PROGRESS SENTINEL
VOL. XXXXV1I NO. 12 USPS 162-860 KENANSV1LLE, NC 28349 MARCH 22. 1984 20 PAGES THIS WEEK 10 CENTS PLUS TAX
Public Speaking Contest Held For Duplin 4-H'ers
The Duplin County 4-H clubs held a public speaking contest March 15 at
the Agricultural Extension building in Kenansville. The contest featured
seven county 4-H members from the three age divisions speaking on tonics
from friends to Easter chickens. Judges for the event included Mrs. Jo Jones
of Warsaw and Jimmy Newkirk of Kenansville, both James Kenan mgn
^ Sch<x>l instructors. Participants in the public speaking contest are pictured
above, left to right, junior division, third place Mary Starke of the Warsaw
Shamrock Gub, first place. Jonathan Fonvielle of the Oak Ridge Ouh and
second place Shannon Flowers of the New Horizons Club; senior division,
first place Roxane Pearsall of the DECA Gub and second place Garessa
Strawn of the Teachey Gub; and clpverbuds division, first place Scott
Flowers of New Horizons and second place Tedrick Kelly of the DECA Club.
Murphy Farms Buys Feed Mill
RALEIGH ? Murphy Farms of
I Rose Hill bid $1 million Monday in
' ?rnjptcy auction sale here to
buy the bankrupt Watson Seafood
ft & Poultry Co. feed mill just south of
.tose Hill.
The sale was held in the federal
bankruptcy court rooms in the old
federal building on Favetteville
Street Mall Monday afternoon.
Bankruptcy trustee Algernon But
ler Jr of Wilmington conducted the
sale Three bidders appeared.
The family-owned Murphy com
pany. one of the largest market hog
m producers in the country, was repre
* S?|ted by Holmes Murphy of Rose
(Sil. company president. State Rep.
V^ndell Holmes Murphy. D-Dup
lin, is vice president of the company.
The face-to-face auction followed
receipt of sealed bids in the trustee's
office early this year and an upset
bid that ws received earlier this
month
Two bids were received in the ini
tial round "of bidding. One was for
$800,000 from J.C. Howard Jr. of
Lenoir County, and Aaron Johnson
and Paul K. Phillips of Duplin
County, creditors of the bankrupt
firm The other was for $650,330
from Murphy Farms. An upset bid
of $816,000 was entered early in
March by Stephen Loo of Raleigh,
who was not otherwise identified.
When bidding began Monday.
Johnny R. Taylor of Greenville of
? * ?
fered $851,000. Butler had asked
for bid raises of at least $5,000
After bidding reached S951 .OCfc.
raises of as little as $500 were of
fered
Murphy Farms also operates a
mill in Goldsboro. Feed has been
produced in the Watson mill for
Murphy farms on a contract basis
since the Watson company's failure.
The mill was built by Ramsey
Feed Co. of Rose Hill in 1970. Den
nis Ramsey of Rose Hill sold the
company to Watson Seafood & Poul
try when he retired. The mill can
grind and mix 50 tons of feed an
hour with an operating crew of four.
The property includes 1.200 feet
of rail siding, which can accommo
_ ? -
date 13 cars. It has a 500.000-bushel
storage facility
The Watson company filed for
protection under Chapter 11 of the
federal bankruptcy code April 11,
1983. It was unable to obtain fi
nancing for a successful reorganiza
tion, and the sale of its facilities was
consequently ordered
Murphy Farms started in 1962
with three employees, only one of
whom was paid a salary. Wendell
Murphy and his father were the oth
er two employees. It now employs
130 people and contracts with some
55 growers to produce feeder pigs
and market hogs
Candidates And Issues
On The Ballot Of The May Primary
^ A constitutional amendment and a
7 slate of national, state and county
candidates will be voted on in the
primary election May 8 in North
Carolina.
