" or just "Serer"), and the Serer-Laalaa (sometimes known as "Laa", "La" or "Lâ" or just "Serer"). Each group speaks Serer or a Cangin language. "Serer" is the standard English spelling. "Seereer" or "Sereer" reflects the Serer pronunciation of the name and are mostly used by Senegalese Serer historians or scholars.
The meaning of the word "Serer" is uncertain. Issa Laye Thiaw[not in citation given] views it as possibly pre-Islamic and suggests four possible derivations:[9]
1. From the Serer Wolof word reer meaning 'misplaced', i.e. doubting the truth of Islam.
2. From the Serer Wolof expression seer reer meaning "to find something hidden or lost."
3. From "the Arabic word seereer meaning sahir magician or one who practices magic (An allusion to the traditional religion)".
4. From a Pulaar word: meaning separation, divorce, or break, again referring to refusing Islam.
Professor Cheikh Anta Diop citing the work of the 19th century French archeologist and egyptologist - Paul Pierret believes that the word serer means "he who traces the temple."[10] Diop went on to write: "That would be consistent with their present religious position: they are one of the rare Senegalese populations who still reject Islam. Their route is marked by the upright stones found at about the same latitude from Ethiopia all the way to the Sine-Salum, their present habitat."[10]
History of the Serer people[edit]
Medieval era to present[edit]
Professor Dennis Galvan writes that "The oral historical record, written accounts by early Arab and European explorers, and physical anthropological evidence suggest that the various Serer peoples migrated south from the Fuuta Tooro region (Senegal River valley) beginning around the eleventh century, when Islam first came across the Sahara."[11]:p.51 Over generations these people, possibly Pulaar speaking herders originally, migrated through Wolof areas and entered the Siin and Saluum river valleys. This lengthy period of Wolof-Serer contact has left us unsure of the origins of shared "terminology, institutions, political structures, and practices."[11]:p.52
Professor Étienne Van de Walle gave a slightly later date, writing that "The formation of the Sereer ethnicity goes back to the thirteenth century, when a group came from the Senegal River valley in the north fleeing Islam, and near Niakhar met another group of Mandinka origin, called the Gelwar, who were coming from the southeast (Gravrand 1983). The actual Sereer ethnic group is a mixture of the two groups, and this may explain their complex bilinear kinship system".[12]
Serer people's medieval history is partly characterised by resisting Islamization and later Wolofization from possibly the 11th century during the Almoravid movement (particularly the Serers of Takrur)[13] to the 19th century Marabout movement of Senegambia.[14] Although the old Serer paternal dynasties continued, the Wagadou maternal dynasty was replaced by the Guelowar maternal dynasty in the 14th century.[15] After the Ghana Empire was sacked as certain kingdoms gained their independence, Abu-Bakr Ibn-Umar, leader of the Almoravids launched a jihad into the region.[dubious ] According to Serer oral history in November 1087 a Serer bowman named Amar Godomat shot and killed Abu-Bakr Ibn-Umar with an arrow.[16][17][18][19]
The last Serer kings[edit]
The last kings of Sine and Saloum were Maad a Sinig Mahecor Joof (also spelt : Mahecor Diouf) and Maad Saloum Fode N'Gouye Joof (also spelt : Fodé N'Gouye Diouf or Fode Ngui Joof) respectively. They both died in 1969. After their deaths, the Serer Kingdoms of Sine and Saloum were incorporated into independent Senegal which gained its independence from France in 1960. The Serer kingdoms of Sine and Saloum are two of few pre-colonial African Kingdoms whose royal dynasty survived up to the 20th century.[20]
The Serer kingdoms[edit]
Serer kingdoms included the Kingdom of Sine and the Kingdom of Saloum. In addition to these twin Serer kingdoms, the Serers also ruled in the Wolof kingdoms such as Jolof, Waalo, Cayor and Baol. The Kingdom of Baol was originally an old Serer Kingdom ruled by the Serer paternal dynasties such as Joof family, the Njie family, etc. and the Wagadou maternal dynasty prior to the Battle of Danki in 1549.[21][22] The Faal (var: Fall) paternal dynasty of Cayor and Baol that ruled after 1549 following the Battle of Danki were originally Black Moors (Naari Kajoor).[23][24] Prior to the Faal dynasty of Cayor and Baol, these two kingdoms were ruled by the Serer people with the patrilineages "Joof" or Diouf, Faye and Njie, and the maternal lineage of Wagadou – members of the royal families from the Ghana Empire (proper "Wagadou Empire") who married into the Serer aristocracy.[21][22][25]
Social organization[edit]
The Serer Kings and land owners (Maad, Maad a Sinig, Maad Saloum or Lamane or even Barr, Bour or Bur, as used by some mainly non-Serers when referring to Serer kings) were at the top of the social strata. The terms "Buur Sine" and "Buur Saloum" (King of Sine and King of Saloum respectively) are Wolof terms when referring to Serer Kings. "Buur" or "Bur" are not Serer terms but Wolof terms.[26] When Serers refer to their kings they say Maad, Mad or sometimes Maat. The Serer kings divided their capacity as follows (not in order of importance): the King of Sine Maad a Sinig or Maad Saloum appointed the chiefs of provinces named "Lamane", of "Serer" or "Guelowar" origin (pre 1335 Lamanes were not mere province Chiefs but kings, also the Guelowars became Serers and had Serer surnames).[27] The central government is appointed which included the lingeer (queen usually the king's mother or sister), the Farba Kaba (chief of the army) and the Great Jaraff (head of the noble council responsible for electing the kings from the ruling family). Other notable titles included the Buumi or Bumi (of Serer origin meaning inheritor). The word (Bumi) is also found in Wolof, but it is Serer in origin.[28] They were members of the Royal Family and were eligible to succeed after the death of Kings. The "Buur Kevel" or "Buur Geweel" (the Head Griot of the King). This person was also a rather important figure in the Royal Court as well as in wars. Not only did he kept the history and genealogy of the royal dynasty, he was also the advisor to the King. The "Buur Kevel(s)" or "Buur Geweel(s)" were very wealthy and powerful. They had the power to destroy a royal dynasty if they chose to do so. Their other role included accompanying kings to battles; advising kings when and how to launch a war against another kingdom; what the King should eat; how to walk; what to wear; whom to give audience to; whom to employ and whom to sack etc.[29]
All the kings that ruled Serer Kingdoms had Serer surnames, with the exception of the Mboge and Faal paternal dynasties whose reigns are very recent and they did not provide many kings.[30]
The Serer people are diverse and though they spread throughout the Senegambia region, they are more numerous in places like old Baol, Sine, Saloum and in the Gambia, which was a colony of the Kingdom of Saloum.
Serer languages[edit]
Most people who identify themselves as Serer speak the Serer language. This is spoken in Sine-Saloum, Kaolack, Diourbel, Dakar, and in Gambia, and is part of the national curriculum of Senegal. Historically the Serer people's unwillingness to trade directly during the colonial era was a double edged sword to the Serer language as well as the Cangin languages. That resulted in the Wolof language being the dominant language in the market place as well as the factories.[33] However, the Serer language among with other local languages are now part of the national curriculum of Senegal.
About 200,000 Serer speak various Cangin languages, such as Ndut and Saafi, which are not closely related to Serer proper (Serer-Sine language). There are clear lexical similarities among the Cangin languages. However, they are more closely related to other languages than to Serer, and vice versa.[34] For comparison in the table below, 85% is approximately the dividing line between dialects and different languages.
|Cangin languages and Serer proper
|% Similarity with Serer-Sine
|% Similarity with Noon
|% Similarity with Saafi
|% Similarity with Ndut
|% Similarity with Palor
|% Similarity with Lehar (Laalaa )
|Areas they are predominantly found
|Estimated population
|Lehar language (Laalaa)
|West central, north of Thies, Pambal area, Mbaraglov, Dougnan; Tambacounda area. Also found in the Gambia
|12,000 (Senegal figures only (2007)
|Ndut language
|West central, northwest of Thiès
|38,600 (Senegal figures only (2007)
|Noon language
|Thiès area.
|32,900 (Senegal figures only (2007)
|Palor language
|West central, west southwest of Thiès
|10,700 (Senegal figures only (2007)
|Saafi language
|Triangle southwest of and near Thiès (between Diamniadio, Popenguine, and Thiès)
|114,000 (Senegal figures only (2007)
|Serer-Sine language (not a Cangin language)
|West central; Sine and Saloum River valleys. Also in the Gambia and small number in Mauritania
|1,154,760 (Senegal - 2006 figures); 31,900 (the Gambia - 2006 figures) and 3,500 (Mauritania 2006 figures)[35]
Serer culture[edit]
The Serer's favourite food is called Chere (or chereh) in the Serer language - (pounded coos). They control all the phases of this dish from production to preparation. Other ethnic groups (or Serers), tend to buy it from Serer women market traders or contract it out to them especially if they are holding major ceremonial events. Chere is very versatile and can be eaten with fermented milk or cream and sugar as a breakfast cereal or prepared just as a standard couscous. The Serer traditional attire is called Serr. It is normally woven by Serer men and believed to bring good luck among those who wear it. Marriages are usually arranged. In the event of the death of an elder, the sacred "Gamba" (a big calabash with a small hollow-out) is beaten followed by the usual funeral regalia to send them off to the next life.[36]
Wrestling and Sports[edit]
Senegalese wrestling called "Laamb" or Njom in Serer originated from the Serer Kingdom of Sine.[37] It was a preparatory exercise for war among the warrior classes. That style of wrestling (a brutal and violent form) is totally different from the sport wrestling enjoyed by all Senegambian ethnic groups today, nevertheless the ancient rituals are still visible in the sport version. Among the Serers, wrestling is classified into different techniques and each technique takes several years to master. Children start young trying to master the basics before moving on to the more advance techniques like the "mbapatte", which is one of the oldest tehniques and totally different from modern wrestling. Yékini (real name: "Yakhya Diop"), who is a professional wrestler in Senegal is one of the top wrestlers proficient in the "mbapatte" technique. Lamba and sabar (musical instruments) are used as music accompaniments in wrestling matches as well as in circumcision dances and royal festivals.[38] Serer wrestling crosses ethnic boundaries and is a favourite pastime for Senegalese and Gambians alike.
