TheN
ews
Journal
Volume LXXIX Number 30
RAEFORD. NORTH CAROLINA
25 CENTS
Thursday, November 12,1987
Project costs
$1.2 million
By June Lancaster
News-Journal Staff Writer
Engineers have modified their
proposal for Phase I im
provements to the wastewater
treatment plant much to the relief
of Raeford City Council.
At last week’s council meeting
council members looked at a
preliminary report from the
engineering consulting firm of
Black and Veatch which recom
mended Phase I improvements to
be completed by September 1989
which would cost $3,700,000.
On Monday night, council heard
Black and Veatch representative
Hiram Marziano say some changes
had been made in that report and
that the estimated cost of Phase I
improvements would be $1.2
million. f
Under the new recommenda
tions, the first phase of im
provements would include the in
stallation of two primary clarifiers,
a primary sludge pumping station,
modification to the influent pump
ing station, a sludge belt press and
accessories and a grit chamber.
Marziano said including the grit
(see PLANT, page 2a) »
Industrial park
study still on
A
By Ken MacDonald
News-Journal Associate Editor
The Hoke County Economic
Development Commission, faced
with deciding whether to stop work
on a feasability study to select and
build an industrial park in Hoke
County or continuing on to com
pletion, decided to stay the course
at a meeting last Thursday night.
The problem with the process
began when Economic Develop
ment Director John Howard
resigned to take another job
halfway through the three phases
of the work. The EDC had been
using a 1985 Economic Develop
ment Administration $25,000 mat
ching grant to fund the project and
the county had been counting
Howard’s salary as the county’s
match. When he resigned the
federal money could not be spent
as long as the county had no way
to spend its match.
Thursday night, after discussing
options, the board decided to hire
someone to complete the work
Howard began.
The sites under consideration
consist of a ten acre tract and a 40
acre tract of land. The EDC has
completed phase one which pro
vided it with a large book detailing
possibilites for action and in
cluding two possible sites, and a
master plan. Phase two, which will
now begin, involves soil borings
and other investigative techniques
to develop a site plan. And phase
three, which is partially completed,
will provide other marketing tools.
The commission is not releasing
the location of its preferred site
saying it would endanger the deal,
but acknowleges it would include
the new industry considering
locating here, one that would
employ 300 people.
On the job
Vietnam-era veteran Ron Seiger now works at Basic Fabricators, a small
industry on the Hoke-Moore line. After being unemployed, Seiger is learn
ing new skills through the ''On the Job Training” program of the Empioy-
ment Security Commission.
Veterans helped on
the job this month
Break-in ring broken
On Tuesday Raeford police were
in the process of charging a 17 year
old male in connection with 11 or
12 different cases of larceny which
have occurred over the last two
years, according to Police Chief V.
L. Wiggins.
The cases include several vehicle
larcenies, attempted larcenies,
several home break-ins, one first
degree,burglary and some school
break-ins.
“We are hopeful this will cut
down on the number of break-ins
and car thefts we have experienced
lately,” Wiggins said.
By Ken MacDonald
News-Journal Associate Editor
“Hell yes, we can make it,” is
engraved in the concrete greeting
visitors of Basic Fabricators, is
what might be best described as a
small industry on the Moore/Hoke
Counties line. The cocky slogan is
example of the straightforward
ness of those who operate the
business of making things -
anything.
Manufacturing Manager Lynn
Baker is equally straightforward in
talking about his latest approach
to finding qualified workers. He
has discovered the Jobs Partner
ship Training Act program (JPTA)
Faberge meets goal
Faberge Personnel Director Bob Gregory (center left)
presents Willie Featherstone president of the United
Way board of directors (center right) with a check for
$16,000 after the company reached its goat for con
tributing to United Way. Also pictured are Faberge
Manager of Distribution, Bili Meadors (left) and
George King, United Way campaign chairman. 99.5
percent of Faberge's 640 empioyees piedged support.
