THE ZEBULON RECORD
VOLUME 37.NUMBER 10. ZEBULON. N. C.. JUNE 14. 1962
Jackie Mitchell, named Miss Zebulon of 1963 Saturday night at the Jaycees-sponsored beauty pa
geant, is shown with first runner-up, Priscilla Bercik, left, and 'Debbie Phillips, who coppel the
title of Miss Congeniality; and second runner-up, Elaine Doyle.
»
Jackie Mitchell Town's Reigning
Beauty; To Vie For Miss N. G
Miss Jacquelyn “Jackie” Mit
chell captured the crown of Miss
Zebulon of 1963 last Saturday
night in the first beauty pageant
sponsored by the Jaycees here.
A rising senior at Wake For
est, the 20-year-old beauty did
a dance routine with an original
choreography in the talent divi
sion. Her costume, which was
also designed by her, was a gold
satin leotard with royal blue shim
my braid coming to points at the
waist.
She held the spotlight in the
evening gown competition. She
wore a pale pink chiffon strapless
gown which had a gathered bod
ice and circles of ruffles inlaid
with white lace in the bouffant
skirt. Her arms were graced with
white elbow-length gloves.
In the bathing suit competition
she wore a navy blue suit with
red and white stripes running di
agonal from the shoulder to the
waist.
The new Miss Zebulon is the
daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Jack
Mitchell of Route 4, Zebulon. She
has sparkling blue eyes and brown
hair. Five-five, 125 pounds, with
measurements of 36-24-36, she is
a bundle of talent.
She has served twice as a mem
ber of the student legislature of
Wake Forest College, twice in the
college May Court, and as ma
jorette
A member of the Wake Forest
College Theater, Miss Mitchell
won the Best Supporting Actress
Award for 1961-62. She is a
speech and drama major.
First runner-up in the pageant
was Priscilla Bercik, 18, who pre
sented a iramatic reading. She is
the daughter of Mrs. Vivian P.
Trevathan of Zebulon.
The second runner-up was
Elaine Doyle. Other finalists were
Jean Perry and Sue Gainey.
The other candidates were Kay
Pennington, Maxine Jeans, Kay
Eddins, Connie Rose Martin and
Debbie Phillips. The contestants
elected Miss Phillips as winner of
the coveted Miss Congeniality
Award.
A capacity crowd of more than
500 persons saw the pageant in
Wakelon School auditorium. Gen
eral chairman for the pageant was
Bob Pugh. Bill Quick was master
of ceremonies and Mrs. Ruth
Chamblee was production director.
Judges were C. A. Dillon, Jr.,
and Bill Law of Raleigh; J. Dud
ley Haper and Mrs. Thomas B.
Suiter of Rocky Mount; and Miss
Kay Hobbs, former Miss Ahoskie.
The new Miss Zebulon said she
is “very thrilled” with the honor.
She expressed that she was “very
pleased with the pageant” and
thought the Jaycees did a “won
derful job.”
“It is a wonderful opportunity
for me,” she said, “and I was glad
to be in it.”
Miss Mitchell will enter the
North Carolina Beauty Pageant in
Charlotte to be held July 11-14.
She will be chaperoned by Mrs.
Ruth Chamblee.
Popular Wendell Mayor Dies
Of Heart Attack; Rites Sun.
Ira H. Johnson, mayor of Wen
dell since May, 1961, died of a
heart attack at about 7:30 Friday
night, June 8. Death came at
Ira H. Johnson
I
Wendell-Zebulon Hospital.
Johnson was trimming shrub
bery in the yard of his home when
he was stricken. He telephoned a
co-worker who came and saw
Johnson’s condition and rushed
him to the hospital.
Johnson was not known to have
a heart condition.
The popular, quiet, mild-man
nered mayor was 60 years old. He
was the son of the late William R.
and Hattie Honeycutt Johnson of
Wendell.
He graduated from Wendell
High School and had a year of
college at Trinity (now Duke Uni
versity). He was also a graduate
of Koster School of Design of
Chicago.
Johnson spent eight years as an
interior decorator with Montgom
ery Ward ir the Raleigh and Win
ston-Salem firms. For the past
six years he had been associated
with Lewis Furniture Company of
Wendell as a salesman.
He was an active member of the
Masonic fraternity, and was a 32
year-long member and past master
of Wendell Lodge No. 565. He was
also a 32nd degree Mason, a chap
lain of the Eastern Star, a grand
officer representative of the 12th
district of the OES, and a past
patron of the Wendell OES.
He was serving as president of
the Wake County Mayor’s Associ
ation at the time of his death. He
was also a director of Wendell
Civil Defense, a member of the
Rotary Club and chairman of the
Salvation Army for eastern Wake
County.
Johnson was married twice. His
first marriage ended in divorce.
His second wife was the former
Lucille Wofford of Winston-Salem.