"The Serer people are known especially for their rich knowledge of vocal and rhythmic practices that infuse their everyday language with complex overlapping cadences and their ritual with intense collaborative layerings of voice and rhythm."
The Sabar (drum) tradition associated with the Wolof people originated from the Serer Kingdom of Sine and spread to the Kingdom of Saloum. The Wolof people who migrated to Serer Saloum picked it up from there and spread it to Wolof Kingdoms.[40] Each motif has a purpose and is used for different occasions. Individual motifs represent the history and genealogy of a particular family and are used during weddings, naming ceremonies, funerals etc.
The Njuup (progenitor of Mbalax) and Tassu traditions (also Tassou) (progenitor of rap music) both originated from the Serer people.[41] The Tassu was used when chanting ancient religious verses. The people would sing then interweave it with a Tassu. The late Serer Diva Yandé Codou Sène who was the griot of the late and former president of Senegal (Leopold Sedar Senghor) was proficient in the "Tassu". She was the best Tassukat (one who Tassu) of her generation. Originally religious in nature, the griots of Senegambia regardless of ethnic group or religion picked it up from Serer religious practices and still use it in different occasions e.g. marriages, naming ceremonies or when they are just singing the praises of their patrons. Most Senegalese and Gambian artists use it in their songs even the younger generation like "Baay Bia". The Senegalese music legend Youssou N'Dour who is also a Serer, uses "Tassu" in many of his songs.[39]
The Serers practice trade, agriculture, fishing, boat building and animal husbandry. Traditionally the Serer people have been farmers and land owners.[42] Although they practice animal husbandry, they are generally less known for that, as in the past, Serer nobles entrusted their herds to the pastoralist Fulas, even today.[43] However, they are known for their mixed-farming.[44] Trade is also a recent phenomenon among some Serers. For the Serers, the soil (where their ancestors lay in rest) is very important to them and they guard it with jealousy. They have a legal framework governing every aspect of life even land law with strict guidelines. Apart from agriculture (and other forms of production or occupation such as animal husbandry, fishing especially among the Serer-Niominka, boat building, etc.), some occupations especially trade they viewed as vulgar, common and ignoble. Hence in the colonial era, especially among the Serer nobles, they would hire others to do the trading on their behalf (e.g. Moors) acting as their middle men.[45]
Serer relations to Moors[edit]
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In the pre-colonial era, Moors from Mauritania who came to settle in the Serer kingdoms such as the Kingdom of Sine, etc., were ill treated by their Serer masters. If a Moor dies in a Serer kingdom, his body was dragged out of the country and left for the vultures to feast on if there is no family or friend to claim the body and bury it elsewhere. They were also never accompanied by grave goods. No matter how long a Mauritanian Moor has lived in the area as a migrant, he could never achieve high status within the Serer aristocracy. The best position he could ever wish for within Serer high society was to work as a Bissit (Bissik). Apart from spying for the Serer Kings, the Bissit's main job was to be a clown - for the sole entertainment of the Serer King, the Serer aristocracy and the common people. He was expected to dance in ceremonies before the king and liven up the king's mood and the king's subjects. This position was always given to the Moors. It was a humiliating job and not a title of honour. According to some, the history of this position goes back to an early Moor in Serer country who had a child by his own daughter.[46]
Joking relationship (Maasir or Kalir)[edit]
Serers and Toucouleurs are linked by a bond of "cousinage". This is a tradition common to many ethnic groups of West Africa known as Maasir (var : Massir) in Serer language (Joking relationship) or kal, which comes from kalir (a deformation of the Serer word kucarla meaning paternal lineage or paternal inheritance). This joking relationship enables one group to criticise another, but also obliges the other with mutual aid and respect. The Serers call this Maasir or Kalir. This is because the Serers and the Toucouleurs have the same ancestors.[47] The Serers also maintain the same bond with the Jola people with whom they have an ancient relationship.[48] In the Serer ethnic group, this same bond exists between the Serer patronym, for example between Joof and Faye.
Many Senegambian people also refer to this joking relations as "kal" (used between first cousins for example between the children of a paternal aunt and a maternal uncle) and "gamo" (used between tribes). "Kal" derives from the Serer word "Kalir" a deformation of "kurcala" which means paternal lineage or inheritance and is used exactly in that context by many Senegambians.[49] The word gamo derives from the old Serer word gamohu[50] - an ancient divination ceremony.[51][52]
Serer patronyms[edit]
|Some of the common Serer surnames
Most[dubious ] Serers today are Muslim,[2] while others are Christian.[3] However, some Serers still follow traditional religious beliefs.[53][54]
The Serer religion, a ƭat Roog ('the way of the Divine') is the original religious beliefs, practices and teachings of the Serer people. The Serer people believe in a universal Supreme Deity called Roog (var : Rog). The Cangin language speakers refer to the supreme being as Koox. Serer religious beliefs encompasses ancient chants and poems; veneration and offerings to Serer gods, goddesses, the pangool (ancestral spirits and saints); astronomy; rites of passage; medicine; cosmology and the history of the Serer people.[55][56]
See also[edit]
- ^ a b Agence Nationale de Statistique et de la Démographie. Estimated figures for 2007 in Senegal alone
- ^ a b http://books.google.co.za/books?id=MdaAdBC-_S4C&lpg=PP9&ots=dN8QkJvmbQ&dq=The+Peoples+of+Africa:+An+Ethnohistorical+Dictionary&pg=PA516&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=The%20Peoples%20of%20Africa%3A%20An%20Ethnohistorical%20Dictionary&f=false The Peoples of Africa: An Ethnohistorical Dictionary
- ^ a b http://books.google.com/books?id=waW03E44v3AC&lpg=PA44&vq=serer&pg=PA44&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q=serer&f=false The Gambia and Senegal
- ^ Diedrich Westermann, Edwin William Smith, Cyril Daryll Forde, International African Institute, International Institute of African Languages and Cultures, Project Muse, JSTOR (Organization), "Africa: journal of the International African Institute, Volume 63", pp 86-96, 270-1, Edinburgh University Press for the International African Institute, 1993
- ^ Patience Sonko-Godwin. Ethnic Groups of The Senegambia Region. A Brief History. p32. Sunrise Publishers Ltd. Third Edition, 2003. ASIN B007HFNIHS
- ^ Ethnologue.com. Languages of Senegal. 2007 figures
- ^ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/sg.html CIA Factsheet
- ^ [1] Ethnologue.com
- ^ "La Religiosité des Sereer, avant et pendant leur Islamisation". Éthiopiques, No: 54, Revue Semestrielle de Culture Négro-Africaine. Nouvelle Série, Volume 7, 2e Semestre 1991. By Issa Laye Thiaw
- ^ a b Pierret, Paul, "Dictionnaire d'archéologie égyptienne", Imprimerie nationale 1875, p. 198-199 [in] Diop, Cheikh Anta, "Precolonial Black Africa", (trans: Harold Salemson),Chicago Review Press, 1988, p. 65
- ^ a b Galvan, Dennis Charles, The State Must Be Our Master of Fire: How Peasants Craft Culturally Sustainable Development in Senegal Berkeley, University of California Press, 2004 p.51
- ^ Van de Walle, Étienne (2006). African Households: Censuses And Surveys. M.E. Sharpe. p. 80. ISBN 978-0765616197.
- ^ See Godfrey Mwakikagile. Martin A. Klein. Islam and Imperialism in Senegal Sine-Saloum, 1847-1914, Edinburgh At the University Press (1968)
- ^ See Martin Klein p62-93
- ^ For old paternal Serer dynasties such as Joof or Diouf, etc and the maternal dynasty of Wagadou, see: Andrew F. Clark and Lucie Colvin Philips. Historical Dictionary of Senegal. Second Edition (1994). For the Guelowars, see Alioune Sarr' Histoire du Sine Saloum.Senegal
- ^ Roland Oliver, John Donnelly Fage, G. N. Sanderson. The Cambridge History of Africa, p214. Cambridge University Press, 1985. ISBN 0-521-22803-4
- ^ Dawda Faal. Peoples and empires of Senegambia: Senegambia in history, AD 1000-1900, p17. Published by Saul's Modern Printshop (1991)
- ^ Marcel Mahawa Diouf. Lances mâles: Léopold Sédar Senghor et les traditions Sérères, p54. Published by: Centre d'études linguistiques et historiques par tradition orale (1996)
- ^ Ibn Abi Zar, p89
- ^ See Sarr; Bâ, also: Klein: Rulers of Sine and Saloum, 1825 to present (1969).
