Newspapers / The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.) / Dec. 29, 1999, edition 1 / Page 1
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The ews J oumal If i( happened, it's news to us No. 39 Vol. 92 50 cents Wednesday, December 29,1999 See us at www.dicksonpres5.com This week Christmas night blaze takes vacant, former store page 5A Mary Archie McNeill Foundation exceeds goal page IB Index Births 5B Calendar 5B Classifieds 7-8B Deaths 6,8A Editorials .... 2-3A Legals 5-6B Public Record 5A Religion 2B Schools 4A TV Listings 3-4B Around Town By Sam C. Morris Contributing Editor We did have a few snow flakes over the holidays, but it didn’t make a white Christ mas. The weather was cold, but there wasn’t anything to keep the relatives from com ing home for Christmas. When you discuss plans for the holi day s with friends, it seems that each family has different days that their relatives can be home. We had our celebration the day after Christmas. Maybe it wasn’t the 25th of December, but the spirit of Christmas was there when the turkey was eaten and the pre sents under the tree were ex changed. The forecast for the remai n- der of the week, Wednesday through Saturday, calls for the high Wednesday to be in the 50s and the lows in the 30s. Thursday and Friday the highs will be in the 60s and the lows in the 40s. Saturday the high will be in the 50s and the lows in the 30s. ***** Saturday, January 1 will be the year 2000. As 1 have stated in this column, only a few folks go from one century to another. We have heard that some of the television stations will bring in the New Year in many countries around the world. This will take many hours to cover all the time zones. Maybe 1 can awaken and hear the sound of car horns (See AROUND, page lOA) Election filing to begin Slots open on commission, school board, for DA By Victoriana Summers Staff writer Filing begins Monday forcan- didates seeking election to sev eral offices, including the Hoke County Commission, the school board and as district attorney and register of deeds. Two incumbents’ seats at large are available on the Hoke County Board of Commissioners. Cleo Bratcher Jr. and Chairman James A. Leach, both Democrats, are up for reelection. Bratcher, for merly a county commissioner. was defeated in 1994 by only 10 votes before he was elected again in 1996. Leach has been elected for two consecutive years as chairman of the board by his fellow commissioners and is cur rently serving his second term. (See FILING, page 8A) [ III Sgt. Lisa Whitfield (left) and Deputy Diane Randall display Christmas gifts for five needy families. (Photo by Victoriana Summers) Deputies share Christmas By Victoriana Summers Staff writer Hoke County Sheriff’s De partment deputies dipped into their pockets and hearts to help five less fortunate families cel ebrate Christmas. Organized by Chief Deputy Hubert A. Peterkin, the adopt-a-family project spread goodwill and collected gifts for more than 20 children, ranging in age from one to 14 years old. The charitable program will be come an annual event for depu ties. “Our deputies wanted to show kids they could do more than ride around in their cars and make arrests,” Peterkin said. “They wanted to show kids that they’re human, too, just like everybody else. It was so touching to see some of the reactions from these kids. We gave to some families that had nothing for Christmas.” Patrol cars roamed the county last Thursday, distributing a tur key, donated by House of Raeford, to each family, along with clothes and lots of toys. Families were selected based on Hoke emergency services ready for Y2K after upgrades By Victoriana Summers Staff writer Y2K technology upgrades will be put to the test between De cember 31,1999 and January 1, 2000. Director A1 Schwarcbher said Hoke County Emergency Management’s got a handle on any problems, having already converted its equipment to be come Y2K compliant and ready for the transition in 2000. But, if the systems go down. Sheriff Jim Davis, Chief Deputy Hubert A. Peterkin and Schwarcbher are advising county residents what to do in case of emergency. “Our county communications equipment and telephones are equipped to convert over and are Y2K prepared,” Schwarcbher said. “But, I’m not going to rule out the option there’s a possibil ity some problems could occur. There is no need for people to panic. Our 911 communications will be open 24 hours. If for some reason, people’s telephones or cellular phones stop working and they have an emergency 911 situation, they will need to drive, or send a runner to Emergency Management on Central Avenue in the Old National Guard Ar- Domestic violence, rape crisis center to open By Victoriana Summers Staff writer “With Open Arms,” a new domestic violence/rape crisis center in Raeford, opens in Janu ary. It will serve as a resource and refuge for victims, where families seek free advice and in formation to help prevent do mestic violence. According to statistics, domes tic violence is the number one cause of injury to women in the United States. At least one out of four families will be affected by domestic violence at some time. Records also indicate a woman leaves home five to seven times before she stays away from an abusive situation. “With Open Arms” headquar ters is affiliated with “Friend to Friend” organization in Moore County, sponsored by the North Carolina Council for Women. The center, a non-profit organi zation, is located at 128 Elwood Raeford family recovers from stolen Christmas Friends pitch in to replace children’s presents discovered stolen on Christmas Eve disappearance of over $800 worth of holiday merchan