The
ews
Journal
The 40th issue of our 84th year
RAEFORD, NORTH CAROLINA
25 CENTS
Wednesday, January 13,1993
Company moving to industrial park; bringing 30 jobs to Hoke
Hoke’s plans for water expansion worked in
bringing new businesses to the area. Officials
lulled a Fayetteville company to move from
Cumberland County to Hoke’s new industrial
park on U.S. 401.
Nilson Van and Storage announced the move
from its Fayetteville site to the Parker Industrial
Park yesterday. The company will be located
adjacent to the Fayetteville Transformer Com
pany. Company president David Nilson cited
Hoke’s “infrastnictiire” as the primary reason for
relocating here.
“We had much success in Fayetteville,” he
said, “but we were in a leased facility and now’s
the time to look.”
Nilson said the company originally searched
Cumberland County for another site, but County
Manager Barry Reed and park planner D.B.
Parker made an offer that couldn’t be refused. He
also cited reasonable land prices and the county’s
new water tank in the area as strong enticements
for his company.
The company, headquartered in Columbia,
S.C. purchased six acres of land in the park and
plans to begin construction on a 22,(XX) square-
foot facility in “three or four months,” or as soon
as it can receive the proper permits and complete
plans, he said. The company has tentative plans
to move in by the end of the year. “We’re on the
fast track,” Nilson said.
The company, he said, works with several
(See INDUSTRY, page 4)
The accidents continue on Highway 401. Yet another occurred Friday
afternoon at the County line when this tractor-trailer belonging to Atlanta
Land Carriers and two cars collided. There were no serious injuries.
Accidents have always plagued the highway, but seem more numerous
as construction takes place to widen the road to tour lanes. Regular rains
since the first of December haven’t helped either.
Report Card shows Hoke is improving
Hoke County appears to have made further
gains in test scores as a system, further ce
menting the transition from the state’s poten
tial takeover list. Superintendent Dr. Bill
Harrison said.
The number of Hoke students scoring above
the 90th percentile in the California Achieve
ment Tests rose overall in the 1991-92 school
year. Third graders doubled their percentage,
moving from 9.1 percent to 19.7 percent for
this year.
Sixth graders scoring above the 9()th per
centile jumped 3.7 points, from 7.2 to 10.9,
while eight graders rose from 2.8 percent to
6.2 percent.
The number of students scoring in the
lower 25th percentile decreased in 1991-92,
Harrison said.
Only 22.7 percent of Hoke third graders
scored in the lower 25, down from 31.4
percent last year.
More modest decreases were made with
sixth graders dropping from 27.6 in the lower
category to 25.2.
Eighth graders dropped from 25.2 percent
to 21.8 percent.
Although the CAT scores are one criteria
for the state Repon Card, Harrison said other
gains were made as well.
In overall achievement, Hoke made gains
in reading and language tests scores, science,
social studies and mathematics, bringing the
system closer to state averages.
But Hoke still needs to improve its Scho
lastic Aptitude Test scores, which plummeted
40 points this year from 796 to 754.
Board ponders Upchurch’s long-term future
Cost projections will remain
uncertain for proposed renovations
to Upchurch School until the
School Board decides how long
the facility will be used.
The abandoned school came
back into use when the completion
time for Rockfish-Hokc Elemen
tary was pushed back after the
beginning of school.
Representatives from the
architectural firm LSV Partnership
told the board at last night’s
meeting costs for the renovations
to the old school will depend
largely on the length of time the
board plans to use the site.
A critical factor in the price tag
for renovations hinges on the cost
of bringing the air-conditioning
system up to par for the short or
long term, said Walter Vicks of
LSV.
If the facility is to remain an
interim one only, he said, the
county’s allocation of $50,000 for
air units (window units) will carry
the co.sts.But if Upchurch will
t')Ccome a permanent home to
students due to the recent popula
tion surge, the board will need
$34,000 more.
If installed for the long-term, he
said, the building would call for a
three phase system requiring more
extensive electrical repairs.
Vicks said part of the incrca.scs,
if necessary, could be offset by
remaining well below budget on
other areas of renovation.
For instance, of the $40,000
allocated for bathroom adaptations,
Vicks said, he anticipates lowering
the price by at least $10,000, and
possibly even more.
“We can beat that,” he said of
the original price estimates.
Later in the meeting, the Board
gave “the green light” to Superin
tendent Dr. Bill Harrison for
further research into using
(See UPCHURCH, page 5)
Elvis fans line Post Office
for limited supply of stamps
Several Hoke Countians played
hookey la.st Friday to catchaglimpse
of El vis. Don’t get too worked up; no
one saw the living Elvis (as far as we
know), just the long-awaited Elvis
stamp.
