The
ews
Journal
Turkey Festival
Preview inside
The 22nd issue of our S3rd year
RAEFORD, NORTH CAROLINA
25 CENTS
Wednesday, September 11,1991
State awards first contract to widen Highway 401
'Hu* long-promised widening of U.S.
401 north of'Racford to four lanes is one
step closer to fulfillment.
'I’hc state awarded a $6.8 million con-
Uact last week U) Barnhill Construction
in Tarboro to widen the highway from
Brock Road in Hoke County U) 71st
High School in Fayetteville.
A contract to finish die pntject from
Brock Road to the intersection of 401
Business and 401 Bypass has yet to be
awarded.
“1 say glory hallelujah,” said County
Manager Barry Reed.
“There are a lot of Hoke Countians
who said they were going to die before
401 got four-lancd and they’re going to
be wrong.”
“I say glory hallelujah,” said
County Manager Barry Reed.
“Change and growth are coming to
Hoke County,” he said.
Reed gave much of the credit for
bringing the project off the state’s back
burner to Rep. Danny DeVane.
“Danny has worked hard on this
projectand 1 thinkhenecrlstogetalotof
credit for this.”
“I was real pleased Ut sec the contract
awardal,” ITcVane said, “especially with
the tight times.” 0
“It’s way, way overdue. We’ve been
accused at every election of putung out
stakes beside the road,” DeVanc joked.
The widening will support growth
Hoke County is already seeing in its
eastern half as residential developments,
geared toward people who work in Fort
Bragg or Fayetteville, begin to spring
up.
“We’re getting a lot of growth on the
eastern side of the county,” DeVane
said. “It’s good, solid growth.”
“There’s a gotxl potential that we’ll
get more industry. That’s one of the
things tliey look lor, lour-lane high
ways.”
Wyatt Upchurch, chairman of the
Hoke County Board of Commissioners,
said he was mainly concerned for the
(Sec 401, page 6)
West middle school
behind schedule
Board also adopts spanking policy
T eachers anti students won’t be able to
move into West Hoke Middle School on
schedule.
“The west site is a big if,” Don Steed, schools’
business manager, told school board members at
last night’s meeting.
“My personal feeling is that it’s going to be at
least two to three weeks behind the east school,”
he said.
Construction crews simply have not worked
fast enough to finish the school. Steed said.
“I don’t think the commitment is there,” he
said.
“It just has not materialized.”
One problem with the west site. Steed said, is
it started construction about four to five weeks
later than the east site.
The east site has suffered setbacks as well;
crews are still waiting for chalkboards to arrive
for classrooms. They have hesitated to lay carpet
until the boards are installed, but Steed said they
may have to go ahead.
The gymnasium floor and canopy covering the
entrance are the only two things which might not
be finished by the October 21 deadline.
East Hoke Middle School should be ready for
occupancy by October 21, the deadline the
School Board set for getting students out of
Upchurch and Turlington Middle Schools and
into the new ones.
Students scheduled to go to East Hoke Middle
(See SCHOOLS, page 5)
Raeford Postmistress Clara Pope displays the cancellation stamp celebrating the Turkey Festival.
Sheriff contenders
One-time eancellation stamp narrowed tO five
offered for Turkey Festival
Philatelists (tliat’s stamp collec
tors to you and me) take note!
The Raeford post office will of
fer for one day only—a unique
Nonh CarolinaTurkey Festival can
cellation stamp for your cards and
letters.
Those who want their ordinary
cards and letters turned into collec
tor’s items can have them stamped
Festival gets more sponsors
Willi the Festival only a week away,
organizers arc trying lo finalize their
fundraising efforts.
Any business wishing to become a
sponsor should call Diana Pressley at
the Raeford-Hoke Chamber of Com
merce at 875-5929 or Marvin Lynne
Maxwell at home at 875-3818.
So far, the following businesses and
industries have become sponsors (up
dated lists will be printed in upcoming
editions of The News-Journal, the most
recent additions in boldj:
Aberdeen Bottling Co.
Associated Posters
Auto Ptu'Us and Equipment
Barbee Pharmacy
Bird in Hand
Cape Fear Farm Credit
Carolina Power and Light
Carolina Telphone and Telegraph
Carolina Turf
City of Raeford
Clayton Brooks
County of Hoke
Dickson Press, Inc.
Donald R. Johnson, DDS, PA
Dr. R.G. Townsend
Dr. Ramnik Zota
Edinborough Restaurant
Enviro-Chem Company
Farm Chemicals, Inc.
Fast Shop Food Mart
First Citizens Bank
Heilig-Meyers Furniture
Hodges Associates, !nc.
Hoke Cable, Inc.
Hoke Cotton Warehouse and Storage
Fluke County Board of Education
Hoke Rubber Products
(See SPONSORS, page 12)
Saturday, September 21, between 9
a.m. and noon, though PosUnaster
Clara Robinson said she may keep
the office open a little longer that
day.
