The
Morrisville & Preston
Published Monthly
ress
Morrisville, N.C.
June 25,1997
Police Chief considers bid for mayor
BY MARY BETH PHILLIPS
Morrisville Police Chief Bruce
Newnam is considering a run for
mayor, when filing for municipal
elections opens on July 7.
Mayor Margaret Broadwell said
she plans to be there the first day,
and Commissioner Phyllis Newnam
also plans to file early.
The third town board member who
is up for re-election, Mayor Pro Tern
Billy Sauls, is still “considering all
[his] options.”
Newnam, who said there is no law
against a police chief serving on a
town board, said he is considering
running because he “loves the
town.”
“I care for the town. I have a lot of
knowledge and respect for the over
all operation of the town, since I’ve
been with the town and watched the
town grow from approximately 250
people to almost 2,500. The town
was about one mile square when I
started with the police department
12 and a half years ago,” he said.
Newnam is familiar with the polit
ical arena. He was a candidate for
Wake County Sheriff in 1990.
Asked about a potential conflict of
interest serving as both mayor and
police chief, Newnam responded,
“The mayor is not a policy maker
and normally does not vote. The
mayor that is in there now has never
voted. Ernest Lumley in 13 years
only voted twice. Even in those situ
ations, you can abstain. Both posi
tions can easily be separated.”
He cited an example of a police
chief who serves as town commis
sioner in the small Town of Four
Oaks in Johnston County. “And he
has a vote, he is a policymaker.
There is no reason why I couldn’t
separate the two and be effective in
both positions.”
Police Chief Danny Toppings has
served as a commissioner for about
two years, including a short time
when he was appointed to fill an
unexpired term, and a recent re-elec
tion. Four Oaks has a population of
about 1,500.
Newnam said it takes an ethical
person to be able to do both jobs.
“There must be, no question, that
when holding an elective office, a
sacred and trusted duty must be pre
served and held with the highest
code of ethics,” Newnam said. “I
think my ethics are high enough that
I can hold both positions at the same
time.”
A second chance:
Schumaker looks
ahead to new life
BY ROXANNE POWERS
When diagnosed with Alpha-antit
rypsin three years ago, Prestonwood
employee Lil Schumaker went
home and contacted the American
Lung Association to learn more
about the hereditary disorder.
Among other things, she learned
that her health would deteriorate
until she needed a new lung. She
learned she would need oxygen,
Prolastin transfusions and the drug
Prednisone, which causes dramatic
weight gain.
But only with time did she learn
the full implications of the disease.
She didn’t realize the struggle she
would have breathing when scents
of perfume, cleaners, potpourri’s
wafted through the air. She didn’t
realize how difficult it would be to
go out when, as her disease pro
gressed, she would have to go
equipped with wheel chair and oxy
gen tanks. She didn’t know the dis
ease would keep her from reading
when cataracts developed through
the use of her medication.
Through all her woes, Ms.
Schumaker has kept her optimism.
“Two years of psychology courses
in college, and overcoming numer
ous personal challenges in my life
helped me be prepared for this fight.
I knew I was going to win it,” she
said.
A year after The Progress pub
lished a story about her need for a
lung transplant, Ms. Schumaker’s
family and friends nervously gath
ered around her hospital bed as
nurses prepped her for surgery.
Having grown attached to her, I was
among the friends there.
We felt excited—after all, this
was the day she had waiting for, the
procedure that would allow her to
live a normal life—but angst, too,
because the surgery was so serious.
We seemed suspended between
desire to offer moral support, and a
desire to keep from being a hin
drance to her care. Together we
buried our heads in light humor,
and cloaked our hearts in the
warmth generated by our shared
concern.
When they came for her, panic
seemed to rise up into her eyes. But
with typical aplomb, she fought it
and smiled. Tears glazed her eyes as
she realized that she could be look
ing at us, at anything, for the last
time. She wiggled her fingers in
small, stilted movements as she
attempted a wave. Someone made a
humorous comment, which left her
laughing even as she was wheeled
away.
Today, one month after the
momentous surgery, 40-year-old Lil,
who says this is her second chance
at life, is excited to be home, and is
anxious to let the donor family know
BREATHING EASY: Lil Schumaker, \who received a lung transplant a
and healthy. She is looking forward to seeing her first grandchild, who
in December) when they get to
visit.
of her gratitude.
For the next few months, she will
be unable to eat meat that is not
cooked well-done, and will not be
able to touch or eat fruits and veg
etables that have not been peeled
and/or cooked; but she no longer has
to rely on oxygen tanks.
She can inhale scents again with
out them leaving her breathless or
ill. She can walk across the room
without being winded. She can look
forward to keeping up with her
grandchild (whose bir± is expected
When the need for Prednisone has
ended, her face will take back its
normal appearance, and more
importantly, she can have the
cataracts removed, and get back to
driving and reading books.
I look forward to getting to know
this healthy Lil, but the unhealthy
Lil, who accepts everyone and every
circumstance and never complained
no matter what, will have a lasting
impression on me always.
Pitoto by Mary Bath Phlll)o«
month ago, is happy to be home
is due in December.
Across the country. Organ
Procurement agencies get consent
from families an average of 52 per
cent of the time.
According to a spokesman for the
Carolina Organ Procurement
Agency, the problem is that most
hospitals don’t comply with a feder
al law that says they must call the
organ procurement organization on
every death. She says if everyone
who could donate would donate, the
waiting list for organs would disap
pear in two years.
But Newnam said he is not certain
he will run.
“I’m giving it a whole lot of
thought. I’ve had a tremendous
amount of support talking with me
about it in the community.” He said
he will make a decision in the early
part of the filing
He added that if he does run, “I will
be entirely positive in this election. I
will not have anything negative to say
about any other candidate.