United Way has now collected $25,000 toward its
$40,000 goal.
Aerial spraying threatened
Roy Wood, a member of the N.
C. Pesticide Advisory Board, was
in Raleigh last week when the
board heard a petition presented
by Chatham County officials seek
ing to place restrictions on aerial
pesticide spraying in the state.
Wood said the petition came as
the result of a 1982 incident in
Chatham County involving aerial
spraying. According to published
reports, the petition said residents
near an area sprayed with her
bicides by Boise-Cascade Corp.
were made ill and their livestock
killed by fumes which drifted into
their yards.
Wood said the incident involved
forestry spraying and was “a very
minor incident.”
He said the petition asks that
aerial sprayers be required to give
residents 72 hours advance notice
when spraying is to be done.
Wood said that might work in
forestry spraying where it is known
well in advance that spraying will
be done. However, he thinks row
crops such as soybeans, tobacco
and cotton which is what he
primarily sprays should be exclud
ed from the requirement. He says
he often doesn’t know until the ac
tual day of spraying that condi
tions are right for spraying to be
done.
Another part of the petition had
to do with buffer zones. Wood
says that would be very restrictive.
He says the buffer zone require
ment and the advance notice would
make it almost impossible to
operate an aerial spraying business
in the state.
(see SPRAY, page 2a)
On the Job Training (OJT), a
federally funded program ad
ministered in part through State
Employment Security Commission
offices. The program allows
employers to train eligible people
and have half the cost of their
salaries paid by the government.
Baker knows the program first
hand because at one point, it gave
him a chance to change careers.
After serving ten years in the
Army, during which time he was
stationed in Japan, Okinawa,
Thailand, and Panama, Baker
worked as a welder for six years
before taking part in OJT at L.B.
(see VETERANS, page 10a)
Blazes are
fought here
Tuesday morning’s rain in Hoke
County offered some welcome
relief to county firemen who have
been kept busy over the last week
responding to grass and woods
fires throughout the county.
Last Friday there was a woods
fire in the Puppy Creek fire
district.
On Saturday there were two
grass fires, one in Rockfish and
one near West Hoke School. Also
on Saturday, a fire which started in
a field behind L and S Auto Ser
vice on Highway 211 West, spread
to the garage area and burned
three cars.
On Sunday there were woods
fires in Antioch and Stonewall.
There was also a grass fire Sunday
afternoon behind West Hoke Fire
Station and a brush fire on SR
1142.
Cummings on
trial again
The trial of Edward Lee Cumm
ings, accused of first degree
murder in the death of 15 year-old
Teresa Puryear, started Monday in
New Hanover County Superior
Court.
Assistant District Attorney Jean
Powell in Wilmington to prosecute
the case said Tuesday night five
jurors had been seated. She said
the prosecution had examined and
passed another seven jurors who
were being questioned by the
defendant’s attorney.
Wednesday was a state holiday
for Veteran’s Day so court was
recessed Tuesday afternoon until
(see CUMMINGS, page 7a)
Local doctor
changes jobs
By Ken MacDonald
News-Journal Associate Editor
Raeford’s medical community is
about to undergo significant
changes as Dr. Riley M. Jordan,
family practice physician here for
35 years, plans to “change direc
tions” in his work.
Jordan is accepting a job with
the Veterans Administration
Medical Center in Fayetteville, but
says he will be in town some each
week. His practice will be turned
over to “associates.” He says all
of the details of the change haven’t
been worked out, but an an
nouncement will be forthcoming
once a plan is complete. “I’d like
to emphasize that my priority is
making arrangements for the
medical care of my patients,” he
said. And he added,“there will be
a practice” in his current building
at 116 Campus Avenue.
Jordan, who grew up in Hoke
County, returned after school and
began work with Dr. Robert A
Matheson. After a year, he went
out on his own and over the years
has worked with a number of
physicians, including Dr. William
Barry, Dr. Harry McLean, and Dr.
