Newspapers / The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.) / Jan. 11, 1979, edition 1 / Page 1
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The Hoke County News - Established 1928 VOLUME LXX NUMBER 37 RAEFORD, HOKE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA - journal The Hoke County Journal - Established 1905 SB PER ^ EAR THURSDAY , JANUARY 1 I, 1979 I Around I Town BY SAM C.MORRIS The rains pulled out Monday and the cold weather moved in. ^freezing weather is predicted for ihe next few days and some rain is expected again by Thursday. The cold weather wouldn't be so bad if it was not mixed with the hot days in between. When it stays cold for a few days you get used to it and it doesn't hit so hard. % Anyway it is winter and with winter comes the cold weather. ? ? * Both the boys and girls out at Hoke High can play basketball. According to the game reports both are high on the winner side of the ledger. Coming after a fine football season, this shows that the winning spirit has moved onto the courts. When you know you are a winner, you are hard to beat. ^ Keep up the good work! ? ? ? The bowl games Sunday were viewed by millions of fans and watched in the stands by thou sands. The game at Pittsburgh was played in the rain and on a Held that was a lake in many spots. The snow was banked on the sidelines that had been pushed off the field. The thermometer was setting on about 30 degrees and it must have ^een about as bad for the fans as for the players. But when the cameras would show the fans, there were few seats empty until the final few minutes, when the outcome was not in doubt. The announcers kept saying that -Steelers were used to this kind of ^ield and conditions, and were playing better than the Oilers for this reason. Of course they both wer fumbling the ball and falling down and sliding for many yards. Now the Oilers play in the Astrodome and don't have to put %ip with snow, sleet and rain. But when they go out like last Sunday and play for a trip to the Super Bowl, the covered roof they play under puts them at a disadvantage. So what is the answer to the question to make things even for ?he teams before the whistle starts the game? Most people think the Steelers woudl have won in any kind of weather. This is likely so, but that certainly wasn't the best conditions for playing football. But again most ?blks will say that the better team will adjust to the conditions. ? * * It is hard to volunteer to try and keep inflation from rising when _you have to tack on a jump in the Wninimum wage and social security in the same week. Businesses can't operate at a loss! * * * About 30 years ago some busi ness men in Hoke County decided to look into the possibility of starting a United Fund organiza tion in Hoke County. The reason tor this was that it seemed like every month someone came through the front door asking for a Ajlonation for this cause or another or they were asking the men to help with a drive or let their employees aid in drives. Four or five of these men went to Rocky Mount and asked questions and sought advice about the United ^und organization. To the best of ^iy knowledge they were C.L. Thomas. H.L. Gatlin. Jr.. Israel Mann. J.L. McNeill and Paul Dickson. They came back to Raeford and explained what they had learned to ^ group at the courthouse and the wioke County United Fund was organized. During the following 25 or so years, this organization has put on a drive in Hoke County and been very successful. Recently the drive has fallen short a little more each year. As of the first of January only $15,000 of the goal of approxi mately 524.000 had been reached. What is the cause of this sudden drop? The board of directors are puzzled about the lack of interest in Ac drive. ^ Maybe a solution to the problem would be to drop the drive for a year or two. and let the business people see how many times they would be asked to donate or aid in a drive. Then again they could do like the people that organized the (See AROUND TOWN, Page II) Superintendent 'Elated' By Scores Only 11 Per Cent Fail Tests ?????????????????????????????????? by Cassle Wasko RE-UNITl'.D - Mrs. Paul B. Davis of Raeford was recently re-united with her sister, Mrs. John Guiding, when the Goldings made a trip here f rom England. Pictured are (front row, L-R) Sue and Paula Guiding and Susan Davis. On the second row ( L-R ) are John Golding, Mrs. Davis and Mrs. Gokiing. Visit From England Re-unites Sisters After Long Separation By Cassle Wasko The rich, mellow tones of the King's English filled every corner of the Davis home as Jean and John Golding related their version of life in England. The Goldings and their daugh ters. Paula 14. and Sue lb. have been visiting with Mrs. Paul Davis, Jean's sister. Mrs. Davis is English, although she says she is totally "Americanized" as she married during World War 11 and has been in the States since the 40's. "In 1955 1 visited in England, but we haven't seen each other since." she said. The sisters claim that the 23-year separation has not changed them, although Jean says her sister now lives at the faster American pace. Listening to the Goldings talk of their existence in England brings to mind storybook images of small country villages with winding roads and children playing peacefully on grassy knolls while the adults work at a leisurely pace taking time out for afternoon tea. They bring to life pictures of a happy, easy-going existence