SUipltn * PROGRESS SENTINEL VOL. XXXXIV NO. 33 USPS 162-860 KENANSV1LLE, NC 28349 AUGUST 16. 1979 12 PAGES THIS WEEK 10 CENTS PLUS TAX - School Board Chairman Resigns 1 Dr.Boyette Named Chairman James F. Strickland of Warsaw resigned as chair ?tn of the Board of Edu cation Tuesday night. The Board elected Dr. E. L. Boyette of Chinquapin as its new chairman, and State Firemen Honor ?hief Sharpe ?The TlfevrUi?ei>'Sha*je,.J minister of i?c Kenansville Baptist Church and chief of A; Kenansville Fire Depart ment. was chosen by the N.C. Firemen's Association as "Fireman of the Year for 1979." The award was given for "appreciation for out standing service to all the fate service." "Chief Sharpe was also elected president of the N.C. Association of Fire Chiefs for 1979-80. Sharpe serves as the permanent chairman of the Council of Fire Service (kganizations and is also Haplain 'for the N.C. Fire Service. Graham Phillips of Wallace as vice chairman. Strickland resigned to ac cept a new term as chairman of the James Sprunt Institute Board of Trustees. Strickland had agreed at the time he was elected chairman of the Board of Education that he would not seen another term as JS1 Board chairman. The JSI term expired in July. However, he said in a letter to the Board of Edu cation, the JSI Board was emphatic in urging him to continue as institute chair man. He said Tuesday night that although he does not believe there is a potential conflict ol interest, he feels he should resign as chairman, but con tinue as a member of the Board. Boyette and other Board members said they would have preferred that Strick land resign the JSI post. Board of Education membei Pat Broadrick of Warsaw said she believes one person should not serve *?s chairman of both boards at the same time, as there is a conflict ol interest when it comes tc seeking money for the twc educational systems. A motion by Mrs. Borad rick that no Board member could serve as chairman of two educational boards at the same time won approval by a split vote. Voting for the motion were Mrs. Broadrick, Phillips and Boyette. Voting against it was Frederick Rhodes of Albertson. In other business, James Flowers, home-school coor dinator, reported "We have witnessed some significant . changes on the state level in i programs concerning troubled youth." He said the county office of community based alternatives has been ! active in providing technical : assistance and funds to start I up new programs for troubled youths. "Working through our local task force and state I community-based alterna I fives office, we have secured > a grant for an in-school suspension center in Duplin County," he said. ' The grant amounts to i $16,000, including a 10% i in-kind match from the ? county, he added. The new f program goes into effect in ? September. The center will i be located at Warsaw Junior High and will deal only with troubled students of Warsaw Junior High at the start. Last year, 37 Warsaw Junior High students were referred to the home-school coordinator, the most from any school in the county. The grant will provide the salary for one special tea cher, equipment and supplies for the center. Troubled students will be sent to the center instead of being expelled. Flowers said the main emphasis at the state level continues to be diverting these troubled youth from the juvenile jus tice system by use of local alternative measures. These include in-school suspension, specialized foster homes, and alternative schools such as extended day school to replace state institutions for the status offenders, he added. Flowers told the Board he worked with 236 students and their parents during the past school year. Of these, 148 students had truancy problems and 88 others had problems involving indi gence, neglect, abuse, emo tional disturbances and ill ness. Child Abuse Suspect Gets More Charges A Wallace man who is in jail on charges that he scalded two children with hot water was charged last week with assault with a deadly weapon with intent to kill. Ira Rickey Wheeler. 