Ben Ruffin, a top adviser to former Gov. Jim Hunt and a past chairman of the UNC Board of Governors, died of an apparent heart attack.
Ruffin, of Winston-Salem, was reared in Durham and worked his way through N.C. Central University by sewing in a tailor shop. He was a special assistant to Hunt on minority affairs and was the first African-American to lead the UNC Board of Governors, which oversees the 16-campus university system.
He was known as a powerful orator, a snappy dresser and a leader with a quiet, dignified style. He spoke at two of our Martin Luther King Breakfasts.

Massachusetts - A recent survey by the American Psychological Association has shown that more women than men describe the holidays as the most stressful time of the year due to the intensified focus on family, work and money.
Women, however, are less likely to take time to relax or manage that stress in healthy ways. Research shows that stress, and the unhealthy behaviors people use to manage it, contribute to some of America's biggest health problems such as obesity, heart disease and diabetes.

Receiving a national award from the American Association of Blood Banks in Miami Beach, Fla., is…

Gerald R. Ford, who picked up the pieces of Richard Nixon's scandal-shattered White House as the 38th and only unelected president in America's history, has died at 93.

James Brown's music career will come full circle when his body is brought to rest on the stage of the legendary Apollo Theater in Harlem, where he made his explosive debut.

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BAGHDAD, Iraq - U.S. troops killed six people Monday during a raid on a possible safe house for al-Qaida in Iraq, the military said, while the death toll of American service members in Iraq surpassed 3,000. The attack occurred near the west Baghdad offices of Saleh al-Mutlaq, a senior Sunni Arab politician of the National Dialogue Front, the U.S military and Iraqi police said. American troops received heavy gunfire and grenade launches from the building, the military said.

La Femmes Debutantes, dressed in bright holiday colors, performed during the Kwanzaa celebration Dec. 8 in Kaiser Permanente's Town Hall building. They are, front row, from left: Jasmine Pettiford, Yasmine Moore, Eryka Island; second row, from left: De'La Spears, Rhoda Meyers, Terra Dizer, Lavette Allen, Christine Collins, Briana Hadry, Tianna Sly; and third row, from left: Briaunna Solomon, Ashleigh Martin, Toni Fields, Denatria Spears, Shelby Stephens and La'Nisha Dizer.

From now until Jan. 10, staff members at the Portland Development Commission will be crafting a new prevailing wage policy – a policy that some African American construction company owners say could hurt their business.
The formation of the prevailing wage policy comes on the heels of nearly 20 hours of debate and four public work sessions from contractors, union and nonunion organizations, PDC commissioners and others affected by an issue that has been plaguing the commission for years. The policy will establish when Oregon's prevailing wage laws – the laws governing how much construction workers are paid on public projects — apply on projects receiving PDC assistance.
The commission is also addressing the concern over the amount of minority business participation in the South Waterfront Development, calling on Hoffman Construction Company to increase the number of minority-owned businesses in the construction project. Currently, only about 1 percent of the subcontracting businesses working on the South Waterfront are minority-owned.

Portland Mayor Tom Potter is proposing five reforms aimed at dealing with street disorder, sidewalk nuisances and improving livability in Portland's business districts. The Street Access for Everyone proposal was crafted by a coalition of business people, homeless advocates, service providers, public safety officials and community members who met for four months. The coalition's recommendations came with the requirement that all five be implemented together.