Registration books will close for
the May 8 primary election on April 9
and polls will open on election day at
6:30 a.m. and close at 7:30 p.m.
Citizens of North Carolina will be
voting on an amendment to the state
constitution creating an agency to
issue revenue bonds to finance
agricultural projects.
y In recent years, industrial, manu
facturing and pollution control facili
' ties, health care facilities and
housing, and public power facilities
have all joined the list of proper
purposes for state borrowing
tnrougn tne issuance ot revenue
bonds. The proposed amendment to
the constitution would add to this list
agricultural projects.
The primary will also decide party
candidates for the November
election of the United States presi
dent and senate representatives.
North Carolina governor, lieutenant
governor, council of state and
judicial seats.
Democratic candidates appearing
on the primary ballot include Jesse
Jackson. George S. McGovern,
Walter F. Mondale, Reubin Askew.
Alan Cranston. John Glenn. Gary
Hart and Ernest F. Hollings.
Candidates for state and United
States senate offices on the Demo
cratic ballot of the May primary
include. Senator. James B. Hunt Jr..
Harrill Jones and Thomas L. Allred;
Governor, D.M. (Lauch) Faircloth,
Rufus Edmisten, Thomas O. Gil
more, James C. Green, Robert L.
Hannon, John Ingram. H. Edward
Knox. Glenn Miller, J.D. Whaley
and J. A. Baker; lieutenant governor,
Stephen S. Miller. Carl J. Stewart Jr.
and Robert B. Jordan III; Secretary
of State. Thad Eure and Betty Ann
Knudsen; Commissioner of Insur
ance. Billy Martin and James E.
Long; Commissioner of Labor, John
C. Brooks. Donald G. Wiseman and
Richard W. Barnes; Associate
Justine of the Supreme Court,
Raymond M. Taylor and Henry E.
Frye; Judge of the Court of Appeals.
John C. Martin, Meyressa Hughes
Schoonmaker and Robert L. Cecil.
Republican candidates for state
offices in the May Primary included.
United States Senator. Jesse Helms
and George Wimbish; Governor.
Ruby Thompson Hooper and George
Wimbish; Lieutenant Governor.
Franklin Jordan, Erick Little,
Barbara S. Perry. John N. Carring
ton and William S. Hiatt.
? Candidates on the May primary
ballot for first district Duplin County
Commissioner are William J. Costin
and J. Frank Steed; fifth district
Duplin County Commissioner.
George N. Ammons and D.J. Fussell
Sr. Duplin candidates on the May
ballot for Board of Education district
five. Amos Q. "Doc" Brinson Jr.
and Lillie F. Sanders; district one.
James F. Strickland and Riddick E.
Wilkins.
Goshen To Recruit Family Practitioner
The Goshen Medical Center Board
of Directors met March 13 in Faisdn
and agreed to begin recruitment of a
family practitioner to fill the vacancy
left April 1 by the resignation of
internist Dr. Jeff Margolis. M.D.
According to Goshen Medical
Center Administrator Bob Hauck.
officials from Rural Health Initiative
support the recruitment of a family
practitioner for the Faison clinic.
? Hauck also reported an increased
number of on-site encounters at the
medical center, but reminded the
Directors the clinic is still below
federal minimum standards.
After a brief executive session.
Directors moved to renegotiate the
"ontract with internist Dr. Ken Lee,
M.D., currently under full-time em
ployment with Goshen Medical
Center but serving half-time at both
the Faison clinic and the Plain View
_ Health Center in Greenevers. Lee's
? new contract will reflect the physi
cian's half-time association with both
Duplin medical centers.
In a motion by the Directors.
Goshen Medical Center will be
applying for up to $50,000 in grant
funds for health promotion and
disease prevention among the area's
elderly population. Elinor Ezzell.
Goshen Medical Center family coun
selor. and Hauch were appointed to
prepare the grant for review by the
Directors' program and finance
committees before submitting at the
April 1 deadline.
