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The News-Journal The Hoke County News - Established 1928 The Hoke County Journal - Established 1905 Volume LXXVII Number 25 RAEFORD, HOKE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA $10 PER YEAR 25 CENTS Thursday, October 10, 1985 County commission passes up senior citizen funds By Ed Miller Members of the Hoke County Commission voted Monday morn ing to pass up SS6.000 in state funds to build a center for senior citizens. The action was taken because of unanswered questions and because the application had to be made before commissioners could be sure of the county's obligations under the grant. During the last county commis sion meeting, Hoke County Social Services (DSS) Director Ken Witherspoon was asked to make the application soon after he found out the funds were available. The application was presented to commissioners on Monday. "There is concern for the need of additional planning," said Witherspoon. "Time just doesn't permit the development of additional details," the DSS director said. The grant was supposed to have been applied for by September 30, but additional time had been secured for commissioners to review the application, Wither spoon said. "I like to stfe grant money come into the county usually, but there are more strings attached to it," Commissioner Wyatt Upchurch said. Upchurch and Witherspoon both agreed during the meeting that the grant application in this case is a "rush job." Upchurch also expressed con cern over what state regulations may require of the commission. "That's what tore us up with the ambulance service. The state re quired us to hire a certain number of people," said Upchurch. "I have sort of a negative view on this because of the community buildings in the county now that are not being used," Upchurch said. "I cannot see us building another building for the county to maintain," he said. According to Witherspoon, a new building has not been propos ed for the center. Renovations of old buildings had been recom mended, he said. The commissioners expressed concern that operating expenses for the building would have to be paid by the county. "I just can't see us putting up another building without the money to operate it," said Josephine Hall, who was attending the meeting. "I'm just trying to be practical. Unless I'm assured that we are go 1 I k * ft ft It 1 I tk ing to have some money to operate this thing, I'm skeptical," she said. Witherspoon estimated between $14,000 and $20,000 per year in operating expenses. "First of all, I think it's a dead issue if we expect you to pay all the operating expenses," Witherspoon told commissioners. In his concept of the building, Witherspoon said the center would try to minimize county expenses, but would not be self sufficient. "Are we willing to increase the taxes of Hoke County one penny to support this thing?" Commis sion Chairman John Balfour ask ed. "I'd like to see us do something for senior citizens, but I'd hate to hurt them in the long run," said Commissioner Cleo Bratcher. "The time frame of the whole thing has upset me alot. It was just mmmm handed to us too fast," former County Commissioner Mable Riley said in the meeting. Riley was among the Hoke County residents present at a re cent Lumber River Council of Government meeting when the grant was offered. "Even if we had the money in the county to operate this thing, will the people use it?" asked Riley. "You have to look at things in black and white before you really see them. Some things that are good are not always good," she said. "I'm in favor of helping senior citizens, but I've got a problem with the state putting guidelines on us," Commissioner James Albert Hunt said. Currently, there are 92 centers operating in 63 counties in the slate, said Witherspoon. Just after passing the motion not to apply for the grant, commis sioners, on a motion from Up church, moved to form a council on aging for Hoke County. According to the motion, there should be representatives on the council from each township in the county. By the next meeting, a procedure for selecting those representatives will be presented to commis sioners, Chairman Balfour said. New health personnel In other action passed by the commission, a new position at the Hoke County Health Department was approved after a request from Health Director Bobby Rogers to add the position to his clerical staff. (See HEALTH, page 3A) Recommendations OK'd for schools By Ed Miller Members of the Hoke County Board of Education adopted four facility recommendations Tuesday night that will, if implemented, lead to better schools for students. Hoke County Superintendent Dr. Robert Nelson made the recommendations. "These recommendations will lead us to our eventual goal of developing some solution for our