Farm Life School Reunion Friday, May 12 At 7 P.M.
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West Craven Highlights
A'ph'» From AIoiik TIw flunks Of Tliv Vciise
NATCNAl
VOLUME 12 NO. 19
MAY 11, 1989
VANCEBORO, NORTH CAROLINA
PHONE 244-0780 OR 946-2144
(UPSP 412-110)
25 CENTS
SIX PAGES
Referee Defends Controversial Call In Final Game
Br MIKE VOSS
Editor
John Clougherty is a prime candidate for an
American Express commercial.
You know the type. It's someone famous (or
-smr,i-famous) who asks, “Do you know me?"
while showing a credit card.
Well, millions who didn’t know Clougherty be
fore know him now. He’s the basketball official
who called “The Foul” against Seton Hall’s
Gerald Greene with three seconds left in the
NCAA championship a little over a month ago.
That foul (or non-foul, depending on whom you
talk to) put Michigan’s Rumeal Robinson on the
ffee throw line. Robinson sank the two shots and
Michigan won the national title by one point, SO
TS.
Clougherty talked about the “call heard round
the world” while addressing a local Rotary club
last Thursday night.
“I don’t mind telling you about my play. It’s not
a problem," he said.
The call; Robinson brought the ball down the
middle, headed for the Michigan basket. Greene
met him at the top of the key and brushed Robin
son. Without hestitation Clougherty blew his
whistle and flagged Greene for blocking.
“The play was an easy play in my opinion,” said
Clougherty. Greene interferred with Robinson’s
drive to the hoop and that was enough for
Clougherty. The official, who works for Wachovia
Bank in Raleigh, said he had three options. They
were: call the foul, let ball roll out of bounds and
give it to Seton Hall or see if a Michigan player
picked up the ball and scored.
It wouldn’t have mattered if no whistle blew
and another Michigan player scored, said
Clougherty. But he saw a foul and called it.
If the ball had rolled out of bounds and he had
given it to Seton Hall, he said, the press would
have screamed in the next morning’s papers
“Where was the foul?”
Instead, Clougherty said he called the foul the
same way a foul was called at the end of the first
half under almost identical circumstances.
“I didn’t see any of the priests that sit on the end
of the (Seton Hall) bench... giving me their bles
sings,” he said.
But it was Seton Hall coach P. J. Carlesimo who
disarmed the press over the call, said Clougherty.
When asked about the call, Carlesimo asked how
he could he second-guess the official he consi
dered the best in the country. But Carlesimo had
his doubts immediately after the foul was called.
(See REFEREE, Page 6)
Spring Rains
Hurt Crops,
Say Experts
Recent rains have been a double-edged sword for farmers
By BETTY GRAY
Special to the
We»t Craven HlghlighU
Three years after North Caroli
na farmers saw their crops wither
in drought, farmers in Craven
County are contending with the
opposite problem.
This spring's wet, cool weather
may result in smaller plantings
and a lower quality of corn and
tobacco in some areas, say agri
cultural specialists.
Corn and, to a lesser degree,
tobacco are the main crops de
layed because of the almost daily
rainfall that has left fields in east
ern North Carolina too muddy to
plant.
One area agricultural exten
sion agent said farmers are three
to four weeks behind in their
corn and tobacco planting.
He said only about 30 percent
of the county’s corn crop has
been planted and only 15 to 20
percent of the tobacco crop.
Reddick said the wet weather
is “having a terrible effect on the
tobacco plants that are still in
beds waiting to be transplanted.”
“We're still o.k. if the rain stops
and the soil can dry out,” he said.
The extension service esti
mated last year's income from
tobacco in Beaufort County at
(See WET, Page 6)
Saltwater Fishing License Plan May Go To Study Panel
By MIKE VOSS
Edilorr
A proposal to require salt
water fishing licenses has been
delayed for at least a year.
State Sen. Bill Barker, D-
Pamlico, who had planned to in
troduce the bill during the cur
rent legislative session, said last
week that he will not introduce it
“at this time.” Instead, he said, he
will introduce legislation to cre
ate a study commission.