- ^ a b Phillips, Lucie Colvin, Historical dictionary of Senegal, Scarecrow Press, 1981, pp 52–71 ISBN 0-8108-1369-6
- ^ a b Institut fondamental d'Afrique noire. Bulletin de l'Institut fondamental d'Afrique noire, Volume 38. IFAN, 1976. pp 557–504
- ^ Webb, James L. A., Desert frontier: ecological and economic change along the Western Sahel, 1600-1850, p 31, Univ of Wisconsin Press, 1995, ISBN 0-299-14334-1
- ^ Barry, Boubacar, Senegambia and the Atlantic Slave Trade, p 82, Cambridge University Press, 1998, ISBN 0-521-59760-9
- ^ Clark, Andrew F., & Philips, Lucie Colvin, Historical Dictionary of Senegal. Second Edition (1994)
- ^ Although the word "Buur" is Serer in origin it is normally attributed to the Wolof who tend to use it to describe their Kings. There are thousands of Serer words found in the Wolof language. The Wolof have a great ability to absorb from other culture and make it their own. See Taal.
- ^ For more on Geulowars see Alioune Sarr. Also see the Medieval history of the Serer people.
- ^ See Klein p14-15
- ^ Martin A. Klein. Islam and Imperialism in Senegal, p12-15
- ^ See Diouf, Niokhobaye, list of kings from Maad a Sinig Maysa Wali to Maad a Sinig Mahecor Joof (1969)
- ^ Estimated figure for (2006).Ethnologue.com
- ^ African Census Analysis Project (ACAP). University of Pennsylvania. Ethnic Diversity and Assimilation in Senegal: Evidence from the 1988 Census by Pierre Ngom, Aliou Gaye and Ibrahima Sarr. 2000
- ^ Martin A, Klein, p7
- ^ Lewis, M. Paul (ed.), 2009. Ethnologue: Languages of the World, Sixteenth edition. Dallas, Tex.: SIL International. (Ethnologue.com - 2006 and 2007).
- ^ NB: 2006 Figures are taken in order to compare the population of the Serer in the respective countries.
- ^ Godfrey Mwakikagile. The Gambia and Its People: Ethnic Identities and Cultural Integration in Africa, p141. ISBN 9987-16-023-9
- ^ Patricia Tang. Masters of the sabar: Wolof griot percussionists of Senegal, p144. Temple University Press, 2007. ISBN 1-59213-420-3
- ^ David P. Gamble. The Wolof of Senegambia: together with notes on the Lebu and the Serer, p77. International African Institute, 1957
- ^ a b Ali Colleen Neff. Tassou: the Ancient Spoken Word of African Women. 2010.
- ^ Patricia Tang. Masters of the sabar: Wolof griot percussionists of Senegal, p-p32, 34. Temple University Press, 2007. ISBN 1-59213-420-3
- ^ For the Njuup tradition, see: The Culture Trip
- ^ Godfrey Mwakikagile. The Gambia and Its People: Ethnic Identities and Cultural Integration in Africa, p11. ISBN 9987-16-023-9
- ^ Encyclopaedia Britannica, inc. The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, Volume 29, p-p 855-6 and 912. Encyclopaedia Britannica, 2003. ISBN 0-85229-961-3
- ^ Tiyambe Zeleza. A Modern Economic History of Africa: The nineteenth century, p110. East African Publishers, 1997. ISBN 9966-46-025-X
- ^ Dennis Galvan. Market Liberalization as a Catalyst for Ethnic Conflict. Department of Political Science & International Studies Program. University of Oregon. pp 9-10
- ^ Abdou Bouri Bâ. Essai sur l'histoire du Saloum et du Rip. Avant-propos par Charles Becker et Victor Martin, p4
- ^ According to both the Toucouleur and Serer tradition and backed up by several sources one of which include: William J. Foltz. From French West Africa to the Mali Federation, Volume 12 of Yale studies in political science, p136. Published by Yale University Press, 1965.
- ^ According to both Serer and Jola tradition, they trace their descend to Jambooñ (also spelt : Jambonge, Jambon, etc.) and Agaire (variantes : Ougeney, Eugeny, Eugene, etc.). For the legend of Jambooñ and Agaire, see :
- (French) Ndiaye, Fata, "LA SAGA DU PEUPLE SERERE ET L'HISTOIRE DU SINE", [in] Ethiopiques n° 54 revue semestrielle de culture négro-africaine Nouvelle série volume 7, 2e semestre (1991) "Le Siin avant les Gelwaar"
- (English) Taal, Ebou Momar, "Senegambian Ethnic Groups : Common Origins and Cultural Affinities Factors and Forces of National Unity, Peace and Stability", [in] The Point, (2010)[2]
- ^ Becker, Charles, "Vestiges historiques, trémoins matériels du passé clans les pays sereer"
- ^ Variations : gamohou or gamahou
- ^ (French) Diouf, Niokhobaye, « Chronique du royaume du Sine, suivie de Notes sur les traditions orales et les sources écrites concernant le royaume du Sine par Charles Becker et Victor Martin (1972)», . (1972). Bulletin de l'IFAN, tome 34, série B, no 4, 1972, pp 706-7 (pp 4-5), pp 713-14 (pp 9-10)
- ^ For more on Serer religious festivals, see : (French) Niang, Mor Sadio, "CEREMONIES ET FÊTES TRADITIONNELLES", IFAN, [in] Éthiopiques, numéro 31 révue socialiste de culture négro-africaine 3e trimestre (1982) [3]
- ^ See Godfrey Mwakikagile. The Gambia and its People: Ethnic Identities and cultural integration in Africa, p133
- ^ Elizabeth L Berg, Ruth Wan. Senegal. Cultures of the World. Volume 17, p63. 2nd Edition. Published by: Marshall Cavendish, 2009. ISBN 0-7614-4481-5
- ^ Salif Dione, L'Education traditionnelle à travers les chants et poèmes sereer, Dakar, Université de Dakar, 1983, 344 p. (Thèse de 3e cycle)
- ^ Henry Gravrand,La civilisation Sereer, Pangool, Dakar, Nouvelles Editions Africaines (1990)
- Diouf, Mamadou & Leichtman, Mara, New perspectives on Islam in Senegal: conversion, migration, wealth, power, and femininity. Published by: Palgrave Macmillan. 2009. the University of Michigan. ISBN 0-230-60648-2
- Diouf, Mamadou, History of Senegal: Islamo-Wolof model and its outskirts. Maisonneuve & Larose. 2001. ISBN 2-7068-1503-5
- Gamble, David P., & Salmon, Linda K. (with Alhaji Hassan Njie), Gambian Studies No. 17. People of the Gambia. I. The Wolof with notes on the Serer and Lebou San Francisco 1985.
- Niang, Mor Sadio, "CEREMONIES ET FÊTES TRADITIONNELLES", IFAN, [in] Éthiopiques, numéro 31 révue socialiste de culture négro-africaine 3e trimestre (1982)
- Taal, Ebou Momar, Senegambian Ethnic Groups: Common Origins and Cultural Affinities Factors and Forces of National Unity, Peace and Stability. 2010
- Diouf, Niokhobaye. "Chronique du royaume du Sine." Suivie de notes sur les traditions orales et les sources écrites concernant le royaume du Sine par Charles Becker et Victor Martin. (1972). Bulletin de l'Ifan, Tome 34, Série B, n° 4, (1972)
- Berg, Elizabeth L., & Wan, Ruth, "Senegal". Marshall Cavendish. 2009.
- Mahoney, Florence, Stories of Senegambia. Publisher by Government Printer, 1982
- Daggs, Elisa . All Africa: All its political entities of independent or other status. Hasting House, 1970. ISBN 0-8038-0336-2
- Department of Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, The Metropolitan Museum of Art. Hilburn Timeline of Art History. The Fulani/Fulbe People.