19, was baby-sitting for the children of Mr. and Mrs. Thomas Edward Williams near Warsaw on July 28 when Sheriffs Department deputies were called. The children, age 18 months and 30 months, were found bruised and scalded. They were in New Hanover Memorial Hospital in Wil mington until their release this past week, officials said. Wheeler was originally charged with child abuse, a misdemeanor, but on Wed nesday the Sheriff's Depart ment raised the charge to assault with a deadly weapon with the intent to kill, caus ing serious bodily injury. The assault charge stems from the alleged scalding. Wheeler is being held under $5,000 bond. A preliminary hearing on the new charge is scheduled in district conn Breaking, Entery, And Larcenies Investigated tThe Duplin County erifFs Department inves tigated four breaking, enter ing, and larcenies reported last week. The Agricultural Exten sion office in Kenansville reported the theft of two cash Kxes, all the keys to the tension building and vend ing machines, an 8-mm i:ra. three calculators, an FM Zenith radio, half a if stamps, and a Wacca money bag. The total s of the missing items estimated at $487.50. incident occured during night of August 8, ac ing to investigating offi E.G. Baker and Rodney pen. le Employment Security imission reported the of a blue tacklebox aining $25, a payroll k, an oatmeal cookie, the coin changer from a t machine. The value of 1 missing-items was esti ed at $145.20. The age to the window, h the suspect is thought ave entered, is $50. A iect, Craig Boone of ansville, has been 'ged with breaking, ring and larceny. He has or record of larceny, and fingerprints matched e at the scene of the e. He is under $5,000 1 in the county jail. The lent occurred during the t of August 9, according investigating officer Rodney Thigpcn. Raymond Kenan of Route 3, Wallace, reported a break ing. entering, and larceny of a window air-conditioning unit from his home. It was valued at S400. Officer Earl Whitaker investigated. Ella McCaulley of Route 1, Magnolia, reported a break ing. entering and larceny of $12.62 from her home. Twenty-five dollars in damages was done to a win dow where the person en tered the McCaulley home. Burnis Hargrove and Burnell Sasser were the investigat ing officers. Two breaking and enter ings were reported last week to the Sheriffs Department. The Mill Swamp Community Center was the scene of a breaking and entering on August 7. According to re ports, the gate was broken op -ii and the intruders then " went swimming in the pool. Damage to the gate was estimated at S20. Officer V.J. Basden investigated. Two larcenies and two vandalisms were also re ported. Roland H. Jones, Jr. of Wallace reported the lar ceny of the battery from his 1967 Chrysler. The battery was valued at $40 by Officer E.G. Baker who investi gated. Christopher J. Scarbor ough of Route 2, Wallace, reported the larceny of two speakers, valued at $69, from his car. Burnell Sasser was the investigating officer. Virgil Newkirk, Jr. of Route 3, Wallace, reported a vandalism at his residence when five window sashes, valued at $100, were broken. Earl Whitaker investigated. Delmar Minchcw Buick Oldsmobile of Wallace re ported the vandalism of one of their autos. The wind shield had been shot with a pellet gun doing damage estimated at $280. Officer Burnell Sasser investigated. The Sheriffs department also received the report of an assault with a deadly wea pon. William J. Miller of Route 1. KenansviHe. was stabbed in the shoulder. No arrests have been made ac cording to Officer Glenn Jernisan. who investigated. The Sheriff's department assisted the N.C. Highway Patrol in stopping a stolen car and apprehending tne driver and passenger. Richard Lee Richardson and Johnny Morris of Wilming ton were. apprehended August 11 driving a car they had allegedly stolen from Rippy Cadillac-Oldsmobile in Wilmington. Buth men were taken to the Wilmington Police Department. HARRELLS CHRIS1 Orientation for all students of Harreils Christian Academy will take place Friday, August 24, from 9-1*1 a.m. Students will go imme . Whitley To Visit County Third District Congress man Charles 0. Whitley announced that he will be visiting Duplin County on Thursday, August 23rd. At 8 a.m. Whitley will be at Norris's Restaurant in Wallace for a dutch breakfast and at 1 p.m. he is scheduled to meet with the Warsaw Kenansville Rotary Club at Brown's Restaurant in Kenansville. During the remainder of the day, Whitley will visit area tobacco warehouses and other points of interest throughout the county. Chinquapin Youth Drowns Alvin Williams, 17, of Chinquapin, drowned Wednesday afternoon in the Northeast Cape Fear River. Hiram Brinson, county emergency services coordi nator, reported Williams and several other youths went to the river near Chinquapin about 5 p.m. after cropping tobacco all day. Williams' companions told him that Williams, who could not swim, stepped into a deep hole in the river and disappeared. They told Brin son they werfe unable to get Williams out of the river. Chinquapin Rescue Squud members dragged the river from the squad boat and recovered the body about 5:30 p.m. riAN ACADEMY diately to the auditorium upon arrival. Busses will run. Monday. August 27, is a regular class day, from 8:30 a.m. ? 