Meanwhile, state officials said
they were interested in proposal
to establish one license for all
state waters, salt water and fresh.
Barker's proposed bill had met
with strong disapproval at hear
ings last week in Carteret Coun
ty, Manteo and Wilmington.
Barker said he was asked by
the N.C. Division of Marine
Fisheries to introduce a bill re
quiring salt-water fishing
licenses for sports fishermen in
some coastal waters. “I told them
1 would consider it if all the
money went back to the resource
and if they held a series of public
hearings to see if there was any
support,” said Barker.
Barker said the first hearing on
the bill, held in Wilmington, per
suaded him to exempt piers and
charter boats from any licensing
requirement. He said pier own
ers and charter boat operators
overwhelmingly opposed the
proposal.
About 30 fishermen from New
Hanover, Brunswick and Pender
counties said the proposal
should be studied further.
Disagreement over how the
money would be spent and the
apparent lack of public support
for the proposed bill caused him
to consider the study commis
sion, said Barker. The senator
said the study commission
should include commercial
fishermen, sports fishermen,
pier owners, legislators from
coastal areas and state ofTicials. It
would report to a later session of
the General Assembly.
Barker said the public hear
ings have indicated concern over
how requiring the licenses would
affect tourism, sports fishing,
charter boats and commercial
fishing.
Barker said he had until 3 p.m.
Tuesday to submit the bill.
Harold Johnson, district mana
ger of the Division of Marine
Fisheries in Elizabeth City, said
today that the decision not to in
troduce the license bill was
announced at a public hearing
Thursday night in Manteo. He
said division’s director. Dr. Wil
liam T. Hogarth, said the bill
would not be introduced, but
that Barker would seek the study
commission.
Johnson said, “The Division of
Marine Fisheries has a total-
license package we’re lookiing
at."
He said the division is still
seeking public opinion and the
salt-water license request could
resurface later.
Barker said those supporting
the licensing idea agree that the
revenue should be used “to im
prove the resource but there is
disagreement over how that
money should be spent.”
Johnson said further study
would allow proponents time to
explain the plan more fully.
Barker said the hearings did
not provide the consensus he felt
was needed to introduce the bill
seeking the salt-water fishing
license.
The proposal would charge $2
a day for a one-day license, $5 for
a three-day license, $10 for 14
days, $15 for an annual license
and $250 for a lifetime license.
Children under 16 would be ex
empt and special rates would
apply for the blind, disabled and
senior citizens.
Several groups support the
idea, including some salt-water
fishermen and the N.C. Coastal
Federation.
Stokes Named Teacher
Of The Month In April
Dennis Stokes, thegraphics in
structor at West Craven High
School, is one of three teachers
selected by the New Bern Area
Chamber of Commerce in con
junction with the New Bern-
Craven County Board of Educa
tion as Educators of the Month
for April.
Also selected for the honor
were Leslie Williford, a kinder
garten teacher at Roger R. Bell
Elementary School, and Mary
P^er, an exceptional education
teacher at Brinson Memorial
Elementary School.
Stokes graduated from East
Carolina University where he
earned degrees in industrial arts.
For the past 18 years he has been
the graphics instructor and
VICA Club sponsor or co
sponsor at West Craven High
School.
An activity that Stokes is parti
cularly proud of is the incorpora
tion of computers into the
graphics classes. The computers
challenge students to think criti
cally and also afford them the
luxury of excellent quality work.
Stokes recognizes outstanding
performances in his program and
strives to challenge each student.
Many of his students have re
ceive scholarships to continue
studies in graphics communica
tion in college and many have
graduated and entered the world
of work qualilled and trained to
meet the challenges and de
mands of everyday life.
Stokes has done professional
photography for publications
and has also worked as a part-
time photography instructor at
Pitt Community College. His
hobbies include photography.
reading, gardening and breeding
Persian cats. He is an active
member of Hollywood Presbyte
rian Church. Stokes and his wife,
Debbie, and their two children
live in Greenville.