The problem with employees
working overtime was brought
before the Directors again by Hauck.
Under federt I guidelines, grant
funds for the operation of Goshen
Medical Center cannot be used to
pay overtime to medical support
staff. Hauck reminded the Board.
Directors unanimously passed a
motion to limit medical support staff
to 15 minutes of overtime after
closing at S p.m. except in emergen
cies. Collection of fees and additional
services will be the responsioimv oi
the medical provider after the
support staff leaves at closing time.
Hauck requested the Directors
delay the purchase of a time clock at
least 30 days in order to test an
alternate plan. Directors agreed to
delay the purchase but after 30 days
if the alternate plans for keeping
time records fails, a clock will be
purchased.
The new administrator advised the
Directors of current work to revise
job descriptions for the Goshen
Medical Center staff. And, in the
future. Hauck suggested the Direc
tors base pay raises on job per
formance according to the revised
description of employment.
In order to allow more people
access to the medical facility, Hauck
suggested to the Directors that a
change in working hours of Goshen
may be needed. Swing shifts or
operating hours during evenings or
weekends might be needed to better
service the community, uauik
pointed out to the directors. Working
with staff members. Hauck plans to
possibly devise new service hours
and present the schedule at the April
meeting of the Goshen Board of
Directors. Directors also approved
the allocation of one hour per month
of work time for private staff
meetings to discuss medical center
operations.
Goshen Board secretary Gerald
Bell reported plans to have a revised
set of medical center by-laws to
present at the April meeting of the
Directors. A committee of Goshen
Directors and Medical Center attor
ney Cafol Hawkins are currently
working to update the by-laws. The
by-laws will be pt%sented for ac
ceptance at an annual meeting 30
days after furnished to the Goshen
Medical Center membership.
Directors also approved a motion
to alternate monthly meetings for
committee work and regular sessions
of the full board.
School Board
Seeks Migrant
Education Program
Summer education programs for the
children of migrant farmworkers
have been conducted at the school
for several years.
The Duplin County Board of Edu
cation has submitted a request for a
summer migrant education program
at North Duplin Elementary School
near Calypso.
Summer programs for the children
of migrant farmworkers have been
conducted at the school for several
years. The programs are financed by
the federal government, but local
school boards must request funding
each year.
Austin Carter, director of federally
funded education programs in the
county, estimated that 110 migrant
Children would be eligible for the
session.
A new feature, if the project is
approved, will be a pre-school pro
gram. Carter said that last year some
children could not attend the school
because they had to baby-sit at
home. If the babies are brought
along, everyone may benefit, he said
this week. The proposed term would
be for children of pre-school age
through sixth grade.
The application included a budget
request of $47,844. The program
would hire four teachers, three
aides, a coordinator and a recruiter.
The school would be free to
migrant children. A migrant child is
one whose parents moved in or out of
the county for agricultural and
forestry employment in the last six
years.
The term would open June 18 and
end Aug. 3. School sessions would
open at 8 a.m. and continue until 4
p.m. weekdays. Children would re
ceive free breakfasts and lunches.
Transportation would be furnished.
The curriculum would include
reading, mathematics, arts and
crafts, music, physical education and
recreation.
Ban On Mobile
Homes In
Warsaw Rejected
The Town Board refused last week
to rezonc an area on Fast Hill and
East Chelly streets in Warsaw to bar
mobile homes.
About 60 people turned out for the
meeting. The board had received a
petition signed by 38 people re
questing the zoning change.
The crowd was divided on the
issue.
Commissioner Billy Kennedy
made a motion to rezonc the portion
of the area in the city from R-6 to R-8
and the portion outside of the city
but within the one-mile zoning area
from R-6 to R-20. The motion died
foil lack of a second.
B'he town zoning ordinance allows
rniteile homes in R-6 areas ? that is.
on V"s of 6.000 square feet. Mobile
homes cannot be placed in R-8 areas
? lots of at least 8.000 square feet.
