ews
J ournal
Hoke County’s newspaper since 1905
No.27Vol.l07
Raeford & Hoke County n.c.
Wednesday, September 12,2012
County fire
ordinance
updated
Pine straw loses favor
By Catharin Shepard
Staff writer
For the first time since 1992, the Hoke County
Board of Commissioners has approved an
updated version of the county’s fire ordinance
including several new policies that could play a
role in future development.
Fire Marshal Maj. Freddy Johnson and As
sistant Director Benny Nichols wanted to take
a look at revamping the ordinance because the
existing document was outdated.
“It was over 20 years old and it was out of
code compliance,” .Johnson said.
(See FIRE ORDINANCE, page 3A)
Man sought
in beatings
i
Authorities are
searching for a Raeford
man wanted for alleg
edly attempting to kill
his ex-girlfriend and one
other person by beat
ing them with a shovel
handle.
The Laurinburg
Police Department on
Monday asked citizens
to be on the lookout for Willie Leon Jackson,
29, of the 800 block of Hilltop Road in Raeford.
Investigators alleged that Jackson attempted to
kill former girlfriend Cheryl Medlin, 20, and
her friend Robert McRae, 30, at McRae’s home
(See BEATINGS, page 4A)
Jackson
Man charged
with assaulting wife
Sheriff’s deputies
arrested a Raeford man
Monday on charges
that he tied up his wife
and assaulted her in the
couple’s home.
Investigators arrested
Richard Alan Whitehu
rst, 33, of the 300 block
of McDougald Drive in
Whitehurst Raeford on charges of
felony second-degree kidnapping and misde
meanor assault on a female. He was held under
a $30,000 bond.
Whitehurst’s wife reportedly told officers her
husband physically assaulted her, removed her
(See ASSAULT, page4A)
Clockwise from above:Valerie Livingston holds her ears as the Bucks football team celebrates with excitement when it received the 2012
N.C.Turkey Bowl championship trophy, defeating Raleigh Sanderson 49-7 Friday night; Harvey Jenkins, a 70-year-old avid tennis player,
made it to the second round of the Festival tennis tournament;the Just Us Plus Dancers wobble. (Hal Nunn and Catharin Shepard photos)
Turkey Festival off to wobbly start
But that’s a good thing, says oiganizers referring to the theme
By Catharin Shepard
Staff writer
The 2012 North Carolina Turkey Festival
got off to a wobbly start Monday night at
the official kick-off ceremony, and that’s
exactly how organizers wanted it.
“All you have to do is wobble,” executive
director Melissa Pittman told the crowd
gathered at the old Armory for the festivities.
The ‘ ‘wobble,’ ’ Pittman’s version of the dance
created by rapper V.I.C., is the theme for this
year’s festival. The Just Us Plus Parks and
Recreation dancers gave a demonstration,
but Pittman said she hopes to get everybody
doing the wobble during the festival.
The ceremony offered a chance to thank
the people working with the public and
behind the scenes to make the festival a suc
cess. Putting the festival together this year
has been a positive but at times “emotional”
experience, Pittman said.
“It has also been a very emotional festival
filled with many losses,” she said.
The festival organizers took time to re
member the many festival supporters who
passed away over the last year and in years
past, including Russell Smith, Christina
Payton, Bob Gentry, Kay Thomas, Carol
Burnett, Pat Kelly, Raz Autry, Gene Paul
Thacker and others.
“The people in Hoke County who love
this festival have given so much,” Pittman
said.
Thacker also received a special memorial
(See FESTIVAL, page 6A)
Parade takes
new route
Frequent fliers to the North
Carolina Turkey Festival will notice
something seems backward this
year about the annual parade set for
Thursday afternoon in downtown
Raeford.
“This year we have been asked
to reverse the parade route,’ ’ festival
executive director Melissa Pittman
(See PARADE, page 6A)
This Week
J
Art winners
announced
page6A
Garden Club meets
page IB
Calendar 2B
Classifieds 5B
Deaths 3 A
Editorials 2 A
Legals 3-4B
Sports 5 A
Worship 2B
Raeford soldier dead in Afghanistan helicopter crash
A Fort Bragg soldier who
recently lived in Raeford was
one of two people killed in a
helicopter crash in Afghani
stan last week.
Chief Warrant Officer 2
Thalia Ramirez, 28, recently
of Raeford and Chief Warrant
Officer 2 Jose Montenegro Jr.,
31, of San Juan, Texas died
September 5 when their heli
copter crashed in Logar Prov
ince, Afghanistan. Military
officials are still investigat
ing why the OH-58D Kiowa
Warrior helicopter crashed
and have not released further
details about the incident.
Ramirez and Montene
gro, who were stationed at
Fort Bragg, were assigned
to the 1st Squadron, 17th
Cavalry Regiment, 82nd
Combat Aviation Brigade of
the 82nd Airborne Division.
They were serving a yearlong
deployment to Afghanistan.
They were scheduled to
return to the United States
(See SOLDIERS, page 4A)
By Ken MacDonald
Imagine whirled peace
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind
My, my, how things have changed in the world of air traveling since I last
flew in February.
No more peanuts.
No, they have found a way to charge you for everything. Board the plane
early, $9; access to a private club in the airport, $50; pick a better seat at the
last moment—I didn’t look at the price.
But the most notable change was at boarding.
“We’ll start pre-boarding Early Boarders^^,” the gate lady said on the PA.
A few people who’d paid the $9 proudly walked to the scanner.
(See OTHER STUFF, page 4A)
On September 21, Turlington
Alternative School and Don Steed
Elementary plan to take part in an
international art and literacy project,
Pinwheels for Peace, by “planting”
pinwheels with messages of peace.
Pinwheels for Peace is an art instal
lation project started in 2005 by two
art teachers, Ann Ayers and Ellen
McMillan of Coconut Creek, Florida,
as a way for students to express their
feelings about what’s going on in
the world and in their lives. In the
first year, groups in more than 1,325
locations throughout the world were
spinning pinwheels on September 21.
There were approximately 500,000
pinwheels spinning throughout the
world. Last year, 2011, over 4 million
(See PINWHEELS, page 4A)