North Carolina Newspapers

Tony Stewart takes home first win of 2010. THOMASVILLE Tuesday, September 7,2010 Today's Weather -,3ViLi.£ Sunny, 91/63 119th Year - No. 134 50 Cents WWW. tvilletimes. com Tobin TCS to relaunch laptop initiative BY ELIOT DUKE Staff Writer Thomasville High School is ready once again to launch its new one-to-one laptop initia tive today T H S had planned on intro- d u c i n g the new initiative during the first week of school but administrators dis covered software used to block access to certain websites was not per forming as hoped. School officials elected to post pone administering the laptops until the problem was fixed. “They wiU be handed out starting [today]” Mike Ingram, Thomasville City Schools technology director, said. “We just couldn’t get the filter the way we wanted it. It took us a little longer to get the filter how we wanted it than we thought. We’re ready to go and wiU have them all distributed by the end of the week. The good news is the things we learn this year, we won’t have to go through next year.” After months of plan ning and training getting ■ ready for the launch, TCS discovered the flaw on the morning before the launch and decided to push it back. This is the first year of the initiative for THS, and Ingram said some minor bugs were expected. More than 700 laptops are scheduled to See TCS, Page 6 COURTESY PHOTO Kate Thornton sleeps comfortably in her bed Friday night after moving into her new home. Kisses4Kate helped raise enough money to move the Thorntons into the new home over the weekend so they could be together. Angel Gone Home Kate Thornton loses two-year battle with leukemia BY ELIOT DUKE Staff Writer Kate Thornton’s two-year bat tle against leukemia ended early Simday morning. With her parents by her bed side, Kate, a 5-year-old girl who was first diagnosed with acute lymphocytic leukemia when she was only three, finally suc cumbed to her disease shortly after 6 a.m. Sunday morning at the family’s new home. “Kate Is m a better place,” Kat ManzeUa, Kate’s godmother, said. “This has been extremely difficult on the entire family We want everyone in the community to know how much we appreci ate all the support. Kate’s legacy wUl live on, and we wUl continue raising awareness for aU the oth er children who are fighting this deadly disease.” The Thorntons, following a frenzied two weeks of fundrais ing by family and volunteers with Kisses4Kate, moved into a new home Friday after the nonprofit organization raised enough money for a down pay ment. Kate was able to spend two nights m her new room, com plete with a canopy bed and wall paintings of mermaids, under the same roof as the rest of her family. Kisses4Kafe wanted to get the Thorntons In the same home as soon as doctors Informed the family two weeks ago that noth ing more could be done for Kate. The family decided not to put Kate through any more chemo therapy and radiation sessions after a bone marrow transplant proved unsuccessful. “Kate’s father wants everyone to know how thankful he is to have been able to be with Kate at the end,” said ManzeUa. “Had ev eryone not been so generous and so compassionate, he would have been away from her and gotten a phone caU that she has passed. He is very thankful.” ■ Numerous fundraisers helped Kisses4Kate generate enough money for a down payment that aUowed the Thorntons to move out of their 1,100-square-foot ThomasvUle home that was Ul-equipped to support Kate’s medical needs. When she was re leased from Brenner Children’s Hospital on Aug. 27, Kate went to her grandparent’s house in Trin ity with her mother while her fa ther and four siblings stayed in ThomasvUle. Kisses4Kate is stUl See BATTLE, Page 6 TIMES PHOTO/DAVID YEMM Flipping for a Cause Saturday evening at MonkeezBrew and Shoppes on Main, fundraisers were held to benefit Carolina Cancer Services ($100) and Kisses4Kate ($800). Above, Council man Raleigh York and his wife Juanita volunteer at the pancake supper. NC Shakes kicks off season BYERINWILTGEN Staff Writer NCShakes — formerly known as North Carolina Shakespeare Festival — wUl kick off its 34th 25-week season this month with Shakespeare’s final play “The Tempest.” A professional theater company labeled as the state’s official Shake speare company, NCShakes has been performing m High Poult since 1977. The company wows audiences at The High Point Theatre, at summer camps and at a variety of school productions. Aside from the Christmas show, NC Shakes sticks to the repertoire of WU- liam Shakespeare. “He’s just been a popular playwright for 400 years,” said Paul Siceloff, com munications director. “We continue to believe there’s a lot of beauty and strength and joy and learning oppor tunity in the plays of Shakespeare.” “The Tempest” wUl run from Sept. 18 through Oct. 3 at The High Point The atre. Jack WetheraU wUl play Prospe- ro, and Equity actor Nikki Coble wUl play Miranda. Jim and Debbie MUlis wUl make their debut as producers, providing additional resources to in vest ui costumes, sets, sound and top- quality professional Equity actors fill the play’s more demanding roles. “The MUlis’ generous support of this production offers us the oppor tunity to pimsue the artistic goals we otherwise could not,” said Pedro SUva, NCShakes’ managing director. “The aim, of comse, is to have a dis tinctive production that wUl captivate and Inspire our audiences.” Another aspect of the company, fo cused on community outreach and ed ucation, brings Shakespeare directly to schools across the state. The 2011 See KICKS, Page 6 Ebony Fest celebrates the end of summer BYERINWILTGEN Staff Writer Martin Luther Kmg Jr.’s dream has tran scended history, so much so that other aspects of his message seem to have gotten lost in the shuffle. The new Ebony Fest, also called the Love Celebra tion, attempts to bring the community together and coUect school sup plies for disadvantaged chUdren, embracing other parts of Dr. King’s phUosophy. ,. The event — put on my the Martin Luther King Jr. Social Action Committee, ThomasvUle Medical Center and Min ister’s United for Christ of ThomasvUle and "Vi cinity — wUl be held Saturday at Myers Park from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. “We’re trying to pro mote the beloved com munity concept that Dr. King put forth m the early part of his civU rights activities,” said Dr. George Jackson, chair man of the social action committee. “We’ve done King celebrations and peace conferences for the last decade here ui the ThomasvUle area. We’ve never reaUy done a back- to-school event.” The event wiU fea ture local musicians, jazz bands, vocalists, the ThomasvUle High School marching band. Cufflinks of Greensboro and DJ Jimmy Jam and Radio DJ K-Fitz. Other events include a three- on-three basketbaU tour nament, kickbaU and field races. Crayoniand bounce houses wUl be avaUable for kids, and there wUl be giveaways throughout the day “It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Jackson said. “The goal of the event is to bring diverse groups of people together to cel ebrate the end of sum mer, good music, good food, fun, games — some- See EBONY, Page 6 INDEX Weather Health Focus Opinion Obituaries Sports Classifieds 2 3 4 s' 6 7 10 :> j uu «£ j ' ' . ' ' '. . . •. • • At Thomasville Medical Center, we are proud of our physicians and Staff who deliver remarkable care for our patients. f We invite you to check the North Carolina Hospital Quality Performance Report and compare hospitals across our region and state. Get the facts. And get the care you deserve. rr^f *11 \ 1 homasville MEDICAL center WWW. thomasvillemedicalcenter. org/quality UemiirkMe People, Remarkable Medicine. Thomasville, North Carolina • Your Town. Your Times.