'‘■ZEBULON
RECORD
VOLUME 36. NUMBER 20. ZEBULON. N. C.. JUNE 22. 1061
Citizens Speak Up at Meeting;
Oppose 4-School Consolidation
Town's Worst Fire Razes
Two Business Establishments
Two farm business establish
ments were leveled last Friday
night by a fire which still was
smouldering early this week.
In its wake, the blaze engulfed
the buildings that housed the Ra
per Tractor and Implement Com
pany and the Wakelon Fertilizer
Company.
Total losses are expected to run
more than $500,000.
According to Fire Chief Willie
B. Hopkins, the origin of the fire
has not been determined. He said
he is of the opinion that the fire
may have started in the garage be
hind the tractor showroom.
The blaze, which began about
9 Friday night, was brought un
der control around 11 p.m. of the
same night by firemen from the
Zebulon and Wendell fire depart
ments.
Mrs. Lala Pearce who lives
across the street from the Wake
Ion Fertilizer Company was the
first person to see the blaze and
only minutes after the alarm
sounded firemen were on the
scene of the .blazing structures.
The buildings that housed the
farm business establishments were
owned by Foster D. Finch. Finch
estimated that his losses would
probably run in the neighborhood
of $100,000 to $125,000.
Berdon Eddins and H. H. (Bub
ber) Eddins, owners of the Wake
Ion Fertilizer Company, said that
losses would probably run as high
as $300,000. Bubber Eddins said
that approximately 300 tons of fer
tilizer, 300 gallons of MH-30, a
considerable amount of cotton
seed and seed corn were all de
stroyed by the blaze. Also some
$2,000 worth of insecticide was
lost.
Russell and Jerome Raper, co
owners of the tractor company,
lost two new tractors, two used
tractors and one combine in the
fire. James H. Lockman, mechan
ic for the firm, said that the loss
of his tools would amount to $1500.
Hospital Notes
The following persons were pa
tients at Wendell-Zebulon Hos
pital Wednesday morning.
White
Susan Baker, Annette Baker,
McLean (Pete) Privette, Bobby
Hales, Addie Winstead, Peggy
Paradis, C. B. Eddins, Zelma
Pearce, Elgie Watson, Douglas Al
ford, Herbert Perry, Ruth (Doug
las) Brown and Mae Barham.
Colored
Wilma Jones, Ricky Gadison and
Henry Morgan.
Births
Mr. and Mrs. Ralph Wilson an
nounce the birth of a baby boy
June 19.
Mr. and Mrs. Bill Denton, Jr.,
announce the birth of a son June
20.
The Raper brothers estimated
their loss at more than $30,000.
Only two tractors were saved
from the implement warehouse, i
Two adjoining businesses, a cot- ;
ton gin and a grain storage com
pany, were not damaged by the
fire.
A crowd of more than 1,000 per
sons gathered at the fire, but po
lice and highway patrolmen kept
the observers from hampering the
work of the firemen.
Hopkins had praise for the Zeb
ulon and Wendell firemen for
their “heroic efforts” in fighting
the worst fire in the town’s 54
years.
Pool Operating
Efficiently Now
Zebulon pool is operating very
efficiently, according to Carl Hull,
chief life guard.
“We have had only five close
calls,” Hull said. “They were
children who excitefljly jumped
into water over their heads, not
realizing the depth.”
He reported there are minor
things that have happened at the
pool. But none worth speaking
of.
“One of the chief things, minor
that is, is children running. The
smaller kids get carried away and
start running around the pool
and we have to call them down,”
he said.
“All in all, every thing has been
very nice and every body has been
very cooperative,” Hull said.
Hull reported that the average
daily attendance of the pool is
around 75. On Sunday it is about
200 or slightly more.
“People seem to be enjoying it
very much,” Hull said.
Guest Minister
The Rev. David E. Daniel will
All the pulpit of Zebulon Baptist
Church Sunday morning and eve
ning. He is a native of Gaffney,
S. C., and a graduate of Furman
University and Crozier Theologi
cal Seminary.
The Rev. Mr. Daniel has served
as associate pastor of Upland Bap
tist Church, Upland, Va., and
West Chester Church, West Ches
ter, Pa. He is at present associat
ed with the department of re
ligion of Emory University.
He is married and the father of
a two-year-old son.
The Rev. Mr. Daniel is a pros
pective minister for the church .
Lick Your Embarrassment; Learn To Swim
If you are an adult who has
claimed plaintively, “I can’t learn
to swim; I’m afraid of the water,”
forget it. Carl Hull,, chief life
guard of Zebulon swimming pool,
says it just isn’t true.
“There is no such thing as a
person who can’t learn to swim,
providing he really wants to,”
Hull said.
Hull said he finds adults are not
really afraid of the water once
they learn the fundamentals.
“They say they are afraid of
the water to cover up their em
barrassment of not having learn
ed as children to swim.”'
Hull said he finds children learn
more because they are unhamper
ed by embarrassment. A pre
school child is usually swimming
in a couple of days. The average
child can swim 25 yards in two
weeks while an adult may need
four weeks.
However, Hull said, once both
learn, the adult is more apt to
practice and become an expert
swimmer.
Possibly the reason children
learn to swim more easily, Hull
said, is because they have better
muscle coordination.
Why some adults are afraid of
the water is the result of a long
born fear, Hull said. It is, in all i
probability, something that hap
pened to them during their child
hood that causes them to be fear
ful of the water.
Hull said three keys to good
swimming are relaxation, correct
'breathing and practice. Half an
hour a day will soon change a
poor swimmer into a good swim
mer.