- Schuh, Russell G., The Use and Misuse of language in the study of African history. 1997
- Burke, Andrew & Else, David, The Gambia & Senegal, 2nd edition – September 2002. Published by Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd, page 13
- Nanjira, Daniel Don, African Foreign Policy and Diplomacy: From Antiquity to the 21st Century. Page 91-92. Published by ABC-CLIO. 2010. ISBN 0-313-37982-3
- Lombard, Maurice, The golden age of Islam. Page 84. Markus Wiener Publishers. 2003. ISBN 1-55876-322-8,
- Oliver, Roland Anthony, & Fage, J. D., Journal of African History. Volume 10. Published by: Cambridge University Press. 1969
- The African archaeological review, Volumes 17-18. Published by: Plenum Press, 2000
- Ajayi, J. F. Ade & Crowder, Michael, History of West Africa, Volume 1. Published by: Longman, 1985. ISBN 0-582-64683-9
- Peter Malcolm Holt, The Indian Sub-continent, south-East Asia, Africa and the Muslim West. Volume 2, Part 1. Published by: Cambridge University Press. 1977. ISBN 0-521-29137-2
- Page, Willie F., Encyclopedia of African history and culture: African kingdoms (500 to 1500). Volume 2. Published by: Facts on File. 2001. ISBN 0-8160-4472-4
- Ham, Anthony, West Africa. Published by: Lonely Planet. 2009. ISBN 1-74104-821-4, ISBN 978-1-74104-821-6
- Mwakikagile, Godfrey, Ethnic Diversity and Integration in the Gambia. Page 224
- Richard, François G., "Recharting Atlantic encounters. Object trajectories and histories of value in the Siin (Senegal) and Senegambia". Archaeological Dialogues 17 (1) 1–27. Cambridge University Press 2010
- Diop, Samba, The Wolof Epic: From Spoken Word to Written Text. "The Epic of Ndiadiane Ndiaye"
- Two studies on ethnic group relations in Africa – Senegal, The United Republic of Tanzania. Pages 14–15. UNESCO. 1974
- Galvan, Dennis Charles, The State Must Be Our Master of Fire: How Peasants Craft Culturally Sustainable Development in Senegal. Berkeley, University of California Press, 2004
- Klein, Martin A., Islam and Imperialism in Senegal Sine-Saloum, 1847–1914, Edinburgh University Press (1968)
- Colvin, Lucie Gallistel, Historical Dictionary of Senegal. Scarecrow Press/ Metuchen. NJ – London (1981) ISBN 0-8108-1885-X
- Sonko Godwin, Patience, Leaders of Senegambia Region, Reactions To European Infiltration 19th-20th Century. Sunrise Publishers Ltd – The Gambia (1995) ISBN 9983-86-002-3
- Sonko Godwin, Patience, Ethnic Groups of The Senegambia Region, A Brief History. p. 32, Third Edition. Sunrise Publishers Ltd – The Gambia (2003). ASIN B007HFNIHS
- Clark, Andrew F., & Philips, Lucie Colvin, Historical Dictionary of Senegal. Second Edition (1994)
- Portions of this article were translated from the French language Wikipedia article fr:Sérères, 2008-07-08 and August 2011.
External links[edit]
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to Serer people.


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Teen killed in Vermont crashApril 29,2013ENOSBURG — A standout high school basketball player in Vermont has died following a two-vehicle collision.
Police said 17-year-old Brandon Gleason of Enosburg was a front passenger in a Jeep when it collided with a pickup Friday night on Route 105 in Enosburg.
The Franklin County Sheriff's Office said Gleason later died at a St. Albans hospital. Gleason was a senior at Enosburg Falls High School and was the state's Mountain Division player of the year this past season.
Capt. Jay Sweeny of the sheriff's office told WPTZ-TV that the driver of the pickup, 53-year old Patrick Prue of Franklin, was charged with driving under the influence, but that it hasn't been determined who was at fault in the crash.
Three other teenagers in the Jeep were treated for injuries.MORE IN This Just InSPRINGFIELD A local man, who robbed six banks, a gas station and a pharmacy in Vermont and New... Full StoryThe U.S. Full StoryThe Rutland Garden Club will hold its 2016 flower show Nov. 12-13 at the Chaffee Art Center. Full Story
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Respawn Entertainment, those bros who founded Infinity Ward and left to form their own company in 2010, will be revealing their upcoming game at E3, the company confirmed today. While it's unclear whether the announcement will be made at EA's press conference or during one of the console's events (likely Microsoft, between the two), we're all going to watch all of them anyway, right?
@tryhardgeek E3. It's very close.— Respawn (@Respawn) June 2, 2013
Technically we already knew Respawn would be at E3 this year, but it's still nice to hear those comments confirmed as the event approaches. What is Respawn Entertainment working on? To what degree will the game be shown? Well, we know it's "sci-fi oriented" and that it's designed to compete with things, "like Gears of War and Halo." We know Respawn trademarked the name Titan. And we know about a rumor that their game may be Xbox One exclusive -- and could potentially be a launch title.
What do we really know? Nothing. Respawn could be working on the next Fable game for all we know. All we do know is that we'll know what Respawn is working on next week on Monday, June 10. Hell ya, bro.


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Join Tim Grey for an in-depth discussion in this video Introduction to HDR and HDR Efex Pro, part of Up and Running with HDR Efex Pro 2.0.
- Overview
- Transcript
- View Offline
High Dynamic Range imaging, or HDR, addresses a problem that just about every photographer has faced at some point. And maybe on a very regular basis. And that is, in many cases, the Dynamic Range, or the distance between the brightest values in a scene, and the darkest values in a scene, exceeds our camera's capability to record that information. With this image for example, you can see a reasonable amount of detail in the ceiling of the portico. We might be losing a little bit of shadow detail in the lamp for example, but we are most certainly are losing details in the most brightest areas of the photo. The sky is completed blown out and much of the detail in the buildings has also been lost with High Dynamic Range imaging.
We're able to capture a series of images at different Exposure Settings so that we have everything covered within this scene from the darkest shadow detail all the way up to the brightest highlights. And then, those images can be blended together into a single seamless image that contains maximum detail so we can capture images where. All of the detail that's out there is retained within that photo. Of course, in the process of assembling an HDR image, you also have the opportunity to apply some adjustments. And you can decide what sort of interpretation you want to use for a particular scene. With this photo, I could opt for a relatively realistic result, one that doesn't look very artificial.
Of course, a photographer would probably realize that this photograph would require more than one exposure. Because of the extreme range from shadows to highlights in the image. But overall, it does look relatively realistic. We can also interpret the scene in a much more dramatic fashion, if we like. One that will be immediately recognized as an HDR image, or perhaps seen as being more of a painting. Or some some sort of graphic illustration rather than a photograph. The point is that we have a lot of flexibility. But HDR imaging does require special software to assemble the various exposures into a single final image. And one such tool is Nick Software's HDR Effects Pro. HDR Effects Pro is a powerful application that's surprisingly easy to use. You can work with a series of presets to assign a recipe effectively to your HDR image.
But then, you can fine tune the various setting in order to optimize your result. The software can also automatically align subjects, and remove ghosting if they were moving objects. There's a lot packed into this very powerful application, and a lot of flexibility as well. So, whether you're brand new to HDR imaging, or you've been capturing these sorts of images for a long while. HDR Effects Pro is a great tool that you might want to employ in your workflow in order to assemble HDR images.
- Assembling HDR images
- Configuring the interface
- Applying adjustments
- Working with presets
- Evaluating the before and after
- Modifying settings via a Smart Object
- Using selective adjustments
- Finishing touches


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Summer Showers
Reading level: Grades 3 - 4
Reading level: Grades 3 - 4
Reading Level: ages 10 - 14
In this novel in verse, Kevin, who feel he's "king of seventh grade" enjoys being a bully at school. Home is a different matter. His physician parents are too busy to pay attention to their five sons. Kevin is himself bullied by his next oldest brother. When one of the school victims finds a notebook of poetry that Kevin has written, he uses the discovery to humiliate and bully Kevin in turn.
Reading Level: Grades 1 - 3
During WWII the people of the Nazi occupied Danish town of Gilleleje helped 1,700 Jews escape to Sweden. This book tells the story of those brave residents and one night in particular when they had to figure out a new way to lead an escaping family to the ships that would take them to safety.
Reading Level: Grades 3 - 5
Reading Level: Grades 5 - 8
Reading Level Grades 4-6
11-year-old Arlo has lived with his only relative, his grandfather Poppo, since Arlo was two. But in the last couple of years Poppo's mind has started slipping. Arlo now takes care of his grandfather making sure no one knows how bad Poppo is getting.
Reading Level: Grades 5 - 8
...until Morgan Sturtz kicks my butt
Reading Level: Grades 6 -9
Told in free verse, this is the story of Kasienka, who has just left her native Poland for a tenament in England. Her mother was determined to follow her father who left the family two years before and hasn't been heard from since. Kasienka is miserable in her new life. At her middle school the popular girls bully her and at home her mother is determined to continue the exhausting, fruitless search for her father. Only when she's swimming does Kasienka feel good and empowered.
Reading Level: Grades 2-4
It's obvious just from the cover that this book is going to be fun to read. And it's all in poems so you can impress your teacher or your parents with your knowledge of different types of poems. (Each one is labeled with the type of poem and at the back there's an explanation of what each type is.) The story is simple. Sam has been looking forward to a father-son fishing trip, but then his pesky little sister horns in. Tamera Will Wissinger's first book will have you hooked.
Reading Level: Grades 7 - 10
Cameron has schiophreniform disorder, a form of schizophrenia. At fourteen, he decides he's old enough to make the decision to go off his meds. Without medication Cameron hears voices. He hears The Professor who gives good solid advice. Then there's The Girl who is everything Cameron could want in a relationship except that she's not real. Then a new voice called The Other Guy tells Cameron to be more macho and take risks. When a girl in his special ed class shows an interest in Cameron an unusual love triangle develops.


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How NOT to Leave a Message For an FBI Agent: Lesson 8
Can you hear me now?
Orange County's Thomas Troy Bitter is upset with the FBI.
Bitter is--well, so sorry--bitter that evil, unethical agents can't find a foreign terrorist, scumbag Newport Beach real estate developer, bank robber, corrupt police helicopter pilot or money-hungry Santa Ana politician to watch and are instead harassing him on a regular basis.
