Who:  Russell's Pharmacy & Shoppe

Where: 2116 Angier Avenue, Durham, NC 27703

When: Saturday, February 2, 2019 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. Free and open to the public. Opening candlelight ceremony at 11 a.m. 

What:               

• Candlelight ceremony
• Games;
• Face-painting;
• Live music, harpist;
• DJ (jazz);
• Food;
• Prizes on the hour;
• Health screenings, and more.

Why: Russell’s Pharmacy & Shoppe (https://russellspharmacyshoppe.com/ ) is a new black-owned independent pharmacy in East Durham’s historic Angier-Driver business district.  The proprietors, Darius and Terensia Russell, are a husband-and-wife team who have very strong ties to this wonderful city. Terensia was born at Watts Hospital, both she and Darius graduated from the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics in 1991, and they have lived in Durham since 2001.  Darius graduated from Morehouse College in 1995, and Terensia graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1994. They both worked for several years as high school educators. Darius also has more than a decade of experience as a pharmacist here in Durham. He received his PharmD. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Opening their own pharmacy and shop has been a dream for many years and the story of how they became business owners is compelling.  Darius discovered his passion for pharmacy almost 20 years ago when he took a part-time job as a pharmacy technician in Smyrna, Georgia. Darius and Terensia soon moved back to North Carolina where Darius attended pharmacy school. After graduating and working as a pharmacist for many years, they were able to make their dream come true by opening their pharmacy in East Durham.

Self-Help has supported urban revitalization in communities around the country, with an especially deep impact in our headquarters city of Durham.  Russell’s Pharmacy & Shoppe is a key retail anchor of Self-Help’s Angier Business & Children’s Center (ABC Center) project, which is an $11+ million investment in a series of historic buildings totaling 45,000 square feet in the East Durham business district that we began renovating in 2017 with support from the City of Durham and local foundations.

In addition to Russell’s Pharmacy, ABC Center welcomes No Greater Love Christian Church, All My Children Childcare Center, Durham Atletico, East Durham Children's Initiative, the soon-to-open Top Notch Performance fitness studio and ThriVe clothing consignment. The ABC Center will provide space for other small businesses and nonprofits in the near future.  

Self-Help is a leading national community development financial institution headquartered in Durham, NC. Since 1980, Self-Help has provided over $7 billion in financing to 150,000 families, individuals and businesses. It helps drive economic development and strengthen communities by providing responsible financial services; lending to individuals, small businesses and nonprofits; developing real estate; and promoting fair financial practices across the nation. Through its credit union network, Self-Help serves people in California, Florida, Illinois, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia and Wisconsin.

The nonprofit Center for Community Self-Help is the umbrella organization for the Self-Help family of nonprofit organizations, which includes Self-Help Credit Union, Self-Help Federal Credit Union, Self-Help Ventures Fund and the Center for Responsible Lending. Learn more at www.self-help.org, www.self-helpfcu.org and www.responsiblelending.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 31, 2019

Jenny Shields, Director of Media Relations, Center for Community Self-Help 

Direct Line: 919.794.6798 | Media Line: 919.695.2037 | Email: Jenny.Shields@self-help.org