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WEDNESDAY, June 1,2011
Serving All of Person County Since 1881
Copyright The Courier-Times inc, 2011 Ali Rights Reserved
75«
Our 129th Year — No. 44
Roxboro, North Carolina
Two Sections — 20 Pages
www.personcountylife.com
'They gave what is the most important gift...'
Personians gather at museum Saturday to 'remember and pay tribute'
By TIM CHANDLER
Courier-Times Editor
tchandler@roxboro-courier.com
“We are here today to remember and
pay tribute to those who have fallen
in battles throughout the years of our
history.”
Retired United States Air Force Stra
tegic Air Command Sgt. Robert (Bob)
Baynard spoke those words Saturday
morning at the annual Person County
Museum of History Memorial Day Ser
vice. Baynard, a retired minister, was the
featured speaker for the event.
“They gave what is the most impor
tant gift that a person possesses and the
is the ultimate sacrifice — their lives,”
Baynard said. “They made this sacrifice
so that we may have our lives.”
Baynard said the throng of people
gathered at the museum on a humid
Saturday morning was also present to
honor current military personnel.
Tim Chandler / C-T
Veterans listen attentively Saturday as Retired Sgt. Robert (Bob) Baynard, U.S. Air Force Strategic Air Com
mand, delivers the featured speech at the annual Person County Museum of History Memorial Day Service.
“At the same time, we are here to honor
those veterans who so admirably served
our country and those who are fighting
nowto ensure we maintain our freedom,”
Baynard said.
Baynard, a Roxboro resident and
member of the American Legion noted
that Memorial Day was initially called
Decoration Day and was first observed
on May 30,1868.
“It was named Decoration Day be
cause this was the day set aside to place
flowers on the graves of soldiers,” Bay
nard explained. He went on to say that the
origins of Memorial Day were unclear,
“with many states and cities claiming
to be the first [to observe it.]”
Quotingfrom usmemorialday. org, Bay
nard said, “It is not important who was
the very first, what is important is that
Memorial Day was established. Memo
rial Day is not about division. It is about
reconciliation; it is about coming to
gether to honor those who gave their all. ”
Baynard pointed out that, “military ser
vice saw no socio-economic status.
“The ones who served and fought
came from rural areas, small towns,
urban areas and large cities,” Baynard
said. “They hailed from cotton mill vil
lages to wealthy residential areas. Their
careers spanned from farmers, millwork-
ers and teachers to lawyers, doctors and
professional athletes.
“Furthermore, many nationalities,
races and ethnic groups made up the
military forces,” Baynard continued.
“Today, we can add women to that list
as well.”
Baynard continued by discussing the
many sacrifices made by members of
the military.
“The price that was paid by our mili
tary included the crews flying bomber
planes over Germany and Japan who
risked being shot down or running out
of fuel; the ground forces facing insur
mountable dangers at Pusan, Korea,
Pork Chop Hill and Hamburger Hill,
Robert (Bob) Baynard
See HOST back page
District Attorney Wallace Bradsher
sang America the Beautifui and God
Biess America at Saturday's annual
Memorial Day Service.
If current budget plans pass, 'More at
Four as we know it will cease to exist'
By PHYLISS BOATWRIGHT
C-T Staff Writer
pboatwright@roxboro-courier.com
For the upcoming school year, if the
budget plans of the North Carolina
House and Senate go through, “More
at Four as we know it will cease to ex
ist,” Person County Partnership for
Children Director Judy Batten said
Tuesday afternoon.
According to the amended budget.
More at Four funding will be reduced
by $16 million, or about 20 percent.
In place of the program to help at-risk
four-year-olds “will be another program
which I termed Subsidy Plus,” Batten
said, “because the More at Four money
is slated to be transferred over to the
[N.C.] Division of Child Development to
provide a specialized high-quality pre-K
program utilizing the former More at
Four dollars to support the new subsidy
program.”
Batten said she had been in touch with
Person County Department of Social
Services, which administers the cur
rent subsidy program, “just to check in
about the proposal. DSS agencies across
the state have not yet received informa
tion on the details of the new subsidy
program,” Batten continued. “There are
lots of worries with all the changes, but a
big fear is that parents with four-year-old
children in our county who have already
completed the application process and
are anticipating their child attending a
See MORE back page
Heavy rain last week, hot weather this
week don't appear to be hurting crops
By GREY PENTECOST
C-T Staff Writer
greypentecost@roxboro-courier.com
Heavy rains last week didn’t hurt
crops and planting much, according
to Person County Extension Director
Derek Day He said he does not expect
this week’s forecast of hot, dry weather
to negatively affect planting much
either.
Said Day, the crops, having been
recently planted, are too young to be
damaged by the hot 90-plus degree
temperatures that are predicted for the
next several days.