And he wants them to know he isn't going to take it quietly anymore.
In May, the Mission Viejo resident called the FBI's San Diego field office and left what has to be one of the dumbest*** voice-mail message ever:
"I have a very important message for [FBI Special Agent in Charge] Keith Slotter. First off, I would like to say fuck you. I want my god damn money, Keith. You better give me my fucking cash. I would break your fucking neck if you were man enough to go one on one with me. Fuck you, fuck your region, fuck your entire family. Fuck the puppet master system that runs your fucking region. Fuck you, Keith. You are a god damn fucking coward. And I would break your fucking neck if you were man enough to go one on one with me. I'm tired of you mother fuckers misappropriating my funds. I want my god damn fucking money, Keith. Fuck you too, bitch."
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Just in case the FBI's tracing system wasn't working (it was), Bitter began his message by stating his full name, social security number and date of birth.
He also called Steven Martinez, the assistant director of the FBI in Los Angeles, as well as Andrew Arena, a Special Agent in Charge in Detroit, to leave messages that he wanted "to slap the fucking taste out" of their mouths and advise them that Slotter "is a fucking bitch."
He posed a question too: "Have I made myself clear to you stupid motherfuckers?"
But my favorite part of the case is when an FBI switchboard operator in Los Angeles listened to the hostile threats and then calmly asked, "Do you have a call back number, sir?"
"I do," replied Bitter. "It's [an area code 949 cell phone number]."
Not exactly the smartest caller we've ever had!
FBI agents from the Santa Ana field office quickly arrived at Bitter's OC home, where he allegedly admitted he'd made the calls. He claimed that agents had been screwing with him and arranging for little girls to block his path in grocery stores, according to an FBI report.
Bitter was taken into custody for making threats of violence against law enforcement agents. A federal magistrate ordered him to remain in the custody of the U.S. marshals inside the Santa Ana Jail and to undergo a psychiatric evaluation before a hearing later this summer.
Oddly, Santa Ana Jail records show that Bitter, 32, has been set free from custody without any mention of the release in federal court files.
***Perhaps Bitter isn't dumb but exceptionally straight forward and brave. Perhaps he actually was a stiffed confidential informant, the FBI owed him hard-earned dinero and he'd grown tired of their lazy, bureaucratic reluctance to pay up even while handsomely paying female midgets to thwart his grocery shopping.
Can we have a little, respectful informant protection around here in Orange County?
Who knows?
A few weeks ago, a federal magistrate took the FBI's felony case against Bitter off calendar without explanation.
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Sterling Financial Corp. (NASDAQ:STSA)
Q4 2008 Earnings Call
January 28, 2009 11:00 AM ET
Deborah L. Wardwell - Vice President of Investor Relations, Director
Harold B. Gilkey - Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Daniel G. Byrne - Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Good day, everyone and welcome to the Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2008 Earnings Conference Call. Each of you will be on listen-only mode until the question-and-answer session following today's presentation. Today's conference is being recorded for replay. Additionally, the replay will be available at Sterling's website, www.sterlingfinancialcorporation-spokane.com, immediately following the call.
I would now like to turn the call over to Ms. Deborah Wardwell of Sterling Financial Corporation.
Deborah L. Wardwell
Thank you, Brad. Good morning. With us today I have Harold Gilkey, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer and Dan Byrne, Executive VP and Chief Financial Officer, who will be discussing Sterling Financial Corporation's fourth quarter and full year 2008 earnings results.
Before I turn the call over to Harold, I must remind you that during today's call, Sterling's management will be referencing forward-looking statements that are not historical facts and pertain to our future operating results. These forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements about our plans, objectives, expectations, and intensions and other statements contained in this report that are not historical facts.
These forward-looking statements are inherently subject to significant business, economic and competitive uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control. In addition, these forward-looking statements are subject to assumptions with respect to future business strategies and decisions that are subject to change.
Sterling's actual results may differ materially from the results discussed in these forward-looking statements because of numerous possible risks factors and uncertainties. These risks include, but are not limited to, the possibility of adverse economic developments which may, among other things, increase delinquency rates and risks in Sterling's loan portfolios, shifts in industries which may result in lower interest rate margin, shifts in demand for Sterling's loan and other products, increased cost or lower than expected revenues or cost savings in connection with acquisitions, changes in accounting policies, changes in the monetary and fiscal policies of the Federal Government and changes in laws, regulations and the competitive environment.
In closing, I'd like to mention that Sterling Financial Corporation's Executive Team will be at Stern A.G.'s Fourth Annual Financial Service Conference, February 9 through to 10th in Orlando, Florida and at the Sandler O'Neill West Coast Financial Services Conference in San Francisco, March 2nd through to 3rd.
With that said, I'd like to turn the call to over Mr. Harold Gilkey.
Harold B. Gilkey
Thank you, Deborah. Good morning, everyone. Welcome to our conference call. Sterling Financial Corporation reported its first full year loss since commencing operations. For the year, Sterling reported a net loss of $336.7 million or $6.51 per share.
To help put this in perspective, I'd like to spend a moment putting this loss into the context of our earnings generation capacity and our capital position.
Looking at the fourth quarter 2008 results, Sterling's pre-tax loss was $436.2 million. The following pre-tax items influenced our results; a non-cash charge of 223 million for the impairment of goodwill, a provision for credit losses of 228.5 million and a write-down of REO of $17.5 million, and of course a reversal of approved interest income on non-performing loans of $10.4 million.
When you add back the non-cash charge and these credit related expenses, you will see that the underlying earnings generation capacity of Sterling's core banking operation remains solid. Sterling continues to generate quarterly pre-tax, pre-provision income of nearly $45 million.
During the quarter, Sterling proactively took initiatives to enhance its capital position, to create a safety and soundness buffer to absorb credit losses. As a result, Sterling ended the year with one of the strongest cash positions in its history.
In early December, through the sale of preferred shares and related warrants to the U.S. Treasury Department, we raised $303 million in capital. Our total risk-based capital was 13% at year end.
In conclusion, Sterling's core banking operations remains healthy. Its capital position is strong and this liquidity sources remain in excess of $3 billion.
I now want to spend a moment highlighting the provision for credit losses. The elevation in the provision reflects three factors; higher levels of classified assets, significant decline in the price values of real state and a modification in our methodology in determining the fair value on loans identified as impaired.
With respect to the credit cycle, Sterling continues to experience stress in its residential construction portfolio and has now seen some weakness in the commercial construction portfolio. This is primarily due to slow lease process.
The continued stress in the residential construction mainly emanates from our Portland market area where real state values have declined. In commercial construction, we are experiencing some stress primarily in Northern California market. A credit deterioration in our residential mortgage and C&I portfolios appears to be solely construction related.
During the quarter, we modified our methodology in determining the fair market value of impaired real state loans and this directly affected our level of non-performing loans.
Dan will discuss this modification in greater detail later in the conference call.
Now let's focus on change. In a difficult credit cycle, Sterling team remains focused. Sterling's balance sheet continues to be strong. Total capital was $1.14 billion. Sterling's ratio of tangible equity to tangible assets improved to 7.07% from 6.01% at the end of 2007.
Our additional liquidity ... in addition, our liquidity capacity is over $3.2 billion and improved relative to the third quarter of '08.
Operationally, we made progress. Total deposits grew 9% to a record $8.315 billion. Importantly, non-interest bearing accounts, that are typically held by our commercial customers increased 3% year-over-year.
For the year, the net interest income was up 1% to $359.6 million. This was despite the drop of the net interest income. Sterling is asset sensitive and has absorbed the decline of over 400 basis points in the Fed Funds rate since September of '07.
Sterling also has to offset the reversal of $28.6 million in accrued interest income.
For the year, fees and service charges income rose 7% to nearly $60 million.
Golf Savings Bank, our residential mortgage origination unit, reported encouraging result. Gain on sale of loans was up to over 20% for both the fourth quarter and the full year.
During the fourth quarter of 2008, Golf experienced in excess of 30% increase in new loan applications. Even with the expectation of lower hold-through percentages on refinance applications, we anticipate that Golf posed (ph) origination volumes in 2009 should get off to a very encouraging start.
I would like to thank the entire Sterling team for its execution in this difficult time. Throughout the year Sterling bankers have been working in partnership with our borrowers to help avoid credit defaults and to protect the bank from losses. Because of our efforts and early intervention and remediation, we believe the level of classified assets continues to be manageable and will eventually lead to beneficial results.
As I've said before, the resolution process is likely to take several quarters.
I especially want to thank Nancy McDaniel and Steve Cage for all other and for all their direct reports, for their leadership and commitment in managing our credit administration efforts. All are putting in very long hours to see our way through this credit cycle. I also would like to personally congratulate Heidi Stanley, who was elevated at the beginning of this year to the role of Chairman of Sterling's Savings Bank's Board of Directors.
Additionally, congratulations go to Greg Seibly, who was appointed President of Sterling's Savings Bank and Ezra Eckhardt, who will assume the position of Chief Operating Officer.
These promotions reflect the strength of Sterling's management team and the success of our ongoing strategic plan for management succession and development.
At this time I would like to turn the call over to Dan, our Chief Financial Officer.
Daniel G. Byrne
Thanks, Harold. To supplement the information provided in the press release, I am going to focus on a few key highlights for the quarter and then provide you the opportunity to ask specific questions during the Q&A portion.
