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The Hoke County News - Established 1928
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Volume LXXV Number 4 RAEFORD, HOKE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA
25
The Hoke County Journal - Established 1905
$1? PER YEAR Thursday, May 19, 1983
Grand Jury
Indicts Man
In Rape Case
A Fort Bragg man was indicted
by the Hoke County Grand Jury
Monday on charges of assault with
a deadly weapon inflicting serious
injury and first degree rape.
Gary Joseph Mayron, 19, was
indicted for the assault and rape of
a 24-year-old Hoke County
woman in April.
Although he was arrested
following the incident, Mayron is
still in the Hoke County Jail under
a $50,000 bond.
Mayron is not scheduled to ap
pear in this week's session of
Superior Court.
A Hoke County man was also
indicted by the Grand Jury Mon
day on two separate charges of
breaking, entering and larceny.
Gary Michael Lomax was in
dicted on charges that he broke in
to the residence of Gary Hall on
March 25 and allegedly stole an
assortment of silverware, cameras
and underwear.
Lomax was also indicted in con
nection with the breaking and
entering of a building owned by
Clyde Campbell.
Guns and jewelry valued over
S600 were allegedly stolen from
Campbell's property.
Others indicted by the Grand
Jury were:
--Henry LeGrand for the break
ing, entering and larceny of the
Western Auto Store on Main
Street.
LeGrand was arrested and
charged with breaking, entering
and larceny when Raeford police
and sheriff's deputies allegedly
found him inside the Western Auto
store.
-Gene Autry Rogers for posses
sion of stolen goods.
Around Town
by Sam Morris
Who would have imagined a
couple of weeks ago that you
would have heard people say that
we need some rain. It seemed then
that the farmers would never get
into the fields. If you will ride
through the country where they are
disking, you will see dust flying
behind the tractor and the disk.
If the weather continues, even if
we have a few showers, mosl
farmers will soon be through
, planting.
It has been nice for everyone to
get outdoors and carry on all types
of activities.
So maybe summer will soon be
here to stay.
Don't forget that the annual din
ner meeting of the Raeford-Hoke
Chamber of Commerce will be
held Tuesday night, May 24 at 6:30
o'clock at the Gibson Cafeteria.
Deadline for making reservations
is Friday, May 20. So if you
haven't purchased your ticket then
call 875-5929 or 875-2179 for reser
vations.
The speaker of the evening will
be D.M. "Lauch" Faircloth, Secre
tary of Commerce of North
Carolina. He is an unannounced
candidate for governor and should
give forth with worthwhile infor
mation.
Special guests for the dinner will
be Alvah Ward, industrial
(See AROUND, page 7A)
OUR GOAL
I $23,631
U Data
to
Rooted to the fence
Summer is peaking around the corner and the flowers are in full bloom. They can be found growing just about
anywhere in Hoke County including up the sides of wooden fence post like this Clematis.
j VA Unit Aired
For McCain Use
By Sherry Matthews
Just as the smoke was beginning
to settle over the conversion of Mc
Cain Hospital to a state prison
facility, 7th District Republican
Party Chairman Ed Johnson is at
tempting to rekindle a fire.
Johnson and Democrat Franklin
Biggs have apparently been in con
tact with U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms
about turning McCain, the only re
maining North Carolina tuber
culosis sanitorium, into a Veterans
Administration (VA) hospital.
According to Johnson, Helms
has been in contact with the VA's
chief Medical Director Dr. Donald
Custus.
Clint Fuller, a Helms
spokesman, said Monday that
Helms had made some inquiries,
and that the VA director "seemed
interested."
The VA director apparently gave
Helms the impression that if North
Carolina offered McCain to the
VA, he would give the matter
"very careful consideration."
According to Fuller, the North
Carolina Senator came away feel
ing that there was "some" interest
involved.
Although Johnson apparently
has sparked Helm's interest,
Johnson says the people he con
tacted in Hoke and Scotland coun
ties were "reluctant to work with
the Republicans."