Day said farmers would hopefully
finish planting their tobacco crops this
week. He reported to The Courier-Times
last month that farmers had been put
about 10 days behind schedule by some
of May’s wet weather. He noted that Per
son County farmers also plan to finish
harvesting their hay this week.
As far as acreage is concerned. Day
said there was a little more tobacco be
ing planted this year than last, but that
“everything else is about the same.”
In 2010 farmers in Person County re
ported 3,669 harvested acres of tobacco,
which was up from 3,422 acres in 2009.
Soybean acreage grew last year to 11,742,
from 11,233 the year before. Wheat rose
from 8,701 acres in 2009 to 8,918 in 2010.
The acres of harvested corn de
creased slightly last year to 3,132 from
3,363.
In other farming news, the Person
County Farmer’s Market will hold its
Grand Opening Saturday, June 4. The
Got to be NC Big Cart - a 13-foot long
by 15-foot tall shopping cart powered
by a 396 Chevy - will be on hand for the
Grand Opening.
Along with the website (http://
personcountyfarmersmarket.com),
the farmer’s market now also has a
Facebook page: www.facebook.com/
PersonCountyFarmersMarket.
The market is located at the intersec
tion of North Madison Boulevard and
Walker Street in Roxboro. Its operating
hours are Saturdays from 8 a.m. to noon,
and Wednesdays from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Photo submitted
GETTING READY — North Carolina Highway Patrol troopers from
Person and Caswell counties, along with the North Carolina Wildlife
Resources Commission and sheriff's office officials from Person and
Caswell counties participated in the "On the Road, On the Water, Don't
Drink & Drive in North Carolina" campaign during the Memorial Day
holiday weekend. As part of the campaign, all agencies participated in a
DWI checkpoint on N.C. 57 near Hyco Lake. During the campaign, high
way patrol troopers in Person and Caswell counties made seven DWI
arrests. In addition, troopers issued 14 vehicle registration citations, 17
driver's license violations, two equipment violations, one child restraint
violation and 13 "other" violations.
Job applications being taken
this week by CertainTeed
By PHYLISS BOATWRIGHT
C-T Staff Writer
pboatwright@roxboro-courier.com
County man drowns Sunday
evening at Mayo Lake inside Wednesday
A Person County man drowned Sun
day evening at Mayo Lake in Person
County.
According to the North Caro
lina Wildlife Resources Commission
(NCWRC), William Glenn Snow, 50, of
160 Walker’s Path, drowned after he
dove off the back of a pontoon boat at
the lake Sunday.
A NCWRC report indicated that wit
nesses said Snow swam a short distance
after jumping off the back of the boat,
but after going under water, did not
resurface.
Emergency crews recovered Snow’s
body approximately an hour after he
drowned. According to the NCWRC re
port foul play is not suspected in Snow’s
death.
A funeral service for Snow will be held
tonight at 7 p.m. in the Brooks & White
Funeral Home Chapel.
Agenda
Commentary
Editorial
Extension Notes
Legal Notices
Looking Back
Movies
Pentecost
TV Listings
Classified
Do You Know
Entertainment....
Inside NASCAR.
Lifestyle
Mmi-Page
Obituaries
Sports
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Beginning today, those who wish to
do so may apply for a job at the new
CertainTeed Gypsum wallboard plant,
scheduled to open in Semora next
year.
Applications will be taken today
through Friday, from 8 a.m. until 8
p.m., and on Saturday from 8 a.m. until
noon, at the National Guard Armory
on Burlington Road in Roxboro. The
North Carolina Employment Security
Commission (ESC) will be taking the
applications. In general, applications
will not be accepted after this week’s
ESC event.
Amy Lee, North American marketing
communications manager for Certain
Teed, said the plant would be opening
some time in 2012, but an exact date has
not been set.
At a community open house event
last year, company representatives said
the plant, to be constructed near the
Progress Energy Hyco plant, would be
approximately 500,000 square feet and
cost around $160 million to build.
At that event, company representa
tives said CertainTeed planned to hire
about 90 people at the plant.
The Roxboro gypsum plant will be
one of the most highly automated in
CertainTeed’s holdings, according to
Lee.
Much of the work here will be skilled
and technical, company representatives
said last year at the open house.
Last week, Lee said CertainTeed
Gypsum had launched “several new, in
novative wallboard products in the past
year,” including AirRenew (TM) In
door Air Quality wallboard — the first
wallboard that actively helps improve
the air by removing volatile organic
compounds, such as formaldehyde, from
the indoor environment.
“AirRenew is Greenguard Certified,
is mold- and moisture-resistant, avail
able for fire-rated wall assemblies, and
See JOB back page