facilities problems," said Nelson. Of the four suggestions, the first is all important because without it, the other three are void. A meeting with the Hoke County Commission is called for in that recommendation. - . ,T . ? Financing for school construction will be a major topic in this meeting . Board of Education members want to know if (here are any other major projects on county back burners that will be competing against the schools for funding. Another concern of board members is the status of Revenue Sharing. According to Nelson, the commissioners can provide him with more timely information about the program's situation and possible elimination. Commissioners will also be asked their views on committing funds as proposed in a Long Range Facilities Planning Committee's report of a year ago. Perhaps the most crucial topic to be discussed in the meeting will be how the commissioners feel about floating a bond issue for facili ty funding and what the commissioners' position on that bond issue would be. "If we don't have the commissioners' support, we are going to have a tremendous uphill battle to get a bond issue for facilities," said Nelson. In the second recommendation, Nelson said the school board needs to commit to a detailed study of construction at elementary schools in the county. The possible product of this study will be expansion of those schools to include the fifth grade, said Nelson. This move will be made as educators in Hoke County slide toward a "middle school" system of teaching. Four charged following bite, high-speed chase Four persons have been arrested following an incident last Thurs day that started after a deputy sheriff tried to break up a fight and was bitten and ended with a high speed chase involving county, city and state law enforcement officers. Willie Howard Graham, of Rt. 3, Box 75 has been charged with carrying a concealed weapon, assaulting an officer, faihng to stop for a blue light and siren, driving while impaired (DWI), hit and run property damage and driv ing without a license, say records from the Hoke County Court house. Sharon Graham, of 1914 Autry Street, Raeford has been charged with assaulting an officer. John Howard Graham, of 3318, White Oak Drive, Raeford, has been charged with hit and run pro perty damage, driving without a license, having no insurance, failure to stop for a blue light and siren, having no registration, DWI, careless and reckless driving and attempting to elude arrest, records say. John Graham and Willie 1 Graham were still in jail Monday * under $1, 000 bond, records show. Sharon Graham was out of jail on S750 bond. Incidents leading to the arrests were started when Hoke County Deputy Clarence Patterson was called to Harmony Heights Trailer Park to stop a fight. Upon his arrival, Patterson found several people standing around arguing, he said in a report. Patterson asked the people to leave and all but one woman did. She approached another woman and Deputy Patterson stepped be tween the two women, he said in the report. Patterson took the woman by the arm and she bit him on the shoulder. As Patterson tried to arrest Sharon Graham, John Graham also assaulted him, reports say. As they struggled, a crowd ap proached and demanded that the deputy let the Grahams alone. Patterson was forced to draw his gun, he said. As he did so, the people left run ning for their cars. Patterson then called for assistance. (See AREA, page 2A) County jail Cells in the Hoke County Jail near the area where a Raeford man was found hanging from the bars on Saturday. Raeford man found dead hanging in county jail By Ed Miller A man was found dead by sheriff's deputies after he ap parently hanged himself in the Hoke County Jail's detoxification cell last Saturday evening. Robert Lee Chappelle, of 702 Forest Street, Raeford, was found by Hoke County Deputy Ralph Tindall at 5:40 p.m. Saturday, said Hoke County Sheriff Dave Barr ington. The 28-year-old Chappelle used his own socks to apparently hang himself, said Barrington. Chappelle, who had been ar rested by Raeford Police officials and charged with being drunk and disruptive, was not a first timer in the Hoke County Jail, records show. The Raeford man had been ar rested on the same charge on December 12, 1984 and sentenced to 20 days in jail on December 18, records from the Hoke County Clerk of Superior Court's office show. Chappelle was arrested at 4:40 p.m. at the Raeford Cleaners by Raeford Policemen Steve Coughlin and George Brown, Barrington said. He was charged, and Hoke County Magistrate E.G. Inman placed a SSO bond on him. Officer Coughlin made some phone calls for the man, but no one answered at any of the numbers, said the sheriff. "For his own protection, Chap pelle was placed into isolation cell number three in the jail, said Barr ington. The