dise from the Leach’s stor age unit located on U.S. 401. The lock was forced off the door, Mrs. Leach said. Thanks to the generosity and time volunteered by friends and family, the Leach family didn’t experience a total loss for their kids at Christmas. Mrs. Leach said Santa still visited one-year- old baby John, four-year-old (See STOLEN, page 7A) By Victoriana Summers Staff writer Somebody stole all the Christmas gifts Santa Claus had stored in a Raeford ware house for the A.K. “Dooie” Leach family. “They took all our presents forourchildren,”Deana Leach said. “It was so shocking when 1 found everything missing.” The Raeford Police Depart ment is seeking suspects, in vestigating the Christmas Eve 1999—Year in Review recommertdations from the De partment of Social Services and school counselors. Hardship cases included single parents, unemployed dads, disabled moms, a young widow and one homeless family stay ing at a shel ter. “We raised thousands and thousands of dollars worth of gifts,” Peterkin said. “Most of the clothing was new and do nated by Hoke County people and businesses. We want to thank the City of Fayetteville Police (See DEPUTIES, page 7A) By Pat Allen Wilson Editor As Hoke and Raeford move toward a new century, it is good to remember the celebrations of this past year that involve centurial events. First, the Raeford Presbyte rian and then the First Baptist churches held their centennial celebrations in 1999 bringing thousands back home to roots, family, friends for remembering and worshipping. We pause to remember some of the treasures of our commu nity—those who will have lived in three centuries: Johnny Ray turned 107 in April. He is the oldest living Mason in North Carolina. A country woman all her life, Nancy Ray celebrated her 111th birthday this year with family and friends at Autumn Care Rest Home. These are some of our lost treasures: Margaret Cameron Keith passed away March 3; she was 105 years old. Carlie Locklear also died this year at the age of 97; he was said to have been the oldest living Native American in Hoke County. Looking back, we have pro year, Davis garnered more than $220,000 in grants for upgrading the department and its services. In late January Burlington announced it was closing its weaving department. Jobs— 475 of them— were phased out by the end of March. The action was taken as Burlington streamlined its apparel fabrics operation. The yam production and dyeing op erations were left intact as were the 950 remaining jobs with those operations. February City and County officials forged a plan to give sewer relief to 120 residents of Silver City. The City agreed to accept and treat up to 500,000 gallons of wastewater from sources outside of City limits. March Mother Nature vented her fury on March 3 when high winds— one storm labeled a funnel cloud— not only resulted in prop erty damage but whipped up flames that resulted in the loss of two homes, one of them the his toric Dickson House (later re ferred to as the Gatlin House) at 283 Wallace McLean Road that was built in the 1880s and once housed a post office. Alicia Del Carmen Raymond mory Building, the City of Raeford Police Department, or the Sheriff’s Department. Help will be available.” During 1999, a checklist was sent out by Emergency Manage ment to all county departments with a questionnaire to inven tory all office equipment, com puters, elevators and other items that could be affected by Y2K. Schwarcbher said the county is prepared and citizens shouldn’t worry. Sheriff’s alert The Hoke Sheriff’s Depart ment goes on a 24-Hour alert (See Y2K, page 9A) ' *'** ► ■is*,.' The historic Dickson and later Gatlin house that burned in March. Avenue and will be open Mon day through Friday from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. Victims may call (910) 904-7182 for help, or call 911 for emergencies. Elaine Monaghan, central re gion director for the Council, has appointed Karen Moseby as the project director in Raeford. Moseby was formerly employed as a probation-parole surveil lance officer. Executive director Bonnie Kalte of “Friend to (See RAPE CRISIS, page 9A) vided you with the month-to- month highlights of 1999 as cov ered by The News-Journal. January Sheriff Jim Davis, who had been accused of election viola tions during the November 1998 general election, was cleared of those charges by the state Board of Elections. Eighteen Hoke County residents had filed com plaints against Davis at the county level but only five took their com plaints to the state level; two followed through for Davis’ hear ing in Raleigh. One of Davis’ first acts of office was to request an addi tional $60,000 from county com missioners for a “professional facelift’'fortheSheriff’sDcpart- ment. He was asked to prioritize his list by commissioners and politely turned down on the ma jority of his requests. Later in the received the coveted Morehead Scholarship but later disap pointed educators at Hoke High with a valedictorian speech that re flected her own political agenda, and, some thought, put her men tors in a bad light. Hoke High graduate Terrell McIntyre, a Clemson University basketball standout, was honored by the institution at Senior Day. Hoke High staged its own Terrell McIntyre Day in May. The Raeford-Hoice Crime- stoppers program was launched March 23. Another textile operation, Unifi, announced it was closing due to “consolidation.” A total of 143 jobs were phased out in May. April Democratic Party Chairman (See RE /lEW, page 8A)
The News-Journal (Raeford, N.C.)
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Dec. 29, 1999, edition 1
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