There are 45 mobile homes in the
area, mostly in J.H. Hines' mobile
home park. Hines said that when the
zoning ordinance was approved in
1971. the area was zoned to R-6 to
allow mobile homes.
In other business, the board
terminated the Douglas Turner Co.
contract on the town's federal
Housing and Urban Development
housing renovation contract.
The board directed Woody
Brinson, coordinator of the HUD
project for McDavid Associates of
Kcnansvillc. to negotiate with other
contractors for completion of reno
vation work on five Houses. Brinson
told the board that Turner had
? s ued on 'he ,* r> eel only two day .
nee l",o f-cbruir boar 'Greeting.
In its February meeting the hoard
allowed Turner 10 days to complete
the work or face termination of the
contract. The hoard directed Larry
Simmons, superintendent of public
works, to get eost estimates for
laying tile and covering a large
drainage ditch. Drainage from Ihc
largc paved area around the new
Town Hall is causing the ditch banks
to erode.
Properly belonging to Lucy
Benson next to the ditch is also
threatened. She said the ditch banks
were stable before the hall was built
and the parking area paved.
Public hearings will be held at 7:30
p.m. March 26 and 2:30 p.m. April
16 at the Town Hall on Community
Development Block Grant applica
tions.
The board voted to pay full
hospital insurance premiums for
employees who retired with 30 years
of service and arc at least 62 years
old.
Bids To Be Received
For Magnolia Depot
The days of the old brick railway
depot in Magnolia are numbered. ,
Sealed bids for removing or
demolishing it will be received at the
town hall until 5 p.m. April 9. The
town board will open bids during its
regular meeting at 7:30 p.m. April
10.
The board set the bid deadline
during its March meeting last week.
Several years ago the town bought
the depot from Seaboard System
Railroad for S600. The building was |
to be moved and converted into a
library or museum. Estimates on the ,
cost of moving it. however, ranged .
from $20,000 to'$40,000, and that
was considered prohibitive. ,
Seaboard retained title to the land (
and the right to order the structure ,
moved or demolished on 90 days' ,
notice.
When the depot was built between
100 and 120 years ago, it was the
only brick depot between Wilming- ,
ton and Goldsboro. Magnolia then
served a trading area that covered ,
much of Duplin and part of eastern
Sampson County.
In other action last week, thp
board:
? VOieU I" dM^ HIV >ldic w
"drag" or grade several dirt streets,
rhc town would pav the state on a
pcr-hour basis. The town's grading
machine needs about $6,000 worth of
repairs.
? Voted to pave 1,300 feet of
Carroll Street between U.S. 117 and
McRav Street at a cost of about
$5,000.
? Set public hearings for 7:30
p.m. March 27 and 7:30 p.m. April
10 at the town hall on a community
block grant application.
? Heard the town had received
518,180 our of $26,000 owed for
property taxes last year. Kathryn
Pope, town clerk, said she sent out
145 tax bills and received payment
m 292. The assessed valuation of
axablc property in the town is $4.3
Tiillion ?.
? Received $187.77 from the
town's three percent share of Uri
vision Cable Television Co. receipts
(luring 1983. The service became
available late in the year The
company reported revenue of $6,259.
? Heard a report that a fish fry
will start at 5 p.m. March 24 at the
fire station with proceeds to be used
to buy firefighting equipment.
? ? ?
Auto Kills Man
Near Rose Hill
A Rose Hill man was struck by a
cor and killed around 8:15 p.m.
V|> nday of last week on N.C. 11
out fou<- miles east of Rose Hill.
Willie Down Farrior Jr., 31, of
R iite 2. Rose Hill was standing on
the right side of the northbound lane
when the oncoming car hit him, the
Highway Patrol said. The incident is
being investigated by Trooper R.N.
Johnson.
Information about the car and
driver was unavailable.