Yesterday we announced core earnings or the loss of $132.5 million or $2.56 per share for the quarter. Core earnings exclude; goodwill impairment charges, mergers and acquisition and other non-recurring costs all that and related income taxes. Harold has already mentioned that during the quarter we recognized a credit provision of $228.5 million for non-performing loans and a $17.5 million write-down on REO.
I will talk more about the provision in just a minute.
The other large adjustment was the goodwill impairment charge of $223.8 million. You will note that the final amount came in lower than our preannouncement. There was really no difference in our approach at the preannouncement day however we were still in the process of finalizing our analysis.
The press release details the reasons for the impairment under the cash and goodwill analysis, and I would like to point out that we evaluated our investment portfolio as part of our total analysis and had no other than temporary impairment charges for any of our investments including private label, mortgage backed securities, municipal securities or better home-loan-based stock.
At the end of the fourth quarter, Sterling's total assets were $12.8 billion, up from the levels at September 30, 2008. But there were a few dramatic swings in the composition.
First; Sterling issued preferred stock and warrants to the U.S. Treasury on December the 5th. We recorded a value of nearly $292 million for the preferred stock and a balance of approximately $11 million as the value of warrants that's included in additional paid-in capital.
The annual dividend of 5% is payable to the U.S. Treasury, quarterly, on the 15th of February, May, August, and November. Sterling then down streamed $223 million to its subsidiary banks and retained $70 million of the proceeds at the holding company level.
This cap will substantially enhance the regulatory capital position at Sterling and its subsidiary banks. As a result of this capital infusion, both subsidiary banks increased their investments in government-backed mortgage bank securities.
The yields initially were in the range 5.6 to 6 %.
Finally, the loan portfolio reflected a decline in balances of nearly $270 million from the third quarter of 2008. A year ago, Sterling made a strategic decision to lower its mix of assets related to construction. Of the $270 million reduction in loan balances, 232 relates to the reduced balances in our construction portfolio.
Now let me talk about asset quality for a moment. The provision... I'll also address the provision for credit losses as well as allowances for credit and trends in our asset quality.
There were several factors that led us to set aside a larger provision compared to what we expected earlier in the fourth quarter. First and foremost, that provision relates to a decline in the appraisal values of real estate.
As we began the fourth quarter, we began to see adverse trends in real estate values at our primary markets. As we got deeper into the quarter and particularly into December, we saw appraisal valuations fall significantly in many of our markets.
These valuations affected not only the specific assets but also resulted in adjustments to our loan loss provision rates that we use to evaluate the rest of the portfolio.
As part of our classification system, we have increased our loss allowance rates to reflect lower current real estate values in our markets. As an example, the loss provision in the sub-standard portion of our loan portfolio increased to 21% at the end of the year compared to a little under 15% at the end of the third quarter.
The second factor was an increase in non-performing and classified assets. At December 31, 2008, gross non-performing assets, that is nonperforming assets before specific reserves, were $610.7 million up from $437 million at the end of the last quarter, representing an increase of nearly 40%. Classified assets, which is really the driver of our provisioning, increased from $672 million at the end of the third quarter to 985 million at the end of the fourth quarter, representing a 47% increase.
And then the third factor is that we did modify our approach in determining the fair values and certain impaired loans, to exclude the value of borrower's personal guarantees.
In summary, these were the factors that required the higher provisioning. And nearly 80% of our non-performing assets are related to construction.
Residential construction was 67% of non-performing assets and commercial real estate construction added an additional 12% to our non-performing assets.
Non-performing assets increased approximately $174 million from the levels reported at the end of the third quarter. And of this, 84% was related to construction; approximately 94 million in residential construction and 53 million in commercial real state construction.
The remaining 20% of non-performing assets were spread across several loan types. C&I made up 10% of the non-performing assets. And these non-performing assets partly were related to construction co-related industries.
Non-owner occupied residential was less than 7% and the balance of non-performing assets from permanent commercial real state, consumer and multi-family construction, each made up about 1% of non-performing assets.
The markets where we experienced the largest increase in overall non-performings, was in Northern California with $52.8 million, primarily related to commercial real estate construction with approximately seven projects ranging in size from 3.9 million to $14.8 million.
Other markets experiencing increases in overall non-performing assets include; the Puget Sound with $42 million, two-thirds of which is related to two projects South of Seattle near Tacoma.
Southern California with $41.6 million primarily related to four projects ranging in size from 6.3 million to 13.5 million, Idaho, outside of Boise with $28.9 million with one project in Hailey, Idaho for 12.2 million and nearly two dozen smaller residential construction projects in Central and Northern Idaho.
Portland, Oregon, where we saw an increase of approximately $27.9 million, primarily related to 18 residential construction projects, the largest of which was $8.8 million. The loss given default has increased in virtually every market. And to give you a sense of our loss recognition, looking at the top-twenty non-performing assets, which represent over $250 million or approximately 41% of all non-performing assets, the aggregate loss given default is a little over 28% of the original book balance.
Some markets have higher loss given default; such as the other Idaho component and Southern California which are in the 30 to 40% loss content range.
Regarding the Puget Sound which is our largest market with approximately 845 million in residential construction commitments, this market continues to hold up a bit better than most of our other markets, especially in the core area around Seattle.
On the fringe areas, the Puget Sound region is showing a little more weakness with gross non-performing loans increasing to $74 million from $38 million at end of the third quarter and at December, represents 8.7% of the outstanding commitments to this region.
As I mentioned earlier, two projects South of Seattle, near Tacoma were responsible for most of this increase. Fortunately most of our residential construction in the Puget Sound region is weighted toward vertical construction and not land.
Now that being said, we are a bit guarded over the future prospects given some of the recent announcements from large employers in the region.
The classified assets have a similar profile to the non-performing assets. The increase in total classified assets was more notable in the construction portfolio with residential construction representing approximately 63% of classified assets and the commercial real estate construction representing another 12% of classified assets or combined 75% of total classified assets at year end.
You will note that in the quarter our construction portfolio was reduced by approximately $232 million. This reduction was accomplished through roughly 239 million in net maturities and pay-offs, a 190 million in new loans funded, as well as partial or total resolution of a number of non-performing construction loans totaling a $183 million.
And I would add, just add that during the quarter our REO balance increased to $62.3 million and represents approximately 115 properties or projects.
The losses on these real-estate assets have increased significantly, but the level of loss given default is very dependent on location and stage of completion. Generally, the loss given default is roughly 50% in the aggregate with vertical construction losses averaging around 15% and we do have a few land related losses up to 80%.
Our commercial real-estate and multi-family construction portfolio is approximately $1.4 billion based on total commitments. About 25% is in office space, 20% is in multi-family and retails strip centers add 16%, while retail standalone projects are about 7% of the total portfolio.
Approximately 20% of this portfolio is in the Puget Sound, with 15% in Northern California, and 12% in Southern California and the balance is geographically spread throughout our footprint with less than 10% in other markets.
Let me address some operating results. Net interest income and net interest margin for the quarter are lower than both the third quarter of 2008 and the fourth quarter of last year. The decrease is reflecting additional compression from a higher level of non-performing assets, the drop in prevailing interest rates following the Federal Funds cut and the Fed Funds rate and in lower balances.
We anticipated some of this reduction in net interest income and partially offset that with the purchase of mortgage-backed securities. We will also get in some additional benefit from the capital received from the U.S. Treasury as these funds were invested in mortgage-backed securities in early to mid-December.
We continue to emphasize making loans to businesses and to consumers. In the press release, we highlighted the residential loan originations by our subsidiary bank, Golf Savings Bank, and I would add that total originations for all types of loans was nearly $720 million. Both Sterling Savings Bank and Golf are committed to making every qualified loan that we can. The decrease on a linked quarter basis is more reflective of a softening demand for loans.
I would like to highlight that nearly 3.5% quarterly rise in our deposit base to a record $8.35 billion. On a linked quarter basis, we did experienced a little more growth in savings and time deposits than in the transaction accounts. But in a very challenging environment, I think this is a very good performance. We did manage to reduce our cost-to-deposits by about 10 basis points on a linked quarter basis despite intense rate competition. And on a year-over-year basis, deposit costs are down 95 basis points.
We continue to control our operating expenses. Excluding the goodwill impairment charge, operating expenses were down on a linked quarter basis and compared to the fourth quarter of a year ago.
Our core efficiency ratio improved again during the quarter as measured by the ratio, as non-interest expense to average assets, which dropped to 2.17% in the fourth quarter of 2008, down from 2.24% on a linked-quarter and 2.52% in the same period a year ago. We continue to pursue operating process improvements and to drive operating expense reductions.
With respect to income taxes, we recognized a tax benefit of $81.1 million which equates to an effective tax rate of approximately 19%. We expect to file for a refund for the current and prior year's taxes as quickly as we can.
We will not be providing specific earnings guidance for 2009, only because there are numerous headwinds and uncertainties that make it very difficult to project. I would like to state that we do not anticipate a repeat the fourth quarter. Nonetheless we are cognizant and realistic about the challenges our industry continues to face in 2009. The national and regional economies will be a significant factor in our success in 2009. It will affect the demand for bank products, including loans. Deposit flows are likely to fluctuate depending on prevailing interest rates and customer perceptions regarding FDIC insurance.