Johnson claims he has contacted
some of the "leaders" of Hoke
county who said they just could
not work with a Republican.
"I've had absolutely no contact
with Mr. Johnson and frankly
don't know who the man is,"
t Hoke Chamber of Commerce
Director Earl Fowler said.
Fowler has been working with a
local committee to keep McCain
open as a tuberculosis treatment
facility.
"I haven't heard a word from
him," County Commission chair
man John Balfour said.
County Manager James Martin
also said he had not been contacted
by Johnson or anyone else
concerning converting McCain in
to a VA hospital.
"If he has contacted anybody in
Hoke, I don't know who it is,"
Balfour said.
Johnson would not name the
persons he contacted in Hoke or
Scotland counties.
Regardless of the contacts he did
or did not make, Johnson says
many feel Hoke County residents
would be more satisfied if McCain
was turned into a VA hospital in
stead of a prison unit.
State Rep. Daniel H. DeVane
doesn't believe that the state will
go along with the VA proposal.
"I really believe the reason Mc
Cain is being closed is because the
correction department needs more
space," DeVane said adding that
he would support a VA hospital if
it was likely to happen.
DeVane's main concern still re
mains with the McCain employees.
DeVane and others have worked
out a plan with the prison unit that
ensures that the McCain employees
will be taken care of.
"I don't want anybody coming
in and messing that up," DeVane
said.
State Sen. David Parnell agrees.
"1 don't know what the VA
would intend to do with those
employees, but I would not com
mit myself until I was assured that
their jobs and benefits were
secure," Parnell said.
"We have an obligation to the
McCain employees, and they are
our main concern at this point,"
Parnell added.
Parnell and DeVane, who repre
(See McCAIN . page 10A)
County Considers Moving Food Site
D.M. f Lauch ) Faircloth
D.M. Faircloth
Here Tuesday
North Carolina Secretary of
Commerce D.M. (Lauch)
Faircloth will be the guest speaker
at the Annual Chamber of Com
merce Dinner on Tuesday, May 24.
Faircloth, a native of Clinton,
was appointed Commerce
Secretary in 1977 and reappointed
to that position by Governor Hunt
in 1981.
According to a recently released
statement from the Secretary's of
fice, since Faircloth's appoint
ment, "industry has announced
plans for over Si 1 billion dollars of
investments in North Carolina, or
more than in the previous 15 years
combined."
Along with this, industries have
announced 180,000 new jobs.
Chamber of Commerce Director
Earl Fowler said he was honored to
have Secretary Faircloth as the
guest speaker for the event.
The dinner, which will be May
24 at 6:30 p.m. in Hoke High's
Oibson Cafeteria, is open to the
public.
"We urge the public to attend,"
Fowler said.
Reservations for the dinner can
be made by calling the Chamber of
Commerce office (875-5929) no
later than noon Friday, May 20,
Fowler said.
By Sherry Matthews
A senior citizens group appealed
Monday night to members of the
Hoke County Commission in an
effort to move a nutrition site to a
location that will "better serve the
white community."
The group, known as the
Raeford Friendship Club, express
ed its concern over the sites serving
"only black people" with free
meals.
"We don't have one white per
son on either of the two rosters,"
group member Josephine Hall
said.
When the sites were placed in the
two areas of the county, South
Hoke and Cameron Heights, peo
ple were asked to sign a roster for
the free meals.
"The only people on the nutri
tion list are black people and that
is just not fair," Hall said.
Miss Hall and other members of
the Friendship Club have voiced
concern over the number of black
people that attend the sites and
have especially been upset over the
South Hoke site because of it's
location "right in the middle of a
negro section."
The county nutrition centers are
administered by the Council of
Governments (COG) in Lumber
ton and provide 40 free lunches a
day to the Cameron Heights area
in North Raeford, and 27 free lun
ches to the site in South Hoke,
which was closed April 15.