Leslie Williford graduated
from Meredith College with a de
gree in home economics and ear
ly childhood education. She has
been teaching kindergarten in
Craven County for six years. She
offers individualized attention to
the various learning styles, estab
lishes a positive approach to
learning and uses hands-on and
language experience activities in
her classroom. It is very impor
tant to her that each child de
velops a good self-concept and
positive attitude toward their
first year in school. Being crea
tive, organized and recognizing
that each child is unique enables
her to instill that positive feeling
in each individual.
She is a member of the Interna-
tional Reading Association,
Junior Women’s Service League
and First Presbyterian Church.
She and her husband, Jim, have
one daughter.
Mary Peeler received her de
grees from East Carolina Uni
versity. She has taught in the ex
ceptional education program at
Brinson for the past five years.
According to her, her job re
quires a good sense of humor,
creativity and a good knowledge
of motivational and management
techniques. She is empathetic
with her students and works
closely with the parents. Indi
vidual approaches to learning ex
periences are necessary in her
(See TEACHERS, Page 6)
Jobless Rate Declines
In Four-County Area
RALEIGH — Unemployment
rates in Craven, Lenoir, Pamlico
and Jones counties dropped in
March, according to the state
Employment Security Commis
sion.
Craven County experienced a
.5 percent decline in its unem
ployment rate, from 3.3 percent
in February to 2.9 percent in
March. About 900 people were
without jobs in March in a work
force estimated 31,340. In Febru
ary, the work force was esti
mated at 31,230 and there were
1,040 unable to find work.
Pamlico County was one of
five counties with unemploy
ment rates at or above 10 percent
last month — but it dropped out
of that category. The rate in Hyde
fell from 10 percent in February
to 6.1 percent in March. There
were about 290 unemployed in a
work force of 4,750 in March. In
February, the estimates were 490
in a labor pool of 4,910 unable to
find work.
Lenoir County’s 4.6 percent
unemployment rate in February
fell to 3.8 percent in March. The
March work force was 29,250 and
1,120 of that force were unem
ployed. February's work force
totaled 29,390 and 1,350 could not
find work.
Jones County saw its unem
ployment rate fall from 3.7 per
cent in February to 3.1 percent in
March. The county’s labor pool
in March totaled 4,240 workers
and 130 could not find employ
ment. The labor force in Febru
ary totaled 4,320 and there were
160 unable to find employment.
The state’s unemployment rate
(See JOBLESS, Page 5)
Telephone Spokesman
Explains Fiber Optics
Jump To It
West Craven’s Lee Becton, who qualified for the state high school
track championships last year as a freshman, prepares to jump in the
triple-jump event at the (Coastal Conference track championships in
Havelock last week. The Eagles finished fourth in the meet. Wesley
Roberson won the 100-meter dash with a time of 10:46 and Tim Rober
son won the 110-meter hurdles. The Eagles’ 400-meter relay team also
took first. Becton, a silver medalist in the triple jump at last summer’s
Junior Olympics, finished third in the triple jump and fourth in the
long jump. (Mo Krochmal photo)
A pair of minicule strands of
glass made like wire can carry
8,000 telephone calls by transmit
ting laser impulses, an official of
Carolina Telephone Co. said
FViday.
Jesse Stewart of Greenville,
the firm’s district distribution
manager, discussed the glass
cables, called fiber optics, at a
media luncheon at the Holiday
Inn.
He said Carolina Telephone is
adopting fiber-optic technology
because it is cheaper and pro
vides better service than tradi
tional copper wire.
For example, he said, the
sound going down traditional
wire on electrical impulses must
be amplified by devices installed
within a mile of each other along
the line. Sound going through fi
ber-optic cables needs to be en
hance only once in 20 miles.
Moreover, the enhancement of
the sound on fiber optics does
not amplify unwanted noise on
(See CT&T, Page 6)