There were no children by either
union.
Besides his wife he is survived
by four sisters, Mrs. Ross Ihrie,
Mrs. Waddell Richardson and Mrs.
Roderick Vaughn, ail of Wendell;
and Mrs. Andrew Vaughn of Ger
many; and two brothers, Battle
Johnson of Wendell and Clay
bourne Johnson of Raleigh.
The funeral rites were held Sun
day at 3 p.m. from Wendell Bap
tist Church of which he was a
member. The. Rev. William Vin
son, pastor, officiated, assisted by
the Rev. Allen Wentz, Methodist
minister, and the Rev. Roy Mc
Cormick, Presbyterian minister.
(Continued on Page 5)
Billiard Parlor Owner Passes
After Years of Invalidism
Funeral rites for James Willard
Gill, 60, were held Sunday, June
10, at 4 p.m. at Zebulon Baptist
Church. The Rev. David Daniel,
pastor, officiated.
Gill was the son of the late
James Edgar and Victoria Brantley
Gill. He was the owner and oper
ator of a billiard parlor in Zeb
ulon until he became invalided 11
years ago. He had been a total
invalid for four years.
Death, which came to him
about 1:20 p.m. Saturday at his
home on East Vance Street, was
attributed to a cerebral hemor
rhage.
Surviving are his wife, the
former Erdine O’Neal; one son,
James Bobby Gill of Goldsboro;
one sister, Catrina Gill of Char
lotte; four brothers, Ruric, Irby,
Dabney, and S. P., all of Zebulon;
and two grandchildren.
The casket was covered with a
pall of red carnations and lilies.
Pallbearers were Ruric Gill, Jr.,
M. L. Hagwood, Tim Harward,
Proctor Alford, James Alford and
Ed Gill. Members of the church
Willard Gill
choir sang “Son of My Soul” and
“O Holy Savior.”
Burial was in Zebulon Ceme
tery.
Wreck Victim Is The Nephew
Of Local Man and Woman
David Underhill
An 18-year-old Wendell youth
was killed and his companion se
riously injured in an automobile
accident near here Friday, June 1,
about 6:45 p.m.
The victim was David Underhill,
son of Mr. and Mrs. H. W. Under
hill of Wendell. He was dead on
arrival at Rex Hospital in Raleigh.
Tommy Bledsoe, 15-year-old
Catholic Orphanage boy of Ra
leigh, was in “fair” condition at
Rex Hospital where he was being
treated for a broken left arm, cuts
and bruises and shock.
Both boys were thrown from
the car which was driven by the
Underhill boy, Coroner M. W.
Bennett said.
The accident occurred on a rural
paved road between Wendell and
Lizard Lick. The car went off the
road on a curve and struck two
trees.
A rosary was held for the youth
at the Screws-Hudson Funeral
Home in Zebulon at 8 o’clock Sat
urday night.
A Requiem High funeral mass
was sung by his classmates of
Cathedral Latin High School in
Raleigh, which he attended and
was a member of the junior class.
The mass was offered at St. Eu
gene’s Catholic Church in Wendell
at 11 a.m. Monday.
Officiating at the service was the
Rev. Robert L. Wilken, pastor. He
was assisted by Fr. Frederick Koch
of Winston-Salem, who preached
the funeral service after requiem
mass and absolution. Graveside
prayers were said at Greenmount
Cemetery by Fr. Ralph Monk of
(Continued on Page 5)
Mrs. Betty Alford, 82, Dies;
Mother of Town Commissioner
Mrs. Betty Williams Alford,
mother of Commissioner J. Raleigh
Alford, died Tuesday, May 29,
at her home on Route 2, Zebulon.
She had been an invalid for sev
eral years and suffered from a lin
gering illness.
She was the daughter of the late
Harriett and Floyd Williams of
Franklin County. Her husband
was the late James Berry Alford.
Surviving are two daughters,
Mrs. Warren W. Moore of the home
and Mrs. Oscar A. Hunter of
Greensboro and Pilot Mountain;
five sons, Zollie F. Alford, W.
Harold Alford, Frederick Alford
' and J. Raleigh Alford, all of Zeb
j ulon; Raymond V. Alford of Dur
1 ham; one brother, Wiley H. Wil
liams of Richmond, Va.; 15 grand
children and 28 great grandchil
dren.
Her grandsons were pallbearers.
They were David Alford, Johnny
Alford, Cloyce Alford, James Bar
bop Alford, Jimmy Alford and
James Rassy Alford.
The casket was covered with a
pall of pink carnations centered
w' h orchids.
The choir sang “Face to Face"
and “Rock of Ages.”
Funeral services were held
Thursday at 11 a.m. at Pilot Bap
tist Church by the Rev. Gilbert
McDowell, pastor, and the Rev.
M. A. Pegram of Rocky Mount.
Burial was in the Alford family
cemetery.