The South Hoke site was closed
after its lease expired.
With the South Hoke site
vacated. Hall and the Friendship
Club are hoping a facility in the
Raeford area can be found so that
more "whites" can have a chance
at the free meals.
"It is not fair for the whites to
be turned away every time because
the rosters are already full," Hall
said.
According to Miss Hall, a
Raeford location would be the
ideal solution.
A site in the Raeford area would
enable many people to walk, wip
ing away the need for "so much
transportation to out-of-the-way
places like South Hoke," Hall
said.
"The COG was spending $500 a
month transporting people to
South Hoke for their free meals,"
Hall said.
"That won't be necessary if we
find a good location," Hall added.
According to Hall, finding a
good location will be difficult
because there is "not much money
available for a new facility."
"We really need to find a
building that is already owned by
the county," Hall said.
"This thing was supposed to be
worked on a 50-50 basis with
blacks, whites and indians, and
right now that is not what we
have," Hall added.
According to Hall, all 67 par
ticipants in the nutrition center
program are black.
"If we can get this South Hoke
site moved where white people can
attend if they want to, then we will
be satisfied," Hall said.
After listening to the club's com
pliants, the county commissioners
requested that a representative
from the COG and the Friendship
Club members meet on Friday to
look at possible locations for the
new site.
"We're hoping a good site can
be found and made available,"
Hall said.
Airport aired
In other business, Tom
Cameron, representative of an air
port study committee, presented
the commissioners with a set of
recommendations adopted by the
Raeford City Council which arc
designed to better the present air
port facilities.
The committee, which was ap
pointed over a year ago by the city,
has been studying *ays in which to
improve the existing SI million
facility.
One of the recommendations
(See COUNTY, page 10A)
Jury Hears Armed Robbery Case
By Sherry Matthews
Members of a Hoke County jury heard testimony
this week in Superior Court in state's case against a
local man charged with armed robbery.
Sherwood McLean, one of three local men to face
charges for the March robbery of Jack Tucker at his
home, is the only defendant to plead not guilty in the
case.
The two other men, Dannie McArn and Alexander
McArn plead guilty to the armed robbery Monday and
are awaiting sentencing.
McLean has maintained his innocence throughout
the two-day trial before a jury of six men and six
women.
Another defendant Dannie McArn, who is one of
the state's witnesses in this case, testified Tuesday that
Sherwood "Popeye" McLean was along on the night
Jack Tucker was robbed.
According to McArn's testimony, McLean was the
one who grabbed Tucker, "tusseled" with the victim
and eventually grabbed the money and gun Tucker was
carrying.
McArn also testified that when the money was divid
ed McLean received a "cut" plus the .38 caliber pistol
that belonged to Tucker.
Other testimony Tuesday linked McLean further
with the two McArn men.
Sergeant Clarence Patterson of the Raeford Police
Department testified that he spotted the McArn green
Dodge Challenger parked behind Tucker's grocery the
night of the robbery.
Patterson also said that he approached the car and
recognized Alexander McArn and Sherwood McLean
sitting in the front seat of the vehicle
According to Patterson the car was spotted around 9
p.m., which was a little over an hour before the rob
bery occurred at Tucker's house.
Raeford Police Sergeant Jack Martino backed up
Patterson's testimony and added that he "pulled" the
same green Challenger on Prospect Avenue about 15
minutes later.
Martino could not identify McLean as being the
man in the passenger side of the car.
District Attorney Jean Powell is expected to rest the
state's case against the defendant sometime Tuesday
afternoon.
The defendant, who is represented by Raeford at
torney Philip Diehl, is scheduled to testify Wednesday
in his own behalf, along with two other witnesses for
the defense.
Inside Today
Parachuting comes easy to
those men and women who
practice the art at Gene
Thacker's jump school. He
take a look at these jumpers
and the controversy surround
ing the jump school in this
week 's B-section of The News
Journal.