Deposit flows in turn will influence our cost of funding and net interest margin. We may get some near-term benefit from the cost of our borrowings as we have approximately $200 million of maturing Federal Home Loan Bank advances in the next six months and expect it could reduce by 100 to 200 basis points. And we have trust preferred securities that should be priced downward from their current aggregate cost of around 4.5%.
We will continue to emphasize making business in consumer loans and taking deposits with the goal of improving our core deposit relationships, where we resolute in reducing non-performing assets as quickly as we can.
We will be aggressively pursuing personal guarantees and our success could lead to the recognition of loan loss recoveries into the future. While we prefer to increase loans and deposits in 2009, the marketplace is poised to being more like flat at best. We expect to return to profitable operations in 2009 either with the expectation for a continued elevation in our loan loss provisions.
We will continue to control our operating expenses. However, there is one lined item that is anticipated to increase, the FDIC insurance premiums. This increase in premiums reflects the rise in the level of basic insurance deposit coverage to $250,000 and Sterling's participation in the transaction and debt guarantee programs.
We anticipate the expense for FDIC premiums to be double to triple of what it was in 2008. Reflecting the effects of tax credits, we do expect Sterling's effective annualized tax rate to be 18 to 20% in 2009.
And finally, we expect to remain well capitalized through 2009. We believe we can manage through the credit cycle and our year end capital position and our earnings generation capacity provide a cushion to absorb additional credit costs of between 400 and $500 million depending on the timing of the losses in earnings without the implementation of draconian measures.
With that, Harold, let me turn it back to you.
Thank you, Dan. What I assess Sterling's fourth quarter and full year performance during this very difficult climate, I am more confident in the skills and resolution of Sterling's next generation of management team to come through this credit cycle.
This group demonstrated repeatedly its ability to come together and act as one body in addressing change. What 40 years of banking industry has taught me is that the caliber and collective effort of the management team matters more than ever in a tight...in a tough credit cycle.
Our capital reserve and liquidity positions are at the strongest levels in Sterling's recent history. As we begin 2009, we believe our outlook is realistic. 2009 is likely to be contain continued headwinds, rolling unemployment, slowing economy and an uncertain real estate market.
We recognize that the Pacific Northwest has been insulated but certainly not isolated from the national economy. Still we believe our capital position is adequate to enable Sterling to see its way through this cycle. We do not anticipate the need for further capital. Importantly, the capital we raise through the U.S. Treasury program will allow Sterling to support credit demands and economic development in the communities which we serve.
As a community bank, service to local communities is the heart of our corporate culture and the backbone of our competitive advantage. Sterling will continue to exercise prudent and conservative credit standards. Sterling will balance its produciary stewardship of public financing with the need for increasing credit availability to the communities we serve.
Specifically, Sterling will support business lending to small and medium-sized businesses and of course consumer borrowings. Additionally, we will sustain higher levels of residential mortgage financing for conforming low interest mortgages the first time and low to moderate income buyers.
Whenever possible, we will help owner are supplied (ph), mortgage holders who are delinquent in their payments to avoid foreclosure.
In closing, the Sterling team remained tenaciously focused on doing what it can control. We continue to shift our asset mix towards high quality lending relationships in the business and consumer groups. We continue to grow our treasury management and other business related services, thereby increasing fee and service charge income. We continue to control overhead expense through systematic process improvement. We continue to manage and workout and resolve credit issues.
Let me end with the reminder of the strength of the Sterling franchise. Our capital and liquidity positions remain solid. The operations of the core banking business are solid and performing well. Our deposit franchise is strong and continues to expand through high quality, relationship-based commercial deposits.
We believe that we have a strong management team that has the experience to address the current market disruption and the asset quality challenges. Our credit team is capable and seasoned and has significant experience and loan resolution to work up. We are continuing to build our corporate and commercial banking franchise in Sterling and our residential home loan business at Golf Savings Bank.
With that, I'd like to turn the call back to Brad and begin the question-and-answer session. Brad?
Question-and-Answer Session
Thank you, sir. (Operator Instructions). Our first question is from Brett Rabatin of Stern AG.
Harold Gilkey
Good morning, Brett.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Good morning, Harold. How are you?
Harold Gilkey
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
First, thanks for providing additional color on the commercial real state portfolio. That was helpful. I am curious maybe, if Dan, if you have the numbers for the commitments for construction and commercial real state land, I know construction commitments were about 0.5 billion last quarter, and CRO (ph) and land were about 1 billion, Dan if you have those numbers handy?
Daniel Byrne
In the commercial real estate portfolio?
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Yeah, I just wanted... I guess I'm trying to figure out, I am thinking not so on a risk based capital and the commitments of balance sheet, what they are and obviously half of that is sort of goes into the total risk-based calculation?
Daniel Byrne
The commercial real estate component is about $950 million.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Daniel Byrne
Multi-family is the $470 million.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Multi-family is 470 million?
Daniel Byrne
That's correct.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Okay. Do you have a number for construction? Or is that included in the commercial real estate?
Daniel Byrne
In terms of the residential construction?
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Daniel Byrne
Residential construction is about $1.9 billion.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
1.9... okay. Maybe we can follow-up offline on that...my numbers are a little different. I think I am wanting (ph) something together. And then, I wanted to ask... you guys were talking about how, it seems like you're still are confident about, you obviously had a tough quarter in the 4Q and recognized a lot of losses but it sounds like you're still fairly confident about how things will play out despite a tough environment.
But you really haven't had, in terms of credit I mean, it's all been related to basically the construction and real state market. And so, I guess I'm curious as to how you're thinking about the commercial real state portfolios, the C&I portfolios and just stress to us your doing in those areas and why you are confident even though you know the economy is sullying those portfolios or cause some additional stress?
Harold Gilkey
Brett, let me begin by saying that my confidence level for the future is deteriorated and I believe that that's positive for the marketplace. If you'll recall in end of the first quarter of '08, we were reporting substantial losses, substantial classified non-performers. The second quarter, we saw that there was a down turn and the upturn of FDAs and classified and I felt fairly comfortable that the process was going to work well.
Third quarter was additional surprises, we grew rapidly. And the fourth quarter, the impact of the re-appraisals and some additional problems in the residential construction area as well as, and I don't mean to focus too much on this but the way we change our accounting structure on impaired loans, leaving out the guarantors' value to the process.
We think that will give us some recoveries at a later date but today it's just there.
I do have very good comfort zone with the rest of our portfolio other than the construction portfolio. And I think I am seeing a slowdown in the additional process of residential construction and may be the identification of commercial construction slowdown.
I've visited nine projects personally and the buildings are quality, at the right locations. There is just a general slowdown in lease up and that will impact the valuation on re-appraisals as the NOIs are coming back to what I would call, appropriate levels.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
And Harold how much of the commercial construction portfolio is... how much of that is pre-leased buildings versus non? Or you don't have it?
Harold Gilkey
I... we have that right in front of us Brett.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Daniel Byrne
We'll have to get back to you on that one.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Okay. And then Harold I wanted to circle back around about around the Puget Sound. I want to make sure I understood. It sounds like you are basically saying that market's still better. But I wasn't clear how much of that was a function of, you have more vertical rather than land exposure to that area or you actually see the economy there still being more resilient?
Harold Gilkey
It's a combination of all of that. The Puget Sound market still remains one of the best performing economies, albeit there is a little flutter in it. You've probably noticed a reduction in employment announced at various major employers.
But the growth in jobs over the last three years and quite frankly even with the reduction of the staff, we think the employment will stay relatively strong in that market. And I think... the other piece of that is we don't have much land. It's all... the bulk of it is vertical. So, I think that that market will remain relatively strong in our particular product.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Okay. And then just last, I want to make sure I understood something, on the guidance that you gave Dan, you said profitability in '09, does that mean for the year or for a particular quarter? I didn't quite get the gist of what you meant by that statement.
Harold Gilkey
We were referring to the full year 2009 with the statement.
Brett Rabatin - Stern AG
Okay. Great, thanks for all the color. I'm looking forward to seeing you guys in a few weeks.
Harold Gilkey
Thank you.
Our next question is from Jeff Rulis of D.A. Davidson.
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
Good morning.
Harold Gilkey
Good morning, Jeff.
Daniel Byrne
Good morning.
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
So, is it safe to say you're the largest land construction exposures in Portland, meaning the non-vertical construction?
Daniel Byrne
Certainly we have more acquisition development in the Portland marketplace compared to the Puget Sound. I don't know if I have that range in terms of the highest by market Jeff, but it's certainly is higher than Puget Sound.
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
Okay. Do you have just a percent breakout of the entire residential construction portfolio in terms of land or A&D versus vertical, that type of breakout?
Daniel Byrne
Based on total commitments, Jeff, the vertical looks like it's about 52% overall. The raw land is still 12% of total with the A&D and large making up the balance.
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
Okay. That helps. All right, thanks. And then on the... thanks for the FDIC insurance premium you mentioned on the guidance. But what was that level of FDIC insurance premiums paid in 2008?
Daniel Byrne
The insurance premiums in 2008 were approximately 6.3 million and we had about 2.7 in 2007.