that, in this country, exists only in dreams. "In the afternoons. Jean makes teas for all of the drivers." John said. He owns a trucking company there, and he explained that every one in England takes tea in the afternoon and enjoys the fellowship of the other workers. The Goldings were amazed at the highways here, saying that highway expansion has not been nearly so great in England. They also were surprised by a visit to the mall in Favetteville. saving there are no such shopping centers in England. "No one walks here." John said. "I didn't have to say 'good morn ing' to anyone when I was out this morning." he continued. The girls explained that there are not as many sidewalks here as back home and that sidewalks there wind throughout the residential areas to accomodate the small children who walk to school. "The homes here are so unique. ' Jean said. "In England, they all look alike. Here, everyone has an individual looking home. I also like your pine trees." she said. Although the English children are required to attend school only until the age of 16. the Goldings explained that education is contin ued past high school in the form ot apprenticeships. Through the apprenticeships, the worker is paid while he learns, somewhat like on-the-job training. But there it is done on a much larger scale that here. An appren tice works for four days each week and attends a technical school one day each week. After his apprentice ship, he may earn more than a person who has finished college. "Less than 50 percent of the high school students go to college." the girls said. Paula, who is 14. says that she has already studied the biology that she observed being taught to a group of Ib-year-olds at Hoke High. Another difference in the English life style is the lack of competition in belongings. "We don't try to keep up with the neighbors." Jean said. Dress at school is a uniform which elimi nates the competition among school students in clothing. Frequently. Mrs. Davis mention ed that the schools or other facets of English life were not the same as she remembered. Her long absence from her country- had brought about many changes, although the changes seemed insignificant to the Goldings. When asked if he thought heart trouble and ulcers were less fre quent in England due to the slower life style. John said "The pace here nearly give me a heart attack!" But he did think that perhaps people enjoyed better health be cause they do not keep up the frantic pace that Americans have become accustomed to. The major drawback to life in England may be the socialized medicine that is used there versus our system in which doctors charge for each visit. An average truck driver may earn $250 each week, and $48 must be paid into National Insurance. John said. The employee would pay about $15 w hile the employer must pick up the rest of the tab. Recently, when a driver was injured at work . he was taken to the doctor where he had to wait for two hours. John said. After being examined, the doctor said the man had broken his foot, but the doctor who sets bones was not in that day, so the injured driver had to return home and come back the next day to have the broken foot set. "On paper it looks good (Na tional Health Insurance.)." John said. But he advised that anyone interested in socialized medicine (See RF -UNITES, Page 1 1 ) City Council Police Cars Contract Let The Raeford City Council Monday night let a contract for supplying two new police cruisers, set a public hearing for 7 p.m. February 5 on an annexation petition, and approved changes in the city's pool - hall ordinance, making a new definition and adding an hour to the daily periods, except on Sunday, in which the businesses may remain open. The council also during the meeting, its regular January session adopted an ordinance pro hibiting parking on both sides of the U.S. 401 bypass from McNeill Drive to Cole Avenue. The councilmen also adopted a motion that the council conference room not be used for a courtroom. The objections councilmen voiced essentially were that gatherings of people in the city building for court would be distracting for the people trying to do city business; the building lacked restrooms. other than those provided for the city staff; and, generally, the city building didn't have the facilities to accommodate a court. The pos sibility of using the City Council chambers for additional court space on occasions was asked recently by District Court Judge Joseph Dupree and Assistant Dis trict Attorney Jean Powell, the council was told. CRUISERS In reference to the police cruisers. City Manager Ronald Matthews told the councilmen and Mayor J.K. McNeill Jr. that one of the cruisers will be used for the new Detective Division, which he said he hoped will be ready to go into service February 1 . He said the other cruiser will replace one assigned to the Fire Department. A federal Law Enforcement As sistance Administration grant will pay most of cost for the car for the Detective division and city federal revenue ? sharing funds will pay for the other. Matthews said. He said the funds for the city's share of the costs of the cars are provided by the city budget. The council, agreeing with Matthew's recommendation, let the contracts to Raeford Auto Co. Raeford's bids were to sell the city one car for S13. 