Denise D. Adams has been a Council Member since 2009.
Message from Your Council Member
As your Council Member, I will voice your concerns and opinions as well as advocate for the well-being of citizens of the North Ward and the City of Winston-Salem. Therefore, I would like to hear from you so that I can better serve our community.
Profession / Vocation
Worked for over 37 years in manufacturing and management positions before retiring from Johnson Controls, Inc. - Power Solutions in 2013
Professional & Community Associations
Mayor Pro Tempore
Vice Chair of the Finance Committee
Chair of the Community Development/Housing/General Government Committee
THINK ORANGE Campaign for a community-wide effort to address food insecurity to combat hunger
Advocate for bringing healthy options into food deserts, including the building of the hydroponics/aquaponics facility
Initiated a grant process for CHAMPS, Winston-Salem being one of six cities to be awarded this grant
Board Member of the North Carolina Black Elected Municipal Officials
Board Member of the National League of Cities
Member of National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials
Board Member of the Winston-Salem Urban Area MPO Transportation Advisory Committee
Board Member of the First Tee of the Triad
Board Member of the Forsyth County Community Garden Advisory Board
Board City of Winston-Salem Risk Acceptance Management Corporation
Former Board Member of the North Carolina League of Municipalities
2012 Graduate of Leadership North Carolina
United Way - Forsyth County Health Allocations Panel 2009-2010 Women’s Leadership Council
Member of the University Area Neighborhood Association, Secretary
Rose McCloud Chapter #608 Order of the Eastern Stars
Ralph R. Morgan Auxiliary American Legion Post 220
Selected by the State Executive Committee of the N.C. Democratic Party - one of five members to serve on the Democratic National Committee and Outstanding Women Leaders.
Ralph R. Morgan Auxiliary, American Legion Post 220
Smart Start Allocations Panel - 2008 to 2010
Life Member of Winston-Salem Alumnae Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
2019 recipient of the Paulette Lewis-Moore and Carl H. Russell Sr. Lifetime Achievement Award
Member of the YMCA
Co-Chaired several local organizational projects:
Winston Lake YMCA Partners for Youth Golf Association 2010-11
Habitat for Humanity - Women Build
Chair of Social and Political Action
Formerly served on the Boards:
Housing Authority of Winston-Salem
Step One
SciWorks
Fellow of the Institute of Political Leadership 1990
Arts Council
Delta Fine Arts
United Way Forsyth County - Health Allocations Panel 2009-2010
Winston-Salem (WS) Sustainability Commission
U-Fit 2 Health and Wellness
East Winston Community Development Corporation
Urban League
Education
East Forsyth Senior High School, Kernersville, NC, 1972
B.A. Degree from Morgan State University, Baltimore, MD - Speech Communication, 1976
Personal
Member of Emmanuel Baptist Church
Lifetime Alumnae member of Morgan State University
Golden Life Member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc.
Diversity best describes the North Ward. Here you will find recreation, affordable housing, schools, entertainment and a variety of restaurants, hotels, and shopping areas.
Council Member Denise D. Adams represents North Ward residents on the City Council.
Overview
For many years the North Ward was synonymous with the tobacco industry. RJ Reynolds Tobacco Company built its sprawling Whitaker Park facility here in 1961 and later built its world headquarters across the street.
The building is now owned by Wake Forest University and is known as University Corporate Center. This 525-thousand square-foot facility lists Aon Consulting, BB and T, and Pepsi as tenants.
Community Services
Community services including a branch of the YMCA, Goodwill of Northwest North Carolina, Senior Services, and Industries for the Blind are here, as well as the central administrative offices of the Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools.
SciWorks
On Museum Drive just off Hanes Mill Road is SciWorks, where visitors of all ages enjoy interactive, hands-on exhibits and programs in spacious exhibit halls. Sciworks is supported by the City and County, and through private donations.
Recreation Centers
North Ward residents are served by the Martin Luther King Community Recreation Center, Kimberly Park Pool, and Brown and Douglas Neighborhood Recreation Center. The Hanes Hosiery Center on Reynolds Boulevard was demolished and a new recreation center was built on the site. The ballfields at Hanes have a sports history that dates back 75 years.
Other recreation facilities in the ward include Piney Grove Park and the soccer fields at Hine Park. Historic Bethabara Park is also in the North Ward.
Schools
Schools in the North Ward include Paisley and Northwest Middle Schools, as well as Cook, Julian Gibson, Kimberly Park, and North Hills Elementary Schools.
Cemeteries
The City-owned Woodland Cemetery is off Indiana Avenue. Established in 1905, the narrow paths reflect its original layout to accommodate horse-drawn carriages.
In addition, there is the Historic Landmark, Odd Fellows Cemetery, reputedly established in 1911 by Twin City and Winston Star Lodges, both African-American fraternal organizations. Odd Fellows Cemetery predates the 1913 merger of Winston and Salem. Its social and cultural significance as the largest African-American graveyard dating from the early 20th century is one of Winston-Salem's most treasured historic resources.
Public Services
The City's solid waste landfill and recycling area is just off U.S. 52. Here the City disposes of more than two hundred thousand tons of waste annually.
The City's newest fire station is located in the North Ward on Rural Hall-Bethania Road. It is named for the Koger family, one of several prominent African-American families who lived in this area after the Civil War.
Entertainment
If one area of our City could be called the entertainment capital, it would be here in the North Ward - home of the Lawrence Joel Veteran's Memorial Coliseum Complex. The main coliseum along with the annex, fairgrounds and education building, hosts a wide variety of events during the year from basketball and concerts, to ice skating and craft and trade shows. In the fall, everyone attends the Dixie Classic Fair.
Sports
Across Deacon Boulevard is Wake Forest's Grove Stadium. Adjacent to Grove Stadium is the old Ernie Shore Baseball Stadium, home field for the Demon Deacon baseball team. In 2011, Wake Forest University opened its state-of-the-art tennis complex, built to serve as home to the Wake Forest men's and women's tennis teams. Every August, the complex hosts the Winston-Salem Open, an ATP World Tour 250 event which is the last professional tournament prior to the start of the U.S. Open. It is conveniently located next to the Wake Forest Indoor Tennis Center.
Extensive landscaping along University Parkway makes an attractive corridor between downtown and the Coliseum complex.
Methodist Children's Home
Seemingly out of place to downtown is the open and tranquil field of the Methodist Children's Home. When it opened in 1909, it was one of the largest farms in the area. Today it remains true to its historical mission of caring for children, through a variety of residential and day programs.
Affordable Housing & Retirement Living
In the North Ward there is an abundance of affordable housing. Gateway Commons, along Northwest Boulevard, is a mixed housing development that replaced Kimberly Park Terrace and offers affordable apartments and single-family homes. Farther out, subdivisions such as Moravian Forest and Mallard Lakes bring country living to the city.
Comfortable retirement settings such as Salemtown are also here....away from the hustle and bustle of commercial areas.
Denise D. Adams, Democrat, North Ward, Mayor Pro Tempore
Community Assistance Liaison
Zina L. Johnson
Community Assistance Liaison, North Ward Email Zina L. Johnson Phone: 336-734-1254 Alternative Phone: 336-462-2426
Additional Information
A Community Assistance Liaison is assigned to each ward and is available to help citizens solve problems and get answers. Read more about the Community Assistance Liaisons.
Contact Your Council Member