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
Okay. And then and Dan did you... any guidance on the provision level for '09 or is that... not releasing that at this point?
Daniel Byrne
It's pretty hard to give that. We are not going to provide a guidance on that at this point.
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
And then lastly, Dan did you mentioned -- you mentioned something at the very beginning about was FHLB stock and mortgage-backed security write-downs included in any write-down this quarter?
Daniel Byrne
We did not take any impairment or other than temporary impairment charge-downs or write-offs in any of the investment portfolio.
Jeffrey Rulis - D. A. Davidson & Co.
Okay. Thank you. That's it.
Daniel Byrne
Thanks Jeff.
(Operator Instructions) Our next question is from Matthew Clark of KBW.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Good morning, guys.
Harold Gilkey
Hey Matt.
Daniel Byrne
Hey Matt.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Can you maybe update us on how you guys think about tangible equity or tangible common equity, given that it doesn't include to the tie-up preferred proceeds and TCE really remains the first-off position so that any losses that flow through or any help from the tie-up really doesn't incur... doesn't occur until after TCE essentially goes away.
So, I just want to get your sense for how you... your ability to manage that whether or not you've gotten any... if there's been any kind of leniency among regulators to allow that to drift lower if necessary and buy you some time, since the tie-up is essentially I think buys you time?
Harold Gilkey
You know Matt, in all my conversations, there has been yourself and one other analyst that mentioned, common tangible equity to be in, I think it's a (inaudible).
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Daniel Byrne
I would just add that I think the regulatory capital levels are still the primary focus of the regulators. And as we mentioned, we got very strong regulatory capital positions. To me I think, the tangible common per share is more meaningful. And at the end of the December, that was 11.41 and at some point we are going to be trading based on tangible common equity.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Okay, great. And then, can you give us a sense for the commercial construction piece, I guess the 1.4 billion in commitments that you have, and that's was helpful with the office, multi-family reach out ship and so forth. But I guess in terms of the incremental non accruals, you saw this quarter increasing and also related classified assets, the types of, I know you mentioned that they related to lease ups. But the types of properties we are talking about here, I guess more specifically in terms of the issues you saw this quarter?
Daniel Byrne
Like you said, I think most of that was in the Northern California component. And the wagon person (ph) break, I don't know they have this breakout with me that on me.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Daniel Byrne
There's a couple of projects.
Harold Gilkey
Matt, on my visitation to some of these projects, it looked like it was both office rent up and retail rent ups.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Okay, that's helpful. And then, in terms of your ready construction commitments, I guess two questions as it relates to those exposures. So I guess one; would you be able to update us on the mix of that 1.9 billion in related commitments by market? And consistent with the markets, you've provided in the release and what you've done in the past, if possible?
Daniel Byrne
The Puget Sound is still our largest component at roughly 41%. Caroline's (ph) just under 19% and then Southern California represents about 7 to 8% of the portfolio. While this is just under 5% and Northern California, it is 4% and Bend is 3.1%.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Okay. And then if I may, on 1.9 billion ready construction commitments, you provided property type disclosure in the past to take more recently. In terms of to speculate A&D town home, collateral, pool, condo, lot, rolled lamp, pre-sold customer and multi-family. So we have I guess, some commitments in terms of those property types structures. Because you mentioned that your underweight land, I just want to get a better sense for... not only those for only, where those commitments stand today but in terms of if you're able to breakdown the non-performers by property type as well, might be helpful? I don't know if that's something you have available right now but.
(Operator Instructions).
Daniel Byrne
Jeff, I think on the non-performers in the residential construction based on the balances would be about 40% in the vertical range and you've got raw land that's about 4% of the non-performers and then the balance in parts A, D.
Matthew Clark - Keefe, Bruyette & Woods
Okay. Thank you.
At this time we have no further question.
Harold Gilkey
Thank you, Brad. Well everyone, I'd like to thank you very much for you participation in this conference call. We look forward to talking to you again after our first quarter 2009. The earnings release is currently scheduled for Thursday April 23rd, followed by earnings call the next morning at 8:00 AM Pacific Standard Time.
I would like to point out that our Sterling's annual shareholder meeting will take place on Tuesday, April 28th. I would like to thank you again for your participation in this call.
Daniel Byrne
Thank you.
This concludes today's call.
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Horgan charges Brown violated Fayette ethics code
Outgoing Fayette County Commissioner Robert Horgan has filed an ethics complaint against fellow Commissioner Steve Brown. The complaint alleges that Brown violated three county ordinances by making an order to a county employee, disclosing information discussed by the board in executive session and also violating attorney client privilege: the latter two of which he did without first seeking approval from his fellow commission members.
Horgan contends he has written proof of all three violations, contained in copies of emails and a letter sent by Brown.
In the letter to Horgan dated Nov. 12, 2012, Brown admits to "instructing" the county's human resources director to contact the state attorney general's office about legal requirements for releasing the names of top candidates for the county manager's position.
That, Horgan contends, is a violation of county ordinance 2-209(n) which states in part that "Commissioners shall not, acting alone, make suggestions to the department directors or their employees regarding the performance of their duties, nor give instructions to department directors or other employees."
Brown said he was simply trying to find out how to follow Georgia law on the matter. But he added that he didn't feel comfortable getting the legal advice from either county staff attorney Scott Bennett or county consulting attorney Don Comer. Brown said he flat-out does not trust information that comes from Bennett.
Horgan also cited the March 9, 2012 letter that Brown wrote to State Attorney General Sam Olens in which Brown inquired about potential legal action in which the commission would sue itself. Although the letter does not mention it, Brown was specifically referring to a potential effort to have the county's new five-district map ratified by a federal court since the legislature failed to vote on the associated local legislation earlier this year, a fact blamed on a failure to meet public notice requirements.
Brown noted that he was careful to word the letter to Olens in such a way as to not reveal any details about the facts or strategy in the case.
"All I asked is can a county government sue itself, which is exactly what we did. Is asking that illegal?" Brown said.
The county did not sue itself in that case; rather, Peachtree City private attorney Rick Lindsey sued the county in federal court and won an order to enforce the new five-district map.
"I think it's a legitimate question and I don't think you can sue yourself," Brown said, adding that he has a duty as a public official to disclose unlawful activity.
In the aggregate, Brown dismissed Horgan's ethics complaint as "a trainload of sour grapes."
Now that the complaint has been filed, the ethics board is obligated to review it and ultimately take one of the following options:
• No admonishment and no further action;
• A public reprimand and admonishment not to violate the ethics code in the future;
• A formal reprimand;
• Public censure;
• Recommendation for termination, resignation or recall; or
• Recommendation for prosecution in the State Court of Fayette County.
The board can also decide to "admonish, formally reprimand, publicly censure" any complaining party who files a petition determined to be "unjustified, frivolous, patently unfounded or factually insufficient."
The county ethics board, appointed late this year, consists of Brooks Mayor Dan Langford, attorney Sheila Huddleston and Peachtree City financial planner Scott Rowland along with two alternates: Pota Coston, a former criminal investigator for the Internal Revenue Service and Larris Marks, a retired human resources director for the U.S. Army Forces Command.


text:
CHICAGO — Elevated input prices and energy costs drove CPG prices an average of 4.2% in 2007, with double-digit increases experienced by some categories, according to Information Resources Inc.'s "2007 CPG Year in Review." Shoppers turned to supercenters — which advanced their overall household penetration by 3.5 points last year—as a result. They also more readily reached for private label products. "The economy definitely had its say in CPG during 2007," said Thom Blischok, president of ...
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[Produced by Tone Capone]
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See I'm riding higher and higher (woah-ohh)
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New Vision Charter School will be holding an Information and Enrollment Meeting for Elementary and Middle School on Tuesday Jan. 26 at 6:30 p.m. at the school, 2366 East 1st Street, Loveland. If you're interested in finding out more about the Thompson School District's public school of choice, this is the place to have your questions answered. The meeting will include a special presentation on the middle school curriculum including block scheduling, sports and electives. This year's Kindergarten lottery will take place February 2. For more information call 970-593-6827 or visit www.NewVisionCharterSchool.org.Print This Post
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The clip read fortune from Drag Me to Hell (2009) Once they send some officers over to have a talk with he...
The clip read fortune from Drag Me to Hell (2009) Once they send some officers over to have a talk with her, she's not gonna be bothering you any more, okay? So don't even think about her. And I'm gonna call Mr Jacks and just make sure he can have somebody walk you to your car every night, okay? Okay. I just thank God you're okay. You are okay, right? I'm fine. What? What's the matter? It's just that maybe I could have gotten her another extension on her loan. Chris, no, don't do that. You said the bank granted this woman two extensions already, right? I'm sorry, if you don't pay your mortgage, you lose your house. What does this woman expect? It's not your fault. You can't beat yourself up over it. I mean, what'd she expect? It's not your fault. And regardless of what you may or may not have been able to do, that's still no justification for her... What is it? What's wrong? Did you hear that? What? Really? You didn't? No. What? I know this is gonna sound weird, but I wanna get my fortune read. Now? Are you kidding? Come on, Chris. I'll read your fortune for you. In the near future, we are gonna get in the car, go home and relax. Clay, I really want to do this. Why? Because of what happened with that old woman? Chris, I really think we should just get you home now. Can you do this for me?


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