123.98 and the other for S13.243.98. the prices do (See CITY COUNCIL. Page 1 1 ) Local school officials were pleasantly surprised by the low number of failures by local students on the state's new competency test. "I was just elated over the scores." Superintendent of Schools Raz G. Autry said. "Our folks just did a tremendous job of preparing the students and I believe that at least 50 percent of those who failed will pass in time for the 1980 graduation." he continued. Autry- had originally predicted that the failure rate on both sections of the test might be as high as 30 percent. Only 11 percent failed both sections, and 30 percent of those who failed were identified as educable mentally handicapped (EMH) or learning disabled (LD) students. "The EMH students are a different matter." Autry said, referring to the expected pass rate of those who now have failing scores. "1 don't know what the state will do about them." he continued. Of the 280 students who took the tests, 15.4 percent failed the reading section and 16.8 failed the math. This percentage includes the 11 percent that failed both portions of the test. According to figures released by some counties Monday. Hoke appears to be following the general trend of scoring higher on reading than on math. The average score for Hoke students was 100.2 correct of the 120 questions on the reading section of the test and 95.3 of the 120 questions correct on the math portion. A student must pass both sections of the test to receive a high school diploma. If he reaches graduation and has completed all other requirements, but has not attained a passing score on the competency test, a certificate will be awarded in lieu of a diploma. Local students outscored several neighboring counties where the socio-economic level might be comparable to that of Hoke County. Bladen County reported that 15.9 percent of students there failed the reading test and 26.9 percent failed the math; St. Pauls in Robeson County reported a 14 percent failure on reading and a 24 percent failure on math while Columbus County reported a 20 percent failure on reading and a 30 percent failure on math. City schools had a lower showing of failures than did county schools as Whiteville reported only 5 and 7 percent failures on reading and math respectively, and Greensboro reported failures of 11 percent on reading and 16 percent on math. Counties where there are probably fewer children living in economically deprived homes also had a better showing as reflected by the Moore County schools with a failure rate of 7.3 percent on reading and 12.4 percent on math and Guilford County. 7 percent on reading and 8 percent on math. In the opinion of Roy Maynor and Florence Cohen, education supervisors with the local board of education. 50 percent of those who failed the test should be able to pass it before graduation in 1980. "A lot of our failures were borderline, they failed by only a few points," Maynor said. Remediation programs have already begun here for students who did not pass. In order to pass, a student must answer 72 percent ot the 120 reading questions and 64 percent of the 120 math questions correctly. Later this month, a research consultant will visit here to make up a trial test that should begin to identify sophomores who may have trouble with the competency test later. One of the greatest fears of educators -- an increased drop out rate among students who failed the test -- has not materialized here. Cohen and Maynor say that they are not aware of any student dropping out because of failure on the test. "We attribute that to the fact that each student was seen by a guidance counselor and given their scores on a one-to-one basi> before the scores were sent home to parents." Cohen said. "Many of our students scored high on the tests." she continued. Many students scored over 100 correct and some scored a perfect 1 20 on sections of the test. The tests will be offered again May 1 and 2 with EMH and LD students being offered a modified version of the regular test. These students will be offered such modifications as tests containing larger print, the option of marking in the test booklet rather than on an answer sheet and audio versions of the test. Mrs . McKenzie Leaving January 25 Health Department Director Resigns Mrs. Susan McKenzie is leaving as administrative assistant of the Hoke County Health Department January 25. Mrs. McKenzie has held the position, the department's princi pal administrative position, for a little over seven years. She said January 3 in reply to a question she filed her resignation in writing with the county Board of Health on December 27. Asked why she resigned, she replied. "I just chose to resign." Mrs. McKenzie said she is not leaving to go into a new position. She is a native of Southern Pines. She was living in Hoke County till eight months ago while working with the health department. Then she moved to Seven Lakes, western Moore County, where her husband. Norman, owns a business. She and her husband have two children: Rachael. 9. and Kenneth. 8. Mrs. McKenzie was serving as office manager for an orthodontist in Midwest City, a suburb of Oklahoma City,. Okla.. before she Mrs. Susan McKenzie joined the Hoke health depart ment. She attended Aberdeen High School, graduating in l%7. then studied business administration at Sandhills Community College and East Carolina University three years.
The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.)
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Jan. 11, 1979, edition 1
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