CAPE'S CALVIN BIRD NEW WEED AND SEED DIRECTOR; JOB INVOLVES HELPING CITIES BRING ABOUT POSITIVE CHANGE

As the new executive director of Southeast Missouri's Weed and Seed, Calvin Bird said he sees his job as helping communities and law enforcement agencies work together toward positive change.

"We have to build a rapport between people and law enforcement if we want to attack and address community problems," Byrd said.

A press conference was held at the U.S. attorneys office in Cape Girardeau Wednesday to announce Bird's appointment.

Bird began his duties March 31 under the direction of the Weed and Seed Board of Directors. His $32,000 annual salary is funded by the state and the cities of Sikeston, Caruthersville and Poplar Bluff.

Operation Weed and Seed is a Department of Justice initiative designed to weed out violent crime, drug use and gang activity in targeted neighborhoods.

The program hopes to prevent crime from reoccurring by seeding those sites with a wide variety of resources. Such activities include a youth jobs program, the Missouri African American Culture Initiative, and the Drug Education for Youth program.

"My mother and grandmother were sharecroppers," Bird said. "My mother went out and was literally chopping the cotton. They told her to chop the weeds, not the cotton.

"That's the philosophy of Weed and Seed: seeding out the bad and bringing out the good elements."

Bird, a lifelong resident of Southeast Missouri, has been self-employed as a consultant and serves as assistant pastor of Greater Dimension Church of God In Christ in Cape Girardeau.

Bird worked for the Cape Girardeau Civic Center for seven years, five of those as executive director. He has been active in a number of Southeast Missouri civic and cultural organizations. He graduated from Southeast Missouri State University.

Approximately 165 cities nationwide are implementing an Operation Weed and Seed program. Of those, 120 will receive federal funding through the Department of Justice. The city of Sikeston is now eligible to receive federal funds.

The program began in Sikeston's Sunset neighborhood in the summer of 1995. Expansion into other parts of the region has begun and it is planned specifically to be put into operation in Cape Girardeau, Charleston, Poplar Bluff and Caruthersville.

In Sikeston, an Operation Weed and Seed substation was opened in the 900 block of W. North Street. Since then resident safety and levels of crime have improved dramatically, according to results published by Southeast Missouri State University.

The university is a co-sponsor of the program and is providing Bird with an office at Academic Hall on campus.

The Southeast Missouri Weed and Seed Board of Directors created the new position to carry out the implementation of the operation nearly two years ago.

They selected Bird from a group of about 15 candidates.

"We're very pleased with the skills and expertise Calvin brings to the job," said Paul Keys, a Weed and Seed board member and dean of the Department of Health and Human Services at Southeast. "This board is committed to the concept of combining our resources with those of other organizations to bring a sense of safety and hope back to neighborhoods."

U.S. Attorney Edward L. Dowd said that this program is an excellent example of communities working well with law enforcement.

"We in law enforcement learned long ago that we're not alone in our quest to make our streets safer," Dowd said. "It takes all kinds of efforts to really make a difference. We want to stop crime, not just prosecute criminals."