Hull is one of many instructors
who believes that all adults should
learn to swim. He and his two as
sistants, Buddy Cagle and Mickey
Hinton, are conducting classes at
the pool on Monday and Thursday
mornings from 10 to 12 o’clock.
The present class of adults is
all women: Mrs. George Tucker,
Mrs. Ruric Gill, Jr., Mrs. Amos
Estes, Mrs. John Glover, Mrs. Le
roy Pittman and Mrs. Dick Tur
lington.
Others have voiced an interest,
and Hull ucges them to come out.
“We can teach anyone to learn
to swim, if they really want to
learn,” he said. “So, don’t feel
embarrassed or ashamed. Once
you overcome the fear of water
and start to learning, you’ll be
come fascinated and be joyously
proud oi your accomplishment.”
Classes are free to members of
the pool.
Approximately 200 citizens of j
Wakelon School district met in the
school auditorium last Friday
night and favored two plans—con
solidate with Wendell if consoli
dation must come or keep Wake
Ion separate.
The group decidedly was not in
favor of consolidating the four
schools, Wakelon, Wendell,
Knightdale and Rolesville, as has
been suggested by the Wake
County Board of Education.
Foster D. Finch, attorney for
the Zebulon anti-consolidation
group, said: “Some folks get the
idea we are opposed to consolida
tion. We are all in favor of con
YOUTH WEEK LEADERS—Jack Wilson, left, and Jerry Blevins,
| right are shown with Joyce Chapman, MYF president of the Zebulon
! Methodist Church, and Priscilla Bercik and Durwood Chamblee,
back row, as they made initial plans on Tuesday for the Youth
Activities Week, July 9-14.
Duke Grid Captain And
Divinity Student To Lead
Youth Week For Methodist
Jack Wilson of Raleigh, out
standing Duke University grid
star and captain of the Blue Devils
for the fall season, joins with
divinity student Jerry Blevins to
direct a Youth Activities Week at
the Zebulon Methodist Church
July 9-14.
Wilson and Blevins were in
Zebulon on Tuesday to meet with
local MYF youth leaders to plan
the week.
Wilson, who hails from Raleigh,
played his high school football at
Needham Broughton and upon
graduation entered Duke to pursue
a pre-ministerial course of study.
He will enter the Duke Divinity
School in September as a Junior
but will use his remaining one
year eligibility this fall on the
gridiron of the Methodist flats.
Blevins is a native of Akron,
Ohio, and is a rising senior at
the Divinity School. Blevins at
tended undergraduate school at
Anderson (Ind.) College. Both
young .men are working this sum
mer in Methodist churches j
throughout the Raleigh District
on the Duke Endowment program. I
Local leaders of the Zebulon j
MYF group present for the plan- !
ning session were Joyce Chapman,!
Incoming MYF president: Pris
cilla Bercik, outgoing president;
Durwood Chamblee, publicity
chairman and vice-president of
the Zebulon Sub-District MYF;
and Judie Temple, program chair
man of the MYF. The Rev. Bill
Quick met with the group.
Blevins and Wilson will open
the week on Sunday morning, Ju- j
ly 9, with the Junior High and ]
(Continued on Page 5)
solidation if it will offer better
opportunities to our pupils.”
Finch then told of the substi
tute plan that has been proposed.
This plan calls for the consolida
tion of Wendell and Zebulon
school. He said he believes this
is the better plan than that pro
posed by the State Planning Com
mittee.
A number of leading citizens
rose to their feet and expressed
their opinions at this meeting.
Mrs. Sam Horton said: “I can’t
think of ever moving Wakelon
from Zebulon.”
“In Wakelon School, we are
offering every course that is basic
ally needed,” Dr. L. M. Massey,
dentist, said. “If. we have to
consolidate, consolidate with Wen
dell and make a great school out
of the two. I am delighted with
the product we are turning out at
Wakelon School.”
E. H. Moser, principal of Wake
lon for many, many years said:
“In just plain words, I am oppos
ed to putting the consolidated
school in the Bethany area. If we
have got to consolidate, consoli
date with Wendell and put the
school between the two towns,
then both towns will feel it is
theirs. The two communities will
have an interest in it.”
Moser also said that for a good
school a forceful principal is
needed and teachers that reside
in the community. He said he
believes that principal and teach
ers need to take part in the com
munity activities too.
Hardin Hinton, chairman of
Wakelon School Board, said “I am
opposed to moving Wakelon
School. My heart is right here at
Wakelon.”
“I am for keeping it (the school)
right here myself,” Wilbur Deb
nam, farmer mayor of Zebulon,
said.
Debnam was one of a committee
of 20 persons from the four schools
involved to study the possibility
of consolidation. He said they
were given only two alternatives
by the County Board—to consoli
date or not to consolidate.
Carl Bunn said, “Let’s keep the
school here.”
E. C. Daniel, long-time Zebulon
druggist who said he had plowed
most of the campus, said: “I love
this school. I am for Wakelon
School fiirst. It will be a bur'en
for both parents and pupils if
it is moved away.”
Andrew Jenkins said, “I am not
for moving the school away.”
“I would like to see the school
(Continued on Page 5)
Wakefield Pastor
To Hold Revival
At Pearce Church
Revival services will begin Sun
day night, June 25, at Pearce Bap
tist Church, according to the Rev.
Garland Foushee, pastor. The
services, which will begin at 8
o’clock each evening, will con
tinue through July 2.
The Rev. Horace Hamm, Wake
field Baptist Church pastor, will
be the guest minister during the
revival.
The public is invited.