DURING TH LATE 19705 and early 80s he, taught at several schools, including · Denison University in Gran­ ville, Ohio; Stanford Univer i and Whittier College in Califor nia; andthe 0 niversity of Hous­ ton. With thr novels under his belt � 1973, he received a Gug­ genheim, Fellowship and con­ tinued to write. S·· 1 81, be has been a writer- esidence .and professor of Englisb at the University of Southwestern Louisiana in Lafayette. Gaines' first published novel was "Cathering Carmier" ill 1964 .. After "Bloodline," a book of short stories, hit the books ores in 1968, Gaines began to capture critical ac- claim. . "The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman," released in 1971, was a popular novel and was . , ., adapted three years nater for a . television production starring Cicely Tyson. A children's book, "A Warm Day in Novem­ ber," the novel "In my Father's House" in 1978 and "A Gather­ ing' of Old Men" in 1983 con­ tinued the painting of the Lousiana landscape pf his childhood. . Gaines has bee successful in writing stories with a univer­ sal quality. That might explain why "Miss Jane Pittman" has been translated into eight dif- · ferent languages and is so wide- · ly read around the world. . r , . 'There somethingjn the heavy Louisiana � thit clung to Earne t J. Gaines. Years after he"d left the plantation on iWhich five generations of his family d toiled and died, he still could hear the voices and feel and pirit of its people. .. Today, G ine is one. of America' best-mown contem­ porary writers. His novels and short tories, including "A Gathering of Old Men" and "The Autobiography of Miss J me Pittman," provide some of the few literuy glimps s of the 1>lack experience in the rural South. Gaines w born in Oscar, La., in 933. By age '8, .ha.was digging potatoes for meager wages. Hi aunt, Augusteen J offer SOD, was one of his earliest and. trongest influences. Although severely crippled, she pos­ sessed an inner strength and an unw vering religious convic­ tion. "There was never a day my aunt felt sorry for herself," said Gaines. "Her strength, of . , Erne t J. GaiDe character has greatly influenced my writing and the development of my fictional characters." In 1948, Gaines moved to California. Although educa­ tional opportunities were greater in his new home, he missed the storytelling that served as entertainment on the plantation. He twned to the library for books about the Southern blae experience, but came up empty­ handed. Instead, he read storie by Russian novelists about peasants who struggled to live off the land. oon, Gaine began writing down memories - . of his own childh . - the . ian 11 velists his model. . Gaines attended Vallejo Junior College, erved in the Army and fini bed colle at an Francisco St te College. In J. aine JanuarY·'·l2, .99. MICHIGAN CITIZE 'a' e' • I 1956, his fir t published stories '. 'appeared in the San Francisco State College literary magazine. He graduated in 1957 and received an ward that allowed him to study cr�ve writing at Stanford University in Palo Alto, calif. In later year he found his ay back to the university, this time a prp(i .,: sor.. ONE IMP.ORTANT THEME that Gaines str��_ ... his stories is that plaht,tiOD life existed long after legal ended. His own childhood ex­ perience in Louisiana attests io that fact. "History is full of meaning," says Gaines. "Miss J ne' is relevant today as ever. There is still so much we can learn from her--including how to treat each other as human beings." In 1987, Gaine received a literary award from the American Academy and In­ stitute of Arts and Letters. He currently resides i,n California, where he is completing a novel. (Emes! I. Gaines is one of 12 people selected for "Gallery of Greats: Black Authors .. .A Voice. r for the Peopte," a collection 0/ portraits commissioned by the Miller Brtwing Company. The collection, which honors all black authors, is on a national . tour of QIt gaI!w d univ,er­ sities throughout 1990.) .: .! .' # BROWN Be WILLIAM .ON TOBACCO CORPORATION ACHIEVER � AWARDS .: EstabUshed in 1986. the KOOL Achiever Awards recognize adults whose personal or profeSSional efforts are creating a be er way' of life in inner-cnv communities. . " . . � .. . Arts . James H. Chapman, Columbus. Ohio. is founder and , executive director of.living the Dream. a performing oris group - h ch addresses social crisis issu hrough drama. music.,poetry and dance. Bust . 8tenetto HoweI Borrett, Chicago. IIIlnoi1. has been a champion of minority economic development and consumer rights. working In business. in education and. througti the � political system: Civic, Reve'rend Hezekloh Stewart, pastor of Mt. Nebo African Methodist Episcopal C�hurch in �iHle Rock, . Arkansas. founded the watershed Human and Community Development Agencv. hich confronts socloi problems with programs that pr n . Lisa GIvens of Thornton. Colorado is volunteer coordinator for the Junior Engineering Technical Society Club of the Colorado Association of Black Professional Engineers and Scientists She has helped hundreds of youth prepare for productive and satisfying careers in the science and gin rin field - - Each of the 1990 recipients receive a S10.000 contrit:>u1lon from Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corporation to be donated to the qualifying non-profit. inner-city community service of his or her choice. Please join • us and our highly supportive community organizations· as \lie salute their accomplishments. , . SURGEON GENERAl'S WARNING: Quitting Smoking Now Greatly Reduces Serious -Risks to Your Health.