sheriff said that all intox icated or impaired people are placed in isolation cells until they sober up to protect them against injury. In the regular cells of the jail, doors are controlled electronically and slide from open to closed. "To keep a drunk from sticking his arm in the door, we put them in isolation cells," said Barrington. "The arrest was made without incident," said Barrington. A witness to the arrest confirm ed that police officers even tried to send the man home with his sister before he was arrested. "There were no problems other than him (Chappelle) being a little boisterous as all drunks are," said Barrington. Here are the events as they ap parently occurred prior to the discovery of Chappeilc's body: ?Chappelle was placed in the cell at 4:50 p.m., he said. ?At 5:05 p.m.. Deputy Tindall prepared to serve food to Chap pelle and the other 16 prisoners in the jail, said Barrington. "While he was preparing the food, he (Tindall) took two or three calls," Barrington said. (Sc* R AFFO?>fA p??c Reluctant council endorses phone EAS By Ed Miller After an hour of squabbling, members of the Raeford City Council passed a resolution endor sing the installation of extended area telephone service (EAS) be tween Raeford and Fayetteville. By taking the action, the city joins the Hoke County Commis sion, the Raeford-Hoke Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development Board, whose members approved similar resolu tions. With only three councilmen pre sent to vote on the issue, it took about a half-an-hour to get a mo tion on the floor and another half hour to get a second. Councilman Vardell Hedgpeth, who is also a member of the Raeford-Hoke Economic Develop ment Commission and a member of the EAS committee, was absent from the monthly session, and councilman Bob Gentry had to leave the meeting early. Councilman Joe Upchurch was most vocal in his disapproval of the EAS. "I believe there are more people against it (EAS) than there are for it. That's what I've heard from the people who talk to me," said Up church. "It will hurt as many people as it helps," said Upchurch. Economic Development Com mission Director John Howard was also present at the meeting to answer questions. Howard told councilmen that the service could bring new businesses and residences into Winning show State Rep. Danny De Vane, D-Hoke, congratulates one of the winners in Saturday's Hot e Rand Festival. Arts writer Sonya talis and photographer Terry Houston take a look at the festival in review oh page one of section R in today's News- Journal. Hoke County and Raeford as well as cutting the costs of present residents' long distance service. "I feel like it will pay for itself if it gets put in," said John Furmage, present as a spectator at the meeting. "I've seen it happen. It will in crease your tax base," said Fur mage. "Once you get it in, the people who don't use it now will use it," he said. "There are a lot of 50, 60, 70 and $100,000 houses in Parkton that were not there before (EAS)," Furmage said. "I've never seen them," Up church said. According to Raeford City Manager Tom Phillips, people in the military are discouraged from moving into Hoke County because of all the special arrangements that have to be made for Ft. Bragg to call them. "Post officials frown on person nel living out of the area," he said. "On the other hand, some businessmen may lose business because it will be just as easy to call a person in the same business in Fayetteville as it will be to call the one in town," Phillips said. "Ft. Bragg will add a good bit to this community if we can tap that source," Howard said. "1 agree with Joe (Upchurch) that there are a lot of people against this," Councilman Benny McLeod said. "But, 1 really believe that the (See DOWNTOWN, page 2A) Around Town By Sam Morris Monday morning it felt like frost would be on the ground. The temperature was in the low 40s Sunday night and it took a while for the sun to warm things up. As this column is being written Mon day afternoon about four o'clock my thermometer was on 68 degrees in the shade. We did get some much needed rain last Thursday night and Fri day morning. I haven't heard how much, but water was standing in my driveway. The forecast is for cool nights and sunny days and for the temperature to reach 80? by the weekend. * * * It has been several years since I had anything to do with a United Fund Drive. The $28,853 budget for the drive this year should be reached if everyone will give their fair share to the charity organiza tions that are listed. These organizations help many people in the county and state that you would never imagine. The reason I make this state ment is because for 17 years I was treasurer of the Hoke County (See AROUND, page 3A)
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