3 p.m. THE GOVERNOR'S COMMITTEE OF EXCELLENCE is sealed at the Magnolia Town Hall. The committee listens as Magnolia officials report on the improvements and changes made to meet requirements for the Governor's Community of Excellence Award. Three Duplin County Towns i Up For Governor's Award Bv Emily Killette Three Duplin County towns were inspected last week by the N.C. Depart ment of Commerce officials for the Governor's Com munity of Excellence award. The judges visited Magnolia Tuesday morning and Kenansville in the after noon. They toured the Duplin Wine Cellars ir. Rose Hill, and attended a pig picking at the William Rand Kenan Memorial Amphi theatre after Tuesdays in spection. Wednesday morn ing the judges visited Beula ville. Each of the Duplin towns offered a slide presentation of their town, reports on recreation facilities, tourist 1 attractions, possible indus trial site locations, existing industry, water and sewage facilities, a community profile, clean-up campaign reports, and a scrapbook of the projects. Following each town meeting, there was a tour of the community for the judges. The purpose of the Com munity of Excellence award is to get communities in volved in a self-improvement campaign to help participat ing communities prepare for industrial growth. This growth would be Welcomed Duplin County had a 1976 total labor force of 18,130 persons with employment of 16,560 and unemployment of 1,570. the townspeople re ported. John Radford, who is in charge of the Governor's Committee of Excellence awards, commented, "The awards program was set-up to assist communities in meeting requirements necessary to get new indus try, but it does not insure that new industry will locate in these areas." According to Radford, only communities with a popula tion of 15.000 or less are eligible to enter the award program. This year only 107 of the 430 eligible in the state entered. Duplin County had six towns entering. Radford said no towns are winners until Gov. Hunt has studied the individual re ports, and on November 15 he will invite all the winners to Raleigh where he will personally present the awards. But, all three towns visited by Commerce Officials last week have been recom mended loGov. Hunt for the Excellence Award. Woody Brinson, Magnolia and Kenansville Town Adminis trator. said. Brinson was con tacted Monday after the towns had been recom mended to the Governor. "I don't know what the outcome of today's findings will be. but if Duplin County keeps doing what they've been doing for this award, it will certainly get what it set out for," Radford said. Radford urggd the. county to keep up the good work and he complimented the towns and citizens on their team efforts when he spoke at the pig picking in Kenansville. "The citizens have a ter rific storv to tell ? the Duplin story," Radford said during the Beulaville meeting. At the end of that meeting, he urged Duplin citizens to send a delegation to meet with prospective industrial clients in Raleigh. "We will give you time to tell the clients your story," Radford said, "and time to show the clients the advan tages* of coming to smalt community and getting out of the larger towns." Other Duplin towns par ticipating in the program are Warsaw, Wallace and Rose Hill. Warsaw was inspected in June. Wallace and Rose Hill will be inspected in September. Faison Approves Water Project The Faison Board of Com missioners met Tuesday, August 7 at the Town Hall and approved a water project for improvement of the present system. Faison will be using $385,000 to improve their present water system. Plans are to construct an elevated water tank, add six-inch watermains and appur tenances, drill a new well, upgrade the present well, add four-inch-raw waterlines, and to make water treatment plant improvements. As the meeting continued, a $1,750 grant for sewage system improvements was passed by council members. Also, the Board discussed the possibility of sending someone to school to train in public works. The discussion Dr. Price Appointed To State Accreditation Screening Committee Dr. Carl Price, president of James Sprunt Institute, has been appointed by the N.C. State Board of Education to a 3-year term on the N.C. Accreditation Screening Committee. The purpose of the com mittee is to review appli cations for accreditation by the state b