See CHIEF, page2
Fore!
Golf course
on par for
Morrisville
BY MARY BETH PHILLIPS
The Morrisville Board of
Commissioners voted to allow a
developer to begin grading for a par
3 public golf course to be located
along N.C. 54 between Weston and
the Cedar Fork soccer field,
although the site plan has not yet
been submitted to the town.
Developers Karl Blackley and
Tim Smith of Preston Development
Corp. asked for permission because,
they said, grading for the site must
occur in the summer months.
Also at the meeting, the board
awarded a contract for grading a
soccer field at Lumley Park to
Willow Run Enterprises, although
the bid was about S4,000 higher
than the next bidder, Marshall A.
Webster Grading.
Preston developers will submit
plans for the golf course and related
structures in time for the Planning
and Zoning Board meeting June 26.
Plans for the 49.3-acre tract
include a par three golf course, a 36-
hole miniature course, a driving
range, practice putting greens and a
clubhouse, said Brad Hart, an assis
tant project manager.
Hart said the developers are con
sidering adding to the plan a base
ball batting range.
See GOLF, page 2
Morrisville couple celebrates 10 years of ‘Guiding Eyes for the Blind’
BY MARY BETH PHILLIPS
Eleven years ago, Don and Sherry
Dodson raised their first puppy for
Guiding Eyes for the Blind.
They kept her with them from
eight weeks old until she was 14
months old, then sent her to Guiding
Eyes headquarters in Yorktown
Heights, N.Y., for another five
months of intensive training. In late
January of 1987, Abby was assigned
to a blind person from Rochester,
N.Y., and the Dodsons drove to New
York to see her graduation.
They were hooked.
Abby was the first dog from North
Carolina to be accepted into the pro
gram.
At that point, the Dodsons decided
that North Carolina needed a chapter
of Guiding Eyes, hut officials at
headquarters were skeptical.
“They didn’t think we could do it,”
Don Dodson said. “The distance
from the school, and transpo'rMltion
to and from would be a major stum
bling block.”
But the Dodsons, who live in the
Green Level community west of
Morrisville, weren’t afraid to ask /or
favors. They were able to get
American Airlines to agree to fly all
the puppies to and from New York at
no cost.
Today they have a similar arrange
ment with Midway, and the program
is going strong.
Thanks to their leadership, more
than 130 puppies have been raised
under the North Carolina program in
the past 10 years. The North Carolina
, Photo by Mary Beth Phillips
CRAFTY CANINES: Don and Sherry Dodson relax at nome witn
their hwo dogs, Liebler, a Golden Retriever, and Morgan, a Labrador
Retriever.
program is the farthest away firom Carolina, and some from South
headquarters of any of the 29 other Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia at
programs from Maine to here. Brooks United Methodist Church in
Recently, Jane Russenberger, Raleigh for a puppy evaluation,
puppy evaluator from Guiding Eyes Every three months, the 20 dogs
headquarters, joined a group of being raised under the North
puppy raisers from across North Carolina program are evaluated.
“Each puppy gets a 45-minute time
with us,” Sherry Dodson explained.
“We look at where they are, we
guide the puppy raiser in what they
will need to do for the next three
months. There is also a puppy raiser
manual that puppy raisers get.” And
soon they will have a video to help
raisers even more.
“It’s really no different than raising
a good pet for yourself,” Don said.
“When we raised Abby, we didn’t
have a puppy evaluator coming
down; we didn’t have a puppy man
ual to tell us what we needed to do
and didn’t need to do. We raised that
dog the way we would raise any dog
in our home. We don’t allow beg
ging at the table or jumping on the
sofa in the living room. We have
good, well-mannered pets. That’s
what Guiding Eyes is looking for.
We didn’t know that what we did
matched up so well. That’s what
enabled Abby to go on and be a
working guide.”
Another reason the North Carolina
program has been so successful is
the response of the veterinarians in
this area. “It has just been phenome
nal,” Sherry said. “We started in this
area a voluntary veterinary sponsor
ship which has been just marvelous.
In other areas veterinarians can’t
afford to donate that level of care.
We’re fortunate in this area.”
Johnson Russell of Apex is the
Veterinary Coordinator for N.C.
Guiding Eyes. He, along with about
25 veterinary practices, has donated
hours of care and thousands of dol
lars of medicine and supplies.
At the meeting on May 2, plaques
were presented to six veterinarians
from the Triangle area to the coast,
in thanks for sponsoring dogs for the
program.
At the same meeting, the Dodsons
were honored when the other coor
dinators named a puppy after them.
A certificate was presented to the
Dodsons, “In appreciation and with
deepest affection, the N.C. puppy
raising program has named a
Guiding Eyes for the Blind guide
dog in pre-training 'Dodson’ in
honor of Sherry and Don Dodson for
their tireless dedication to the suc
cess of our program.”
“It was a total surprise. They
pulled it off without us knowing,”
Sherry said. “We have delighted in
naming puppies after all kinds of
people in this area,” she said. “One
was a vet litter, named after our vet
erinarians. One was named Crandall
for the CEO of American Airlines.
We always felt it was an honor. So
the assistants got together with Jane
to do this for us.
“I feel—I hope it’s an okay name
for the poor little thing,” she added..
“I hope he makes it,” Don said.
Not every dog is accepted into the
program.
“Not every person is meant to be
an attorney or a brain surgeon,”
Don said. “Not every dog is meant
to be a guide dog. But the dogs are
never looked on as a failure. We
never call them anything but career
changes,”
They have a very long waiting list
at Guiding Eyes of people who want
a pet dog that’s already well trained.
See GUIDE, page 2
I Bulk Rate
Postage Paid
Morrisville, N.C.
Permit #23
Delivered expressly to the
residents of Moirisvillo and