Robinson expects a lot of local
interest in the unique cancellation;
already, out-of-towners have been
sending her letters and cards to can
cel with the rubber stamp.
To make it easier on postal em
ployees that Saturday (it is the festi
val, after all), Robinson a.sks you to
send letters and cards to be cancelled
with the special stamp to this ad
dress:
NC Turkey Festival
Postmaster
Raeford, NC 28376
The stamp was designed by
Hodges Associates, Inc., an advertis
ing firm in Fayetteville.
Hodges’ president and Raeford
resident Jean Hodges is the president
of the 1991 Turkey Festival. The
stamp is one of her company’s
contributions to the festival.
The Hoke County Board of Commissioners
interviewed five finalists for the job of sheriff of
Hoke County Monday night, but failed to decide
who would get the job.
The search for a sheriff to replace Alex
Norton, ousted by a Superior Court judge for
misconduct on August 5, has come down to:
• Daniel Brock, director of load management
for Lumbee River Electric Membership Corp.
Brock worked about a year and a half as a deputy
in Hoke County. He also graduated recently with
a degree in business administration from Method
ist College.
• Wayne Byrd, owner of Byrd’s Alignment on
Prospect Avenue, w ho lost to Nonon in the 1990
Democratic primary. Byrd served as a constable
in Red Springs before the position was abolished.
• Frank Crumpler, who, as county coroner,
automatically filled the post of sheriff when
Norton was ousted. In the short time he has held
the post, Crumpler has already seen two prisoner
escapes and the spotlights of television news
teams from both Nonh and South Carolina.
• Jim Madden, who, running on the Republican
ticket, lost the 1990 election to Nonon. Madden
says he has just over 10 years law enforcement
experience in various jobs.
(See SHERIFF, page 10)
County wants school for offices
Hoke County will try to let a little
pressure ofl its crowded office space by
moving 15 offices onto the campus of
Turlington Middle School if city and
planning officials let them.
But the county may face stiff op
position from the old school’s neigh
bors, which include members of Raeford
City Council. And the old school nfty
not have enough parking for the county
lo pul offices there.
County Manager Barry Reed sent the
City of Raeford a letter rc(|uesiing a
conditional use permit for the school
when teachers and students leave it for
the new West Hoke Middle School be
ing built on Highway 211 West City
and county officials have also formed a
special committee to look into county
office space and zoning requirements.
The county wants to move Agri
cultural Extension and Parks and Recre
ation to the site, and temporarily move
courts officials there, too, Reed said.
Commissioners may want to make the
campus Sandhills Community College
later, he said.
“Using it as the comm unity col lege is
probably still in the minds of the com
missioners,” Reed said.
Moving the Extension office from
the T. B. Lester Buildingon S. Magnolia
Street would make way for more office
space required by the Department of
Social Services (DSS), which share.s die
building.
DSS has a long-standing request for
more office space, which, department
(See TURLINGTON, page 12)
Around Town
Fire damage
Tbis turkey housn, helonqinn to Jimmy Wood burned Saturday mornina,
apparently alter an electrical maltunction in the structure's tans. Wood said
the buildino was valued at $80 000 Forty-six hundred turkeys belonoing to
Tarheel Hatchery perished.
By Sam C. Morris
The weather in the mornings makes
you think that fall has arrived a coupleof
w eeks ahead of schedule. The tempera
ture Monday morning w as 58 degrees. It
warmed up into the 80s during the day,
but the humidity was low, so it didn’t
feel so hot. The rain has held off for a few
days and the farmers are once again in
the fields getting out tobacco.
The forccastcalls for the temperature
to reach 90on Wednesday. Then Thurs
day through Saturday the highs will be
in the 80s and the low s will be in the 60s.
There is a chance of rain on Wednesday.
The weather should be perfect for the
football games Friday night and on Sat
urday.
♦ * *
Don’t forget to sign up for the 6th
annual superball golf tournament spon
sored by the Hospice of Hoke County.
The tournament will be played at the
Arabia Golf Club on Friday, ()clober 4.
Call Arabia Golf Uub 8;5-j5*:4 toi
further infonnalion.
* * *
Ano liter of the Old Timers of Raeford
and Hoke County was buried Sunday at
Raeford Cemetery. Marion Gatlin died
last Friday at Autumn Care. He was for
many years a school teacher in the local
school system. Before his leaching ca
reer in Hoke County, he was in business
with his brother at Raeford Furniture
Co.
Marion was active in civic, political,
and church work. His 43 years perfect
attendance at the Raeford Kiwanis Club
will more ttian likely stand for many
years. He was Hoke County “Man of the
Year” in 1983.
As we people who have lived in tliis
county all of our lives, we see that many
of ltie families who helped get Hoke
County started are now slowly losing all
the members of those families. So many
of the younger members have moved lo
olherpartsofthcsiaie and nation. M.irion
t,Sec AROUND, pag.. v-/