Robert Townsend. He has practic
ed alone since 1976. Currently he
and Dr. Ramnik Zota have offices
in the same building but operate
separate practices. Jordan says he
has been seeing sometimes 60 pa
tients a day six days a week, while
being on-call after hours, and re
maining one of few physicians who
make house calls.
Anthony Branch, director of the
V.A. Medical Center says Jordan,
who has worked one day a week
there doing medical workups on
veterans before admission, has
proven an asset, and will now work
part time until he decides to move
into a full-time slot. “He’s a very
dynamic, capable person,” Branch
said, “and we’re excited about his
Dr. Riley M. Jordan
joining our team. We feel he’s the
kind of person who can be one of
the enhancers of our medical
care,” he said. Branch said Jordan
and other physicians are being ad
ded to staff an 88,(XX) square foot
clinical addition to the medical
center.
Students prepare
for writing test
By June Lancaster
News-Journal Staff Writer
Upchurch eighth-graders have
been sharpening their pencils and
their wits for the past several weeks
in preparation for the N. C.
Writing Test which was ad
ministered Tuesday.
The students this year were
under a lot of pressure because
they have a reputation to live up
to. Last year’s Upchurch eighth-
graders placed second in the state
in both the number of perfect
scores and passing scores on the
writing test.
Instead of being intimidated by
that record, the teachers and
students at Upchurch have looked
on it as a challenge.
Steve Chason, chairman of the
eighth-grade language arts depart
ment at Upchurch says, “We ex
pect to equal or surpass last year’s
scores.”
In the two years the writing test
has been administered to eighth-
graders, the Upchurch faculty has
developed a process of teaching
writing which is paying off.
Last year 8.9 per cent of the Up
church eighth-graders received a
perfect score of 4.0. (2.0 and above
is passing). In the region 2.4 per
cent received perfect scores! In the
state 2 per cent of eighth-graders
scored 4.0.
The language arts teachers are
(see STUDENTS, page 2a)
Joblessness
drops here
Hoke County’s unemployment
rate in September was the lowest it
has been for two years, according
to figures released recently by the
North Carolina Employment
Security Commission (ESC).
September’s unemployment rate
was 4.6 per cent.
The unemployment rate had
been going down steadily all year
(see JOBLESS, page 10a)
Around Town
By Sam Morris
The weather was cooler last
weekend, but it warmed up Sunday
and Monday. The temperatures
were in the 70s both days. We
didn’t have any rain so it was nice
outdoors and many folks raked
lawns.
The forecast is for rain Tuesday
and Wednesday morning and then
for a cold front to move in on
Wednesday. We could get
temperatures below freezing on
Wednesday night. The high for
Wednesday is forecast for readings
in the 40s. Then it is going to get
warmer for the weekend with the
thermometer giving readings in the
60s.
We’re hoping for some rain,
because it really is needed.
* • *
Tickets are now on sale for the
4th Annual Mullet Roast to be held
at the Hoke Civic Center on Fri
day, December 4 starting at 6:30
p.m. You can purchase these
tickets at the Raeford-Hoke
Chamber of Commerce office in
the Depot Building.
A large crowd will be on hand
and only 150 tickets were printed
to assure everyone of a place to sit
down, so if you are planning to at
tend, you had better purchase your
ticket now.
* « Xi
Another event that will be held
in December is the Raeford
Kiwanis Club annual Pancake
Supper. Due to some conflicts it
will be held the third Thursday in
December this year.
The affair will be at the W.T.
Gibson school cafeteria on Thurs
day night, December 17. Serving
will be from five o’clock to eight
and you get all you can eat for only
$3.
The pancakes are always good
but the fellowship is worth more
than the meal. AUo you are help
ing the Kiwanians with their many
worthwhile projects.
* • «
We will not complain about the
(see AROUND, page 10a)