' j
i
iB
ysglBInHHP
No one among the 2,000 skilled
workers that “Pop” Lupton worked
with at Cherry Point Marine Base,
before his death four years ago,
has replaced the 82 year old New
Bernian.
When it came to usefulness, and
deserved respect and affection, he
was in a class by himself. That’
why the military joined with civi
lians each October to stage a birth
day party in his honor in the huge
overhaul and repair shop.
Loyalty and energetic devotion
to^duty such as Lupton displayed
would have been remarkable at any
age. In his case it was almost un
believable that he could hold his
own, while working‘side by side
with others less than half his years
“Pop” would listen to the speech
es—his spectacles got misty and
his mouth quivery. Then, after all
the hullabaloo was over, he shuf
fled back to the business of sur
facing plane wings with a liquid
that the trade refers to as “dope.”
There was nothing dopey about
“Pop”—despite his close proximity
to the substance, day in and day
out. His wisdom had accumulated
along with his birthday, and stay
ing well posted on the latest news
was a must with him.
That went double for war news
and small wonder. After all,
samples of Lupton’s handiwork
soared through the skies in far-off
places for 10 years or more. He put
his blessing on every plane he
worked on, and his heart.was. with
the leatherneck pilot who flew it.
“Pop” was sick^'Of tvant
ed to live long enough td see the
Korean situation over with; and
America’s armed fprces home with
loved ones. One of the happier
days during his final years came
when his own grandson returned
from a tour of duty in the Korean
area. >.
Born at Hobucken, he spent his
boyhood at nearby Whortonsville.
Like many another youth in this
section of the Coast Country, he
took to the water early, and ship
ped aboard sailing vessels for years
Eventually he was his own skip
per. A man on a commercial boat
has to be a jack of all trades, so
Lupton learned to paint, and paint
well. When his sailing days became
a thing of the past, he hung onto
his brushes, and took up a new
livelihood.
He went to Cherry Point with a
private contractor, when the bud
ding base blossomed into tremend'
ous activity. Uncle Sam spotted
him, figured he was a mighty good
man to have around, and hired him
away from the contractor.
“Pop” traveled approximately
200 miles a week by. automobile,
getting to and from his job. Simple
arithmetic indicates that this mile
age, after, he had passed his 71st
birthday, exceeded the 100,000
mark.
Lupton stacked up well enough
following this rigorous routine to
amass something like 300 hours of
sick leave .He was out of bed at
the bust of dawn, and during
winter months didn’t get home un
til after dark.
He had a sound recipe for long
life. “Just keep going,” he said.
“When a man quits, he is gone for
sure, and I don’t aim to quit.” Un
der government regulations, neither
he nor his wife received any old
age compensation. His benefits
from social security were a mere
pittance, since^ he always Worked
for himself during the period
covered, with the exception of 13
. months and 10 days.
Married for 60 years, he had nine
children living— six sons and three
daughters. Four other children
were deceased. He readily admitted
that he and the Missus had their
differences, but it always worked
out all right. “When one of us
starts to argue,” he said, “the other
(Continued on back page)
The NEW BERN
PUBLISHED WEEKLY
IN THE HEART OF
EASTERN NORTH
CAROLINA
5^ Per Copy
VOLUME I
NEW BERN, N. C., FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 21, 1958
NUMBER 34
L(X)K, GUT, Of.
ville knows Thanksgiving is coming, so shrieks out a lik«-
ly prospect on her father’s turkey farm. The turkey poses
proudly few his Mirror portrait, unaware that he is about
to sinf his swan song.—Photo by Billy Benners.
All of Us Should Be Grateful
Ih Our Holiday Celebrations
New Bernians counting their
blessings this week, as Thanksgiv
ing Day approaches, don’t have to
look far to discover something to
make them truly grateful,
Although the threat of global
war is still with us, and apt to re
main indefinitely, we do have an
uneasy peace that is demanding no
bloodshed from the young men of
America.
Any sort of peace in this age of
amazing amaments is a thing to
cherish, so long as we aren’t forced
to give up our freedoms to main
tain it. Somehow, somewhere, we
may in time prove as clever at
devising a workable world brother
hood as we have been in creating
missiles to obliterate mankind.
