Port Of Harlem completed its 8th trip to The Gambia this week. This year's trip included driving to Juffreh to have lunch with the Kinte family and to Brikama, a town famous for its craft market.  President Obama remains popular with his name bearing things from Barack Obama restaurant to Obama rice.

Gambian Notes:

• Former President Dawda Kairaba Jawara released his autobiography as the man who replaced him in a coup, President Jammeh, commended him. Having two presidents of the same country on the same stage is a rare event in Africa.

• Also, in this relatively peaceful nation a judge sentence a boy to three months in jail for assault and causing bodily harm to another man during a quarrel over a stolen bracelet. After stabbing his victim, the convict was apprehended not by the police, but members of the community and taken to the police.

• 2011 plans are now being made.

Photos:  Barack Obama Restaurant in Banjul. Kinte family member prepares our meal.

Todd Bridges rose to fame as the handsome Willis Jackson, the older brother of Arnold Jackson in the sitcom Diff’rent Strokes. Like Jackson, trouble in his personal life marred his success. Now in Killing Willis (Touchstone Books, $26), Bridges shares those stories including that of his jealous father, his father’s denial that an adult male friend of the family was making sexual advances toward him, and Diff’rent Strokes co-star Dano Plato’s drug problems.

The Sons of the Confederate Veterans has more than 30,000 members preserving Confederate symbols and heritage. They are looking for new members interested in perpetuating the “ideals that motivated their Confederate ancestors.” Learn more about the SCV at 800-MY-SOUTH.

Oral cancer strikes an estimated 34,360 Americans each year. However, knowing the risk factors and seeing your dentist for oral cancer screenings can help prevent this deadly disease.

Oral cancer screening and regular check-ups, including an examination of the entire mouth, are essential in the early detection of cancerous and pre-cancerous conditions. Mitchell Dental Spa, a dental and spa facility in Chicago’s Water Tower Place,

offers extensive screenings for oral cancer as a part of every routine check up.

Dr. Margaret Mitchell, DDS of Chicago’s Mitchell Dental Spa, provides the following tips for preventing oral cancer:

• The best way to prevent oral cancer is to avoid tobacco and alcohol use.

• Regular dental check-ups, including an examination of the entire mouth, are essential in the early detection of cancerous and pre-cancerous conditions. Make certain that your dentist is performing a thorough oral cancer screening during checkups and ask questions.

• Pay attention if you develop an eroded area in your mouth, swelling, a voice change, or growths on the skin of the face.
  

• Eating a healthy diet and exercising has been proven to help prevent most types of cancers.

• Oral cancer is often preceded by the presence of clinically identifiable premalignant changes; that is red or white spots or patches. Ask your dentist to show you what they look like so you can check for them at home.

By now you have received your 2010 Census form in the mail, and hopefully you have participated in this once-a-decade civic ceremony by filling out and mailing back your census questionnaire.

It costs taxpayers just $0.42 per household if the form is mailed back, but it costs $57 per household to follow up with people who do not respond by mail. That means that for every 1-percent increase in the number of households that mail the form back, taxpayers save about $85 million.

Port of Harlem encourages you to fill out the Census as we have encouraged you to participate in making sure that members in your household are registered to vote and spend their money with those who support the advancement of our community.