Last Friday fans and collectors
alike filled the Raeford Post Office
in hopes of purchasing at least one of
the 300 million original print stamps
which went on sale at 12 p.m.
According to Raeford Postmis
tress Clara Robinson, 36(X) stamps
sold-out in Raeford within 35 min
utes of going on sale.
"About 12:35 we sold out. People
called and oooh.”
Robinson said those that were too
late were upset, but the early-birds in
line were an orderly and pleasant
group.
“The people that waited, they
didn’t mind waiting. They were real
excited,” she said.
One customer, she said, told her
she could hardly sleep because she
had to get to the Post Office to get her
stamps.
The excitement to get their hands
on the stamps didn’t end last week
cither, she said.
“People are calling, even now,
asking about the stamp,” she said
Monday.
She was surprised the lengths fans
(Sec ELVIS, page 6)
Investigation
of Head Start
follows reports
of incidents
L ocal Head Start officials placed two staff members on
suspension and the Hoke Department of Social Services
and other agencies are investigating the Head Stan
center in Duffie. According to one parent, the two employees
overmedicated her son with Ritalin in November of 1992 without
reporting the incident to her.
An official with the abuse and neglect office of the North Caro
lina Day Care Licensing Agency in Raleigh said the agency re
ceived a report on December 30 regarding the Duffie center in
Southern Hoke County and is currently conducting an investigation
in cooperation with Social Services.
Four County Community Services executive director Richard
Greene said his agency, the grantee agency for the center, is also
currently investigating claims of wrongdoing at the center.
Though officials would not discuss the nature of the investiga
tions, The News-Journal obtained a document showing that in
addition to the problems regarding overmedication, there was at
least one report that a child had been struck with a stick by a
teacher, and subsequently removed from her classroom.
Meanwhile, Tammy Kahabak said her son, w'ho began attend
ing the center this fall, was given too much of his prescribed
medicine by teachers. And, she said, they never told her or the
administrator on the day of the incident.
“They overdosed him back in November, and instead of calling
911, they called my future mother-in-law and talked to her daugh
ter, Sheryl Miller,” Kahabak said. “They never contacted me. The
teacher never reported it to the administrator.”
Sheryl Miller .laid she received a phone call from teacher Shelly
Smith in November asking what to do because Kahabak’s son was
mistakenly given too much medicine.
“Shelly Smith called me here
one day and she said: ‘One of
the teachers gave him his
medicine and I accidentally
gave him another dose. What
should I do?”’
Miller said she instructed
Smith to call a pharmacist to
find out the effects of Ritalin.
Miller said Smith then called
back after speaking with the
pharmacist.
“She never did tell the opera
tor of Head Start,” Miller said.
Although Kahabak said her
son only became drowsy from
the extra dose and appears to be
physically fine following the
incident, she said this wasn’t the
first time Head Start employees
incorrectly administered his
(See HEAD START, page 8)
Quality of program
not affected, says
Head Start director
Although Duffie Head Start staff
remain under investigation, execu
tive director Richard Greene said
parents should not worry about the
quality of the program.
‘Tticy reported this offense on
the fifth (of January) and they (the
staff members) were immediately
taken out of the classroom.”
He said the Four County Com
munity Services operates a “good
responsible program” and have
been in business for over 27 years.
“We’re concerned with our
agency’s reputation and we feel
we’ve got a good reputation and
we deserve it. We don’t want the
community at large to judge us
(Sec REPUTATION, pageS)
Around Town
By Sam C. Morris
The line was long lor Raeford's limited supply; the stamp (inset).
I hope that ilie rain ends sometime
this week. It seems that it has been
raining all this year.
One weather reporter stated that
we have had only two day s of the sun
shining this year.
Someone asked me Monday if
this had set a record for the number
of cloudy days. 1 couldn’t answer
him, so maybe one of you readers
can let me know.
Tlie weather, besides beingcloudy
and rainy, has been cold.
The temperatures have been in
the 4()s and low 50s for the past few
days, but the lows haven’t been much
lower so we haven’t had any freez
ing weather; sleet or snow.
The forecast calls for the sun to
shine Thursday, but rain on Wednes
day with the highs being in the 50s
and the lows in the 30s.
Thursday, Friday and Saturday
will see the highs in the 40s and the
lows in the 20s. There is a chance of
rain again on Saturday.
I mis.sed a call from Mrs. Leslie
Middleton of Broommall, Penn. She
is a sister of the late Heston Rose of
Raeford.
She is 84 years of age and has
been crippled for some time. She
said she could not attend Heston’s
funeral, but had read the obit and
what was said in this column.
1 would liked to have talked
(See AROUND, page 5)