New Bern had a measure of dam
age from high winds and flood
waters this year, but we experienc
ed no major hurricanes such as
those that' wreaked havoc in the
past. Destruction from fire has been
of a minor nature, and tragic
deaths have been lower than in
some previous years.
Tyrone Power Was
Once Visitor Here
’Tyrone Power’s death this week,
while filming a movie in Spain,
was of more than ordinary interest
to citizens here.
He visited New Bern on a num
ber of occasions, as a Marine at
Cherry Point, and sat for a portrait
by a local artist, Minnette Duffy.
He and his wife, Annabella, re
sided at Morehead City.
Tar Heels who met the Holly
wood star found him as likeable as
he was talented.
While differences over the inte- no scar of the vandal’s bomb. No
gration issue brought violence else
where in the nation, our town has
remained a community where
whites and blacks, whatever their
feelings were, approached the mat
ter with commendable restraint.
New Bern, for a half century or
more, has been free of lynchings
and race riots. What the fujure
holds, none of us can tell, but as
of now no resident of this first
State Capital, whatever his race,
color or creed may be, walks the
streets in fear.
Churches and synagogues bear
schoolhouse ha« been demolished.
Although it could happen tomor
row, all New Bemians can be
thankful that it hasn’t happened
yet. God forbid that such a shame
ful atrocity should ever occur in
our beloved community.
We can be grateful for an in
creased spiritual awareness, as
evidenced by the success of the
nationally-acclaimed Business Men’s
Crusade that was held here in re
cent months. Deeply concerned ov
er the ramifications of man’s ex
plorations in outer space, we are
FaU Reunion of Scottish
Rite Ends Thursday Night
New Bern’s Scottish Rite Con
sistory, largest in the State and
third largest in the South, conclud
ed its annual Fall Reunion at the
Temple here last night.
With G. A. Farrow directing the
work, and Robert L. F^h serving
in his usual capacity of lecturer,
degrees from the fourth through
the 32nd were conferred upon a
class of 130 candidates.
Elaborately produced and pre
sented, the degrees for this and
all previous Reunions are said to
be on a par with any in the fratern
ity. Seventeen counties are in the
area embraced by the local Con
sistory, and membership exceeds
4,150.
Many of the members are serv
icemen who h'ave been stationed at
Cherry Point, Camp Lejeune or
Fort Bragg, and today there are
few spots in the world where you
won’t find the New Bern Consistory
represented.
Recognized everywhere by the
craft as a center of Masonic activi
ty, this town has the distinction
of two outstanding lodges, Scot
tish and York Rite bodies, and Su
dan Shrine Temple in its midst.
Like the Scottish Rite Consistory,
Sudan has thousands of members.
Its Shrine Auditorium, available
for public functions, is one of the
townis assets, and has proven in
valuable.
From a local standpoint, it
should be a source of gratification
to all citizens, with or without Ma
sonic connections, to not only have
every branch of Masonry flourish
ing here, but to-have New Bernians
largely credited with this growth.
A great majority of the roles in
the various degrees conferred this
week were handled by local Masons,
and nine of the degrees had New
Bernians as masters.
finding more solace for the soul
in Bethlehem’s star than in man-
made rockets that compete with
each other for so-called supremacy
in God’s own outer space.
We can be thankful, here Ih New
Bern and throughout the land, for
an absence of famine and a reduc
tion of disease. How quickly we
have forgotten the great: Strides
made against polio, thanks to the
Salk vaccine. Yet, in this year
alone, many a child and many an
adult was spared the curse of this
crippling killer.
Notwithstanding the recession
that made headlines, few of us
have known dire want. We., have
had food for our table, garments to
clothe us, a shelter overhead, and
a bed to sleep in. Most of us; if we
wanted it, could find sufficient
work to make a bed inviting at
the end of the day.
Yes, New Bernians have been
doubly blessed, all year long. If
we haven’t had everything we’ve
wanted, it might be well to remem
ber that we could have had less.
Whatever our lot, there’s room for
gratitude.
Quite a Cake for
60th Anniversary
Turning out cakes for special
occasions is a part of Red Derda’s
daily routine, down at Craven bak
ery.
However, the one he created for
the John Goodwins last weekend
was a big thrill for him. Sunday
marked their 60th wedding anni
versary, and a throng of friends
and relatives celebrated the event
at their home on the Morehead
City highway.